Author: DW

Dear Welder Series… Model A IFS Question

Dear Welder Series…
Please tell me the difference between the welded and non-welded model A ifs kit. Is the welded kit ready to be welded to my frame? Thanks, Robert

Dear Robert…
Yes, Robert, the welded kit is ready to weld to your frame. Classic Rods & More has a good video of the installation at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zdi0B4fr5Sk. The fender braces have to be reworked but the fenders do not have to be “bubbled”.

The “non-welded” kit includes all of the components used in the crossmember and upper towers, but does not have any welding done when you receive it.

Rad mounts are included with the kit. These are to be welded to a boxed section of frame rail.

Thanks for looking at Welder Series parts.

 

Dear Welder Series… narrow Mustang II crossmember?

Dear Welder Series…
I presently have a car that uses Armstrong front shocks and I want to replace the front suspension with your Mustang II Crossmember Kit. The problem is the frame is tubular and very narrow. The front tread is 45 1/2 inch. Can your kit be made to work? Thanks Frank

Dear Frank…
Frank, Maval Mfg can make a Mustang II rack up to 9″ narrower than stock. This would get the track width down to 47-1/2″ with stock (length) upper and lower arms and stock, 4-bolt rotors. Aftermarket brake kits often move the wheel mounting face of the rotors outboard or inboard, changing the track width. Shorter upper and lower arms will narrow the track width. I’ve heard that there are arms 1″ shorter than stock. This would get you in the 45-1/2″ range by cutting a portion out of the middle of our crossmember (shown below).

 

Thanks for looking at Welder Series parts.

Dear Welder Series… 1956 F100 transmission mount?

Dear Welder Series…
I’m building a 1956 F100. Supercharged 5.4 with 4r100 trans. I have purchased your engine mounts, but I’m looking for a tranny mount that will work with the 4r100
Thanks

Andy

Dear Andy…
Andy, have a look at our 2115 transmission mount and crossmember (below):

Transmission Mount Saddle Kit
Transmission Mount Saddle Kit

and the 205041 Ford adapter plate (below):

which use the insulator/rubber mount (below):

205041 has recently been modified (new #205042) so it will work with transmissions that have rubber mount hole centers from 5-5/16″ to 5-9/16″. All of this has to be filtered by you knowing that I am not at all familiar with this transmission, except by looking online.

Thanks for looking to Welder Series on this problem.

Dear Welder Series… 1946 Ford transmission mount questions.

Dear Welder Series…
I hate to ask because I’m afraid I may have missed it in the blogs but Im going to anyway. I have a 1946 ford coupe. I’m installing a 4.6l dohc and 4L70 transmission in. I am getting the motor mounts and I am considering the the tubular center section. The factory frame has some plating but with large holes in it. Do I need to cut away that plating and make it solid? Also I’m not sure what if any transmission mount plate combinations I would need to mount up the 4L70. It’s a drivetrain from a 1998 Lincoln Mark Viii. Thanks for the help.

Dear Tom…
Tom, I’m not familiar with the Lincoln transmission, but we are modifying our 205041 adapter plate so it will bolt to the Ford C4, C6, and AOD transmissions. Here is the product:

If the 4L70 is available for you to get the mounting hole centers, please send them to me.

Regarding the boxing plates, we left the factory boxing in place and filled any holes necessary to mount the crossmember and engine mounts.

Because your car’s floor has a bit of a driveshaft tunnel, our tubular center section will not work as nicely as it does in vehicles with a flat floor. Check out the installation info below to see if this is how you want to go.

Center Section Kit
Center Section Kit

Thanks for looking at Welder Series parts.

Dear Welder Series… 1949 Dodge MII?

Dear Welder Series…
I have a 49 dodge 4 door sedan that I would like to install a modern front suspension. Is there a set up that can be used? It looks like a person would have to remove the origional crossmember A arm set up and almost build a front clip. Any info would be helpful.
Thank you

Dear Chuck…
Chuck, you have this pictured correctly. There are some pictures on our website showing how builders have dealt with frames like yours. Check out http://welderseries.com/blog/category/mustang-ii-installed-pics/ .

Dear Welder Series… 5/8-18 LH threaded tubes?

Dear Welder Series…
Hey Paul on the 1″ OD X 1-1/2, 5/8-18 threaded bungs do you have them in left handed thread? I am needing 6 of each.

Dear David…
Thanks for asking, David. We could run 6 of these with a LH thread for $6.00 each. They have been added to our web store:

I hope this will help with your project.

Dear Welder Series… Model A K-Member?

