My boyfriend just bought a 1950 Chevy Fleetline Styleline for $1200, and was absolutely over the moon about it. When he got the wheels off though to unlock the breaks (they'd stuck in the drums from sitting too long) he was/is heartbroken to find that the frame is all but shot. I wish I had my camera because it's just falling apart under there. He knew he had some work to do but honestly thought it was in fairly decent shape; apparently though it's held together on top by bondo and both of us aren't looking forward to seeing it from the inside. Anyway, he needs to find a frame for it and I've kind of taken it on myself to help him find one. Question is, does anyone know where to find maybe an aftermarket frame for the car? Or, if that's too expensive, is there a ch***is or frame off another model/year that would fit this one? I remembered reading somewhere that you can swap frames (I'm still learning some car stuff so be patient with the newbie who doesn't know terminology *g*) and was wondering if anyone knew what other models I can buy the frame of for this one? ANY help would be mondo appreciated, thanks!!
Aught to be able to buy a good original 49-52 frame for under $500. Ideally want a '51 frame, has better brakes, but the motor mounts are the same. '52 has a little bit different motor mounting setup. '53-'54 frame may work, too, although the upper body is a little different a lot of the parts are the same. Friend of mine here in NY has a good, bare frame available, I forget what he wants money-wise. Or post a want-ad if you're too far away. No one makes a specific aftermarket frame for these, but you can adapt some late-model frames to them. People have used S10 (needs to be lengthened to the correct wheelbase), '77-'86 Monte Carlo/Malibu (also too short and the suspension on the wide side), or '77-'89 Chevy Caprice (right length but suspension too wide). It all depends what the plan is for the car. I think a '68-'72 Chevelle/LeMans/Cutl*** 4-door sedan frame can be made to work, has the correct 115" wheelbase but I can't remember how the track and width is on them. Those are getting tough to find on their own, though.
Also, while Fleetline or Styline makes no difference as to the frame, that's a contradiction in terms. Fleetlines are fastback or torpedo-back 2 or 4-door sedans; Styline was a coupe, tudor or 4-door sedan. The hardtop and convertible models may have been considered a Styline as well. Where this becomes an issue is mainly if you need gl***. The hardtop/convertible uses one set of gl***, the Styline uses another, and the Fleetline uses still a third different gl*** - the windshield is an inch shorter than the Styline. It may be a good idea to post a photo so someone can tell you just what is rotted out. Most of the sheetmetal for these cars is available reproduction from a number of suppliers.
I got $250.00 for an "AS NEW" frame that was under the '50 Fleetline I parted out. You should be able to find one when someone else parts out a car.
Morrisson in will make you a ch***is, but it will have mounts for late model suspension components, whatever engine you like, and whatever rear suspension you want. Not traditional, but brand new, made to order. About $2000 for a bare frame (no suspension/brake parts attached, just brackets) Search around for someone who is doing a ch***is swap, if want to keep the old style frame.
Yikes! On my dad's 1942 Chevy Aerosedan, we kept the original frame, but cut it at the firewall, and widened it (pie cuts) to accept Chrysler Cordoba front end. Torsion bars etc... all went in. Dad even kept the Cordoba hubcaps . . . and now I'm kind of glad he did . . . he always did want a set of three or four bars for it though.
I am in the middle of putting an S10 frame under my 49 Fleetline. I would try to get a good frame from a 51 if you can, like mentioned above. The frame is rotted out on mine also.
My next order of business today is going to be calling local (and given the nature of the car, not so local) junk yards and seeing if they have anything that'll fit, and pricing it. It's going to be near impossible to find one easy seeing how old the car is and how few were made. Is it possible to use a 4-door ch***is of a same or similar year, or would that be too long? I appreciate (A LOT!) all the info I've gotten and have actually through the HAMB found some sites that give exact specifications for framing which is almighty helpful. Ya'll are awesome!!
Not sure where you live, but I know a place in North Dakota that has a bunch of 'em. I've bought tons of parts from this guy and his prices are very reasonable. PM me if you're interested. Bryan
OK, I just have to wonder... if the frame is that bad, how bad is the body? I have seen a lot of REALLY rough bodies on these cars, but the frames are usually useable. The Chevy frames aren't as notorious to rust out as the mid-50's Fords. Anyways, I'll definitely agree with those who say to get a 51-up frame (unless there are ***le issues in your state, but most states go by the engine #in these GMs). The Bendix brakes intro'ed in 51 are way better than the old Huck-style ones. I think I've heard that there would be some light fabrication/modification work to some of the body mounts if you go with the 53/54 frames, but then you'll get better steering and a slight drop (about an inch) in the front suspension. And I'll also agree with the Art Morrison comments. Very nice stuff, and the price is high, but you get what you pay for. You just call them up and tell them what type of suspension you want, and how high off the ground you want each end of the rocker panel.
