Bruce/Texas
Member
Hello Ford Barners,
I have been following the Ford Barn for a good while now. I have posted a few times but mostly I have just been "listening" and trying to learn as much as I can from the vast amount of knowledge which comes from the Ford Barn. I still own my first car, a 1939 Standard coupe which I bought in 1972 at the tender age of 16. At that time, I installed an 8BA engine (the original block was cracked), rebuilt the brakes, cleaned it up, painted it and installed an interior pretty much on my own. I drove it full time for two years until it was vandalized in the parking lot at college at which point I parked it in my parent’s garage until I graduated and had my own garage.
Over the years, I have installed ’53 Ford ½ ton pickup brakes on the front axle and added tube shocks all around. The new brakes required converting to wheels with the 5 X 5 1/2” lug pattern in lieu of the wide fives. I also converted to 12V somewhere along the way. Other than that, the car is pretty much stock. Today the car still runs and drives but needs a little bit of everything to get it roadworthy and looking good again. My plan was to wait until I retired (about 5 years from now) to take it all apart and basically rebuild it from the frame up incorporating any drivability improvements which did not detract from the basically stock look. I wanted to lower the front a little (not too much), add sway bars, improve the brakes, freshen up the flathead, new paint, upholstery, door and window seals etc, etc.
My plan has changed in that my son has requested to have the car in shape to use as his get-away car in his upcoming wedding (this was my get-away car as well). Now I have roughly 12 months to make the car safe and reliable and looking sharp. As I am still working and with other family commitments, I will not have the time to start from the ground up as I had planned so I will be attacking the rebuild with an emphasis on expedience without sacrificing safety and reliability.
With apologies for the long winded introduction, I have the first two questions (of many to come I’m sure) for the greater Ford Barn. Thanks in advance for your input.
Question 1: The original stock front spring has sagged to the point that the top of the axle is about 1 ½” from the bottom of the rubber frame bumper. The spring is also deflected to the point where is parallel to the ground to slightly “reversed” from its normal curvature. What is a reasonable amount of spring travel? Should I replace the spring with a “Posies” spring and if so, should I use the stock or reversed eye version of the spring keeping in mind that I would like to lower the front a little bit from stock? Is it possible to just re-arch my current spring? Anyone re-arch the spring themselves?
Question 2: I will rebuild the brake system completely with new parts throughout. I have read on the Ford Barn of folks converting to a dual master cylinder from the stock cylinder. Is this modification a real worthwhile endeavor?
Thanks Again, Bruce
I have been following the Ford Barn for a good while now. I have posted a few times but mostly I have just been "listening" and trying to learn as much as I can from the vast amount of knowledge which comes from the Ford Barn. I still own my first car, a 1939 Standard coupe which I bought in 1972 at the tender age of 16. At that time, I installed an 8BA engine (the original block was cracked), rebuilt the brakes, cleaned it up, painted it and installed an interior pretty much on my own. I drove it full time for two years until it was vandalized in the parking lot at college at which point I parked it in my parent’s garage until I graduated and had my own garage.
Over the years, I have installed ’53 Ford ½ ton pickup brakes on the front axle and added tube shocks all around. The new brakes required converting to wheels with the 5 X 5 1/2” lug pattern in lieu of the wide fives. I also converted to 12V somewhere along the way. Other than that, the car is pretty much stock. Today the car still runs and drives but needs a little bit of everything to get it roadworthy and looking good again. My plan was to wait until I retired (about 5 years from now) to take it all apart and basically rebuild it from the frame up incorporating any drivability improvements which did not detract from the basically stock look. I wanted to lower the front a little (not too much), add sway bars, improve the brakes, freshen up the flathead, new paint, upholstery, door and window seals etc, etc.
My plan has changed in that my son has requested to have the car in shape to use as his get-away car in his upcoming wedding (this was my get-away car as well). Now I have roughly 12 months to make the car safe and reliable and looking sharp. As I am still working and with other family commitments, I will not have the time to start from the ground up as I had planned so I will be attacking the rebuild with an emphasis on expedience without sacrificing safety and reliability.
With apologies for the long winded introduction, I have the first two questions (of many to come I’m sure) for the greater Ford Barn. Thanks in advance for your input.
Question 1: The original stock front spring has sagged to the point that the top of the axle is about 1 ½” from the bottom of the rubber frame bumper. The spring is also deflected to the point where is parallel to the ground to slightly “reversed” from its normal curvature. What is a reasonable amount of spring travel? Should I replace the spring with a “Posies” spring and if so, should I use the stock or reversed eye version of the spring keeping in mind that I would like to lower the front a little bit from stock? Is it possible to just re-arch my current spring? Anyone re-arch the spring themselves?
Question 2: I will rebuild the brake system completely with new parts throughout. I have read on the Ford Barn of folks converting to a dual master cylinder from the stock cylinder. Is this modification a real worthwhile endeavor?
Thanks Again, Bruce
