'64 Galaxie Wide 5 Hub Conversion:

I built a Nascar styled '64 Galaxie several years ago as a street driven vehicle and as a road racer that I wanted to enter in a few road race events. I built 15 x 8 and 15 x 10 steelies and the car looked really good, but I really wanted wide 5 hubs on it to give it that vintage short track look. The car has a Frankland GN quickchange, and I knew that I would have to cut the axle snouts off to go to wide 5 hubs, so I figured that I would start in the front.

For those that do not know what wide 5 hubs and wheels are, the bolt pattern is what Ford used on cars and trucks from 1936-1939. Circle track racers started using the wheels as they were stronger because the wheel studs were closer to the edge of the wheel center. Sometime in the 50's, someone started building dedicated wide 5 racing hubs that used the full floating axle snout and bearings off of 3/4 ton trucks. Modern short track circle track race cars still use the same axle snouts and bearings but with lighter hubs and brakes.

I started with a 3/4 ton axle snout that came off a Dana 60 rear end. I bored the end of the axle snout so it would slip over the stock Galaxie spindle where the original Galaxie grease seal would ride. I next machined an 1 1/2" O.D. x 1" long steel slug that was tapped 3/4" fine thread that was the same as the threaded end of the Galaxie spindle. The slug would be rosette welded inside the axle snout so that the whole snout would thread onto the Galaxie spindle. A couple of welds on the end of the snout opposite the threaded end would secure it to the Galaxie spindle:












The front hubs that I would be using were some vintage Frankland magnesium hubs sourced off of Ebay. You can get similar wide 5 hubs from Safety Racing, Howe, JFZ, Winters, Wilwood, Jones and others. They use common eight bolt 1 1/4" x 12" O.D. racing rotors from Speedway Motors.



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The hub and rotor assembly will now bolt onto the modified Galaxie spindle using the 3/4 ton bearings, races, seals and hardware:





I am going to use common 1975 Impala brake calipers for some budget brakes that will really stop this car. I whipped up some caliper brackets that bolt to the spindles:



Stay tuned as I bolt the front spindles on the car. The wheels are ready to go as well. I will then tackle the job of installing the Safety Racing rear hubs and axle snouts on the Frankland quickchange rear end.

 

Very cool tech and nicely done.

Question: it seems like you are adding a ton of unsprung mass to the car (those hubs look very heavy), are you planning on changing the springs and shocks as well???

 

The hubs are magnesium, and the rotors are very light. The wide 5 spindle and hub assembly actually weighs less than what is on the car now. The wheels will be considerably lighter as well since there is less material in the center. I will weigh each assembly and post the weight.

 

Wonderful!

I used Winters wide five hubs on the tube chassis I built for my '36 Ford sedan.

Built my spindles and front snouts from scratch though. Wanted to run a Winters QC, but didn't have room, so I went with a 9" Ford floater with the proper snout ends.

Post up some pics of the whole car. The hubs and spindles look pretty bitchin, the rest ought to be too.

 

Nice!!

 

You will notice in oval racing, Wide 5's are popular in the classes with shorter races, 100 laps or less, where tires aren't normally changed during the race. The wheels are lighter and stronger, because of the wide lug pattern, however without a center pilot in the wheel, tire changes take too long, and pit stops win races these days.

 

Yeah, you ought to see those guys at Syracuse changing tires on the Big Block Modifieds. They take a full minute or more to change each one.

It's a great show though, pandemonium, big clouds of dust, and fat guy's ass cracks as far as the eye can see.

The wide five hubs are popular because they're strong, they're very light, and they're cheaper than the aftermarket Impala hubs.

As you said, the only thing they're not really very good for is changing tires quickly.

 

On the subject of Wide 5 "floater" front spindles, I have a bunch of "bolt on" snouts, that can be used on the early Ford front spindles and on early V-8 rear housings as well. The problem is most of them were used on old Hardtops, and Modifieds, and have been through the "Wars". I am preparing to build a 60's era Supermodified, so we decided to build some new ones. I purchased some bare "weld on" snouts, that would normally be used on rear axle applications. They came from Lefthander Chassis, and were nice pieces and priced reasonable. I had some flanges laser cut, and with some machine work and welding, this is how they turned out, and what they look like mounted (old example shown). The bare snouts would work well with the OP's application.

