I am thinking about building a custom front axle for my street rod, and just wanted to run my thoughts by some of you who have actual experience with straight axle front ends. Here's what I have in mind
- I have a pair of GM G-body (Monte, Regal, Cutlass, Prix) front knuckles (complete with rotors, bearings, and calipers) that I plan to have line-bored through the tapered ball joint holes to accept bronze sleeves.
- The axle itself would be a dropped configuration, fabricated from sheetmetal, with sleeved tubular ends designed to mount the G-body knuckles, with a long bolt.
- The bolt would be the strongest hardest sucker I can find, with a nylon insert lock nut on the bottom; and a pin or saftey wire for extra peace of mind.
- The axle would be mounted with really short, dual, semi-ellipitical leafs; with custom frame rails that arch over the axle.
- The front spring mount, on each side, would be a pocket inside the frame rail; and leaf sliders for the rear mounts (instead of shackles - cleaner)
- I am also thinking about adjustable blocks between the spring and axle for precise alignments.
Why go through all this? I get relatively modern brakes and bearings, and a really trick front suspension hanging out in front of the truck, and the satisfaction of saying "I did it my way".
Thoughts?