Let me know what you think.

[nickp51chevy]

I know this should probably go in the general section but I wanted The AD guys to see it for sure.
I'm writing an essay for my English class and I wanted to know what you guys though of what I wrote.
Just want your opinions on what I wrote, let me know what you think.
Thanks guys.
Nick

Imagine yourself driving down a country road in your own hotrod truck, hearing the engine roar going up hills and around corners. Feeling the wind blowing all around you with your windows down and vents open, waving back to the groups of kids playing as you cruse by them. If you want to actually know that feeling yourself, I would recommend building your own 1947 - 1954 Advanced Design Chevrolet or GMC truck. If you build your own that feeling is intensified so much. You would then be driving with a feeling of pride, the pride of knowing that you built it. When building your 1947 – 1954 Advanced Design Chevrolet or GMC truck, it is easiest for a beginner to use an S-10 frame.

An easy way to start building your truck with an S-10 frame would be to buy and install a body mounting kit. There are a couple of companies that make and sell these kits; they are easily available through the internet. If you were an experience welder and fabricator you could make your own body mounts for the S-10 frame to mount the Advanced Design body. To do that though, it would take a longer to build your truck, and there would be a lot of trial and error. A great thing about the kits is that they come with detailed installation instructions. And if you don’t have any welding experience don’t worry, these kits are entirely “bolt on”. In my opinion this kit is the easiest way to have an old hotrod with late model handling.

One of the great things about using an S-10 frame is the upgrades you get with the frame, they include, suspension, disk brakes, and power steering. The cost’s to do that to your original frame are grater and more difficult to install. For example, if you wanted to upgrade your suspension, a clip or an aftermarket independent front suspension, commonly called IFS, is how you would upgrade your original frame. The average cost for an aftermarket IFS is around $1,500. Both the clip and the IFS could require structural welding and some mild measuring and engineering. Disk brakes would just be expensive. The average cost for the conversion kit is $650. Power steering could be added with a lot of engineering. First you would need to find a steering rack that would fit in the original front suspension, and then you would need to make mounts to weld to your frame to bolt the steering rack to. After that you would need to figure out how you’re going to attach the new steering box, how your power steering pump to the engine, and install new steering linkage. For those reasons I decided on the S-10 frame. It is an easy less expensive alternative that works well.

As most car enthusiasts know there are all sorts of aftermarket suspension parts available for an S-10. Since there is such an array of parts available it is easier to lower or raise your S-10 framed truck. Since the style is to lower any “Hotrod”, there are a lot more lowering parts available for reasonable prices. It is common for people, even beginners, to use air bag suspension. Air bags give you a nicer ride, adjustable ride heights, and a lowered or a “slammed” look at a car show. There are others that just want to keep it simple and just use drop spindles and lowering springs. With spindles and springs you don’t get any adjustment, what you get, is what you get.

The best thing about doing the S-10 frame “swap” is the amount of information available. There are many forums on the internet where there are people that have done the “swap” before and are willing to help, and there are beginners doing the same thing you are. There are also people going the more experienced route. They are the ones that you can learn from, so that in the future should you decide to build another one; you will have a better understanding of what to do and expect. If you should ever get stumped or have a question, they are there to help you and guide you along. You can also get more ideas from looking at what other people have done with their trucks. I know that there are a couple of guys that have designed mounts and other parts, and put the plans up so that everyone else can use them if they want to. We are all there to help each other along no matter what skill level we are at.

Are there other ways to build up an Advanced Design truck? Sure there are. Would I build it any other way than using an S-10 frame? I might some day, after I get more experience and knowledge, but for now since I am a beginner myself, I’m happy with the route that I chose. For now I’m going to keep with what is easy for me, and keep learning as much as I can so that for the next one I will be able to build it how ever I want to.