My son and I are working on what was MY first car, and I am transitioning it to him. He wants to have the car have that "Gasser" look (I do too, but...). I want the look, but I don't want to cut up the car and change the suspension, brakes, and everything else to get there. I currently have a numbers-matching car, but it is far from perfect. (85K miles, with some rust on the rockers, floorboards, and a partially caved-in roof thanks to a tree.) I don't want to butcher the car because I have discovered it is a bit rare (I have only ever personally seen one other 59 2DHTP and it was a basket case.)
How can I raise the front to give it a MUCH higher profile, while maintaining the A-frames and some alignment adjustability? I can have new rear springs custom made to be re-arched, and overload leafs, etc. to get the rear up.
I have looked at replacing the stock worn-out springs in the front with the Olds rear springs, but that will only get me back to stock height. Any word from the old-timers on what was done way back when? i already have the spring spacers and other stuff in there, and I do NOT want those, as I view them as unsafe. I am open to having custom front springs made, but what rate, height, etc do I use? Will I be able to get it aligned?
What about changing spindles? There are some that do "drop spindles" but what about "raising spindles"? Are there particular cars that I can pull parts from that I can use to modify? Do I cut and weld a set of replacement spindles and brackets? Or is my only choice to remove the front and weld on leaf springs and a truck front axle?
We want really wide, low-profile rear tires without cutting the rear fenders. We want tall skinnies on the front. He liked the look of the 62 Champ grille, so that's what we installed.
Maybe after that, we need to get with Mr. Harbit to figure out how to tune the Studebaker engine for real HP!
I am looking for opinions, good and bad.
How can I raise the front to give it a MUCH higher profile, while maintaining the A-frames and some alignment adjustability? I can have new rear springs custom made to be re-arched, and overload leafs, etc. to get the rear up.
I have looked at replacing the stock worn-out springs in the front with the Olds rear springs, but that will only get me back to stock height. Any word from the old-timers on what was done way back when? i already have the spring spacers and other stuff in there, and I do NOT want those, as I view them as unsafe. I am open to having custom front springs made, but what rate, height, etc do I use? Will I be able to get it aligned?
What about changing spindles? There are some that do "drop spindles" but what about "raising spindles"? Are there particular cars that I can pull parts from that I can use to modify? Do I cut and weld a set of replacement spindles and brackets? Or is my only choice to remove the front and weld on leaf springs and a truck front axle?
We want really wide, low-profile rear tires without cutting the rear fenders. We want tall skinnies on the front. He liked the look of the 62 Champ grille, so that's what we installed.
Maybe after that, we need to get with Mr. Harbit to figure out how to tune the Studebaker engine for real HP!
I am looking for opinions, good and bad.
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