Thread: 1929 Essex Highboy

Tweet

BradC, yuk yuk yuk. I know, I still remember the baby books I used to 'read' to my Children, the ones that didn't have words, JUST PICTURES. Perley

Keep it comin' Perley, I'm really enjoying your build. Aren't your rod ends 1/2" instead of 3/8"?

For those who don't know, common rod ends are available ONLY in fine threads.

This is the last one for tonight folks. Old and tired. Riding that old truck all day makes me weary and lame (and very sleepy).
Here are shots of the cut pieces of truck exhaust pipe used as coil spring cups for the rear suspension. A picture of my little desk area where I draw and cut poster board (file folder) patterns for my parts. Mock up of parts for front radius rods. A shot of the bat wings, radius rods, spring, and all for the front axle, suspension, etc. Notice too the tight fit of the tie rod to the spring shackles, bolts, etc., which I should have corrected before, but didn't. I have moments when I'm like a bull. CHARGE! heeeheee
Perley

Hello Jim. It do get confusing at times, say what?? haahaa.
Yep, the rear radius rod heim joint rod ends are 5/8", you are right, in 3/4" pipe!
But the front ones are all 3/8" in 1/2" pipe, same as your T. clevis on the front (bat wing connections) and heim type on the rear. hmmmmm, I THINK I got that right! RIGHT? Perley

Hey Perley,

Me thinks the right front tire is wearing just a bit on the inside....

Nice work, stick with it, I am having fun just cruising along with ya

Wow, here is another mistake, all in one week. UGH. I gotta pay more attention (it's all I can afford)!
Anyways, my Mentor pointed out that the front radius rod ends are NOT
3/8", but rather 1/2". As he says, 3/8" ain't heavy enough to be safe. Please take note of this. Front radius rod ends are indeed 1/2 inch x 20 T.P.I. and are inserted in the same size rod couplings inside 1/2" black pipe.

And to toqwk............Man, I didn't think anyone would notice that front tire! When I get rich, I'll buy some good ones------------
Perley

Pictures of the bracketts for the radius rods and a picture of the frame showing the coil spring mounts on the frame. This is not a good picture, but I guess I didn't get a good one. They are peices of 1/4" plate with a slice of the truck exhaust pipe, like on the axle, welded to it, then welded into the rear corners of the frame. Added a small triangular gusset to the top to add strength. These locations correspond to the locations on the rear axle for the opposing sides. This idea came from the build thread of brianruppnow or Brian Angus on How to build a Hot Rod Frame that I mentioned previously and from pictures on his gallery. Told ya I'm a pirate! And a couple of shots of drilling holes in the motor mounts for the rubber mount kit from Speedway. Perley

I then turned the frame upside down on my work horses (metal kind) and lifted the rear axle up onto the upside down frame. Propped it up with wood blocks and clamped it to keep it in position. After a bit I cut two pieces of 1/2" pipe at what I think to be ride height of the coil springs, inserted those between the upper and lower coil mounts, then cut pieces of 3/8" threaded rod, pushed these through holes drilled in the coil mount plates with the pipe spacers in place, then a nut on each end of each rod. I then started fabricating the rear radius rods and the mounts on the bottom of the frame members for them. I measured the engine/transmission assembly and transferred that measure to the frame from the motor mounts previously welded into the frame. That showed me where the forward universal joint would be (or close) at the transmission output end. The front R/R bracketts are pretty close to this point. I have read that the best position for the mount ends of the Radius Rods should be close together and near the universal joint. This is the approximate center of the pivot for the rear axle in riding over bumps etc. I didn't think I had the patience to cut and fit individual plate mounting pieces for the front mounts, so I cut two sections of 1 1/2 inch sqare tube (guessed/eyeballed the length) and then sliced out one side of these tube pieces. These I stood on end and held in place with welding magnets while cutting and fitting the radius rods. Notice that the rod ends are somewhat narrower than the square tube. That's ok, I'll bush the extra space with washers or something!
More photos folks!!!!

And yes, the rear axle was very heavy! I managed it by lifting first one side then the other side, kind of levering it up onto the frame. Since my Grandson turned 18 his interest (in hot rods) has waned some, leaving me to do most of these things alone. I truly miss his involvement and tell him so too.
Here are more photos of the rear radius rod assembly and fabrication. One thing I should mention is that during previous mock-ups of various parts and wholes, I determined the angle of the rear pinion that would match the transmission output shaft. I measured this with an inclinometer that I got at Sears. Not a very expensive tool I may add. For now the lower portions of the radius rod sets are only tack welded to produce this pinion angle. Later on, after permanently mounting the axle and the engine tranny combo on their respective mounts, I will measure everything again, make any needed adjustments, then weld these radius rod parts together for good. CLEAR?? haahaaa.

That last photo shows the end of one of the rear radius rods. For further clarification of this and the hows and whys, please see the Track T build thread of J. Robinson, mentioned earlier, along with a link to it. He has been a Godsend for me, my Mentor and new friend, even though we are on opposite ends of the map of the States. Florida -- Maine. heehee
He has taken time to answer innumberable (dumb) questions via email, been patient in explaining, sending email photos and the like. Excellent and knowledgeable help. Thanks again Friend Jim.
More photos showing the radius rod ends and bushing material. Heavy duty 1/2" heater hose! And showing the difference between the top and bottom member (ends) of the radius rod ends. These are at the rear or axle ends. His reasoning is that on a hard launch one is put in compression while the other is put in tension. The compression end will take care of itself by only welding the end on, while the tension end needs a strap wrap and welding to insure that these don't pull apart. One thing I like particularly about my Mentor is his ingenuity about making do with what he has and invent what he needs from it. 'Fabrication Skill'. Rather than just go buy something, he prefers to engineer it and build it to fit. GREAT for keeping costs down tooooo. Perley

And a few more. By the way, if any of this fails to make sense to anyone reading/watching, please let me know, I have hundreds more pictures and I can add more explanations if needed. Perley

Originally Posted by oldrodder43

That last photo shows the end of one of the rear radius rods. For further clarification of this and the hows and whys, please see the Track T build thread of J. Robinson, mentioned earlier, along with a link to it. He has been a Godsend for me, my Mentor and new friend, even though we are on opposite ends of the map of the States. Florida -- Maine. heehee
He has taken time to answer innumberable (dumb) questions via email, been patient in explaining, sending email photos and the like. Excellent and knowledgeable help. Thanks again Friend Jim. Perley

Not to Hi-Jack.... but J Robinson has already been a help to me and I have not been around here very long. He has taken the time to answer and help me with some of my questions by e-mail and truly is a big help to guy's on a budget that just want to do it themselves.....Thanks Jim....

Sorry Mr. Perley........ ...... back to the story at hand......

Glad to have you jump in TO-QWK. Glad to share. And please------No Mr., just Perley.

Perley you and Jim could be putting out a few cars a year easy if you were neighbors . You are doing some great tech here specially in the frame build . Keep up the good work .

Thanks for sharing your build! Those photos help brighten up a dark cold winter day here.