Jazzman’s #8745 "Flip Top" Build

[Jazzman]

In order to get "FlipTop" registered, I knew I would have to make at least two trips to the DMV. The first was to find out how persnickety they might be, and to get a three day temporary permit to drive the car over for the inspection. It's only about four miles away, but still I decided to be safe rather than sorry. The permit only cost $1, and I needed to know how to prepare for the inspection anyway. I arrived at 7:45 this morning because I wanted to get in and out before there was a long line. I was sure they opened at 8am. I was wrong. They opened at 7:30am! Oh well, no significant line yet anyway. I was checked in promptly and sent to stand in the "A" line (the one for "hard" title issues. I didn't think that sounded like a promising start, but . . .) I only had to wait about 8 minutes when I was summoned to a young lady's desk. When I arrived, there was a placard on her desk that said "Please be patient. I am in training". Oh great. This should be fun! It was not unexpected when she admitted she had never seen or processed a title like mine. She was very confused about the 1965 date and the 2016 engine. Once I sorted it out with her, she had to get her superior to walk her through this one. Only a couple minutes later, they both returned. It took about five minutes, and they had issued me my temporary permit, taken my $1 bill, and sent me to talk to the "inspections" department. Oh boy, here it comes!!

There was one other gentlemen in the inspections department when I arrived. He was having a golf cart inspected (why, I can't possibly imagine!!). I explained my needs to the receptionist and initial screener. She filled out a couple of pieces of paper. I asked her if I needed to make an appointment for the inspection, and she confirmed that yes, that is usually a good idea. I told her I wished to complete the process on Wednesday (exactly two years to the day of the delivery of my kit by the FFR semi-truck.) She said "that shouldn't be a problem, but did I have time to bring it in this morning. We are dead at the moment". I hadn't planned on doing the entire process today, but the window of opportunity swung wide for me. I immediately made the six minute drive home, grabbed the remainder of the documentation that I was sure they were going to look over in detail, and fired up FlipTop for her first real trip on city streets!

It was quite exciting to really be driving the car beyond the side streets of my neighborhood. It surely drew looks and thumbs up! (I am absolutely sure it was the car and not the driver getting the thumbs up!!) When I arrived back at the DMV, there still was only one person in front of me, and there were two inspectors. A woman came out and called the other gentlemen out for his inspection. Apparently he had bought a totaled car, restored it to basic driveability, and was planning to give it to his daughter. The inspector was grilling him on every aspect of the car! I sat there thinking, "if this is what they do to an old beater of a car, what do that do to someone who built his own car?" This wasn't going to be pretty!

About five minutes later another inspector came out. He was very friendly, and seemed at least partially interested in the car. He walked around it once, asked me to open the hood, looked for a engine serial number (didn't find one), instructed me to close the hood, walked around it once more to admire the paint job, and he was done! The entire inspection couldn't have taken three minutes. He didn't have me start the engine, didn't check the brakes or lights, didn't check anything at all! He affixed an official state of Arizona VIN plate to the car. I had to pay $25 for the inspection. Done! This is just too easy. You just know it has to all fall apart soon, right?

I was sent back to the main waiting area, assigned to Line "A" again (great!) and by sheer luck was re-assigned to my favorite trainee! I explained to her all wanted to do: 1) reassign the "FLIPTOP" plate from my truck to the Roadster, 2) title the Roadster into my Trust, 3) get a new plate for the truck. She immediately got that "oh my gosh, "this one is way over my head look" again. She took a copy of my trust certificate, a copy of my initial purchase Paperwork from FFR, my certificate of origin from FFR, surprisingly not a copy of my insurance card. She headed off to the supervisor again. I waited. And waited. and WAITED! about 20 minutes later she finally returned,all her notes and instructions in hand. After that, it was just a matter of processing each task one at a time. First she transferred the old plate off my truck, and assigned it to the Roadster. She needed a bit more help figuring out how to fit all the information into the very limited slots available on the computer system. She process the title and the registration then made copies of all my provided documentation. Then she handed me the bill for registration. "Here it comes . . . steady . . . keep calm . . . you knew this was coming . . . You can handle this . . . " (all inside my mind of course!): $73.10!!!

