Serious Question/Tech

[2tall2beahotrodder]

I have been tosing back and forth a few nights about an up comming project... I found a 52 chevy near boston (6 hour drive) for real cheep but it does need a total restoration...
Then tonight I was looking in the speical intrest newspaper, and stubbled on a guy about a 2 hour trip north, with a complete original 50 chevy coupe that has been laying in a barn for 30 years.. The guys says their are tiny rust spots near the quarters,and needs a new floor... But everything else is like Freeky brand new... Now ofcourse its more expensive, but only a few more hundred, plus he said "nagotionalbe"

I gotta wait till i see some pics to decide, but im leaning on the one closest to me...

My question is: What year Frames Fit under that 50 chevy coupe body... I was thinking a 70s -80s frame with all the suspension.... (Like that 3 week build chevy with the malibu wagon parts)

I really dont wanna play with suspension etc... since i dont have much experience.. So ill probably find a donor car to throw under the chebbie...

steve-

[chromedRAT]

not sure what cars you'd want under it. aren't novas sub-frame cars? i always thought they were without a frame. not my thing, so i dunno. i think S10 swaps might be a common one for that car. i got a 93 buick rear end for my 50 pontiac and welded and gussted the whole suspension section between my original rails, and am using the factory front end.

[ELpolacko]

[ QUOTE ]
I really dont wanna play with suspension etc... since i dont have much experience

[/ QUOTE ]

Man, I don't know how many times your question has been asked before but for damn sure you will not be the last.

What is so damn wrong with the stock frames that make everyone run to replace them? By your own admission for lack of experience, I would steer clear of a frame swap for now. If the stock front end is serviceable and your cash is short, save it. If you have couple of bucks to spend, buy a Mustang II kit and a salvage Mustang suspension. Early Chevies are so easy to build using the streetrod "formula" and can have so much charicter doing so. I just don't see the need to rip it a new one so to speak.

[haring]

I agree with El Pol. There's no real reason to swap frames. It's no easy task or weekend project. I think you'd be just as happy working on the suspension progressively -- stage 1: cut coils, blocks, stage 2: front clip, etc, etc. That way you could do it simply to start, and build skills while saving up for bigger plans later. Larry Watson didn't swap an 80s frame under Grapevine, and you'd be hard pressed to find a better looking '50 Chevy (I'm sure it rode like crap, though). http://www.jalopyjournal.com/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Regarding which project car to buy ...

Don't be too hasty to take on someone else's nightmare. A golfer never sells his lucky putter.

Wait to get the right project, and don't buy anything until you do enough research to know if you are actually getting a deal or not. How long have you been looking for a Chevy? If you just started, wait, and you'll find the right one. It's good to start with the best car you can afford.

If you're going to drive six hours one way for a car, you'd better be in love with, dream about it, and have decided that you just can't go on living without it. 'Cause if not, it's a long damn ride.

I know where there is a '54 sitting under blankets, and the owner won't sell, saying, "someday I'm going to get to that."

[Fat Hack]

Hmmm...doesn't your 'friend' have an 80s V6 Gutless???

G-body (Cutlass, Regal, Monte Carloe, Grand Prix, Malibu) cars of the 1978-87 era have perimeter frames that are common swap material. If you have one of these cars in your vast collection, you may already have what ya need on hand.

(Though the wheelbase may be off a few inches, but you can WELD, right?)

I'd agree with those that are tellin' ya to use the STOCK frame, though. It has leaf springs out back and A-arms with coils up front. You can lower it, add BOLT-ON disc brakes if you want, and 10-bolt axles BOLT IN to these cars...giving you everything you would "gain" with a hasty late model frame swap for alot less grief.

Hell, buy BOTH of them cars...sell the Gutless...and build a couple of groovy Chevys after you get your 41 Sled and 47(?) Chevy done...you're young, ambitious and got lotsa time...don't wait till you're old and feeble!!

(Hey, wasn't your friend looking for a 49-54 Chevy?...let him buy the one you DON'T want!!! http://www.jalopyjournal.com/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif)

Good luck! http://www.jalopyjournal.com/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif http://www.jalopyjournal.com/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/cool.gif

[Rocky]

The only way I'd contemplate a frame swap is if I'm working on a car with no floors and a rust damaged frame. If you strap on this frame swap, you'll have to make new body mounts, mount brackets, and prolly need to shorten/lengthen the rails to fit the body. That said, I have a buddy who owns a body shop and is doing a full frame/firewall/floorpan swap on a 49 chevy fastback. Not sure what year the donor car was but he used the entire frame and floorpan with the late model firewall intact. The job required a hoist capable of lifting his entire chevy body up to roll the late model chasis under it.a huge undertaking even for this guy and he does this kinda work for a living.
Think twice about this one.
Conversly, I kept the stock suspension under my 50 chevy sedan delivery with lowering blocks and cut front coils with a smallblock chevy and a 4 speed. It rode and drove no worse that the original car did when new. If you do eventually buy the 50 or the 52 chevy, update it with a 53/54 steering box. They have tapered roller bearings instead of the stupid bronze bushings used in the pre 53 chevys....

