1964 Dodge A-100 Hot rod sort of rat rod build thread.

[onanysunday]

With the air out of the airbags for the suspension compressed it has about 7/16 toe in. Airbags filled up or suspension drooped all the way down it has about 1/8 inch toe out. So I assume that is over half of an inch of bump steer? I'm not sure where to go from here

 

[onanysunday]

So theoretically if you're using half of the travel it's going to have a quarter inch of bump steer. Maybe a Corvette has some bump steer in it. I just don't know what is acceptable or not. I have a call into my race car building buddy to see what he says.

 

[onanysunday]

Well I have played with a bunch of different shims cycling this thing. In the middle it goes out to its widest point and then at the top and the bottom I have it down to .070 and .100 bump steer. So now less than 1/8 of an inch but I have read online .015 to .030. of course I am using a piece of wood with shims and dial Caliper to measure not a bump steer gauge. That's awful damn fine measurements for something like this but I just don't know how close this has to be.

 

[onanysunday]

They do sell bump steer kits for these cars. I can get it this close for now and then add one of these kits later I guess. Although then it's getting back into a heim instead of the factory ball joints. Little bit stumped right now and I'm going to have to talk to somebody more qualified than me about this.

 

[onanysunday]

I called our alignment shop that does all of our customer stuff we send and he said that size of the front tire with under 1/8 of an inch of bump steer he would put it together and run it and try it. At least I have the option of a bump steer kit to fine tune it later on.

 

[Kraut_n_Rice]

Is it just raising the tie-rod angle in relation to the spindle mount point?

 

[onanysunday]

Is it just raising the tie-rod angle in relation to the spindle mount point?

So I narrowed the cradle 9 7/8 inches. My chromo tube is 9 7/8 narrower than the stock rack and I am using the factory tie rods. So the pivot point of the inner ball at the tie rod is exactly the same as a stock car. What is weird is how far I had to move the bar up vertically to go from over 1/2 inch of bump to less than 1/8 of bump. I had to move the bar up roughly 5/8 to 3/4 of an inch to get there. I have not yet moved the bar forward or backward. My dads first employee from the 60s drove sprint cars for 20 years. Super smart and also an awesome fabricator. Just got off the phone with him and he is thinking still to much bump. He said in the stock car world .030 is a lot. He has a buddy that built some of the best race cars in the world including Mark Martin. He is going to call him to discuss a little further. I am hoping it will get closer by moving the bar forward or backward. I might be buying or building a bump steer gauge yet. 

 

[onanysunday]

Another 3-hours screwing with this this morning. At least now I understand it a little better. I moved that rod up and down and forward and backward a whole bunch more to get it as close as I could. And then machined some washers to space the outer tie rod point down from the spindle. I was able to get my bump steer within .050 just from measuring with a piece of PVC and some shims. Just this crude measuring method I think I can get it within about .035. at that point I will probably go ahead and build a bumpster gauge to be sure. Bumpster kit ordered coming from North carolina. Now I have to move my setup away but still hold that rod in the exact same position to start building my rack mount.

 

[onanysunday]

Half of the mount. All 3/16 plate. Spacers will get welded to the plate.

 

[onanysunday]

Has to be a v drive.  https://www.facebook.com/share/r/qowSqRaXagSSuQ5g/?mibextid=xfxF2i

 

[onanysunday]

Well how cool is that. Found a brand new front windshield rubber that I did not know I had. Also at least one new new old stock tail light lens still in the wrapper with the rubber seal. Cleaning a little house this morning and threw a bunch of parts on the Dodge a100 facebook page to see if any of this stuff has value. I'm sure that old 727 trans does.

 

[onanysunday]

This lower steering assembly came in at 25.5 lb. I have new inner tie rod ball joints coming and of course the outer will be the bumpster kit Heims.

 

[onanysunday]

Been a long long time since this truck had any form of steering. 

 

[onanysunday]

Luckily I had not cut those ears all the way off. When I first started I thought that steering rod needed to be straight across and a lot lower. I think now it is probably close to its original location.

 

[onanysunday]

 

[onanysunday]

More gift-giving from the animal kingdom. Starting to drill my Holes in the floor to be able to drop the roll bar down in to weld the other joints. I knew I was going to end up going into the bulkhead. What a pain in the ass.

 

[onanysunday]

It's funny where this thing landed and I drilled that hole. There's a hole just big enough to run my 1 5/8 tube up through the unibody. And I landed right there. I originally wanted to have a gusset coming out from the frame to support the outer part of the main hoop and it looks like I can put something there. Although I don't see how I can weld all of it together. Because that plate has to barely slide under the main hoop and then get welded in once everything else is built. If anything it will be additional support versus just the floor and bulkhead. and bulkhead.

 

[onanysunday]

Needs tabs, welded, nuts and bolts, etc. Hopefully finish it tomorrow. Start the roll cage Saturday.

 

[onanysunday]

 

[onanysunday]

My dad would have been proud of this bracket. Lol. He overkilled everything. I used 3/16 plate and 120 wall box. It weighs 2 lb. Ha. I guess with it hanging out so far I didn't want 1/8" to flex although this shifter won't be shifted like a sequential in a sandrail. Came with a 5 ft cable and I'm thinking I will need a 15 footer.