1952 Chrysler Crawler

[Efibroncoman]

Obviously not a Bronco or even a Ford... ok some parts maybe... But I sold my Bronco with the intent to build another one from the ground up that would fit my family. While searching for a body I could stretch I came across this body with title for $400. The rear fender shape grabbed my attention because they’d look great with some 42” tires stuffed in them. So I bought the body. It will be getting a full custom tube chassis, I’m cutting the roof off except for the windshield frame which I’m modifying to install flush mount glue in windshields. The drivetrain will consist of an L96 6.0L Chevy motor with an LSA supercharger that I have ported out to accept a 102mm throttle body. Still need to rebuild the engine. The engine will easily be capable of 700-800 HP while still running reliably on pump gas. Transmission is a 6L90 that I will build to handle 1000+ HP, lots of strong parts. I’ll get an Atlas II with either 3:1 or 3.8:1 ratio. I got a Dana 60 from a 2006 F250, shaved the radius arm mounts and welded a truss up from 2”x3” rectangle tube. Rear axle is a 14 bolt from a 99 3500 SRW. I cut the spindles off, added 4.5” of tube to each side and welded on unit bearing cups from Wide Open Design so I can use Super Duty unit bearings on the rear axle... Why you ask??? Because you can’t fit 40 spline shafts through 14 bolt spindles. Also trussed the rear axle with 2”x3” tube and added a pinion guard, bridge and Ruff Stuff link mount tower. Just ordered 3/8” tabs for lower mounts. I have RS trailing arms that I welded up with uni-balls in the front. 4-link front and rear with coil overs is the plan and sway-a-way bars front and rear. Full hydro and 4 wheel disk brakes, 5.38:1 diff gears and ARB’s. This is going to be a somewhat slow build. My goal is to have it ready when my youngest kid is about 4-5(she’s 9 months old now).

[69crawler]

Sounds like a bad ass ride. Between you and Pat, you guys are coming up with some interesting creations. I like the drivetrain set up.

[70 Steed]

That’s definetly one of a kind. Following.

[904Bronco]

I am pulling up a chair ready to watch the Build progress...

[crawlin68]

Awesome! I can't wait to see this come together. Sounds like a great list of parts. I'm looking for a set of one ton axles myself for my Rock Rat project.

[CityHick]

You are a madman! I love it.

[Efibroncoman]

Well, this project has been slow going. While I haven’t had much time to do fab work in the garage, I have been collecting tools and parts I need…. Or want. I did get the lower link tabs welded on the rear axle. A buddy custom cut some nut keepers on his plasma table so my lower links will only require one wrench to loosen/tighten bolts. I do have Ruff Stuff URC trailing arms that are all welded up but I didn’t take a picture. I’ve also gotten 4 new Timken unit bearings, if you watch Amazon they occasionally drop the price when stock gets low. Recently bought a Swag Hulk tubing roller. Curved tubing will just match the 50’s body better. Because of the supply&demand issue we’re all dealing with, Advance Adapters is at least 3-4 months out on Atlas orders. So I called in my order a couple months ago. Because of the high horsepower and 42-43” tires they recommended going with a pro case, so 300M it is…. Looks like it’ll be an early Christmas present to myself. I spec’d it for 3.8:1 although maybe I’ll change that to 3.0 because more power has a way of making deep gears less necessary. The LSA supercharger lids got real scarce last winter. They’re starting to trickle back into the market but at double the price. I’ve decided to build my own lid with much larger intercooler brick instead out of fabricated aluminum using a heat exchanger core from Vibrant. Once I get the transfer case It’ll be much easier to start laying out a design for my chassis on the fab table.

[crawlin68]

Nice progress man. I think we are all dealing with back ordered and unavailable parts these days. Keep up the good work!

[Broncrick]

Nice plans!

[Efibroncoman]

In case anyone was wondering, Advance Adapters has a 6 month + waiting list to order a new Atlas. It was only 4 months when I called. Here is my late Christmas present to myself. Atlas II Race Case. 3.0:1, 300M input and rear output shafts, 1.5” idler pin, 1410 front flange, 1480 rear flange and universal cable shifters. I ordered it with GM 32 spline input to put behind my 6L90 which I still have to build.

[crawlin68]

Sweet! That's going to be bullet proof! That's good to hear that they got it to you early too.

[CityHick]

The Atlas cable shifters are nice, but it isn't fun to set them up. I ended up breaking one of the cables within a few weeks of installation even. I spoke with someone at Advance Adapters about it and he sent a replacement right out to me free of charge, but reminded me that if I have to force the shifters, something's wrong and they need to be re-adjusted. A few people have told me that an Atlas case needs to "break in" in order for it to become easy to shift, but after spending probably too much time learning the ins and outs of shifter adjustment, mine shifts very easily and I haven't even wheeled it yet. I have to remind myself that it's not a dana 20, that it is a synchronized case, and more force is not the answer...

My advice, take your time and read/re-read the instructions about setting up the cables. AA also has a youtube vid about it which is also helpful. Waiting half a year for my case was torture!

[Efibroncoman]

The Atlas cable shifters are nice, but it isn't fun to set them up. I ended up breaking one of the cables within a few weeks of installation even. I spoke with someone at Advance Adapters about it and he sent a replacement right out to me free of charge, but reminded me that if I have to force the shifters, something's wrong and they need to be re-adjusted. A few people have told me that an Atlas case needs to "break in" in order for it to become easy to shift, but after spending probably too much time learning the ins and outs of shifter adjustment, mine shifts very easily and I haven't even wheeled it yet. I have to remind myself that it's not a dana 20, that it is a synchronized case, and more force is not the answer...

My advice, take your time and read/re-read the instructions about setting up the cables. AA also has a youtube vid about it which is also helpful. Waiting half a year for my case was torture!

I did experience that shifting difference with the Atlas I had in my 75 Bronco. It seemed to shift nice and smooth if you were rolling a bit but it was difficult to shift at a dead stop. I put the cable set-up together in the living room the other day while the kids were napping. The cables it comes with don’t seem like they’re going to be fun to install if the shifters are floor height. I guess I’ll deal with that when I get to that point.

[Efibroncoman]

Just bought 8 lengths of 1.75” DOM(2 are .188, 6 are .120”wall) from Team Tube. Damn, steel has gotten expensive!!! Unfortunately it’s more than likely just gonna keep going up for at least a year.

[crawlin68]

Nice. And yes steel has gone crazy in the past year or so. It will most likely stay at around where it is now through the summer. I believe we are at the peak prices right now, so we might see a slight reduction in pricing for the summer. Time will tell. Anyway, get busy building that cage!