does anybody remember this chassis builder?

back in 2009, I had a chassis built by this small company named s.a.c. I think I must have been his last customer as he closed his doors right after due to the economy. I had him put on a mustang 2 front end, but now that i'm ready to begin this project, I can't figure out what he had in mind for the lower control arms. the mounting tubes are cut flush with the front of the crossmember, but stick out the back side and are gusseted. the overall length of the tube is 7-1/2". I just hope he didn't design it to use arms that he would make. does anybody know him? I belive his name is roy. also I want to get a sway bar. I thought at the time he would be there and I could stop by and pick things up as i needed them. please help with any info. thank you, kurt. 626-571-4044. here some photos of his nice work.

 

Looks like a regular lower a arm retrofit, im not sure of the measurements but call speedway and they should help you to see if their arms will fit. I have done a few of these and they work fine and look better than the radius arm.

 

I just googled sac hot rod products and got the name Roy Davenport.

 

Kurt, try contacting Don McNeil at Flat Out Engineering 714-639-2623. He was the original owner of SAC and worked there after he sold it to Roy. The address is 633 W. Katella Ave. Unit K, Orange, CA.92867.

 

wow, now that's a good lead!

 

S.A.C. was known as Specialized Auto Components, and had been in business in Orange County since about 1980. Donny McNeil was the owner. He had a very good reputation for his parts and chassis. There was a related business back then called Specialized Auto Construction (also called SAC) run by Terry Berzenye. I believe Terry and Donny were friends, both moving out here from the mid west somewhere. Lots of "how to" articles back then in Street Rodder Magazine. Donny is running a shop called Flat Out Engineering now, I believe.

 

lower control arms...........tubular; not stockers. That's what it looks like to me.

 

I think they call that design "strut-less" or something like that? Gary

 

Looks just like Heidt's lower control arm brackets and upper spring pockets and shock tower shapes. I would be cautious in using Speedway control arms. Three of my friends had the bushings go out, two with just very few miles and the third never even saw the street, the bushings just deteriorated moving it around while he was building it. In addition the size of the tubing used in the control arms was much smaller than Heidt's.

 

here's a picture of a set i bought that don't fit. the space between the two bars seems to be about 7" even. i bought them so long ago i don't remember who it was, although i have a recipt somewhere. they said over the phone that they would fit any after market crossmember. now i know better. i don't want to keep doing this.

 

Trim 1/2" off the cross member, to make those arms fit.

 

Then read everything ElPolacko has written about MII problems.

 

yeah, i thought about this but roy was not someone who did things without a plan. i still think i should try and find out what the plan was. the gussets end about 1/4" from the end of the tube and would have to be re-shaped, plus i don't know if it would be centered right and have problems with the caster. someone elce told me to cut off 5/8" off the back and weld the piece on the front. i didn't do it. maybe i should! i'll keep waiting till something sounds right.

 

Those lower control arms will work fine with your crossmember.

As has been mentioned just trim the rear tube till they fit.

Your chassis looks very well built and the tubular lower control arm is a standard practice to eliminate the strut rod.

They work really well as built.

 

You have already been given the way.Trim the back, do what ever you need to fix the gusset.

Do Not weld anything onto the front. Make those tubular lowers fit and move on, all will be well.

I know what I'm talking about,for some time I manufactured MII kits and still have all my patterns for future consideration

 

believe me blue one, i want to move on this. I've been collecting parts for the past 5 years! i don't like second guessing someone else's work. i'ts one of the few things I've paid for to have made for me and been happy with. it seems like cutting from one side will give centering problems with the top arms. it just seems too easy a fix. i need to know what i'm shooting for as far as messurement. when i picked it up, roy said " you could take to the powder coater now if you want, it wont need much else" have you ever seen cars that the wheels aren't centered in the wheel well? i don't want that.

 

I agree, here's some random Heidts pics from their website.

 

Going from your pics the inner bushing and washer is 1/4 inch wide, so if you take both of the inner bushings out of those arms they might fit on the cross-member as is?

If they do, then setup the chassis at ride height and do a mock up with the top arms and spindles (minus springs) and measure the caster.

Then you have a starting point and can see where the arms need to go and work from there.

 

Just trim the tubes and go.

 

...And one of those things is to make another bracket to put the rear inner joint in double shear. Just a simple bracket from behind the bushing up to the the frame. Don't run without it.

