Thread: My Rat Build

Tweet

I have been reading in the forum and have seens pros and cons to building RatRod. Some folks seems to think they are unsafe and I do agree on some builds and some believe them to be as safe as any classic Hot Rod or Customer build and I also agree with that. No matter what the build, first and foremost safety should always be our first concern.

I am building my rat for my grandkids to enjoy when they get old enough to drive which is about 6 years down the road for my oldest. Believe me when I say I want this build to be as safe as possible.

This project didnt start out to be a ratrod but a circle track stadium stock truck to run at our local track. I purchased a 1988 Ford Ranger and stripped it to the frame and started building the race truck. As time went on things started to get really costly really fast.

One day my grandson and I had to make a run to the local parts store and there in the parking lot was a 32 Vicky setting about 2 inches off the ground. LOL...I though my grandson could eat that thing the way he was looking at it.

On the way home he ask if I could build him one. Well the more I thought about it and I thought about how much I was going to have in the race truck a light went off in my head. Why not build the kids something that by the time they learn to drive no other kids around would have a ride like it. So I did a little searching around and located a 46 Dodge cab that had been chopped (butchard). The man was going to send it to the crusher so I offered him the Ranger cab which he said didnt matter to him so we traded.

After bringing the cab home I knew I had bitten off more than I wanted to chew on with this cab. It was butchard to no end and the welds looked like bubble gum. I searched the internet and ran across a ratrod forum. I said what the heck and posted the Dodge cab there for sale or trade. The next day a young man from a town about 30 miles away from me ask if I would be willing to trade the Dodge to a 46 Ford cab. Well yeah!!!

He delivered the Ford and took the Dodge, thank God. So that is the beginning of my first rat rod build.

At the time I had a garage full of woodworking equipment I wasnt or hadnt used in years so I started selling off the equipment to finance the ratrod build.

Started searching around collecting parts here and there and finally in the pass couple of months got to work on the project.

Bought some 2x3x3/16 wall tubing and started building the frame. Found a 230cid six from a 64 Chevelle, a powerglide and a 9inch Ford rearend.

Cut the rusty floor out of the cab and braced and squared it. After doing some research about replacing the top on the cab I ran across a build on another site which pointed me in the direction I am going with this build. The top is coming off and the cab will become a roadster when finished.

Heres a few photos to bring you up to present time.

Any comments are welcome and appreciated.

Thanks for taking the time to read my post and I hope you enjoy following along this build as it comes together. Its been fun so far working with my grandson and I think he is having about as much fun as I am.

Larry

A few more photos.

Cool project

Got my header built and the intake on the engine this past week. Nothing else much has happened.

I used an old racecar header and cut the flange out and cleaned out all the old tubing. I cut all the bends out of the header and used them to fab up the bends I needed on the new headers. Welded everything from the back side and ground down the welds till only a 1/16 bead was left. This will assure a good seal on the gasket. I am going to use VW exhaust tips for the baffles.

Here's a few photos of the build.

larry

Crazycat, Man you need to look around and find one of the free picture resizers, these things are a free download and you wont blow the picture up so big that you can't really see anything. It will bring more people to your thread, if they don't have top hassel with the size of the picture.

Cool project too!!

Here's an example of YOUR pic's resized to a better size.

Here's a link to a Microsoft Image Resizer if your running Windows XP, Go to the site, scroll down aways down the page to Image resizer and click on that. Couple opf easy steps and its free.

http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/D...powertoys.mspx

a test only.
Hopefully this works. Sorry about all the very LARGE photos guys.
BTW, if this does work this front end is for sale, 42-47 Ford. Wishbone has been split.

Larry

Front end sold.

Damn, those are some good looking headers!

LOL, yeah you do have some good ideas......... Thanks for allowing me to copy yours.

I am thinking about running a 2 link suspension from a late 60's to early 70's Chevy truck. What are the pros and cons of a setup like this?

The car will only weight about 2200 lbs when finished. Engine is a stock 230cid straight six with a powerglide so there is not alot of torque. Rearend is a 9" Ford with a 3.25 gear.

The radius arms will be mounted solid to the rear axle with a panhard bar to center it and setting on coils. The front of the arms will be at an angle in the front toward the center of the chassis, similar to a wishbone setup but not as close.

I have been told not to run the radius arms in a straight angle/line off the rear end like ladder bars for this would not allow for articulation.

How much articulation will be needed in the rearend and will this setup supply what is needed.

Any pictures of this kind of set up and suggesting would be appreciated.

Thanks and God bless

Larry

You are a great grandad. What are you doing with all that ceramic tile stacked up in your garage? Edd

LOL.would love to get rid of it but wife thinks she will make something out of it one day......NOT!!!!!........LOL

Shhhhhhhhhhhh...dont tell her and we can make a deal if you want to come after it. Maybe leave her a box or so....hehehehe

Crazyrat - I am running 2-link (commonly called "truck arm") suspension in the rear of my coupe. This is the same type system that NASCAR cup cars use. Rather than modify the heavy arms from a truck, though, I build my own from 2" x 3" x .120 wall tubing similar to what the NASCAR builders do. Also, instead of welding the arms directly to the rear end housing, I mount them in rubber so the arms can flex slightly without stressing the welds or housing. Here are a couple of pics from when I built my coupe. The holes in the arms have 3/4" i.d. tubing welded through them. I use 1/2" heavy wall heater hose (1/2" i.d., 3/4" o.d.) to make the rubber bushings and bolt it all together with 1/2" grade 8 bolts. I have built several of these over the years and never had a failure due to weld stress or metal fatigue.

The good news is, the car launches hard with very little wheel spin, but still handles like a dream on twisty roads. I am using '82 Chevette rear coil springs with NASCAR-style weight jackers to adjust ride height. Rear shocks are '86 Nissan pickup fronts.

wow nice work man! everything looks good, that thing is just rediculously BADASS! KEEP THE PICS COMING!

Thanks J. This is kinda what I am going to pattern mine from, check out this build and look at the rear suspension of this 31 coupe.
http://ratrodsrule.com/forum/showthread.php?t=3030

Thanks for your reply
Larry