Mustang steering box

• Here’s the mustang steering box tacked in place – mounted on its side. I tacked a small piece of angle iron to the mounting bracket to help hold it in place.

This just shows a rear view of the box mounted to the frame

I drew the trans mount on the bench top so I could get the right angles for the center cuts. Inch and a half square tubing heavy wall (.188 in thick ) was used with urethane bushings being used for the cushion mount itself. The trans is bolted directly to a plate welded to the tubing.

Two 3/8ths 2 x 2 plates are used on each end of the mount to support the transmission mount.

Here’s a rear shot showing the mount and transmission ( empty turbo 350 case) all set up. Notice the plywood firewall in place to simulate the body in place. I screwed a small 2 x 4 to the plywood so that I could use c-clamps to hold it to the frame. I marked the position of the firewall when the body was setting on the frame the last time. That then becomes the reference point.
Another shot showing everything in place and the spacer blocks removed.

Front of Frame

Moving to the front of the frame, it’s time to set the engine and transmission in place. There are lots of ways to do this, I have probably tried all of them. The best way I have found to set the engine is to use a piece of 1/4in by 2 inch angle or 3/8ths by 2. Locate the lower front motor mount hole in the front. I only build with Chevy engines. If other engines are used , a similar process can be used. Right now - I am going to use side mounts to see if this is the way I really want to go. Under the pan I have placed some blocks to support the rear. I am going to use an early Mustang steering box mounted on its side , so I have to do some mock up to see if this is going to accomplish what I really want.
I’m also using traditional Ram horn exhaust manifolds because I think they look cool. I’ve set the body back on the frame to check everything out. As this is basically a high boy roadster ( only channeled 3/4ths of an inch) , I found that the engine set to low. Out comes the two by fours and now that looks better – engine manifold to center of the cowl. This type of set up allows me to center the engine in the frame and set the distributor to firewall clearance that I want. I usually set the engine so that I can put the meaty part of my hand – flattened out between the distributor cap and the firewall.
Now step back and see if the whole thing looks proportional . If not, readjust and check again.

Rear Panhand Bar

On to the rear panhard bar. I make them simple and functional. I build my panhards from 7/8ths heavy wall .188 tubing – the same as I use for homebuilt radius rods, drag links, and tie rods. The bracket on the rear axle housing is bent towards the top to align it with the single bracket off the frame. I use 3/8ths x 2 inch for both and set the axle bracket just past the center of the pumpkin by about 6 to 8 inches. Both ends of the panhard bar have urethane rod ends, one solid and one adjustable. When final assembly takes place, install the front and rear panhards after everything else is in place (loaded). If you don’t, it can cause quite a bind in the suspension.

Rear and front shocks are pretty much straight forward, since the frame is unloaded, I set the angle at 26 degrees. When the frame becomes loaded, the shocks will settle to 30 degrees and give a pretty decent ride. The more vertical the shock, the stiffer the ride will be.

Here is another close up of the rear spring mounted and the shock tacked in place. I used only one bracket, 1/2 in by 2 inches wide and whatever the shock bolt size is. In this case it is 5/8ths inch diameter. Also notice how I hold the rear end up and in place with my homemade stands.

This picture shows the panhard bar and the crossmember and spring perch for the rear end.

More detail of the rear, this shows the angles used for the panhard bracket on the rear end. I make these brackets in two pieces because it is easier to get everything true, square, straight the first time. If I were to heat and bend, I could wind up heating and bending several time before getting it the way I want it. I use to use the hot wrench method, but the two-piece method is actually faster and more accurate.