Notching front crossmember?

[SCOTI]

Turner originally stated that they were putting a brace for the upper control arm & then deemed it unecessary. I would have to research that to be positive. IMO a brace would be cheap insurance. I will be doing the full slice all the way across on an extra crossmember for practice(I want to make sure I'm getting the correct cut measurements & weld penetrations), then slice & dice on the real thing.

[70 Jimmy]

Couple of comments, just to keep the conversation going and to clarify. As with the other experienced members comments, read them thoughly and ASK questions. There is no reason, anyone can't do this.

On the notch I did, I did not use a plasma cutter. I used a cut-off wheel and several disks but the total job of cutting and welding took me a short morning. Much of that was figuring how I was going to do it.

As far as the brace for the upper a arm. As you can see in the pictures, I deemed it necessary. To make it strong and easy, I butt welded the plate to the frame and welded gussetts to brace it. I decide then to box this in but I needed nuts on the back of the plate so I welded them on first (after drilling the holes of course). Then I boxed that in, leaving room for my motor mounts.

[bill_ont_canada]

If you really want to drop it without probs, have someone "z" your front clip. that you maintain ride, steering, etc...

Do you have pics of this or can you explain please!!!

[crazy longhorn]

"Z" ing the frame involves cutting the rails off ahead of the firewall, & droppping the back half down ,then welding & boxing for strenght. As with any mod, come several more mods to get things into order. The front horns will need to be cut off the frame & dropped, & the eng/ trans will sit higher in relation to the body. this will no doubt require tin work on the floorpan for clearance. IMHO, i would rather do a body drop to gain clearance for the suspension. By far , the dropped crossmember is one of the slickest ways i have seen to lower , keep pcs off the pavement, & keep the front end within specs.......crazy longhorn

[70 SUB]

Have any of you guys taken the front cross member off a 73 and newer truck and put it under a 67-72 truck for the disc brakes and suspension? Is it possible? Are there any mods that need to be done?

[SCOTI]

It bolts right in w/the exception of a couple of bolt holes that need to be elongated.

For anyone that wants to see about what's involved in 'Z'ing your frame, check out the latest edition of ChevyHiPerformance mag. Scott Sullivans latest project 62 Bubbletop goes under the knife. If you've never seen a Sullivan ride, they are incredibly freaking low ALL THE TIME. No bags. No hydraulics.

[Brad]

70sub, yes this is a common mod. Do a search on it and you'll find lots of articles. Also check the FAQ section too.

[MOUSE]

I've talked to both Bill & Steven at Turner Ent. To answer a couple of the above questions, they sell a motor mount that eliminates the pan/xmember clearence. The only notching that needs to be done is to the upper drvrs. side a-arm to clear the steering shaft.
You only need a small 1 1/4" half circle cut out then weld up the notch with a plate curved to match the half circle.

[bill_ont_canada]

Originally posted by MOUSE
The only notching that needs to be done is to the upper drvrs. side a-arm to clear the steering shaft.
You only need a small 1 1/4" half circle cut out then weld up the notch with a plate curved to match the half circle.

Are there any pics available that you know of.???
Or how about Capt Kaos ???? or Crazy Longhorne???

Thanx for any replies.

[crazy longhorn]

Bill, I cant help with pics, as the notched crossmember is something I have only looked into. I could see the steering shaft /top arm clearance issues that MOUSE was refering to tho. I have a 3" drop spring in my longhorn, & the clearance is close between the shaft & upper a arm......another 1 1/4-1 1/2" , & it would need a notch to clear. I think you will find a page in the back of Street Truckin, with adds for Turner Enterprises. The pics are small, but you get an idea of what they have for the 67-72......crazyL

[jay-dawg]

thanks guys for bringing this thread back up. I sent the letter a couple of months ago with no replies. Anybody else have any luck getting a catalog?

jay

[70 Jimmy]

Mouse, on the clearance issue with the a arm, are you talking about Zing the frame? There is no such clearance issue with my crossmember notch...yet. I still don't have my motor in and you've got me thinkin'

[crazy longhorn]

70 Jimmy, you havehad me thinkin on that dropped crossmember since I saw your picks a while back. I havent started cutting yet, so this is just my thoughts......i dont think you will have clearance issues running a stock lenght spring/stock lower arm. Any drop done on a spring or dropped arm moves the top arm closer to the steering shaft, & I think that is something I will need to watch on mine with a 3" drop spring. A drop spindle will leave the a arms in thesame location as far as clearance on the steering shaft. Good luck......crazyL

[Slammed67]

Hey guys, I'm getting ready to notch my cross member. I'll probably start on it next weekend. Regarding the steering interference, a guy told me that you can use a van steering box. It has a longer shaft and I believe is mounted at more of an angle. Then he made up a custom shaft to connect the column to the box. It consisted of a length of "double D" steering shaft and two u-joints to make up for the different angles. I'm gonna go ahead and notch mine and then see what needs to be done with the steering issue. I'll post some pics of my progress.

[paintpyro]

They don't have a catalog yet

Turner Enterprises