A New 68 Build Thread
 

My dad and I are building a 68 SWB for him. We are going the HotRod route.
Here are some high points:
New Chassis I designed and built
Morrison Tri-angulated 4 Bar w/ Coil Overs
Morrison Tubular IFS w/ Coil Overs
9" Ford 3.89 w/ Tru-Trac and 31 Spline Axles
502 BBC w/ AFR Heads and Fuel Injection
4L80E Tranny
Wilwood Brakes - 6 Piston 13" Front 4 Piston 12" Rear
Custom Dash and Interior

I attached some progress pictures of the chassis: Enjoy, All commentts welcome!!!

http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r...n/DSC00101.jpg
http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r...n/DSC00081.jpg
http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r...n/DSC00094.jpg
http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r...n/DSC00086.jpg

Chad

Re: A New 68 Build Thread
 

i like it so far...

Re: A New 68 Build Thread
 

That frame is Awesome, You Guy's do Top Notch Work...........

Rick

Re: A New 68 Build Thread
 

Some updates. The cab is pretty decent to start with.
http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r...a_41107123.jpg
http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r...a_41107125.jpg
http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r...a_41107127.jpg
http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r...a_41107126.jpg

Alot of this repair is close to complete. I'll get pictures soon. Enjoy.

Re: A New 68 Build Thread
 

We just picked up some new sheetmetal for the truck. New front fenders, cowl hood, font bumper, bedsides, wheel tubs, front bed panel, rad support, roll pan, and a couple other things. Christmas come early!:clap:

http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r...n/DSC01704.jpg
http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r...n/DSC01706.jpg

Time to get at it!

By the way, all this stuff came from www.raybuck.com. They are in PA near me. Randy was great to deal with and he carries all Tri-Plus stuff. Not everything he has is on his site, give them a call if you need something. This is an un-sponsored plug, they were just very nice to deal with. We got some stuff from Manes as well. They are also very nice to deal with. We were able to pick these big items up from Raybuck ourselves which saved a ton in shipping. Plus, we were able to inspect all the parts before we left. All in all 2 great places to deal with.

Re: A New 68 Build Thread
 

Chassis looks sweet! I see that you c-notched your kick-ups for even more drop with less bed space loss than if you were to simply build it taller :gi:

Re: A New 68 Build Thread
 

You can drop that trailer off at my house if you want...

Great looking build so far, keep it up!

Re: A New 68 Build Thread
 

is that 3x5 your using throughout your frame? it looks killer by the way!!! she'll be a beaut when shes done!!

Re: A New 68 Build Thread
 

Mike,
Thanks for the compliments. The bed floor will have to be moved up about 3" as it stands. I didn't want to go any further. The truck will have a ride height of 5.5" at kick up in the front and about 6.25" at the kick up in the rear. The notch gives me a full 3" of compression in the rear without bottoming. By the way I have been following your build. Very nice work! Keep it up.

Re: A New 68 Build Thread
 

Nate,
I think we'll keep the trailer. It's a leftover from our stock car racing days. It's been turned into extra storage at the moment. Thanks for the good words!

Later,

Re: A New 68 Build Thread
 

Revn,

There is actually 3 different sizes of rectangular used. The main rails under the cab are 2x6x.125. The kick ups are 2x5x.125 and the rest is 2x4x.125. Thanks for the compliment. I have put alot of time into the design, I think it will handle and ride really nice when it's done. Here is a picture of how I have been developing the design. It's cheaper on the computer than in metal to make changes.
http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r...ssis_rev_1.jpg

Thanks Again,

Re: A New 68 Build Thread
 

Here's some quick updates. A little rust repair and some firewall work. Comments welcome.

http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r...acin/Cab_1.jpg
http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r...acin/Cab_2.jpg
http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r...acin/Cab_3.jpg

Later,

Re: A New 68 Build Thread
 

Looks great Chad! I have been following your thread over on Lateral-G...but haven't seen updates for a while. I really dig the 3D model...wish I had a few more days in the week so I could spend some time to get more proficcient at SolidWorks. I currently design all my stuff on my CNC plasma software...does the job, but I am jealous of your 3D model!:lol:

