# 53 truck suspension



## cruzin63

Can anyone tell me the best way to slam my 53 Truck with the stock frame if possible? I have heard i can use a late 80's early 90's Camaro front end frame and weld it to the 53 frame or to use a drop axle or drop spindles. I have a air bag system but getting too many different suggestions. Thanks.


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## Old Geezer

What type of truck, chevy or ford. I have a chevy 48 with a camaro clip 74-mid 80's front steer unit. I air bagged it by doing the regular cups and bags.


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## cruzin63

Its a Chevy 3100 short box.


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## cruzin63

I also have the regular cups and bag system as well. Do you have any pictures of your 48 chassis?


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## chongo1

easiest way dearched leaf springs, best way mustang 2 crossmember u get updated steering and disc, my way pull all leaves out but one and hope she don't break


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## ShibbyShibby

DON'T clip that truck with a Camaro front end! GAAAHHHH that's so gross. 

The best way, I feel, to lower the front end of a 48 - 54 Chevy truck is do a Mustang II hub to hub kit on the front end. It's the cleanest and BEST way to use your original rails and update your trucks front end to independent.


Check out:

Macgyvers
http://www.macgyvers.com/

Heidts
http://www.heidts.com/

Zigs
http://www.zigsstreetrods.com/Pages/mustang2.html



There are other manufacturers but I can't recall all of them. This is the absolute best way to lower your truck.


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## cruzin63

So if i ordered the Mustang II IFS, will i still have to modify it to install the airbag kit I have?


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## ShibbyShibby

As far as I can tell Macguyvers and Zigs offer Coil Spring, Coilover, and Air Ride versions of their Mustang II hub to hub kits. It seems Hiedts doesn't. 

I've never seen a Zigs kit, but I've installed 5 Macguyvers front ends. (mainly cause they are Canadian) The Macguyvers kits are a fuckin work of art. Everything it engineered properly, laser cut pieces. Nice stuff. 

I would give Zigs and Macguyvers a call if I were you and just shoot some questions off.


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## SWIPH

FUC ALL THIS. Take the center section of a G-body- HUB TO HUB- and graft it onto the STOC frame. Then take the G-Body rear end- and make it mount to the STOC frame. STOC FRAM fROnt to bac- jus new suspension- but still has an OL SKOOL LOOK KINDA


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## Old Geezer

I've had no problems with the camaro clip, if done right it will work correctly. I'm no spring chicken and I've worked on many street rods. I have installed both camaro and mustang II front clips and kits. Just the one that you want. If I can give one bit of help, it is measure 10 times cutonce. Its yor choice on the type of kit or clip to use. They all will work correctly, if installed correctly.


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## SWIPH

> _Originally posted by Old Geezer_@Sep 10 2009, 10:41 AM~15038436
> *I've had no problems with the camaro clip, if done right it will work correctly.  I'm no spring chicken and I've worked on many street rods.  I have installed both camaro and mustang II front clips and kits.  Just the one that you want.  If I can give one bit of help, it is measure 10 times cutonce.  Its yor choice on the type of kit or clip to use.  They all will work correctly, if installed correctly.
> *


CAMAROS ARE TO WIDE for THESE TRUX- UNLESS you are runnin some 15x3 cragar dragstars or somethin- reverse 13 or 14x7 jus dont work- and they look gay ass fuc sticcin out in the fROnt while the bac sits NORMAL :uh:


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## Guapo's six2 rag

Dont clip it unless you wanna hot rod it... pull all the springs except the load barring spring and maybe one more, you should get a good drop out of it


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## ShibbyShibby

> _Originally posted by SWIPH_@Sep 10 2009, 10:06 AM~15038118
> *FUC ALL THIS. Take the center section of a G-body- HUB TO HUB- and graft it onto the STOC frame. Then take the G-Body rear end- and make it mount to the STOC frame. STOC FRAM fROnt to bac- jus new suspension- but still has an OL SKOOL LOOK KINDA
> *


 :barf: :barf: :barf: :barf: :barf: :barf: :barf: :barf: :barf: :barf: :barf: :barf: :barf: :barf: :barf: f:


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## ShibbyShibby

Listen take it from someone who has done these front ends a number of times, clipping a car is a thing of the past. It's gone way the Dodo Bird. The worst thing about it other than being ugly and potentially dangerous if done wrong is that all of your front end and rad support will no longer fit on the frame without TONS of modifications. You have to cut up the rad support and fuck around with the way the fenders fit to the hood to the frame. It's nothing but a complete hassle and waste of effort only in the end to get you the ugliest front end you've ever seen. 


Mustang II installed:


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## ShibbyShibby

Clipped Camaro front end: Ugly as fuck!


