This is something I have to deal with sometime
soon...as I recently took up a part time job at my
friend's machine shop (gasp! me working!). One of
the other part time guys has a 53 pickup that he
wants to swap rearends in...it has a 70s Chevy truck
12 bolt 5 lug rear in it now, and the bolt pattern
doesn't match the car 5 lug hubs on the front, and
it's also a bit too wide. We'll be installing a
Camaro rear, which is almost an inch narowwer than
stock.
The wheel openings in the fenders have a wierd curve
to them. If you look at it carefully, you'll see
that the radius at the top part of the opening
matches the radius of the tire, with the stock
rearend placement. However, the lower part of the
wheel opening is "swept back", so the front part
overlaps the tire, and the rear part has a gap.
This is how it is designed to look! If you scoot
the wheel back in inch or two so it looks centered
at the bottom, then the top radius will not match
the tire...the gap will be bigger near the front top
than at the back top.
So, you really need to set the axle and wheels/tires
in the truck temporarily, with weight on the springs
if possible, and see how it looks...spend some time
studying it, too, not just a quick glance. Try to
get the tires to fit in the whole opening properly,
not just centered at some arbitrary place.
Hope this adds to the confusion :)
Jim F
59s in AZ
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