John Burke Posted November 24, 2006 Report Posted November 24, 2006 I bought the 3" lowering kit from Ply Do and pretty well got it back together. There are some clearance issues which are easy to resolve...after we have it back together i will weld on the shock brackets that came with the kit...more photo's on that when it happens... The first image shows the spindle assembly remove The second image shows the spindles mounted on the newassmbly that came in the kit The third image shows me bending the steering arms. If you swap sides with the steering arms, you only need to bend them about an inch.... This shows one of the finished steering arms after bending Back together at last...I will adress the clearance issues on the back when I get back to it....nuffernow....John Burke Quote
martybose Posted November 24, 2006 Report Posted November 24, 2006 When I did the same conversion, I wound up with severely limited turning movement due to the drum brake backing plate hitting. I had less than half of the end to end turns of the steering wheel. I wound up taking a grinder to the backing plates to cut notches in them to allow them to turn farther. Have you checked for this yet? Marty Quote
bob westphal Posted November 24, 2006 Report Posted November 24, 2006 Bending the steering arms that much sure looks scary! Are you sure that they won't loose strength? That's an awful lot of work! That's why I just heated my coils and I didn't need to take any chances with steering components or change steering radius.. No parts and shipping costs either. Just a little oxy/acetyline. Quote
Normspeed Posted November 24, 2006 Report Posted November 24, 2006 Bob, did your front end alignment need a lot of tweaking after you lowered the coils? Quote
John Burke Posted November 24, 2006 Author Report Posted November 24, 2006 When I did the same conversion, I wound up with severely limited turning movement due to the drum brake backing plate hitting. I had less than half of the end to end turns of the steering wheel. I wound up taking a grinder to the backing plates to cut notches in them to allow them to turn farther. Have you checked for this yet? Marty I can see some interference with the original bolts that hold the steering arms on (too long)..I will be using Jamb nuts here and cut off the excess bolt....then I will go from there Quote
John Burke Posted November 24, 2006 Author Report Posted November 24, 2006 Bob, if you don't overheat the arms and let them cool slow ( no quenching in water) they should stay as strong as new. They don't have to be bent much anyway if you swap sides with the arms...John Burke Quote
bob westphal Posted November 24, 2006 Report Posted November 24, 2006 Normspeed, I didn't do anything with my alignment and it drives very nicely. Looking at the front of the car, the camber appears to be normal and I checked the toe in but didn't need to do anything. It does ride a little choppy but that just takes me back to another P-15 and years long gone. When modifying a car there are always some drawbacks. Quote
martybose Posted November 24, 2006 Report Posted November 24, 2006 I can see some interference with the original bolts that hold the steering arms on (too long)..I will be using Jamb nuts here and cut off the excess bolt....then I will go from there You are correct; the bolts are the first thing that has to be fixed. If my experience is valid, they won't be the last ...... Marty Quote
jd52cranbrook Posted November 24, 2006 Report Posted November 24, 2006 I did my P23 with the same kit. The lowered look was awesome. I had a very good alignment shop do it. I just loved the look. We had to roll the front fenders out, and use two size smaller tires in front to get the turning issue resolved. Then I banged the oil pan so much I had to lift it back up a inch. Quote
Guest dmackustom Posted November 25, 2006 Report Posted November 25, 2006 Again I bring to the forefront. Frame stub from fatman. No I dont work for them but it seems to be the problem solver.. Im getting ready to make the purchase hub to hub with disc stoppers and rack and pinion, under $2500. You're right its expensive but.................... Quote
John Burke Posted November 25, 2006 Author Report Posted November 25, 2006 I can see spending $400.00 or so to get what I want.....$2500.00? I could buy another nice car to work on...John Burke..... Quote
Plymouthy Adams Posted November 25, 2006 Report Posted November 25, 2006 Amen..but when you got deep pockets..skys the limit... Quote
PatS.... Posted November 25, 2006 Report Posted November 25, 2006 Again I bring to the forefront. Frame stub from fatman. No I dont work for them but it seems to be the problem solver.. Im getting ready to make the purchase hub to hub with disc stoppers and rack and pinion, under $2500. You're right its expensive but.................... It's just as low to the ground to hit the pan with stock or fatman. The wheels are in the same wheelwell with or without fatman. The frame is cut in half with fatman:eek: I'm sure the fatman kit will present it's own set of compromises. Quote
