Front frame rail complete assembly fixture

[Ridge Runner 1,220]

I have a 67 front clip to build .I built this assembly fixture a few years ago .It will fit from 65 -70 frame rails .The rail assemblies are the full Dynacorn rails and bolt into the fixture through the steering box mounting holes and the idler mounting holes .It also bolts through the hood hinge mounting holes to hold everything square and solid .I will assemble the whole front clip ,including the fire wall ,radiator support with the floor supports .I can leave the fixture bolted to the front clip and fit the whole thing still bolted to the fixture into the body .

 

[Wycked69 20]

I like it !.

Nice fixture Ridge. I especially like the set up at the hood hinge sections. The whole fixture is well thought out

[RPM 1,278]

Cool beans! I love this kind of stuff. So...why didn't I get a look see at this on any of my visits???

[Ridge Runner 1,220]

I just got the car to build for a friend ,the fixture i have had behind the shop because i don't use it that often .

I suppose i should at least paint it some day . 

[Ridge Runner 1,220]

I want to make a fixture for the back full floor and frame assembly ,maybe make the front fixture bolt to the back half .

I have plans of building a complete 69 some day ,maybe a convert .

[RPM 1,278]

I think that would be a heck of fixture to have. Use them independent or for a complete car. Ingenious!

[Ridge Runner 1,220]

I got the whole front clip assembled today .

The front cross member didn't have the nut for the hood latch to bolt to so i had to weld one in ,I drilled it out for plug welds and welded it in place 

 

 

 

 

 

The radiator support is next ,it fit very well but the two front fender mounting holes are a bit off but not a problem .I spot welded it in place where i could and plug welded it the rest of the way.

 

 

 

 

[Ridge Runner 1,220]

Stupid computer ,it has shut down on me 3 times now ..lets try this again !!

The radiator support welded in place 

 

 

Well ..aint gonna happen ,i will try again later .

[RPM 1,278]

Looking good!

[Ridge Runner 1,220]

The radius rod brackets were next ,i drilled them for plug welds and welded them in place 

The floor supports were next ,i drilled them for plug welds and welded them in place .

Transmission mount is next ,drilled it for plug welds and clamped it in and welded it .

Stood it all up on its end and welded what i could ,the rest will be finished welded when it is all on the rotisserie .

The fire wall was next ..wait a minuet ..I am not ready for the fire wall .Oh well i just clamped it in place any way . I want to install the torque boxes first and i forgot to buy them ..

[Rcodenewf 44]

_{Well....you're just cookin' there Ridge. Excellent work ! Can't wait to see this come together.}

 

_{Love that fixture.}

 

_{Did you use the Ford diagram on the net to get the measurements for your fixture?}

 

_{Keep it coming....John}

[Ridge Runner 1,220]

I used the Ford Mustang in my shop LOL ,it has never been wrecked or even damaged .

[latoracing 257]

That looks like fun Ridge, very nice work. I haven't had the opportunity to attempt an entire front end replacement (yet).

 

I would think that installing the torque boxes before installing the clip  could make the job much more difficult. With that many contact areas, sliding it back / up would be difficult. Will be interested to see how that portion turns out.

[Ridge Runner 1,220]

I was thinking about that but the front of the car being open makes it very flexible so it spreads apart very easy.I have done a few 65 -66 with out the torque boxes installed and the front section is not real solid so it is hard to keep level .i am hopping the torque boxes installed will give a stiffer clamping area  and help keep things in line .You would only be looking at the fire wall to mount to and the torque boxes installed will tie you into the rockers at the same time .

[latoracing 257]

I can see your point of not having the firewall in place, it would be a wet noodle with no floor pan to boot.

 

Might have to make a few brackets for my fixture (using the convertible for referance) before it comes off. Might be of use for a scenario like yours if / when the need arises.   

[Rcodenewf 44]

I used the Ford Mustang in my shop LOL ,it has never been wrecked or even damaged .

 

:)  That'll work.

