Hi im new to the chevy truck scene and have just bought a 1950 3100 . i want to fit a new suspension setup with independent arms disc brakes and rack an pinion steering. i dont know how involved this is as i dont have much knowledge of these trucks and am learning as i go. i eventually also want to fit a v8 with an auto box and lower the rear end too. Any info or pictures of an independant front setup would be great so ive at least got something to copy , Thanks everbody ASH
Welcome new guy, whoever you are!!! Hello there ASH, First, please sign your name so we all know who you are. We are a freindly bunch of motor heads here. Second, welcome to the forum!!! This place is full of great advise and a lot of fun. sometimes even funny, too. We all love our trucks and helping each other out. I am sure you are going to get nearly all the information you will need from this forum. I am building my truck stock, so I can't personally help you out with your questions, but I am sure everyone who is rodding their trucks will chime in VERY soon. We have hobbyists and professional builders on this site and everyone is just great. Again, welcome to the forum and I look forward to your posts and PICTURES, dude. Andy
1950 chevy Hey Andy, Thanks for your fast reply, im sure there will be alot of help here, I just need guidance really i want to do as much of the work myself (with a little bit of help from my friends)! I know my limits and thats the time im gonna need outside help! Im from England and have joined a few clubs/groups so with any luck over time i may be able to help you guys out!!! Thanks again ASH
Ohhhhh, I get it ASH is your naaaaame, NOT your initials. Thought they were your initials since they were all in caps. We have a couple of other Brits on this forum as well. I am sure they will introduce themselves to you soon. Andy
Welcome from across the pond! Glad to have you aboard! Like Andy said,we're getting quite a few Englanders on this site! We've got some folks here that have done the IFS thing and i'm sure you'll get plenty of good, sound advice. Enjoy, pip pip and cheerios!
The British Invasion Couple ways to go here , I know folks who love thier AMC Gremlin (?) front suspensions moreso than the Mustang II etc. most folks use . Remember : there's (aperently) quite a few Brits who own vintage AD pickups and other old Chevies so every single part you take off , no matter how greasy or worn out , is NOT TRASH ! keep them and sell / give away to keep another old Chevy on the road . Are there any RHD AD's there? I know many are Way Down Under ......
Hey, whats a AMC Gremlin front end? I never really thought to keep all the old stuff but a suppose swap meets etc could turn up some valuable stuff for my build, Cheers ASH
You know , American Motors Nash,Rambler,etc.) made a goofy little hatchback from '71 ~ '80 ? it has a well designed front suspension and AMC supported the parts up untill recently... Dang , I hope I'm not having a seineor moment and usung the wrong car ~ I know it was a small AMC product .
No, you're not having a senior moment American Motors built the Gremlins for most of the '70's. They also made the Pacer that looked like a big turtle. www.gremlinx.com for some pics of gremlins.
Only thing a grimlen is good for is driving a quarter mile at a time and as fast as you can. Ugly little car, but one hell of a drag car. If I wasn't going to do the the S-10 swap then I would have either done a mustang front end or a 70's nova front end. If you go nova then be carefull on which one you buy. The difference and is a major difference is the upper control arms. You want the upper control arm that hugs close to the frame. If you go with the other one it will be a little wide and will limit you to what front wheels you will be able to run. The wider ones will not let you have a deep offset wheel. Just my two cents for today.
Soooo I'm toolin' along at 70MPH. I am running the original (but lowered) I-beam with disks, power steering, and a sway bar. I also have new leafs and gas charged shocks made for the lowered front end. What will the difference be between this and an IFS. (of any kind) (skip what the $ amount might be) Is it that much difference in the rideability? Thanks a Brazillion for any ideas from those who have (and drive) either of the above mentioned.
