Wop-sided Chassis Help

[Pharozen]

no need to attempt to clarify, you posted the frame guy knew the rear rails were not even but he went ahead and installed the frame in the car. He isn't as frame guy, a frame guy would have straightened the frame or if he doesn't have the equipment he would have sent it out to get straightened. Or he wouldn't so the job. It must be the first car he has worked on but then after all the posts you don't see a problem letting him shim the gap and drill new holes in the bumper to try to make the bumper straight on the two uneven rear rails. You should make a video of that so I can have a good laugh.....

As I process through your typos, broken English, and bad grammar, I believe you're implying that my frame/body guy is an amateur and overall my project is botched! Believe it or not, I sensed your negativity and pessimism in your very first post. Perhaps it's jealousy or maybe it goes back to your home-training (or the lack thereof) because some people find it absolutely impossible to say something positive or constructive.
I prefaced my original post by saying that I was in a predicament with my frame and that I was reaching out for advice. I also stated that I was looking for a time and cost sensitive alternative that didn't actually involve straightening out my rear rail arm; but for some reason you're hell-bent on reminding me of how bad off I am. Everyone that responded was solution-oriented except you.
I have the utmost confidence in my guy and regardless of WHEN he realized the frame was warped, he didn't bring it to my attention until we ran into issues with some of the after market modifications (that you obviously hate so much). So basically I'm in this predicament now, and I can't rewind time. I can only impact what happens from this point forward. My only concern now is minimizing waste and recovering the service without sacrificing drive-ability, tire thread and overall performance.
So I probably won't be making any videos for you to laugh at, but you have obviously been following my build so stay tuned....if your hate and jealousy is untamed now over an 1 inch offset in my rear rail arms, just keep trolling me....I have a lot more in store.

 

[Pharozen]

Hey Donovan, my understanding was; the "low side" is the side that got warped to the incorrect lowered height, so the recommendation was to shim the lower side to raise it up. Furthermore, he also stated that this would require progressively decreasing the height of the bushing on the passenger side so there won't be any unevenness. If there is any inconsistency or confusion about anything I said, more than likely I'm not repeating the information as it was given to me. As far as the bumper plate issue, we measured an inch from the original hole on the bumper plate and it should be enough room to create a hole one inch higher. If not, he says that they are completely capable of duplicating a new plate that will level the bumper out after the mushing modification process. See here's the deal, we expected some issues at the beginning of this build because we were doing a frame off restoration with a frame that was heavily reinforced. And there has been ZERO major issues thus far in this project and to be quite frank, I don't even count this as an major/show-stopping issue. But I can be very meticulous sometimes and the inch difference is just driving me crazy. But I'm confident that the issue will be resolved with the shimming process.
But speaking of show-stopping....you have an OUTSTANDING project on your hands. I think I'm partial to Project Olds Cool, but the Juggernaut is definitely a classic. I clicked on the link you posted and I think you scored a solid score for only $800! Is that an Olds 403 in the picture you posted on the thread?

 

[565bbchevy]

I think if you had started out with a perfectly straight frame but there were some issues with the body not sitting correctly and shims would be were required to even the gaps then to me that would be less of an issue but an inch difference on the frame makes me think the distance for adjustment would go forward of the rear suspension which would make me wonder if even those mounting points could be tweaked out of spec and possibly cause binding issues, just my thoughts.

 

[drogg1]

As I process through your typos, broken English, and bad grammar, I believe you're implying that my frame/body guy is an amateur and overall my project is botched! Believe it or not, I sensed your negativity and pessimism in your very first post. Perhaps it's jealousy or maybe it goes back to your home-training (or the lack thereof) because some people find it absolutely impossible to say something positive or constructive.
I prefaced my original post by saying that I was in a predicament with my frame and that I was reaching out for advice. I also stated that I was looking for a time and cost sensitive alternative that didn't actually involve straightening out my rear rail arm; but for some reason you're hell-bent on reminding me of how bad off I am. Everyone that responded was solution-oriented except you.
I have the utmost confidence in my guy and regardless of WHEN he realized the frame was warped, he didn't bring it to my attention until we ran into issues with some of the after market modifications (that you obviously hate so much). So basically I'm in this predicament now, and I can't rewind time. I can only impact what happens from this point forward. My only concern now is minimizing waste and recovering the service without sacrificing drive-ability, tire thread and overall performance.
So I probably won't be making any videos for you to laugh at, but you have obviously been following my build so stay tuned....if your hate and jealousy is untamed now over an 1 inch offset in my rear rail arms, just keep trolling me....I have a lot more in store.

