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Dear Welder Series…
I know you probably hate when people email a bunch of questions but I’m struggling to find anybody with listings for dodge pickups. 1953 dodge pickup. I would like an 8″ c notch kit, I will need two of the the shock mount brackets and whats your feeling on slamming the front leaf spring straight axle setup. Ive heard a few different options. One was to flip the leaf springs and the other is to put the axle on top of the leaf and weld on mount pads for leafs and to either heat up axle while in a jig and lower it a couple inches or get a drop axle from droppedaxles.com. I’ve always done full bagging and tubular control arm setups in the past but am challenging myself to see how cheap I can do this one.
Any info is greatly appreciated and are your listings for the 8″ c notch priced as a set?
Chad
Dear Chad…
Chad, your Dodge p-u will make a good looking project. My brother is a Dodge pick-up fan and so is one of my best friends.
The step notch kit (http://www.welderseries.com/blog/online-store/step-notch-kit-universal/) is for both frame rails.
It involves a few extra steps to slam an axle truck with parallel springs. Often, the tie rod hits either the spring or the frame rail. If the tie rod is positioned between the frame and the spring, there can be very little suspension travel before the tie rod hits the frame, causing the tires to toe out and the truck will go left or right. The drag link will be on a severe angle from the Pitman arm/steering box to the spindle. This can cause very bad bump steering. The truck will dart left or right when the front tires hit a bump. The solution is to raise the steering box, but this often creates a new “challenge”. If the frame is lowered the amount you want, will the oil pan still have enough clearance over the axle?
With the step notch in the rear, the front will have to come down a lot to get a good stance. A Mustang II will probably be the easiest and most cost-effective way to get the stance and the ride that you’ll be happy with.
Thanks for looking at Welder Series parts.
Paul Horton
Dear Welder Series…
Hi there,
Hope all is well. I have a 1954 Ford F100, I’m wondering if the Step Notch kit will fit my truck frame rails?
Thanks,
Jimmy V.
Dear Jimmy…
Jimmy, I’ll answer your question so that others, reading the blog post, will be able to see how easy it is to fit the kit to almost any frame. Our step notch kit is 2-5/8″ wide. If your frame rails are wider than this, trim the flanges to fit and mount the step notch flush with the outside of the frame as Jeff did in the install sequence at https://www.welderseries.com/blog/online-store/step-notch-kit-universal/. If your rails are narrower, mount the step notch kit flush to the outside of the frame, trim and bend the inner plate so it can be welded to the top of the frame’s lower flange, and trim the boxing plates to fit neatly. Our step notch kit can be used, as-is, with frame rails up to 6-1/2″ tall.
Thanks for asking about Welder Series parts.
Paul Horton
There’s nothing like the real thing! Jim Rizzo installed one of our new-ish step notch kits in his ’57 Chev project truck, wrote all about it, and if you haven’t seen the article in the magazine, here’s a link to the online version:
http://www.classictrucks.com/tech/1102clt_welder_series_step_notch_kit/index.html
If you’re wondering what a step notch is, or were hoping for some more info, Click Here. They’re only $90.
Thanks Jim!
This is a new product that has evolved out of a customer’s willingness to ask us if we would consider making a step notch kit. The question was posed, and we responded by doing some research into the step notch market. If you’ve never really heard of a step notch, it’s basically a clearance channel for the rear axle, typically used in a mini truck (S10, Ranger, etc.) frame to let the frame drop down without resting on top of the axle. Kind of like a kick-up or a C notch. The mini truck market seems to be saturated with step notch kits – kind of like a Mustang II kit for a ’40 Ford at first glance. Sure, there are a few variations on the theme, but they’re all step notch kits at heart. This new step notch kit we’re introducing is still a step notch, of course, but it has some advantages that we feel are significant.
The notch depth will vary, depending on how tall the frame rails are, and what sweep the original frame rails have. The S10 we used for our installation article, for instance, has 4″ of clearance between the top of the axle and the notch when the frame is laying on the ground. The measurement was taken with 18″ wheels.
 Step Notch Dimensions  Laser cut slits  outside/top/bottom/front/rear
- Available ready-to-weld. This is a huge thing with mini truckers – they love fabricating. Also available completely welded to save a bit of time.
- Alignment tabs. No guesswork when it comes to squaring it up. Easy to clamp while you’re tacking it together.
- Sits on outside top corner of frame rail. If you choose to grind the welds, you’ll have a smooth transition from the notch kit to your frame rails.
- Integral inner boxing plates. The inner plates weld to both the upper and lower flange of a C channel frame rail for strength.
- Weld it off the frame. The majority of the welding is done on your bench, where you can position the piece for the best weld. When you’re done welding the notch, just set it on the frame rail and weld it in place.
If you have any questions about the kit, please send us an email or call toll-free: 1-888-648-2150.
Click here to go to our web store.
If you’re looking for a standard C notch fill piece, try one of these.
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