By the way ASH- Welcome aboard! I'm having a not so great night, but I'm always happy to see a newcomer to this site! And someone with an accent to boot! I assume that's a Chevy you have, but since you're not showing us the front end, I'm guessin' it might just be a GMC! ? Welcome aboard mate! Have some fun and help us out! Lord knows I need help... By the way- I like three letter names! Zig
Through a school zone? Interesting, and I'm sure you'll get several opinions. Here's mine. Disk brakes: smoother and probably shorter stops. Power steering: ease in steering at lower speeds, no difference at highway speed. Gas shocks: always a plus. IFS vs single or i beam: depends on road conditions. If you're on a straight smooth road, no diff. If you're driving in Houston, IFS is a must! We have pot-holes in Texas that could swallow a lessor vehicle. It's all relative. It all boils down to comfort vs cost. Maybe a combination of all of the above. Years ago, we used to debate twin spring vs single spring front ends.
An IFS front end is not costly at all if you can weld or have a good friend who can weld. But if you can't weld very well at all then don't attempt it because you don't want your front end to leave you when you hit a pot hole. If you buy a bolt in IFS then any body with a little common sense and some basic hand tools can put one in. As far as IFS compared to I-beam, then Ken nailed it. It depends on how comfortable of a ride you want. In an I-beam style every little pot hole will pull the truck one way or the other and the same pot hole in an IFS will only affect that individual wheel with no pull. Plus it will give the person on that side the jolt not everyone in the car. I like IFS myself just because I like the handleing and ride so much better. But then again I have spent over $3k just for a programmable air ride system to. So really it is just driver preference. In all of my projects, they will have an IFS system with stiff sway bars front and rear for greater handleing. As far as the disc brakes. As easy as it is to do and it can be pretty darn cheap to do it, then anybody would be crazy not to. They are more reliable, stop faster, gives better handling qualities when braking in a turn, don't lock up near as easy, (put the adjustable proportioning valve in the line as I mentioned in other posts so the rear doesn't prematurely lock up). The power steering on these trucks would be great in parking lot situations or when you're just tooling around town, but like ken says at highway speeds it really doesn't matter they both feel close to the same. The only thing that you may feel more in the power steering would be a little more precise control at higher speeds than with out the power steering. Some people may notice the difference and some others may not, it depends on the suspension set up that you have (meaning a rigid suspension or more original). I hope all this helps. I get a little chatty after my second glass of wine!!!!
Hey Zig check this front end out. It is made for our trucks. It is a weld in, but it really is a good price for all the parts that are included in it. You can also do some upgrades to it as well. I know that $1300 is a lot of money, but if you start adding up the disc brake conversion and the power steering rack to add on to your stock front end I'm sure you would be getting close to the same cost. http://www.southernrods.com/categor...sion/front-end-ifs/products/product-1874.html
Here's another one for ya Zig. It shows a real good pic of everything that would come with it. http://www.ifskits.com/pu4.html
Hey lads, cheers for all the info your supplying, ive learned loads in just 2 days,ive printed a load off so ive got plenty to read about now! Ill get by with a little help from my friends !!!!! Thanks again ASH
Hi Alex im going to put a jag front end in mine they are readly avalibale over here, check front cross member they can be rusty You need a XJ6,XJ12 or Damiler Sovering pre XJ40 (june86) are best give a call to Hollygrove 01425477000 speak to Will hes very helpfull they on Hampshire/Dorset border dont forget stearing rack cant be just turned roud you will need a rack that is in front of the wheel centre line ie Rover SDI Cortina then you can put into orginal position as it fits at the back of the wheels, some were ive got an artical on how to fit jag to chevy pickup if you want i will try and find it for you. there a big swapmeet at the Essex Arena on 3rd march you might find a front end there and a back axel http://www.nsra.org.uk/ make shure you take all mesurements with you ie axle length hole pattern etc, when its on the floor it looks totaly different.
Ok so I am coming in on the back side of this discussion. Been busy fitting snow/ice all week at work. First Welcome to the new guy Ash ! Great group of guy's here Lot's of good information. Some bad information. Lot's of opinions. Just don't have a thick skin. I enjoy the fact you brit's are playing with the old AD's on the island. Keep us posted with pictures & progress as you move forward. Again Welcome
