Talk about going outside the box.. I'm a first time builder. I've been reading and researching on a few different sites over the last two years - became a member of the FF community and began asking a few questions to fill in some of the information in the early stages of planning a build. I guess being a first timer I had some pretty rudimentary questions so thanks to the builders who took the time to answer it helped a lot, still changed my mind several times but at least had enough information to make a more informed choice. (still changing my mind on some things, that probably won't change even after the build is done). Deposit was done December /21, but I think the most "what have I done" feeling was when the email arrived that the kit was ready to ship... Since delivery and the last month of sorting stuff out and the odd couple of hours in the garage attaching and drilling, I have to say I'm having a blast.. Once I understood how some of he assemblies are listed in the packing list, which in some instances have no rational, then it starts to get easier - probably because you kinda memorise where things are listed by flipping the same pages so many times.
#152255 delivered July 15th with a lot of boxes but still a lot of things on the POL list which will come sooner than later I hope.
Here's the guts of the build, some of this is decided some is still open to further consideration when the time comes.
Powder coated chassis.
Fuel injected BPE 347
3:55 gears
TKX 5 spd transmission w hydraulic throw bearing.
IRS suspension
Heater /Defroster
Wiper / Washer
17" Hallibrands
2 Chrome Roll bars (keep the wife safe)
Competition set up dashboard - still in the mapping stage.
Engine compartment battery box (Breeze)
Forte's hydraulic power brakes. with 2015 Mustang GT brakes.
Power Steering.
Low back leather seats
Locking gas cap (Breeze)
Radiator shroud / & mount (breeze)
Russ Thompson Turn signal
Russ Thompson trunk expansion.
Led light package (headlights - tail and daytime running light module) yet to be finalised.
Howe Racing Balljoints
Energy suspension Ball joint boots.
Moog Tie rod ends.
Gas N chrome side pipes.
Sun Visors
Wind wings
Soft top for those cool morning or evenings.. (probably add another month or so to driving season
Quick flow canister type fuel filter.
In tank fuel pump (quieter)
Powder coated tin when the time comes - haven't decided on the color yet.
Herculiner on the underside of the body.
Over Riders front & back.
Thinking to use Thermotec Insulation still thinking that one over.
In the garage - can't wait to start. #3 In garage!!.jpg
Body removal #4 body removal.jpg #5 body off & on buck.jpg
Body off & on the buck #6 body off.jpg
Lots of marking and pictures to take of how it was assembled before removing the panels.
Note - I also took measurements and marked the fibreglass on the dash hoop and back wall to help with the preliminary trimming. Thanks for that tip Paul...
Plan to get into panel removal tomorrow.
Just a heads up, I'd NOT spend the $$$ on the Howe balljoints, they do nothing that the standard FFR supplied joints can't do just as well. I friend insisted he "needed" them to improve handling. WE spend a good part of a day swapping them out, the car steered and handled just the same.
Mrk III, 331 stroker, Borla stack injection, T5, 3:55 IRS, Power steering and brakes. Kleiner body & paint
welcome. Looks like you've done your homework and have a nice build planned. FFR chassis numbering system is so interesting. #10,000RD build was recently a year or so ago. I wondering how/when they decided to revamp this.
Just a heads up, I'd NOT spend the $$$ on the Howe balljoints, they do nothing that the standard FFR supplied joints can't do just as well. I friend insisted he "needed" them to improve handling. WE spend a good part of a day swapping them out, the car steered and handled just the same.
An explanation/response here: The motivation for the Howe ball joints primarily came from me (and others) that had difficulty getting the kit supplied Mevotech ball joints to screw into the UCA's. They either didn't screw in at all. Or stopped screwing in before fully seated. Extreme measures like shown in the FF instructions (bench vise, pipe wrench, etc.) just not my thing. First for the abuse necessary (my opinion) to get them in plus thinking in the future if they ever would need to be taken back out. When I first had the problem, I tried some Moog ball joints, which typically are decent quality, and no success with those either. I found out about the Howe parts, tried them, and they go in like butter. The high price notwithstanding.
Used them initially on my 20th Anniversary Roadster (with the problems cited) and also on my Gen 3 Coupe. Never took the Mevotech parts out of the box for the Coupe build. There's no question when comparing the two side-by-side (Mevotech vs. Howe) which is the higher quality part. Plus the Howe parts are adjustable and rebuildable. Does that matter to our builds? Does it make a difference in how the car drives? Jury is out on both counts. Some will say yes. Some no. I tend toward the not noticing the difference camp. But appreciate the quality, likely long life, and easy of assembly.
Now, full disclosure, it's been widely reported on the forum that taking a wire brush to the Mevotech ball joints and cleaning the threads of paint or powder coat or whatever is on them will cause them to thread right in. Many have confirmed this. I personally haven't, but no reason to doubt it. So the original issue I had was likely solvable. You decide what's important to you.
There, now you know the rest of the story.
Last edited by edwardb; 08-11-2022 at 09:06 AM.
Build 1: Mk3 Roadster #5125. Sold 11/08/2014. Build 2: Mk4 Roadster #7750. Sold 04/10/2017. Build Thread Build 3: Mk4 Roadster 20th Anniversary #8674. Sold 09/07/2020. Build Thread and Video. Build 4: Gen 3 Type 65 Coupe #59. Gen 3 Coyote. Legal 03/04/2020. Build Thread and Video Build 5: 35 Hot Rod Truck #138. LS3 and 4L65E auto. Rcvd 01/05/2021. Legal 04/20/2023. Build Thread. Sold 11/9/2023.
