anybody thought of having a tilt front end

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crazybarracuda

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I have been playing around with the idea of making my 64 barracuda with a tilting front end on her. anyone every try such a thing and if so do you have any tips
 
i was thinking about just seeing what could be done since it would be fairly cheap just to test it out and see what sort of hinge setup i can do. i found a few resources but i guess its more trial and error. i think this is gonna be my summer project
 
well its looking like no one has. ill have to post up progress pics when i start working on this
 
I think it was Mopar Action that had an article on a Viperized Duster that did that. It was probably four or five years ago.
 
bpwordman and I will be doing this to his Javelin gasser. He just needs to figure out of he wants to do it in 'glas to lighten the front end, or if we're going to use the sheetmetal that's on it.
 
Couple other threads:
http://www.forabodiesonly.com/mopar/showthread.php?t=73515
http://www.forabodiesonly.com/mopar/showthread.php?t=67417

And a car that is on that one auction site right now:

tilt.jpg
 
okay i have a few questions. im betting that when i have the fenders lift tilt the bottoms will hit the inner fenders.

am i wrong when i say my 64 barracuda is a unibody? my concern is if i take and remove the inner fenders i will be taking away alot of structure up front and the front end will not be very solid.

one way to avoid taking out the inner fenders is to cut the bottom of the fenders and have them stay stationary
 
I have a 65 Barracuda and already have fiberglass fenders and a hood on it. I would love to have some ideas on how to do this! :cheers:
 
so is the 65 cuda considered a unibody car? the instructions showing how to do a tilt front end say not to try it on a unibody car since you have to add lots of stiffening structure to make up for the fenders and hood
 
Yes, a '65 Barracuda is a unibody car. You can't seperate the body from the frame (without drilling a lot of spot welding anyway). You will need to make up for where the core support and inner fenders were. Some roll cage tubing thoughtfully placed could do this.
 
wish4hemi said:
Yes, a '65 Barracuda is a unibody car. You can't seperate the body from the frame (without drilling a lot of spot welding anyway). You will need to make up for where the core support and inner fenders were. Some roll cage tubing thoughtfully placed could do this.
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so i am looking at having to add some major supports upfront to keep the car nice and solid. guess when i get my 65 in the garage ill start looking at the front end to see if i want to continue looking into this
 
There don't have to be a lot of supports, just well placed supports. Try to find some pictures of tube frame Mopar drag cars. That might give you some ideas.
 
I wouldn't recommend this if you don't have a lot of fabrication experience.


crazybarracuda said:
am i wrong when i say my 64 barracuda is a unibody? my concern is if i take and remove the inner fenders i will be taking away alot of structure up front and the front end will not be very solid.
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Pretty much all Mopar A, B & E-Bodies are uni-body construction, and Yes! once the inner fenders are removed, "ALL" it's support will be gone. The front sub frame is only spot welded to the front floor pans with a small area connected to the rockers, if you were to stand anywhere around the front floor or cowl area with the fenders and inner fenders removed, the car would fold without much effort.

crazybarracuda said:
so i am looking at having to add some major supports upfront to keep the car nice and solid. guess when i get my 65 in the garage ill start looking at the front end to see if i want to continue looking into this
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You would have to tie the front frame rails and the shock tower mounts into the strongest area of the firewall, mainly the outer edge closest to the door hinge area, and ad some supports to the inside to keep it from stressing and twisting, as well as installing some good weld in frame connectors with a cage. Also do not remove the inner fenders completely until it is all tied together, also a good idea to keep the fenders bolted up to keep everything aligned up properly while you're fabricating everything. Before you remove the fenders, tack weld an X brace in the hood opening to keep the fenders square when you take them off so you can build the frame work for the flip front end.

One more thing, if you have good inner fenders, drill the spot welds out and sell them to someone who needs them.
 
Yep.the front hole for the bumper was the hinge,a washer welded to the bracket kept it all in line and sloted so the rear bolt was there in case of an impact.The hood was able to be unpinned also for the hood -less look and the six pack scoop was mounted fom underneath rather than on top so all that was seen was the pop rivets,I never got around to makin it a shaker scoop. The car had subframe connectors and as you can see was caged
crazybarracuda said:
did the entire front end grilles and bumper tilt as one
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a few more questions. did you take off the inner fenders up front and did you add addition bracing up front
 
cage was later changed out for 8 point and front bars thru the firewall tyed into the shock towers
 
Blownfish said:
What would be the point of having a flip front end without removing the inner fenders?
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Exactly! Im doing a tilt front end for my 70 Dart. Do a google search and you will find some ideas/kits etc. Im also removing the inner fenders and installing snout bars that weld to my cage. It's mostly a weight savings thing for me,but also making room for my big block and custom headers. Ease of maintenance is also a bonus.

Mounting the tilt front end is easy. Build boxed mounts coming from the frame snouts and attach a hinge! Then use lightweight metal rod to attach the front end.Im going to use the fake bumper bolts as mount points by drilling them out and use real bumper bolts. To keep it from hitting the ground when up,a simple lightweight cable mounted to the hood and body will do.
 
i see your point on the inner fenders making it not worth having a tilt. wow i wasnt thinking when i typed that.

what do you mean with a box mount? I need to find a place to get some bars made up. my thought is i dont know i want to do a roll cage so how would i tie the snout bars to frame without a roll cage? sorry for all the questions i am waiting for my 65 cuda to get shipped to me so i dont have my car to look at and play with
 
Here's another pic to maybe give you some more ideas. Looks like a Challenger.

challengertilt.jpg
 
very good pic to help me. THANKS. whats the deal with the bottom of the fender sitting there
 
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