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53 Dodge build thread


53dodgekustom

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correct the shipping stores, mail box, etc are not owned by the shipper,,, if the price is 11 bucks they charge  22  etc,ups IMO  has a bad track record  ive never had problems with fed ex,,,but  im lucky  i have a fex ex terminal local to  me,,you may want to check to see if you have a fed ex terminal near by,,,it also cant hurt to call a local frieght company that handles LTL  loads,,,less then trailer loads,,they may  charger you for just the  space that it takes up on  a skid,rather then the hole skid,,and they  usually have small trailers called pups they deliver to  just about any  location,,,

 

one other way may be to be,,, companies that ship a lot get a giant  discount on shipping,,if you know any one that works at a place that has  a dock,and deals with   UPS,,,FED EX,,, or any  LTL  hauler you may be able to arrange it that way,,,just some ideas,,,good luck

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Thanks for all the input guys. I lightened my box up and fed ex was able to ship it ground for $120. Seems like a fair price.

Cleaned up all the suspension parts last night. Still can't get one of the bushings out of the lower controll arm. I guess it's stripped.

Is there a special tool or an easy way to get the spindles apart and take the king pins out?

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Subscribed! Gonna watch this because I'll be doing the front disc swap and putting a dual master cyliner in the waagon over the winter. Let me know if you need any help and Nick and I will be over with beer!

Sure thing Kevin! Glad to see you on here! Cool wagon!

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[quote name="fstfish66"  ive never had problems with fed ex,,,but  im lucky  i have a fex ex terminal local to  me

 

I believe you just supplied your own cause and effect...in my area Fed Ex sucks the big one..we are 45 miles from their hub...the drivers hate coming this far out....service with them is nonexistent..all items coming here are extremely late if delivered at all and damage is not uncommon...however UPS is excellent service.....oh  their hub is 5 miles from me...so it is the other side of the same coin...I just post pone ordering some 600 dollars of sheet metal panel as they use FedEx but will be changing to UPS in two weeks..I will call them at that time..yes..their service to my area is THAT BAD

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[quote name="fstfish66"  ive never had problems with fed ex,,,but  im lucky  i have a fex ex terminal local to  me

 

I believe you just supplied your own cause and effect...in my area Fed Ex sucks the big one..we are 45 miles from their hub...the drivers hate coming this far out....service with them is nonexistent..all items coming here are extremely late if delivered at all and damage is not uncommon...however UPS is excellent service.....oh  their hub is 5 miles from me...so it is the other side of the same coin...I just post pone ordering some 600 dollars of sheet metal panel as they use FedEx but will be changing to UPS in two weeks..I will call them at that time..yes..their service to my area is THAT BAD

interesting,,but what ever works,,

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Got the kingpins apart. So for some reason the new fatman uprights don't come w shock mounts. 39-50 do but 51-56 doesn't. Has anyone installed these? I'm sure once I get it together I can come up with some ideas. Just thought it was strange that they have no provisions for shocks whatsoever. I called fatman and I got a "I don't know" answer.

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Edited by 53dodgekustom
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Got the kingpins apart. So for some reason the new fatman uprights don't come w shock mounts. 39-50 do but 51-56 doesn't. Has anyone installed these? I'm sure once I get it together I can come up with some ideas. Just thought it was strange that they have no provisions for shocks whatsoever. I called fatman and I got a "I don't know" answer.

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looks to me some oen forgot to weld on the tab for the  lower shock mount,,,did they  send you the big piece of  flat stock upper relocation  shock mount?? im pretty sure  1939 to 56  is basically the same,,i dont know the big mans real name at fat mans,,but  ide call back  till you got an  answer,,,he doesnt  do  busniess like that,,but you know how  regular  employees are,,,,maybe  you were talking to the janitor,,, ide call back,,ask for the big guy,,, tell them  the interet is a power full tool,,your  questions were not answered,,,but they  got your money,,,let us know,,,

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good catch with the lower shock mount.....I have a set of Fatman's I picked up at a swap meet that the owner bought new and the project was sold with these uninstalled...they have the shock mount..the stiffener up the back lacks the necessary bulge for mounting a stud here..

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The instruction even say that the 39-50 comes with the shock mount relocation plate to weld on the frame and the lower shock mounts. They act like 51-56 are somehow different. Looked the same to me!! Lower mount on the upright upper mount on the upper a-arm. Need to call again I guess. I would just like to know why they did it this way. Making mounts should be easy.

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Contacted Fatman tonight. Brent said he would trade mine in for the one's with mounts no problem. So that is good! He said his parts book shows that they went to a shock in the middle of the coil spring in 1951. I don't know what book he has. Maybe Chrysler and DeSoto did but Dodge and Plymouth didn't that's for sure. I have a 54 Dodge factory service manual and it shows the shock like I have. 

