underslung chevrolet (new project)

You're right but since these pictures my dad has bent those steering arms upward and inward a little to prevent that and to dial in the ackerman. Good observation!

 

El Chuco,that spring slide is very inovative.The slide basically functions the same as a shackel,it allows the spring to flex in it's own arch.Way cool guys.

 

I think it looks cool, but I can't help but notice that in the factory underslung designs (American, etc) the springs are still upright, while you guys seem to be turning them upside down? Is there any travel and what happens when you go around a corner fast?

 

On mine you go around corners flat stable and fast.

 

On my underslung, I de-arched the springs so they're almost flat when there's no tension on them. It helps keep the front a little higher off the ground and should allow for more flex in the spring (at least that was our reasoning behind doing it).

 

I see exactly how that would work, Beemer. We considered cutting the front horns and flattening them out a little to gain some ride height which is the equivalent to flattening the springs out like you did. I'm sure this talk sounds like friggin' jibberish to people who haven't messed with an underslung because it's so damn confusing.

 

hey man you dont have to appoligize for any thing. the guys that started shit should be appologizing.

thanks for the support!

 

i read in one of the articles hamber (inkorekt) posted that american unslung could not keep up with the model t because of the prodution costs to keep the company going. It also stated that the model t was an inferior lesser quality auto mobile.

with that said i dont think it was a design flaw it was a cost issue.

 

American Underslungs were great automobiles- the shop I used to work in had restored one that would come in every once in a while. Now this was a top line AACA-focused shop and we had a Simplex, a Stutz, and many early Packards in (both sixs and twin six) and the boss said he would take the underslung to race with ANY day. He sais that it had a great balance of torque, HP, handling, etc

 

Very nice project. Love the underslungs...........

 

i hoping this handles well too. im not trying to build a race car just a nice cruiser. but great handling is a plus.

 

thanks the car is coming along i just figured out how metal i need for the frame. close to 80 feet. with a few extra for error.

believe it or not this frame pictured is in my basement. i hope i can get it back out when i m done with it. lol

 

Where in Central Jerz are you?

 

You're very welcome. Here's a couple of shots of my "underslung" Ford front end.

 

hey im a few minutes outside of the new brunswick area

 

ohhh nice very cool. i guess there is alot more people that are part of the underslung army!

 

umm...is he comin to the Rust Revival????please say no!!!

 

Hey Moonglow, when did you move? I was looking at this thread just yesterday and wondered how you were doing on your project. Looks like you've made some progress since I saw it last.

 

Hey there EWM&N,

We moved to New Mexico in November. We had been planning this for sometime, but I needed to keep it under wraps with my employer.

These photos of my project where taken in Knoxville, just before I loaded her on the POD. Any progress on your Dad's car yet?

Talk to you later.........

 

Not quite. The British were building underslung rear suspensions into the fifties. I've got two, a '53 MG and a '47 Rover both underslung at the rear.

Ed

 

im pretty sure i read some where that american underslung couldnt compete with the cost of a ford model T. had nothing to do with performance or dependability. times were rough people needed the cheaper way out.

 

Ford probably had a price advantage over everyone,
which explains their popularity.

Same deal with Harley Davidson before the war.

 

You should be concerned about scrub line. Underslung or not, it should be considered and built to not violate scrub line as it creates an unneeded safety hazard. Simply using the right wheels can resolve the issue easily.


According the PA DOT this is scrub line. I had to search to get a good explanation and this is the best I found.

That said... I love this project.

 

cool i think im in good shape. im running 18s and the car is about 6 inches off the ground in the front. and worse case the frame is a big sled should some thing break. but let hope that never happens.

this stuff is really no different than having air ride. all my other toys are bagged, and i have blown valves bags etc in the last 13 years. the whole car can drop to the ground in some instances. thats scary.

 

hey every one sorry for the lack of updates. between working on the house and locating metal i wasted about a month. but with out further delay here the update on the car!



these are the plates that the blocks will mount too to correct the rake of the axle and raise the frame. theyll get used down the road...

 

front notch and some reinforcment

 

before and after gusset and filler to hid the ugly box tubing.

 

pics of the pieces welded in place

 

i really think box tubing on an old rod looks outta place so i opted to make an ibeam to match the front axle and possibly make it look like GM did it.

 

welds also look outta place to me on an old car so i made sure i was able to weld the corners and be able to have enough metal to grind down. all corners are radius to a 45 degree angle. i decided the ibeam just didnt look smooth from the top so along process but i did about 3 passes with the welder and ground it all down to a 45.