1934 Ford frame differences?

[thirt4]

Here is a question that I do not know if there is an answer to.

I have been told over the years, that the frames of the 1934 car and 1/2 ton pickup are different from each other. The differences are or have been described to me as being the location of the bolt holes.

I have two frames, one under my coupe and one in storage. I have been told that my frame I have in storage is for a pickup.

I also have been told that Westcott has a frame diagram showing the location of the bolt holes on the 1933-34 frames on their website.
I went to that website and downloaded that diagram which is in amazing detail with exact bolt hole measurements defined.

That Westcott diagram clearly states that it is for the car AND pickup frames, however, it does not indicate any difference in the location of the bolt holes.

I have compared the holes in my frame in storage to the holes of the frame under my coupe and cannot see any placement of the holes that would be different from each other.

Am I missing something?

If they are the same, then I will begin my project with restoring and building my "in storage" frame. IF there is indeed differences that will preclude me from building my "in storage" frame due to it being a pickup frame then I do not want to waste my money or time.

Question - Are there indeed any differences between the car and pickup frames and IF there are, and - Just what are they? -

[Straightpipes]

There are different holes. My avatar is on a car frame. The rear spreader bar is different. I always tell a car frame by the set of three triangular spaced holes for the running board mounts on the side rails. The pickup frame doesn't have them as the running boards mount underneath.

[dennis33]

I was told that the pickup frame is little heaver gage steel than the car and has afew diffent holes.

[bobH]

Richard, ev8g, has posted the differences in the past. Might try a search for this info. Or, maybe he might respond to this thread.
My memory is vague, but I think there are different holes on the front frame (cowl forward) for (car) fender inner panels, vs the pickup arrangement ??
Last I knew, Richard has both car & pu frames available to look at.

[jimTN]

PU frames are "finished" on the sides as they were painted there like 32 vehicles. Some holes are different also but a PU frame could be used as a car frame by modifing it. Would be a shame cause I am sure there are folks looking for a pu frame out there.

[sturgis 39]

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I do not have a thing to add. I just want to know and want to read the replies.

[Byron Warwick]

As stated by others in this thread, there are differences, but they can be interchanged. Before I could start my resto, I had to find a new frame to replace the rusted out one on my truck, from driving in the sixties when salt was prolific on Ontario roads. One was found on the street in Sarnia with a cab and fenders and running boards and a box, all leaning on the frame. I bought the whole works, and hauled them home. Yes the frame was from a car. However when placed side by side they were a good match. I did several placement drawings of each, and could easily indentify which holes to fill in on the car frame and which holes to drill out to match the truck frame. And yes the side walls had to be filled as they show under the cab.
Here is a happy camper sitting on the rebuilt frame in my humble garage. Cheers, Byron.

[thirt4]

Well, with the information you all provided and what Richard EV8G gave me in a PM, I took photos of the frame in storage yesterday and today crawled under my coupe to compare the two that way.

My "storage" frame is... for a pickup.
I do not see the many holes to bolt the runningboards up to on it as there are on my coupe. That is the basis of my conclusion.

So, I guess, unless I am desparate to start drilling many holes, I will now list it for sale somewhere and see what I can get for it... besides the extra space in storage. Must be a pickup project somewhere that can use it.
It is a nice straight frame with only a little surface rust so it should sell if I can figure out a price for it. (I hope).

[296 V8]

So your giving up on your plan because you’d have to drill a few holes?

[thirt4]

A few holes???
Well, at last count it was around 50 and possibly more. Then they would have to be in exact locations as well as the exact sizes.

The idea was to do a "frame off" resto using a second frame and building it that way so I could continue driving the car until the last possible minute when I would have to remove the body for that part of the project.

Since it is not going to go that way, yup, I am changing directions on my plan. Not giving up.
Gotta be flexible.

[sturgis 39]

Local log haulers change frame rails here. I have watched two of them done by the truck owner.They do it with the body, transmission and engine in place. They unbolt everything from the rails and jack everything in up. They slide the frame rail out. They then transfer all the holes with a transfer punch to the new rail and start drilling. After they are on the learning curve the next one is easy. These are big trucks like Peter Built and Kenworth.

They all have self loaders and pull pup trailers. Sometimes the frames are aluminum and they are beyond repair and sometimes they just need a heavier frame. They have magnetic drills. They can also buy the frame rails pre- drilled from the truck manufacture. They sometimes add liners.

Three men and a week and the truck is back on the road.

A 34 frame is a little different.