The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area The HiPo Shop help-ideas donar truck for 37

looking for newer steering,susp.,front ., brakes all around drums ok in rear disc preferred or easy swap down the road, prefer leafsprings in rear . rearend and gears ? at this time. thinking about moter : either a 383 or 350 . trans.:t5 does this vechicle unicorn exist ?

What size truck do you have now?
What is your intended use?
What fabrication skills do you have; if low skills, are you willing to learn or pay?


Ed

Unless you can fabricate the cross member /box the chassis I'd buy a complete kit for mounting a V8, OR just go ahead and do the "clip". You can get a front clip from Camaro or a few others that will have the mounts for the engine, disc brakes and probably the steering box with it. Most clips can be bought for around $200. That will give you a 5 lug pattern. For the rear a Camaro, Olds, Malibu and many others will give you a nice ratio like 2:73.
Unless your young, or love changing gears I'd find me a 700R4 (4L60E) which has a good low gear and overdrive.
(I've tortured mine many times and it has held up just fine.)

You can spend a pile of money doing the job "piece meal". Buying disc brake kits, cross member kits, steering stuff, and hordes of other items. Doing the clip will save you much money in the long run and even less head aches. You are wise to think this thru and as my daughter says.....do the math and think of the headaches. Keep us posted. What your looking for has been done many times. You may also want to check out the HIPO forum or ask "modification" questions there.

FWIW....back in 95-2000 building my 37 I got all the parts for a mustang II in a junk yard, fabricated the cross member stuff, used the small Mustang rotors. I used the rack and pinion, and M/C and booster, from the junk yard as cores for new ones. NOW I wish I had used the "clip" (got one standing at the end of my shop) and saved my self a lot of headaches, money and a lot of time. I also started out with a 350 tranny which was a mistake. I corrected that later with a 700R4. I'm running a "modified" 350 engine.
Hope this helps get you on the right path.


EDIT:.... I'm running my original rear springs with a 79/80 Malibu rear end. I have no problem with the way it rides or drives.

You could go all out and use a S10 complete chassis, don't know if would be easier or not. Have you ever driven a '37 truck? I say this because the cabs are really small and tight. Before diving in and spending money, I suggest you find one to ride in or drive and see if it's what you want.

I went with four corner leaf springs, disk brakes up front, '79 Firebird rear axle, 250 inline with T350 trans. There are lots of ways you can go on the cheap or spend tons of money.

After driving mine for 18 years now, I have learned a few things.

1) don't cut the firewall and move it back, you need the room + some.
2) don't add a hump in the floor board to clear the trans, you need the room
3) add A/C, its tight quarters, you need the cool air
4) don't chop the top, it's hard enough to see traffic lights with the way they are
5) buy a good radiator, move it forward and down as you build the truck, modern engines have a much lower water pump
6) gear it for 70 mph at a reasonable rpm,
7) add sway bars, tight corners and high center of gravity don't get along
8) look into better door latches

1) 3/4 ton 2) daily driver , drive cross country mood grabs me , hp for the fun of it 3) dusting tools and fab skills off , more than willing to learn . also realist sometimes it pays to pay a pro.

all good info food for thought . do you recall years for frt. clips and rear ends? really partial to a manual . thanks for the help

thought about s10 chassis I don't know feel like I'm cheating going to stay with old frame and box her out. ran around town and went fishing in rual minn. with my grandfather as a young boy back then seemed huge , now not so much! So its a labor of love and they are way cool. thanks for pointers and help.was just looking at 2" firewallbump in panel

A Camaro/Firebird front clip is too wide for a 46 but a Nova works fine. Many without advanced skills are opting for a pre-engineered to fit Mustang II unit. It's a toss up as to which one is the lower priced way to go. I like the Nova clip as it is designed for a V8, P/S, etc., but one installed wrong can be a complete disaster. Here is a 40, which has the same measurements as you 46 with a Nova clip. Ignore all the fancy bling and concentrate on the way the tires fit the fender openings.
[img]https://s14.postimg.org/bsqhuncgd/Stude_Justin_s_40_Cougar_Cat_004.jpg[/img]

The main thing about clips and replacement frames are the track widths, you can always lengthen or shorten, width is pretty tough. There is a late '40s Ford car a couple streets over the fellow is trying to sell from me. It's setting on a S10 and looks so bad, he can't hardly give it away. The track width is way to narrow and frame was about 8" to short. I have seen clown cars at the circus that looked better!

Personally i wouldn't do the S10 swap. you lose a lot of the bed for wheel wells. a rear end from 72 nova bolted right into mine. I agree with Joe H and his list.

I'm staying with orginal frame, restore body . update drive train , brakes ,steering add a/c and help out susp. have a truck. want a truck.just one that will haul butt when need be. is there a"newer " truck out there or vechicle to get me what I want/need take off newer bolt/weld on old? thankyou everybody for your help and help to come.

If you are going with factory style steering box, up grade to a 41-46. You will need to do a little custom work to the steering wheel shaft if you want the '37 horn and steering wheel. The box will bolt in as is, the shaft will need the '41 -'46 wheel on it. Internally, the gear box uses ball bearings, and a slow gear ratio, so they steer much easier at slower speed. The '37 box is gear to gear.
You can also adapt the '46 leaf springs up front for a softer ride.