Hey Ax, you have probably posted this previously, what is your front bumper clearance? Joe

 

Do you mean using junkyard parts from an actual Mustang II? That suspension was junk when it came out on the Pinto (IMHO), and was never heavy enough for a truck. Today a bunch of manufacturers offer what they refer to as a MII "type" suspension, but about the only OEM parts used in it are the spindle uprights, wheel bearings, ball joints and steering box. all the rest is newly designed and manufactured parts and are a true full independent suspension, thank goodness! The new MII type suspension from established places like Heidts, Fatman, Morrison, etc are very good.

 

Using the standard measuring device: it will clear a beer can.

 

MII is probably the dominant IFS right now,(not sure) It can be a little pricey but is relatively easy to do. It has been discussed a lot in the past and people are probably getting tired of hearing about it.

 

Ask Niolin, he's done both on the same truck.

Seriously though, I think the IFS change outs have had their fair share of problems. But, I believe a lot of the problems may be attributable to what engine was being supported originally v the engine you expect it to carry now.

My buddy has the stock straight axle in his 56 with dropped spindles, disks and toyota steering. He is very happy withh the ride and will never convert to IFS. Good luck, Jag

 

OK, I guess it's a MII system being installed in the old conversions that I have looked at recently. So, yes I was asking about the kits available.

I did see a actual j/y front end put under a old F-1 several years ago. I'm not sure if the kits were out then. I had a F-3 1951 at the time, which I wound up selling to a nephew before doing anything more than rebuild an flathead V-8 for it. So I wasn't looking too closely at car parts on a "heavy duty" pickup.


Thanks,

David

 

A few years back, some hotrodders discovered you could remove the crossmember that contained the R&P steering and suspension fron a Mustang II (no one wanted to admit to using the Pinto or Bobcat version of the same assembly ) could be easily transplanted to the similar size and weight 20-30s era hot rod chassis and it would perform better than the old buggy spring beam axle. It became a popular conversion fad since they were cheap (the Fox chassis didn't hold up very well) and easy to find, and the lower arm and strut were nearly invisible under a fender, and resembled the locating split wishbones used with the beam axle. Soon others started cutting and stretching the crossmember to use it in later era rods. The manufacturers jumped on the bandwagon offering one piece stretched crossmembers. Then the problems started popping up with steering geometry and undersized springs, brakes and that dumb cheap lower control arm design when used on bigger, heavier and higher powered cars and trucks. The manufacturers refined their offerings, first with a tubular wishbone lower control arm replacement, longer inner steering rack extensions and bigger brakes.
Next the buyers wanted matching tubular upper control arms and better suspension geometry, coilovers and (dare I say it?) air bags, so the manufacturer's competing for their market share gave them what they wanted and improved on the design shortcomings at the same time, arriving at today's much improved IFS conversion offerings that have little in common with the original parent except the name of MII type IFS. There are still many examples of the early and intermediate setups out there and occasionally some small company will even offer the early type crossmembers that used the junkyard parts to uninformed low budget newbees.
Now you know the rest of the story!

 

I also wanted to stay close to original and not get to modern with my 55 so I added a 3" drop axle and reverse eye mains. Got a nice stance and rides well on the road, not sure by the time I finished that I saved a lot if I had gone to an IFS. All a matter of preference and dollars.

 

...Thanks Everyone...My Girl is not too keen about any type of an air-something-type-suspension...


...now I gotta decide if I want to keep the original axle & go with dropped spindles & reversed eye lowering springs..


---OR---


...go with a new 2"-3" drop axle & the reversed eye lowering springs to get
a good ride and go from there...


...my brain hurts...


...where are all my catalogs?????????

 

Check out here

www.industrialchassisinc.com

Stock or slammed. This will allow your truck to still be a truck and handle the baddest big block you can imagine. From full chassis for effies to front stubs or just a crossmember. 86 tp 96 Dakota based desined to fit the 61" ford track width and use all stock dodge geometery. No bump steer or roll.

Also they do drop axles, your stock one that is.

Garbz

 

...now I gotta decide if I want to keep the original axle & go with dropped spindles & reversed eye lowering springs..


PS. on a I beam axle there are no dropped spindles manufactured by anyone due to the King bolt stress involved.

Garbz

 

I see my name was mentioned here by RJ so I'll add a little to this post. I have a 56 and I could of went with the IFS but opted to stay with the straight axle. I love the nostalia look and with everyone going with Mustang and Volare front ends, I'm the different one. I did the disc conversion kid from Classic Performance Products which is a nice conversion kit. I also installed a Mo drop 3" drop axle which is a must if you want the front end in the weeds. I installed a reverse eye main spring which also lowered the front. I'm 6 3/4" from the ground to the front bumper on the front and still have my straight axle. I running some funky steering box, but the hot setup is the Toyota steering box which gives you power steering. I like the stiff steering and pumping my biceps up when turning into a parking spot. I really like the straight axles and the ease of working on them. They are very basic, which is nice. Good luck on your decision. Joe Hoffman in here used the Mid Fifties drop axle. He may add some info here too.

 

Check this out ---------- https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/6...g-ii-pics.html
A picture is worth a thousand words

 

...where do I get mo info on Mo Drop???


That name keeps getting mentioned on this thread...