I had a new member email me and asked what is the best front end to put under his 1940 chev and still use the stock frame. he wants PS and disc brakes. ROY

I've decided to go with mustangII it is a weld in using the stock frame rails.There is a choice of options, from different manufacterers,from basic kits,to complete assemblies. Most if not all your frontend sheetmetal parts will bolt back on without any changes.I still am not sure how Im going to keep my stock bolt pattern for my wheels,but Im sure somebody in this club has the answer

I would start by giving Fat Man Fabrications a call (704)545-0369. They are based in North Carolina and have the solution to many problems. If they can't help, I'm sure that they will direct you to a reputable manufacturer. They have many kits readily available.

The Mustang/Pinto frontend is the best way to go. You can buy a crossmember amd accessories from several manufactures but if you are like most of us money comes into play. You can find a junk car and cut the frontend out and put it under the '41 for around $100.00. The rotors can be redrilled to chevy patterns or buy news ones w/chevy patterns for less than $100.00 w/new bearings and seals. It may not look as good as the aftermarket but with a little work it will look good[what you can see under the car]. I have run one of these since '79 under a '37 Chevy with out any trouble.

Mustang II, is the way to go. I bought mine from street rod engineering. The upper and lower control arms, and sway bar I found at a swap meet.

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[ January 09, 2002: Message edited by: tes0752 ]</p>

First off i dont recommed the original stangII out of a donor car.(if it works for you great)The new "KITS" have nothing stang ii on them. The crossmember is very flimsy the lower control arms are conected by a strut rod(some kits also)that breaks or the rubber wears quickly and loses castor under braking(i know some one will tell me thay have 10000000 miles on theres but its not the norm)The kit will also use bigger brakes the 9 inch brake on a stock stang II are way to small you must upgrade to 11 inch brakes. Most kits are now using a slower rack(some use a 90's bird or 95 mustang rack) the old pinto/stangII rack is too quick and causes problems with most drivers.If you go to a kit with dropped spindles you now have nothing stangII other than the name.With todays market kits it just does not make since to use a junk yard clip.In the end after cutting up a stock frontend and rebuilding it and buying a new rack its not worth it any more.Back when those cars were new i also would do it cause it was all new.But that aint gonna happen any more.Dont cheap out on the frontend,pinto/stangII,pacer,camaro,c-10 chevys are a thing of the past.I get 80% of my bussiness form cutting this stuff out after someone drives a new kit. Just a thought.

In true Hot Rodder tradition, how about salvaging a S-10 pickup front clip? A buddy of mine did this on a '49 Olds woody wagon and it really worked out great. The S-10 is narrow and fits these older body styles well.

They make conversion kit hardware for the V-8 swap and you can salvage everything else like brakes, steering box, etc.

It is also a BIG money saver, maybe even a money maker if you buy a clunker, cut out the clip, and sell the rest for parts.

Same thing if its low milage wreck and not some beat up farm truck by all means go for it.But do some measuring as this clip does not fit every thing well.Sometimes it can look rather dorkie as its to narrow for some swaps(we have all seen them,the tire inset 4 inches or more from the edge of the fender).In the end around here a rotted bent up s-10 with a 2.8 brings 500 bucks so........by the time you cut it apart and haul everything to the junk yard you will have spent a couple weeks part time messin with it .Most kits can be tacked in about a 5 hour day, next day you can be done.Plus you dont butcher your stock frame. I like low budget stuff myself but after rebuilding and towing junk stuff around cleaning up the mess my time and money is on the KIT.Its cheaper, easer,quicker, with much better results in the end.Also the s-10 rear is not much use as it is to narrow for most cars/truck.Its is also to weak to go the pro-street deal(if you though oh good i will go pro street)Just my thoughts having done lots of clips and kits. Good Luck

I must agree . . . I am for the kit approach. Safety should be the number 1 priority. Buying a kit buys the engineering that goes into putting the pieces together that will work with your project. They have done the math, and the geometry is correct. Don't play around with your life to save money on something as important as this. You want to be around for the next project.

