Front fender wheel wells

[wolfsden]

i just lowered my 1963 C-10 with airbags and Drop spindles in the front and and airbags and a C notch in the rear. the front tires are sitting on the inside tops of the front wheel wheels. Can i just remove the front wheel wells and ride it with no wheel wells or is there a bolt on replacement for lowered trucks?

[PGSigns]

Slosh tubs makes a set for the lowered truck and Porter built makes the hood hinges you would need. How much room do you have at ride height?
Jimmy

[jweb]

Self Made has some steel inners but their not cheap. You would also need the hinges from Porterbuilt that PGSigns mentioned

http://www.selfmadefab.com/product/6...ront-whee-tubs

[wolfsden]

Originally Posted by PGSigns

Slosh tubs makes a set for the lowered truck and Porter built makes the hood hinges you would need. How much room do you have at ride height?
Jimmy

Aired out the tops of my tires are just resting on the front wheel wheels.
I see a lot of trucks that just remove the front wheel wells all together.
Are the wheel wells supporting anything like the fenders or can they just be removed with any issues?
My wheels are not going to come up that high into the hood so I don't need any hood hinges. I don't have a drop member in the front just bags and drop spindles, as she sits in the picture I can still turn my wheels without the tires hitting the fenders but the tops of the tires are resting and rubbing on the wheel wells.
I would guess if my wheel wells were deleted my tires may protrude maybe 1 inch into the hood.

[chevy_mike]

The front inner wheel wells hold the hood hinges on. If you remove them, you lose the hinges too. The wells also help the structure of the fender. Unlike '67-72 fenders, which have a "boxed" upper lip, the 60-66 fender area above the tire is really thin and not much holds them in place. Easy to bend and I would guess shake when driving.

[1hihum]

I've seen people cut the stock inners and then weld in raised patches. For the little bit you're looking for it might be worth while (and money). Once you delete the stock inners you're gonna need to replace the hood hinges. Porter built or switch suspension (basically the same style are your best options. Both hinges run about $425 shipped. Inner fender replacements will range from about $650 or so for slosh tubz (fiberglass) to about $1200 for Delmospeed's. I need more room, so I went with delmospeed inners and porter built hinges. I'm just starting the install of the hinges now, but I'm in a holding pattern because they sent me some 67-72 hinges by mistake. ��

[wolfsden]

Originally Posted by 1hihum

I've seen people cut the stock inners and then weld in raised patches. For the little bit you're looking for it might be worth while (and money). Once you delete the stock inners you're gonna need to replace the hood hinges. Porter built or switch suspension (basically the same style are your best options. Both hinges run about $425 shipped. Inner fender replacements will range from about $650 or so for slosh tubz (fiberglass) to about $1200 for Delmospeed's. I need more room, so I went with delmospeed inners and porter built hinges. I'm just starting the install of the hinges now, but I'm in a holding pattern because they sent me some 67-72 hinges by mistake. ��

Thanks for the info. That's what I was hoping to do was just be able to get my stock in nets modified a bit.

[statenine]

I ended up buying the switch suspension hood hinges as I am on a budget with my build and could not afford the PB ones. I have not installed them yet but they seem quality made and their customer service was great (worked with Seth over there). For $250 I jumped on em!

http://switchsuspension.com/gm-c-10-...d-hood-hinges/

[1hihum]

I looked at them too. I went with PB because I didn't see an option for the gas struts with switch. The PB's are pretty close in price for the no strut set. I hadn't seen the newer design from them either though. I like them!

[wolfsden]

Originally Posted by statenine

I ended up buying the switch suspension hood hinges as I am on a budget with my build and could not afford the PB ones. I have not installed them yet but they seem quality made and their customer service was great (worked with Seth over there). For $250 I jumped on em!

http://switchsuspension.com/gm-c-10-...d-hood-hinges/

How do they get installed? Can you bolt them in or is there any welding involved? My truck is already painted.