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## ShibbyShibby

Check out the website I found that pretty Yellow air ride setup from!

http://www.streetrodparts.tv/tci_mustangII.htm


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## Old Geezer

The camaro front with 10 bolt rear I run drags frame with 235 X 45 x 17 front and 245 x 45 x 17. Here"s some pictures.


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## ShibbyShibby

Beautiful truck

I'm still 100% for Mustang II hub to hub. 

If you're gonna clip a 47 - 54 Chevy you might as well skip the welding and throw an S-10 chassis under the thing


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## SWIPH

> _Originally posted by ShibbyShibby_@Sep 10 2009, 03:17 PM~15041494
> *:barf:  :barf:  :barf:  :barf:  :barf:  :barf:  :barf:  :barf:  :barf:  :barf:  :barf:  :barf:  :barf:  :barf:  :barf:  f:
> *



Im gonna post you a pic of the one I did in the next few days when I run by my boys to take a pic of it-- I gurantee it will shut you the fuc up. WELL- maybe not you-- but I gurantee peeps will Like it-- EVERYBODY THAT HAS SEEN IT- looks at it all puzzled- cause the dame thing looks like it came fROm the factory like this..


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## ShibbyShibby

> _Originally posted by SWIPH_@Sep 10 2009, 10:31 PM~15046881
> *Im gonna post you a pic of the one I did in the next few days when I run by my boys to take a pic of it-- I gurantee it will shut you the fuc up.  WELL- maybe not you-- but I gurantee peeps will Like it-- EVERYBODY THAT HAS SEEN IT- looks at it all puzzled- cause the dame thing looks like it came fROm the factory like this..
> *



No offense Swiph, and I'm sure it looks beautiful and I'm sure it looks "just like it came from the factory" I don't know why you always feel you need to have a pissing contest with everybody (especially me) on here? I'm giving this guy the absolute BEST advise you could give for making the front end of that truck outstanding and safe. And like I said before...

*If you're gonna clip a 47 - 54 Chevy you might as well skip the welding and throw an S-10 chassis under the thing*


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## ShibbyShibby

S-10 Chassis examples


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## Old Geezer

I agree with Shibby, I did my truck back when clips were popular, I talked with a guy at the NSRA Nationals this year that had just finished a 48 truck He had set it on a 72 full size frame. It didn't have bags, but it sat and drove like a dream.


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## ShibbyShibby

> _Originally posted by Old Geezer_@Sep 11 2009, 09:27 AM~15049864
> *I agree with Shibby, I did my truck back when clips were popular, I talked with a guy at the NSRA Nationals this year that had just finished a 48 truck He had set it on a 72 full size frame.  It didn't have bags, but it sat and drove like a dream.
> *



Yeah my dad and I clipped a 1947 Chevy Sedan Delivery and I believe that was in 1993. Shit that's 16 years ago. 

I bet that 48 truck at the show you were talking about drove like a cloud. The nice thing about setting a complete frame under a vehicle rather than a weld in IFS (Mustang II) is you retain ALL the designed geometry of suspension and steering. Ball joints and bushings and steering components can be bought brand new at NAPA for example and bolt or press right in. It's a very reliable way to go. The S-10 chassis is a small chassis and is really the cat's-ass for late 40;s early 50's trucks. My dad put an S-10 chassis under a 1945 International 1/2 ton about 3 months ago. 

Personally I am more into showy vehicles and that's why I prefer the Mustang II front end with boxed original frame rails. I think it's cleaner and sexier, but it's up to the owner when it come to that dept.


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## ShibbyShibby

> _Originally posted by Old Geezer_@Sep 10 2009, 06:03 PM~15043223
> *The camaro front with 10 bolt rear I run drags frame with 235 X 45 x 17 front and 245 x 45 x 17.  Here"s some pictures.
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Completely unrelated... but I love the chop on your truck. How many inches are out of it?


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## SWIPH

> _Originally posted by ShibbyShibby_@Sep 11 2009, 09:05 AM~15049605
> *No offense Swiph, and I'm sure it looks beautiful and I'm sure it looks "just like it came from the factory" I don't know why you always feel you need to have a pissing contest with everybody (especially me) on here? I'm giving this guy the absolute BEST advise you could give for making the front end of that truck outstanding and safe. And like I said before...
> 
> If you're gonna clip a 47 - 54 Chevy you might as well skip the welding and throw an S-10 chassis under the thing
> *


IM NOT FUCCIN CLIPPIN THE DAMN THING- thats what im tryin to tell you.
And how can you say your ADVICE IS THE BEST-- and its the SAFEST?? :uh: 
WHy is yours any better than mine?