Pharozen, please try to be patient with pontiacgp. He is probably the single most helpful member of this forum and I have seen him go out of his way countless times to help people through issues big and small. While he may be a little rude at times, he always seems to mean well.

As to your predicament, I think you are on the right course with having your body guy address the issue. Without seeing the car in person or in pictures, it is tough for any of us to give you real solid advice or comment on what will/will not work to correct this problem.

 

[Pharozen]

Pharozen, please try to be patient with pontiacgp. He is probably the single most helpful member of this forum and I have seen him go out of his way countless times to help people through issues big and small. While he may be a little rude at times, he always seems to mean well.

As to your predicament, I think you are on the right course with having your body guy address the issue. Without seeing the car in person or in pictures, it is tough for any of us to give you real solid advice or comment on what will/will not work to correct this problem.

Good advice. Thankyou.

 

[Pharozen]

I think if you had started out with a perfectly straight frame but there were some issues with the body not sitting correctly and shims would be were required to even the gaps then to me that would be less of an issue but an inch difference on the frame makes me think the distance for adjustment would go forward of the rear suspension which would make me wonder if even those mounting points could be tweaked out of spec and possibly cause binding issues, just my thoughts.

Thankyou. I'm going to explore every avenue. I appreciate your feedback.

 

[mr evil]

Pharozen, please try to be patient with pontiacgp. He is probably the single most helpful member of this forum and I have seen him go out of his way countless times to help people through issues big and small. While he may be a little rude at times, he always seems to mean well.

As to your predicament, I think you are on the right course with having your body guy address the issue. Without seeing the car in person or in pictures, it is tough for any of us to give you real solid advice or comment on what will/will not work to correct this problem.

I'll second this, I'm betting Steve is just as frustrated that it got to this point as you are, I know I am.

One thing that came to mind.....I assume the body bushing bolts are in and tightened? Is there any possibility at all that the passenger side rear bolts are too long, thereby pushing the body up as they were tightened?

 

[565bbchevy]

Although I can not speak for pontiacgp I think he is trying to push the fact that there is only one correct way to fix the frame, while straightening the frame may not be the most "cost efficient and time sensitive option" you have to understand that shims added to a warped frame is only a band-aid fix and doesn't correct anything along with adding the possibility of issues with suspension alignment, tracking or binding, having to add a spacer on one spring to even out ride height and you might have to lower one side of the exhaust to fit and you could also possibly see an inch more of the frame on a side view of the car and other possible issues you find out along the way.

 

[Pharozen]

Although I can not speak for pontiacgp I think he is trying to push the fact that there is only one correct way to fix the frame, while straightening the frame may not be the most "cost efficient and time sensitive option" you have to understand that shims added to a warped frame is only a band-aid fix and doesn't correct anything along with adding the possibility of issues with suspension alignment, tracking or binding, having to add a spacer on one spring to even out ride height and you might have to lower one side of the exhaust to fit and you could also possibly see an inch more of the frame on a side view of the car and other possible issues you find out along the way.

Well, you see that's the thing. We all know he's right and I stated in my original post that straightening the frame is the BEST option but that's the beauty of a forum like this. It gives guys like us an opportunity to think outside the box, trouble-shoot, and build on other guys successes and failures. I value his experience and feedback, but presentation is everything. And I did not appreciate the pessimistic approach he had to everything he said. We put a lot of time, money, and love into these projects and sometimes negative criticism can strike a cord. I lean on a lot of guys on this forum like Donovan, and I appreciate everything you (565bbchevy), Mr. Evil, drogg1 and everybody else has to say to help me get closer to an alternative solution. Every piece of feedback I get from you guys, I run it by my guy so we can evaluate all factors. Thanks again for everything ya'll say.

 

[565bbchevy]

It seems clear as to which route you have chosen and in the end it is your car and you are the one who has to deal with any issues that are created by shimming a warped frame and hopefully my worries about doing this are worst case scenario, so good luck and I hope any possible issues you do have are easily resolved.