Gasser frame for AMT 57 chevy

[willys07]

I would like to put a different frame under my 57 Chevy. Anybody else done this? I am wanting to build a gasser but with different type of frontend.

[MeatMan]

I don't know about a different front end, but I've been researching gasser suspension setups and there are a lot of 1:1 tri-five gasser stories out there.

I don't really think they change the frame rails though. Why do you feel the need to do that?

[Mark]

Prior to 1967, NHRA Gas Class rules required at least part of an automotive frame.  Fully fabricated frames weren't allowed.  Someone building a 1:1 Chevy for Gas back then would have kept the stock frame.  If they wanted to get rid of the stock front suspension (not all of them did), they'd often cut the frame roughly even with the firewall and replace the forward section with rectangular tubing.  The new rails would be parallel all the way forward.  Crossmembers would be dictated by the design of the replacement suspension.  A single cross-spring would require one to locate the spring, while a parallel-leaf setup wouldn't need one like that.  Do an online search, find the setup you'd like to use, and use pictures of cars with that setup as a guide in setting up your car.

[Snake45]

Mark is right.

The AMT '55 Nomad (and some issued of their '55 Belair 2DS) come with a transverse spring dropped front axle gasser setup.

I believe at least some of the Revell '57 Nomads (maybe the Belair HTs, too) had a dual-spring gasser setup.

The MPC flip-front '57 Chev has a gasser front end too, but I don't think the frame is stock.

Edited August 8, 2016 by Snake45

[High octane]

The MPC '57 Chevy and '53 Ford pickup kits had a really nice gasser frame, as I built the '57 Chevy and used the same frame on my '46 Chevy gasser.

[Mark]

The Revell Nomad (the everything-opening, nothing-fitting one) has a parallel-leaf setup, as do more recent issues of the opening-doors hardtop and also the 1/25 scale '53-'54 Chevies (sedan delivery and two-door sedan).  Those setups are all pretty similar, but not really that good.  The axle is on the heavy side, springs are molded as a unit with the axle...looks more like a trailer axle IMHO. 

The MPC '57 (and '53 Ford pickup; same chassis in both!) has what looks like a stretched Willys frame.  The axle is on the weak side, a bit thin, and again has the springs molded as a unit.

[Longbox55]

Mark is right.

The AMT '55 Nomad (and some issued of their '55 Belair 2DS) come with a transverse spring dropped front axle gasser setup.

I believe at least some of the Revell '57 Nomads (maybe the Belair HTs, too) had a dual-spring gasser setup.

The MPC flip-front '57 Chev has a gasser front end too, but I don't think the frame is stock.

That is correct about the Revell '57 Nomad and Bel Air hardtop. I have never seen an issue of either kit that didn't include the gasser straight axle. The Revell '53/'54 Sedan and Sedan Delivery (almost always mislabeled on the box as a "panel" ), also have a virtually identical axle, with the wheel mounting being the only difference.

You're also correct about the MPC flipnose kit. IIRC, I think the frame in that kit is the same one shared with the '53 Ford pickup flipnose and the Datsun pickup flipnose kits.

[Mark]

Not to stray too far here, but the Datsun pickup gasser kits use the stock Datsun frame, stock front suspension included.

The first issue Revell '57 Chevy ('63-'67) didn't have the straight axle.  Around 1968, Revell made a number of changes to that kit, one of which was to add that axle.

The MPC '57 Chevy shown above is a very nice build.  I've been wanting to whip one of those together, also one of the '53 Ford flipnose pickups.  I've got a pickup in primer, should get that one done.

[Longbox55]

I stand corrected, Mark. I thought I remembered reading once that the Datsun used the same chassis. The only one of those MPC flipnose kits I have is the '57, and I have seen the Ford. Same goes for the Revell kits, my experience with them is primarily with the '70s and newer issues.

[Ace-Garageguy]

Read Mark's post above. It's absolutely correct as far as real cars go. 

Real cars that were gasserized routinely only had the independent suspension parts removed and a crossmember fitted if the new straight axle was set up with a transverse spring, as noted. To get the ride height correct with this setup, it was often necessary to use a dropped front axle, as the new crossmember could end up under the engine, and that makes things trickier.

Parallel quarter-elliptics are much more common on a gasser, and again, only require the independent suspension parts to be removed, along with the associated bracketry. New brackets for the spring shackle attachments are welded to the rails.

It's not unusual to see frame rails that have had the front spring pockets removed and fabbed over with steel plate, and it's also not unusual to see a car that's had frame rails fabbed from the firewall forward.

There's a lot of measuring and forethought that goes into making a right-looking gasser...real OR model.