 

Also ordered all the disc brake stuff I needed and I ordered the ECI dual master cylinder kit. I've been working on stripping the frame for paint so hopefully soon I can start putting stuff together! I'm excited to fabricate some stuff and what not.

 

Looks like George should have got my trans in today as well so I will be expecting a call from him soon too. 

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I'd reccomend making a new upper shock mount bracket and mounting it to the frame instead of the UCA.  It makes i big difference in the ride and handling of the car.  Stock the shock barely sees any travel as the upper and lower mounting points both move with the suspension, with the upper mount mounted to the frame the shock sees more of the "true" suspension movement.  Especially now because I dont theink new replacement shocks are valved stiff enough for the early Mopar mounting setup.

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Received the correct uprights with shock mounts from Fatman today. All is well in that department. 

 

Now, has anyone replaced the bushing in the control arms? My service manual is showing a special tool that keeps the inside of the arm spread while you install both bushings and tighten them to 165ft lbs. It looks like this could be a hell of a job. Especially since all of the threads in my control arms look rather ragged to start with. Looking for anyone with prior experience to chime in with suggested of what to do and what not to do.

 

Also need to find a reamer to do the kingpins with.  

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I'd reccomend making a new upper shock mount bracket and mounting it to the frame instead of the UCA.  It makes i big difference in the ride and handling of the car.  Stock the shock barely sees any travel as the upper and lower mounting points both move with the suspension, with the upper mount mounted to the frame the shock sees more of the "true" suspension movement.  Especially now because I dont theink new replacement shocks are valved stiff enough for the early Mopar mounting setup.

I endorse the above comments.  On my original conversion to Fatman dropped spindles I fabbed a bracket off the frame for greater shock travel.  I think you can buy those extended brackets cut from 1/4" or 3/8" stock.  However beware of welding directly to the frame.  Make a plate for the shock bracket that spreads the load where it's welded to the frame.  I'd have to dig but would attach a pic upon request. 

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I endorse the above comments.  On my original conversion to Fatman dropped spindles I fabbed a bracket off the frame for greater shock travel.  I think you can buy those extended brackets cut from 1/4" or 3/8" stock.  However beware of welding directly to the frame.  Make a plate for the shock bracket that spreads the load where it's welded to the frame.  I'd have to dig but would attach a pic upon request. 

The one thing I would add to this is to have your shock in hand when you make up your own bracket.  The first ones we made were too short, and the shock was bottomed out at ride height.  The second set was 3 inches taller, and work just fine!

 

Marty

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your going to love the scarebird kit, if you havent received it already.  i was highly impressed with how easy it was, especially with all the different parts from make and models.  the hardest part about it was taking the rotors to my work and opening up the pilot hole from 2.73" to 2.81" on the lathe.  it took about 5 minutes.

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Been getting a lot of parts in. And have made a bit of progress.

 

Traded my uprights in for the correct ones. Brent was quick on the turnaround time.

 

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Received all my suspension rebuild parts from Roberts Motor parts. He sent me extra lower control arm kits and no upper outer kits. I called him and he sent me the right parts instantly and a tag to ship the wrong one's back. No big deal.

 

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Got my Scarebird brackets and ordered all the brake parts from RockAuto.

 

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Cleaned up the frame and painted it.

 

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I used the Eastwood extreme chassis black. Expensive for a spray can but it turned out nice and seems durable.

 

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The Fed-Ex guy now knows me by my first name and knows to just bring the packages strait to the shop instead of my house. Haha. He brought me the ECI dual master cylinder stuff the other day. Looks like a very nice unit. We shall see if it fits good. I know Don Coatney had a couple of issues with his. Here it is ready for some paint.

 

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I'm beginning to wonder if I need new control arms. The bushing threads look really bad everywhere. The service manual acts like the new ones should be so tight that it actually cuts it's own threads a little. It recommends tapping oil. I can thread mine in by hand.

 

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Bushing I pulled out. In bad shape, that's for sure.

 

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Any thoughts on the bushing threads? 

 

Thanks for all the help and comments so far guys. 

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You got the correct bracket from ECI as it uses an idler to increase the throw ratio of the push rod.  The kit that Don and I received used a piece of 1/2" x 1" bar stock with a slot milled in it and bolted to the existing arm on the brake pedal to increase the throw of the push rod.  It appears that your master cylinder will mount further back than the stock unit requiring the access hole to be enlarged.  Let us know how it all works once you get it installed and the brakes bled.  The original design of that bracket only worked if you were using an automatic transmission as there was no provision for mounting the clutch pedal.  Before you paint the bracket you should mount it up to the frame and install both pedals so that you can add stops for the return position of the pedals as the original master cylinder had.

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Mocked up the master cylinder and pedals today. Made some stops like suggested. Had to open up the mounting holes a little. Also had to trim a piece on the clutch linkage that was rubbing. Looks great otherwise!!

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Edited by 53dodgekustom
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