As Paul mentioned, you're likely not going to get the BJ into the UCA without removing the anticorrosive coating on the threads of the BJ. I nearly broke my bench vise off the bench trying. Then needed to heat it and hit it w/ an impact gun to get the BJ back out. Once you wire wheel the coating off, it screwed right in. It was at this point of my build that I realized that I should slow down and read a few build threads to catch some tips not mentioned in the "manual", and believe me, there are a lot of them.
As Paul mentioned, you're likely not going to get the BJ into the UCA without removing the anticorrosive coating on the threads of the BJ. I nearly broke my bench vise off the bench trying. Then needed to heat it and hit it w/ an impact gun to get the BJ back out. Once you wire wheel the coating off, it screwed right in. It was at this point of my build that I realized that I should slow down and read a few build threads to catch some tips not mentioned in the "manual", and believe me, there are a lot of them.
I have a second set of UCAs (long story). With the first set the FFR supplied ball joints screwed right in. In fact I was thinking what's all this I've read about problems? With the second set and new ball joints they would screw in less than a thread and stop solid. Swapping stuff around pointed towards the plating in the UCAs, not the ball joint. A wire brush to the internal threads and everything went together easily.
Some platings and processes like hard anodize and electroless nickel are capable of controlling the thickness to within 1-2 microns. Other finishes like Zinc Chromate usually only have a minimum thickness specified. The UCAs look to be zinc chromate with a yellow passivate so there's going to be quite a bit of variance. Fortunately zinc chromate is a relatively soft plating and can be removed easily.
Thanks for the comments guys..Truly.. As a new time builder its great to hear the comments from builders who already have bounced off the walls i'm destined for.!!!
The Howe Ball joints tightened up really well with the bench vise but I'll mark them for movement none the less...
Without the nylock nuts to tighten I loose fitted the front suspension - not yet either just loose assembling to be sure I have all the parts. #8 loose fit front suspension.jpg
then onto cutting the lobes off the rear spindles - cutting parts off new parts is a little unnerving...anyone else feel that way??? #9 spindles trimmed.jpg
used my angle grinder for that along with a sanding disk to make it smooth. I'm happy with how it turned out.
#12 switches installed Pedal box.jpg
drilled and installed the switches on the peddle box. Didn't want to go further on this since I'm getting the Hydro-boost power brakes from Mike at Forte.. Great guy by the way, could talk to him for hours i'm sure and have a great time learning.
End of another day. tomorrow is fitting tin (aluminium). The manual has me pointed to the firewall first then the passenger foot box, Kind curious how this will fit together so not sure what to expect.
Appreciate all the insight I can get!!! Thanks . J.
Last edited by Jeff_J.; 08-18-2022 at 04:21 PM.
Reason: spelling mistake
#12 switches installed Pedal box.jpg
drilled and installed the switches on the peddle box. Didn't want to go further on this since I'm getting the Hydro-boost power brakes from Mike at Forte.. Great guy by the way, could talk to him for hours i'm sure and have a great time learning.
End of another day. tomorrow is fitting tin (aluminium). The manual has me pointed to the firewall first then the passenger foot box, Kind curious how this will fit together so not sure what to expect.
Appreciate all the insight I can get!!! Thanks . J.
If you're installing a hydroboost power setup I assume you know that means an external master cylinder and modified pedal box. A pushrod needs to be added to the brake pedal. Mike is providing that as well? Make sure for that setup to also use the correct front footbox aluminum piece. The one with cutouts for the external master cylinder. I did one of his hydroboost setups several builds ago and also had to cut some of the chassis steel on the front of the footbox. But don't know if that's still the case.
No reason not to follow the build sequence in the manual. It works.
Build 1: Mk3 Roadster #5125. Sold 11/08/2014. Build 2: Mk4 Roadster #7750. Sold 04/10/2017. Build Thread Build 3: Mk4 Roadster 20th Anniversary #8674. Sold 09/07/2020. Build Thread and Video. Build 4: Gen 3 Type 65 Coupe #59. Gen 3 Coyote. Legal 03/04/2020. Build Thread and Video Build 5: 35 Hot Rod Truck #138. LS3 and 4L65E auto. Rcvd 01/05/2021. Legal 04/20/2023. Build Thread. Sold 11/9/2023.
Hi Paul, Yes Mike is providing all the parts for the hydro boost, in fact I have to send him the peddle box and mount - I think he's actually fitting it all together to make it easy to install. I loose fitted all the parts for the peddle box together so it will be easy to disassemble and send to him. I looked at you're hydro boost build, I can't say if it will be the same or not, there was no discussion on drilling chassis steel but I'll post pictures when it's back along with the instructions in case anyone else is going down this path.
fire wall.jpg
Firewall install. my plan is to install the wiper motor as well as heater/defroster, I had some .60ga Aluminium hanging around and I like the rigidity as opposed to the .40ga so I used my jigsaw to cut a new panel. Maybe the .40 would have been fine but can't go wrong with a little thicker. Cleco'd it in and I like it.
On to the passenger foot box. pass box.jpg pass box 2.jpg
Fit /adjusted drilled and cleco'd this together so far - all my assembly is done with cleco's or supplied assembly screws so I can take it all apart later for powder coating. Just minor adjustments to the panels to make them fit more accurately together.
Passenger floor - slid the passenger floor in to see how it all fit together in case it made any difference in the foot box alignment sometimes a compromise must be drawn... pass floor 3.jpg passenger floor.jpg
It makes sense - aligned - clamped marked drilled and cleco'd before completing the drilling. I found fitting in the door side panel at the same time made it easier to locate and drill the floor and the side panel on the 2" chassis panel. NOTE TO SELF check for weld location before drilling.... Little bit of JB weld will fix that....
The driver side should be easier after this experience.
