Well, I've got the Volare front end in (still have some finish work, welding, grinding, prettying up to do), and dropped it to the ground. I've got some roller wheels on for now, but man, does it match the picture in my head! To say I'm excited is an understatement!!! If you look close, you'll see that I can't fit three 2x4's on their flat sides under the fender... that'd be 4-1/2"... is it low enough? What do you think? Ben
thats pretty cool man, i got a 53 and a volarie wagon a while back and will be doing this to it soon(i hope) did you put the rearend on top of the springs?
its one way to go in a f100.. but i love my straight axle, i got a good ride and am sitting 3 inches from lake pipe to pavement.
It's great that you like your straight axle.I didn't say that the Volarie was the "only" way to go, just the "best" way to go. I couldn't get it low enough with the straight axle. Plus, I had to de-arch the front springs so much it rode like ****. I couldn't have run lakes pipes on mine after installing the Volarie because they wouldn't fit between the running boards and the ground.My front bumper was only 3" above the pavement and the front lower valance was closer than that.........How about a pic of your ground dragger?
If you like LOW cars, now is the time to get it down there. I was one of those guys that said, "I don't really need my car to go THAT low" when I put in the air suspension. Now I regret not making the car lay down all the way. Once you go through all the work, you may find that you want the car as low as possible, so take the time now to give yourself that option. I know I'll be re-doing the suspension someday to make the car sit the way I really want it. Just some food for thought.
Looks good but I think the Jag XJ front is the easiest and quickest way to get F trucks down low. Shock mount even mounts outside of spring for easy air bag install. Here is my 51 with an XJ front end.
best way for you not for me.... i feel pretty good when i am looking at it knowing its my own and on a dropped axle. i sit where i want it and ride nice using my own ingenuity. dropped axle, sway bar, removed leafs, coilovers on the shocks. i do like the fact you can get the ride height in the volare relatively cheap with a donor. it takes a lot more skill and cleaning up to get it in and looking right too. volare was one of my options, but i was hoping for a sixties look i couldnt achieve with a torsion bar setup. you do get a pretty good bang for the buck with a volare setup for sure.
I like the volare but I used a Camaro Z-28 under mine. It was pretty simple and I loved the variable-ratio power steering box and the 1.25" stabilizer bar. It cornered flat as a pancake and steered like a sports car. Sat low too. I'd love to look at the Jag suspension installed on the F-100 frame sometime. What do ya use for a steering box? Rack & pinion?
Awesome, thanks for the props guys... I am really happy with how it's sitting... and I have some adjustability to get it "just right". To answer one of the questions, yes, I flipped the rear axle... I put in an 8.8" Ford with discs. I still have to c-notch the frame over the axle, but it's looking good. I was really torn on whether to do the Volare or stay with the straight axle... it ended up coming down to a combination of safety, price, and my desire to do it myself... I figured in the condition the stock axle and components were in, I'd have to spend about $2000 to get it low, and safe. With the Volare, it'll be around $500-1000, once I get through rebuilding it... which means I could have done the MII, but that's just boring! This way, I don't get a set of directions, and I have to figure things out myself! (granted, I did get a copy of the No-Limit video). Ben
Rocky, the Jag has a power rack on the cross member, just a couple of brackets and it bolts straight under the frame, no cutting or splicing. My dad used a jag front under his chevy but mounted a manual rack off a local G.M car. The only other brackets needed are upper shock mounts, I'll try and get some photos on this post later.
Cool ,ground pounder.Neat to see a truck that low with the straight axle.Thats the way I would have done it.Of course the other ways are fine too.Just not my style.I like the straight axles.
ben, i like it a lot! keep posting pictures as you go along! i know i've said this a million times before on a million different threads, but i love progress shots! ed
One I did a few years back. Gets driven daily, 428 FE, C6, 67 T-Bird rear, Dakota front with 2" dropped spindles. Front bumper and running boards are 3" off the ground.
Thanks Ed, Yeah, I like watching people's builds too... keeps my enthusiastic for working on mine! Ben
Ricky, at least they had a great story about how those ugly Americans tried to kill them! Christof is probably still showing off his scars.
This is my 1950 F1 mustangII with power steering and rack and pinnion steering and 11" disc brakes stock spindles
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