Hey, down in front! Now it's easier than
ever for '53-56 F-100 owners to heed that request, thanks to new dropped
axles available from Mid Fifty F-100 Parts.
These before-and-after photos show what
a difference the swap can make. |
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Takin' the Low Road
Putting an F-100 in the Weeds Without IFS
By Damon Lee Photography: Damon Lee
Stance and attitude go hand in hand when you're talking
about hot rod pickups. Or, put another way, nothing says "farm truck"
like an F-100 with its nose in the air and a 6-inch gap between the fender
and top of the tire!
Achieving that perfect nose-down stance has been a quest
for Effie owners ever since the first '53s rolled down the assembly line.
Through the years rodders have used just about any means available to get
that desired look, from tweaked springs and stretched axles to all manner
of frame alterations and IFS conversions. You'd have thought that a simpler
solution would have come along by now, and as a matter of fact, it has.
We first got a peek at the new dropped axle available from
CPP last year at the F-100 Supernationals. Right away we could tell it was
a home-run product. After all, who could argue with the idea of lowering
your '53-56 F-100 3 or 4 inches simply by swapping axles? And this wasn't
some cobbled-together experiment of a part, either. With a 2-inch seamless
tubular steel center, CNC- machined billet steel ends, and laser-cut spring
pads, it appeared to be a stout piece that was engineered to do the job
properly. Home run, indeed!
The installation we're showing you here took place at Classic
Performance Products with Jim Ries' '56 F-100 acting as the guinea pig.
CPP supplied 2-inch dropped springs, as well as the 3-inch axle, making
for a pretty substantial drop. The springs also move the axle 1 1/2 inches
forward to better center the wheels in the fenders. In addition to the lowering,
the F-100 was treated to a CPP disc brake kit, new shocks, new shock mounts,
plus fresh bushings and hardware; pretty much a total frontal rehab.
For the most part, swapping axles is a fairly simple remove-and-replace
procedure that can be accomplished using basic tools (though more extreme
measures may be needed to disassemble the crusty old stuff). So with the
formalities out of the way, let's watch Alan Crouse put this Effie's nose
where it belongs--in the dirt!
Here's a look at the stock front underpinnings.
Just your basic, original, worn-out Ford stuff. Taking it all apart was
a pretty straightforward endeavor, so we won't bore you with the details.
Here are the primary parts that came from
CPP, including the dropped axle and a new pair of leaf springs designed
to provide an additional 2 inches of lowering. |