Proper assembly of the ’35 Dodge pickup begins before everything is even fully cleaned and repaired. This is a key point that everyone either learns or already knows instinctively:

1. Make sure that the rear wheel wells are aligned with the rear axle.
2. Make sure that the front wheels wells are aligned with the front axle.

Read this as having the rear wheels and tires mounted to the axle, the fenders are mounted in their factory determined position, and then stand back to make sure that it looks right. In this first photo to the left, the front wheels/tires don’t look right. Off by a less than an inch (too far forward), this problem has to be addressed at this stage or it never will be. For a build like this you can’t risk that crippling error. 

Positioning can be done simply by “eye balling” or it can involves multiple trips walking around the vehicle, raising and lowering it on the lift to view it from a variety of angles, and measuring the distance from the outer edge of the tire to the curvature of the fender to determine if all points are equal-distant. The rear tire/wheel was perfect once Ralph got the smaller 16″ wheels with larger tires mounted on the rear axle.

Look at the example of this near completed hot rod. The rear tire is not centered against the fender relief in the body. At this stage there is little the owner or builder can do with going back many costly steps. It is critical to get this right early in the build process.

I have seen, heard and even commented on wheels and tires not being center in the wheel well. This is one of those things where visual impression is even more important than the measurements—it has to look correct although seeing and measuring usually, but not always, confirm one position or placement as the best.

Our biggest misstep and a semi-expensive one was in misjudging the overall diameter of the 18″ wheels and tall tires in relation to the rear fenders. Okay, they are super cool and the idea was good but the execution was impossible.

Others, with a different vision for what they were building might have cut the rear fenders in an effort to make the fenders blend with the size and shape of the tire/wheel combination. But that wasn’t our style and would not have been in keeping with a resto-rod theme.

So what do you do with custom made parts that you have removed from original packing and actually “used” in the sense of mounting the tires to the wheels? They can’t be used on this project. I wish I could say with a straight fact that we had never experienced this but that wouldn’t be true. I am usually responsible because typically I am located physically at some distance and can’t do the careful measurement to double sure of everything before purchase. In this case I miscalculated, originally believing that the tall tire/wheel combo would fit under the rear fenders. They clearly will not. Decision, sell them on eBay. This high, modern look stuff and we reasoned that other might want it too. And because they are getting it from me I have to eat about have the cost. Certainly better than nothing at all. Everything sold a couple of weeks after posting the ad on eBay.