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Technical ANYONE STILL USING TUBE FRONT AXLES?

Discussion in 'The Hokey Ass Message Board' started by HOTRODPRIMER, Aug 10, 2020.

  1. You get the suspension set up correctly with a transverse spring and the axle will ride great, no harsh ride, some of the older multi leaf springs will beat you to death. HRP
     
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  2. Atwater Mike
    Joined: May 31, 2002
    Posts: 11,625

    Atwater Mike
    Member

    ^^^^ Hear, hear.
     
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  3. Baumi
    Joined: Jan 28, 2003
    Posts: 3,043

    Baumi
    ALLIANCE MEMBER

    image1.jpeg Another fun fact:DDrove my 34 yesterday and got stranded because the battery cables were jumping off the the terminals TWICE, I did not hit a pothole, just small regular bumps on the road , haahaha... I laughed so hard my belly hurt. What a great test ride. But still a bit on the bumpy side... I guess no one can blame Henry for that, hahaha Oh well , back to fixing bugs---
     
  4. jimgoetz
    Joined: Sep 6, 2013
    Posts: 517

    jimgoetz
    Member

    I never did anything with this one I traded it off but it was a running hot rod at one time. I had an old circle track guy tell me that these were a hot set up some people could really make these handle.
     
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  5. 3W JOHN
    Joined: Oct 8, 2015
    Posts: 1,156

    3W JOHN
    Member

    I have a old superbell that I bought in 1980 and it's still in the box on the shelf.
     
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  6. High test 63
    Joined: May 8, 2020
    Posts: 423

    High test 63
    Member

    I think a chromed one looks sleek and beautiful on a fenderless roadster.
     
  7. bobscogin
    Joined: Feb 8, 2007
    Posts: 1,771

    bobscogin
    Member

    I've got a set of swivel perches on my '29 rpu and they work well for allowing changes in the caster without twisting the front spring. However, they won't compensate for twist in the axle relative to the axle ends if your radius rod brackets are attached by the perch's threaded shank. There's no provision for movement between them.

    Bob
     
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  8. There is not a doubt in my mind that a Chrome plated smooth SuperBell tube axle looks better than a original axle that has been chromed, I thought my original I beam dropped axle under my sedan was smooth enough to chrome plate, upon receiving it it looked good but wasn't what I had envisioned. HRP
     
  9. I hope they're still being used. I have a brand new one, although never used and bought a long time ago. Is it still brand new? Hmmm?
     
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  10. dana barlow
    Joined: May 30, 2006
    Posts: 5,115

    dana barlow
    Member
    from Miami Fla.
    1. Y-blocks

    When helping my son Lance,build his "Pandora" 23 T,the pile of parts I found him to get started with,had a Econoline axle in it,but a lot of other handy parts had been put into a failed project 4sale cheep. We home built a frame an patched up a old well used Glass T body with over a doz. holes in it. Together we fab a lot,cut n welded,painted on the back patio an did our own seats an panels. He got rebuilt SBC n tranny,but it ran poorly< turned out they had timed the cam wrong,I fixed that an he learned a ton.
    He really wanted a chrome front axle,an got a new 4 in. drop tube one from speedway.
    Tube chrome shines really great,the round dose good things to light. Big.jpg
     
    Last edited: Aug 12, 2020
  11. Tube axle on my son's Model A......came with the Stage 3 frame he got from the Rod Factory in 1993.

    april 7 2007.3.JPG may 17 2009.1.JPG
     
  12. I never suggested that you should. I just suggested that you should do what you do and not explain yourself to anyone.
     
  13. High test 63
    Joined: May 8, 2020
    Posts: 423

    High test 63
    Member

    I'm running old un dropped i-beams on my AA and roadster, but in my minds eye ,i imagine, in the future, having a roadster with a chromed, dropped, super bell with it's sexy curves and tapers.
     
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  14. High test 63
    Joined: May 8, 2020
    Posts: 423

    High test 63
    Member

    ....but then again, my real, actual eye sees a nice undropped ford beam axel with spindles, paid for, in my actaul stash, that would look great drilled out and mounted "spring behind"....
     
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  15. deathrowdave
    Joined: May 27, 2014
    Posts: 3,518

    deathrowdave
    ALLIANCE MEMBER
    from NKy

    If you expand this one you can see it’s a vintage chassis works tube . 188EA519-C431-4A48-952F-FB378F7BF7DC.jpeg
     
  16. deansrr
    Joined: Jul 20, 2011
    Posts: 66

    deansrr
    Member

    Planning on using chrome one from Pete and Jakes or TCI on 30 Tudor. Still trying to decide which one to go with
     
  17. tubman
    Joined: May 16, 2007
    Posts: 6,913

    tubman
    ALLIANCE MEMBER

    I seem to remember that M.A.S. made them in drops of up to 10". How's about the drop on this one?:eek: wildt.png
    You can't do that with an I-beam.
     
