What can anyone tell me about any of the new boxed frames that are available for the 53-56 F100s?

I'm especially interested in the one built by No Limits, called their "Big 10"
No Limit Engineering's Store
The builder has some great videos on YouTube regarding its rigidity and he has really track tested it in his own truck.....but I just haven't been able to find much more online about it.

The one that I find to be used, seemingly more often, is by TCI.

Let me know your experiences & thoughts.
Thanks

 

I've heard good things about the TCI, and I haven't seen any builds on here with the no limit chassis. However, the first question everyone is going to want to ask you is 'Why do you think you need a new frame?' Is yours bent up or not structurally sound? Old frames are pretty easy to come by and not usually too expensive. Are you looking for lots of HP/Torque? I've seen plenty of people box their stock ones up fairly easily. These old frames are tough, and can handle more power than you'd think. Don't get me wrong, the idea of a whole new chassis with shiny, new parts makes me all sorts of happy inside, but these are just some questions that are going to pop up around here.

 

Thanks for asking.

The way these trucks make us feel "Happy inside"; when we do the things we do to them is exactly why we do those things - RIGHT?
So setting my inner happy side aside....I hopefully won't be taking this truck into anymore cornfields in its life. We plan on driving in the city and on the sunny California freeways at 70+ mph.
So I need to cut into the original frame to put a front IFS, then weld in new engine mounts, fabricate a mount for the transmission plus replace the 4.11 rear end....For the time, effort and money -for my purpose- It seems that I could make a better riding, better handling and cleaner build by going with a new foundation.
I would think that by the time I retrofitted the stock frame there's really not that much left and my mods may not end up being as clean looking....which would make some of my happiness go away & that's no fun
I've read several articles where people have used TCI's chassis and found one guy in Europe that had received his No Limit chassis and was just un-crating it at the time of his post.
Rob at No Limit really seems to be thinking out of the box by not building the traditional "H" frame and I like what he's trying to do....but I can't find any third party endorsements ....and I'm not so sure I want to spend a bunch of money on something that is still an unknown to me - I'm not a very good gambler

 

Truck Tech is doing a "55" build with a new frame from jwgarage.com . Project: Basket Case F100 | Truck Tech | PowerNationTV - Full Episodes

 

I have seen the Truck Tech episode on their build... Here's the episode where they actually get Jim Weimer's "Rod Garage" chassis F100 Basket Case: Hot Rod Classic | Truck Tech | PowerNationTV - Full Episodes
In the episode they say that they spent about $6k for the chassis and suspension systems which seems to be a pretty good value compared to TCI or No Limit's pricing. My initial feeling on the Rod Garage chassis is that the chassis crossmembers appear to be maybe on the small side....especially if you were building a serious hot rod with putting out major torque. If anybody has some actual experience in this area, then please weigh in.

I haven't been able to find out when/if they are going to air any additional episodes of their '55 build but it would be good to see the outcome of their build as I'm sure it will be nice....despite the fact that they put an Ecoboost 6 cylinder in it

 

That frame is definitely out of the box...my question is what's the matter with the box? I spent years as a program manager and the first thing we learned was to "build to a specific requirement". I know that people usually make decisions with their heart and later justify them with their head but this is a little pricey for a whimsical purchase. For me there is no "requirement" that I can envision that would justify this chassis.
From a more pragmatic standpoint...have you gone down the "options" list and determined what the bottom line cost will be? A few charges caught my eye: $1,600 for powdercoating and $595.00 for "re"assembly...OUCH!

I saw this chassis on a slant cab truck that No Limit had at the Del Mar Goodguys show a few years ago...definitely a headturner when you could look through the body without inner fenders, floors, or bed wood; but once all that is in place it will look like just another F100 to the passerby.

 

I just stumbled upon this older discussion in this forum on chassis if anyone is interested.
Executive Summary: Two guys that bought TCI frames with seemed to have fairly good experiences although they discovered that there was some differences between the two frames from the same company.
https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/9...chassis-3.html

Here's another discussion on this forum on the TCI chassis & some discussion on the No Limit chassis as well.
https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/1...i-chassis.html

This was a really good discussion:
https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/1...-question.html

and a few more:
https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/1...questions.html

https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/1...-question.html

 

Here's a beautiful chassis with a new suspension that a member is building
https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/1...beautiful.html

Looking at how nice the chassis looks boxed compared to the original is just bonus points to me when compared to the stock frame. I believe that the stiffer frame is going to keep my doors & hood more square while allowing a modern day suspension to do what is demanded of it on today's roads & at today's speeds.

This frame looks like a sculpture with that kugel IRS rearend.

 

I'm just collecting data tonight and posting it here for anyone that cares to review.
Rob McGregor from No Limit posted some videos on Youtube that I especially like...primarily because I haven't seen a single chassis manufacturer even remotely try to explain "Why" their chassis is better.