Re: A New 68 Build Thread
 

Nathan,
Thanks for the compliments, that means alot coming from you. I think I've checked out every build you have posted. You do great work. I'm going to try and get everything for the chassis modeled. I've used Pro/E and Inventor in the past. I just changed my group at work over to Solidworks. It is really nice. I initially did the layout for the chassis in Autocad. Like you said, you gotta use whatever works. With all the projects I've seen you working on, you may never get to Solidworks. And since like you said you havn't seen many updates on Lateral I may never get back to the metal. I'm hoping to get rolling here right after Christmas. Do you have Solidworks? If you want something modeled to see it in 3D let me know. You can e-mail me at ccracin@yahoo.com.

Later,

Re: A New 68 Build Thread
 

That's going to be one sweet truck! :D

Re: A New 68 Build Thread
 

I just looked at the date of my last post, geez.:help: The last year has been tough. Every time I thought we were ready to go, another set back hit us. Mostly health problems. Most of that is sorted out. We have actually made some progress. Well sort of. We have been working on the shop. It's coming together. We ordered some new lights and a few new tools. I love tools!:metal: Anyway, I am still alive and I hope to be making sparks soon.

Later,

Re: A New 68 Build Thread
 

Looks like a fantastic project!

This rust looks just like mine:

http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r...a_41107125.jpg

Re: A New 68 Build Thread
 

Some new toys will be at the garage on Monday! Sweet!

Everyone likes pictures.

http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r...hand1shear.jpg

http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r...OTARYSHEAR.jpg

http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r...WFSlipRoll.jpg

http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r...-STAND-web.jpg

Now we just need to use them on the truck.

Later,

Re: A New 68 Build Thread
 

I'll be watching now that you're getting back to it ;) You've got an awesome foundation with that frame...

Re: A New 68 Build Thread
 

Well here we go, we are back at it. The mock-up phase has finally started. We got the cab mounts on the chassis and the cab is mounted. The new rad support is mounted and just for good measure I cut the firewall out to get ready for the motor and tranny on Sunday. I'll let the pictures show where we are. We will be spending alot of time on the manufacturer's midway at Columbus next weekend. Enjoy!

http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r...n/IMG_1194.jpg

http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r...n/IMG_1195.jpg

http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r...n/IMG_1201.jpg

http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r...n/IMG_1202.jpg

http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r...n/IMG_1203.jpg

As always comments good and bad are always welcome.

Later,

Re: A New 68 Build Thread
 

Looking good..glad to see you're back at it.

Re: A New 68 Build Thread
 

As promised, the motor and tranny are in. We had an old set of big block first gen headers from Mr. Gasket to try. They are close. The engine is set back a bit to keep that big block from causing an incurable under steer problem. Anyone have any recommendations for custom headers? I can send these with the changes that need to be made. Should make it easier. Anyway, here are some pictures. We are going to try and get some more done before Columbus, but we are leaving on Thursday. Gotta cut the grass, do some things for the family before GUY TIME! Enjoy.

http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r...n/IMG_1278.jpg

http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r...n/IMG_1274.jpg

http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r...n/IMG_1270.jpg

http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r...n/IMG_1264.jpg

Re: A New 68 Build Thread
 

Looks nice sitting in there....

Re: A New 68 Build Thread
 

Rookie/dumb question here: how did you figure out that the engine placement would cause an understeer problem? I'm going to install a 396 BB in my 69 and am curious if I'll have the same problem.

BTW the install looks great so far!

Re: A New 68 Build Thread
 

If it's further forward, more weight further forward is going to want to continue going straight despite your best efforts to turn the tires. Further back, behind the wheels, it will follow the wheels. Especially a big block.

Re: A New 68 Build Thread
 

Dan is exactly correct. For best handling, you would like to have either a 50/50 weight bias Rear/Front or even 52/48 Rear/Front. This is so that under braking in a corner when the weight transfers to the front, you end up with a well balanced vehicle. This allows softer springs for better ride and handling. Well since we all like Pick-ups here, that is almost impossible to do and be practical for the street. Then when you add a Big Block it hurts even more. So the rule I go by is get the engine back as much as is practical for your situation. But, be warned when you start sliding it back it will snowball quickly as to what all is affected. Be ready to modify everything. Hope this helps. And thanks all for the kind words.