The entire registration, inspection, and titling had taken me a grand total of 2 hours and 25 minutes, and included two full round trips to the house, and cost less than $100 total! I am really sorry to tell you that if you live in one of those semi-socialist states that requires half a day, lots of frustration, and an inspection that approaches the level of a rectal exam! I could not be more pleased with the entire process. It would have taken even less time if I hadn't had to wait on the young lady to learn the job, but lets face it, you have to learn sometime, it might as well be on me. I'll bet she doesn't see many of these cars in many months of work. It was a pretty unique opportunity for her. I was just happy to get it done!!

So what did I do when i got home? I'll give you a hint:

[wareaglescott]

congrats Kevin!
Did you go on an extended drive on the way home or at least the long way home?

[Jeff Kleiner]

Congrats Kevin!

Having to wait in "Line A" makes me think of being sent to the "Group W bench" which is coincidentally appropriate this week. I'm thinking you'll get that reference

Now, go drive!

Jeff

[Vette1972]

Kevin,

Your trial and tribulations have come to an exciting conclusion! Atta boy!! Your thread has been great to follow. Hope the weather is good this winter in AZ. Go enjoy!!!!

Len

[WIS89]

Kevin-

Terrific news; congratulations!! Boy, I bet that feels amazing! And, what a relief that what could have been extraordinarily painful process, was fairly benign (and cheap too!).

Now, go drive the wheels off (figuratively of course!).

I am very happy for you. One more thing to be thankful for this year! All the best!

Regards,

Steve

[TexasAviator]

Nice

[NAZ]

Congratulations! Just one more reason I love Arizona. When I lived in California I'd rather have a root canal than go to the DMV for anything.

[AZPete]

See? Arizona is the best state for specialty cars. Easy registration, lots of sunny days, fun curvy roads and very few pot holes. I really like your writing skills and I join the other guys in extending a big congratulation for building a beautiful car. I look forward to seeing it all finished. Oh, and thanks for training a DMV newbie.

Cars & Coffee Show on December 2nd?

[Jazzman]

congrats Kevin!
Did you go on an extended drive on the way home or at least the long way home?

No, sadly I had to drive right straight home and go to work. I plan to drive it to my appointment today. Then, perhaps a long drive!

[Jazzman]

Congrats Kevin!

Having to wait in "Line A" makes me think of being sent to the "Group W bench" which is coincidentally appropriate this week. I'm thinking you'll get that reference

Now, go drive!

Jeff

Ah, yes, and i remember the "8x10 color glossy photographs with the circles and arrows and the paragraph on the back of each one explaining what each one was to be used as evidence against us.". I may have to pull out the "massacree" on Thursday. Blessing on you and your family this Thanksgiving. We all clearly have a great deal to be thankful for!!

[TexasAviator]

Great work Jazz. Love seeing progress like thos. It motivates me to get in the garage and keep plugging rivets. Work life balance is an oxymoron right now in the Air Force. Hope to fix this soon with some leave and the holidays. Enjoy.

[Jazzman]

Cars & Coffee Show on December 2nd?

Where and when? I was thinking about taking it to the Scuderia Southwest Scottsdale Motorsports Gathering at Mayo and Scottsdale on Dec 2, then to the Arizona Cobra's Christmas party later that same day. But I am open to better options! Will you be bringing out the 818?

[Jazzman]

Great work Jazz. Love seeing progress like thos. It motivates me to get in the garage and keep plugging rivets. Work life balance is an oxymoron right now in the Air Force. Hope to fix this soon with some leave and the holidays. Enjoy.

Yes, balance is always a difficult thing. Take your time and enjoy your build. We will look forward to seeing more progress pics during your leave and holidays. By the way, you and all the members of the armed services are one of the many things that we give thanks for this time of year!

[AZPete]

Yes, the Scuderia SW event is also known as Cars & Coffee - same show. 1st Saturday @ Mayo & Scottsdale. I'll go with my 818 if you go.