[Pinchecharlie]

I did this recently on a 49 ford and you have so many things to fabricate when you lay frame. You only have a couple of choices really. Buy what someone else has figured out or get a cut off wheel and welder and 'create' what you need. I had to recess the firewall for tires and completely re fabricate the inner fenders and everything that they came in contact with including braces and core support. It went on and on and on. If it was me and the budget wouldn't allow for custom inner fenders, I would measure the areas that are being contacted by the tire and I would build a small box and cut and weld it on top of the inner fenders. You could do that with out removing the inner and if you went slow it wouldn't get hot enough to cook your outer fenders paint. It wont look as good but it will work. You could blend it in where it wouldnt look bad but unless you start from scratch it will look like an adittion not stock. I made a rule for my car that if I lost a line or bag I could still have a bit of steering and clearance with a bump stop to get the car off the road. Pretty simple really just have to be ambitious and go for it. A friendly sheet metal shop will make you some pans to your specs for a reasonable price and then it's only a matter of cutting it out and welding it in . Only reason iam posting is because I did about the most extreme example of a airbaged car and feel your pain and want you to know that there is a way with out buying expensive parts. That said , sometimes expensive parts are really awsome! This car is channelled 1.5 , the front clip is scratch fabricated, the floor is all new fabricated metal, the inner fendets , core support and all the bracing is fabricated and the list goes on forever. I had six months in the chassis I bet and its by no means show quality. Air bags are a can of worms but look so awsome! Hope this helps.

[wolfsden]

Originally Posted by Pinchecharlie

I did this recently on a 49 ford and you have so many things to fabricate when you lay frame. You only have a couple of choices really. Buy what someone else has figured out or get a cut off wheel and welder and 'create' what you need. I had to recess the firewall for tires and completely re fabricate the inner fenders and everything that they came in contact with including braces and core support. It went on and on and on. If it was me and the budget wouldn't allow for custom inner fenders, I would measure the areas that are being contacted by the tire and I would build a small box and cut and weld it on top of the inner fenders. You could do that with out removing the inner and if you went slow it wouldn't get hot enough to cook your outer fenders paint. It wont look as good but it will work. You could blend it in where it wouldnt look bad but unless you start from scratch it will look like an adittion not stock. I made a rule for my car that if I lost a line or bag I could still have a bit of steering and clearance with a bump stop to get the car off the road. Pretty simple really just have to be ambitious and go for it. A friendly sheet metal shop will make you some pans to your specs for a reasonable price and then it's only a matter of cutting it out and welding it in . Only reason iam posting is because I did about the most extreme example of a airbaged car and feel your pain and want you to know that there is a way with out buying expensive parts. That said , sometimes expensive parts are really awsome! This car is channelled 1.5 , the front clip is scratch fabricated, the floor is all new fabricated metal, the inner fendets , core support and all the bracing is fabricated and the list goes on forever. I had six months in the chassis I bet and its by no means show quality. Air bags are a can of worms but look so awsome! Hope this helps.

Thanks for the advise. Your ride looks great!

[statenine]

Originally Posted by wolfsden

How do they get installed? Can you bolt them in or is there any welding involved? My truck is already painted.

For the most part they just bolt in (after some cutting to your cowl area). The only part requiring welding is the mounts to the underside of the hood. My truck is also already painted, but I was told that it will not affect the painted surface when welding the brackets under the hood, as the surface you are welding too is spaced away from the part that is painted. I have talked to guys that have done it with no issues. I was supposed to install mine over the weekend, but some stuff came up so hopefully I can get to it soon. I will try to post pics during the install

[wolfsden]

Originally Posted by statenine

For the most part they just bolt in (after some cutting to your cowl area). The only part requiring welding is the mounts to the underside of the hood. My truck is also already painted, but I was told that it will not affect the painted surface when welding the brackets under the hood, as the surface you are welding too is spaced away from the part that is painted. I have talked to guys that have done it with no issues. I was supposed to install mine over the weekend, but some stuff came up so hopefully I can get to it soon. I will try to post pics during the install

Great, thanks for the info