Hey guys, I know there are a bunch of threads on this, and I've looked through most of them, but I'm still a bit confused about a few things; hoping I can get some help. I want to put a Ford 9 inch rear in the back of my Model A. The body is gonna be channeled and the frame is probably going to have a 8" kick up in the back. It'll be fenderless, and will be running a 7.50 tire in the back on 16x4.5 wheels with 2.75" of backspacing. I want the wheels to be fairly tight to the body, with about 2-3 inches between the bulge of the tire and the body. I haven't gotten a chance to get up to the garage and just measure how wide the rear end needs to be yet, but I'm guessing it'll be pretty narrow. This chart, that was posted in another thread, really helps with figuring out the widths for all the different rear ends: http://www.carnut.com/specs/rear.html A quick craigslist / hamb marketplace search of my area show a lot of results for fairly wide rear axles. A lot of them coming out of 70's f-150s. My question is, should I just buy whichever ford 9" rear I can get, and get them shortened to the width I want, or would it be better to wait for something like a early Bronco front end that will be closer to the width I'm looking for? Obviously, the cost of getting them shortened and resplined is going to be way more, but I feel like the chances of finding the rear end I need are pretty slim; unless there is somewhere else I should be looking. Also, I'll be welding spring perches (using the stock Model a suspension setup, probably going to run super slide springs) ladder bar brackets, and things onto the axle. I only have access to a MIG welder, and I'm worried that all the welding heat will warp the hell out of the rear housing. Any way to get around this, or am I over-thinking it? I'd hate to have an axle shortened and straightened, only to weld some stuff on it and have it warp out of whack again. Sorry for the long post. I'm totally stuck on what to do with the rear end of the car right now :/
I keep hearing 54-55" is the magic number,but I haven't mocked my car up yet to verify it....Been too busy with work and another project. When I asked Littleman I believe he told me his 9" measured out at 55"..? I would just take your time,mock up the car to a ride height you like,with the final wheel/tire combo you're gonna run,and take a few careful measurements. Post lots of pics for us as you go,too! Scott Posted using the Full Custom H.A.M.B. App!
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