49 Merc tweaked frame question

T

timdhawk

Member
Hey guys,

My frame had seen its fare share of bouncing thru farm fields and God only knows what else over its life. I took it in last month for some straightening work. While they did a good job reworking some troubled areas, after I got it home I ran some measurements and basicly the frame is out of square. Running a string line from front to back and checking measurements from R and L rear corners crosswise to the front body mount points shows I'm approx 5/8" off from one to the other. (does my description make sense?)
The shop said bring it back in and they'll look at it again.

I guess my real questions are how precise were these frames back in the day? If exactness can't be acheived, how much "not quite right" is acceptable for a 65 yr old frame, if any? How do I know when to throw in the towel on something like this?

thanx.
 
Take it back and show them how far off you think it is. They should have been able to get it closer than that. Do you have a shop manual for the car? If so, there should be frame measurements in it. Give them a copy so they can check it as they re-straighten it. If you don't, then maybe someone here can help. I don't know how scarce that frame may be to find, so straightening may be your only option.
 
When I had my body shop, we always wanted measurements to be +- 1/8" There was someone here who had frame diagrams for the older Fords, he might have the newer Mercurys also. I think it was Northern Metal Specialties???
 
Take some diagonal measurements from symmetrical points. i.e. body mount holes suspension rivets etc. These should all be +- 1/8"
 
V12Bill said:
Take some diagonal measurements from symmetrical points. i.e. body mount holes suspension rivets etc. These should all be +- 1/8"
Click to expand...

I agree with Bill, if you are checking the overall length of the frame, that measurement is of little value. When I check frames it is always between known reference points. I'm sure Ford specified specific frame markers as the reference points to use, but without that information I would check a number of different mounting points to see what is an average.
 
Get a copy of the Frame section from the 49/51 Lincoln Mercury Overhaul Manual. It has a diagram with all the measurements in it.
 
Diagonal skew is an easy fix with a port-a-power but if the frame is twisted as measured from a flat floor from many points then definitely take it back.

Lonnie
 
Here's a frame diagram.
Keep in mind that the body mounts are brackets mounted to the frame and they could be bent without the frame itself being bent out of alignment.
 

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