55.2-59 Help With Front Fender Tire Rub

[SDRRACING]

What did you all do for front tire rub on the fender when turning. The tires and wheels I have on are Allied 15x7 chrome smoothies with BFG 215/75R15. I have cut out the flange to the crease but not sure if I should cut out more. I got some new shocks and heavier springs and torsion bar coming from Global West Suspension who I bought the control arms from. I currently have Aldan shocks with 450 lb springs. Kicking my butt I didn't get the whole package from Global West. I want to keep the low stance. In the old days we got out our hammer and started beating the fender lip up. I want to avoid that so just curious what you low riders are doing. Are you cutting out the flange and welding in rod for stiffening so if the tire hits it's not cutting the tire.

[mr48chev]

Simple get wheels with less negative offset. The deep reverse wheels on a super low truck are your problem not shocks, springs or anything else. As great as they look the deep reverse wheels put the tires out too far on a truck that low and I would be running into the same problem with the same size tire on my 48 but I am going to run pretty much 0 offset wheels with hubcaps.

[SDRRACING]

The rims are 0 offset with 4 inch backspace. I figured I would be alright with them but not so much. I looked at Cragers smoothie and they offer a positive 3 offset. Should've got them. I'm changing the shocks and springs to give me more ride height. The 450 lb spring is just too light. This just really sucks. I finally got the truck to a point where I can drive it a bit before summer is over and I blow it all apart again. Thanks Mr48

[dsraven]

seems like the wheels are too far towards the outside so, shorter control arms (you mentioned control arms so gotta figure it has IFS) or different wheels or modify the fenders i guess. otherwise raise the truck. with different wheels it would look more like a front wheel drive wheel, so flatter on the outside part you see. maybe not what you're after. the other thing would be to cut the flange off, fab up a spacer to allow the flange to be welded back onto the fender, but further out. this will change the look of the truck. you mentioned the inner part of the flange was cut off already so if you go for the fender cutting idea you may wanna weld that back on to stiffen the wheel opening some. back in the day I used to flare fenders by shaping emt tubing to the desired contour, usually around the tire for that car, then tack it in place at each end as the "new" wheel opening, then fab up the fender extension from the original fender over to the new emt piece. when done I would cut off the original fender that was inside and not wanted. then finish the underside as desired. emt tubing meant even if the wheel did contact the new edge it was less prone to ripping something up or causing damage cuz it is rounded

[dsraven]

what are you running for IFS, got a pic or an ad with pics from the company?

[mr48chev]

Originally Posted by dsraven

what are you running for IFS, got a pic or an ad with pics from the company?

Inquiring minds want to know but I am assuming second gen Camaro/Firebird.

One of my best friends in Granger Wa subframed about 30 TF trucks for guys all around the state.

[dsraven]

https://www.wheel-size.com/calc/?whe...cl=50mm&sr=0mm
this may help you
you cant change the wheel mounting surface or the location of the fender lip, without a bunch of work, so maybe using the chart will help you figure out a wheel and tire set up that will work

[SDRRACING]

Originally Posted by dsraven

what are you running for IFS, got a pic or an ad with pics from the company?

The truck had a 70 Chevelle front clip when I bought it. I took out the stock control arms and installed Global West Suspensions extended travel control arms. They are the stock cheveille spindles. I couldn't raise the truck anymore with the 450 lb springs so I am having them send me 550 lb ones. They are just too soft. Hoping by raising it up an inch or so will cure my problem. It is just when I make a sharp turn. I will get some pictures tomorrow. Thanks you guys.

I would be curious if your friend Mr48 did the front clip. It was nicely done.

here is the web site for the control arms I got.
https://www.globalwest.net/product/1...-part-cta-742/

https://www.globalwest.net/product/1...lower-a-arm-c/

[SDRRACING]

Originally Posted by dsraven

https://www.wheel-size.com/calc/?whe...cl=50mm&sr=0mm
this may help you
you cant change the wheel mounting surface or the location of the fender lip, without a bunch of work, so maybe using the chart will help you figure out a wheel and tire set up that will work

That is a great chart. I'm going to save that. Thanks

[dsraven]

Extended travel control arms, meaning longer control arms, correct? That puts the wheel mounting surface closer to the fender, correct?
What about going back to the stock chevelle control arms and giving that a try?

[SDRRACING]

Originally Posted by dsraven

Extended travel control arms, meaning longer control arms, correct? That puts the wheel mounting surface closer to the fender, correct?
What about going back to the stock chevelle control arms and giving that a try?