Later,

Re: A New 68 Build Thread
 

looking good.....

Re: A New 68 Build Thread
 

looks great, glad to see some progress.

Re: A New 68 Build Thread
 

All I can say is WOW, I hope to have the skills you have one day.

Re: A New 68 Build Thread
 

Well some more progress. We hung the front control arms and spindles to start the mock up process for clearances etc. Things seem to be going as planned. Did I just say that? We then got the Rad support in it's correct location and hung the doors and a fender to see what we had. Not too bad so far. We'll get the hubs on and then mount the tire on my check fixture to check clearances in dive and roll. As always, comments good and bad are welcome.

Enjoy:

http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r...n/IMG_1572.jpg

http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r...n/IMG_1573.jpg

http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r...n/IMG_1571.jpg

http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r...n/IMG_1576.jpg

http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r...n/IMG_1578.jpg

Re: A New 68 Build Thread
 

One more...... And that is not the actual tire, it was just the right diameter.

http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r...n/IMG_1577.jpg

Re: A New 68 Build Thread
 

Work continues! Not as fast as I would like, but never the less it continues. See if you guys notice the difference in the next 2 photos from the previous.

http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r...c/IMG_1587.jpg

http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r...c/IMG_1588.jpg

Anybody?

Well the big block is history. As with so many projects we have changed directions as well. It's the same old story, A guy says "Is that engine for sale?" My Dad says "Maybe". After a couple conversations and some research down the road it goes and we are moving on to an LS based engine. The engine in the truck is borrowed from a friend. It is a 5.3 from Swanke racing engines. It was run in an asphalt Late Model circle track car for a season. One of the local tracks "Experiments!" Anyway he was happy to lend it to me until he sells it. A little tweaking here and there and Shazam! it's in.

The next project is what headers to use. After getting very little in the way of dimensions from manufacturers and plenty of sticker shock, the brain damage kicked in an off I went to my computer. This is what I came up with.

http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r...PassHeader.jpg

http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r...iverHeader.jpg

After a call to SPD Exhaust a box of flanges collectors an bends showed up. Here is where I'm at so far.

http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r...c/IMG_1719.jpg

more........

Re: A New 68 Build Thread
 

http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r...c/IMG_1722.jpg

I am happy so far. The tubes for the passenger side are cut. I'll start tacking them up tomorrow. Stay tuned! Comments are welcomed as always.

Later,

Re: A New 68 Build Thread
 

Headers look good. So do you have a line on an engine yet?

Re: A New 68 Build Thread
 

Sort of. We have been talking to Wegner Automotive and Turnkey Engines. They both have a nice 415ci stroker. My Dad is still contemplating that move! We are still looking at our options. Thanks for lookin!

Later,

Re: A New 68 Build Thread
 

Well here is a quick peak at the passenger side tacked up! The tubes are at my buddy's being welded. Then back to be tacked in the flanges and to tack the collectors on.

http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r...n/IMG_1730.jpg

We also got the new Corbeau seats a couple weeks ago to start looking at interior mods. They are nice I'll tell yah!

http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r...n/IMG_1728.jpg

Well that's it for now. More to come!

Re: A New 68 Build Thread
 

Lookin good

Re: A New 68 Build Thread
 

Seats look nice. Is that straight edge out where you're looking to put the center console? I am going to be building a custom console shortly. Will be starting it as soon as I get the bottom patches welded on the cab and get the cab back on the ground.

Re: A New 68 Build Thread
 

Its about damn time we see some progress! I was starting to get worried chad!!!!!!

Seriously its looks SICK!!!!!! Great job so far. Just Bad A$$!!!!!

Re: A New 68 Build Thread
 

Thanks for the compliments guys, it really helps keep the progress rolling. Yeah we started kicking around some proportions for the interior. The console will be about 2" forward of where you see that straight edge to get the dash and steering column to work together. The interior was designed by Ben Hermance and we are just trying to figure out the rough fab. When I get a bit further, I will post a pick of the rendering.