55.2-59 what rear axle/suspension set up 55-59

[dsraven]

funny, my thoughts exactly. one man's junk is another man's gold. how many barn or field finds have elated the guys on here but obviously had no worth to the previous owners. just saying. be careful taking it apart and somebody will likely be happy to give you money for the rest AND take it away. maybe even just for the title and the body area directly surrounding the vin, so they can restore a whole new car around that part, lol.

[mick53]

Like stated above it has a lot to do with budget. I'm keeping my leaf springs. I went with a Frankland quick change (128 gear ratios) and a Bicknel torque arm for axle wrap and Gleason Torson diff. I will also probably run a pan hard bar. Wilwood 6/4 piston 12.88" brakes.

[dsraven]

wow, nice. keep those pics coming.
good to see your budget has some wiggle room. mine is tapped out right now. Christmas.

[hotrodj54]

the firebird isnt in real bad shape, just not my cup of tea. its missing a bunch of stuff but is very useable still. i wont destroy it when i take it apart. i will sell the shell when im done. i know those cars are still sought after ish... plus id like to recoup some of my money from the firebird....john

[dsraven]

Kinda sad but cool that your shop is so full of shiny stuff that your hoist became useless. Haha. Wish I had that problem. Mines full of non shiny but rusty old parts.

[87Lowrider]

I saw where you chose the Firebird setup but I wanted to add this for anyone else who may see it and want another option too.

Back in the day, the Jaguar IRS was an really popular option to give disc brakes and independent rear suspension to our trucks. Once I got my '57 in '89, I was hooked on the idea. So, I found one at a junk yard from a '73 XJ6 and removed it from the original housing to expose the components.

I bought a mounting system which included the cross member, radius rods and all the supportive parts as well as a rebuild kit that included U-Joints, rotors and brake pads. When I sent the truck to the body shop 7 years ago to take over my rebuild and do the fab work, here's what they did;


The install is solid with the reinforcement of the frame rails with 1/4" plate but the builder's concern is with the failure point possibilities (4 U-Joints on inner and outer axles) and setting it up due to shimming of the system and the time need to get it riding right. I've got about $3000 invested with the fabwork, IRS and build kit but I'm confident it will be worth it as it has a killer look and should ride great with the Camaro clip up front. If all else fails, I could always go with a straight axle setup like the 10 bolt that was in it or a 9" worse case.

The project has been stagnate for the past 5 years but has recently gotten hot and heavy.



I'm hoping to get it out for it's maiden voyage in the Spring. Cheers. / Ken