new here and hoping i can get some help and info. i am currently working on a 1949 chevrolet fleetline deluxe. its the basic 49 i guess. the body is in fair shape but the engine a 235 is locked up and all the brakes and lines are either rusted through or gone. the car has sat in a garage since 1974 . i was going to V8 the car and do a conversion kit on the brakes disc all around, but then i heard from an old school guy while at a swap meet. that he has changed the frames on these cars many times. he says he uses a 1990 chevrolet caprice frame, and that other than the obvoius body mount being changed there really a wasnt alot to this swap, he says the track width is one inch wider front and rear , but i think that could be corrected with with wheel offset like running a smaller wheel like a 15x5.5 . he also says he uses the engine and trans. i dont plan on runnig the fuel injection or the 4l60e which is what the majority of these cars came out with . i was just wondering if anyone else has heard of this swap or not. any help would be great on the swap and helping with my spelling also thanks
I heard 78-87 G-body`s fit but you might want to post an introduction before you get your ass reamed from the HAMB regs.
the best frame for a 1949 chevy is a 1949 chevy frame..i know that is a hard concept for the " quick and easy" hot rodders
Use the search key at the top of the page, search for frame swap Chevy and you should be able to find a thread from a couple months ago about this. 1978-199? Caprice chassis work. I drove one once (a 1949 fastback) and it handled and stopped fantastically. And rode better than my '53 with MKII front end and Posie leafs on the rear (with original frame). The width difference is more than 1 inch per side, though - you end up with front wheels sticking out pretty far. The car I drove had small tires on narrow rims and the wheels were still right there at the outside edge. Custom offsets might help.
sorry for not introducing myself wasnt tring to be rude . thanks for the information. i do not think that is the quick and easy way but the practical way , parts are hard to find , new or used. and brake parts are hard to come by unless you clip it and good luck with the factory rear leafs.so i figure why should i cut up this frame let someone else do it once you clip it how origianal is it i work at a custom shop and do frame offs about once a month.not only is the caprice swap practical but saves the ole wallet for other things but thanks for the input
To each his own. The 49 frame was great for a 49 in 49 but it isn't 49 anymore. I'm putting an S10 frame under a 48 Chevy Sedan Delivery because the 48 frame is shot and the S10 gives me disc brakes, power steering, and power brakes for $100. I'm doing the same to a 54 Chevy truck. And it isn't going to be 'quick and easy' from how I see it as I have to lift the body off without damage, construct body mounts, figure out the engine clearance issues, and put it all together without having it fall apart. Purists may disagree but aren't there entire businesses started up from making duece rails? Could be frame swaps aren't too new...why not? Drivetrain swaps are acceptable. 50chevy.com has a few pictures of these swaps, I believe.
36 3 window....is a model A frame the best frame for a model A. I like the 32 frame under a model A Sorry don't know hat the best frame for you is. I think I'll be getting a 50 Chevy tin woodie shortly and will be doing the research on what will be best. Clark
I plan on doing an S-10 swap on my 49 chevy truck shortly after it arrives. I would have someone(Clark) do it for me, if he returned PM's
thanks for the info this seems like a good place to find information and for people to help one another. i wasnt trying to make anyone madd. i was simply asking for input / my wife will be driving this car and i want it as safe as i can get. if using the original frame, and adding a mustang setup and changing the rear end is the practical way of going i will go that way . but if changing the frame to a more modern setup is the more practical way of going i will choose that way. i am planing on running a 406 that i failed to mention ,it is out of a 68 chevrolet truck that i raced. its some where in the 575 horse range. and i am going to run a th400 also from the same truck. i know it will go fast but how will it stop and perform. thats my main goal safty the truck ran 11.30s @ 132 on 10 inch slicks . full cage with a 4 link. now the 49 wont be that radical . but it will be used fora little street racing . but it will be primarly a cruiser. im going for the sleeper look . i was simply asking for input and wasnt tring to get anyone fired up. i build cars for a living and this is my car. im gonna build the way i want not the way a sheet tells me to build it. thanks for the help . we have a 83 buick regal at the shop i will get the tape out and see how it measures up. i am not a frame guy i simply do body modifacations and chassis assembly . but there are three old school guys at my work to help out in that department . have a good night and i will check in later . tony
Tony, Check the search function because there are some issues with the A/G cars as I recall. Also, check the difference between a perimiter frame (Caprice) and an S10 type frame (whatever they call this type! rail?) I don't think anyone is any madder than they were to start with, everyone just has an opinion, some are just more willing to voice them than other's. Check Clark's Tech post on the S10 Frame swap. You don't need to follow it but it gives an idea of what you can do. I'm learning from it myself.
