Installing front cap

[butchp]

I have a 1956 chevy truck and the frame has a 1976 Camaro sub. frame. Please send pictures of what you had to do the front of the sub. to get the sheet metal back on frame. It looks as thou you have to cut the front of the sub off close to the front power steering top bolt and plate it. I have looked at the Lux Blue page on the HAMB site. He is doing a 58/59 which is different than a 55/57 I think. Pictures please of what youce had to do to get the sheet metal on.
Thanks in advance.

[butchp]

20 looks and no replys?

[Rude Dude]

Look at the build sub forum at the top of page There are a lot of Camaro clips with pics posted

[Speedbumpauto]

Lots of ways to do it. Probably easiest to save the front part of the orig. frame and put it back on but when I started many years ago, I had no guidance in that area and threw the parts away before I got smart. Here's how I fabricated what I used. The tubing is for the front bumper which I designed to "plug in" to the tubing sockets. Used cup style freeze plugs to hold the rubber bushings which are early chevy truck trans mount donuts. This is all predicated on mounting and centering the dog house to put the mounts in the correct vertical and horiz. plane. THAT'S the time consuming part. Hope this helps.

[butchp]

I move the wheel base from 114 to 114 3/4 now the power steering unit is in the way of the core support. I have cut the front of sub off at the tube bushing to mount the power steering. I have cut the inner fenders to clear the sub, This is where I found the problem I can send you photos of what I have. I have not tried to mount front cap yet, as I thought the inner fenders would give me the distance forward for the core support, then I thought I could mount fenders to get height of core support. Is this all wrong please tell me if there is a better way.

[dsraven]

yah, throw up some pics, maybe we can figure something out.

[butchp]

I am trying to post pictures from iphone

[butchp]

Look

[butchp]

I ski try to send from iphone

[butchp]

I hope yal can give me some suggestions

[dsraven]

if it was me, and the fender to wheel relationship is where you want it, then I would build a new tubular, or even some light angle iron , brace for the lower section of the rad support. the one that goes horizontal side to side and appears to be interfering with the steering box. make it clear the steering box with some room to spare. you could just modify the existing strut even.that would make it look more like a stock part. the after market rad support that I have is tubular I think, like a piece of electrical conduit.

then I would build out the front of the frame horns to accept a front bumper and then build a bracket out to accept the rad support mount. be careful what you use for mounts because too soft will make the body flex, where it isn't really supposed to, and you will be chasing cracks in the sheet metal. the rear of ther cab originally sat on hard rubber pucks, the front sat on metal with shims to level, and the rad support sat on another set of hard rubber pucks. the original ones in my truck looked like conveyor belting. you could easily make you own. the front clip sheet metal is only really held onto the cab at the top and bottom of the fender and the inner fenders just, again, mount up to the firewall with some hard rubber pucks and a flimsy metal bracket to the firewall.
what I have seen some guys do, in their build threads, is use a magnet at the front of the front fender body line and the rear of the rear fender body line, then connect the dots with string so they get the body lines to line up straight. I would set the cab and box down on the frame, attach the front clip loosely and then add shims as required to the front of the cab to get the cab and box lined up level, then see what you need under the rad support to get that to be level with the cab. remember to leave some room under the rad support mounts for shims as well.
just my opinion, no experience with the mounts, string line etc.
if you need the dimension for the frame, so you know how much lower the bumper mounts are than the rest of the frame, you can find it at
http://www.selectric.org/59truck/frame1.jpg
it is for a 59 but the only real difference for you would be the length out on front of the rad support and also the location of the rad support. the 58-59 trucks were longer out front. fenders are longer and the filler behind the bumper is longer.
good luck, snap a few pics as you go. maybe hold the phone upside down so the pics come through right side up, haha.

[butchp]

I have the 55/59 manual I took a lot of dim. from that manual. I am thank a of removing the core support lower bracket and move it up to clear the steering box and come from the top of frame up with an L bracket to attach the core support I will make it shy of the dim. Needed thanks for the help.

[butchp]

Shot to compare with prev post