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  #101  
Old 10-20-2015, 03:17 PM
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Jack 1957 Jack 1957 is offline
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If you've been following this, you've probably noticed that I have very limited space here. I have been getting started adding some additional garage space so I've been pretty busy but I did manage to get some work done today. I am changing the slope from the back of the door rearward to the back bumper. Not a lot but enough to take out a little of the bulbousness back there. (Spell check says that's not a word but you know what I'm talking about). I also need to incorporate a 60 degree angle back there to tie in with the slash cut to be done on the rear fenders.

So, the first thing I did was lay it out in tape a few times till I got what I was looking for. Then made a quicky template from some 22 ga scrap with the shrinker.

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  #102  
Old 10-20-2015, 03:20 PM
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Next just tape the template where you need it and put another line of tape above it on the body for a guide while cutting. Save the template for the other side.

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  #103  
Old 10-20-2015, 03:23 PM
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Then just cut off what's not wanted. I had some soft metal at the back edge so I welded in a patch and it's on to the other side.

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  #104  
Old 10-20-2015, 07:35 PM
weldtoride weldtoride is offline
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Jack, I'm watching with interest, thanks for the updates.

As for narrowing a donor frame, I have a '53 Buick project that I put '80s Cutlass frame clips under, front and rear, the track width was right for my car. I had to make new frame center sections as the original frame was terribly hacked, and the Cutlass perimeter frame center section was all wrong. Now I have some complex issues with the front radiator and fender mounts, steering, bumper mounts, etc, etc. Nothing unsolvable, but all very time consuming, and in the end I will have an '80s suspension.

Since I am building a custom, I would have kept the original Buick suspension, except it wasn't all there, and what was left was in poor condition. And the disc brakes of the Cutlass along with dirt cheap replacement parts made it a seemingly at the time a no-brainer. But things are not always what they seem.

In short: I am in way cheap dollar wise, which was crucial otherwise this wouldn't happen at all, but time-wise I am so far in the hole that my project has entered limbo, and I have lost my lust for it. A friend had advised making a complete new frame ( I was 60% there with my plan) and using aftermarket suspension from one of the better companies like TCI. In retrospect, he was right, except that that was not affordable at the time for me.

You on the other hand will have a much more modern suspension, but by narrowing it, Ackermann will be affected, along with sundry other angles, so plan carefully if you want to retain all the handling advantages of the CTS suspension.

That's kind of a round about way of saying I would advise carefully weighing the financial advantages to narrowing a clip so much against some alternatives.
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Last edited by weldtoride; 10-20-2015 at 07:39 PM.
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  #105  
Old 10-20-2015, 10:08 PM
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Mark, thanks for the input. Don't be too harsh on the 80's suspension. It's a giant leap forward from the original. I've done numerous 81 Camaro sub frame swaps into Tri 5 Chevys, including my own 57. Aftermarket suspensions look pretty but they ride like you've got cement tires.

Don't let your dream die unfinished in the garage. Get out there and light the fire again. It isn't a big job. It's a series of small jobs. Knock them down one at a time.

As for my suspension and steering, I'm looking closely at that. I'm working on other things but rolling this suspension business around my head in the meantime. Fortunately I have all the original 49 steering in place. The car is made with two different track widths. 59" in front and 63" in back so I need to measure the angles of the steering arms and compare to the donor car. The Ackerman steering principle is hurt more by the longer wheelbase. If you think about it, narrowing the front makes the imaginary lines drawn through the knuckle and steering arm toward where they converge at the center of the rear axle move forward. Then, since the 49 has a 9 inch longer wheelbase than the CTS, the rear axle is even further away compounding the problem. It's almost a sure bet that I'll have to modify the angle of the steering arms.

I'm willing to do whatever it takes to utilize the Cadillac suspension and steering. I'm looking at a few places to take an inch or two here and there. The problem might be the steering rack. I'll figure it out.
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Last edited by Jack 1957; 10-20-2015 at 10:11 PM.
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  #106  
Old 10-20-2015, 10:33 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by weldtoride View Post
Jack, I'm watching with interest, thanks for the updates.