I dunno, but the aftermarked support is huge for those cars. The mustang 2 kits etc...and it keeps the stock look wheeltrack wise. Definately something worth thinking about. Besides, keeping your core support and most if not all sheetmetal mounts, killer.
i did. it was narrow minded. and i didnt think that is what hot rodding is about. i was simply asking a question. how many 49 fleetlines have you built? do know this from a past build?
i myself am putting a 48 chevy truck on an s10 frame. far from quick and easy. keeping it stock and not having shit for brakes doesn`t sound like fun.while i respect everyones opinion, i do have my own opinion. if this truck was in mint condition and worth something i might consider keeping the original frame. it isn`t though.
sorry to have offended you. my count on `49 fleetlines right now is ZERO..really cool hot rods is at about 25..... there is one thing you can always depend on with the hamb....many different opinions and ideas..some good , some bad..some from people who shouldn't be giving them , and some who ask and don't want them and if you have to ASK ...well , them i know about..and i shouldn't butt in, a lesson learned by me tonight i the future i will voice my opinions where they are truely needed i didn't mean to interject my uninformed opinion on to your project..good luck..post some pictures when you can
Over here in the UK there aren't many frames to choose from so when I did my 49 Merc I used the only one I could find and it turned out to be a good choice, It was a '77 Olds Cutlass running a 455, the chassis had to be made 8 inches longer. The end result was great, I had power steering, power disc brakes, locker back axle and a 455. It had coil springs all round so this made the fitting of the air bags alot easier.
You got to give 36 3window some credit. He is humble enough to post what he did and there have been lots of frame swaps out there that have been done and shouldn't have. Look at the guy that wanted to put a Tbucket on an S-10 frame. Very wrong! These kind of cars are what make people think a stock frame is the best frame. There's a lot to think about when doing a frame swap. width and length are important but where the kick up starts in the rear is very important too. Clark
i understand completly 36 3 . i went to a local cruise in tonight and was talking with some people. and i met guy there who had a 49 fleetline 2 door .although his car was not at the cruise , i asked him a few questions on his built and his thaught about frame swapping. i was RED FLAGGED on the frame swap. lol he must be alot like you 36 . he said ( boy thats the dumbess thing i have heard all week.lol i was in my 67 chevrolet and its bagged white walls red wheels primer you know the look. and he was all in my case jokingly about would i change frames on my 67 i was like hell no.after 15 mins or so of teasing ,he asked me if i would follow him and he would show me his 49. so about 10 miles later . we arrived at his house .and he opened the garage door .and there it was . he had a 49 with a blown 383 stoker and was f@#$%#^ awsome still under construction but it was a bad clean car .anyways he and i got underneath the car and there was the original frame . witha simply disc brake conversion kit from eci. i got the part number and out back was a simple nova rear that had been cut down to 56 inches. hanging on a walter fabrication rear end kit. i took lotsa of notes. there was no dog house but he ask me if i wanted to go for a ride. me not knowing the guy i got kinda nervous but i went. and boy oh boy would thant think perform great conering with the factory springs and tons of power,those little white walls were cring but way more than i was looking for . so i got this guys number and i think that is the route i will be going. my floor is perfect exept for the drivers floor and . i really cant see cutting up my floor for a frame swap. now i dont think that frame swapping is wrong its just not for this car. i think i will go his route and since he had done it . my info guy i called him only lives about 2o miles from me . so i can bug him with questions till the cows come home. i mean there wasnt even a mk2 kit or anything. and that thing hauled the mail and then some. great car . i did not like the brake booster on the fire wall. but to each his own was a stunning performer none the less. i hope i didnt offend anyone mainly 36 about this whole ordeal . i just wanted answers and i guess people have ones maybe that people dont want to hear . thanks for all the help but im gona keep my frame .if it is half and nice of a driver as this guys i will be in good shape . i think i will do things different .like a mk2 kit but we will see. anyways thanks tony
Group hug, group hug! Of course, you'll meet a guy with a 78 cop car frame under his next week and it will just throw it all back up in the air for you...
