[jal]

Okay, the excitement for me is really building now..
Yesterday we did final fitting of the tubs and got them welded in.
I did a quick measurement on both sides and, seems that I have a solid 14.5" of clearance in the well without rolling the lip. I think I'm going to roll it for the extra clearance.
Basically, we fit in each well and marked a line for where we drilled our holes for the welds. The pics will show that.
We then clamped down the tubs into place and went to town. There were areas where the back of the tub needed a little push against the frame so, I used a breaker bar to apply some pressure while my buddy Jeff tacked down those spots. The tubs are now welded flush to the frame where we added the 1/8" steel block out.
I think I'm going to lightly grind down those welds, remove all the under coating from the existing well and paint it all uniform.
I'm also going to coat the inside (trunk area) seams with seam sealer and paint.

What I have left to do now is modify the trunk lid supports that we removed initially and, reweld them to the new tubs.
I now need to order my shock cross member and DSE offset spring shackles.
While I'm waiting for that stuff to arrive, we'll be cutting off the leaf spring perches from my 12-bolt. They'll need to be brought in a little to accommodate the new spring position.

`joe

[jal]

More tub pics from final installation

[ponjohn]

The first point of contact will be the leaf spring. The reason HOJ can fit a 12" rim is b/c of the coil over rear.

It's not that 12 inches of rim can't be used it is the fact that with 12" of rim it becomes a finess issue in getting the correct backspace. You can probably fit a 10" rim with 5.5 BS.

I could easily fit a 325 tire if I went to ladder bars..... with all the tire inside.

[jal]

Well,
We're going to find out what I can fit pretty soon. Again, hopefully this will help others contemplating this project.
Since I'm moving the shocks inside the frame, they become a non factor.
As far as the first point of contact being the leaf springs, you're correct, however, I am using the DSE offset shackles.
They move the spring inward 1.75" so, now I'll have as much space as I measured within the wheel well. Once the springs are in again, I'll try and take some pics that show the offset accurately for everyone.
As far as back spacing of the wheel, once the rear is back in the car, I'll bolt a straight edge to the rear using the lugs and make my final measurements.
I'm figuring on a 10" wheel with somewhere around a 6.5" BS.
Currently I'm using an 8" wheel with 4.5" BS that worked quite well with the stock wells.
Considering I just added about 3" of space to the inside, I think I'll be okay.
I'm hoping to use a 325/50/15. That is the goal.

`joe

[hojs69]

Assuming proper wheel backspace, you should not have a problem going with the MT 325/50 x 15. Looks like a nominal sidewall width of 13.1" inside the 14.5" space you mentioned you have now.

The DSE kits with the offset shackles frequently fit a 335/30 x 18 or 345/30 x 19 or 345/25 x 20 fully under the quarter lips. These are at a sidewall width of 13.5 - 13.8 inches and under the 1969 F-bodies. Check out lateral-g.net and protouring.com. These folks look for a little more clearance due to their intent with the cars (heavy side loads and more body roll than drag racing).

I am running a 14.8" SW and 12.5" tread width. It is not fully engulfed by the quarter lip. It has never rubbed. Going up & down sloped driveways being the primary concern I orignally had. I have approx. 5/8" clearance from the rolled exterior lip (finger width) and the same from the frame rail. This is at a ride height 1" lower than the posted pics earlier.

You are safe to go wider if you desire to "push it" more; esp. if you roll your quarter lips. If you want an MT tire, looks like they make a 345/35 DR but at an 18" rim. Still only 13.9" SW. Food for thought.

Good luck.

[hojs69]

Hope these help your effort.

Regretfully, I have purchased many different tire / wheel combo's through the years trying to get what I thought was the "right look", without resorting to a full tub job.

These pics were taken as the others; soon after original install. Like previously stated, I have since dropped the rear another 1". At the time, I was fearful during full launch / weight transfer I would contact the quarters and/or frame. No issue.

[ponjohn]

hoj- do you have tailpipes?

[hojs69]

No tailpipes. The Spintech Super Stocks dump a few inches before the differential. The diagonal link is close but has no contact.

Good point, if you are thinking about packaging larger tailpipes (3 - 3.5") with mini tubs, leafs and a bigger tire. Did not consider that.

[jal]

Well,
Pretty much finished the wells this weekend and, fixed a touch of rust while we were in this far. Just need to clean up a little in the wells and, I'm going to spray on a very light coat of undercoat. Also need to get a quart of seam sealer for the trunk and prep to paint some of that area.
Modified (very little needed) the rear deck lid supports and, welded them back to the original area along with welding to the new wheel wells. Pics attached.
Received my DSE offset shackles last Wednesday.
Just received my Comp Engineering cross member and Moser spring perches today so, that will be next weekend's project.
The leaf springs are back on the car. Pics atached also showing the offset shackles.
Cut the original spring perches off the rear and cleaned up the residue with a hand grinder ( I call it my whizzer..). Next weekend we'll lay the rear on top of the new perches, center, set pinion angle and tack in place. Check another hundred times or so and, weld them onto the rear.
Enough for now. Things are moving along quite nicely so far.

