Thread: Lethal Weapon, Project A-Bucket

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Good progress!!!! Always seems like Christmas when the big brown truck stops at the door, huh??

Update, Did all the finish welding on the chassis. Got all the ends capped and joints plated. I do think I will add some braces to the trans cross member a K towards the front, but will hold off on that till I'm sure of placement. Modified some F1 shock mounts and mounted to frame horns. I drilled frame and welded in some tubes for 7/16" bolts. I welded some bungs on the axle, made from some 1" DOM thick wall tapped to 5/8-18 threads and then cut a small plate from some 3/16", cut a 1" hole and welded that on for some additional support on the outer end of the bung. There is alot of stress on shock mounts and I have seen alot that have cracked with age. Also mostly got the gas tank mounted it's an 8 or 9 gal air tank I saved for such a use. I rarely put more than $20 bucks in one at a time, and that's when gas was below $3 a gal. I want the tank below the bed, and have room for a battery carrier on the pass side next to the tank. I'll put the filler neck in the top with some sort of cover in the bed to access it. Same for the battery, although I may go for a drop out type carrier, but still like to have access in case I need to jump it or whatever. Here's a few pic's. there hasn't been much interest so I haven't shown the step by step, type posts I had intended. But if someone has the interest I will be glad to show and describe in more detail any of the aspects of the build so far.

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The shocks should give you great control in that position. What would we rodders have done if Ford didn't use those mounts on their early pickups? Looks great so far.

Don

Originally Posted by Itoldyouso

The shocks should give you great control in that position. What would we rodders have done if Ford didn't use those mounts on their early pickups? Looks great so far.

Don

Thanks Don, I used a similar setup on my other one, although I made the shock towers, but very similar angle.. That axle had shock stud holes in the axle. That one drives straight as an arrow, at all speeds.......

Very Nice work and what a brilliant idea to use the old air tank for the fuel,it certainly looks good under there.

If the top of the F1 mount was curved over towards the wheel the shocks would work much more effectively, Coming on well.

Originally Posted by Itoldyouso

The shocks should give you great control in that position. What would we rodders have done if Ford didn't use those mounts on their early pickups? Looks great so far.

Don

Originally Posted by roadster32

If the top of the F1 mount was curved over towards the wheel the shocks would work much more effectively, Coming on well.

I don't know, Steve, sometimes they work TOO well in more of an upright position. One member on another forum posted that his hot rod rode like a truck, too firm. When I looked at his pictures everything looked very well done, good components and installed correctly. Then I noticed he had put the lower shock mounts on the wrong sides, and it was moving his shocks in at the bottom, making them more upright. I posted the picture of my front end and how they were intended to be mounted, and he changed them.

I have had people comment that mine are laid over too far, but they have been on there for over 20 years and the car has literally thousands of miles on it and handles like a sportscar. I also feel the shocks in this position give a little more lateral control, sort of acting as antisway bars. So, I guess there is more than one opinion on this subject.

Don

Originally Posted by roadster32

If the top of the F1 mount was curved over towards the wheel the shocks would work much more effectively, Coming on well.

Ideally you are correct. The best location would be so the shock would be in a straight line intersecting the arc the wheel travels. So this is a compromise. Although with a solid axle the arc does not remain constant. Now mind you this is only my opinion from building and racing stock cars. Sometimes I have to remind myself I need to turn right as well..... This location was based on shock length, so there would be proper travel. The length of shock tower, adequate clearance for the steering arm on drivers side, and maintaining some angle, relative to the arc that the axle pivots around. I have found also that even rod shocks are really designed for heavier vehicles, not the lighter cars that they are installed on. The angle serves a couple of purposes. First it softens the shock some, second it offers better roll control, body roll in a turn, and third as Don pointed out is offers some lateral stability, chassis in relation to axle. And then there is ascetics. And sometimes we trade function for form, at least a little.

