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Old 10-20-2015, 08:07 AM   #1
1958
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Front end question

Hey guys we have a 1958 chevy truck all the suspension is stock I need some guidance on what to do we want to change over all of the front end steering, It's my sons truck so I want it safe it needs to drive better. I need to know the cheapest way and what I mean is not a junky job but a cheapest money kind of job ya'll know what I mean, any info would be great thanks.
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Old 10-20-2015, 01:51 PM   #2
_Ogre
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Re: Front end question

you could try to read some of the builds on this forum

these trucks have many billions of safe road miles on them
cheapest way is to rebuild the stock suspension; king pins, tie rod ends, drag link, spring bushings, etc...
you'd be shocked at the amount of wear play all these items can collectively add up to

any ifs swap is going to involve upgrading the; steering column, brakes and partial wiring
pretty soon you have the truck in 1000 pieces all over the garage

safety is in stopping the truck, rebuild the whole brake system
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Old 10-20-2015, 03:15 PM   #3
bensimmons_05
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Re: Front end question

Check out Classic Performance Products (CPP) at classicperform.com

They have a power steering conversion kit, tie rod upgrade kit, and connecting rod upgrade. All good steering upgrades!
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Old 10-20-2015, 04:11 PM   #4
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Re: Front end question

"Safe" is making sure what you have is in top shape as Ogre said. Safe is having everything work right and in working order but you don't have to go making wholesale suspension, steering or brake changes unless you actually want to.

The younger guys might not agree but most of us older guys drove these trucks a lot of miles with the I beam, stock steering and drum brakes without any problems safety wise. A lot of us even had a lot of horsepower on tap in them. .

He has to understand that it isn't a little Honda Civic that he can zoom around in and that with the drum brakes he needs to give himself extra stopping room behind the vehicle in front of him but that is called defensive driving and should be part of driving anything.

Put in a good set of well mounted seat belts, if money allowed I'd spring for a disk brake kit but other than that The manual steering will build up his arm strength but won't hurt him any.
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Old 10-20-2015, 06:20 PM   #5
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Re: Front end question

Buy an aftermarket Mustang II complete setup with disc brakes from one of the many vendors offering the setup. They do all the engineering for you, the brakes work, etc. You can get one with a power rack and pinion if the engine you have can run a PS pump without getting into a bracket nightmare.
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Old 10-20-2015, 08:08 PM   #6
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Re: Front end question

i know you asked about front end and steering, but upgrading the stock brakes would be first on my list. if you still have the original single master cylinder, id upgrade that to a modern dual reservior master cylinder.i converted to front disc brakes. although i drove the truck for a while with drum brakes and got used to them, leaving extra room..i was just worried about the unplanned event of a kid running into the street, or avoiding an accident caused by someone else.

i agree with rebuilding the stock suspension for the least expensive option to improve the steering.
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Old 10-20-2015, 08:28 PM   #7
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Re: Front end question

I got my truck in 1976 and drove it with stock front suspension and brakes, well maintained, until 1985 about 6K miles per year in town and camping in the boonies. I grew up driving AD and TF trucks, back then 1 car length per 10 mph was what we were told was safe. Today if you leave 6 car lengths on the highway it gets filled with 4 cars. MII, front clip swaps, aftermarket IFS are a slipperly slope to start down for a novice, lots of projects get sold in pieces when they get taken apart and the owner becomes overwhelmed. The stuff Ogre outlined have been outlined in build thread here and are not time consuming so junior can be on the road safely and then, after reading the build threads to determine time and cost constraints, decide if he wants to start upgrading.
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Old 10-20-2015, 08:30 PM   #8
Dan in Pasadena
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Re: Front end question

Quote:
Originally Posted by _Ogre View Post
.....pretty soon you have the truck in 1000 pieces all over the garage....
Yup, TOTALLY true. No need to ask me how I know, ha ha.

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Old 10-20-2015, 08:46 PM   #9
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Re: Front end question

i'm with the rest, leave a comfortable distance and it gets filled right away. lets face it, even the best young guys will have others in the truck sooner or later,not to mention other distractions like cell phones etc. drum brakes and standard steering isn't gonna cut it. just my opinion though. whatever you do, think seriously about a brake upgrade, at LEAST a dual system. I guess the thing to do is a cost analysis for rebuilding what you have compared to the cost of changing to a modern system for steering and brakes. what can you do yourself, properly, and what needs to be farmed out. accidents are called accidents for a reason, unpredicted but reality.
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Old 10-20-2015, 11:12 PM   #10
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Re: Front end question

Dan, looks about right to me. Is there an issue?
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Old 10-20-2015, 11:28 PM   #11
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Re: Front end question

here's where I'm at:
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Old 10-20-2015, 11:42 PM   #12
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Re: Front end question

India Ivory and Matador Red.

oh yeah:
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Old 10-20-2015, 11:51 PM   #13
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Re: Front end question

Lookit the SEG on this kid! He knows who's going to own and drive it.
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Old 10-20-2015, 11:52 PM   #14
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Re: Front end question

threadjack complete. I'll do a build thread one of these days.
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Old 10-21-2015, 09:19 AM   #15
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Re: Front end question

I am currently working on getting my old 50 back on the road. The owner gave me all new wheel cylinders, pads, springs and bearings. New master cylinder and brake lines along with other things. So I decided to bring it back to life using the new parts I already had vs spending a bunch of money on swapping over to discs.

If I didn't already have the parts, I would have done at least a front disc and master swap and I recommend you to do the same.
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Old 10-21-2015, 10:17 AM   #16
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Re: Front end question

I would install a front sway bar and replace the front tie rod end with a larger diameter part. Ensure the steering box is tight (most are not after this many years) and as mentioned, check king pins and repair if excess play is found.

I'm definitely from a different generation. You know, Way Back When, when the driver was expected to be smart enough and able enough to drive the vehicle safely. IMO learning in the truck before restoration but with the front end in safe mechanical condition is a good way to 1) become a better driver before moving into a modern car or modern suspension, and 2) hopefully get all the little "Whoops!" es out of the way before any serious effort is invested in the truck.
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