Today was pretty good. Got the rear of the POS stripped down.

Coming along nicely POS. Keep posting pictures.
Alan

Making some progress (slowly).

Progress is progress slow or other wise. Keep Pluggin along.
Are you still going with the GM 14 Bolt rear ???

What axle is that in the pictures? I see a 5 bolt pattern. Also are you going to extend the front ladder bars?

Alan

Alan I'm sure it is a 9"Ford he talked about replacing and repairing it several times.

Yea, that's the old 9"- Headed for the scrap yard. Got a 14 bolt that I got from Sleddog somewhere in the mess I call my shop. I'm in the process of stripping off all the un-needed bracketry and finding a 4.56 ring & pinion setup. Yes , there will be bars mounted under the axle running up to the frame somewhere around the back of the cab.

Still plugging along.

The two 1" bolts are where the hitch will be mounted.


The overkill square tube saddles will get welded to the legs. I was originally gonna weld plates to the legs and bolt the saddles on but this will be the last time around for this truck (I've owned it since I bought it new in Dec. of 1975)and I doubt I'll hurt the 14 bolt housing with this ,or any future, FE engine so I decided to just weld it in.

Well, if you do find the need to upgrade the rear end, a torch works nicely to remove the old one. LOL

Made a little more progress today







Still need "Guts" for the rear, 2- 15 x 10 8-lug rims, and a Clutch set-up from Travis ( still saving up for it),a lottery win, & all the little misc. parts.

If it's not to late yet. I'd wack those blocks you made out another 2" so that they go around the axle completely.


Dan

Here's a drawing showing how I plan to mount the bars under the axle. You can see that the lower plates will be welded to the axle and the saddles, effectively capturing the axle tubes.

Here's a few more progress pics. Now I need my Son-in-Law here to weld it all up.

is that your tow rig at the bottom pic POS?

Are you gonna run the rear brakes again? I'd leave them off....

My approach is heaver square tubing welded directly to tubes, and less of it...

Looks good though.

A.........

Frostbite, Yea thats the tow rig. It does have a hitch on it. I've pulled a small pop-up camper with it and I used to have a small homemade (of course) utility trailer that I pulled with it.
A...... , The brakes...not sure yet. The sq. tubing I used is 1-1/2" x 1/8" wall so it's pretty light. Like I said earlier, The oversized saddles were originally going to be bolted on but I decided F#@k it and welded it together. I already had all the sq. tubing cut so......................
I have a pair of 15 x 10 - 8 lug wheels with 7" backspace coming, and I still have to hit the boneyard for the "guts" for the rear, make the driveshaft loops, mount the fuel cell, replace the clutch, etc.,etc.,etc. Hopefully I'll have it running by July.

This is a dedicated pulling truck right? So what to you need the rear brakes for? You only use the brakes mainly to stop from a slow speed anyway. Ditch the drums, backing plates and guts and that's another 60-70lbs on the nose.

Alan

I've read some clubs rules require 4 wheels to skid in a tech inspection.

OK Drive Line Brake system .
Put a rotor on the rear yoke and a 4 piston caliper and you can skid all four tires. One rotor four tires stopping power.




Dan

Coming along nicely. They make some pretty nice stoker cranks for FE motors now !!! LOL. We all know how that bug bites. You might have to think of a new name for your truck after you finish your work.
BTW Our clubs here require all four brakes to be intact and working.

If the club requires it then that is another story. I have however heard of cases where the appearance of rear brakes is met. Also, in theory, if you have front brakes, you should be able to skid all four tires when the truck is in 4wd.

Alan

I'm gonna have to check the rules as far as the r/brakes go.
Hey Sleddog, what's the deal with Rear brakes around here ? Do we need em' ? thanks, Nick.

you can run front brakes only. I wouldn't weld bars to the traction bars or weld the traction bars solid either not for the S#@% tracks we pull on. And the sqaure tubing on the top of the axles will bend in the center.my 2 cents.

Ray, are you talking about the sq. tube saddles bending?

i think he is talking about the saddles bending in the middle where all of the smaller box is welded to them, you might consider boxing in the ends as it would make them much stronger

My 2 cents. I would weld the axle tubes to the center section also. we have had, and seen a couple of centers brake the little plug welds and turn straight up. Not good on the drive shaft.

Bob

If it was me, I would not have used those saddles. I would have radiused the vertical pieces and welded directly to the tubes. However, since you are this far along, box in the ends of the saddles and have your SIL (son in law) weld the tubes in good. Also, put some weld where the tubes meet the housing to ensure the housing can't rotate.

The downtubes aren't in the center of the saddles, they're near the outside edge. I'm probably going to weld gussets inside the saddles right under the inside edge of the downtubes. And yes I'm going to have my SIL weld the axle tubes to the center section. I also think I'm going to weld brackets to the front of the traction bars and bolt it to the frame as I believe Sleddog is correct about welding it solid and the s%#t tracks around here.
Nick

The welded brackets to frame are fine just bolt in the traction bars. I would'nt put (ANY) bars to the traction bars yet. seams with a not so supported frame the smaller tubing and frame flex really seams to load the traction bars alone esp. out on the end of the track. a least thats what i found with my chassis which you saw.

I see what you're saying Ray. I watched your video a couple more times and the flex can be seen.
I watched a few of my truck's videos and it didn't seem to flex as much. Of course I'm not runnin'
near the power you are either. I've noticed the 73 - 76 Ford frames seem to be a little stiffer than the 78 -79 and also stiffer than the GMs & Dodges, but maybe that's just the way I see it.

Just got my new 15 x 10 x 7" backspace wheels. Now I just have to clean them up and paint em.

Nick where did you get those unfinished wheels ????

all of our frames needed to be boxed for a foot either side of the box/cab interface to stop bending.

#1 Draggin, I got these from Summit.They were $60.00 ea. They are US Wheel. They are "Special Order". Summit orders them from US Wheel and they're shipped from the factory to you. I had them in my hands in 6 days.
Ken, I'm still "toying" with some ideas for the frame. Any and all input is appreciated, as ,like all of us, I'm still a'learnin'.

How much backspace can one run on a 14 bolt and still use the drums?

That's a good question Jake. On THESE wheels US Wheel said they could only go 7" backspace, but that is because of the rim's design. These clear the drums with plenty of room. I guess it would depend on which drums you have and what size rim you want. These are 15 x 10. My advice is to
MEASURE, MEASURE, MEASURE. Then measure again.