Thread: 1937 Dodge coupe

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My front end is finally all here! UPS decided to hang on to one package for the weekend...oh well.
Here's today's question: what is the proper amount of rake? Ok, let me rephrase...what is everyone's opinion on the proper amount of rake? I have read a number of articles that suggest 2" is about right, but that seems pretty conservative to me.
Here is the situation: as you know, I have bolted the IRS from my donor car onto the coupe. It has 14" brake rotors, and uses 18" wheels to make room for them, the existing tires are 225 R60-18's. The new M2 front end that I bought has 11" rotors, so I can go with much smaller rims 15", for example, if I choose. That would allow me to achieve 1 1/2" of "rubber rake". Is that advisable? Are there draw-backs? I can make any ride height I want, but I have to decide now, before I start cutting the new cross-member. I am thinking about making it level, when the 18" wheels are on front and back. That would let me go to 1 1/2" rake, with 15" wheels on front, and an additional 2" with drop spindles. Opinions, please....

Originally Posted by Easyrider

drop spindles.

Please tell me it ain't so......

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Rake is personal preference. There is no correct amount.
I prefer a dead straight look.

Originally Posted by techinspector1

Please tell me it ain't so......

.

Care to elaborate?

Originally Posted by Easyrider

Care to elaborate?

Dropped spindles are an afterthought for those who have no clue how to set up a car. If you will send me one of the MII spindles and one of the 300C spindles, I will attempt to morph the two together and produce a custom spindle for you that will use the 300C brakes and wheels. My efforts and engineering will be free, but I'll have to pass on the cost of machine work. As far as mounting the front and rear clips, use polyurethane "hockey pucks" between the crossmembers and the frame rails to space the clips down a few inches, or at least make a nesting place for them so you can space the clip down. Then do whatever is necessary at the frame rail/crossmember interface to allow the clip to sit at a pre-determined ride height with the pucks in place. In other words, cut away whatever part of the frame that it takes to move the clip up in the car, then mount the clip with at least 2 pucks at each corner of the car. The ones I have in mind are 13/16" thick, so 2 of them at each location would raise the car by 1 5/8" all around. If you wanted the front a little lower, you could pull 1 puck out from each front location and lower the car by 13/16ths. If you wanted it lower than that, pull out both pucks and lower the car by 1 5/8" at that location, front or rear. This suggestion of course assumes bolt-in crossmembers.

Here's the source for hockey pucks. Scroll down to page 13 and find kit number 9.9531, which is an 8 pad kit.
http://energysuspension.com/assets/f...on-catalog.pdf

Richard Moore
27800 Pachea Trail
Hemet, CA 92544

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Originally Posted by techinspector1

Dropped spindles are an afterthought for those who have no clue how to set up a car. If you will send me one of the MII spindles and one of the 300C spindles, I will attempt to morph the two together and produce a custom spindle for you that will use the 300C brakes and wheels. My efforts and engineering will be free, but I'll have to pass on the cost of machine work. As far as mounting the front and rear clips, use polyurethane "hockey pucks" between the crossmembers and the frame rails to space the clips down a few inches, or at least make a nesting place for them so you can space the clip down. Then do whatever is necessary at the frame rail/crossmember interface to allow the clip to sit at a pre-determined ride height with the pucks in place. In other words, cut away whatever part of the frame that it takes to move the clip up in the car, then mount the clip with at least 2 pucks at each corner of the car. The ones I have in mind are 13/16" thick, so 2 of them at each location would raise the car by 1 5/8" all around. If you wanted the front a little lower, you could pull 1 puck out from each front location and lower the car by 13/16ths. If you wanted it lower than that, pull out both pucks and lower the car by 1 5/8" at that location, front or rear. This suggestion of course assumes bolt-in crossmembers.

Here's the source for hockey pucks. Scroll down to page 13 and find kit number 9.9531, which is an 8 pad kit.
http://energysuspension.com/assets/f...on-catalog.pdf

Richard Moore
27800 Pachea Trail
Hemet, CA 92544

.

That is a very generous offer, Richard, and I appreciate it. I can't take you up on it though. I put the body back on the chassis yesterday, and started measuring up rake, and ride height, etc., and discovered that the 225 R60-18's are too big to fit under the front fenders at the rake height that I like. I tried a set of 225 R60-16's, and they work better. The 16" rims are too small in diameter to allow the 14" rotors and calipers from the donor car to fit, so I am moving forward with the 11" rotors and calipers that came with the front end kit.
When I got the body on the car, it turned out that my set-up for the IRS was not bad, but a bit low, so the hockey pucks that you brought to my attention will come in very handy. The other thing that I discovered with the rear wheels, is that I need to move the IRS assembly forward about 3/4" to center them in the fender openings. Good job I only tack welded every thing in place!
I hope to get the new front crossmember tacked in place today!