Plymouthy Adams Posted November 25, 2006 Report Posted November 25, 2006 There are two appraoches to front end upgrade in the Fatman book..one IS the frame cut with their own sub frame allowing the use of any stage of their Mustang II suspesnsion..this kit is very very nice and has road manners and rideability that can be set up any way the owner desires and to any level of show or utility. The second approach by Fatman utilizes the stock front suspension with slight mods, lowering spindles, relocated shocks, disc brakes and R&P steering, you choice of power assist or standard steering. Both kits are well engineeered and offer the customer the chance to upgrade and targets the low dollar approach as Chrylser engineer suspension was excellent design or allow you to go extreme with chrome suspension pieces, coil overs, bags whatever trips your trigger. The cutting of coils is a destructive course that alters the geometry of the steering, causes problems and you must buy new coils should you screw up or just flat not like it. Slamming a car to the ground by cutting the coils gives the driver the look he wants but driveability suffers greatly. Safety issues such as they are..your braking and suspension are true concerns no matter stock or modified. Quote
Guest dmackustom Posted November 25, 2006 Report Posted November 25, 2006 Trust me Im familiar with cutting the coils and putting in lowering blocks. Ive done it on a 53 ford a 53 willys a 64 galaxie and a few others. It works. You can acheive a cool stance. Im not dead set against it but I want to have those options that Tim spoke of. Not to mention I have to get help on my projects so Im getting a little pressure to "build it right"(their words) I think in the long run they're right. However, its about having fun and a low car is way more fun. Quote
Plymouthy Adams Posted November 25, 2006 Report Posted November 25, 2006 dmackustom...lowering a car is a personal thing I guess..the ones I have seen slammed lose all handling and driveabilty aspects and truly a discomfort to drive..however a car lowered at all four corners and yet retains it drivelability gives the car greater value both to use and resale...the others saying "build it right" is taking all consideration into the project, the driveabilty, future re-sale of the car...safety and maintainability and alignment is also in the equation..the spindles are a large chunk of change but well worth it for smooth low ride and the abiltiy to drive at speed on/through road imperfections without bump steer therefore keeping the car safer to operate, alignment a snap and tire wear at minimum..the eventual saving in maintenace will be enough to make this an affordable cost. So many cars out there on auction sites that have had custom work started and abandoned due to the realization this is just not a cut and weld job done in minutes..a lot of these are very botched jobs also..The "do it right" approach will make this car more desireable even if not finished...protecting your investment to a greater degree. There is always more than one way to skin a cat..some leave you a dressed animal and the other is known as a butchered animal. Quote
Guest dmackustom Posted November 25, 2006 Report Posted November 25, 2006 Indeed! I agree with the whole deal Tim. Im planning on getting my frame stub in Jan.. Im planning on havin a new spring pack made for the rear so I can get a good ride and have even considered four linking the rear. I bought my p15 biz coupe for a mere 300 bucks.(body, frame and good sheetmetal with very little rust) Its a long ways from perfect but I think Im far enough ahead that spending the money only makes sense. All major installations will be completed by a qualified pro. This will be my first car that I plan on driving out to Paso on a yearly basis. Im shooting for quality and resale, with 2 scoops of cool and reliability. Quote
Plymouthy Adams Posted November 25, 2006 Report Posted November 25, 2006 sounds like you got a good deal on the car..just remember you can do this work in stages so it won't kill your budget right off the bat... like your plan..luck to you... Quote
Guest dmackustom Posted November 26, 2006 Report Posted November 26, 2006 Thanks I will start posting pics as things start to progress. Im waiting for our new garage. In january I should have acess to a new garage. The tattoo shop I work at is gettin a little bigger. The building owner is going to lease us the adjacent 2000sq ft. garage as well. Turns out I used to run a custom paint business out of that garage. It has a brand new heater and bathroom and 220 and all the good stuff. Once we get the keys I plan on hitting it hard and with any luck she'll be on the road late summer. Quote
John Burke Posted November 26, 2006 Author Report Posted November 26, 2006 Well I think I have resoved most of the issues on the lowering job. As some folks remarked, I had to trim away some on the backing plate to achive the desired turning radius. I also had to heat up and bend the steering arms inward as they were hitting on the tires. I don't have the shock brackets on yet but I wanted to see how it sat so we put it together and slapped the tires on and lowered it down on the ground...It immediatly went back up and I pulled the 2" lowereing blocks out and moved the rear end back further to center it in the wheel well opening...Now I am satisfied...I will have a proffesional shjop realign the front end...nuffernow...John Burke Quote
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