wondering if this front end would work for a '27

hoggyrubber
hoggyrubber Expert Adviser
edited August 2012 in HUDSON
i bought a 27 essex coupe a month or so on ebay, but it has no front end. i saw this one on craigslist not too far away and wondered if it would work. i was wondering if i can still get king pins for this and interchange newer hudson spindles/ drums with this axle. i would like to run hyd brakes on the front and have several hornet front ends. has any one ever done this? my plan is to keep this coupe all hudson but wanting to go a little newer on some of the stuff. this car is in pretty ruff shape and missing a lot so it doesn't really qualify for a restoration. i know for front ends are plentiful and interchange with hyd brakes/ drums. thank for any suggestions. stacy k
this one is supposed to be for a 30 hudson.

Comments

  • Geoff
    Geoff Senior Contributor
    Yes, that is definitely a front end for a 1930 Hudson. It may be able to adapted to use in your '27 Essex, but you would have to consider what you wanted to do about wheel size. The Hudson front end has 5.50.18 tyres, and depending on whether your Essex is first or second series, as to whether you re-drill and mount your wheels to fit the hubs. The first series Essex had 21" wheels, and the second series had 20", and the king-pin inclination is different, so steering geometry would be affected if the outside diameter is too different. If you used a larger diameter wheel the steering would be heavier as the centre-line of the king pin would place the the centre of the tyre inwards.
  • ESSX28-1
    ESSX28-1 Senior Contributor
    edited August 2012
    The '27 Essex had rear brakes only (of the external contracting type). A '28 Essex front axle will have the front brakes. if possible find a '28 Essex series 2 front axle as it will have slightly heavier king pins. Ron Lever here in NZ is still producing king pins for these altho he doesn't run email & is so a little tricky to deal with.
    I've attached a pdf of a Geoff Clark article from our NZ Triangle (NZ HET Club mag) on adjusting the 28 Essex brakes. They work very well if set up correctly. - The pdf won't upload so send me a PM with your email address & I will email it directly to you.
    HETdavid@websters.co.nz (drop HET etc)
  • Spencer Yarrow
    Spencer Yarrow Expert Adviser
    the distance between the springs are different, the 30 Hudson are wider so this could make it difficult to adapt
  • ESSX28-1
    ESSX28-1 Senior Contributor
    David - You should be able to upload the .pdf file on the HET Facebook page (see my signature for a link) -

    You'll need to be on Facebook, and 'Like' the page to view/upload to it -


    Done & it worked!! Real easy to do but why is it not this easy on this Forum??
  • hoggyrubber
    hoggyrubber Expert Adviser
    thank you all for the info! i am still kind of up in the air about what i am going to do about the front end. i might call the owner of the front end, it has been posted before.
    thanks essx28-1, if the wtn article is on the facebook page i will look there and save you emailing it to me. i still like the idea of the solid front axle and it being all hudson stuff, but who knows what will happen in the end. stacy
  • hoggyrubber
    hoggyrubber Expert Adviser
    well i lucked out, i think, and got this front end and bumper. this guy lived a ways away but brought this stuff to the springfield swapmeet this weekend. i recognized it right away and stuck a deal. he was wanting to sell the complete package with engine and rearend, but did just sell the frontend/bumper for $50. i still don't know if i will use the axle, but at least i got it if i do.
    i actually got several good buys this year at the swap meet, it's the biggerst in mo. i saw a 27 essex dash gauge panel, but the price was a little out of my range and it was broke. lots of other good buys and i had a blast, wish it was more than once a year. stacy k
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