I have my '28pu sheet metal ready, Merc flathead built and T5 trans, so I'm looking for recomendations on an aftermarket frame set up for an AV8 pu. I know many of you are talented and build your own but some must have come across a person or company that understands the frame geometry for a flathead in an A frame. I'm in Pennsylvania so something in the NE would make it easier but would travel longer distance if necessary. A good used setup would also be acceptable.
Check with Hamber Rusty at Dirty's Speed shop. I was checking into having him build one for me before my wife vetoed the high boy idea and said she wanted fenders on the Victoria. He is Rusty on the HAMB Dirtys Speed Shop 214 537-7423 He is in Conroe Tx I believe. If you search for stuff he has built he does some nice work. I was thinking about making a dual purpose trip to Texas to see the inlaws and then pick up a frame at the same time.
I built a 31 coupe using a brookfield frame a few years back and it turned out good, there not to far from you?
It's great fun to help someone else spend their money. I bought a chassis from Pete and Jake's after considering what it would take and what it would cost to box, and build my existing Model A chassis. My considerations included such things as the fact that I had no existing suitable old parts to modify other than the frame itself, so I would've had to buy those to start. Also as a consideration, I wanted the finished product to be right on the money, and look good. I also wanted to get the car up and running in a reasonably short amount of time. My experience couldn't have been better...the car turned out great, I still got to do a lot of work, and I was able to sell off all my unused stock Model A parts, so nothing got wasted or thrown away. There are so many different companies producing and selling after-market frames, that you couldn't name them all. I went with Pete and Jake's, and I wouldn't hestitate to do it again or recommend them to anyone. They were easy to deal with, everything works and fits like it should, and it looks great. I'm sure many other builders could offer the same, but I'd recommend buying your componentry from one company to be sure everything goes together as intended. Shipping is an option to consider instead of picking the chassis up yourself. When I bought my chassis, it cost $400 to ship all the stuff plus a crating charge of a couple of hundred dollars. Not cheap, but then picking up something as big as a complete chassis with parts yourself would cost a bit, too, if you had to go more than a couple of hundred miles. I'm in a part of the country that's blessed with a lot of hot rodding activity, so I get to see and do a lot. I'm not much of a typist, or I could go on and on, but it's a lot easier to talk than poke buttons on a computer. Give me a call if you still want to kick around ideas. My phone is 707-544-1948 (West Coast time). I don't do mornings before about 9 A.M., but I'm up till 11 at night. Craig
I thought there would be more AV8 folks that would chime in with some suggestions for a frame. I'd like to hear pro's & con's of various setups.
All depends on what you want in the end. I bought Craig's old chassis for my dad's stock pickup as he just wants to put around town. As Craig said his A is now a real driver anywhere. And believe me he knows what he's doing.
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