Hey guys, new to the forum. I may be about to acquire a rather neat car that once was very popular a**** the g***er community. A '55 chevy four door... well maybe not the four door per se' but. Anywho, Im curious of two things, mainly: What was / is the purpose of hacking off the front frame and making a new front clip with 2x4 steel tubing? can I not just use the frame thats there? Also, Ive been doing research but have nothing to measure, is the only difference between the four and two door 55 the placement of the B pillar? Any help is greatly appreciated. -Webb
Yes you can use the stock frame. Not all tri5 g***er with axles up front had clips done. It all depended on the builders, budget, etc. Seems like everyone that is building moderday g***ers are all doing the front clip, but it is not something that has to be done to be "correct" as far as 60's g***ers were concerned. I'm no help at all on the fourdoor questions tho...
It doesnt make much sense to hack off whats there to replace it with the same basic thing. All I can figure is strength, which seems odd because theres basically a weld in the "middle" of the car. Any other opinions?
The clip was a lot lighter, less weight up front made for a faster car. The engine set back made for faster weight transfer to the rear on launch. Doc.
G***er's right. I'd also agree with the comment that there's no point in hacking up a frame if you don't have to. A lot of Tri-Five Chevies kept their frames intact and added a beam axle for the previously mentioned weight transfer/savings. A four-door is the same length as a two-door, and a lot of low-buck g***ers where converted to the latter by taking the quarterlight post out (the one in front of the C-pillar), welding up the rear doors, and filling the side gl*** area with plexigl***. Two door front-doors are longer than their four-door counterparts, and if you're building a g***er style, you might not want to bother doing the stretch operation. I've got a couple of pics in one of my HAMB albums of a NZ-built '57 Chevy from the '70s that was converted to a two-door (including stretching the front doors to the correct length!) and ran a '38 Dodge tube axle on the original ch***is. It's all pretty do-able and depends on how far you'd want to go with your project.
Well I cant stand the thought of a four door for some reason, and it also dawned on me I could sell the front doors and spring for a pair of fibergl*** front "two" doors. And I can weld and fabricate so the body work is a small hurtle. A one piece front clip is another must... this project will grow completely out of hand in a hurry... Also I have a 283 long block sitting in my garage that I was thinking of using in it, would that be logical or would selling it and getting something else be more appropriate?
Webb, sure seems like a lot of work to build a 2 door and g***er from your four door. It can be done...that is not it, but why? Is the four door in really bad shape? How complete is it? Could you sell the four door and have enough to buy a rolling 2 door shell? Unless you are looking for a major project, I'd almost think it would be better to sell the four door and start out with a 2 door. Just a thought...
a 283 would be a great choice for a g***er. they are great running engines with a 4 speed behind them!
333 youre not far off my original idea. The trick with this car is it belongs to a mutual friend who needs rid of it. Not only that but its free... Only thing is he started a major custom project on it once and cut out the rusty floors, not too big a deal, then cut the top off. Now, its all still there to weld back on but to sell it and have enough to get a two door body might be kind of difficult. And being 21 in college with no job and in school for aviation maintenance Im just looking for practice with sheet metal and welding so... G***er 1961: Thats it, ive decided im just hacking it and going big. BTW did you get that falcon off of ebay once upon a time? I remember a couple years ago when I was introduced to g***ers I found that one for sale on ebay. Thanks for the input so far guys.
Louie and mac: you guys had me convinced until I saw that original frame, I understand now why the hacked style weighs so much less. Still unsure of what way ill go... New developement, I just scored a parts 69 chevy truck from a guy I just met for ... less than what I can sell the seat and gauge cluster for, the kicker is it comes with a warmed over 400 and a turbo 350 trans with b&m trans kit and manual valve bodies and a ratchet shifter so... It also has a 12 bolt in it and comes with a posi, thoughts? P.s. Mac: Im curious how you set up your rear im aiming for that stance in the back.
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