Model A rear end help needed / suggestions

Question for you guys,
Setting up the rear end of my 30/31 Model A coupe and have run into an issue. Have a 56 Chevy car rear end here with a 5 X 4 3/4 bolt pattern - yanked the axles and discovered there isnt enough meat on the axle or the drums to redrill for my 40 Ford, 5 X 5.5 wheels.
I am running Bias Ply 700's with the aforementioned 40 ford wheels and want the tires to sit as tight as possible against the body.

Im not very comfortable with the thought of wheel adapters...
I know I can find a 9" with the correct bolt pattern but then will more than likely have to shorten it....
Or, I could have new axles made and find new drums...

Whats your take on it?
Does anyone have the measurements off hand from drum face to drum face of what I need?
Is there a "go to" rear end with the correct length and bolt pattern to keep the wheels close?
Any help would be great. Just at a Y in the road on my build.
Thanks!
-Matt

 

If what you have fits and is already in good shape functionally, I'd just bite the bullet and have some axles made. Like you said, unless you get lucky and find one narrow enough (and you'd need a later full sized Ford car or Ford truck one to get the 5.5 bolt pattern vs. the 4.5, making it that much harder), a Ford is gonna need shorten, some of the axles taper so they can't be sortened (don't remember what the circumstances around them are though), adapted to fit, and if it WAS a Trac-Loc it probably ain't anymore. I don't know what a 56 Chev rear looks like, but Ford 9's aren't the prettiest rears in the world, their pinion's offset in respect to the carrier, to "center" the center section the driveshaft has to go back at an angle. Don't let me disuade you though. I've always had Fords and have always had 9ers and will be putting one in my A (but a Tudor low-boy won't be showing off it's rear much), so I love 'em, but you got what you got already.

Moser could put the Ford bolt pattern on a Chev axle no problemo, their stock replacements cost about a duece and a half, so I wouldn't figure TOO much more for a custom order (that'd be a fairly basic custom order for them I'm sure).

 

`56 chevy rear end is about 60 inches wide when measured wheel mounting flange to wheel mounting flange. a `66 to `77 ford bronco rear is 58 inches and has the 5 on 5-1/2" bolt circle you want. they are getting harder to find and usually not cheap around here..the last two i bought were $300. maybe they are cheaper where you are

for that much you could get custom axles for your existing rear, just be sure that the OD of the axle flange will fit inside the flat center part of the brake drum. i had Moser make some 5-1/2 bolt circle axles and they had to turned the OD of the flange just barely bigger than the stud holes so they would fit the existing drums

 

Thank you for your suggestions, Ive called Moser and got a quote of about 400.00 for the new custom axles and the drilling of the drums.
They were cool to deal with and will get the business for sure...

Second follow up question for you:
We are building this as a lowboy and want the tires (bias 700's) to sit as tight as possible without rubbing on the body at higher speeds.
I now know from 36-3Windows response that my current rear end is roughly 60 inches flange to flange.

If I am running 40 ford wheels, am I going to have this rear end shortened after dumping this money into the new axles??
If so - I think I might rather hunt for the 9 inch with the correct pattern and pay to have it shortened?

Again, TIA - any help would be great.
-Matt

 

You aught to be able to buy a whole 61-66 Ford 1/2 ton pickup for under $500 with a rearend that will work. Seems to me they're not that bad width-wise either. 57-60 Ford are also about right.

As far as spacing goes, two inches is not going to make a hell of a difference, certainly not enough to shorten a rearend over, unless you're going full fenders and want to run stock ones with tires that really fill them up.