I am going to be building a '34 3-window for a friend. He bought an abandoned project: Glass body, original frame (has been boxed etc) Jaguar suspension etc. Thankfully he is going more traditional, and I need any advice or pointers on which front axle to go with. Clearly forged seems a no brainer, but there now seem to be a couple of options - CE, So-cal and Lucky7?? Are there big differences between them? We will be looking at a 4" drop, but not sure on the width. The car will run narrow fronts on steelies, but he is still set on using discs. I'd like to retain a good turning circle but don't know if at 47/48" kingpin width if things might get too wide? Rear end options are wide open at this stage - to me this would be dictated by front end track width. Something locally available will be adapted in terms of hubs & brakes - which spindles should we be going for in terms of any other considerations? We may run cowl steering, but cross steer is more likely. Are there different options on perch pin width? We will most likely use lengthened Model A wishbones (split obviously) and spring &cross member will be made to suit. What else should I be taking into consideration here? Ideally I would mock up chassis & wheels before ordering, but given how long shipping takes it would be nice to get a jump on this... Any input will be welcome, as well as hearing the questions I am not asking.
Henry's axles are forged....go with a dropped original. There are numerous guys dropping them now. A 4" drop A axle would be good. Henry's spindles are good too....'37-'41. Why lengthen the model A bones? Especially if you are splitting them. On a '33/4 with the body coming down over the frame, the A bones should be a good length as-is to meet up with the cowl.
Three questions... are you going to run fenders? What tire size? And depending on axle drop will you have and scrub line problems? On my 33 5 window I made the decision to run fenders, and the two axles I was going to run were to wide and the tires rubbed.
Thanks guys, Tyres will most likely be a 5.50 16 or similar. The plan is to run fenderless although the law is a little grey on this over here. Possibly bolt on cycle fenders if needed. Anderson - Henry's stuff would be great. I have a couple of A and late 30's front axles. Getting them dropped here in South Africa is not so simple. I'd hate to screw them up with trial & error as they are hard to come by out here. Given the $250 - $300 or so for a new axle it seems to make sense to go this route? Thought the A 'bones looked a little short - will be great if they can work straight off.
Here's My original axle in my 34. I had 296v8 here on the HAMB drop it for me. Looks way better than any store bought stuff. Especially after I dropped the steering arms to match the drop of the axle. Call or PM him, I think he has a 33-36 for sale in the classifieds right now. you won't be dissapointed. http://jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=614475
Sorry I didn't notice your location, which might cause some difficulty. However, you can buy dropped originals for the same kinda money as a "new" dropped axle. I'm sure one of the guys doing it would be willing to ship to SA.
Thanks - I'm guessing he can provide cores, will check it out. If pricing works out to be in the same ballpark that would make more sense.
Nothing can match an original Ford axle... and if you can get a '32 "Heavy" axle it looks even cooler....
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