Send off my steering boss to Russ Thompson so he can do his thing and send me the Turn signal kit and Drop Box mod. Excellent guy to talk too looking forward to the pieces to arrive. I don't have the steering rack yet and with the peddle box still a work in process I'll probably keep fitting aluminium.
Fit issue on the DS inner foot box panel....
Test fit the DS floor today and foot box which went in without too much suspense, footbox as well. Attachment 171079 Attachment 171080
The rest of the day was spent fitting the goofing with the inner foot box panel which just doesn't fit as well as I hoped. Originally I thought it was alignment issue but i'm solid against the inner forward chassis rail/s and elevation to the foot box is good.. Spent a "lot" of time looking this one over, this morning I'm going to look it over again in case today I see anything different but I thinking the right course is to adjust the bend angle "outwards" on the "A" aluminium piece over the trans tunnel on the drivers side - it fits perfectly on the pass side. This piece ties the front floor/trans vertical wall to the inner foot box panel so I want to get it right.. Has anyone else had a problem aligning this piece???
Just to be sure my overall alignment or this area was correct I test fit the DS outer foot box wall, it fits perfectly, kinda happy about - if it didn't align well it it might have stopped me in my tracks.
#152255 must be your order number. You chassis number is just left of your steering shaft on the 2x2 crossmember. My guess is that you are probably around #10525RD
#10333 Complete Kit, Carbed 427w, TKX, IRS and many other upgrades
Order Date: September 11, 2021 - 20th Anniversary of 9/11
Delivery Day: April 1, 2022 - April Fool's Day
First Start and Go-Kart: January 20th, 2023
Graduation Date: July 4th, 2023 - Independence Day!!
Legal Registration Date: October 4, 2023 - My Birthday!!
Update - made headway on the DS foot box inner wall - I just needed to step away from it for a while. looked at it again the next day made a strategic bend and everything fits more to my satisfaction. Whew.. The real lesson here is patience and not making a rash decision just to get it completed - it's not a race. DS footbox sucess.jpg
Drilled and used temporary fastners to hold it in place. ujoint cover.jpg
Moved onto the rear corner pieces of the cockpit. Clamped them into place and slid the rear wall into place as well just so I could assess the alignment - doing it this way helps me to see the whole picture before drilling - perhaps identify anything I could run into before drilling. Alignment looks good so I'm going to drill and do temporary fasteners there as well. I'll remove the rear wall to work on the trunk panels. I'll be installing Russ Thompson's drop trunk so I'll bypass the lower trunk panel for now.
3 boxes of back orders arrived today - my blank dash, heater/defroster and shifter components. No sign of spindles - CV's, steering rack, gas tank or assembly nuts yet. Not like I'm running out of things to do but I'm kinda hoping to move on from panel attachments at some point.
Work has gotten in the way of quality garage time but it is what it is.
Rough assembled the Russ Thompson drop trunk to confirm the measurements Trunk 1.jpg
cut the hole in the trunk floor (leap of faith here), drilled and cleco'd it into place. happy with the result. trunk 2.jpg
Rec'd the hydroboost unit from Mike at Forte, did a rough attachment of this piece as well still have to figure out how it plumbs in. Stay tuned... PB2.jpg PB5.jpg
Had a chance to make a filler piece for the upper part of the truck. Used a granola cereal box and made a template, traced it onto some .40 aluminium and used a jig saw to cut it out then used a file to fine tune it. worked out well and will make carpeting easier. filler 1.jpg
I received the front hubs so I was pretty happy to make some headway there - still missing bolts to complete and torque the assembly. Hub install 1.jpg
The Power steering rack arrived yesterday - plan to install that on the weekend, it appears I have the attachment pieces just missing some plumbing.
Moving forward slowly - concentrating on the journey.
Last edited by Jeff_J.; 09-24-2022 at 07:48 PM.
Reason: error
Power steering rack.. So I opened the box and assembled the parts to do the installation. The FF manual has instructions are a little weak on the FF supplied rack, I used the "additional information library" which helps. Looking at the rack out of the box it already has bushings and sleeves in it.... It doen't say anything about removing them but it's obvious, after 10 - 15 minutes, that these bushings are for a different application, one they are out and you insert the kit supplied bushings and sleeves it all comes together quickly. Fitting it in is "tight" but 2 or three pinches of the fingers between parts get's your attention. Driver side in first for sure.. passenger size wiggles in but I had to apply a few light taps to the bushing sleeves to get them past the frame ears.. A little light machine oil on the rubber helped too. Lining up the holes was a hassle but not too much.
Inserted the bolts and washers, the nuts on the engine side the second time around and spun the nuts on partially to hold it all in place till I can torque them in.
Installed the Moog tie rod ends. this is as far as I can go here since FF has the bolts I need to complete the assembly on back order, 8 months and counting. I still have stuff to do to keep me busy but it would be nice to be able to complete assemblies and not have to come back to them to finish, I guess others have the same problem so waiting patiently but a little less patient than before. Anyways picture of the rack installed. rack installed.jpg
Working on the heater /defroster install tomorrow. I've read not to take the location of the tubes for granted on the diagram - other builders have mentioned the diagram is a little off and to double check before drilling the holes for the tubes.
I't been a while since I posted time to catch up a little. worked on and attached the heater and Wiper motor. Have to figure out how I want to run there wires, I have seen the wires run in between the wiper and Heater - kinda tight in there but it makes sense - I'll look at that one as I get closer to figuring out the wire runs. heater box roughed in before fire wall attched..jpg heater installed wiper motor installed..jpg
Mike Forte sent me the modified Peddle box to install the Hydroboost unit, I have some NPT fittings/adaptors to purchase. I want to use the stainless braided lines for power steering, I'll wait on making the hoses till I know the run lengths I'll be dealing with. hrdroboost attached.jpg
The hydroboost unit would supply the same pressure to both front and rear brakes so with out a balance bar to adjust the pressure I'll be installing a portion valve to knock down the pressure to the rear brake circuit.
fuel tank and dash positioned.jpg
Had the opportunity to install my Aeromotive in tank fuel pump & sending unit and position the fuel tank, no surprise, like others have mentioned before the tank strap bolts are barely long enough - purchased new SS bolts and nylock nuts.
put the dash in place as well just to have a look at it and get a sense of progress. Little things take time but it's all part of the journey.
