1933 vs 1934 Crossmembers

panhead_pete

panhead_pete

Senior Member
Looking at going back to stock factory front shocks. Have done some reading here and it mentions 33s went on the inside and 34s on the outside of the frame rails due to differences in the crossmembers.



Could someone please enlighten me as to how the two crossmembers differ?



Thanks in advance.

Pete
 
The '33 front cross member curves forward after the motor mount biscuit location.The '34 flares rearward.I discovered that when I went to put new front shocks on my '33 tudor.The cross member had been replaced with a '34. Since I already had the front shocks and arms I simply did some trimming on the housing to get them in on the inside.
Yes I could have mounted them on the outside BUT would need different arms.I also wanted to lower the car by removing 4 leaves of the spring and since It still had mechanical brakes - the rods would have interfered with the shock set up on the outside.


Here is a pic of a 34 front crossmember
 

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In the two photos below, the run-of-the-mill '33 front cross member is shown on the left and that for '34 on the right. The front gussets shown in front of the '33 cross member where the radiator attaches differ for '34 as the inner corners extend back to the cross member itself.

There was a short-lived initial version of the '33 cross member that carried over the 12" spacing between the front motor mounts.
 

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I’m confused. My ‘33 wagon looks like it has the ‘34 cross member as well as shocks On the outside. Is it because it’s a wagon (truck?)? Does this mean it has a ‘34 frame?
 

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It's not the least bit uncommon for the '33 front cross member to have been replaced with the stronger '34 version and it is a bit of a challenge to find a good '33 front cross member if you want to return the chassis frame to its original configuration if the cross members were switched.
 
pic of a 33 crossmember factory installed.
Pic also shows fender dimple on a 33

The 33 wagon looks to have 34 inner fenders
 

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Pete: The 33 frame has holes for the front shocks to mount inside the frame where the 34 does not. The 33 front and rear shocks have bolt on arms where the 34 front shocks have pressed on arms. The inner fenders are also different to clear the shocks mounted on the outside of the frame, 34. Make sure you get the correct front shocks.
 
DavidG said:
In the two photos below, the run-of-the-mill '33 front cross member is shown on the left and that for '34 on the right. The front gussets shown in front of the '33 cross member where the radiator attaches differ for '34 as the inner corners extend back to the cross member itself.

There was a short-lived initial version of the '33 cross member that carried over the 12" spacing between the front motor mounts.
Click to expand...


David, Would you have a pic of that early version? I recently purchased these early front motor mounts. Here is a pic of a 33 Ford cutaway chassis.Those early motor mounts are clearly visible.Thanks
 

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