57 ford 9in?

Ive found a local 1957 ford car 9in for cheap, I never really considered putting anything other then a banjo under a model A coupe but i heard these fit good. anyone got pics of thier car with one or one similar? and id really like to know the width from backing plate to backing plate to compare to a banjo if anyone also knows id really appreiate it!!

 

IF ... it is really a 57 Ford 9 inch ... it will measure about 57 and 1/2 inches. That measurement is from the wheel mounting surface to wheel mounting surface.

 

thanks! of course when i go to look at it im gonna pull out the measuring tape 1st to make sure

 

The 57 Ford 9 inch is very possibly the most desired rear end by 1932 Ford folks. Every REAL 57 Ford rear end I have had ( over a dozen ) had a factory drain plug in the bottom of the housing. 1957 Fords had unusual ( by todays numbers ) gear ratios. They had 2.91, 3.56, 3.89 and other not common ratios.

I have a 57 rear end under my 32 3W ...



You can even get a nice 7 inch rim under the fenders.



The only down side to them is that the brake drums are difficult to buy new and expensive when you do find them.
I always upgrade the backing plates up to a 64/65 Ford. They have the self adjusting mechanism and the drums are easily found and reasonably priced.

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A friend's car, he added local GM disc brakes to it and only gained a minimal track increase. Stops on dime and everything fits nicely under fenders.

 

That's a late model rear. the '57 Ford rear was a smooth back.

The '57 rear isn't a 9" either by the way, it has an 8 3/4 ring. You can put a 9" center in there but stock it is an 8 3/4" rear.

 

Oops, should have checked first. Forgot 57 has smooth housing.

 

Porknbeaner: I've never heard that they were 8-3/4 & I've got 3 of them & never measured.

I learn something every day. I just got a unmolested one about 2 weeks ago from Ohio but it's still on my trailer here in Oregon. Guess i'll have to break it down & check which ratio it has & check the ring gear diameter. Do your records show only 4 or 5 ratio's as others have stated?

Thanks Movin/on

 

Most of them that I have had were either 3.56 or 3.89, I had one out of a post car once that was pretty close to 3.0 it could have been a 2.91 I suppose. I don't think they came with a much deeper gear than the 3.89 the carrier is too small. I don't think that ford offered much in the line of gear ratios stock.

I have a '58 wagon rear here that was a 3.56. '58 though the early '60s they were not a true smooth back they were a dimple back.

Here is a pick of a '58 rear. If it has these dimples it is not a '57 rear. '57 was the only year for the true smooth backed rear.

 

I put one such rearend under my 30 Cabriolet with stock spring and stock trailing arms reinforced and modified to ladder bars with single large uniball mounted just under the front universal joint. The wheels were 15x7 with 235/75-15 tires. Wheel wells and fenders stock width.

 

3.10 and 4.11 were two other ratios available 1n 57.

 

IF ... you are not running a good bit of horsepower ( I saw where you will have a Y-block 272 ) ... a 5 lug Maverick could be a better choice for a Model A. It is a 8 inch ( less horsepower loss ) and it is the most narrow 5 lug Ford rear end made. It is almost 2 inches more narrow than the 57 Ford ( 1 inch per side ).

Brake parts are easier to find and purchase also.

 

Ever try finding backing plates for the 8"? They don't exist except in wrecking yards and then they are most likely worn the same way the ones you are trying to replace. Take a good hard look at the Rangers, the 95 - 01 Explorer is 59.5 and can be easily narrowed by useing two short axles, easy to get parts and has the "drum" style emergenct brake inside the top hat.

 

if you need to replace the drums on it, they are hard to find and expensive. i used 53 mercury drums on mine and they were the right size. 11x2

 

57 also has a one year only pinion seal. It is huge compaired to other 9's and very expensive. If the front seal looks like it is 4' instead of 3" it is a 57.

 

Actually ... backing plates off a 9 inch Ford will bolt right on ... if the 9 inch Ford has the small bearing.

 

thanks for all the information, now from everything i know i should easily determine wether it is a true 57, and the guy said it may not have brakes on it "he dont remember" lol, but even if it dont i know what will work! thanks guys i do appreiate the help

 

The 57 Ford's the had overdrive came with 4:11 gears.

 

Fairlane that actually sounds correct. It seems to me that for mid '50s door slammers the rear of choice was the OD '57 as they had a deeper gear than the regular cars.

 

so what year did ford actually make a true 9" rearend for a car? that 8 3/4" stuff is new to me.

 

I don't think thay made a 9" rear until the early to mid '60s. I think about the time the quit making the round back rear.

 

i got my "57" rearend today, turns out, its not a 57, it wasnt even the right lug pattern, its 5 on 5 1/2, no smooth back either, and the seals was smaller then 4 inches, and it was only 57ins wide, with self adjusting brakes, haha thanks to yalls help i was quickly able to realise it wasnt a 57, but i did buy it, pretty sure its a 9in, but i can only personally tell by the hogs head, but it dont have one. no clue what it came out of being that short with that lug pattern (32 spline) its also missing a drum so i needa find out what its off of so i can get one. im gonna try to get more information on the drum size and post a picture to see if yall may know what its out of, and yet it may have been shorten once before

 

its actually 59inches wide :/ kinda worried because im not running fenders and using 28/29 wire wheels on my 30 coupe, but the drums are 11inches in diameter on the inside and the pads are 2 1/4 inches wide, any ideas of what its from?

 

Early bronco sounds like. Good rear too.

 

If you can take all the nuts off of the pumpkin with a socket it ain't a 9", it is an 8". If you need a 9/16" wrench on two of the bottom nuts, it is a 9".

 

thats the way i know

but gonna go try the other real quick

 

theyre all 9/16 if that tells ya anything

 

57's rear ends were considered a nine inch, and the narrowest was the 57 Tbird at 56 inches.57 -59 station wagons, Rancheros, retractable hardtops and convertables had bigger diameter axles,which required bigger ID bearings.... and all were 28 spline. they were stronger to carry the xtra weight, but were no where near as stong as the later 31spline axles. If it fits and you have one, use it..limitless possibilities on gear ratios from 6.50 to 2.56- just in case you want to run Bonneville...

 

i like the way you think just wondering if itll be too wide looking with the model A wire wheels

 

Yep all 9/16 but what I was trying to say is if you need a wrench to remove the pumpkin its a 9. If you can take the pumpkin out without using a wrench (only socket) it is a 8"