you know i hope it doesnt come to that. lol this guy jerry was real cool about the whole thing. he understood my questions although quick to call me a dumbass lol .from what i seen in his car this would be the mose practical way to go mean he says he has less than 1500 in the whole suspension and brake system. i just didnt like the firewall brake booster. but this is his car not mine, it looks out of place to me. not like that engine didnt but. i will we putting a v8 in my car just not blown im going by what he was saying but that 383 with a 4 71 blower is putting 500 honest horses to the rear tires it shure seemed like it could handle more. but i think now that my big problem will be choosing what rear ends to you for my off set of wheels. i really takes a big deal of stress of me . the OLD GUYS thats what i call the older gentelman at work and i use that term real loose. was telling me no on the fram swap the whole time. we have all these tools and body racks frame racks at work .and they couldnt believe i wouldnt want to use them . like i stated before i simply do body work. im the grunt of the body and chuck my boss can be a real bitch on body lines and fitment of n o s parts or used or aftermarket things i really just do alot of metal finishing and a shit load of dolling and im the hey weld this make this bracket so learning how to use their tools . their the guys that chop the tops strech this and shrink that i more less thier clean bitch lol i have to prep all the cars or trucks and the only thing our painter wants to do which is also the boss is paint many of times has he brought me in the booth and say what the hell is this or are you blind . but the OLD GUYS said the would help me with anything as long as it wasnt a frame swap so i guess i will be putting on the parts while the bitch at me and tell what im doing wrong . but thats how they teach and i keep my mouth shut which is hard and listen to thier old asses . i mean hell they have been working on cars longer than i have been alive so they most know something right ,tony
Just because they bitch and you keep your mouth shut doesn't always mean they know something. Sometimes it means they don't know anything so they want you to keep quiet to so you can't question them! I worked in a shop like that once. Learned a lot, good and bad. Good luck on your project. I got the frame cut on the S10 today and will shorten it tomorrow. Next is body mounts for the 54 truck cab! I've got $250 in it so far, including the truck!
yes very true . i worked in a collision shop for six years. 3 of those six was being a helper or (aka) bitch the guy teaching me was a hard ass but i learned alot form him. the collison industry here in indiana is a good trade to have and the money is real good i just didnt see a future in that feild i mean i know people are allways going to wreck cars but there wasnt a future in it for me. i found my self in the last year staying late allmost every night to work on my stuff. hell i installed a simple air ride kit on my 67 chevrolet. and the guys at work thought i was some awsome fabricator lol . and i was like dude its a bolt on kit a monkey could put this kit on. shortly after i found a low key shop there is like 4 of us full time a 1 other kat part time . and i was there asking about technics on shaving drip rails and long story short he ask me if i wanted a job so almost 2 years later im still here. now there isnt as much money in the custom stuff as versus collision . but no stress now and an old guy told me if i really like what i do i never have really have to look at it like work . and i like what i do. but i dont see any under 30 guys like me really into customs as far as here in indiana anyways . they teach me here , bust my balls but they are all 40 plus and hell i would rather hang out with them. then my toyota or honda buds so w t h. well as you can tell im a talker or typer for that matter they dont allow me to talk a lot at work so i better go. but good luck with the frame and i see yall later
The '78 Regal chassis is a good idea. You have to add about 3 inches in the middle (make sure a good welder does the job) but the width is ideal and this swap has been done a lot. It's exactly what I intend to do with me NEXT '49-53 Chevy. (The '53 Chevy I'm just finishing is the original frame with MKII front end and new leafs on the rear with a 4x4 S-10 rear axle and it took a lot of fabricating and cost a lot of money even with junkyard parts and donor cars. I was 2/3 done when I thought to myself "I could have swapped the entire chassis for less money and the same amount of work!" My car handles great, but the ride isn't as nice as a '78-87 midsize GM.)
