my parts collection so far

[ratterman]

I thought I'd post up some pics of what i have gathered up so far to start my rat rod. The cab,doors and bed are 49 ford f1, the front suspension is from a 41 for coupe. and the seat is a 3rd row seat from a suburban.

 

[ratterman]

My first plan is to get the doors on and swinging freely with new pins and get the latches working properly(mainly since the garage is not done and i have no electricity to weld)

2nd is to get my spirit frame on the way

3rd is to get the front end apart and split the bones and clean up the axle and spindles. going to order a new spring and maybe even new spindles since i hate to cut the steering arms off these or heat them up to clear the steering on a suicide spring like I've read i would have to do. I've watched 3 sets of original spindles go for over 200 bucks on ebay so if i can get that out of mine i would use the cash to buy new with matched kingpins.

Engine will be a sbc with nv3500 5 speed and s-10 rear end.(already owned these parts)

so far i have 400 bucks in everything I have and the last major expense will be the frame and rebuilding the engine

 

[DirtWorshiper]

You've got a lot of good stuff for such a small amount spent. This looks like it's gonna be a good project. Good luck with it!

 

[Tripper]

Nice!!!

Ratter,
Great start u got goin' there!!! Be sure to take lots of pictures & share them with u're pals here @ RRR... we love to see a good project come together!

BoB

 

[Thunder1]

Good looking assortment of parts ratterman. Your cab looks like its in pretty good condition. Mine is pretty bad off in comparison but still very usable. I'm looking forward to the build. Both yours and mine! I saw that one of your doors had "Nashville" painted on it. Are you in Tennessee?

Thunder1

 

[dmw56]

Looks like your off to a good start. If the spindles are in good shape see if you can use those the steering arms may work fine. Check with Speedway about a front disk brake conversion. If not, Speedway has new spindles also that will work withthe disk brakes.

 

[ratterman]

thunder-I'm in Corydon,Indiana near Louisville,Kentucky. i guess the truck(or the doors at least) came from Nashville. I wish the lettering was done a little better and the cab hadn't been primed or I'd leave it the way it is. I plan to have some fake shop lettering done even though i know most frown on it. My lettering will be kind of personal thought since it will be the TV repair shop my grandpa ran in the 50's.

Dmw- I'll probably mock everything up with the original spindles and may even use the drum brakes since i like the look of them better on the skinny wheels I plan to run up front. Some of the aluminum Buick drums would be sweet to have.

 

[Thunder1]

I know where Corydon is. I've been through that part of Indiana alot. Not all that far from Nashville actually. I saw that door and thought I'd ask. I wish I had a spare passenger side door. The one that's on my cab is pushed in pretty bad. Rust & deterioration is fine but really dented up parts just don't appeal to me. Did you know that the Good-Guys Nostalgia Drags and Car Show / Swap Meet is going on this weekend in Bowling Green, KY. at Beech Bend Raceway? Sounds like it's gonna be a good event. I doubt I'll find a door for my cab but I might find somebody who knows where one is.

Thunder1

 

[ratterman]

thunder- are you going to the swap meet? i'm off this weekend and i may ride up there even tho its 3 hours drive for me. Theresa little junk yard near me that may have a door for you, i plan to go there this weekend to to find the hinge parts i need

 

[BruceR&C]

ratterman & Thunder -- There is also a swap meet in Louisville Nov 1 & 2 at the fairgrounds West Hall & Pavillion. Not sure if it's anywhere near as big as the one in March but, I'm going there to see what I can find for our rides.

 

[ratterman]

ok guys I've been thumbing through the speedway catalog and think i have my first order planned out but wanting to run it buy everyone to see if someone may have a better part to recommend.

here's the list

2 LHT 11/16 ford tierod ends with jam nuts
2 11/16 LHT weld in bungs
pair of 7* radius rod brackets
31 1/4 long superglide reverse eye spring from mr roadster
pair of shackles for the spring
spring pivots
flat top axle perches

I'm hoping this will get most of the front suspension mounted. bungs and tie rods are for splitting the bones and I'm unsure if that spring is good for my application but the other one they sell is narrower so i went with the wider one. I'm hoping to use the stock ford spindles and steering arms and plan to use the drum brakes as well since i love the look of them.

 

[ratterman]

forgot to mention that i can probably get the rear end from the 41 ford that i got the front suspension from and was wondering if it is worth using. I have no idea what ratio it has or anything about them except it looked to have radius rods on it that i may be able to use with it and i have heard i need to convert it to open drive but can't find any info on how that is done.

 

[babyface]

Ratterman,
Very nice start, keep us posted!

BF

 

[bob w]

ratterman, I saw over on the HAMB that a guy just had one of those spring pivots break. I have that style on 2 cars. Speedway used to make their pivots a different and better way. I intend to replace mine with some from MAS. They don't cost much so you could build with the Speedway units. But I'd consider getting welded pivots eventually. I brought a pivot to my Wed. old boys lunch which consists of 2 machinists, one restorer, one rod fabricator and me. We all agreed that the Speedway pivots are sketchy. Everything else that I've bought from Speedway is good, and I use lots of their suspension stuff. A longer spring will provide a better ride. As long as you have room for it. Do you have a reason for using Left Hand Thread tie rod ends and bungs? Right hand is by far more common. Good luck with the project.

 

[ratterman]

Bob, thanks for the info on the speedway pivots. Do you have a link to the better ones? I'll just buy those instead. And no big reason on the LHT, i just picked one but i guess RHT is more common.

 

[ratterman]

well i scored big time in my opinion. talking with a guy at work that i knew owned a model A i asked if he knew where i could find a set of 16 inch ford wire wheels and he said I've got 2 stacks of them and some 17's 18's and 19's. I can have my pick for 20 bucks each. he said some even have the original paint on them. He also said he has a small warehouse of NOS and used ford parts. bad thing is i have to wait till after thanksgiving since he just let for 20 days of vacation to Rome.

I'm stoked and can't wait to see what he has.

 

[dmw56]

Wow, sounds like you may have hit the "Mother Lode"!

 

[ratterman]

I picked these up last week for my project, they are 600x16 3 inch whitewalls on 37 chevy wheels. i don't plan to use the wheels and i think i have them sold once i get the tires off of them.

 

[ratterman]

and the guy with the stash of old ford stuff is back in town so I'm hoping to be getting my 35 ford wire wheels this Friday and maybe some other stuff if i find stuff i like/want.

Does anybody need any NOS ford parts? he says he has tons of stuff and i could ask him for certain items.

 

[ratterman]

this may be to good to be true but i was talking to my grand-pa about my planned rat rod and we got talking about the suspension and one thing let to anther and i mentioned wishing i had a set of the buick finned aluminum drums and guess what just happens to be behind his shed..........the front clip from a 62 buick with the drums right there staring at me AND a 62 401 nailhead. I don't know if i can afford to build a nailhead but it has a new home anyways. he said it did run but hasn't been started in about 10 years but they did pour oil in the cylinders to keep it from locking up.