Gonna work on creating bracket for the brake/clutch reservoirs, portion valve and filler where the PS frame tube comes through the footbox, gonna need a cereal box to make the template.
Re; the brake proportioning valve. I think I see that you will have 2015 Mustang rear brakes but not sure of the fronts. W/ the old Mustang rear brakes the problem was always needing more rear brake so a proportioning valve was the last thing needed. But the 2015 brakes are a huge upgrade. Still it is a bit of a crap shoot as to whether a valve will be needed. So I recommend you install it where it is easily accessible. I'd also look at how you could remove it and replace it w/ a piece made up of whatever fittings are needed to connect the two brake lines w/o the valve. It is always nice to have options.
FFR MkII, 408W, Tremec TKO 500, 2015 IRS, DA QA1s, Forte front bar, APE hardtop.
Hi Craig, Thanks for the insight on the brakes, I kinda went with the idea that some sort of balance would be nec., I hope adjust it once and forget about it. The 11.65" kit supplied rear brakes were a pain, in hindsight I should have got the upgraded ones or purchased the Willwoods, oh well there are always upgrades.
Made the bracket for the portion valve, painted it to match the powder coat of the chassis and installed it.
I made a filler for the gap left by the round chassis tube coming out of the PS footbox. It's nice and snug easy to silicone and insulate around. I like it. filler for PS tube.jpg
I purchased Scott's Triple fluid reservoir to separate the front and brake circuits as well as for the Hydraulic Throw Bearing. I'm fabricating a bracket from 1/8" aluminium - the finish is brushed with shark hide like the rest of the engine compartment - the pictures above show the effect. I was going to powder coat but saw a post about a month ago of the brushed effect other builder had done and liked it. I have cleaned up the silicone that squeezed out of the joints since those picture were taken. I should have it completed today. It will show on the next update.
Drilled the dash and did a preliminary install of the gauges and switches. I moved the paper circles around a number of times and sat there with a steering wheel in hand and stared at it - my wife thought I was nuts.. I wasn't making motor sounds - honest....
Finally followed the layout Paul used, it made sense.
Got a call and my BPE 347 is ready to ship - the clock it ticking to wrap up the wiring, that's next on the list after the bracket.
Happy New Year to all.
Dash is drilled and checked to make sure everything fit correctly, then hung the dash just to be sure. test fit of the guages & switches.jpg
Started with the wiring. There has been a lot of discussion on the supplied RF harness - some open the harness and re wire it to suit their needs and clean out some of the runs which are not required. initial wire.jpg
I've decided to open the harness and remove the Hot Rod run completely, I have the Vintage Heater which has it's own fused power line - I'm removing the RF heater supply wire from the Fuse box and inserting the Vintage power line. The vintage line looks to be 16ga vs the RF line which looks line 18ga. I shortened the Light switch as well as the Ignition circuit runs and shortened the Convenience Light run to the centre of the dash, I'm tapping this run for LED - DS, PS, Trunk and Cubby lights. I ran the trunk light wires into the Rear Harness conduit along side the wires for the Licence Plate. I think I'll be laying in another line for a Reverse light, thinking about that one. Other lines in RF harness are getting haircuts as required. Planning to install USB charger and 12V power supply port as well as Hazard light switch in a centre under dash panel, I'll be installing a busbar to tie this in - I understand why so many builders add the busbar - the fuse box isn't too friendly for clean additions.
I'd like to wrap as much of this up as I can before I have to deal the the engine install and associated wires..
Updates to the build.
Purchased a 3 reservoir piece from Scott's & installed - I like it. Clutch and Brake resovoirs mounted.jpg the NPT fittings & plugs I purchased from Summit. powder coated and installed the Breeze battery box- certainly a tight fit to get this installed wouldn't want to do this with the engine in. battery box and initial cable routeing.jpg
BP 347 and TKX arrived and ready for install.BP 347 arrived.jpgready for engine install 1.jpgready for engine install 2.jpg Engine & Tranny installed without any issues - followed the advice on the forum & jacked the rear end of the car up 7 - 10 inches - had the "A" brace already attached and it all inserted easy. Took the opportunity to install the driveshaft at the same time since it was still very adjustable. Noticed the the driveshaft angle was <10 degrees so I fabricated some shims out of 1/4" steel I had around - drilled them to fit the trans mount bolts - inserted them and everything is aligned level. Locktite and torqued the adapter plate as spec'd. engine installed.jpg
Engine levelled in the mounts, drive train aligned to the rear end & torqued going over the checklist to be sure I haven't forgotten anything.
Wiring - the part I don't look forward too the most but it won't do itself so here goes.. Attached the drilled dash to orient where this was all going then removed it and started massaging the harness into place pulled it out and restarted half dozen times to get better configuration and connection points - settled on this as my preliminary layout - using twist ties temporarily till I can do a test fit and confirm everything works. bare dask mounted picture 2.jpgpreliminary wiring layout 1.jpgpreliminary wiring layout 2.jpg. mounted it to the chassis hoop to see how it all fit. dash upolstered & positioned.jpgdash upolstered & positioned 2.jpg
It all fits well so I'm proceeding. Decided to use the Speed hut supplied sensors and cables as opposed to the RF supplied, the cables are better in my opinion and allows me to run them down the side of the block to the 4" tube and back up into the dash, then down the 2" tube direct to the gauge, it does mean eliminating the lines from the RF harness and plugging the pin ports. I'm going to fabricate a bracket to run the Alternator wire along the side of the block just above the starter motor and motor mounts, I have an idea on what it will look like, going to grab the granola box cut and bend and see if it works.