Dear Welder Series…
I have a 1928 Ford Tudor I will be building this summer. I was wondering if you have a simple K-Member that would fit a boxed Model A frame? It could be set up to accept the popular GM auto and manual transmissions. Ok ok and Ford transmissions as well. Also you could supplement it with frame boxing plates for a Model A as well? I will be using the Ansen style swing pedals but you could incorporate provisions for brake master cyl as well as a clutch master or pedals that a customer could make his own clutch linkage with. I’m sure you’ve been asked before but I see no reference anywhere on your web site. Great products keep up the outstanding work.

Respectfully,
George

P.S. I don’t Facebook or Tweet its not my style. Sorry……

Dear George…
Thanks for including Welder Series in your Model ‘A’ plans, George. We don’t make boxing plates for the ‘A’ frame, but we can suggest a K-member that is inexpensive and effective: use our 2115 transmission mount & crossmember (shown below):

Transmission Mount Saddle Kit
Transmission Mount Saddle Kit

and make a ‘K’ using 3 x 1-1/2″ tubing angling from the center/rear of the trans crossmember back and out to the frame rails. We have adapters for Ford transmissions, too.

Keep us up to date on your project, please.

Dear Welder Series… will I need a sway bar with triangulated four link?

Dear Welder Series…
I have a quick question relating to the rear axle/ triangulated four-link:
Will I need a rear sway bar in addition to the triangulated four-link set-up? I see conflicting responses online, and figured you may have the best answer.

Thanks,
-A
Dear A…
Depending on who is doing the defining, a sway bar might refer to an anti-roll bar (shown below):
or a Panhard bar (shown below):
Universal Panhard Kit, Rear
Universal Panhard Kit, Rear

Our sway bar/anti-roll bar is designed to resist the tendency to lean when in a turn. A Panhard bar keeps the frame centered, with some tolerance, between the tires and has a minimal effect on the tendency to lean in a turn.A Panhard bar, or some other location device, is necessary when a parallel rear 4-link is used because the bars themselves don’t offer much resistance to left-right chassis movement. (Left-right movement is different from leaning or rolling left to right.)

The triangulation of the bars resists the left-right movement when a triangulated rear 4-link is used so a Panhard bar is not required.

I hope this is clear.

Thanks for asking.

Dear Welder Series… 1939 Plymouth Pickup frame options?

Dear Welder Series…
I just got a 1939 Plymouth pickup. I want to lower it, and I’m looking at the 4 link for the rear. It has a Ford 9″ rear axle. Also looking at maybe a Mustang II front. Can you help me maybe you have something that will work. It sits way too high and I’m going to box in the frame after I’m done. Thanks, Tom.

Dear Tom…
Hi, Tom. Any one of our rear 4-link kits could be used with your Plymouth. If you use a parallel kit, be sure to get a Panhard kit, too.

Check the track width (the distance from the center of one tire to the center of the opposite tire) to help decide which Mustang II kit to use. The frame width, inside and outside, will also help in choosing the Mustang II track width to get.

Here are some links for products that might work:
Rear suspension

Rear panhard kits

Click on any one of the kits for a more detailed description. This will probably generate more questions. Please send them to me and I’ll try to help.

Dear Welder Series… custom bushing tubes?

Dear Welder Series…
Can I get the outer bushing tube and the inner bushing tube in custom lengths? I’m looking at using your 7/8″ rod with the welded bushing tube on the end, but I will need that bushing part to be longer. The bushings will be separated, I know, this is why I would need the inner one to be the same length as the outer. This is not going to be used on a high stress situation, in fact there will be no weight put on it at all. Thanks

Dear Mike…
Mike, please send some dimensions for the parts you want made and we will get back to you. I think we can look after this.

Dear Welder Series… Vega bracket question

Dear Welder Series…
Do you have a drawing/instuctions for the installation of your Vega box bracket? Will I have to drill out all or any of the threaded tabs on my Vega box? The reason I ask is that the picture I saw in your catalog shows only bolts no nuts. Is the box bolted to the bracket or nut and bolted through the bracket?

Dear Brock…

Vega Steering Box Mounting Kit
Vega Steering Box Mounting Kit

Brock, this is a link to the Vega bracket page on our site. Scroll down and click in the installation link for more details.

Yes, the “top” threaded boss on the Vega box has to be drilled out. We supply a 7/16-20 (fine thread) bolt and a boss for that hole. The lower holes in the box are threaded and we supply the bolts for them, too.

Thanks for looking at Welder Series parts.

Dear Welder Series… what kind of tubing do you use?

