thanks how about different rim sizes ie. 16s in the back and 15s up front?

if i were to use an 8" rear axle set up how do i know the appropriate size to buy? its not like i can easily bring these to the car/frame to look at them. is there some basics sizes that fit best with the 37' ford 4 drs? i realize that a couple of inches in either direction can be worked with/adjusted for by using different backspacing on the wheels. i also have been giving some consideration to your comment about buying a new frame and swapping bodies, i know how these $$$ can add up very quickly. although i could teach the kid how to weld by boxing in the frame.....

Lots of folks mix and match........16 or larger rears .....and smaller on the fronts.

Most of the chassis builders that offer new frames for the 35 to 40 Fords use the 56 inch wide rear.



Measured this way......

I prefer the 58 inch rear width myself. Like a factory 57 to 59 Ford passenger car rear end.

Here is a site with rear end widths........of the possible donor cars and the suggested rear end widths of the common Hot Rod project vehicles.

http://www.quickperformance.com/Tec...sus_measure.htm

Chassis Engineering is a well known and respected company that makes a lot of good suspension kits for street rodders. Their on line catalog has a lot of good information in it. It can help you decide which way you want to go and HOW to get there.

http://www.chassisengineeringinc.com/

If you go to a 8 inch, a 9 inch or another rear end......you will have to address the transmission and driveshaft issues that come with a stock 37 Ford. They have a enclosed driveshaft...which keeps the rear of the transmission and the rear end in place. With a later model rear end......you will have to convert the transmission to open drive also.

With the disc brakes and the lower stance your are wanting on the 37.....a street rod approach may be a better path. Just go ahead and put a IFS under it, or a Chassis Engineering split wishbone kit along with a late rear end, a more modern engine and transmission....

This is a spare 32 Ford chassis...... but the principal is the same.......

Here you can see the enclosed driveshaft and how the entire rear assembly all works together. If the rear is replaced, the transmission will leak out the rear unless you do something ( there are cures.. ) The 37 Flathead is not the best flathead......by most early V8 opinions....the much improved 49 to 53's are and then the Mercury........because it is 255 inches stock.....

thanks Deuce, you are steps a head of me leading me down the right path....my main source for used parts is a Chevy man, he is local, cheap and a pretty good guy to boot....although i wanted to do something with the flat head the additional cost of making it have some umph....is so much higher then what i can do with a SBC, I may just duplicate my 350hp/700r4 set up I put in my vette last winter. I will probalby scale down the power though since this isn't intended to be a rocket ship. my man has lots of GM rears, rotors, calipers, etc so i guess i will start formulating a plan around GM parts.

thanks for the help, what do you know about Maval rack and pinion cross steering? i will stick this in a new thread for search purposes. bob

A lot of folks start out with a early V8 project and want to keep the old stuff. Then when they find out that the old V8 stuff actually costs more than a modern V8 and the conversion...... THEN We have a new street rodder.....

I would formulate a plan.and build the 37 in your mind a few times. Visualize the car and HOW you want it. Wheels, Tires, Paint....the whole deal. THEN.....work towards it. If you want disc brakes, and rack and pinion steering....... a complete IFS kit is the easiest way. Install the DUMMY engine and transmission....box the frame around the front rails where the IFS crossmember goes and the engine mounts attach. Then go to the rear.....there are kits.......and you do not have to remove the body to do most of them.

Steering column, and some wiring, exhaust and a fresh engine and transmission and you are ready to road test....

OR..better yet find a 35 to 40 Ford frame and do all the improvements to it. Paint and detail it and then add your body.....

.

For most of the 60s the light 9" axles and the 8" axles are identical (watch the wheel center holes). and the rear ends are 57 1/2 wide wheel flange to wheel flange. (small bearing 9" axles slips right into a 8" housing) Actually 8" Granada axles are slightly fatter than a 50s nine inch.

Later both got slightly heavier axles, and the 9s got 2 different heavier bearings.

looks it will be a GM rear end....my main supplier for used parts is a Chevy guy so looks like it will be a posi Chevy rear end....just have to do some measuring to see if they will fit.

The preferred rear ( GM ) for a 37 Ford street rod is a 78 up Mid-size to 88 Malibu/Monte Carlo, a 2 wheel drive S-10 ......or a 65 to 67 Nova. The 12 bolt Nova version is stronger than the 10 bolt version .....but kind of pricey nowadays.