Used the granola box to make the prototype bracket for the alternator wire, this is what it looks like. fabrication conduit bracket 1.jpgfabrication conduit bracket 2.jpgfabrication conduit bracket 3.jpg
This is what it looks like installed. fabricated bracket mounted 3.jpgfabricated bracket mounted 1.jpgfabricated bracket mounted 2.jpg
The intent here was to keep the Alternator wire off the top of the intake, could have run it along the 4" tube and up the block but this routing makes for 1 less wire on the 4" tube on the PS.
I positioned the PS header temporarily with 2 bolts but see no reason why they both can't be connected - applied anti-seiseas requested to both the header bolt and O2 sensor, it was a challenge getting 2 header bolts torqued on both DS & PS due to interference from the header tube itself but managed. Good excuse for more tools. headers installed.jpg.
Today will be cleaning up the wiring and preparing to turn the engine for "prelube", this has been discussed a bit in the forum and recommended by Blue print on their engines before first start. Rotate the crank and keep the cylinders lubed.
Working on the 3/8" SS hard lines as well, first couple of bends were not the best but once you get the hang of it things worked out better than I had imagined. Good - long arm bender and a good flaring tool make the job "significantly" easier.
Let's see how today goes.
Mechanical throttle linkage was on the list. Dug out the box from Mike Forte and applied tape to the firewall to draw some positioning lines. I've read submissions on locating the posts that hold the SS rod, I wasn't a fan of installing them into the 2"x 2" chassis tube, I positioned them about 1" above the 2x2 and flatspotted the washer on the inside of the firewall to keep the rod as low as possible when it passes into the peddlebox otherwise the bell crank does not clear the lid of the peddlebox. Reading others experience on this probably saved me a lot of grief.. The project was successful. positioning of Mechanical throttle pict 1.jpgpositioning of Mechanical throttle pict 2.jpg
TKX hydraulic clutch line route. Since I was in the area I installed the line from the clutch master C to the Hydraulic Throw bearing. Drilled a second hole in the peddle box and ran the braided SS (90 degree connector on the MC and straight on the Tranny side) line through the peddle box and a soft curve past the 45 degree chassis arm to the tranny, attached a P clamp on the frame inside the peddle box to keep the line solid will attach the line to the frame along the way. Bled and solid so I figure pretty much done here. hydraulic clutch footbox route.jpghydraulic clutch peddlebox.jpg
Today's another day, after i finish shovelling the snow that fell last night.
If you find the lever arms twist on the throttle linkage pivot rod, don't fret. Forte thought this might be a problem, and pre-drilled 1/16” holes in the arms to accept a roll pin. Realign the arms, and use a 1/16” drill bit to dimple the pivot rod so you know where to make the holes. Take care & wear eye protection when dimpling the rod; it's easy to break a drill bit. After you've marked the pivot rod, use a drill press to drill the 1/16” holes to accept the roll pin, and then widened the holes in the arms to 5/64” so you don't have to fight so hard to get the pin into place. I used a C-clamp to press the pins into the pivot rod, and left about 1/4" sticking out of the lever arm to that if I ever have to pull the roll pin I've got something to grab.
Some folks have this problem and some don't, so maybe you'll get lucky. If it turns out you do have a problem, now you've got at least one solution in your hip pocket.
John
Last edited by phileas_fogg; 03-12-2023 at 02:41 PM.
Thanks John, Mike dimpled the bell arms so I have a guide, I've been holding off drilling the pil holes till after first start in case I need to make an adjustment. Good call on the process for drilling the pins.
Jeff
Time to do an update: Installed the FF supplied fluid reservoir. The bracket is cut straight the chassis rail is at a bit of an angle - I followed the chassis rail, it makes the res tilt slightly to the front - hardly noticable, didn't use the self tapping screws supplied, installed 2 rivnuts and used 10-24 SS socket head screws - much better look and stronger. fabricated a bracket for the bottom clamp as well, attached it to the top of the chassis rail for vertical stability, brushed the surface and applied shark hyde. reservoir install 1.jpg reservoir install 2.jpg
Installed the radiator and Horns, brushed the top of the radiator and applied Shark Hyde to keep it bright for a while, I hope. Used the dremmel to adjust the female fan wire block to fit the harness block, some cut the block off and use female spade connectors, I'll see how this works out. Horn's work.. Not happy with the 3/8" self tapping screw supplied to attach it - I'll install a bolt and nut here. radiator and horn install..jpg
Final attachment of the Rear harness wires, used p clamps to hold it firmly in place, installed the lower trunk with lower trunk mod - silicone sealed it in place. trunk back in & rear harness wire clamped.jpgtrunk back in & installed 2.jpg
Next up is tranny cover and working the way down the list. Still having fun.
Started working on the tranny cover – marked the adapter plate holes on top of the cover for drilling. I plan to use a 100 deg countersink #6 screws & nylock nuts to secure the plate to the bottom of the tranny cover. I’ll use Bondo to fill the recess on the top side and cover the holes for a smooth finish. Took the opportunity to drill the holes for the shifter trim ring as well. The tranny cover will be finished with leather along with a leather shift boot to tie it all together. Going to install SS cup holders in front of the shifter – have reads a few install notes from other builders so I have a plan. tranny cover 1.jpg tranny cover 2.jpg
Temporary remount of the DS footbox to make sure everything still fit well, installed rivnuts and 10-24 SS screws to the access cover – need to brush the cover and apply shark Hyde also sculpted and drilled the front footbox patch, fits a little better now.