Here's a good video that can explain it much better than me. It gives you a lowered stance without using drop spindles and changing the geometry.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cZSaDXbHqRs

[SDRRACING]

There is another thing I need to look at is that I replaced the fenders and hood (to a 57 hood) and I might need to shift the front to the right a bit. I got more tire clearance on the drivers side. But I still need to raise the front more. It is too low right now for clearing speed bumps etc.

[dsraven]

ok, got it. I was thinking you had LONGER control arms, which would put the wheels further outward.
so, the question is, where are your tires rubbing in the wheel opening. if you could place a piece of tape at the start and stop lines on the fender (fore to aft marks where the tires are contacting the fender) that may help us come up with a solution thats not gonna break the bank. has the truck had a wheel alignment, just so you know the camber is correct?
I find it's best to jack up and block the truck, then remove the coil overs. this allows you to easily put the suspension through a complete cycle of full droop to full jounce. put the steering straight ahead and do a full cycle so you know the full travel. maybe take a dimension from floor to wheel hub center or something. then let the suspension droop and turn the wheels all the way one direction as far as the steering stops and lock it there. use a bungee cord or whatever on the steering wheel to keep it from moving. then move the suspension through a bottom to top travel until the tires hit to see where, in your suspension travel, the tire is contacting. do it both ways, so full left, check, then full right, check. do another dimension check from floor to hub at the point of tire contact. I know this may be skewed slightly due to steering axis inclination, but you get the idea. you will find out if the truck were to go over a large bump with the steering turned, enough to bottom the suspension, would the tires just be rubbing a little or would they rip the fender off-cut the tire to the point of puncture-etc. that way you also know how much susension travel you are missing out on due to tire contact. also, at full jounce,with the wheels turned till they don't contact the fender, you can lock the steering at that position and then let the suspension down. then turn the wheels all the way to the steering stops in that direction. count the amount of steering wheel turns you take to get to full turning lock. then you know how much steering you are missing out on. if the tires only contact close to the end of the turning ability then you have to make the choice of whether or not you want to adjust the steering locks to stop the tires from contacting or not. I'm not sure how much steering would be taken out if you adjusted the steering stops.
in other words, if , at full droop, you have, say, 2 turns of the wheel from center till the steering stop contacts, but at full jounce the tires contact at 1 3/4 turns, then you are missing out on the last 1/4 turn of steering. then you gotta decide if that last 1/4 turn is something you can't live without.
dunno if that was helpfull or not but thought I would put it out there for you to think about.

[dsraven]

if doing the body shift from side to side you should check out a youtube video from a guy calling himself "old guy fixing stuff". he has a 4 eyed task force that he is putting together and he talks about body gaps and hood to firewall differences, using the forward driver's side cab mount as a pivot to turn the cab in order to get the fender to door and hood to cowl gaps to fit correctly

[dsraven]

sorry, it was a 55, not a 4 eyed version.
old man fixing stuff
55 chevy truck build, going over the body alignment of cab to door to fender to hood

[SDRRACING]

Originally Posted by dsraven

ok, got it. I was thinking you had LONGER control arms, which would put the wheels further outward.
so, the question is, where are your tires rubbing in the wheel opening. if you could place a piece of tape at the start and stop lines on the fender (fore to aft marks where the tires are contacting the fender) that may help us come up with a solution thats not gonna break the bank. has the truck had a wheel alignment, just so you know the camber is correct?
I find it's best to jack up and block the truck, then remove the coil overs. this allows you to easily put the suspension through a complete cycle of full droop to full jounce. put the steering straight ahead and do a full cycle so you know the full travel. maybe take a dimension from floor to wheel hub center or something. then let the suspension droop and turn the wheels all the way one direction as far as the steering stops and lock it there. use a bungee cord or whatever on the steering wheel to keep it from moving. then move the suspension through a bottom to top travel until the tires hit to see where, in your suspension travel, the tire is contacting. do it both ways, so full left, check, then full right, check. do another dimension check from floor to hub at the point of tire contact. I know this may be skewed slightly due to steering axis inclination, but you get the idea. you will find out if the truck were to go over a large bump with the steering turned, enough to bottom the suspension, would the tires just be rubbing a little or would they rip the fender off-cut the tire to the point of puncture-etc. that way you also know how much susension travel you are missing out on due to tire contact. also, at full jounce,with the wheels turned till they don't contact the fender, you can lock the steering at that position and then let the suspension down. then turn the wheels all the way to the steering stops in that direction. count the amount of steering wheel turns you take to get to full turning lock. then you know how much steering you are missing out on. if the tires only contact close to the end of the turning ability then you have to make the choice of whether or not you want to adjust the steering locks to stop the tires from contacting or not. I'm not sure how much steering would be taken out if you adjusted the steering stops.
in other words, if , at full droop, you have, say, 2 turns of the wheel from center till the steering stop contacts, but at full jounce the tires contact at 1 3/4 turns, then you are missing out on the last 1/4 turn of steering. then you gotta decide if that last 1/4 turn is something you can't live without.
dunno if that was helpfull or not but thought I would put it out there for you to think about.

