Transmission crossmember choices for Camaro/Firebird front clip folks..........???

[NW Task Force]

I am installing my engine/transmission soon into my 57' (typical smallblock & TH350 auto). The front end is 77' Camaro IFS and the rest of the truck is stock "C" channel frame. I am not sure what transmission crossmember people are running to support the tail end of the transmission. I do have the original camaro tranny crossmember, however, it seems to be really shallow and does not hang down very far. I'm sure most people find that engine/transmission wants to naturally sit low in the engine compartment after installing a camaro/firebird IFS clip. Does anyone out there in the aftermarket world build a transmission crossmember that will bolt to the stock frame and still drop low enough for the grafted on subframe?

[Amorget]

Brothers trucks has an aftermarket transmission crossmember, I bought one to use with my build but haven't used it yet.

[NW Task Force]

Originally Posted by Amorget

Brothers trucks has an aftermarket transmission crossmember, I bought one to use with my build but haven't used it yet.

Any idea how much of a drop the crossmember has from Brothers?

[mr48chev]

Try setting it in place and using a length of channel, tubing or ? clamped to the bottom rails of the frame to locate it so you can figure out what you need to do for a crossmember. Once you have it located right you can decide if you want an aftermarket crossmember or if you can fab your own.

Chassis Engineering inc. has several of different depths that are priced pretty friendly.
http://www.chassisengineeringinc.com/page5.html

[NW Task Force]

Originally Posted by mr48chev

Try setting it in place and using a length of channel, tubing or ? clamped to the bottom rails of the frame to locate it so you can figure out what you need to do for a crossmember. Once you have it located right you can decide if you want an aftermarket crossmember or if you can fab your own.

Chassis Engineering inc. has several of different depths that are priced pretty friendly.
http://www.chassisengineeringinc.com/page5.html

Cool! Thanks!

[NW Task Force]

Ok guys........... I installed my engine & transmission a couple of days ago. I ran into a small snag/questionable thing. My under cab master cylinder and short-shaft TH350 transmission seem to be even in location. Does anyone make an aftermarket crossmember that will clear the master cylinder? Anyone fab their own on here and have pictures? I included a pic of what I am dealing with. Suggestions/ideas are much appreciated.

[Amorget]

In my internet browsing I've never seen one like that.. I think you'll need to make a custom one.

[agnes the dog]

You might try a salvage yard. I have seen S-10 manual transmission crossmembers that are offset. I don't have the exact years, but I think they were early 90's. Those are pretty plentiful these days in junk yards. Not sure if they will fit your need, but it may be worth a look to see.

[mknittle]

I made mine out of 1 1/2 .312 wall tube.

[Speedbumpauto]

One of the advantages of doing your own is you can make provisions for removing the trans(Murphy) without taking everything else apart. I used an overdrive unit but the actual mounting spot is close so I cut the rivits and used the stock mid crossmember moved forward about a foot as the basis for my trans crossmember. You can see from the pics how I made the bottom removable as well as how I used straps and a cherry picker to find the correct height for the crossmember. You might not want to go to as much trouble for a crossmember but it could give you an idea or two.

[Mac the Yankee]

Speedbumpauto,

Could you share some more pics of your clip? I'll be mating a '78 Z28 clip to my '56 over winter break and really like what you did!

Thanks, Bill

[Amorget]

Originally Posted by Mac the Yankee

Speedbumpauto,

Could you share some more pics of your clip? I'll be mating a '78 Z28 clip to my '56 over winter break and really like what you did!

Thanks, Bill

I'm not speedbumpauto, but here is a link to that swap:

http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/s...d.php?t=148978

[Speedbumpauto]

Here are a few more. You can see from the ones already here that I put the bottom of my clip on the inside of the lower frame rail were the Jalopy journal guy did his completely under the frame. I like the look of mine better but the ride ht. is pretty low. This truck won't be going to the dump on Saturdays. To do what I did, you have to split the lower clip about where the lap weld is then I butted the outside against the cab mount and completely boxed the inside after the inner clip was welded to the frame. Kind of hard to explain but maybe the finished pictures will help. It also shows the driver side bracket I welded in for the pedal mount and what it looked like with the frame done and the front suspension done.

[crossfire84]

dude, that is some serious horse power there, how about a little info?

[mr48chev]

That is a really nice clean looking chassis you have put together Speedbumpauto. It shows what a guy can come up with with just a bit of extra attention to detail and care.