  18. I used a SuperBell, and mono spring,
    I found that the "I" beam did flex too much.

    IMG_0930.JPG
     
  19. LOL you can but you have to add metal. :D

    This will make you chuckle, the axle my dad made is dropped 3 5/8" I asked my sister because she was older when he was making them and she said that he did odd drops because he did not want anyone to mistake his axle for someone else's. o_O:eek::p:D:D:D
     
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  20. brianf31
    Joined: Aug 11, 2003
    Posts: 937

    brianf31
    Member

    Yep, an old 70s Pete & Jake's unit still going strong. 20190720_115210.jpg
     
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  21. CrazyDaddy
    Joined: Mar 30, 2002
    Posts: 669

    CrazyDaddy
    Member
    from Austin TX

    Damn that's a fine looking T !
     
    Al's.C.D.T likes this.
  22. Thanks very much for the compliment.
     
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  23. Deuces
    Joined: Nov 3, 2009
    Posts: 23,751

    Deuces

    Only if it's a straight axle..... :D:oops:
     
  24. jimmy six
    Joined: Mar 21, 2006
    Posts: 14,795

    jimmy six
    ALLIANCE MEMBER

    2 different ones since 1962 2AE5976D-1D41-4222-9CAB-4DCE0B785347.jpeg
     
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  25. I've built 3 Model A's, and all 3 have run tube axles. If they were good enough for Frank Kurtis to use in the 500+ midgets he built and sold, and also his sprint cars, and Indy roadsters, they are good enough for me. And they all ran hairpins, and had no failures. I'm not beating on mine near as much as a sprint car on a mid west dirt track.

    [​IMG]
     
  26. fortynut
    Joined: Jul 16, 2008
    Posts: 1,038

    fortynut
    Member

    Lots of contradictions appear from time to time, from where I often wonder. Yes, Ford used their tube axle in 1937 on automobiles that came equipped with the 60 Horsepower Engine --- the engineers, perhaps thinking it would make up in weight savings the difference in performance from the 85 Horsepower offered elsewhere. As I remember, the 4-bar front set up came along not as a fix for the tube front axle but because it did something different when it came to correcting deflection and side play of the axle, and added to a car's handling. I never thought traditional included bump steer and lane crossing as part of the deal and have no rocks to throw at people who like 4-Bars. As a matter of fact one of my favorite race cars that beat a lot of sports cars from across the pond had that set-up and to me it is as trad as it was rad. Yeah, I mean the one Duffy Livingston built and drove to great success, and was bought and restored some time back.
     
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  27. Cyclone Kevin
    Joined: Apr 15, 2002
    Posts: 4,223

    Cyclone Kevin
    Alliance Vendor

    E1CFE67B-0D88-448D-9B51-8247CF5882C0.jpeg CE4042CB-E0F9-4972-A42E-98DF94DECDE3.jpeg 55CAB853-D2DE-4367-A8E7-823E8E7A16F4.jpeg 8965B457-BA44-4D69-9272-1D5B22616661.jpeg
    All of these run Either a Bell-Cragar (my 32), and 3 Super Bell Equipped. Got a lot of years under all of those chassis.
     
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  28. This actually brings up an entirely different subject, (not that that is a bad thing). There are things that were done that were not commonly done. We as a group lean toward common as traditional (which is probably correct) but there were things done in the period that we call "traditional" that were not necessarily commonly done, late '50s and '60s for example radial tires, disc brakes got done, just nor commonly done. Or earlier ('40s?) swing axles and dual engines, one driving a front axle and one driving a rear.

    I do not recall whose car it was but it was a famous or at least well known car/builder who was using a 4 bar in the early '60s. It did not use heim (sp) joints it used tie rod ends but it was a functioning 4 bar.

    Just noodling here if everyone has he patience to deal with my ramblings.
     
  29. yep......about every sprint car , dirt modified and supermodified oval tracker there is is running some variation on the theme. I think that with the pounding those things take it is a pretty strong statement about the strength(and versatility) of the essential tube axle. You have to consider the huge number of suspension linkage variations those cars use and have used at speed ,over the years. I'm thinking that pretty much any street application hot rod folks employ has been battle tested to the Nth degree on the tube axles in those types of car. I grant you that quality control (manufacturing, design, etc.) and owner/builder installation all play a part, but, when all said and done I wouldn't think twice about using one if the vehicle called for it. In fact some where I saw a t-roadster with a circle track straight tube axle, set up a 4 bar and it was bad-ass.
     
  30. Kan Kustom
    Joined: Jul 20, 2009
    Posts: 2,739

    Kan Kustom
    Member

    That is one wicked looking pickup !
     
    southpaw-customs likes this.

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