Projects 1935 chevy master suspension

Hi! I just acquired a 1935 chevy master and I need help finding information on replacing my front knee action suspension to a leaf spring suspension. A lot of sources said the car had both but I’m not finding anything as far as availability for the leaf spring side of things so any info will help thanks!

 

The Standard had leaf spring suspension. The Master is a different car.

 

I was going to switch to a standard front end on my 38 master years ago, got the axle and leafs but found that its not just a bolt in as the frames are different. Still have it if interested. complete front end

 

I do know the standard and master are different but Hemings and a few other sites did have posted that the 35 master did have the option for front leaf springs

 

Helped a friend years ago put a 54 Chevy front cross member (with all rebuilt suspension) with a Peugeot 505 steering rack on a 35 Master. It drove and rode awesome.

 

A '35 Master came either way - with knees, it's an EA; axle cars are ED.
As late as 1955, Chev parts catalogs showed conversions to axle for '37-'38 cars. At $110, it's doubtful many were sold.

 

Oh, it's pretty confusing, all right. The brochure and parts book show only the Master, but the engineering do***ents show the Standard as the leaf spring model. You can see the frames are quite different.

 

I bought a first edition 1935 Chevrolet service repair manual for all models and it does list the master for a conventional model with its own specs but no pictures for the brackets

 

Was the crossmember off the truck or car?

 

The main thing I want to get out of this is how the leaf springs were mounted I would hate to cut into the frame and do more welding work than I need to

 

The pictures I posted show the two frames. They're different, you can see the shape of the knee action frame is straight at the front, while the leaf spring (Standard) is higher over the axle, and has the spring perches riveted in place.

If you want a leaf spring car, buy a leaf spring car. Or get a hot rod axle/spring setup, like Speedway and others sell, and make it fit. But don't expect the front of the car to sit low. The frame on your car is not made that way.

 

I understand what you are saying and putting a leaf spring suspension is the way I’m going but they made a master ED series that had the leaf spring setup I’m trying to find any information to how they did it so I can replicate it.

 

They used a different frame, according to the parts book.

Good luck....


http://chevy.oldcarmanualproject.com/parts/1929_41/41cpi03.html


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It was from a car, they unbolt IIRC. Just made brackets to mount it under the frame, no frame cutting. Brackets off the back of crossmember to mount the rack. It had no bumpsteer & handled great.

 

When I had my '35 master sedan, I talked with Art Morrison in Fife Wash. and I was told that the Master frame was its own animal. Any modifications to the suspension was going to be a spendy ordeal. The dimensions and everything ***ociated with the front suspension was going to have to be figured out from scratch. Good luck on your adventure and let us know how it goes.

Larry

 

Kept reading my new book and found this in the back

 

The frames on 36-39 Master , Standard are the very same . The front springs require a special front hanger that makes the springs run parallel .

 

Well...dont know what to say dave, this was 30 years ago. the 38 front axle and springs with mounts still still on the ends did not match up to the master frame on the car, and there were no factory holes to mount it like I had hoped. Actually, the knee action worked OK in that car so I left it alone. Had a datsun 240z motor and volvo ****** with overdrive and I drove the **** out of it. My friend still has it today. Axle still sits in my junk pile.

 

As has been mentioned, you can swap over the IFS from the early 50's Chevy sedans.

I forget exactly what year they got better brakes, but it was about 1951-ish.

A little fab can get the steering over, too. You can tell everyone that it came from a Corvette (its the same).

It looks like this:


It all attaches to the crossmember, and that mounts under the frame.

Shops that do air ride often pull out this IFS to put in the forbidden IFS. They unload them cheap.

A point of note: On every one of these that I have worked on (the original frame, that is), around the area where the original crossmember and brackets attached, I found cracks that required that the frame be repaired. You might be fine, but give it a thorough inspection, and fix any issues that you find.