Fender brace question
 

Can somebody tell me what stock part is structurally deficient to make the support rods necessary?

Edit: '49 3100 by the way

Edit: For clarification I'm asking about the rods from the firewall to the fenders. Not the fender supports.

Re: Fender brace question
 

I dont have the firewall to fenders and all my stuff is fine.

I did make brackets that bolt the bottom of the grille to the frame. This helped a ton with a bouncy front end. solid as a rock now.

Re: Fender brace question
 

I'm thinking the radiator might be a little heavy to only be secured down low. The stuff attached to it is really supported by it, not the other way around.

Re: Fender brace question
 

They are a bit triangulated to help keep the front end centered. Remember, there were "adjustment" slots in the bottom and you are hoping everything stays in one place but the fenders/rad/cab basically make it a box and it will flex as it is going down the road. To keep it square, the triangles are used.

When doing an S10 type swap, mounting the radiator to the frame pretty much keeps the side to side forces down to a minimum but you still run the risk of the top twisting side to side. With the new suspension, most of this is eliminated unless you are driving in very harsh washboard type conditions. The old straight axle would have you bouncing around and twisting.

Re: Fender brace question
 

other than the fender to cab bolts those rods anchor the cab to the entire front end. if their is flex in the cab/front end motion and the rods are off your fenders will be doing the flexing. have you ever ridden in the bed of a truck and see the cab move differently the the bed? i would assume those rods help with the flexing issue. my cab had multiple spider cracks around the cab bolt holes....
GT

Re: Fender brace question
 

I was just curious seeing how b****in products says you can do away with them if you use their core support and inner fender. I'm having issues with my build and was thinking of fabbing a honest to God core support then since my inners are useless fabbing up some new ones. I figured if it has a real core support like a modern truck then I wouldn't need the rods. They don't really bother me I was just seeking enlightenment.

Re: Fender brace question
 

We don't have many miles on my son's truck but so far, so good. I think a good anchoring system, combined with the stiffer frame (the ladder frames were MEANT to flex as part of the "suspension" of the original truck) you'll be in good shape.

Re: Fender brace question
 

I have/had a lot of miles on my 48 and ran without them for a long time. From experience I can well say that they help keep the front end sheetmetal aligned and also help some with keeping the squeaks down by stabilizing the fenders.

I'm not familiar enough with that particular aftermarket core support except to say that it does look interesting from a lot of standpoints and I may need to run one before I am done due to a couple of mods I have planned.

I won't go as far as saying a guy has to run those rods on his truck but I for sure won't run a truck without them again.

Re: Fender brace question
 

Guess I will keep 'em. I still have to figure out the core support and inner fenders though. Thanks guys.