I have the rear brake line running into the DS footbox to a portioning valve, I felt it was a good idea to make a clutch stop for the Hydraulic clutch so I fabricated a piece of 1/8” aluminium which will butt against the steel of the footbox front and use the hole in the top of the peddle box as the mounting point, stress is transferred to the steel in both cases – no concern about strength. Used up the whole side of a granola box to get the angles and bends right. There is enough meat on the front flange to add a bolt should I need to restrict the clutch travel further. clutch stop pict 1.jpgclutch stop pict 2.jpg
Made a patch plate for the lobe which was cut off just above the PS side trunk strap – siliconed and riveted in place. trunk lobe cover patch.jpg
Looking at roll bars today.
Last edited by Jeff_J.; 03-26-2023 at 08:40 AM.
Reason: error
I’ve made progress on the build since last update. Mounted and drilled the FF supplied roll bars. Had to clear the tubes from a little interference then set the tubes in made a small “flat spot” so the drill bit wouldn’t skate and went slow with a small cobalt bit progressively getting larger till I got to final size. Worked out well. Roll bars installed FF supplied.jpg
Placed the trunk top on, drilled and placed a grommet for the licence plate and trunk convenience light wires to come up into the trunk. Still have not riveted this down till after first start. licence plate & courtesy lights.jpg
Fabricated and installed a clutch stop to prevent the Hydraulic clutch from bottoming out against the foot box wall. I used the bolt hole for the manual clutch stop. clutch stop pict 1.jpgclutch stop pict 2.jpg
Installed the RT Turn signal unit, I’m just using the signal feature so it was very straight forward but because I didn’t follow the wiring instructions carefully I ended up with a feedback issue from the Hazard lights, once I re installed the jumper on the pink wire and used the double pole toggle everything was fine… RT Turn signal unit installed.jpgRT Turn signal unit installed 2.jpg
Installed Breeze gas peddle to replace FF supplied - nice solid piece. Breese Gas peddle installed.jpg
Body on for the first time since the kit was delivered. Body is back on for the first time since delivery..jpgBody is back on for the first time since delivery2.jpgBody is back on for the first time since delivery3.jpg
Working on the headers and side pipes tomorrow.
Received Boig cool tubes and installed them – it was necessary to trim back the 90 degree elbow to get the clearance for the hood probably took off 2” had to adjust the lower hose into the radiator port as well. Checked the lines going to the heater and the hose clamps I think it’s ready to fill with coolant. Boig cool tubes installed.jpg
I’m installing weatherpacks for the connections to the front and back turn signals and tying off the unused purple wire. I’ll run a ground jumper to the frame on the driver side, I understand you can’t have enough grounds. I’ll Dremel the openings on the signal light openings to accept the weatherpack. Going to work on the heater ducting today and get that roughed in as I expect the body will be coming off soon.
Fit the windshield on and measured the distance for position – then marked the location of the defrost vents. If using the supplied hardware for the vents the passenger side its a really tight fit above the heater box to get the vent over to the passenger side, I have seen some pretty ingenious work arounds for this from other builders but I’m ok with the supplied hardware and the snug fit. Winshield installed defrost vents marked.jpg
Attached the lights, using Breeze LED headlights and front turn signals as well as Russ T. turn signal module and tested it all before the body comes off. It works… whew.. Breesse Watsons LED headlight and signal lights..jpg rear lights work - good sign.jpg
Made additional measurements for body trim an the body is off – again.
Weatherpacks installed front and back, tied off the unused purple wire in the rear harness but installed 2 additional ground jumpers to the chassis, used the Dremel to clear the powder coat for good contact, I’ll do a better job of cleaning up the jumper routing before final install. weatherpack front.jpg weatherpack rear.jpg
My list of things to do before tacking the body trim and herculiner application is getting smaller, I’ve been saving the body work till last but not necessarily avoiding it..
** First start actually happened 2 weeks ago without drama, I’ll post the video to make it official soon.
Been a while since last update - life gets in the way.
Body trimming, did some preliminary body trimming / straightening on key points before putting the body back on a lot easier to do when the body is upside down in some areas; Dash cowl straightened and at 3/8” wrap, cockpit rear wall same, took a little bit of aluminium off the trunk side wall as well as the trunk valance & wheel wells etc., this is all pretty well documented by other builders so no surprises here.. Found out I have to increase the bend on the DS and PS dash sides as well as cut a little more off the PS so it doesn’t contact the body. There’s not a lot of guidance on this in the manual.
Had to do a reset on the hood and the trunk lids and start from beginning on those again, everything fits as it should now. Hood Alignment is done hinges installed and I drilled the holes for the hood handles, took my time to be sure the positioning was right. Considered moving the handle out 13” from center as opposed to 12” to keep the corners of the hood down but the change didn’t seem to make much difference and it looks better at 12”. Hood handles drilled & bushing fibreglassed in..jpg Hood handle installed.jpg Hood handles installed top.jpg
Backfilled the gap between the hood layers with Fibreglass & added a bushing to the inside to support the handle shaft. I credit Edward P for this tip. Still need to clean up the finish a little..
