A-Body Frame Rail Connector

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rapidtransitric said:
plum demon nice design do you sell those or are they just one off's
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Rapidtransitric thank you, I made this frame connector for my demon in a single copy.
It was a project worth several hours, especially for polishing below the vehicle once instaled.:snakeman:
 

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while they may look clean installed think about it you are using a relatively weak floor as your top portion of your box, so you have a thicker U then a weak floor.......... I would use a nice thick wall box and make them yourself. Thought they are a lot better then nothing.
 
There are early abody surfaces on a site, like 6e-69 and a different set 70-76. Both 169 a set.
 
res1vw21 said:
while they may look clean installed think about it you are using a relatively weak floor as your top portion of your box, so you have a thicker U then a weak floor.......... I would use a nice thick wall box and make them yourself. Thought they are a lot better then nothing.
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My opinion is they are stronger than square tubing. No matter how strong the tubing is, bottom line is all the stress is being transmitted where it is welded to the car.

The USCartool ones are welded all around its perimeter, transmitting stress through a broader area so they wouldn't need to be as strong as ones just welded at the front and the back.

As far as the thin metal of the floor being used to box it in, I think that is very strong, because the floors tensile strength would have to fail (rip away from where the floor is spot welded to the top of the rockers). If it's strong enough for the rest of the frame just being spot welded to the body, then it would be even stronger fully welded.
 
res1vw21 said:
while they may look clean installed think about it you are using a relatively weak floor as your top portion of your box, so you have a thicker U then a weak floor.......... I would use a nice thick wall box and make them yourself. Thought they are a lot better then nothing.
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Hi!
I hope I understand your question, I welded some brackets on the floor before closing the boxes as the photo with stainless steel plates about 1 / 16 thick.
 

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i still have negitive thoughts about welding these in on a rotiserie , ive heard when on them the body might tend to sag or twik a little , i was told to lower down to the ground and install the springsand stands in back and jack stands in front under frame and let sit a week or so to let it respring itself for a while, then tach weld the connectors and then raise and finish weld , can anybody add some view point to this , the latter does sound logical ? thanks dartman 440
 
dartman 440 said:
i still have negitive thoughts about welding these in on a rotiserie , ive heard when on them the body might tend to sag or twik a little , i was told to lower down to the ground and install the springsand stands in back and jack stands in front under frame and let sit a week or so to let it respring itself for a while, then tach weld the connectors and then raise and finish weld , can anybody add some view point to this , the latter does sound logical ? thanks dartman 440
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Dartman exactly 440, I have not used the technique to support the spring back, but I lifted the vehicle has her 4 points and leveled for 2 weeks before welding on the body8)

The difference in stability and solidity of the body is amazing
 
I have installed XV Motorsports frame connectors on my 70 GTX B Body and they fit like a glove to every contour on the floor pan. I had very little final grinding to make them fit perfect. i tacked them on with the car leveled on 4 adjustable jack stands then i raised the rotisserie and finished the welding in a comfortable manner.
At the same time, a set of US Car Tool frame connectors were being installed on a 69 Dart in the same shop I am working in. That install was much more of a pain. Lots of grinding and HUGE spaces where the connector was not going to meet the floor by a long shot. These spaces were probably engineered into the piece for brake/fuel lines and such but they sure seemed like overkill to me, besides, they then left HUGE gaps for dirt and debris to get in there and cause rot!
For my $$ and time I would use the XV parts again. I am sure the end result....stiffening....is the same with either product.
Here is alink to my build over on bbodies only. If you scroll through the pages you will see several pics of the frame connector install.
http://www.forbbodiesonly.com/moparforum/showthread.php?t=1121
 
I just spend $50 on two lengths of 1/8" 2x3" mild steel tubing and weld them through the floor and into the subframes. No gaps and much better torsional rigidity than subframe connectors that don't weld to the floor.

I just bought the tubing to do my Valiant on Thursday, but I did this to my 1970 Dodge Challenger couple years ago.

Subframe Connector Install on 1970 Dodge Challenger/
 
I like the uscartools think they should be plenty strong. Got a set I need to put on my Dart.


On my Duster drag car I did the 2X3 through the floor. imo it is the strongest way to do it. Think uscartools are a close second though.
 

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Jack the car up and take the tires off, put the jack stands below the doors in the center of the car, not behind the door, or in front, that causes all of the sag in the car to go away, with the added in frame rails the car should sit in there straight, if the fenders sag then your added frame rails dont work out to well.
 
keith9291 said:
Here are some pics of the US Car tool frame connectors on my Dart. They were just installed a week ago or so.

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Are they already notched for the fuel lines. I got mine but have not taken out of the box yet? also brake line on the drivers side?
 
I just started installing USCT connectors on my '67 Valiant. The fit is no where near what I was expecting. After all the fitting is done I still have to weld them in overhead. With the 2X3 tubing you can at least do most of the welding from the top.I have my car sitting on the tires on some tall stands. I have done them this way before with no issues on the doors or any other panels. Good luck.
 
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