Sagging Springs

[62rebel]

i've noticed among my vast collection of AMT 49/50 ford models that a lot of them have developed a sagging butt. ditto for any other leaf sprung kits, by and large, due to the inherent weakness of a thin piece of styrene holding up a sometimes heavily modified and HEAVY kit. some have actually snapped the leaf off between the frame and the axle. in future, i believe that to counter this i will add "Air-Lift" bags to any leaf spring model; these are easily represented with a short piece of thick sprue carved to shape and cut to fit the exact space between the axle and frame. painted black and plumbed with wire it should look the part and keep the car's butt from dragging. as for my builtups, it'll be a matter of repairing each as time allows over the winter. one of these days i'll actually finish that 49 coupe i opened the doors and trunk on, and added full structural detail to. now it's just sitting in a box waiting for a better set of door hinges.....

[Brian_R]

If you glue the shocks in, they'll help keep it at ride height.

Brian

[FloridaBoy]

A quick and easy fix for a couple of bucks. If you have a decently stocked hobby shop closeby, go to the model railroad and supply section and purchase a piece of brass rod either the thinnest or next. measure and cut them to the length of the inside of the spring from mount to mount. If it takes more than one piece per side, then cut to fit.

Mix a very small amount of two part epoxy, and spot it on the unseen side of the spring and attach the brass rod to the glue spots and wait 20 minutes until dry and set. Then mix a second batch and coat the entire piece of brass with a thin layer of epoxy. It will turn out unbelievably strong.

I sectioned and opened the doors to a 50 Ford Convertible, and reinforced under the lower pan on the unseen inside with epoxy and brass rod. It is so strong i have dropped the car on the floor and no damage. I consider the existence of epoxy and brass rod a miracle discovery for us guys who open doors and do a lot of bodywork to cars.

Ken "FloridaBoy" Willaman

[62rebel]

i used straightened paper clips for re-rod when i cut open the roof on my mustang II kit to add t-tops. super glue and sheet styrene after that. as for gluing in the shocks on the 49-50 Fords, they don't add much strength because they only contact the very edge of the spring. i realize now that the despised MPC rear axle design and the old AMT chassis plate was a better design for durability if not for realism. my theory is now that any plain plastic axle needs some sort of support rod added to it for longevity if not the unforeseen mishap. a simple spacer/filler block can be added to any model and hidden fairly easily if necessary.

[JAFFA]

But if ya put the ride on bags nad open the trunk, ya'll have to add a compressorunit as well, unless ya put it somwhere else than the trunk.

[62rebel]

not necessarily; the original AirLift was available in simple "you fill it with a tire hose" style similar to HiJacker shocks. when you needed the lift, you added air, and when you didn't, you bled it off. of course you could put a compressor on it if you wanted, but racers were all about making the car lighter by taking stuff OFF. i used to remove the axle locator blocks that MPC and AMT used and now i regret it. i'll be painting those things black and leaving them right where they are!

[Billy Kingsley]

I built an AMT 49 Ford some time back (02ish I think) and originally had it sitting highly raked. When I took it to Toledo for the NNL it got damaged in the 11 hour ride...the rear suspension was one of several things that happened to it....I liked the look with the car dragging the tail and left it that way when I fixed it!!