Top side handles installed and aligned. Hood latch stops. I didn’t really like the small “L” shaped aluminium pieces ff supplied so I fabricated my own, the are ½” wider which allows for a little longer slope as well as a wider stop area, another added benefit is a little more stability on the lip attachment. Hood pin stops.jpg
Since I was in the area, I drilled the holes for the wiper boxes I used the ff supplied tool measured carefully clamped it in place and drilled holes correctly (whew), installed the hardware to make them work, and they do, not sure if the “park” feature works yet. The 5/16 ss tubing FF supplies for the motor cable is not very easy to shape and bending it can make interference with the cable, I’ll change it to the 5/16 nicop tubing supplied with the kit since I’m not using it. It will take ½ the time to do it the second time… Be sure to grease the cable before sliding it into the tubes. Going to install a washer bottle on the PS vertical chassis tube just in front of the footbox – I’ll fabricate a bracket for that already installed a Lucas momentary toggle on the dash beside the wiper switch and ran the wires to the location before putting the dash and body on – easier project when you plan in advance!!
I purchased a chrome dual nozzle sprayer from a supplier “which is no longer mentioned on the forum”, I’ll drill the hole once I have the bottle and see how it all will work.. Wiper boxes and linkage installed..jpg
Trunk handle, pin and licence plate holder attached. The latch pin requires you to drill into the rear chassis plate and push the bolt through to get attached with a nut, since the trunk aluminium and gas tank is installed there is no way for me to put the nut on till the body is back off and I lower the gas tank. Oh well – done that at least twice as well.. trunk handle & Licence plate holder.jpg Trunk latch pin..jpg
Elephant ears are coming up on the list - my first fit of these makes me wonder how its going to work...
Progress from last post.
Gas Cap and Fume canister; roughed in the installation and when the body was back on attached it to make sure everything fit right. All good so I’ll put in the rest of the screws. I’m using ss 6-32 screws with washers and nylock nuts as opposed to the self tapping screws supplied. gas cap & lock.jpg gas cap installed 1.jpg
Breeze Seat plate and Cobra heat seat heater module rough in. Took a bit of time to get this oriented right, glad I took my time here, I put the seat in to get the orientation I was happy with – marked it off and installed a couple of rivets and checked it again to be sure. When they say move the seat over tight to the tranny wall they aren’t kidding, keep in mind the door has to close and latch… Seat plate Breeze & heated seat module.jpg
Installed the “elephant ears”, splash guards front and rear. A little bit of trimming to get them to fit but like a lot of builders have mentioned don’t start trimming till you’ve tried almost every possible position and adjusted the bend a little before starting with the snips. The fit on the front was a little loose in spots so I ordered 1” bulb seal from McMaster, that was just enough along with a little bend. I expected the hydroboost unit would stick through the panel, going to do the “Jeff Kleiner dog dish fix” when I have a chance. splash G front.jpg
The rears came together easier, had a little more to trim here but ended up with a solid fit. splash g rear.jpg
Many have made these inserts to close the gap at the front of the rear tires between the chassis and the body, used a granola box to make a template cut the aluminium, drilled, bulb sealed and used self tapping screw to hold it in place for now. filler piece.jpg
A while back I posted about the hood latch stops and how small they were, I made larger ones and installed them, the manual mentions to have these installed tight to the lip of the body, I moved it back a little to get away from the roll of the body edge. I found the piece sat flatter and since my fabricated pieces were wider it made for better stability. I used #6 machine screws washers and nylock nuts on this as opposed to the self tapping screws. I didn’t have any issues with the handle locks reaching the location but always good to double check.. hood stop 2 instld.jpg
Parts arrived so I was able to get a few more things off the list.
Breeze lower hose bracket arrived & installed and makes for a solid fit on the lower hose. Solid piece.. radiator bracket.jpg
New door latches. I posted a question about these door latches and got some great advice to get me unstuck. In case someone runs into this as well: I ended up having to add extensions to the chassis so the striker would engage the door latch, when I closed the door the striker needed to be further inboard on both DS & PS. I understand some have had to only do one side and others not at all – lucky me I guess.. Added the extensions and moved on to the door latch. If you follow the online instructions for the new latches it shows the latch box installs with the bottom corner off the fibreglass edge of the door, this seemed really odd to me so after some forum help I decided to move the box inboard a little more and add some washers to the striker post. The final positioning has just a very small amount of the latch box overhanging the fibreglass and I’m ok with it. The forward movement was about ¼ - 3/8” but when you are talking about an angle it was a big difference. Keep in mind if you move the box forward you also bring it a little closer to the curve at the top of the door. Mine was a compromise of the two angles.
Door latch installed.. door latch instlld.jpg
Didn’t want to forget this build note: Body positioning on the chassis. I had been reading others experience on setting the body on the chassis. , it appears some builders and confirmed by bodywork guys as well, are not using the “horseshoe brackets” which come with the kit intended to support the nose of the car, rather to use 5/8” rubber blocks positioned on top of the ¾” chassis rail at the very front (beside the hood hinges) just before the rail changes angle to the front of the car. The reason from what I understand, is the horseshoe brackets hold the nose of the body with the small screws which hold the signal lights in place and there has been instance of stress fracturing from this location. It was also suggested changing the front SS quickjack rods to ¾” O.D. also helps in his case.
I ordered 5/8” rubber blocks ¾” x 3” long and the rubber passthrough gromets to fit the quickjack holes from Metro Rubber as well as new ¾” SS rod from McMaster. I noticed when I installed the blocks the body sits higher than the ¾” chassis rail – I ordered some adhesive rubber to run along the top of the rail to close the gap and provide some additional support to the body.
Jeff Kleiner and J Miller have some really good perspectives on the positioning of the body – I’d consider it a “must read” for newbies like me.