[Jazzman]

Yes, the Scuderia SW event is also known as Cars & Coffee - same show. 1st Saturday @ Mayo & Scottsdale. I'll go with my 818 if you go.

I'm in! SkullandBones: Will you join us and make it a trio?

[i.e.427]

Before I installed the roll bar for the final time, I installed the LED lights that were milled into the top of the bar. I won't go into how it is done, but it is not hard, but somewhat tricky. Long story short, I got it done. After the bar was installed, I wired in the connecting wires into the taillight wiring. The result is . . . extremely cool!!

We are really glad you like the roll bar lights Kevin. The car has turned out Fantastic!

[Jeff Kleiner]

...I may have to pull out the "massacree" on Thursday...

It became an annual Thanksgiving tradition at our house when our daughter was about 8...much to my wife's chagrin

Happy Thanksgiving back to you!

Jeff

[Jazzman]

We are really glad you like the roll bar lights Kevin. The car has turned out Fantastic!

Thanks! That means a lot coming from an expert like you! Have a Blessed Thanksgiving!

[Jazzman]

Drove the car for about 20 miles today. Took it on the freeway for the first time. So far, I have not heard any unexpected noises. Observations:

1. Dang, this thing is powerful!!
2. Dang, this thing is short! I am used to looking down on most vehicles from my truck. It is quite an experience to be looking up a the door handles of the car to your left.
3. The wind is surprisingly not a big issue. (As compared to my experience on a motorcycle!) Wind noise is not a major issue, and eye strain due to wind in my eyes is also minimal.
4. I need to focus some serious energy on sealing up the tunnel between the engine bay and the doors. That blast of hot air right off the headers is going to get old.
5. I love the sound of the FFR pipes, but it is quite clear to me that the drone of the pipes at 70 mph will get old quickly! Hello Summit . . .
6. The gas gauge is very accurate, but falls from 1/4 tank to empty very quickly. When I filled up the tank today for the first time, I put in 15 gallons. My memory is that this is a 15 gallon tank!!
7. Dang, this thing is powerful!!!! (Yeah, I know I said that, but . . . whoa!!)
8. With all the other mods I did, I wish I had modded the inboard DS Footbox wall. It is tight in there! I am going to have to get "driving shoes". My wide, stable, crosstrainers are just too wide to fit well between the wall and the brake pedal.
9. Wish I had put in a slot in the tranny tunnel cover to hold my cell phone. I still may do that.
10. I might need to revisit the hydraulic clutch cylinder to reduce the input pressure. I think I already changed that once. I may have to go back and do it a second time.
11. The dropped trunk box was a really great addition. It makes it very easy to just toss my briefcase in there and go and not have to worry about it sliding around.
12. It is a very unique experience to be driving a car at 80mph on the freeway that you built in your garage!

It is good to know that just because the car is close to being "done", the list of projects and improvements goes on and on. It sure is fund to drive!

[edwardb]

It sure is fund to drive!

Don't know if that was on purpose or just a Freudian slip. But that right there is funny. Yes they do tax the funds. But worth every penny.

Congrats on your first real drive. It doesn't get old. BTW, hopefully you have some protection on those rear fender flares. They take a beating from the first mile. Gotta save that beautiful paint.

[Jazzman]

Don't know if that was on purpose or just a Freudian slip. But that right there is funny. Yes they do tax the funds. But worth every penny.

Congrats on your first real drive. It doesn't get old. BTW, hopefully you have some protection on those rear fender flares. They take a beating from the first mile. Gotta save that beautiful paint.

I'm not even going to go back and correct that one!! That is funny. Too many years in the financial industry. It is a true statement, regardless of which implication you take!

As for the fender flares, no, I don't have anything on them yet. I was told to wait a month before applying "clear bra" material to allow the paint to fully cure. I can tell it is still curing because I can smell it every day in the garage. I don't know what I will do about this problem. I don't know that I can wait a month to drive this thing!! Jeff Kleiner - what do you think? Do I need to wait a month for the paint to cure? What fender flare protection do you suggest?

