Four Link Rear Suspension Anyone?

With the project where it is,and with the addtion of the widened rear tubs... I quickly noticed that I would have some clearance issues with the existing leaf spring perches.  These likely wouldn't be able to work like stock.

So - go big(ger) or go home right?   I looked over a number of kits, most of them ran the links for the suspecnsion from the front leaf spring perch.  In my case, with the widened tubs, I needed something different.

I ran across Martz Chassis - they have a kit that installs on the inside of the frame rails to run the linkage to the rear end.  EXACTLY what I needed.   I threw off an email message to Martz and after some question/answer I decided to drop the hammer on the kit.  It arrived as seen below (with optional sway bar).

One of the centerpieces of the kit is this cross member - it has a driveshaft loop built in (nice feature) and it also includes cutouts that would accommodate the exhaust pipes.  After close examination of the cross member, it did look like there was a little too much metal ground down during the fab process of the cross member.  So - I got out the TIG to flow those cracks together, adding material where needed.

Next step was to epoxy prime the pieces to prep them for mock-in and installation. This rattle can Rustoleum epoxy primer actually held and has proved VERY resilient.  I'll buy more in the future.

Now for installation - I mocked in the cross member - to find that my rails were a little - (just under a quarter inch) wider than the cross member at the point it installs.  It also mounts even with the rear leaf spring perch holes - just uses them to bolt in on the inside of the frame.

So - it was time to make some plates that I could weld onto the inside of the frame rails to take up the slack equally on each side.  This came in the form of 1/16 inch plate.  I cut them out so they fit and interfaced with the subframe connectors and tried to 'fish'  one end for a little more weld coverage.

Got the area prepped - scrubbed off the epoxy primer for a nice welding surface.

Clamping in place the plate - note the hold in the plate - big enough to allow the bolt/fastening of the front rear end kit cross member.

Positioning the rear cross member between the frame rails proved to be rather tricky.  The first thing you need to do is cut the area just forward of where the gas tank is mounted.

To validate that this was where I needed to cut- I sent the Martz crew an email message with the above photograph.  I used my trusty Sharpie to indicate where I thought I needed to cut, but wasn't sure because the instructions didn't portray it the best.

On confirmation - I got to cutting.... (again)

The above two pictures show the cutting that i did and how I bent upwards the decline of the floor pan.  When you do it, you can really tell the amount of space you're creating for the rear cross member.

Now- to make a plate that will (eventually) be welded in to box the section. (honestly I've thought bout making this removable.... but I don't need to decide that until later)

Sheet metal shear made quick work of this - lots of straight lines.  Will likely fab up a nice plate for the top too - that way I can use a gauge thicker material and set it nice and flat.   This really won't matter in the end - it will be covered by carpet/bedliner ... but I'll feel better about it.

How Low Can You Go??? (With a 65 F100)

I learned a lot of what I'm trying to do with the 69 from buddy who is building a 65 Ford truck - and has been for some time. 


Shane had his F100 not too far from the finish line when he decided to take his muscle truck concept and turn it into a really slammed to the ground low-rider rod a few years ago.


This has included cutting off the front clip of the truck ahead of the cab mounts and grafting in a Camaro front subframe into the F100 Frame. 


Not a light task to say the least - but here is a picture of what he's been up to.  The grafting has been really fun to watch - especially seeing how the heat from welding it together wanting to twist the overall alignment of the frame.  (with me hanging off the end of it adding pressure to keep it in place)

Welding Buddy

Its a lot easier to hang out in the garage and work when the family joins you.

Deacon laid down his first bead.  Pretty fun. He's obviously conflicted about the experience.

Inner Fenders

It has been a while since I posted to the blog- not for sake of progress to the car, but more for the sake of time.  Apologies for that.

Time to move onto INNER FENDERS!

I am at a point with the car where really, there is no rust in the car anymore and I've cut and trimmed and inserted new metal into the car enough that I'm not afraid of it anymore.  So - why not keep modifying it?

I wanted to get  more wheel and tire under the car - and everything I am reading indicates a 10 inch wide tire is about as large as you can go.

Mom and Dad pulled through in birthday fashion again!  Some two and a half inch wider tubs arrived wrapped up for me to graft into the car.  What needs to happen first????

CUTTING.

Cutting out the old inner fenders wasn't overly difficult.  The thing to keep in mind is the attention one needs to give to the stays/brackets that hold secure the trunk hinges.  Some round bar and angle tacked into place keeps these things sturdy.

Once cut out, fitting the new fenders in requires you to alter the profile of the frame rails to fit in the new fenders.  One needs to notch out the frame rail in a curved fashion to make the needed room.

This is a good time to really put the enamel/rust preventative/inner frame coatings to work.  I used Eastwood's internal frame coating which worked great with its long tube to reach into the framerail and hose down those surfaces.  The other thing that was neat from my perspective- (and you can see in the picture) that the rails are galvanized - so be careful when welding to make sure there's adequate ventilation.

Once cut out - I did some dry fitting to see how things fit into place.

Once fit, it was time to seal up the hole in the frame and also weld on a strip that could be used to attach the fender to the car.  

You have to do this to both sides (obviously).  i ended up completing one whole side first, then moving onto the second... because I wanted to have a whole picture in the event I could reproduce the process better for the other side (and hopefully go faster, have better quality).

The BIG LEARNING I had as I did this, was to find a long - 4 ft - piece of thin round bar that you can bend easily with your hands.  Use it to trace the outside of the fender, getting its profile.

Map that profile to the floor of your car and slowly cut the piece out, hedging towards not cutting enough so you can use a flap wheel or similar to hone the opening to being perfect.

Above is a view from inside the trunk area - you can see how you have to cut things in the frame rail a little more clearly here.   From the factory, the frame rail 'flares' outward as it moves towards the back of the car.  SURELY I CAN FIT MORE RUBBER UNDER THE CAR NOW RIGH?

 Modifying the front section of the floor to fit the tub does impact how your rear seat will fit.  Time for a custom seat...  

Finally - a couple of shots from some of the last mocking in of the rear inner fenders.  This is just before spot welding them in. You can see the spots drilled out to allow for welding.  Just make sure to align them to the mounting flange, so you don't have holes without something right behind them.