1952-59 Ford 55 battery tray fit a 56 Fairlane?

Another 29NF battery in my Fairlane died after about 4-5 years. As you know these batteries are expensive. I've kept a trickle charger on it often when not driving it.
Would a battery tray for a 55 bolt in on a 56? I could then probably use a 24F battery which costs about half as much as a 29NF does.

 

1955 Fords still used the 6 volt 2N battery. Judging from the different part numbers for the '55 and '56 battery trays, each of these were a one year only part which is logical given the change in '56 to a 12 volt battery. Also, the '55 and '56 battery trays look very different.

 

A 24 did not fit the battery tray in my 55 but I am not convinced the tray is totally original. I am using a group 26 12 Volt battery from Wal Mart, one of their cheapest value line at $69 and it has been very good. I am also using the same value line in my everyday driver with no problems yet. I replaced the one in my 55 after 4 1/2 years but only because I removed the old one to put in a car I was selling.

 

One of the few fabrication things I've ever done was to make a new tray for my '55 Victoria out of sheet metal, sized to hold a Group 24 battery. Was very simple for me to do with a sheet metal brake, a 10-ton press and some well-placed pieces of hardwood to make the depressions in the bottom of the tray where it bolts to the tray brackets. After 44 years, though, I still need to cut notches out for the J-bolts and get a hold-down frame in place...

 

A good idea but I don't have any metal forming tools.

I've seen two different dimensions for the '55 battery tray, one would fit a 24 while the other is a little smaller. I have the parts book that shows each of them but I haven't seen either in an exploded view.
I found the receipt for my 29NF. I bought in 9/2021 so it's barely coming up on four years. It was $120 from a local battery company called Continental Battery Systems. They were the least expensive. They don't stock that size now. The least expensive 29NF elsewhere start at $180.

 

Easy to adapt this https://www.ebay.com/itm/172864250302? Ford used the 24F group battery for decades. Get this to go with it. https://www.ebay.com/itm/262816371423?

 

That's a good option. I would need to see if it would be easy to adapt without butchering it.

 

No butchering needed, just remove the old one and drill a few holes. Check out this picture.

 

So it looks like it would need to rotate from it's current orientation. Would I need to drill new holes in the radiator support to attach the Mustang battery tray?