[wareaglescott]

IF nothing else install and remove some blue painters tape before and after every drive.

I find my door pocket works great for the cell phone. In my other cars I am somewhat bad about distracted driving with the cell phone. This thing takes a little more attention. Down at the bottom of the door pocket for the phone during driving is perfect!

[Jeff Kleiner]

Kevin,
I agree, don't put impermeable spats on yet. Scott's tape suggestion is a good one.

Jeff

[Jazzman]

Just got back from a nice 70 mile shake down cruise. It was great. The temp could have been better: it was 90 degrees here today! Where is my 75-78 degrees we usually have on Thanksgiving? Oh well. Fun anyway. Lots of thumbs up, "gorgeous car", waves, and smiles, a few photos, and a lot of amazed looks when the found I built it! What a great feeling! Learned a lot:

1) power steering is great, but I may actually have the power too high. I believe I can make the steering turn just by thinking about it while sitting in my office! It is really sensitive. May just be that I am not used to it.
2) I'm out of practice driving a stick shift! I never stalled it, but I am not as smooth as I used to be. It has been over 7 years since I have driven a manual transmission. My muscle memory is clearly weak.
3) The car drives like it is on rails! absolutely instant response, turns great!
4) My wife approved of the ride. It was "much better than I expected"!
5) Gotta put more effort into sealing the blast furnace coming off the engine right onto my left thigh. Really hot. I wish I had spent more time custom making seals for that area before the body was permanently on. This is top priority today. I have some pool noodles from the summer (Thank's Jeff Kleiner!!) in Purple, yellow, or blue. None match the color. I think I may go with purple and spray paint them matte black when they are all formed and ready to be installed. More on that later.
6) Borrowed a friends angle drill kit to install set screws into the wheel hubs to hold the spinner cups in place. I've never seen one like this, but it looks like it should work fine. More on that later.
7) Quite pipes will be ordered this weekend! Ok, I admit it. "If it is too loud, you are too old". I am officially too old. I have tinnitis anyway, and the drone of those pipes, while beautiful music perhaps, is just too loud! I really want to stay with polished stainless steel, not ceramic coated silver. If i have flowmasters installed into the existing pipes, I can get the all polished look I want, but it might take 2-4 weeks to complete the project. The last time I looked, the company that EdwardB used did not do full polished stainless pipes. (I will look again). I remember seeing an new forum vendor in the ads. I am going to look into whatever they offer. Suggestions and opinions are very welcome, but more quiet pipes are on the "very high gotta get them now" list!

Off to ace to get set screws.

[edwardb]

...The last time I looked, the company that EdwardB used did not do full polished stainless pipes. (I will look again)...

The pipes I've used three times are from GAS-N Performance. http://www.gas-n.com/home.html. They are brilliantly polished SS. Super high quality. Multiple people report, myself included, along with some actual measurements, that from a pure decibel standpoint they are not any quieter than the standard FF pipes. But the sound is much more mellow and missing the metallic ring that many report, again including me, from the FF pipes. They also seem to last much longer, so they don't get louder over time. Finally, the ends turn down slightly which surprisingly helps. I highly recommend them and short of hard (e.g. loud...) acceleration, it's possible to carry on a conversation in the cockpit while driving. But I would not rate them as quiet as other custom combinations people have come up with. Whatever you do, I hope you and your passengers are wearing ear plugs. I've measured the sound pressure levels in the open cockpit even when the pipes aren't loud. Between road noise, wind, traffic, etc. it's not a level you should have constant exposure to.