Dear Welder Series…
Hi I was wondering if your 4 link tubing is DOM? thanks Jad

Dear Jad…
Yes, Jad, our tubing is DOM (Drawn Over Mandrel), also called Seamless tubing. This is high quality and quite different from pipe or HSS (Hollow Structural Section) or CREW (Cold Rolled Electric Welded) tubing. These last 3 types all have a welded seam the length of the tube.

Our DOM bars are threaded directly. The bars for the large bushings are 1″ OD x .188″ (3/16″) wall threaded 3/4-16.

Thanks for asking.

Dear Welder Series… 1936 Chev Master mustang ii?

Dear Welder Series…
I am looking for a MII front end for a 1936 Chevy Master Sedan. I really like the looks of your standard coil crossmember. Do you have recommended frame widths for the 56″ and 58″ cross members? I see that you recommend the 56″ crossmember for a 36 chevy, but I may run a larger offset wheel and 58 may work out better for my application. My frame measures 24″ inside to inside and about 27.5″ outside to outside at “Z”. Also, in calculating ground clearances, can you tell me what the measurement is from the spindle height notch to the bottom of the crossmember? I am trying to get the car as low as possible and retain about 3-3.5 inches of travel. The top of my frame at ride height is 12″ from the ground (same as spindle center with my 24″ tire) so the notch will be right that the top of the frame if I use stock spindles or 2″ below with dropped. Also, does the top coil tower have enough material to mount to the frame if I go with stock spindles in this setup? This would
translate into basically cutting the crossmember completely off horizontally at the spindle notch, which would be the top of the frame rail. The tops of the rails are pretty level concerning the additional material needed for correct anti-dive. I hope this makes sense. Looking forward to ordering parts soon….

Thanks!

Dear Randy…
Thanks for giving me these details, Randy.

The limiting factors for the frame width vary depending on the frame height, but in general:
Minimum frame o.d. for the 56″ kit is 26″. Max frame o.d. is 30″. Depending on frame height, max would be about 30-1/2″ with the coil-over kit.
Minimum frame o.d. for the 58″ kit is 28″. Max frame o.d. is 32″. Depending on frame height, max would be about 32-1/2″ with the coil-over kit.

These min/max dimensions can be “defeated” by notching the frame rails (for spring clearance, for example) or by adding to the inside or outside of the frame in the area of the crossmember and upper towers.

With the crossmember sitting on the bench, the spindle height notch is 5-3/16″ off of the bench surface. If you use 2″ dropped spindles, the bottom of the crossmember will be 7-3/16″ lower than the spindle.

We would use 11-1/2″ as spindle height with a 24″ tall tire. This allows for tire “squat” when weight is on the tire.

Would consider putting a step notch in the frame in the crossmember/upper tower area to make the installation (much) easier?

Thanks again for considering Welder Series parts for your project.

Paul Horton

Dear Welder Series…
thanks paul. It looks like ground clearance wont be a problem then. Sorry for the additional questions, but how would stepping the frame make the install easier? I would think that notching the cross member would be easier. Is it because I want ride height so low / crossmember high in the frame? Also, do the upper towers have enough material to mount to the top of the frame rail if the top of the frame is at the spindle notch ? (i.e., -using dropped spindles). I am looking forward to getting parts in. I originally built the car back in the early 90’s and am doing a complete re-frame off. I am plugging along and will hopefully have the body off the frame this weekend. Oh, you dont make any rear leaf spring hangers (2.5″) do you? I appreciate your help Paul!

Thanks again,
Randy

Dear Randy…
Randy, you’re right about the low ride height and the crossmember. The upper towers won’t have any material to weld to the frame if the top of the rail is at spindle height. (The bottom edge of the tower is spindle height.)

Sorry, we don’t have leaf spring hangers.

Good questions & comments!

Paul

Low West tie rod end mount installation

Low West Hot Rods sent us some pictures of a neat installation of our tie rod end mount kit, and I thought I should share them!

Tie Rod End Mounting Kit
Tie Rod End Mounting Kit

Dear Welder Series… drag link lengths?

Dear Welder Series…
Can you give me the actual length of the drag link tubes that you offer? I do not want to order a drag link based on the year and length of the axle. There are to many versions out there and would rather not get into shipping parts back and forth scenario due to wrong lengths.
Thanks.

Dear Sam…
I understand what you’re saying, Sam. On the right side of the blog, download the “58 page catalog” and then go to page 14. You do not have to print the catalog, just open the download.(Maybe you know that and maybe you don’t… but 58 pages is a lot to print out if you don’t know…) The tube lengths are all listed, with our part numbers.

Thanks for looking at Welder Series parts.