installing front clip

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tooslow

tooslow

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A guy has a 67 cuda convertable he cut the front end off of at the frame rails
He cut the rails right at the fire wall....yep ..I dnt know???? He got a SAWZALL and a case a PBR for Christmas I guess

I LOVE THIS CAR and how hard would it be to re-attach the frame rails?
I am a Handy Guy but getting it lined up I think would be next to impossible
What if I built a frame jig?
 
I see they make front from rails for the Cuda that tie into the K member
 
It's not too bad,, I made about 10 inch "U" sleeves to slide inside the frame rails, open side down, - secured them with screws thru holes in the rails, to allow movement while lining things up, and when it's set, take the screws out, one at a time and weld,, then I cut the bottom of the rail about an inch farther than the sleeve,, and welded the sleeve to the inside of the rail, then welded a solid piece to fill in the frame bottom.. thus straddling the side welds..

Take lotsa measurments first,, and we "stringed" the frame before committing to welding, making sure it'd track right..

I'll try and dig out some pics..
 
When building streetrods we graft on frame rails all the time. It's not hard, it will be easier for you considering you are putting the original rails back on. make sleeves like mentioned above, leave a small gap to compansate for the width of the sawzall blade, check wheelbase, tack the rails on and hang the sheetmetal. if everything line up nicely, weld it all for good. Plug weld the sleeves and then bead weld the seams.
 
inertia said:
It's not too bad,, I made about 10 inch "U" sleeves to slide inside the frame rails, open side down, - secured them with screws thru holes in the rails, to allow movement while lining things up, and when it's set, take the screws out, one at a time and weld,, then I cut the bottom of the rail about an inch farther than the sleeve,, and welded the sleeve to the inside of the rail, then welded a solid piece to fill in the frame bottom.. thus straddling the side welds..

Take lotsa measurments first,, and we "stringed" the frame before committing to welding, making sure it'd track right..

I have always wanted a early A Cuda Convertible ever since I saw a yellow 383 w a black top when I was 10 yrs old.. Can still picture it and it was little beat up but was it cool!!!!


I am familiar with the stringing method and have used this to build a Sandrail years ago. Came out pretty straight. Lot easier than building a frame jig
Click to expand...
 
THANKS IDAHO!!!
I can get the car for $500 dollars and save it..Big project for me but with your thread I can do it.
 
http://www.forabodiesonly.com/mopar/showthread.php?t=218448

Another front clip thread. He is splicing the frame rails and doing an aftermarket suspension.

I hope you make good use of my thread. Feel free to ask questions. I'm not an expert but will help any way I can. Starting out is kind of a psychological hurdle then it gets easier. It's time consuming but not that difficult. Lots of wd-40 on the spot welds keeps the cutter sharp.
 
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