"You will want some flex in the frame, so boxing the whole length would not be good. I added some plate to my '37 where the motor mounts were welded in and at the back where the extra shock absorber crossmember was added."
Joe H,
This is a subject I have been interested since I was a teenager reading about your dad drag racing Pontiacs. Over the decades Iv'e read numerous articles about "Boxing The Rails" to add rigidity by converting a channel section frame to rectangular tubing. If that conversion is made on the frame from end to end it seems that there would be no abrupt changes in strength along the frame to concentrate stress and cause failure. Can you please explain why that is not so.
I have '32 Ford roadster street rod that has a fully boxed frame from one of the big street rod component suppliers. Although it's just a weekend toy it does have over 22,000 miles on it and the frame is fine. On of my neighbors had a very similar roadster with the frame boxed only in the engine/trans area and it developed a nasty crack near one of the engine mounts that required some really unsightly repair work.
Looking at the Speedway Motors catalog it looks like their street rod frames are rectangular tubing.
Last edited by yar; 01/28/2018 5:58 PM.
