choppedtop
Well-Known Member
Good job on shortening the axle. Did you make a jig to keep the ends aligned?
Birth of Long John
- Thread starter old round fart
- Start date
old round fart
Well-Known Member
I did make a jig. I clamped it down to my welding table and got it as close as I could. After I had it welded and got the spindles mounted they were about both down 2 degrees. I took it to Nostalgia Sids and he heated the tube and pulled it back to spec. It gave a little more sweep to the axle witch I like better. The original spindles I used to set up the king pin inclination turned out to be something other than Chevrolet.
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JetMech727
Active Member
Looking good John.
old round fart
Well-Known Member
HAPPY TURKEY DAY BUCKETHEADS!
JetMech727
Active Member
Right back at ya ORF. 
choppedtop
Well-Known Member
Happy Thanksgiving to you all. It is over here now, as far a family and dinner. Now I gotta find those Rolands.
fletcherson
Well-Known Member
Gobble, gobble!
Taller T
New Member
Cool project! T hot rod styling in my opinion looks best with either a super long chassis or a super short one, not so much in the middle.
For whatever it's worth, I get my best looking consistent chassis mig welds using the stitch method. Crank up the power and do it a stitch at a time, butting up to the last one as I go. A comfortable working position is critical, so it's worth the time to take the time to make that possible as often as possible. I'm of the opinion that mig welders in the $3000 neighborhood naturally do better welds when running beads, they've got the power to maintain what's needed for longer runs. Lesser welders become erratic pretty quick on the thick stuff. I use a HTP 200, very good welder but I definitely see it's limitations.
For whatever it's worth, I get my best looking consistent chassis mig welds using the stitch method. Crank up the power and do it a stitch at a time, butting up to the last one as I go. A comfortable working position is critical, so it's worth the time to take the time to make that possible as often as possible. I'm of the opinion that mig welders in the $3000 neighborhood naturally do better welds when running beads, they've got the power to maintain what's needed for longer runs. Lesser welders become erratic pretty quick on the thick stuff. I use a HTP 200, very good welder but I definitely see it's limitations.
old round fart
Well-Known Member
I agree. I tend to use higher amps to make sure I have good penetration. You have to be careful stitch welding to get enough heat in the weld.
G'Day Guys,
One of the main issues with the cheaper Mig welders is in the wire feed, the cheaper ones use windscreen washer motors and the larger Name units use windscreen wiper motors for wire feed. Makes a huge difference in being able to maintain consistent welds due to erratic feed speeds. I have only ever owned Name Brand Migs, but have used cheaper/lower amperage units when trying to sort issues at Mates places. wire feed speed kills it every time. And good earthing!!
Regards,
One of the main issues with the cheaper Mig welders is in the wire feed, the cheaper ones use windscreen washer motors and the larger Name units use windscreen wiper motors for wire feed. Makes a huge difference in being able to maintain consistent welds due to erratic feed speeds. I have only ever owned Name Brand Migs, but have used cheaper/lower amperage units when trying to sort issues at Mates places. wire feed speed kills it every time. And good earthing!!
Regards,
old round fart
Well-Known Member
Got to rear suspension in the last few days. I selected triangulated 4 bar and bought it from Horton Welder Series. I love their stuff. Anyway I’m going to have to redo the kick up to extend it to clear the pumpkin. Wheelbase has to be extended another 2”. Like it wasn’t long enough! Lol My question for you guys is how much clearance do you have between the axle and frame. I can’t remember if I used 2 or 3”. Spirit has 3 3/8” between ride height and collapsed measurement.
old round fart
Well-Known Member
Rear suspension. Try resize. 
old round fart
Well-Known Member
Thank you Spanky. It is a fine line to get the designed ride height length of the shock and clearance together. The Horton shock mount may be longer than Spirits. I want to set it up on the low hole and as low as I can and go up if I need to.
old round fart
Well-Known Member
I don’t have pix of my old suspension but it sucked anyway. Here is a good link to good design.
quarter elliptical suspension design - Google Search
quarter elliptical suspension design - Google Search
old round fart
Well-Known Member
Spent the day in the shop today. I didn’t want to think about rear suspension today so I made the rack mount. This is the third attempt and I’m happy with it. I still need to make the spacers but I have the tubing so I just need to get the saw out.
old round fart
Well-Known Member
Forgot to tell the round bottom notches fit on the bottom frame rail right by the oil filter.
old round fart
Well-Known Member
Thanks. I could not believe how long it took to get happy with that bracket. I have really slowed down with my age. It’s a good thing nobody is paying me. They would need real deep pockets. I’m getting back on tear suspension tomorrow. I looked at it some more today and think I have the solution. Most shocks have 3” between ride height and compressed height. I’ll shoot for that meaning new rear frame kick up.
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