80s Chevy wagon build thread

[cheezwhiz31]

My "OPINION" if no hump plates allowed. I'd Cut the top corners out of frame and about an inch down the sides 3 inch long and beat down the top center into a U inside the frame.. I see you cut out the inner rear tire well in the back so hard for me to say where to do this notch at exactly. Throw the back bumper away. then if you look in your last pic of the rear cut 2 slits down that piece of sheet metal that stand up roughly 5 inches at the ends where they meet the pillar/light pockets. Pull your rear body bolts out and pound this piece over so you can bolt your rear bolts through that piece also. Suck down as tight as possible and beat the lip on the back up across the back below this. It will Curl the back center of the body up a hair and ties the rear sides together so you don't need to run a door if you choose not to. I like to for heat and features shows but not for a 1 and done.

Doesn't seem like it would do much but it has for me in the past...

Again all opinion. Unless your going to mount rear bumper away from sheet metal and angle it up with shocks or steel I don't like them on GM. Unless you notch the shit out of it and pre-bend and have it high. Once another bumper clears that rear bumper it will start its downward trend. Also seems to like to sway the rears and even if one side is coming up the other is not/almost going down.

[owen11x]

Listen to this man ^^^ rarely do any of his builds go astray

[demoboy333]

cheezwhiz31
Car will have hump plates as of this week plans changed where it was going and will have 14 in long front brackets. But ya I see what your saying on the notching. Have always ran a bumper on all gm even wagons to keep rails together till it rolls up then I like them off. I will look at my back mounts I think I do that so it has more to hold on.




Car isn't notched yet..


Here's the pic of the last notch on wagon we did. I'm going to notch a 3rd to give it a try like car185 does his behind shock. But I do like your style of notch but have never done it. Theory behind our square notch is beat sides in to touch after it rolls up and that makes it stop rolling there and starts the next roll at rear hump. I like the chamliss wagon in wagon pics how he angled his rear bumper not sure how he did it but I have pressured a rear wagon rear like a cold bend but obviously up not down.

[demoboy333]

made the template for hump plate while I had little time today. Layed it against my preran Ford hump plates and with little trimming it will line up. Thought I'd share on here.

[cheezwhiz31]

Jun 2, 2021 17:58:26 GMT -5 demoboy333 said:

cheezwhiz31
Car will have hump plates as of this week plans changed where it was going and will have 14 in long front brackets. But ya I see what your saying on the notching. Have always ran a bumper on all gm even wagons to keep rails together till it rolls up then I like them off. I will look at my back mounts I think I do that so it has more to hold on.




Car isn't notched yet..


Here's the pic of the last notch on wagon we did. I'm going to notch a 3rd to give it a try like car185 does his behind shock. But I do like your style of notch but have never done it. Theory behind our square notch is beat sides in to touch after it rolls up and that makes it stop rolling there and starts the next roll at rear hump. I like the chamliss wagon in wagon pics how he angled his rear bumper not sure how he did it but I have pressured a rear wagon rear like a cold bend but obviously up not down.

Careful on doing another notch on a wagon. Tyler builds some awesome GM's but my experience with doing another one way back almost hurts them cause the far back one rolls then puts down pressure on the big one further up. Almost better to have the further up one have leverage on so it goes up good and straight.... Also i get what you mean with keeping the rails together. If i can put new bolts in i trust the body to hold it together and hopefully pull the rails in some if i can get hit right... Only time i ever leave the brace that runs across the back rail to rail in a car hoping it will V in and pull rails together and not get hung up on something...

[demoboy333]

Yes the 3rd notch I was gonna do just a slit across for the same reason you just said. The more I look at it I think don't stray from what I normally do.

[demoboy333]

Ok guys in thinking out my 4x6 plates I get 4 of them on fresh. Obviously one on each front arch over the oval hole but the other should it go on arch too or front horn to get plate to the a arms where the strap is or place in on inside of the arch at firewall. As the car bends it will get 8 more plates by end of the year.