[mr48chev]

Northwest rTask force I'm not real sure what will work without actually rolling under the truck and looking at what you have.

Is the booster ahead of, even with or behind the line straight across the frame under the trans mount? You might be able to make a mount that dropped under the master cylinder and cleared it by a half inch or so and then ran across and went up on the other rail.
Something like this.

My coffee mug made a rather large brake booster pattern.

[Speedbumpauto]

X2! Nice simple design and if you can't bend the metal, you could use two pieces of 1/4x3" angle or such with one side sliding along the inside of the lower frame rail and the angle hanging down to give you the drop you need and weld in a piece of 1x3 x .120 wall rectangular tubing for the crossmember section. Mark your mount holes and drill through the tubing with a 1/4" drill bit then flip it over to the bottom side and come back through the bottom with a 1" or so hole saw for relief to get a socket through to the bolts. A little grinding and some paint and it would look pretty custom...IMO. Just thinking....

[NW Task Force]

Originally Posted by mr48chev

Northwest rTask force I'm not real sure what will work without actually rolling under the truck and looking at what you have.

Is the booster ahead of, even with or behind the line straight across the frame under the trans mount? You might be able to make a mount that dropped under the master cylinder and cleared it by a half inch or so and then ran across and went up on the other rail.
Something like this.

My coffee mug made a rather large brake booster pattern.

Wow! That is an awesome drawing. Thanks for the visual aid. Yeah, I will snap some more pics tonight from different point of views under the truck. I am crossing my fingers that some kind of round tube (generic) crossmember will work out of a classic truck restoration catalog. I see many company's selling a $45-$55 transmission crossmember that fits the inner frame (universal for classic trucks).

[NW Task Force]

Ok folks,

I crawled under the truck tonight and snapped some photos of the side profile and also from directly below, looking up. It looks like the master cylinder does stick out past the transmission tail shaft in comparison. Keep in mind, the transmission is being supported by my ratchet strap and no doubt will need to come down quite a bit to make the engine intake/carb level for final settings. Maybe I am making this out to be more of a pain than really what it is. I'm thinking by the time I lower the tail shaft on the transmission to level the engine properly, the typical crossmembers offered aftermarket will fit without master cylinder clearance issues. I'd love to see some examples of the ones offered by Brother's, Classic Parts, etc, etc. What do you all think based on my pictures?

[Mac the Yankee]

Speedbumpauto,

Thanks for the pics (and sorry for the thread theft)!... just how low IS your truck?

[Speedbumpauto]

I hope to have the bumpers,etc. back from the chrome shop this week and then I'll roll it out and try and get a shot that does it justice. I happen to love it. This is the only shot I have now to show the stance. The lowest part of the front fender/cab is about 6" off the ground at ride ht.

[mr48chev]

I think you can make a crossmember that will just drop under the master cylinder and go across similar to the one I drew.

I'd bolt the mount to the bracket piece on the back of the trans and level the engine and then see what I could come up with.

The easy lazy way would be to bolt a piece of rectangular or square tubing to the bottom of the frame rails with a spacer if needed but that might be rather cheezy looking compared to the rest of the chassis. .

[Brad54]

Originally Posted by Speedbumpauto

I hope to have the bumpers,etc. back from the chrome shop this week and then I'll roll it out and try and get a shot that does it justice. I happen to love it. This is the only shot I have now to show the stance. The lowest part of the front fender/cab is about 6" off the ground at ride ht.

I'm a friend of Mac's, and we're going to be clipping his '56 next week.
Do you have any issues with tire scrub against the wheel opening in the front fender?

to lower the rear, did you have to raise the frame, C-notch, or is there enough room between the top of the leaf spring and the frame?

If you have any more pics of installing the front clip, I'd appreciate seeing them!

-Brad

[Speedbumpauto]

To get as low as mine, a C notch is mandatory. I'm using coil overs and 4 link but my first vision of this truck I used spring under+lowering blocks to get the same height. If you just do the spring under, the notch isn't needed, IMO. Wheel scrub, YES! In my first vision, I had to use only 6" wheels with high neg offset like for late 80's Camaro to get it to work. When I went crazy I threw money at it and used Heidt's 1" narrow tubular control arms and coil overs which allow me to use a more positive offset wheel that is 7" for the look I want. Still have to be conservative on tire size(215x60x17) and might have to trim the inner lip a little(remains to be determined in the next few days) but it's the look I wanted. Good luck. Also, I went from film to digital a couple of years ago and somehow lost the film I took of the original clip install. What you see is what I have left.