Hi guys,
I need some opinions on a matter, i disassembled my entire frame into pieces and boxed the frame rails in and now i am in the process of reassembling it and will need to make a decision soon on which way to go. The question is should i put the battery and master cylinder under the hood or under the cab? the dilemma i'm having is, i like them under the cab because it will keep that nostalgic look, but under the hood will be a lot easier to to work on. Keep in mind that the truck will not be original and will have some mods.

54fever
P.S
i will update my gallery when i get the frame back together.

 

Opinions are like....., everybody has one...Here's mine;

I too like as clean a firewall as possible, so I'll mount the battery under the cab (near the original (for 54) location) in one of those drop down boxes. However, I will run the master clinder from the firewall. Don't like the idea of a hole in the carpet or one of those remote fillers with a hose to the mstr...

There's my $.02 cdn.........

 

Mine will be under the cab so I can keep a cleaner engine compartment.

 

I've moved my MC to the firewall along with the hydraulic clutch so everything matched up and there was plenty of room for the brake booster. The battery will be placed out of sight tho I don't like the under the floor arrangement, don't want to have to cut the rug. I'll be using an Optima sealed battery both for it's smaller size and mounting versatility. It may end up in a box in a side panel behind the seat, or under a fender.

 

Under the floor is a PIA if you need to disconnect or replace it, especially if you have a carpeted floor. I added remote charging connections on the frame but I think on the next pickup I will look at locating the battery out of sight under a front fender or through a panel in the inner fender panel.

 

I agree that they are a pain in the a hole! under the floor. i know there are inner fender panels with the battery tray built into them and i would be ok with it but i'm having mixed feelings about the panels being fiberglass. Man! i feel like i gotta touch of Bipollar syndrome.

 

Since the Optima can be mounted in any position, even upside down, a slide in box to place it on it's side facing out could be fabbed to fit outside the frame rail under the cab. Fab a metal box and screw or weld it into the metal inner panel if you don't want FG.

 

I'm building a storage compartment under my seat for the battery (or 2) and the rest of my electronics. I'll then have my bench seat able to tilt back to give me access. I know this wont work for most of you, but I have room to do it with my extended cab.

I'm still trying to figure out how to access the master cylinder (its under the floor)

 

I have my brakes mounted on the firewall. Right now my battery is sitting in the passenger side floorboard (just temporary) I'm contemplating either hiding it in the bed inside of an old stlye ice chest or trying to fab something to fit up in the passenger side front fender.

Good luck on it
Bobby

 

I have my master cylinder/booster on the firewall and my battery somewhat recessed in the bed floor. Good luck with your decision.

hotrod48

 

there are many kits to choose from to put them in the floor,1954 there should be plenty of room,but you wont be able to get around the fact of a access panel in the floor/carpet.I ran a rod shop in chicago and did this job a few times,it always came out slick but figuring out the carpet is the hard part.

 

54- I recently put my MC on the firewall because of the convenience. It's a pain to get under the car and do work on the MC or replace fluid etc. Most cars have it on the firewall, so it doesn't seem bad. The clean firewall is always nice. I would discourage you from putting the battery under the hood. IMO, I think it looks bad and no matter what kind of battery tray you use or make, they don't look right. I'd make or get one of those drop down battery trays and keep it under the cab, out of sight. I also like the look of the hanging brake pedals versus the one coming up out of the floor. Good luck.

 

If I was looking to put it under the floor with a stock type cover, I'd look at moving it under the pass seat so that the cover was able to be accessed by moving the seat full forwards rather than under the passenger's feet. At least that way you don't need a hole in the carpet right where it is most obvious. Batteries don't require regular checking and maintainance like they did 50 years ago.

 

I was going to mount mine under the floor but I am leaning toward putting it on the firewall under the hood on the passenger side. It will be easy to access there and my hood will be down most of the time anyway since it will be an occasional driver instead of a show truck. If you plan to leave the hood open a lot I could understand putting it out of sight...

Vern

 

Since I use floor mats, I left my battery in the stock location. The floor mats cover the cover.