As for narrowing a donor frame, I have a '53 Buick project that I put '80s Cutlass frame clips under, front and rear, the track width was right for my car. I had to make new frame center sections as the original frame was terribly hacked, and the Cutlass perimeter frame center section was all wrong. Now I have some complex issues with the front radiator and fender mounts, steering, bumper mounts, etc, etc. Nothing unsolvable, but all very time consuming, and in the end I will have an '80s suspension.

Since I am building a custom, I would have kept the original Buick suspension, except it wasn't all there, and what was left was in poor condition. And the disc brakes of the Cutlass along with dirt cheap replacement parts made it a seemingly at the time a no-brainer. But things are not always what they seem.

In short: I am in way cheap dollar wise, which was crucial otherwise this wouldn't happen at all, but time-wise I am so far in the hole that my project has entered limbo, and I have lost my lust for it. A friend had advised making a complete new frame ( I was 60% there with my plan) and using aftermarket suspension from one of the better companies like TCI. In retrospect, he was right, except that that was not affordable at the time for me.

You on the other hand will have a much more modern suspension, but by narrowing it, Ackermann will be affected, along with sundry other angles, so plan carefully if you want to retain all the handling advantages of the CTS suspension.

That's kind of a round about way of saying I would advise carefully weighing the financial advantages to narrowing a clip so much against some alternatives.
Here are some sage words to consider

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  #107  
Old 10-21-2015, 09:25 AM
JimRussell JimRussell is offline
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Hi Mark,

Quote:
entered limbo, and I have lost my lust for it.
I know exactly what you mean.

Years ago a friend told me that what I really needed to keep my project going was a buddy that was interested in my project. The buddy would stay after me to keep on working instead of "sitting on the couch watching TV and eating popcorn". It works! Your buddy could be the forums.
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  #108  
Old 10-21-2015, 11:14 AM
weldtoride weldtoride is offline
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Thank you Jack and Jim both. Winter is coming on and there won't be as many outside projects here for me, and I'll be taking another crack at the Buick. Besides, I won't allow myself to start another car till this one is at least a chopped roller with skirts, tail lights, etc., something that I can draw experience from and then would have enough value to someone else.

Towards that end, I just found an alternative back glass, thanks to the HAMB. My car is a 2 dr hardtop. (Special) The back glass was one of my many sticking points as the original is wraparound with a very small sail panel. I couldn't see how the original back glass would ever look right tipped forwards after my mods, and I do not want to sink it into the trunk. I am chopping small, (2") but lengthening the roof 4" rearwards towards the trunk, which I think will make the chop look more pronounced. Also good news is that I can get that late '40s Chevy rear glass NEW with shipping to my zip for less than $80.

FWWIW, here's the thread from the HAMB, the example car is a 53 Cad, but it bears strong familial resemblance to my 53 Buick:

http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/t...-ideas.423842/

Thanks again for the words of encouragement.
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Last edited by weldtoride; 10-21-2015 at 11:20 AM.
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  #109  
Old 10-25-2015, 08:30 PM
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This morning I had some time to trim and prep the right quarter and rear filler panel. Now it's time to go blow some leaves around the yard.

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  #110  
Old 10-25-2015, 08:43 PM
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I'm starting to build the buck for the back half of the car. Since none of this will be used as a hammer form, I'm just using what's available. I found some leftover T-111 and some 1X pine. It'll do.

First I made a template to capture the shape of the rear filler panel where it meets the bumper. I just use strips of scrap 22ga. You could either shrink or stretch but I prefer to shrink. If I go too far, it's easy to undo a shrink. Just hammer out the tuck on an anvil.

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When I have it pretty close I can make it symetrical by laying it out and drawing the line on some wood. Flip the template over and look for irregularities. Correct them by shrinking or stretching and check again. Draw a new line and flip the template and check. Keep going until it fits the line no matter which way you set it down.

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