[myjones]

At SEMA this year the unisteer folks showed me a new plug in module that will turn down the steering assist to a more custom/comfortable
level. They don't have anything indexed to speed at this point so it's a set it where you want deal for now.
HTH
Dale

[Straversi]

Recently swapped out my FFR pipes for the polished Gas-N units. Love them
-Steve

[Jazzman]

The devil, they say, is in the details. After my first highly successful shake down cruise, my laundry list of details to fix had grown substantially. First an most important item on the list: stop that hot blast of air from the engine pouring into the cockpit from along the body. Many have discussed the need for sealing the cockpit, but in my haste to get the body on the frame and back to the painter, I neglected to install some sort of seal between the body and the sides and top of either footbox. IF YOU ARE SOON GOING TO BE INSTALLING THE BODY FOR THE LAST TIME, PLEASE LEARN FROM MY MISTAKE: INSTALL INSULATION AS YOU ARE INSTALLING THE BODY ON THE FRAME. I now had to figure out to squeeze some sort of insulation into the spaces that allowed heated air to flow. The material was easy to find: pool noodles from the pool storage cabinet.



not exactly the color I might have choosen, but you will really have to look to find it anyway. I may paint it if it works out ok. For now, call this a test fit. The idea is to slice the pool noodle longitudinally and carve it to a shape so that when you open it up it will become a tight half circle to press firmly on both the inside of the body and the outside of the footbox. IF the body is not permanetly atached, this would be an easy process: Pull out the base of the body, slip the foam tube in place, attach the body and make sure the foam is squished into every crevice. Now that my body is painted, fitted, and "perfect", I don't want to unbolt it to put the foam in. So I have to figure out how to squeeze it into the spaces without moving the body. Hmmm..

Each piece is custom cut. I'll start with the PS seal first becuase it is easier to access (but not by much!!) Cut a piece of noodle to the approximate length of space you have to fill. Feel free to leave it a bit long. You will still be able to use it. The top and bottom of the space is more narrow than the center section. Slice off about 10" starting very thin, and ending by cutting about 40% of the tube.



Cut a flat spot on one side to connect the two tapered ends.



Slice longitudinally to allow the tube to open up and create a wide 1/2 tube.



open up the tube, then begin sliding the half tube up from inside the door frame pushing it between the body and the footbox. If it fits right, it will be very tight. I had to use a stick to slowly urge the noodle to change from horizontal to vertical. the end of the noodle should be right against the aluminum panel which is fitted behind the end of the dash board. The rest of the noodle should be tightly fitted along the edge of footbox and pushed into place with a stick. (Use the widest stick that will fit into the space so as not to jamb it into the foam tube.)





Once the vertical foam noodle is guarding the upper half of the opening, the door frame area is still potentially exposed. cut a length of foam to entirely fit under the door jamb. Cut that length almost in half by cutting 30 degree cuts the full length of the tube. Again, this is keep the edges flat when the tube is laid open.

[Jazzman]

Stuff this half tube into the space below the door sill. Butt it up against the foam tube that is installed vertically. These photos are from the DS, but the concept is the same.





Now you can install the door sill and finish it in whatever way you prefer.

The DS foam is conceptually the same, though I did add an additional piece of custom cut foam tube on the top of the foot box against the top portion of the body. It was much more difficult to get the foam tube into the DS spaces, but it can be done. Be patient , and feel free to pull the foam tubes out and carve them a little more to get them to fit tightly, but not too tight.

After getting all this foam stuffed in and covered up, It was time for another test run. Thirty five miles each way, turkey dinner #2, lots of compliments and amazed viewers. Successful test: no air blasts from the engine compartment.

I get home, feeling very cool, go to get my cool self out of the car and . . . the door handle won't open. The handle moves, but the pin won't disengage. I messed with it for a few minutes but to no avail. I can't get the door open. I ultimately had to loosen the striker piece to allow enough space between the striker piece and the latch pin. I slipped a very thin spark plug gap tool (yes, I still have one!!) between the two pieces. It finally moved the pin enough to allow the pieces to come apart.

I went to my old friends on the forum and found the classic but seemingly timeless door handle mod.

http://www.linger.com/cobra/DoorLatchRepair.htm

Once again you came though for me. I followed this series of modifications, and now both latches work smoothly. I did remove the exterior spring, and the handle still works great. I took off half of the handle stop on one latch unit, but took the entire stop off the other side. Now the handle retracts the pin entirely into the housing away from the latch point. I used a conical grinding wheel to chamfer the edges of the hole in latch striker piece. now the latch pin slides more easily into the striker piece. It's all back together now and working fine. (Wish I would have done this the first time. It really is amazing that this piece broke after only being used a few times. Poor quality!)