[cheezwhiz31]

sorry if you said this already but what you get for front plate..... Your rules/show keeps changing so much i can't keep up with what you can and can't do.... haha

also are you tilting?

[demoboy333]

Jun 4, 2021 8:19:11 GMT -5 cheezwhiz31 said:

sorry if you said this already but what you get for front plate..... Your rules/show keeps changing so much i can't keep up with what you can and can't do.... haha

also are you tilting?

Ya sorry on the rule change for original post.


No tilt. 14 inch bracket, four 4 by 6 plates on fresh (as it bends can add 8 more) and then 20 inch hump plate. Its R&R Total Destruction light weld rules. No frame seams welding.

www.randrpromotions.com/

[cheezwhiz31]

will 14 get ya past big holes on passenger rail? if not i'd plate there. Can you use the plate on the S as a kicker to the body as well as plate the frame....

[demoboy333]

Jun 4, 2021 12:26:55 GMT -5 cheezwhiz31 said:

will 14 get ya past big holes on passenger rail? if not i'd plate there. Can you use the plate on the S as a kicker to the body as well as plate the frame....

Ya ill be just past the idler arm. And no can't touch body with plate only frame

[smashincwa]

Try heating and pounding rather than slicing or notching. My experience is that the rails tear or will Z horizontally if left too weak.

[demoboy333]

Jun 5, 2021 7:26:57 GMT -5 smashincwa said:

Try heating and pounding rather than slicing or notching. My experience is that the rails tear or will Z horizontally if left too weak.

I've only dimpled once on a gm and I didn't like it. Thats why I beat the sides of the rail in so once they touch it stops moving there.

[Punisher 66J]

I usually always take a square out an beat the sides in just like that on vics and caprices. As far as I'm concerned it is the way to go. It has folded up perfectly every time.

[car185]

I think I got really lucky with the one wagon I ran myself. I kind of went against what my dad wanted me to do. He ran several in the early 00s with just straightening the rail where it slopes down with a wheel lift on a tow truck, and dimpling in that location. I did the exact same thing on mine, but decided to make a notch at the end of the bumper shock as well. When you straighten the rail, it makes the bumper point up which is nice. I ran an 80s Ford rear bumper on mine, and it V`ed in the middle and broke the shocks and fell off. It kind of helped it IMO. I built the back of another one for a buddy the same way, and a roundback got a hold of him and he was not as fortunate. It went up, but was not pretty.

Jun 3, 2021 8:14:29 GMT -5 cheezwhiz31 said:

Jun 2, 2021 17:58:26 GMT -5 demoboy333 said:

cheezwhiz31
Car will have hump plates as of this week plans changed where it was going and will have 14 in long front brackets. But ya I see what your saying on the notching. Have always ran a bumper on all gm even wagons to keep rails together till it rolls up then I like them off. I will look at my back mounts I think I do that so it has more to hold on.




Car isn't notched yet..


Here's the pic of the last notch on wagon we did. I'm going to notch a 3rd to give it a try like car185 does his behind shock. But I do like your style of notch but have never done it. Theory behind our square notch is beat sides in to touch after it rolls up and that makes it stop rolling there and starts the next roll at rear hump. I like the chamliss wagon in wagon pics how he angled his rear bumper not sure how he did it but I have pressured a rear wagon rear like a cold bend but obviously up not down.

Careful on doing another notch on a wagon. Tyler builds some awesome GM's but my experience with doing another one way back almost hurts them cause the far back one rolls then puts down pressure on the big one further up. Almost better to have the further up one have leverage on so it goes up good and straight.... Also i get what you mean with keeping the rails together. If i can put new bolts in i trust the body to hold it together and hopefully pull the rails in some if i can get hit right... Only time i ever leave the brace that runs across the back rail to rail in a car hoping it will V in and pull rails together and not get hung up on something...