Classic Trucks Homepage Classic Trucks
Get Adobe Flash player

Lose The Tube...Gain A 'Tude!

Dana 44 Fit
Rolled beneath the chassis,... 
   
  read full caption
Dana 44 Fit
Rolled beneath the chassis, the Dana's overall width was right on the money, as expected. Now, it was simply a matter of removing the old suspension brackets and installing the Walton pieces.
Bed Removal
Walton highly stressed that... 
   
  read full caption
Bed Removal
Walton highly stressed that his kit installs easily without having to remove the bed, and it does. However, since a hydraulic lift wasn't accessible, it was easier to photograph the remainder of the job with it off (it needed to come off for future jobs anyway).
Rivets
If you've never experienced... 
   
  read full caption
Rivets
If you've never experienced the joy of removing beefy chassis rivets, you don't know what you're missing! The front and rear spring hangers as well as the shock mounts all attach to the frame with double-headed 3/8-inch rivets, each of which usually become very accustomed to being where they're at (in other words, stubborn to come out).
Start
I found the easiest way to... 
   
  read full caption
Start
I found the easiest way to start coercing the rivets out was to first drill the head, starting with a pilot and ending with a bit size close to that of the rivet's shank.
Grinder
From there, a 4-inch grinder... 
   
  read full caption
Grinder
From there, a 4-inch grinder with a mean composite disc was used to rid what remained of the rivet heads. As you can see, there was still plenty of rivet left still to be removed.
Drill Out
If the rivets wouldn't budge... 
   
  read full caption
Drill Out
If the rivets wouldn't budge with a heavy hammer and a punch, the drill was used again to run through the framerail and into the back of the remaining rivet head.
Relief
There was a great feeling... 
   
  read full caption
Relief
There was a great feeling of relief once the first spring hanger and its rivets were taken care of; unfortunately, there were still three more hangers and two shock brackets to remove! Once the last rivet is gotten rid of, run a 25/64 bit through each hole.
Walton Brackets
The Walton bracketry is not... 
   
  read full caption
Walton Brackets
The Walton bracketry is not only well-engineered, as you will soon see, it bolts to the frame with no modifications or tweaking--and there are no pesky rivets to deal with ever again.
Foward Springs
The forward spring hangers... 
   
  read full caption
Foward Springs
The forward spring hangers bolt directly to the existing holes in the frame, and are designed to fit without removal (let alone modification) of the stock E-brake cable brackets.

Prev | 1  | 2  | 3  | 4  | 5  | Next

Discuss in Our Forums
GMC Yukon Research
GMC Yukon With great deals and authoritative reviews, find all you need to research and buy the new GMC Yukon, as well as compare it with other vehicles to help you in your car buying process. The 2010 Yukon has comparable mpg, and is available in the following bodystyle: SUVs. The Ford F350 and the Ford F150 are other vehicles that might interest you.
Rearend Leaf Set
Chassis Bed
 
Walton Fabrication Leaf Spring Installation - Lose the Tube... Gain A 'Tude!
Installation of a Walton Fabrications Parallel Leaf Spring Kit on a 1950's Chevy Pickup - Classic Trucks Magazine... more
 
1947 Studebaker M-5 - Stude With a 'Tude
Like many street rodders, I'm always thinking of the next project. My '39 Chevy two-door sedan (featured in Street Rodder Jun. '00) was fresh out of the paint shop and on the road without the... more
 
Tube Bending - Basic Tubing Tutorial
Check out how to do tube bending like the pros to get custom tubes for your classic truck, Featured in the 2007 August Issue of Classic Trucks Magazine.... more
 
1964 Chevy - Losing Control
Check out Roger Ward's 1964 Chevy with a hint of '61.... more
 
Basic Tubing Tutorial - [DIY corner]
Check out part 2 of the basic tubing tutorial, we will be going over flaring, Featured in the 2007 September Issue of Classic Trucks Magazine.... more
 
Tubing & Dolly Metalworking Tips - Professor Hammer's Metalworking Tips
Our Tubing DVD is informative and enjoyable, and I learned some new things, too.... more