One of the things that I do on the transverse spring setup is to preload the spring slightly. What I mean by this is when the spring pivots are tightened they actually pull on the spring. For a 26" spring I use 31" inside to inside between pivot mounts. So when I tighten up pivot bolts it pulls the spring about 1/4" to 3/8". I hope that makes sense. Now I may be wrong, wouldn't be the first time, but when I hear talk of a panard bar on a transverse spring setup, even with cross steer, I feel that the front end is not properly set up. I feel too much slop in spring shackles is the real cause. A preload on the spring acts to center the chassis to the axle and offer some amount of force to uncenter it. The normal force of cross steering action should not want to move the axle laterally in relation to the chassis. As stated before, just my opinion. Now coil on front, ie the way Roth used them on many of his rods is entirely different.

Originally Posted by dlotraf33

Here's a few pic's. there hasn't been much interest so I haven't shown the step by step, type posts I had intended. But if someone has the interest I will be glad to show and describe in more detail any of the aspects of the build so far.

I hope you don't let the number of replys make you think there is little interest in this build. You have had over 2300 visits and probably most of them are like me. I usually prefer just to watch, learn and enjoy without making a response. You have shown an amazing amount of ingenuity in the build and I really love that. So many builds are done with a credit card and a Summit catalog....the low buck approach you are using is very refreshing and educational. I have seen the same in your other builds. Keep the pics coming.

I gotta agree with Resto..I dont ask many questions,but I am all eyes when it comes to pix,,maybe I/we should ask more questions,,but when you post pix,I feel I dont need to..Keep em coming,looks kool..

Originally Posted by lamin8r

I gotta agree with Resto..I dont ask many questions,but I am all eyes when it comes to pix,,maybe I/we should ask more questions,,but when you post pix,I feel I dont need to..Keep em coming,looks kool..

Thanks to both you and Resto, forgot that earlier, . And the other side of that coin is....... If the pic's are good enough and explained........ well what's left to ask......... Ok...... I get it. But as always if you feel the need, ask or offer sugestions........ Thanks again to all, for your compliments.

Originally Posted by RestoRod

I hope you don't let the number of replies make you think there is little interest in this build. You have had over 2300 visits and probably most of them are like me. I usually prefer just to watch, learn and enjoy without making a response. You have shown an amazing amount of ingenuity in the build and I really love that. So many builds are done with a credit card and a Summit catalog....the low buck approach you are using is very refreshing and educational. I have seen the same in your other builds. Keep the pics coming.

Well I'm kinda new to this, computer thing, and I have glanced at the views but it never really registered with me, I guess. And I personally don't do much posts of the "atta boy" type post, unless I am really amazed. Like most anything Roadster32 does. So I'll just keep posting the pics, maybe go back and add more from earlier. I'll just look at the visits so I'll know you all are still watching. Just grunt every now and then so I know you haven't fallen asleep...............

Keep posting the pics mate as we love to see pics

Originally Posted by dlotraf33

Well I'm kinda new to this, computer thing, and I have glanced at the views but it never really registered with me, I guess. And I personally don't do much posts of the "atta boy" type post, unless I am really amazed. Like most anything Roadster32 does. So I'll just keep posting the pics, maybe go back and add more from earlier. I'll just look at the visits so I'll know you all are still watching. Just grunt every now and then so I know you haven't fallen asleep...............

On the shock deal, they are rated at 100% at verticle, then diminish in effectiveness as angled. There are some charts floating around out there that show the numbers, but I don't have it handy right now. That being said, on these old transverse setups the angle can be less of a "negative" because the suspension tends to pivot on the spring center in most highway/real world use, only occasionally will the axle move evenly at both ends (such as driving across a swale). The possible additional problem on the example Pops mentioned of the shocks being mounted with the bottoms more toward the center of the chassis is a comparative lack of leverage for the rate of the shock.

BTW, Mopar had a similar shock bracket to the Ford F1.

I'm here too. I'm a newb so I like to sit back and soak it all in most of the time. I am interested in this build because on my next one I want to do more in the selection of parts and fabrication of the chassis instead of buying a pre-engineered kit for a certain model. Keep it comin'!