Weeks ago I watched these videos and I have lost the one that I wanted to start with where Rob tested the stock 53-56 F100 frame in the same manner that he tests the "Modified (Boxed & cross supported) Stock F100 Chassis" & the same test that he does on his "Big 10 Chassis".
When tested in the manner Rob employs, the stock F100 chassis flexed, if I remember correctly, in excess of 16" (the 100lb bucket hit the floor). This demonstration could only have me imagining what my sheet metal & cab deals with when the foundation they rest on is moving away from them all the time. (I'm going to call No Limit to see if they can tell me where I can find that video because it was really surprising).

So here's the video on testing a
Here's the video testing the
Here's Rob doing an

 

Here is a pic of my home built chassis. I pieced this together using TCI chassis as reference. It is a stock 48 chassis with Chassis Engineering cross member, TCI leaf spring kit in rear, Mustang brake booster kit, bought most suspension parts from Napa. I built this for a fraction of the cost as TCI.
May not be as nice as a store bought chassis but as said before once body is on you barely see it.

 

Sounds like you've already made your decision to spend lots of money.

What I have found, while playing with hot rods, is that there are some guys that like to spend small fortunes on "show" stuff. Sure, the stance could be achieved with an independent front suspension crossmember and a 4 link out back, and it could be stiffened considerably by boxing the frame, but it wouldn't have the status of being brand new and latest technology.

Be prepared, however, to take a huge hit on the truck if you ever decide to sell it, or hope that you find another guy with more money than he knows what to do with it.

 

I saw a 53 with the No limits frame and suspension this weekend and I don't know if it was just how he had it setup, but the stance made the truck look really nice. The guy said he spend $12,000 on the complete frame and suspension from them.

 

Hard to believe the original chassis lasted more than 60 years that way, huh?

 

IMHO That NLE chassis is so over engineered and overbuilt it is the textbook definitions of "a solution looking for a problem" I've seen bridges with less steel in them. That chassis would be considered overbuilt for a monster truck or the Baja 1000 off road race, yet the actual suspension is very low tech, look at all the body roll in the AX course (the Good Guys AX uses an extremely simplified and open course design, that truck would be eaten alive and spit out at an SCCA National AX event). Superior design for street use is too ludicrous to even discuss. Sorry I see nothing here but hype that justifies the design or cost of this chassis or would classify it as superior in design.
It seems you are sold on the hype and have extremely deep pockets, then nothing else that can be said will sway your decision, but you will not get a ringing endorsement from me.

 

The only thing that I have made my mind up on is that I want to start my build on a solid foundation and that I don't want my doors & hood coming out of alignment because my frame flex's on a hard turn while driving Ms. Daisy to the market.

The chassis that I need no longer needs to be able to drive across a plowed fields and deal with the rough roads were in abundance in the 1950's. Sure, stock frames have lasted the past 60 years...but dog crap wrapped in plastic bags lasts longer

I need a vehicle that can travel 70 mph in bumper to bumper traffic and be able to stop on a dime...not a corn field.

There are SO many reasons to consider a new chassis when starting a new build. I totally get that not everybody wants to, or even can, spend the money/time in getting a new chassis....because the stock one will absolutely work...it's just not what I want for me.

AXracer - what would you remove from the NLE chassis, or add to it, that you feel would make it better? IYHO, who is making a better performing chassis that is running it in competitive events? These tall truck cabs can put a lot of load when crammed into a tight corner & that's part of why I don't want to just box parts of the stock frame.
We live in a new world since 1954 and many things are "over engineered" when especially if compared to 60 years ago before CAD. I'm not sure that the NLE chassis is all that anybody may want it to be...but is TCI's, or anyone else's? I don't know of any other chassis builders that are running a truck in competition....so I haven't really been able to compare anyone else's chassis to NLE's on a road course. (Please share if you know of any comparisons)

We are at ground zero and can build it anyway that we want.....So, if Henry Ford himself was building a chassis for a '54 Ford today he would certainly not engineer it the same as they did 60 years ago.
Today, the driver would certainly have more protection from a side impact than just sheet metal while riding straddled over a tank of gas (This is one detail that the NLE chassis does that nobody else seemingly addresses). The standard "H" chassis design under our trucks provides little, if any, defense if any of us were ever t-boned by something as little as a Hyundai.

So I want to know: Now that it's nearly 2015, and we can computer engineer a chassis.... What should it look like? What shouldn't be on the TCI or NLE chassis? What should be done? What should it look like? What would be the ideal chassis & suspension?

The only thing, my "happy spot" does tell me that I am going to be buying a new chassis....if for no other reason that it makes me happy

What I don't know is why I should buy one chassis over another, or why I should avoid a particular chassis builder. We've all seen great builds and we've also seen the ones with bondo over rust......I want to be in the first category & not the second.