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## Old Geezer

Shibby, The truck is chopped 4 inches, the dude that did it for me is an old dude also, in his 60s and paint and body for years, the glass guy even chop the curve windows which is really unheard of. He's dead now, so I don't know how he chopped the curve glass. Most of the early 5 windows that are chopped don't have the small curved glass chopped. Thanks for the interest in an old guys ride.


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## ShibbyShibby

> _Originally posted by Old Geezer_@Sep 11 2009, 06:53 PM~15055712
> *Shibby, The truck is chopped 4 inches, the dude that did it for me is an old dude also, in his 60s and paint and body for years, the glass guy even chop the curve windows which is really unheard of.  He's dead now, so I don't know how he chopped the curve glass.  Most of the early 5 windows that are chopped don't have the small curved glass chopped.  Thanks for the interest in an old guys ride.
> *



yeah man I was gonna bring up the 5 window curved glass being chopped, that's fuckin awesome man!


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## Old Geezer

The one I drove at the show that had the 72 frame was dream, it was like riding on a cloud. I'm sure the guy had a lot of work in replacing the frame, it look really great.


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## abescustoms

ive done them every way they are ride bad ass.. just depends what are you looking to pay 

ive done s-10 frame swap overs nice,clean lots of work on leveling body
73-87 chevy frame less work,clean but front end to wide and rear end as well unless you run camaro rear end or s10 with 5 on 5 axles to match the front end

mustang shit them best but pricyyyy ,clean, still run camarao rear ens or s-10

camaro looks good affortable but looks scary if not done right and reinforce to the fullest and squared


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## ShibbyShibby

> _Originally posted by abescustoms_@Sep 14 2009, 09:49 PM~15083731
> *ive done them every way they are ride bad ass.. just depends what are you looking to pay
> 
> ive done s-10 frame swap overs nice,clean lots of work on leveling body
> 73-87 chevy frame less work,clean but front end to wide and rear end as well unless you run camaro rear end or s10 with 5 on 5 axles to match the front end
> 
> mustang shit them best but pricyyyy ,clean, still run camarao rear ens or s-10
> 
> camaro looks good affortable but looks scary if not done right and reinforce to the fullest and squared
> *



yeah Mustang is definitely the priciest way to go. You could run and 10 or 12 bolt chevy rear end, and Ford 8 or 9 inch. 

The coolest thing nowadays is to run a Ford Explorer rear diff. You get disc brakes, internal e brakes, and they don't need re building cause they're virtually brand new. My dad is running one in his 37 Chevy


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## mrbg




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## duck

abescustoms 
with that s-10 5 on 5? where do you get the axels? aftermarket?


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## abescustoms

yes they make universal gm axles 
5 on 4.75 and 5 on 5 chevy style
or 5 on 4.25 and 5 on 4.5 ford style

just press in studs oneither bolt pattern u wanna use


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## cruzin63

I appreciate all the responses and advice. Shibby, you make tons of sense with the Mustang II IFS and I may just do that but I am still taking into consideration everyone elses advice as well. I'm going to a car show today and i'm hoping to run into another 50's truck owner to get more insight. Swiph, you have great stuff too man and i'm looking into that as well. I guess it all comes down to the experience of the guy I choose to do the work!!!! Thanks again and keep the advice coming. I can use it........


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## cruzin63

Oh yeah, Old Geezer.... Thats one bad ass truck you have!!!! That's where I wanna be!


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## ShibbyShibby

> _Originally posted by cruzin63_@Sep 16 2009, 12:54 PM~15099363
> *I appreciate all the responses and advice. Shibby, you make tons of sense with the Mustang II IFS and I may just do that but I am still taking into consideration everyone elses advice as well. I'm going to a car show today and i'm hoping to run into another 50's truck owner to get more insight. Swiph, you have great stuff too man and i'm looking into that as well. I guess it all comes down to the experience of the guy I choose to do the work!!!! Thanks again and keep the advice coming. I can use it........
> *



Where are you located?


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## ShibbyShibby

lol nevermind I just saw you're in Chicago. 

I was gonna say if you were in Montana, Idaho, or Washington you could make the drive up to British Columbia this weekend for the Columbia Valley Classics show. Tones of 50's truck there. When the next show in your area?



http://radiumcarshow.com/


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## AndrewH

Swiph, waiting on the g-body crossmember in the truck pic


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## SWIPH

> _Originally posted by AndrewH_@Sep 17 2009, 04:36 PM~15111137
> *Swiph, waiting on the g-body crossmember in the truck pic
> *


Ive been slaccin-- well jus on gettin to my boys to take the pic-- but not on my 64  

Next week- let me get thROugh the weekend


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