Ok i thought iw as going crazy because i went to look at a car and looking under the door it looked like the frame was a c-channel and very weak. as if you could bend it by hand. in fact it was bent slightly toward the ground.

I then looked at resto pics on here and it seemed like everyone i say had a boxed frame so I figured this one was either modfied/messed up or i mistook what i was seeing.

Then I found the pics below from a car for sale and it does in fact look like a channel and not fully boxed.

did this frame come on the post cars? fully boxed on the convertibles? whats the story?

Tj

 

All Holiday Coupes and Sport Coupes (hardtops and post cars) came with the open channel frame. Convertibles (and Vista Cruisers) came with the fully boxed frame. During the 1964-67 model years you could optionally order the HD frame under the Holiday Coupes and Sport Coupes, which was simply the fully boxed convertible frame used in those applications.

 

I follow... do you see alot of projects where people try to find the fully boxed frame for better rigidity for a big block? is the channel adequate?

It must be a good amount of weight difference...

Tj

 

Is one any more susceptible to rust? I was suprised how thin of guage the channel frame I saw seemed to be... i could have bent the bottom leg down by hand i think...

Tj

 

The parts book I have handy begins with the 1965 options list and shows the F35 frame from 1965-70. Frames are about 1/8" thick. The convertible (F35) frame is far stiffer and is a desirable option but adds about 42 lb to vehicle weight. All are mild steel so can rust if not coated and are subjected to road salt, etc.

 

Yea, im thinking what I saw was not .125" It could have been half that... maybe that's why he's selling the car...

 

The boxed frames for the convertibles are significantly more susceptible to rust since the box section retains sand and salt. Usually they rust out behind the front wheels.