Sticking my nose in a buddy's bidness here and soliciting inputs for streetrod ideas for updating a '51 Dodge pikemup. I'm interested because my dad had a '49 that I abused in high school so I would like to see the old beast that my buddy just bought get righteous for cruising. (If I help him, maybe he will take me for a ride and I can have a flashback to the redhead that I dated while driving that beast.) Although I have not seen it personally yet, my friend has submitted some pics to me that show it to be a solid metal candidate for the world of HAMB. Hopefully, he will participate on here to be the direct link to what I am talkin' about. For now, any suggestions from you hammers around the country?
I have a 49 dodge pickup that we sat on a mid 80's lwb standard cab frame with 10" cut out of it. 1" wheel spacers up front and a 10 bolt rear (late 70 camaro) out back. Did have to cut the firewall a bit and tub the front cab corners a little just to get the height we were looking for.
fatman or any other of the MII cats can set you up that way - Actually this is how my 48 is set up right now, but I am considering going back to a solid axle before said and done (which will also be more HAMB-able ) but only a side benefit of why Im doing
The Mopar assembly has been used for years and very stout. I am also fond of the Jaguar assemblies. Both are readily available and cheap (compared to the aftermarket stuff). Check these: http://www430.pair.com/p15d24/mopar_forum/showthread.php?t=13949&highlight=sub-frame http://dodgepilothouseclub.org/know/frontend/front.htm .
Thanks for the inputs. That Volare set up looks to be pretty labor intensive but a really stout piece. I had friend with a '54 Chevy truck who put an AMC Pacer front end on it using a Chassis Engineering kit. The kit really was no more that a couple of pieces of angle iron used to weld or bolt in the Pacer cross member. It was super simple. That set up lowered the front end just a bit but it made a great driver with rack and pinion and big disc brakes. I don't know how low my friend wants to set up his truck and I don't know how the frame width of the Dodge compares to the Chevy's of that era. Finding another donor Pacer could prove to be the hardest part if it would work on the Dodge. Thanks again, I will forward the info to my friend.
the frame rails are different width from the chevy and ford stuff of that period - i dont recall exactly which way though - the fatman stuff is pretty easy to install but it aint cheap - btw - it drops the front end considerably by itself - im sitting with drop spindles too and its far too low IMO btw Last Chance you got a great lookin 48 there
I used a '66 Fury front end and clipped it into the frame on my '53 Dodge 1/2 ton (same dimensions as a '48 frame). The frame rails of the Fury were notched and slipped over the outside of the '53 rails. A little different approach than the standard volare approach, but basically the same result. I like the mopar front ends, the torsion bars make it easy to adjust the ride height, and you get more modern brakes with the Volare type clips. The only thing is that there is a lot of fabrication and welding involved, and since its frame work, it has to be accurate. I've seen a couple of frame swaps with Dakota's at this point, and that seems like a pretty good way to go. The Dakota's came in a couple of different wheelbase options, and the dimensions can be matched pretty well to the '48-'53 B series trucks. The nice thing about the Dakota swap is its a truck frame, so you have a good idea about its capabilities and capacities as far as hauling/towing, if that's important to you. Plus, you get even more modern running gear. You have to mess with body mounts and fitting though. Here's a thread on using a Dakota frame under a '53 http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=349950
I put mine on a 91 Dakota frame. I put the firewall and floor from the Dakota in the 53 truck. Still a work in process, but it all fits well and wasn't that difficult to do. Had to shorten the frame, but there is a spot right behind the cab that is perfect for that. see avatar for pic
Having done a rebuild on an original 50s Dodge frame, springs, brakes, and axle, having done a Volare clip, and having been involved with doing a Dakota frame clip, I can tell you the Dakota clip or complete frame is the direction I'd go again. Though not as simple as upgrading the original parts, the Dakota swap is as cheap, and much better if you need something in the middle of no place. The Volare swap was a complex swap with a lot of fabrication and most things are now something that needs to be ordered at most places. A few years ago, most parts houses had Volare parts in stock, but that is not the case these days. Most Dakota parts are still on the shelf parts. Depending on what parts you used or upgraded to when you redid the original front suspension, parts may or may not be readily available. The original stuff worked well for years, but the original brakes are not up to today's standards when it comes down to stopping before you hit the fool that just pulled out in front of you. Gene
Thanks yours is great too. I have alot of fun with this old truck been thinking about selling it but keep talking myself out of it.
Eagletucky here on the hamb put his pilothouse over on a S10 chassis and it looks awesome, and the S10 regular cab short bed's are 108" wb just like the dodge.
I had mine on an S-10 chassis before I put it on the Dakota chassis instead. The S-10 wheels tucked in the fender openings way to far. The track width is off and I refused to use spacers or deep offset wheels. The Dakota Frame I used has 6 lug wheels, but full size 1950's Dodge Hubcaps snap right on the wheels and cover that problem up.
I used Fatman fab's MII on my original frame and it was easy to install and drove great. I'm now in the middle of making my own frame and i've already fab my own frontend based on the MII (except mines setup for air-ride). Justin
I'm using a 94 dakota frame and had to deal with the 6 lug dilema like moparman, but that problem is easily fixed, you can just go to your friendly auto parts store and buy rotors for a 88 model dakota which is 5 lug, 5 on 4 1/2 bolt pattern, and that lets you get to a ford passenger car wheel, and on the rear, I pulled the dakota rearend and put a 1971 caddy 12 bolt rearend in its place.
Hey lastchance, in the first picture of your truck, is that before or after the 1" spacers, cause the first picture of your truck is spot on tuff.
It is actually two new front tires(smaller in height). The spacers are the same, the grass also helps in the pic also. Thanks though.
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