Starting work on a 56 F-100. Looking to drop it, have the body off and the motor out. going to redo the suspension. Any help or ideas on what way to go would be great. Was thinking of going with a dropped axle if I can find one. Thanks!
Send the axle out and have it dropped. Drill the center web for old school look. With new king pins and bushings, it will steer just fine. Install wedge for a bit more caster if you want better on-center feel. The dropped axle actually steers better than a stock one. If you want power steering add a mid-80's Toyota 4x4 pick-up steering box. There's a guy in Bakersfield that offer the weld in mounting plate for the Toyota box.
In the back you can add longer shackles and move the spring hangers up on the frame, drill new holes and bolt them in.(I flipped mine upside down and swapped then side to side to get a little extra)
To get it slammed I would clip it...volare works great but many here don't like them and they are a bitch to bag if you ever want to. Do the rear the way I said up above and then do a flip on the axle to get it above the springs...add a C notch in the frame and raise the bedfloor an inch or two so the pumpkin clears the floor....and you'll get about an 8 inch drop in back.
I did Volare on mine a few years back . Loved the way it drove. ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Like I told the kid, "Your music's not too loud,its just like OKC, it sucks!"
I'm going to do the rear C-notch and axle flip. Any pics of your set up? The front drops got me thinking, is a clip that hard to do?
Mine is on a S-10 frame. Never touched the suspension. Very low, still rides great. Used the S-10 floor, but your Ford Floor would sit in exactly the same place.
I have a Gibbon MOPAR B-body torsion bar front on my '56... great ride... adjustable ride height... bolts on... uses a MOPAR manual box or P/S depending on your engine. You'll need a 71-75-ish coronet, belvidere, fury, cordoba, etc. donor car. for the a-arms, t-bars, steering box and stuff. Bullet-proof deal... under $500.00 clams. I believe Dwight Bond's brother still makes 'em in Gibbon, NE. I have a number for Dwight... 308-468-6237. This is at ride height w/o the Hemi... goes about 5" lower...
i am going to eventually put a dropped axle in from sids dropped axles here on the hamb. I already have 3" lowering springs that also moved the axle forward to center it in the fenders and 2" drop shackles in the rear. When i do the dropped axle im going to raise the front hangers on the rear springs and it should have a nice rake and sit fairly low in the front
Could go for a Series II or Series III Jag IFS. They are an unboltable crossmember from the Jag (4 bolts). To install just cut off all the crap that doesnt look like it needs to be there, slip under the f truck chassis and weld in place. Very nice front end, has disc brakes, the power rack hangs off the back of the crossmember, and bolt pattern is chevy. Some Guys in OZ convert the chevy bolt patternn to ford pattern, or some just run multi fit rims. Just slipping them under the chassis and welding in place sits the front of an f-truck to within about 4 inches of the ground. Easy to airbag as well as they run coils from stock. Sorry couldnt find any pics, but there are a tonne of threads on the HAMB about JAG front end installs with some really neat install pics
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