Front and rear bumpers are installed. Not a big ran of the way FF has this figured out. Threaded plates on the overriders to accept the long bolts – easier to ream the holes in the plate, push the bolt through and attach the nut on the opposite side. Just my two cents.. bumper front.jpg Bumper rear.jpg
Side pipes installed – I had to order two ¼” spacers to move the pipes a little further out at the opening, then the ran straight back. There is no spec I could find as to how close to have the pipes to the car so I reached out to the forum and got some suggestions. I didn’t want them too close in case there was any issues with the paint, too far away and you risk “Snake Bite” when your leg touches the pipe when getting out… I opted to 1.25” from body to pipe and ½” above the large 4” round chassis tubes.. That should prevent any scrapes on the pipes anyways… side pipe.jpg
Radiator side dams. Now that the pipes are in the front bumpers are in and the body is secured I attached the radiator side dams with self tapping screws at least for now, I’ll install rivnuts later. Radiator air dams.jpg
Back on her feet: first time I can say the chassis and the body have come out of the garage at the same time stuck together. Milestone in the build for me. car Aug 10 7.jpg
Still have a lot to do but mechanically it’s ready to have the safety inspection done and insured, I’ll have the opportunity to put a couple of miles on it as a “shake down” before I remove the body for undercoating and work on the interior.
I’ve been slacking on recording my build journey, a lot has been done since my last post in August – I’ll do a catchup post to cover what’s happened. I couldn’t work much on the car in September but did pass the safety inspection late in the month, had to wait for the licence bureau to issue a Vin before I could register it, that happened late October and I insured it November 1, just in time to pull the tires off for the season. Having it insured was important to me just to be covered while I worked on it further. The end of the season is an opportunity to take the body off again to finish a few things on the list.
Here goes Aug 14/23
Trunk check plate/ cover. A number of builders make these to cover the hole in the trunk lid – mine is much the same, used paper to draw the hole shape – transferred it to a granola box and cut the shape to use as a template for the aluminium; cut, drilled shaped with a paint can and mounted with SS self tapping button head screws. Trunk chk Plate.jpg
Windshield support arms. This goes back a bit but when I first installed the support arms on the windshield I noticed the top of the bars didn’t line up with the top rail very well DS was much worse than the PS. windshield arm DS 1.jpg windshield arm DS 2.jpg
I figured I’d return them for replacement but decided to try adjusting them myself, I was concerned about marring the chrome surface, so I sandwiched it between 2x4’s and used a deadblow hammer at the right angle to straighten the bend, the metal is pretty soft so it moved relatively easy. Success.
Louvres: It’s been said “imitation is the best compliment” well this compliment will be to Paul. Since I had the body off I tackled the louvres. I purchased the premium pre-bent louvres from FF – they appear to be a little larger than the ones included with the kit. Measured and cut the holes to size then smoothed the edges. The manual has a method for attaching these, but I used fibreglass to attach base studs to the inside of the body so they can be bolted to the body side. To get the base studs positioned correctly I attached the base studs into the louvre with jam nuts to hold the studs in place then buttered the bottom of the base studs with HSFR aligned them in the cutout holes and pressed them against the inside of the body. Minor adjustments can be made but with HSFR time is limited before it sets. I used paint sticks and elastic bands through the louvres in two spots to hold the louvres in place till the fibreglass set. It looks like I put plywood in the louvre hole from the picture but the plywood is 2 feet away, optical illusion. Louvers 1.jpg
I'll be cleaning up the fibreglass before applying herculiner.
2022 MKIV BP347, SniperEFI, IRS. Delivered June 22, Engine install Jan 23, first start May 23.
Cut holes for Defrost vents. While I had the car together, I remeasured the location for the defrost vents and made the cuts. The location for the PS took longer as it’s a pretty close fit and I didn’t want to get it wrong. The instructions say to caulk around the vents where they contact the body to prevent air leaks, the curvature of the body vs the straight surface of the vent leaves about ¼” of gap in the center I’ll probably shape some foam to fit this gap as well as sealant. I’m not a big fan of the eyeball vents to be located under dash on both sides of the car. If installed the way the instructions suggest the duct work will be attached to the inside top of the footbox before it gets to the vent – I didn’t like that all so I’m going to change this up and make brackets which attach to the 2” chassis rail below the dash so the vents can rotate either down or forward towards the seats. This is still in the granola box template stage; I should have this done soon and certainly before the body is ready to go back on.
Windshield washer bottle. Purchased a Universal 1 qt windshield washer fluid bottle from Amazon and decided on a location for the bottle on the upper chassis rail just overtop of the PS footbox. The rail angle is downward to the front and inward a little so to get the bottle mounted straight I fabricated a bracket which countered the two angles as well as brought the bottle close to the rail as opposed to sticking in towards the engine more, turned out like this. Purchased a chrome spray nozzle and Lucas Momentary toggle from xxxxx line and ran switched power from the radio circuit to the pump. Located the momentary toggle next to the wiper switch on the dash. I’ll install the chrome spray nozzle when the body is back on.. Happy with how it turned out. W Washer container 1.jpg W Washer container 2.jpg W Washer container 3.jpg
Dog dish cover for Hydroboost unit. I installed the Forte hydroboost power steering/ brake unit early in the build and it’s working great. When this unit is installed, it extends about 1” or so past the location of the DS splash panel into the wheel well, I knew about this from my research before purchasing the HB unit. One of the things on my wrap up list was to cut the ovalish shaped hole in the DS splash panel and attach a cover so the end of the HB unit is protected. Thanks to Mr. Kleiner for the suggestion, I stopped at the local dollar store and picked up a dog/cat dish and it works perfectly. $2.50 fix. I’ll seal it in place, it will be covered with Herculiner at some point. Dog dish 1.jpg Dog dish 2.jpg
The journey continues.
Last edited by Jeff_J.; 12-26-2023 at 12:28 PM.
Reason: spelling mistake
2022 MKIV BP347, SniperEFI, IRS. Delivered June 22, Engine install Jan 23, first start May 23.
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Originally Posted by rich grsc
