Nobody Has Used This Suspension Since 1914… So We Put It on a RAT ROD

Añadido: 2026-06-02

[00:00:00]Who's got two thumbs and got into the high class trash build off for 2027?

[00:00:05]This guy.

[00:00:07]Who's got two thumbs and feels like they're probably in over their head with what they want to build?

[00:00:12]Yeah.

[00:00:14]This guy.

[00:00:15]One of the hardest parts about getting used to filming this kind of stuff isn't really talking to the camera.

[00:00:20]It's trying to find a good shot inside the shop that doesn't show all of the 90s Snap-on calendars.

[00:00:26]You know the kind that I'm talking about.

[00:00:29]Where parts are like bolted on.

[00:00:32]Yeah, so I may have to do some cleaning before I actually do some building. Now, what I appreciate about the high class trash build off is the whole point of this was having a year and a half to start pushing boundaries, trying something new, getting outside your comfort zone. And this is a stretch, at least for me. I built one, built the Studebaker, but this is a whole new ball game.

[00:00:55]>> [music] [music] [music] [music] >> You think building a rat rod sounds fun?

[00:01:26]It is.

[00:01:27]If you do it the easy way.

[00:01:29]Let me show you how to do it the hard way. Let's say a friend of yours says, "Hey, there's a rat rod build off.

[00:01:37]You should try and apply for it."

[00:01:39]And you say, "Gosh, that seems like a great idea."

[00:01:44]What you should definitely do is try and reimagine a suspension system or design that was done in like the 1910s or 20s and apply that to a modern style rat rod.

[00:01:56]American under slung built cars in the teens and twenties and they ran with an axle under your leaf springs while everything is up over the frame rails.

[00:02:06]I can't imagine why they went away from it.

[00:02:08]Our start is nothing glorious.

[00:02:11]64 Ford front axle.

[00:02:13]I think I picked this up for 40 or 50 bucks like 2 years ago.

[00:02:17]And I see we've got something that's going to need a little bit of attention there, but minor details.

[00:02:24]I've already looked into a disc brake conversion kit. Those are not near as cheap as they used to be.

[00:02:29]Frame rail wise, square tubing.

[00:02:33]I like it. It's easy to work with.

[00:02:35]Really all I've ever known. Rocking the old Minneapolis-Moline grill surround here.

[00:02:40]And I think that's actually going to be right size, right shape for what we're going for here.

[00:02:46]If you'd like to see the magic that goes into figuring out an underslung front suspension, don't watch because this is not magical.

[00:02:53]It's painful. Now, if you're a fan of pain, freak, go ahead and stick around. Let's see if we can work through this. All right.

[00:03:01]Center of our hub is at 14 in.

[00:03:05]This is the distance between the bottom of the axle and the ground here. We know our axle thickness is 2.75 in.

[00:03:13]Our frame thickness is actually 3 in.

[00:03:17]Within this 8 and a quarter here is all going to depend on >> [snorts] >> our leaf spring arch.

[00:03:25]Okay?

[00:03:26]Our shackle and our hanger lengths is going to give us a higher rise and then a lower frame.

[00:03:33]So, if I go with a shorter hanger and shackle setup, what it's going to do is it's going to pull the frame closer to the bottom side of this axle.

[00:03:41]And if I extend these, it's going to give me more space here for travel, but also get me closer to the ground.

[00:03:48]Ideally, I would like like try and keep 4 in off the ground.

[00:03:54]We've got 4 and 1/4 to play with here between the bottom of the axle and where the bottom of the frame can be.

[00:04:01]Frame is, again, 3 in thick. That's what we're going to leave us with about an inch and a quarter worth of play. The next thought would be to come in here and round our frame out maybe by 3/4 of an inch to maybe a whole inch.

[00:04:22]Now, we can obviously come out here and put a plate all the way around to make it a little bit stronger on the inside, the outside, both sides, whatever we need to do.

[00:04:32]But, I think that's going to be our move right there.

[00:04:37]Magical? No. Painful?

[00:04:39]Absolutely.

[00:04:41]Will it be cool?

[00:04:44]Maybe.

[00:04:45]How do you plan to measure the frame off the ground?

[00:04:48]Well, let me give you the ultimate measuring tool.

[00:04:52]Look, I realize it's not a real baffle, but Keystone Light is also cheap and also terrible. So, it's basically a Busch Light. So, we have a little under a year and I currently have a pile of parts that equal 4 and 1/2 lb worth of sheet metal.

[00:05:08]Let's take a look and see what we start with. This is the entire car.

[00:05:13]Windshield frame, cowl top, half of a side in there, one full side, and um the back of a T-bucket. You may say to yourself, now why would you start with something that's basically nothing? And the answer is I'm kind of an idiot.

[00:05:34]But, in my defense, I'm a committed idiot. Couple guys already have a pretty good head start and they've been hammering on it and good for them.

[00:05:41]Life circumstances has kind of been a little difficult lately, so we're just now getting started.

[00:05:46]Going to have to keep the pedal down here real soon.

[00:05:49]And my wallet's going to hate me after this.

[00:05:52]But, it's all cool.

[00:05:54]Or something like that. Thankfully, I kept the old white wall tires, the Flex Seal white wall tires, from the Studebaker build, and these are the perfect height for putting the front axle in as a roller.

[00:06:08]So, if my wife is watching, all that that I hold on to all the time, came in handy for once.

[00:06:15]As things progress here, keep video updates, and hopefully a window AC, because it's about 92 in the shop right now, and 98 outside.

[00:06:27]And I'm kind of fat and hairy.

[00:06:28]I would prefer to have nice cool air to finish this thing. Now, I sound confident talking about this.

[00:06:34]I am confidently not confident that this is going to work. But, it's part of the fun, I guess.

[00:06:41]It's part of the fun last time.

[00:06:42]Try stuff, weld it, cut it apart, weld it again, realize you didn't measure twice.

[00:06:49]You didn't even measure once.

[00:06:51]Then you find out how to put it together. So, it's a learning process. I guess that is part of the fun. It's part of the reward for me, at least.

[00:06:58]What I like to do when I start building is starting with a front stub or starting at the front of the frame and working my way back. I know my overall length from center of bolt to center of bolt on the leaf spring.

[00:07:10]I'm at 25 and a quarter on that. So, if we call it 25, we're going to go 12 and 1/2. Now, that'll give me a good visual for where my frame has to sit forward of the axle.

[00:07:21]It'll give me an idea of how far out I need to put my grill shell.

[00:07:28]I would like this to look a little bit snazzier. So, in an effort to keep this thing looking halfway decent, we're going to keep a hot hot list of measurements and refer back to them, probably way more than I'd like to admit. Nothing revolutionary on this video. Not much to watch work. Waiting on parts.

[00:07:47]Should have them tomorrow or the next day, but appreciate you guys sticking around. Oh, and one last thing. Grandma, if you're watching, I'll be over at like 7:30, 8:00 for those cookies.