I installed a 86 Monte Carlo SS rear end in a 40 Ford for a friend of mine. It had metric wheel lug studs..... so I converted it to SAE......The Monte Carlo SS rear was a 3.73 and it worked great with the 700R4 OD in the 40. Has a 305 up front, got 20 to 22 MPG on the highway....


OR seeing as you are a Corvette fan.......





http://www.progressiveautomotive.com/default.htm

Progressive Automotive makes kits to put the Corvette IFS and Corvette IRS under a 37......

my chevy guy has lots of gen III camaro stuff so i think the rear end will one iof those if its suitable, is that sonsidered a 78 and up mid size?

i think one corvette suspension is enough for any family!!!!!!! although the vette suspension might be more friendly if you could actually get at it easier. I don't mind going back to a simpler suspension system. In fact thats one of the things i looking forward to is the ability to get at everything....

heres me stuck until i lost 20 lbs....
[IMG][/IMG]

this is the 350/350 hp and 700r4 we stuck in the 77
[IMG][/IMG]

and this is the rack and pinion set up we used

[IMG][/IMG]

Deuce where do i get a dummy engine? the one from replica engines was approx $262...seems like kind of alot for a one time use.....thanks bob

I have a old dead engine that I use.......



I actually prefer a real engine...instead of the $262 plastic dummy engines...the real thing weighs the suspension and car down like the real thing.......because it is a " real thing "

thanks Deuce, well i have a 4bolt main roller cam sitting in the corner that fits that bill and a th350.....

the split wish bone kit is that only for a TH350? if i want to put in a 700r4 do i have to use a different split wishbone kit? or do i just use a different transmisson mounting crossmember and the TH350 split wishbone kit, or do I modify the TH350 split wishbone bracket?

I will take your advice and build it in my mind several different ways and actually see what my old frame,suspension and driveline would be worth to a "purist" it is unmolested and still has the mechanical brakes and been garaged the last 30 yrs. funny thing is thats what attracted me to the car.... thanks for the help bob

#7, I hate to throw in my two cents when Deuce is doing such a great job. Having built a few 35-48 Fords, I'll throw in a few things to consider. The 35-40 frames are dimensionally the same, but there are a few arrangement differences so if you start working a 40 frame for your 37, you need to look at mounting holes and brackets closely for these differences. The 41-48 frame is about 21/2 wider and longer as well as having more beef for the heavier body. Running gear parts do not mix and match well, but sounds like you are not interested in using them any way. I personally prefer the 55-64 Chevy rear ends for the 35-40 frames and the ones Deuce mentioned for the wider 41-48 frames. There is about 2 1/4 inch difference in the flange to flange between these rear ends and it takes a lot of back spacing on the wheels to move the tires under the fender.

If you are going to use the SBC/700R4 combo, you will need to modify your fire wall or replace with a B i t c h i n type firewall. Also, you will need to rebuild the X member of the stock frame. That takes you back to looking at a custom street rod frame for your body. Also, if you work your frame with boxing plates, study and plan your blind nuts required to fasten fenders/inner fenders, fuel tanks, running boards etc because you may not be able to get to them upon assembly. Again, custom frames have these completed for you. Another thing to look at is the location of the master cylinder. If you look at some of the under the floor installations (I prefer this), consider how you are going to run your exhaust cause it gets very crowded inside the frame rails when you put in the 700R4 and a power booster. Even 2 1/2 in exhaust begins to crowd things and 3 in is almost unmanageable.

I did a journal on my 36 PU build and there are several pics and verbiage available for modifying the X member. This was under Hotrodders.com project of the month which has been replaced by project journals. It still is in our cyber space and I have stumbled upon it a few times. Maybe someone can tell you how to find it.

Trees

thanks i will look for your journal, if i stick with the TH350 do the cross member issues go away? i have a th350 sitting in my garage from my vette. thanks bob

This discussion has been added to the Suspension - Brakes - Steering Discussions category of the Hotrodders Knowledge Base.

Additionally, the suspension measurement chart link has been added to the Suspension - Brakes - Steering Technical Data category of the Hotrodders Knowledge Base. Thanks Deuce for posting the link .

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