Or knock out my fillings when I hit a bump? Difficult to tell from these photos, but I'm going to look at this model A which has a transverse leaf setup with split bones and what looks to be VW bug shocks? Either way, it looks like maybe the shackles could use another few degrees to give enough travel. What does the Friday tech crowd have to say?
At least you're going to see it before handing over hard earned! Take a beefy buddy for balast. Shackles look fine to me, but opinions vary. The spring ends look to be pretty close to the spring mounts on the axle which could mean they'll bottom out. Not the end of the world as there looks to be quite some meat on the axle mounts that could be carefully whittled away. Might need some material adding to the outer side, maybe. My guess is that the coilover things are there as helpers to prevent or reduce the bottoming out, but if they are doing that I'd expect they could make the ride particularly harsh. I'd be test driving with and without the ballast to verify this. I'd be also looking g carefully at the wishbones and their mounts. They're prone to fracture the way they are. The stiff springing might help restrict travel helping keep it together, but probably at the expense of a harsh ride? They also look like the ends of the weaker rear wishbones that support a torque tube rear, so a concern there too. Is there anything else controlling the torque windup on that open rear? I'd be looking to put ladder bars in there I think. Opinions may vary! Chris
Its on a drive on hoist. You and a buddy grab a hold of the frame and bounce the car up and down on the suspension. You will know pretty fast if its going to bottom out or not. You will also know just how stiff the spring is, if its hard for two guys to bounce it on the suspension, its going to be a pretty rough ride. If you can bounce it on the suspension yourself, and it doesn't bottom out, it should be a pretty nice ride.
Those load carrier shocks are at their softest setting, so I doubt they're doing a ton. I have a non-adjustable set on the rear of my 46. They stiffen it up a bit so it doesn't bottom as harshly and they also raise the ride height slightly. As others have said, driving it and cycling the suspension will tell you if there's an issue.
I usta have a fully chromed 57 Chevy rearend, similar to that. Had brackets on the front pointing straight forward for hairpins, similar to that. Spring hangers were out the back, similar to that. Gorgeous to look at, exactly like that. Upon closer inspection I found long cracks around the hairpin brackets where the forces of torsion tore them loose. You can’t use straight forward arms mounted solid to the round axle. Physics won’t let it go over bumps in the road.
From a vehicle dynamics vs comfort standpoint: Remove the shocks. Start bouncing the car down-and-up by pushing down on the rear bumper repeatedly in time with the bouncing car. Count how many times the car bounces in one minute. A luxury cruiser boat like ride will have a natural frequency of about 60 cycles per minute. A sports car, somewhat stiff suspension will have a natural frequency of about 120 - 150 cycles per minute. Adjust to suit your tastes. In your case you will have to make an allowance for the smaller spring of the omitted coil over shock. Easy
I'm sure glad I consulted this group! I'm up to my ears in the DeSoto so I'm not looking for another "project". Really hoping to find something that I can get in and rip on the highway with no concerns. Hopefully the right roadster shows up soon, but appreciate everyone's input on this.
A former co-worker showed up (years ago) with an old T-bucket that had a chromed rear end. Upon closer inspection, the housing had cracked many times and had obvious welded repairs to it. I mean cracked here-and-there for no apparent reason while keeping in mind that a T-bucket is a very light vehicle. Along those same lines, I remember reading in a book/magazine (possibly by Ron Fournier) where the author (a very accomplished fabricator) stated that he personally would never chrome ANY suspension or steering components EVER. He warned of the dangers of hydrogen embrittlement. Although I understand that there are ways to deal with this issue now, how does one know if the components they are presently looking at were correctly treated after the chroming process? Regardless of todays allegedly "acceptable methods", I personally have chosen to heed the warnings and completely avoid any and all chromed suspension/steering etc components. The car in question in this post would not be on my Christmas wish list
I learned the hard way a long time ago that rear suspension set up with that geometry will break somewhere sooner or later. Lucky for me, I noticed an odd characteristic with the ride before anything fatal happened. Early Fords had ONE suspension point in the front for a very good reason.
Does this general principle apply for split wish bones in the front as well? Or more of a concern in the back because of more twisting forces?
It applies to the front with a tube axle. A Ford front axle will twist just fine. I was at a run and looked at a rear end set up. The arm bracket had ripped the housing open. I stuck my finger in and could feel the axle shaft.
I'd be giving that front mounting bracket for the wishbones a good close look too. It looks somewhat wimpy considering how long it is with no gusset to help strengthen it. Easy to add a gusset, and it would be the first thing I'd do if I bought it.
Those rear shocks look like their off an older Harley Sportster. As heavy as a stock A spring is I doubt you need coil help.I would run standard tube car shocks.
What’s going on with the fixed windshield post on this ‘31? Is that an aftermarket part? I thought all 30/31 roadsters had folding capabilities.
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