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The fixture (arrow A) temporarily fastened to the forward roll cage uprights by u-bolts (arrow B) will allow the removal of the frame from the kick-up forward, yet the relationship of the remaining cage structure to the chassis jig will remain unaltered.
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The hood and the front axle are temporarily mocked up to aid in the placement of a fixture on the front of the chassis jig. This fixture will locate a new front spring perch mount. On top of the hood are copies of old magazine photos which were helpful in this process.
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Here, I'm sandblasting off the paint in the areas where the frame rails will be torched off.
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Here, I'm torching off the frame rails. The temporary fixture remains fastened to the forward cage uprights during the entire process.
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The chassis is back on the jig. The frame rails from the kick-up forward have been removed. A couple of important points to note in this photo are the temporary fixture holding the forward cage uprights and the spring perch fixture at the front of the jig.
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The completed frame rails, front crossmember and spring perch mount. Gone is that temporary fixture which served its purpose well.
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The body temporarily mounted back on the frame. An engine and transmission are mocked up to determine the location of the transmission crossmember. The fore and aft position of the engine and transmission was found by bolting the hood to the body then centering the injector stacks under the cutout in the hood.
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The body on the rotisserie. Plenty of temporary cross-bracing has been added to keep the body from racking out of shape. The rockers are rusted out and will be replaced. Also needing attention are uncle Henry's original wooden door posts supporting the hinges.
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The car was originally constructed with a 51 Mercury rear end with long ladder bars inside the frame extending to under the front roll cage uprights. With the weight bias already being 2/3 on the rear wheels, hence the spectacular wheelstands. Around 1965 the 51 Merc rear was replaced with this Chrysler 8 3/4 with shorter outboard installed ladder bars and the capability of changing the wheelbase. We will retain the 8 3/4 rear and the adjustable wheelbase but return to pre 1965 inside the frame ladder bars. Compromising on the length.
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Again, photos from old magazines were scaled to determine the mounting point of the front axle radius rod brackets on the frame. After this mock-up the final tig welding of the front axle was completed by Mike Edwards. Also seen in this photo is the motor plate with mounting tabs and holes complete but not yet cut to final shape.
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