H&M Galaxie frame tech. Suspension mounts. Brace yourself, we are about to get really way down in the tech weeds with this post. But it is necessary to tell the real cars from the fakes. Before 1963, Cow Belly Galaxie frames used simple straight bolts to mount both the front and the rear of the lower A frame. The front bolt ran through a gusseted or reinforced hole in the front cross member. The gusset was rectanglular in shape. The first pictures show this gussett (there was one on the front and the rear of the cross member, too) on the backside of the front cross member of Junie Donlaveys 1960 Starliner. In 1963 (and again in 1964), Ford changed that set-up and installed an eccentric front lower control arm bolt that allowed the whole lower A frame to move when hitting bumps. While that might have made for a cushy ride for a low po street car, it played pure hell with high speed handling as the control arms were never moving in just one arc. The second shot shows the ecentric shaft referenced. The bigger shaft required a bigger (and now square) gusset on the front and the back of the front cross member.To eliminate the A frame *Watusi*, H&M installed special steel inserts that were designed to replace the eccentric shaft. These casting (as in 1962 and before) accepted a simple straight bolt to locate the from lower A frame. The third and fourth shots are of those special steel castings as they were/are still installed in my 1964 H&M Galaxie frame. Note the square gusset they mount in (and not rectangular as in pre 1963). As is well known by now, Lee Holmans replica 1963 Fireball Galaxie started life as a 1964 H&M Galaxie. The fifth shot shows the lower left front special steel fitting and large square eccentric eliminator gusset just like the one in my car. Shot six shows the lower front A frame bolt and rectangular gusset in the survivingWood Brothers 1963 (now bodied as a 1964) Galaxie that survives. As you can see, this chassis clearly started out as a pre 1963 chassis. The next shot is of the front lower A frame bolts in two cars built by the Gastonia Flash on the dream works assembly line. The first one is the supposed Ned Jarrett 1964 H&M Galaxie. The second is the supposed 1963 Dan Gurney H&M Riverside Galaxie. You will quickly note the large square gusset on the cross member. You will also notice that the Flash, not having any of the special (now unobtanium) steel eccentric eliminating castings simply weled in flat washers to take their place. I am not al all sure that I would want to go racing and have to lean on the thickness of a tack welded flat washer in the turns. How about you? So, my conclusion, not only are those cars fakes, they are potentially deadly. What do you guys think?
Posted on: Wed, 17 Sep 2014 23:42:19 +0000
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