On to the rear over-riders (bumperettes as my wife calls them!) I am using the threaded couplers inside the trunk areas to make future access more simple. (After seeing how hard it is to do this, I am not sure if I made it easier!!) The first thing I had to do is drill out the threaded holes on the rear over-riders to allow a piece of 7/16" threaded rod to slip through. This proved to be a drill bit killer. Because the hole is already almost the correct size, the only cutting that is being done is by the sides of the drill bit, not the tip. Because of this, the sides of the drill bit get exremely hot. This wears down the edges much more quickly than normal. I have now drilled three of the four holes, and each hole ruined one drill bit!. I am going to try a cylindrical grinding wheel on the drill tomorrow and see if I can just grind out the necessary space.

I did get two holes drilled, and was able to install one rear over-rider. I bought a 3 foot length of threaded rod 7/16" x 14. Unfortunatly the threading was not deep enough, and the nuts would not thread onto it. I had to re=thread the entire length of rod!



I cut the rod into 5.5" sections, four pieces. I put the threaded rod through the holes in the back of the overrider, and put a nylok nut on the back side. I tighened the nut just enough to see 1/8" of the rod beyond the end of the nut. ON the outside of the over-rider, I slipped a 2" length of stainless tubing left over from the original body mounting bolts. Then I put a washer and a rubber washer on the rod. Once both of these rods are loaded in this way, I put them through the holes in the back of the body. I was able to spin these bolts by hand for part of the way to screw them into the threaded connector behind the body. When I could no longer turn the threaded rod by hand, I used a pair of slip joint pliers on the exposed section of the threads on the outside of the body. (This portion will be covered by the stainless steel tubes that cover the rods.) Finally, i tighened the nut on the inside of the overrider to snug the stainless tubing up against the washer, rubber washer, and the body. This took a lot of time in uncomfortable positions, but I got it done. One done, one to go!

I can't move forward until I can get the hole opened up on the other over-rider. That will have to wait til tomorrow.

[GoDadGo]

Jazzman,

Like the use of the "Swim Noodles" and your idea for the overrider rods.
Hope you had a nice Thanksgiving!

Steve

[carlewms]

Jazzman,

Thanks for posting the noodle installation ... I have not installed the body permanently so I can still mount the foam but was thinking of putting insulation between the aluminum on the frame and body along the sill.

Carl

[edwardb]

First time I've seen anyone put any sealing material the sills by the doors. Normally it's only necessary to put it between the body and the footboxes in front of the door hinges. It needs to go fully from top to bottom. Maybe there's something different about your build because of the flip front?

[cgundermann]

First time I've seen anyone put any sealing material the sills by the doors. Normally it's only necessary to put it between the body and the footboxes in front of the door hinges. It needs to go fully from top to bottom. Maybe there's something different about your build because of the flip front?

I'm with Paul, just extra insulation for that area you don't need. Just did mine and at Lowes they sell both large and small kits of air conditioning foam. It's not as hard as the rigid pool noodle stuff and you can get it into all the small crevices without deforming the door/body interface.

Chris

[Jazzman]

First time I've seen anyone put any sealing material the sills by the doors. Normally it's only necessary to put it between the body and the footboxes in front of the door hinges. It needs to go fully from top to bottom. Maybe there's something different about your build because of the flip front?

No, Nothing special here. Just "belts & suspenders". I didn't want to take any chances. It worked. No drafts.

[Jazzman]

I need to get a full alignment done. (Yes, I know some of you do it yourself, but I have decided that is one aspect I am just not interested in doing myself.) I called the local auto service place that takes care of my Ford F150 truck. They confirmed that they do alignments. I told them that this was a FFR 65 Shelby Cobra replica with 2016 Ford Mustang engine and IRS. They told me "we can't work on that because we do not have the specifications for that vehicle." Obviously I am going to look for another provider who has more breadth of experience, but are there some specifics that I should be able to tell the alignment provider? I know that a good alignment takes a combination of specialized tools and professional skills, but I don't think of an alignment as something that is so very complex and unknown. Am I wrong?