 

I could have bought the snouts for my application, but being a hot rodder at heart with a lathe, I decided to modify my own. The parts that Lefthander builds are really nice though.

 

Those turned out nice, Marty.

 

I couldn't tell from the pics that they were magnesium. Maybe Dad was right and you do learn something every day.

Very Cool.

 

I was reading your reply above and I was wondering if you could answer a few questions. I have a pair of NOS Frankland bolt on wide five hubs and snouts. The bolt pattern on the snout is the same as a"37-'48 Ford front spindle. The hubs are aluminum, but they have no provision for a brake rotor. I believe that they originally used some kind of brake drum for braking. Have you ever seen anything like what I am describing?

 

Those are early drum brake hubs.

 

I finally got the front spindles mounted on the car. I went with Safety Racing magnesium wide five hubs, as I found two more to make a set of four that will go on the car:



The Safety Racing hubs use a brake rotor that is impossible to find. I modified a pair of late model Ford Explorer rotors to fit the hubs:





The completed spindle, hub and rotor assembly was bolted to the car. Since I was already using big GM brake calipers, I didn't even need to bleed the brakes as the calipers bolted right on:





I used a pair of N.O.S. Marsh Racing 15 x 8 wide five wheels with a 4" backspace. I like the look of these wheel over the modern wide five racing wheels. The tire size is 255-70-15 on the front:





I now need to install the wide five hubs on the back of the Frankland quick change rear end that is in the car now.

 

That car looks absolutely bitchin.

Are those spot weld burns on the rear quarters from installing the rear wheel tubs, or are you planning to do something else back there?

I ask, because I wouldn't change a thing.

When you get the rear hubs swapped out, it's gonna be perfect.

Really excellent job on capturing the essence of an older stock car, but in a package that you can still drive on the street comfortably.

It's a shame that not all track/highway combo cars turn out this well.

 

Great job on the hubs and the whole car. wish there were more built to that quality.

 

Great old Ford! What's under the hood?

 

You hit the nail on the head. When I radiused the well openings, I had to cut away the outer wheel well structure. I built an outer wheel well that welded to the inner wheel well and I had to spot weld it to the quarter panel. I do plan to paint the car one day, but for the time being the car will stay as is. When I built the car I did pull the body off the frame and do a really nice job of painting the underside of the floor pan and chassis, but the body will have to wait for now.

 

It's a very mild 351 C, but most people just see an old Ford motor in there. One day I might install an FE.

 

Very cool project.

 

I like what you have done. I was planing to do this with my 65 chevelle but I was looking at replacing the front spindles with some of the after market one so I can have a taller spindel to help with the front end geometry on the chevelle.
Wish I had a FE to donate to your project.

 

I was going to use after market late model wide five spindles, but it would have required extensive reworking of the steering arm part of the spindle. Adding the 3/4 snout to the stock spindle was just easier, plus the late model spindle would have added more track width that I could not afford. I have a couple of FE's, but the Clevo runs so good that I cannot pull it out that easy.

 

they use to make screw-on snouts for big chev spindles as for drums some used buick finned aluminum drums modified to fit the more modern hubs weight 1/2 of the older stuff

 

I always wonder what thay would say if you showed up at the drag strip with the wide 5 hubs.

 

That's some cool stuff !!!

 

When we towed back our nasty looking '72 Torino stock car with the 460 from the track on Friday late nights, we'd sometimes stop at parking lots where the local street drag racers congregated.

My buddy would lean out the tow vehicle window with cash in his hand and ask, "who wants to run right now for $500?".

People would walk over to the car, peek under the fenders, look at all the dents, fat tires, low attitude and ask, "what the hell is it?". It was good for a laugh.

Bob

 

Wasnt sure how thay would hold up to drag slicks and a hard launch with a 4 speed.

 

Very cool thread - sure don't see much of this stuff. I love the look of your Galaxie!



Malcolm

 

Coleman still makes the screw on snouts for the Impala spindles. They will actually fit the Galaxie spindles with a slight amount of machine work, but I like doing things the hard way.

 

Awesome!

I had this thread saved just for the spindle tech as I want to do something similar but with early Ford spindles.
Its really great that you updated it. Keep it up.