Wow, Techinspector, it looks like I opened a can of worms here. Whew!!
Ok, This is bit overwhelming, but I might be able to get my head around it. Let me explain a bit of my background, so we can both understand what my capabilities are, theoretically, at least. I took a year of engineering in University in 1970/71, and one of the courses that I passed was drafting, so I think that with a little head scratching, I can manage the drawings. I still have my old T-square, triangles, French curves, compasses, protractor, and some other stuff. That part is manageable, I think. Thanks for the offer of the T-square, but I have one.
As for the machining, and welding, I took a night course years ago in machining and welding, at a community college. My dad was a reasonably talented amateur machinist, he had some training in the army, during WW2, and I have his lathe, and milling machine, and have some basic knowledge of their use. As for welding, I can pile the bird sh*t on as good as the next guy, but I don't think I would trust steering parts to my own skills. My plan for the entire build, or the critical bits, anyway, is to tack weld everything in place, and have a local journeyman welder do the heavy lifting. There are quite a few local kids (they're kids to me, in their 30's) with all the welding skills in the world, who are currently laid off from the oilfield. They will work for beer and steak...
As for the 300 rear end, it seems such a shame to not use it, but it is way too wide. I'll measure it in the morning, just so we have a number. The other issue, which may be a problem, but not necessarily, is that the rear end has struts as well (independent rear suspension). I am pretty sure that I could hide the struts, and the supports, in the trunk. You know what would be a marketable thing, would be a kit that eliminates the struts, front and rear, from more modern suspension systems. I have not found anything on the net...