Customs 57 FORD GASSER BUILD

Something to get your interest going while you mend.

 

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Lee
I like those wheels! Where did you order them from?

Pat

 

They came from a company called Raceline. They're associated with Allied Wheels. Lots of different options for them.

 

That's not a Ford, It's a Meteor.

Sent from my SM-T350 using The H.A.M.B. mobile app

 

Certainly is. A lot of people have never heard of a Meteor I find so its easier to just say Ford lol

 

Haven't cut my fenders yet but.... just had to try one on. They fit perfectly. 1.25" from the sidewall to the leaf pack. The tire will be perfectly flush with the fender after its cut. Couldn't be happier with the fitment.

 

Now, if you really want to get crazy...

 

This wasn't Crazzy, It's my friend Gary doing what we love and by the way he's still a very competitive Drag Racer along with his Son and a 3rd generation with the bug.

 

I like the altered stuff but for now I think the front axle shoved ahead a couple inches will suffice lol.

 

In a few days your going to be saying where in the hell did I leave those keys?? Looks good so far.

 

Stick to your plan... its a great one.

 

I said there, ill leave those on that transmission and ill always know where they are lol.

 

Well where im still on the mend I decided to do what I could. I've decided i'm going to use the factory front frame rails. I spoke to a few knowledgeable people and they advised against modifying the frame as it puts me in a spot to try to get it back on the road. So I stripped the front rails in prep for boxing and filling of holes, spring pockets ect. Even managed to remove the springs with my head still attached to my shoulders.

 

With keeping the stock framerails is that so you still have a vin# for registration?

I think their right below the master cylinder on top of the fame.

 

Yeah that and the frame modification laws around here are fairly strict. Just worried I'd run into issues and have a car I can't drive.

 

How are you going to determine how much the new Curb weight is going to spread the spring so you know where to put the new spring hangers?

 

I had planned on clamping the mounts to the frame then setting the motor down onto the rails and letting it weight the suspension to see how much spread I would get. Its not the full weight i know with the dash and interior out but it'll give me a pretty good idea i think.

 

I'd probably do it just a bit different. Your not trying to hit a specific wheel base number. Up in the air as long as the wheel is pretty close a 1/2" one way or the other isn't a big deal. The big deal is square. You also are working with fairly short shackles so angle of them is kind of a big deal. I think if I were doing your job and working with an unknown I work around it instead of making a guess. I would decide where the fixed spring mount end goes. Get it square to chassis and weld it in place. I would then tack a 1-1/2" spacer to the frame and let the shackle end just rest against it and get on with the build steering and all. Once complete with motor in water on board and ready to go, then I'd install the shackle mount so I have the angle on them I want.

 

That sounds very reasonable. I like that idea. Would you put the shackle in front or at the rear? I've seen arguments for both with a cross steer. But most tend to say fixed end on the steering box side.

 

Yes, fixed end on the steering box end. I would for sure go cross steer. Think about travel arc. You have much more movement on the shackle end of the spring leading to steering link swing and wheel movement. You want as little of that as possible. As your chassis distance increases from the actual tie rod you need to work on the angle of the steering link. Keep them as parallel to each other as possible. Distance between isn't an issue.

 

Definitely going cross steer. I've seen them done with 2 steering arms, tie rods run under the spring and axle and drag link runs above.

 

That's real common and the right way to go.

 

Ride height will be the trick though. I'll need to figure out my basic ride height to set steering angle and the look of the car. That I should be able to do with engine weight and maybe some weight in the cabin to simulate interior?

 

Ride height is generally a math formula you work out before you buy parts that include given weights of parts used in the package. That in turn tells you what spring rate you need and where hangers are mounted. More or less spring arc will change ride height without changing spring rate. Also a strait tube axle or drop tube is a factor. If that spring in the above photo is new it should have a load rate with it. That may help you some. I have seen guys start with universal trailer springs with pretty good arc in them and by the time the car is built the spring is turned the other direction from to much load on them. Not all leaf springs are created equal.

 

No giant update but I got the spring pockets boxed in from the top. Should I do the bottom side as well or leave it open? Can't see it unless you're under the car and it's definitely not a structural reinforcement.

 

And crossmember removed

 

I'll assume your going to build something to replace that with, the next one in line is only held in with 3 cheezy bolts on each side. When you think of Torque Twist and if all 3 are in fact in place they are in what's called sheer so a couple good launches and you could have it on the ground. Next one back is the shock mount. Probably won't be doing much to stabilize the chassis.

 

The rear shock mount is the one that gives problems with breaking off. They even sold clamp on mounts because of the issues they had.

I think he mentioned he's going to use a mid-plate to mount the engine, so probably no need for a crossmember on the bottom.

 

Let's think about this a bit;

Is that enough to keep everything stable?

 

Weld on ears to the frame and bolt on the mid-plate. I'd say it should be plenty strong enough to go in a straight line.