Ive been reading some threads on doing it, but i havnt found one to answer my question. My problem lies in the fact I dont have a whole body to mock up, to get my stance right, and then level the motor. I know I want the front to be about 2 inches lower than the rear, and thats where it gets trickey, I had assumed that the top of the frame would be level in stock trim, so I lowered the front 2 inches, and started some dry mock ups, however, when I put the tranny on the flatty, the torque tube would have been half above the center crossmember. So WAY higher than I have seen in any pictures. Clearly, the frame must slant down in stock form? But how much, how can I get my frame set up at the right angle to do some mock ups and test fitting? Axle center lines is too tough I think, my floor isnt level enough to just use it. Any one have any ideas, or a way of measuring somehow with some degree of accuracy, and furnish me with the dimensions, so I can get a better idea of what Im looking at? Thanks Beecher
First set your frame level and compensate for your floor pitch and out of level. You will achieve the desired rake 2 inches with your tires and wheels. I assume you are using a model a ford frame and we're the original was pretty flat. Pictures would help a ton and more info as well. You can build a complete chassie with just a few dimensions like firewall location but 28 29 30 or 1931 body would help . Also will you be running a hood fenders or highboy style.
Get hold of Vern Tardel's book on building a traditional A v8 he covers all the ways to achieve what you are asking. One thing you will find is that if you are using bigger tires in the rear than the front, your torque tube will always be lower at the engine than at the banjo. it gets worse when you drop the front axle. good luck
I have an A Pickup/A frame. 750x16's out back, 500/525x16 up front. My frame rail next to the engine, right now as the finished truck sits on really level floor in our shop, is 3.1° down in front with a digital level. The carb surface of my my intake is dead level, like it's supposed to be. I have an open drive banjo so I can't speak about the torque tube but, unless you Z the rear of the frame, or change the trans crossmember some way, why would the torque tube not be in the same spot in relation to the trans? I'm just asking cause I don't know.
Yes it is a 31 frame, tire size is up in the air at present. I got to look at a stock 28 roadster pick up last night, and its frame had a heck of a rake to to it, 3.5 inches on a level floor, which is exactly the same as how I re-jigged mine to "look" right with the height of the rear of the tranny. My motor mounts sit flush with the top of the frame, like so many others AV8s ive seen. However, the roadster pick up has 6 inches of wheel gap in the back, and only 2.5 in the front, so if I reset the frame to have more moderate rear wheel gap, the frame will be right back where it was, and the torque tube mount will be too high to the crossmember. More confusion??? Ill try to get some pics if Im not too late at work tonight.
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