I have a 50 shoebox tudor sedan that I picked up for free. Kind of a basket case with rust in the usual places, no interior and no drive train but definitely a worth building and the price was right. I rounded up a SBF 302 and C-4 to start mocking up the drive train. I also found a Maverick and Comet that I can get the rear ends out of for free. From what I can find those rear ends only came from the factory with two gear ratios, 2.79:1 or 3:1. The two rear ends that I found both happen to have 2.79:1 gears. My question for those who own shoeboxes and are running a similar drive train with a maverick rear. Does this gear ratio work well for you? I imagine it would do fairly well on the highway, not so sure about off the line. I am not building a high horse race car but don't want it to be a complete dog off the line either. Also what size tires are you guys running because obviously that will have an effect on the final drive ratio. Thanks in advance for any advice you can provide.
Running a 300 maveric c-4 302 and it's just fine. I could care less how fast it is off the line. I was surprised on day as i was turning onto a main road in the city and the car was comming faster than i thought so i nailed after i straightened out and chirped the tires, 275x15 www in second gear shift. Overdrive would be nice if you want . Depends how deep your pockets are. I wish i had the 279 thou. Those maveric rears are gold today and you got a freebee?
Thanks for the info tedley, I apprecitate it. Its nice to get some real world information from someone running the same set up. Looks like I will start on the drive train mock up soon!
If your just starting your build you may pick up some tidbits of info in my thread. No car is built the same but it may help. http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/just-another-shoebox-budget-build.524648/
tedley, So, I got off work this morning at 8AM with every intention of loading up my trailer and heading out to pick up the Maverick so I could pull the rear end today. Thought I would just glance at your build thread before I headed out. It just turned 11:00 and I have not left the computer, just finished the entire thread. Waste of 3 hours? Absolutely not!!! Great thread and very impressed with your skill level and the final product of your work. Beautiful car!! I love the grill and skirts in particular. I never cease to be amazed at the amount of talent on this board. I pick up so many tips from you as well as others like you that I am sure are going to save me a lot of headaches throughout my build. I am definitely a rank amateur in comparison to many of you guys but love to learn new things and have found no better way than just diving in head first. I may start a build thread once I amass the major parts that I need to get going and actually have something to post that may be of interest to others. Thanks so much for taking the time to document your build so thoroughly..
Get the maverick rear, and then you can swap the gear ratio if you decide the 2.79 or 3.00 is too tall. I believe 3.25, 3.40 and 3.55 are the higher factory ratios, none more than 3.55 and those are hard to find. Aftermarket you can get 3.73 or 4.11; however with the C4 non-OD you might be good to stick with 3.00 range. You are not building a drag racer.
38Chevy454, I went and picked up the car today and will take the rear end out of it tomorrow and scrap the rest as only the body shell remains. Great deal for me. The car belongs to a friend of mine and I got the rear end for free if I would just haul the rest to the scrap yard for him. Can't beat that with a stick!! He has one more and I may just take that one as well on the same kind of deal. Never know when you might need another rear end and it sounds as if these Maverik and Comet rear ends are getting tougher and tougher to find. I think your advice is right on track. I plan to run it with the 2.79's in it and see how it does. It sounds as though it has worked out pretty well for tedley. As you said I can always swap out the ring and pinion later if need be. Thanks for the advice. By the way, love the COE in your avatar. P.S. looked at your web site for the bear claw style latches and mounting kits. They look great and at a good price. I will be ordering some soon!!
If you were to put in a Ford AOD instead of the C-4 you would gain two things a deeper first gear and and overdrive,best donor years are 1988-93 these have the improved valve body and lubrication upgrades and are still non-computer.
Just a note..I had a 71 torino with stock 302 and c4 and the car was pretty zippy at 3700 lbs..As your car will be about 500 lbs lighter it should be fine..
You will be fine with the 2.79 ratio, especially considering the automatic (C4) has a torque converter that multiplies torque on initial acceleration which, in effect, mocks a lower gear ratio. Consider that Ford used 2.79/3.0 ratios in many applications, not just Maverick/Comet, but intermediate and full size cars as well. None were considered 'dogs', even if they weren't Drag Specials. Ray
I have considered the AOD and may upgrade to that transmission in the future so it is nice to know what years to look for. Thanks for the info. For now I am going with the C-4 because I have one available and like many people that I know,I am working with a limited budget. Posted using the Full Custom H.A.M.B. App!
Thanks, I appreciate you responding. Your experience makes me much more comfortable going with this drive train choice. Posted using the Full Custom H.A.M.B. App!
Thanks for the info. I am not looking to build a drag car so I really think this drive train combo will work out fine. Thanks for the information on the torque converter. Posted using the Full Custom H.A.M.B. App!
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