I have a 49' Fleetline that I have swapped an S10 frame under (from a longbed standard cab truck). Its not too bad actually. You have to cut 3" out of the center of the frame to go from the stock 117.9" truck wheelbase to the 115" fleetline wheelbase and build new body mounts to hang off the frame. You need to cut about a foot off the front frame horns (right back to the steering box) and about six inches off the back (right to the crossmember). You will have to swap in the 4x4 rear end but its a bolt in. Two little clearance cuts are thats needed in the floorpan under the rear seat because of how it kicks up. It will sit at about stock ride height. To lower it you can use any of the S10 parts. The front steer But since my car was/is real rotted on the bottom and I really wanted to lower it but keep it riding nice, I channelled mine 6". The bottom 6 inches of the car was rotten, including the frame and floors. Car should have probally been parted, but I like it. It has a completely stock S10 suspension, overdrive trans, and a mild six cylinder. Its still being worked on and I have next to no money in it. After the wallet draining exercise of building my camaro...this car is for fun without worries. . A caprice is just too wide and looks wonky.
Hey RacerRick, Got any pics of what you did in the back? I'm starting down that road with a 48 SD soon and would like an idea how much you cut out for the kick up. Or am I reading it right that you cut a ton out to channel it 6 inches?
The entire bottom of my body was cut out for the channel. Another user on here (dvanecek) did his with an S10 frame and a 50 chevy coupe and no channel. It only needed a pair of small slices out in the rear seat pans. Looks like the seat would cover it also. If you search, you will find his posts documenting his cars build.
I agree...but I did clip the front w/ an S10. Just C nothed the rear over a mid 70's rear set up w/ a tri-bar on airbags. The '49 frame is just fine, just needed a lil update. I think the work involved to swap is the same as a clip. If the frame you have is not rusted out - use it, heck the body mounts are already there! Cheers,
Hey All _I've read this thread with great interest, as I have a customer doing a similar swap. No names, but he called us after he was knee-deep into it. This guy is a "pro builder" and he calls every couple days with the most recent "issue" he didnt think of ahead of time. Today he needed a fuel level sender for the 91 Dodge minivan gas tank he was trying to squeeze in, where the 50 sedan deliverys floor, and the 72 Elcaminos rear frame don't agree with each other. Bumper mounts, steering column, seats, master cylinder-I could go on... Cut, weld, measure, fab, cut, weld, refab, shim, butcher, trip to the junkyard, cut, fab, assemble, disassemble, re-fit, cut, weld- get the picture? this was going to be a quick and easy and cheap swap. A low-budget "rat rod" Uh-huh. And they even started with the "closest" chassis, dimensionally, that they could. (116' wb, pre-73 A-body). On a serious note, if you do this, and want your lady to be "safe" driving it, as you said, pay close attention to the brake pedal. Yeah, if you hang the master cylinder and swing-pedal from a donor car, consider if it really is in the right spot for her to EASILY apply full brakes, without thinking about it or looking for it, just like she would in a "normal" car. Don't ask me why I'm the only one on this thread who mentioned this. Remember those Fleetlines aren't too easy to see out of either. Good luck with your project. Pete
Hey Bad 6772 welcome to the world of lots of different ways to do things! This is the way that it should be - otherwise we would all be sticking the same decal on the same piece of Jap crap & life would be boring! Gary 4T950 Chevy Guy
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