[2tall2beahotrodder]

The reason I wanted to buy the 52 6 hours away, was he had a complete frame with complete suspension.. Yea it needed new brakes and shit, but everything was there.... The body was rough, which is what i disliked.
I was just going to cut the springs, and put blocks in the back... -Im not getting into Mustang II again http://www.jalopyjournal.com/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/crazy.gif-

While i was talking to the owner of the 50 chevy, he told me the frame was rusted and rough....but the whole car is amazing ... Still have to wait on those pics..

Hack- i own a 84 olds cutlass, and i do know how to weld http://www.jalopyjournal.com/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/tongue.gif pretty damn good for a younggun...
And my buddie wanted a 53-54 chevy, and only that body style ... Goo figure http://www.jalopyjournal.com/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/blush.gif http://www.jalopyjournal.com/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Have wanted a 49-52 daily driver for the last 2 years...

Thanks guys, Sorry if this has been posted before...

steve-

[burndup]

maybe the ol man doesn't know shit, looked under there and saw something reddish brown and freaked out and had a cow... prolly surface rust... go look at it!

[2tall2beahotrodder]

[ QUOTE ]
maybe the ol man doesn't know shit, looked under there and saw something reddish brown and freaked out and had a cow... prolly surface rust... go look at it!

[/ QUOTE ]

True... The guy really didnt know what the hell he was talking about.. He would say, "theirs some rust under neath, um next to that thing-ama-gig" He had to explain everything... Then he mentioned Jesse James ride(54) Right then, i knew he wasnt a real car guy, just a poser.. LMAO

steve-

[MercMan1951]

If I knew then what I know now, I MIGHT not have attempted my frame swap...the aftermarket is LOADED with easy to adapt kits for front and rear suspension setups, to go more modern, if that's what you're looking for.

If I had known NOW what I didn't know about 2 years ago with regards to how much work is ACTUALLY involved in doing a full frame swap, I may think twice. If you're lucky enough to find a bare frame for sale that will work, you're WAY ahead of the game. Getting rid of what you won't use is harder than it sounds...at least here in metro Detroit. Just gathering materials and equipment (if you don't happen to own a shop) is a drain on the wallet. Luckily, Feder had some helpful tips, since he seems to be the king of Merc chassis swaps as far as I'm concerened...but for what I had to spend on tools and various unexpected things that I needed, I could have just used the stock frame, bought a few pieces, and spent a few weekends messing with stuff. As it is, I have a YEAR of weekends, and I only got the two cars put together as ONE a few weeks ago.

My quest is a little different, my main goal was not just for the suspension, but also to gain fuel injection and a comfy ride. I plan to use the car as a daily...and in Michigan with it's pot-hole ridden roads and 20 degree mornings followed up with 70 degree days, it had to be more reliable than a buggy-framed carbed setup. But that's just my taste.


oh, and yeah...by the time you re-engineer everything to adapt old to new, figuring out and messing with old suspension systems doesn't seem all that daunting anymore.

...and that's my .02 http://www.jalopyjournal.com/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smirk.gif

[2tall2beahotrodder]

I dont have the funds to pay for aftermarket shit...I have pretty much all the tools except englishwheel etc.. I can see where your comming from,
but for me its going to be a death rod no matter what... Im planning on useing a maibu wagon for the donor, unless this frame is in better shape than the guy says...

Ill get back to you guys with pics tonight!! http://www.jalopyjournal.com/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif

steve-

[katzenhammer]

Get your research done first before you decide on using the Malibu. Narrow it down to one car and what that one car is going to need to make it suitable to your needs. What makes the suspension on the Malibu wagon so much better than having to deal with MII? Is it because you have a Malibu ready and available?.

Good luck man. Remember, get the research done first!

Justin

[2tall2beahotrodder]

[ QUOTE ]
Get your research done first before you decide on using the Malibu. Narrow it down to one car and what that one car is going to need to make it suitable to your needs. What makes the suspension on the Malibu wagon so much better than having to deal with MII? Is it because you have a Malibu ready and available?.

Good luck man. Remember, get the research done first!

Justin

[/ QUOTE ]

Yep, i gots a 78 maibu wagon in the drive way.. It was my fathers daily construction work car.. the boddy is totaly shot but everything else is decent...
Cant afford Mustang II...

[MercMan1951]

The key is to match the wheelbase... measure yours and size up the Malibu...

...and for the record, my running $400 Lincoln Town Car doner probably cost less than an english wheel, so you may be on to something! You won't need it though. Just lots of MIG wire. http://www.jalopyjournal.com/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Good Luck! Keep us posted!

[ramrod]

Hey Rat check out www.geocities.com/lowbuckrats/ (http://www.geocities.com/lowbuckrats/) This guys a friend of mine and a real cool guy.He's doing the same thing your talking about.