 

 

[Ridge Runner 1,220]

My torque boxes made it in .I have a few plug welds to do and a little grinding and i can install them .

I had to remove the front clip from the fixture to weld in the torque boxes .the fixture was so tight i had to knock it loose with a rubber hammer .I left the hood hinge bar in place and bolted in the under frame brace just to make sure it stays as welded ,not a problem though because this thing is solid .

[Ridge Runner 1,220]

I ground the welds down that needed to be ground so my torque boxes would fit with out intereferance 

.I drilled the torque boxes for plug welds and clamped them in place .i plug welded them to the end of the frame rails where they will be under the fire wall and the under side of the rails ,then i welded them in the front down the rail. They fit very well .

Then i ground the welds where the fire wall would set against the torque boxes and primed the inside and the top of the boxes .

Next i set the fire wall in place and clamped it .I marked the frame rail and the inner fender aprons where they will be welded and removed the fire wall and drilled the plugs and clamped it back in place 

I welded the plugs and ground them smooth .The fire wall is finished .

I stood the front clip on its end and ground the welds at the bottom of the torque boxes and the front clip is done ,complete with torque boxes and fire wall . The next step will be the complete front door post from the rockers to the roof ,i just happen to have  a set of Dynacorn post left over from one of my fast back conversions that didn't need them 

 

The finished front clip.

 

[RPM 1,278]

Very nice! I hope your customers appreciate the level of your work.

[Ash 145]

Awesome work, Ridge. You're very much the perfectionist with the minor details. Very nice!

 

Out of curiosity, your desire to build a car from scratch got me intrigued. Following this build method, what do you think the cost comparison would be between you building a shell from scratch and buying a complete Dynacorn shell? I follow another forum where I've seen a new Dynacorn 67 body go into their shop and all the issues with it were pointed out. Weeks of work were required to re-correct, surely these issues would not arise if you were starting from scratch. This alone would have to offset some of the cost I would think?.

[Ridge Runner 1,220]

I priced a 69 from scratch a couple of years ago and it was about $8,000 for all the metal ,but i would have to build a fixture for the rear half and that would be around $1000. .Still well worth it seeing a body is something like $18,000 now .The sheet metal would probably be at least $9,000 now .

We just had a 69 Dynacorn body here and the fit was not good ,they don't take much time aligning the panels .It would have been good if they watch the alignment points better .

[Ash 145]

That's not bad, Ridge. Let's say 10k plus your own labour. You're way ahead than forking out $18k for a Dynacorn body then still having to redo their faults.

 

Here's the thread I mentioned. I love watching Rusty and his son Brian progress through their builds. They do fantastic work.

 

http://www.spiuserforum.com/forum/show-tell/restorations/1866-1967-dynacorn-fastback

[Ridge Runner 1,220]

Rusty and Brian are about the best i have seen 

[Ridge Runner 1,220]

I suppose this thread should be moved to the projects thread ..who do we know with the magic buttons to do this ?

 

I moved the body into my car port and set it up on jack stands .

one on each side of the front of the rockers ,one under each rear torque box and one at the end of each rear frame rail .

 

I leveled it across the front of the rockers and down the rockers and across the rear frame rails inside the trunk 

I have to remove the new floor that someone had started to weld in ,even though they were no where ready for it .

I have to replace both front door post from the rockers all the way up to the roof because of rot and shoddy repairs ,they are packed full of bondo .I have a new set of Dynacorn posts left over from a coupe to fast back conversion that did not need them . I first need to X brace the roof to the rockers and from side to side to keep the openings in proper place .I will do one post at a time .

The front clip is ready to go in as soon as the door posts are in place .

 

The cowl and the side panels are only clamped in place to make sure every thing fits to the front clip ,and it does very well . The cowl and side panels will also be welded in place in the body before the clip is fit and welded in place .

 

[Ash 145]

Ridge, you have a fantastic set-up there at home! Do you run a business from home or is it all just for your Mustang addiction? I work from home and have a decent set-up but I have nothing compared to you. Very impressive.