 

I remember SAC, really nice guys and I used to get small parts and kits from Roy (my friend used a lot of parts from there for his A).

 

Move on it. The lower control arms you have were designed to have the inside of the front bushing right up against the front of the crossmember.

The lower ball joint will be centered properly in the crossmember as it should be.

You will not have centering problems with the uppers, they bolt to the shock towers as stock ones do and also center the upper ball joint correctly.

The spindle will sit exactly where it should be.

Your axle centerline should be the center of the crossmember and that is what it will be. Your wheel will sit where it should be.

Trim the rear tube and fix the gusset and go from there. The addition of the extra gusset up to the frame from the rear of the tube as has been suggested is also a great idea.

 

Yeah, the length of the tube is the least of his problems.

I'd check the pivot points, the lengths of the aftermarket control arms, the placement of the R&P, etc against the geometry of a stock one.
And /or the setup the aftermarket control arms are off.

Just so you don't end up with a weird miss match with the geometry that doesn't work, or is too far out of alignment to be adjusted right.


( that would be the second option...

The first would be to cut if off, and go to an I-Beam )

 

I think talking to the designer/builder is a good first step. and I don't think i'll be cutting off any cross members at this point. as far as straight axles I've four cars with them and am aware of their pros/cons. I've got a good lead on finding roy to talk to and a good suggestion of how to remedy my problem of mounting the lower arms. I think i'm good for now.

 

Do not ignore this advice. It's an easy addition....much easier than the repair that you will likely have to do later if you ignore it.

 

Ok, well at this point I am going to give up. Why ask for advice when you really don't want it ? Or will just blow it off ?

It's obvious now that even if you are given correct information you choose not to believe it.

Others besides me have tried to let you know what you need to do.

Good luck with whatever you decide to do.

 

blue one, I'm not sure what you're giving up on. in my first post, I was really asking if people remembered sac chassis, and I posted some pictures of my problem. I got two or three leads of how to get ahold of him to finish this up without changing his design. if I can't find him, I do need to know what i'm going to do, and I do appreciate all of the replies given to me. when I said on my last post that I had a good suggestion on how to get past this, I was referring to you and your information. one of the problems with communicating on the internet is that you(everybody using it) don't always get the intent meant by the other person. it doesn't come across. i'm not blowing off anybody. but you can't expect that I will run out to my shop and trim off a piece off a very well crafted chassis if I have a chance to verify if I need to do it in the first place can you? maybe my first post was not clear enough. as far as someones elses suggestion of making another bracket in double shear, i'm not sure what he's talking about, but you can bet that I want to know what it is. roy had a very good reputation as being a meticulous builder and while I'm perfectly capable of trimming this part, I would to try and have a conversation with roy first. no disrespect to you, one who is blue.

 

This is the link to go to for info on supporting the lower control arm mount, and what can happen if it's not done ...

http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=257826&showall=1

 

I am a chassis builder, by training, and trade. It is about all I do. The rear side of the forward bushing on the lower control arm is supposed to fit flush against the crossmember, regardless of where the rear one falls. This one is no different, although it might have had "non-standard" control arms to go with it. Cutting the excess off of the rear of the tube will update this setup to the current standard. It is an elaborate piece of metal. It won't know that you cut it, and you don't need to check with Roy first, but if it makes you feel better about it, have at it.

Oh, and as for well crafted, and cutting. I just cut up and bagged a wide-body 2013 Cadillac CTSV wagon, brand-new, right of the car transporter, with the body kit, paint, wheels, etc., it is an $80,000+ car. Not an eyelash batted.

 

thanks simonsez for the link. I remember reading this whole thing a couple of years back. from what I gather, double shear is the up, down, left, right movement or flexing of the arm's mounting tube that is welded to the cross member. not a good thing. the frame I bought has two gussets per side, two is the horizontal position and two following the cross members angled sides. I did notice a extra plate fitted and welded at the rear of the "a" arm's 5/8" bolt and that a longer bolt must be used to pass thru this extra thickness. is this necessary when it has two gussets per side to install this extra plate? the pictures I posted 2 thru 5 show the gussets pre side. also I planed on finishing boxing the cross member's ends just because it's hard to get paint in spots like that. in that tread there was some talk of people who make their own control arms. one of the reason I would to talk to roy first is to see if this is what he did and maybe still has some, and the same with the sway bar. I hope i'm not pissing pople off still.