1939 Standard front crossmember question

[Sam A.]

Hello all,

I have not attempted to load photos yet, so I will explain this the best I can. I am in the process of replacing the front crossmember in my 39 Standard Coupe. At some point in time, someone had welded a small steel plate to the top of the crossmember for strength or to fix a crack, and in doing so, also welded the hanger bolts to the crossmember (ugly). My question is this...there is a 1/4" thick piece of steel welded to the underside of the old crossmember where the top of the spring seats. The new (used original) crossmember is void of this steel plate. Is this steel plate suppose to be there, or is it most likely a part of the above described repair?

Thanks in advance,
Sam

[Old Col]

Hi Sam,the answer is no....nothing from factory is ever welded to the frame or crossmembers, if they did it then it would be riveted like the rest of the frame.

[swoopNZ]

It was a high stress area prone to cracking, and it used to be pretty common to find that a stiffener plate had been installed or welded in to the cross member.
They usually had a square slot for the spring bolt to pass through.
There is a " front cross member reinforcement " listed in the 1938-39-40 Ford Factory chassis parts catalogue. Page 20. PN 68-5021-B. Priced at 0.55c.
However the roads are much better now than in those times.

[Sam A.]

Makes sense. I feel better now Thanks for the quick responses!

[Sam A.]

Second question...What size grade 8 bolt should I use to install the new crossmember? I'm assuming the small rivet holes need to be opened up for a decent size bolt. Thanks!

[swoopNZ]

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Rivets are really the way to go.
You can buy them.
Try Roy Nacewicz.

[Kahuna]

You can also use Button head "Allen" bolts in 5/16" I think. These look like rivets
Then, if you want you can weld in a couple of unseen areas.

[Sam A.]

I like that button head idea. Thanks!