`joe

[jal]

More assembly pics

[BILTIT]

What are you running for fuel tank? cell?

[jal]

BILTIT,
There's the million $ question. I really want to keep the trunk intact since, I still drive it on the street. So, a cell is kinda out for that reason. DSE and a few rod shops make a stainless tank for the mini-tub but, way too much money. Like $750 and, who really wants to add that weight.
So, I'm going to attempt to modify my stock tank to fit the new area. I'm going to sump it with a Comp Eng. piece and, see what dimentions and mods I need to make. It doesn't look too dificult but hey, that's what this hobby is all about,,,,, right?!?!

`joe

[BILTIT]

Thats what i am going to do. I have a sumped tank now, going to get it narrowed when i do the minitub and run it that way. Ponjohn had a narrowed tank put in and was not happy with how small the tank was though if i remember correctly.

[ponjohn]

Originally Posted by BILTIT

Thats what i am going to do. I have a sumped tank now, going to get it narrowed when i do the minitub and run it that way. Ponjohn had a narrowed tank put in and was not happy with how small the tank was though if i remember correctly.

That is correct. All the mini tub tanks sold are advertised as narrowed 3" per side. So that is what I did, I ended up with 9-10 gallon tank. Hind sight is I could have narrowed it 1.5" per side and been ok. My springs are moved in 1.75" per side.

I got a price from Rock Auto for a custom tank at 16 gallons with trap door, around a 1000 bucks. Summit sells them from Don's(? or somthing like ) Rod shop for aroun 750 (like said). I would be curious about the weight as well.

I would be more likely to buy another tank, new, and have it modified again. Not sure where to go from here. Kind of low on priority list.

[jal]

All,
Just a quick update on the progress. Sorry no pics. I'll get some this coming weekend.
Ended up ditching the stock rubber spring/frame bushings and purchasing the poly kit from DSE. Installed the new bushings on the rear half of the springs. I am staying with the solid CalTrac bushings for the front spring eyelet.
Once that was complete, we placed the rear back onto the springs. I bought a new pair of Moser spring perches that will be welded once the rear has been centered properly.
The plan is to center the rear, bolt it down with the U-bolts, set the pinion angle and, tack the perches into place. Remove the assembly and finish all the welding.

Put everything back together, seal, and paint....... On to the 8-pt cage.....

`joe

[70 lucerne lemans]

Nice job!Thanks for all the pics ,thats alot of work,but worth the effort.

Just an fyi for you guys with 67-68 race cars,after trying several tire and wheel combos.I fit a 15x10 with 5.5" bs and 29x10.5w(11") slicks.I moved the shocks inboard and heavily massaged the the inner wells(4# sledge).The tires are about 3/8" from the springs.A 28/10.5 tire will tuck in a little nicer with stock ride height.

[jal]

All,
Sorry it's been so long on these posts but, being the time of year, I didn't get as much done as I would have liked.
Anyway, Got the rear all centered and the pinion angle set and the new spring perches welded.
To center the rear, we laid it on top of the leaf springs on the perches. Brought the car down to ride hight and found a few stock locations on the car that I felt were unchanged from the factory. Hung a plumb bob from those locations and, struck a chalk line on the floor on both sides of the car. Front to back. From those lines I measured (too many times to remember) to outside edge of the axle. I also hung the bob off of the rear 1/4 panel and, measeued from that line to the axle. Also measured from the brake backing plate to the center of the spring perch. Was just trying to find the center properly based on more than one avenue of reference points. Once they all seemd to be on the money, tacked the perches to the rear.

For the pinion angle, since that is referenced from the angle of the tranny output shaft, we used a magnetic protractor. Once we had the pinion angle of the tranny at ride height, we knew where to set the rear. I just place my floor jack under the front of the rear and slowy adjusted until we achieved a -3 deg angle. Based on input from Calvert Racing, they told me a -2 to -4 pinion would work well.

Once the rear perches were all welded up, I moved onto the crossmember for the shocks. I chose to use a Comp engineering since, the car is really for dag racing and not corning too much. Bolted it into place, made a few cuts and adjustments for welding and, weled into place. Just needed to cut a window into the trunk floor where the top of the shocks will protrude through. I'm going to fab a small removable box to cover them when installed.

At this point now, I just need to but some seam sealer, trunk paint and, undercoating. I'll clean all the surfaces, seal and paint. Then I'll start putting the car back together. Get her back down on all fours and, start working on the gas tank. I'll keep trying to update the thread until I move onto the roll bar. Hopefully, I'll have pics of the car down with the new wheels and tires. I hoping that is only a month or so from completion.

`joe

[jal]

More pics

[rtanner]

fyi back in day when we used offset spring perches, you could then install a vega gas tank and reuse your factory straps and sending unit was in right place! problem now i been searching for a vega gas tank w no luck!

[BILTIT]

Any idea on the volume of a vega tank?