Hey gang, Sorry the intro was so darn long. I'm a writer, what can I say?? I have done tons of restorations and 50/60s kustoms, but never a rod and am looking for input. Thanks to those of you who helped me sort out the front end last week. At any rate, I'm buildng a 29 Model A roadster. Plan is to put in a 303 Olds for go power. Don't have the big bucks for all the fancy **** parts, so am going for a build that would look circa 1955. I want this car to be low to the ground, but don't want to run a coil over for obvious reasons. I saw a guy's tech piece on making a boxed S piece at the rear, and it's a true spectacle. My thing is, what did the guys do back in the day to drop their A's on the ground. Thanks in advance for the help.
I think "back in the day" they weren't nearly as low as guys get them now. The old timers used a shorter spring pack from whatever was availible (I've heard that front springs used in the rear was popular) maybe a rearend frame kickup, then a drop spring in the back. Lowering was popular but I doubt there were many ground s****ing rods back in the 40's through early 60's.
you can remove leaves from the rear spring, and "Z" the frame, that was done back in the day, make sure you don't change the wheelbase while you're Z'ing it though. Also if you saw a very low A back in the day, chances are that the body was channelled over the frame a few inches. Most west coast style cars were not channeled at first, but there were a handful of guys channeling hotrods on the east coast pretty early on. my '34 coupe came from the DC area and is channeled like a MoFo. If you wanna see an A with an early olds motor in it, check out the 2nd issue of HotRod Deluxe, the article called "Pedestrian Killer" is my old A coupe. it was not channeled though. I ran a B&M hydro and a merc rear, it was Z'd with some leaves removed, moredrop axle in the front. BTW, I hate the term "RAT ROD" as far as I'm concerned it's a hotrod, period. Welcome to the board.
Squablow is right! I was there man. Rods were never in a million years as low as they run now. It makes me laugh when stoopid mags like OSR say **** like "this car is period correct" and it's sitting 1" from the ground. Pure ********! Also, running no floor, rusty panels and welds are in no way "period correct" either. We were proud of our cars. They might have been a bit rough (my T tub on A rails with 34 V8 had brush paint and faux leopardskin seatcovers), but never as rough as the "rat rod/neo rockabilly" movement seem to aim for.
Well we z'd the frame front and rear of my buddies A and by z'ing the front we gained 7 1/2 inch wheel base perfect for his nailhead and we didn't have to touch the firewall. I'ts z'd 3 inches in front and 14 out back. Without a channel it is 54 inches off the ground. Granted there was a lot done to the front end reversed spring 4" drop axle, etc.. All we did for the rear was take some leafs out. It smoothed out the ride and seems to be holding up just fine. Lost a little room in the floor for the ****** but, he's 6-2" and fits in it ok.
Back in the days of early rodding, you spent you money on going fast or to look good. Very few cars had money spent on both. If you go through some early isssues of the pocket-size magazines (Honk, CarCraft), the cars were low, but not cartoonish low. These cars were driven everyday and the roads were not any better than they are today. Z the frame, chop and channel to taste. But the early rods were not sooooo low to the ground
FYI.. 'rat rods' ****. If you are going to build a circa 1955 Hot Rod, COOL. Do it. If you are going to build a 'rat rod' it will be circa 2005, and no roadster deserves that. What I'm trying to say is that 'rat rod' does not equal 'Traditional (Era correct) Hot Rod'. If you want a 'rat rod' start with something of less value... Something no one cares about such as a Montie Carlo or Gremlin. ...my 2 cents.
heres a shot of a car that was built in 55....and still has the same owner......over look the cheesy scoop.....has a 2 4 caddy ....was z'd front and back....with a little bit of channeling....and it's low.....the top of the doors hit me half way up my leg....brandon
Hey gang, just so everyone knows, I didn't intend for anyone to get offended by my ***le of this thread. I fully apologize to everyone on the H.A.M.B. for my ***le. I intend to build a traditional style hot rod, unfinished, budget focused, but safe and roadworthy. My goal is parts older than 53, but bought a Desoto speedo on eBay today of uncertain year, guessing 51-55. Maybe that helps a little.
Hi Frank. Sounds like your heart is in the right place. I don't get all worked up about the rat rod deal. I just figure people saw something that struck a chord with them and that they need to learn. Amusingly, I actually learned the term "rat rod" on the HAMB, clapped out looking vehicles had always been "rusto rods" to me, per the mid-nineties Hot Rod terminology. I used to group them all under "fifties style" and found the HAMB by Googling the term "jalopy" my freshman year of college. Ironically, it turns out that what I really like are forties style rods, and an idealized version at that. Fact is that a c. 2005 old-style hot rod is usally a lot better than the original deal. Welcome and good luck with your project. My advice? Big Z in the rear, big dropped axle. It may be lower than period, but if you like it and it looks good, so what?
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