Dsraven. Here are a couple of pictures. The truck has not been aligned yet after changing out the front control arms but I need to raise this thing up. You can see the fender on the tires at full turn left and right. I have watched the old fixing stuff YouTube videos and they are very good and helped me out a lot. I haven't messed with the cab pivot yet but might have to.

Mr48chev. The longer shocks are needed for the extended travel lower control arm so the hock doesn't bottom out at full extension before the upper control arm hits its stop. Like I said I should have gotten the shocks from them when I purchased the control arms. Live and learn. Expensive mistake. Right now I'm hitting the stop in the shock which is not good.

Hopefully I will get the shocks, springs and torsion bar soon. I want to drive this thing a bit before the weather turns bad and I blow it all back apart for paint. Thanks you guys.

[jweb]

1: Roll the fender lip https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2DDtm-14jx0

2: Add a sway bar

My truck is a 51 but I had similar issues. I rolled the lip on my front fenders to stop any rubbing. Easy to do when you're not worried about paint.

I also had rubbing in the rear on the bed sides. I added a sway bar which helps body roll and eliminates the rubbing problem.

[SDRRACING]

Originally Posted by jweb

1: Roll the fender lip https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2DDtm-14jx0

2: Add a sway bar

My truck is a 51 but I had similar issues. I rolled the lip on my front fenders to stop any rubbing. Easy to do when you're not worried about paint.

I also had rubbing in the rear on the bed sides. I added a sway bar which helps body roll and eliminates the rubbing problem.

Thanks jweb and great looking 51. Got the stance I like with the tires tucked up in the fender well. Did you use that tool for rolling your fender lips. Sure beats beating them with a hammer like we did when we were kids in high school. I got a 1 1/4 inch sway bar coming from Global West Suspension to replace the stock chevelle one with. Thanks

[dsraven]

roll the fender and add a sway bar and that will help. if it were mine I would do the suspension travel test, like mentioned previously, and modify what you need to in order to not have tire rub anywhere in your susp travel while turning.if that means simply adjusting the turning stop s a little, then thats great. if the tires rub and your steering is only part way through it's cycle, then you may have to swap in a different set of wheels. possibly you could find a set of loaners to test a wheel with less outward offset. you will wanna get it corrected before doing paint. paint is not a cheap thing to do so no use setting yourself up for problems. also, check into some research on how IFS works with uneven control arm lengths because the suspension should be set up correctly and alignment done before doing bodywork or swapping wheels etc. with uneven control arms the camber changes through the suspension travel so it becomes more important to have them set up correctly at ride height so the camber changes in your favor as the susp moves toward full jounce

[SDRRACING]

Originally Posted by dsraven

roll the fender and add a sway bar and that will help. if it were mine I would do the suspension travel test, like mentioned previously, and modify what you need to in order to not have tire rub anywhere in your susp travel while turning.if that means simply adjusting the turning stop s a little, then thats great. if the tires rub and your steering is only part way through it's cycle, then you may have to swap in a different set of wheels. possibly you could find a set of loaners to test a wheel with less outward offset. you will wanna get it corrected before doing paint. paint is not a cheap thing to do so no use setting yourself up for problems. also, check into some research on how IFS works with uneven control arm lengths because the suspension should be set up correctly and alignment done before doing bodywork or swapping wheels etc. with uneven control arms the camber changes through the suspension travel so it becomes more important to have them set up correctly at ride height so the camber changes in your favor as the susp moves toward full jounce

Thanks Raven. I got the fender lip roller on order that jweb recommended. Looks like a great tool and has lots of positive reviews. Problem is I,m not going to see it until October. ARGH. This is killing me. When I get the lip roller I'm going to do everything you mentioned on travel check without the shocks and springs in. And after I get this thing to where I can drive it and get it aligned I'm going to do it again to make sure no tire rub at full range of travel and turning.
Thanks you guys.

[SDRRACING]

Yahoo. Fender rub fixed. Thanks jweb for the tip on the Eastwood fender roller tool. That thing worked great. For you builders I highly recommend you adding this to your tools. When you get it figured out it works great.
I installed the correct length shocks for the Global West extended travel control arms plus I installed a 550 lb spring. The 450 lb was just too soft. Now I got to get this to a good alignment shop near me and than install the sway bar from Global West. Thanks you guys for the help. Much appreciated.

https://www.eastwood.com/ew-fender-r...8aAoR7EALw_wcB