Just talked to my bf and he said his old boss at the car shop found him a '52 Chevy whose frame is in excellent condition. Still has the motor and other parts for $1000 so he's going to go with that. It's pretty bad. We thought the body was in good condition because the paint job looked to be stock, but there are a couple places where it's obvious the bondo is coming off, and when he got underneath he was surprised by the frame... I don't know. He's going to do a complete frame-off restoration once we get it into a shop so we won't know until then, but there seems to be more bondo than metal in spots. We thought there was little cancer but while waxing it to preserve what's still there we found more cancer spots so we just won't know until we take everything off and look beneath the patchwork/paint job. He wants to cut out any cancer and weld new metal in place instead of just bondo-ing it and now we're afraid there's more cancer than we originally thought. The floorpans are shot and had been replaced (cheaply), but until about a year ago it still ran. EDIT: According to him the body's in decent shape, but the car was sitting for a year and the previous restoration (limited) that had been done was shoddy at best. I asked him and he doesn't know about Art Morrison products. Is there an online site we can peruse or someplace to order a catalog? It seems to have everything still there, including all the chrome pieces although they need to be redipped in places. It's a good car, but it's going to need more work than we originally thought. Thanks for the help, it's actually helping quite a bit!!
http://www.artmorrison.com/index.cfm I highly recommend calling them once you peruse the site.... they can answer your questions and get you your quote more tailored to your needs. Post pics of the car when you can!!!!
I am not dogging you guys, but how involved have you guys been into a "restoration" in the past? Just curious of your abilities.
My bf most recently has 1.5 years of car restoration dealing with 60-early 80s muscle cars. He worked more on body work side of the shop (he can paint, do body work, etc with the best of them) but only had about 6 months of hands on in the restoration department. He also had 4 years as a heavy equipment mechanic in the army and came out the army in 2001 with mechanic jobs from then until just last Halloween. His mentor, who he worked those 1.5 years with, has over 30 years experience restoring antique cars like the '50, and is a close personal friend/mentor (he's actually the one who found the '52 for his frame). So he's got a bit of mechanical knowledge but admittedly has a lot left to learn. He absolutely adores cars though, and this '50 is his dream car. He could go on and on about it, but (and I'm quoting him here) he feels he may at this point have bitten off more than he can chew for a one-man project.
Don't let it get you down...a MAJOR part of doing up these old cars is dealing with the setbacks - there will be plenty more things along the way. You just have to be determined to get it done. In an odd sorta way, the more problems you deal with & solve, the more sentimental value the car will have when you're done. I am proud that it didn't defeat me. It's like if you have a child that gets sick, you don't just go "hell this ones shot, I'll pop out another" No you give up your damn kidney if ya have to! The best part is that Chevy used this same frame in pretty much EVERY car they built from 1940 up through the early fifties - amazingly little changed & nearly indentical all along the way, so it will not be a problem to find one that'll virtually slip right in there. Or, like said, you can get an Art Morrison frame that has all the latest suspension already done with all the right geometry etc. & sits at whatever ride height you tell them you want. It seems expensive to go this route, but believe me - if you have to pay to have a stock frame modified for AirRide, independent suspension, modern brakes, etc., etc. in the end, the Morrison frame will begin to look like a bargain, AND it will save a lot of time & h***le. In hind sight...I kinda wish I'd gone that route/ It probably woulda at least saved me as much as a year's worth of time and frustration. Probably much more once I went through & sorted out all the issues. As far as the body cancer...look into EMS, they make lots of pre-formed patch panels.
He is light years ahead of where I was when I started my frame-up project, I had ZERO experience. And mine was also a P.O.S. and I was in way, way over my head. It's all problems that can be solved. It is just in the at***ude. p.s. LadyEclectic... my wife's support had a whole lot to do with me getting the thing put together and she now loves the car as much as I do, and I love her that much more because of the encouragement she gave me. (hint, hint)
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