I wouldn't be too quick to hang my hat on the engineering ability of a street rod "kit" front end. Just because you are buying a kit from a supplier, don't assume that they have any qualified engineering personnel. Some of these kits would have you use stock mustang II parts on vehicles that are way to heavy for the application. Keep in mind, Mustang II's were very light little cars, that is why many manufacturers have beefed up the components.

I still say the front clip is the most economical route for a budget "home built" full fendered ride. It solves a lot of problems in a hurry (like steering, motor mounts, sway bars, etc.) The clip option also allows you to buy over the counter parts from your local auto parts store. Buying custom made front end parts means you are out of luck if the manufacturer goes out of business.

Naturally you wouldn't want to use a "rotted out old farm truck" for your front clip and if you "butcher" your frame installing a clip, odds are you will butcher the installation of the mustang II also.

Common sense goes a long way here. You have to pick out good quality parts, whether they or old or new.

Whatever you choose, remember, buyer beware

I guess I should sit back and keep my mouth shut but after reading Roy's story on his Plymouth, I decided to reply anyway. This club is about building homebuilt cars. Sure, we want to build safe cars but at rhe same time we are not building "kit" cars. You can buy everything from manufactures new and assembly the car if you want to but this makes for "high dollar trailer queens" not cars that are built by their owners. These cars are assembled by owners. The Mustang frontend I was talking about has all of the same parts that the standard kits have new except the crossmember.As for the strut rod, there is way to do this that elimates this stock unit. This donor frontend can be done with new parts for probably what the aftermarket crossmember will cost you. Roy, thanks and keep building RBBO cars. Thanks for letting me speak my piece. Circlehill

Well OK heres my two cents worth. I think the day of salvage built rods are pretty much a thing of the past.
There simply are too many well enginered quality aftermarket suppliers out there with superior products and I personaly thank God they are there.
I have installed an Art Morrison IFS in my 38 and am very happy with it. There are of course several others out there every bit as good as Art Morrison and I would only recomend you go with tubeular a arms with coil overs unless you want an "adjustable" ride stance and then I would go with the new "air" bags as I think they've got them pretty much perfected.
11" disc brakes are standart on all of them and dropped spindles are not needed unless you want to scrape the ground.
The newer power rack & pinion steering units are slower and do not require valving of you pump to compensate.
However I am using a stock Mustang 11 rack with a GM pump with the modified valving and it works great.

One more comment on IFS kits . . . I agree with Rex. I personally build primarly rods from 20's, 30's and 40's and either use brand new chassis, or box and add a newly engineered IFS. My manufacturers of choice are TCI, Morrison, and Fatman Fabrications. I do build my own rods, but feel that I don't have to build my own chassis to claim that I built it myself. This I will put in the hands of the experts and focus my efforts elsewhere.

I think that the kits are neat and if you use your comon sence and a little skill with a welder you can get a great car for less than someone doing it for you. The kits are not necesaraly an easy out however. I bought the side motor mount conversion kit for my '57 chevy and the directions and illustrations were all wrong. Using a little comon sence it finaly fit as intended. I would not put down front cliping a car. Just make sure if you do it yourself to select a car that can carry the load safely. I do not think that the days of building junk yard cars are gone. I think we are going to see far fewer of them than we once did because the aftermarket is finaly catching up. My 57 is largely a junk yard car. My entire drive line is salvage and I have had lots of other roders scoff at me when I tell them I have a used motor & trany in my car and I do plan to use it that way at least until the final tear down and reasembly.

I think when it comes down to it go with your own comfort level. Do the kind of work you are sure will come out right. With susspension it is easy to fowl it up. Go with a good kit and your chances of success are multiplied.

This is something I have given alot of thought,I really didn't want to stub my truck. I didn'twant to cut the frame at the firewall, just a personal thing with me. By the time I found a donor stub and rebuilt it compared to buying a mustangII kit the dollars saved don't amount to that much and I think the end result will be better.If you own something a kit isn't available for you make what you need to get the job done. I will do my own install and the rest of the truck .Also,the kits are quick and easy safe and simple.