[Jdav]

I need to get a full alignment done. (Yes, I know some of you do it yourself, but I have decided that is one aspect I am just not interested in doing myself.) I called the local auto service place that takes care of my Ford F150 truck. They confirmed that they do alignments. I told them that this was a FFR 65 Shelby Cobra replica with 2016 Ford Mustang engine and IRS. They told me "we can't work on that because we do not have the specifications for that vehicle." Obviously I am going to look for another provider who has more breadth of experience, but are there some specifics that I should be able to tell the alignment provider? I know that a good alignment takes a combination of specialized tools and professional skills, but I don't think of an alignment as something that is so very complex and unknown. Am I wrong?

I had mine done at a race shop where they can specify each adjustment. I think most normal shops have more automated systems that rely on the OEM spec to get it aligned.

[PeteH]

I just had mine done last Wednesday. I found a local shop owned by a guy on this forum that knew what to do with Heim joint suspensions. It took about 2 hrs on the rear (94 TBird IRS), and 15min on the front, on a modern high tech rack. Great work Bill & crew! The front specs were in the manual, and rear in old IRS addendum for mine. I still had to regrind a flat on the rack spline to center the steering wheel, a simple task with body off. It was fun to go cart when I got home, and had a chance to get on it a bit thru second gear on a private marina road, the whole neighborhood is talking about how cool, and loud, it sounds. All were positive I should add. Lucky me.
I had asked at the local Conrad's chain last year, and when I asked whether they could set up a heim joint suspension, the delay in response as he stared into space told me what I needed to know before he said, "well, we've never seen one but we can try."

[Jazzman]

I just had mine done last Wednesday. I found a local shop owned by a guy on this forum that knew what to do with Heim joint suspensions. It took about 2 hrs on the rear (94 TBird IRS), and 15min on the front, on a modern high tech rack. Great work Bill & crew! The front specs were in the manual, and rear in old IRS addendum for mine. I still had to regrind a flat on the rack spline to center the steering wheel, a simple task with body off. It was fun to go cart when I got home, and had a chance to get on it a bit thru second gear on a private marina road, the whole neighborhood is talking about how cool, and loud, it sounds. All were positive I should add. Lucky me.
I had asked at the local Conrad's chain last year, and when I asked whether they could set up a heim joint suspension, the delay in response as he stared into space told me what I needed to know before he said, "well, we've never seen one but we can try."

My suspension is different than yours, but you have given me a good direction. I thought I had seen the specs somewhere in the manual, but I couldn't find them when I looked yesterday. I will look a little harder. I have the 2016 Mustang IRS, so I will look in those documents to see if specs were included. Good counsel. Thanks!

[edwardb]

My suspension is different than yours, but you have given me a good direction. I thought I had seen the specs somewhere in the manual, but I couldn't find them when I looked yesterday. I will look a little harder. I have the 2016 Mustang IRS, so I will look in those documents to see if specs were included. Good counsel. Thanks!

The alignment specs for the 2015+ Mustang based IRS are on the last part of the IRS instructions. Camber: -0.5° to -0.75°, Total Toe: 1/8” Toe in. Not listed in the instructions that I can see is Factory Five recommends these adjustment nuts have red Loctite applied.

I know you said you didn't want to do it yourself. But the kind of experience you're having is the same around here. I just didn't want to deal with it. On my first build, I spent a couple hundred bucks for the tools and learned to do it myself. It's actually kind of fun and interesting.

[Jazzman]

The alignment specs for the 2015+ Mustang based IRS are on the last part of the IRS instructions. Camber: -0.5° to -0.75°, Total Toe: 1/8” Toe in. Not listed in the instructions that I can see is Factory Five recommends these adjustment nuts have red Loctite applied.

I know you said you didn't want to do it yourself. But the kind of experience you're having is the same around here. I just didn't want to deal with it. On my first build, I spent a couple hundred bucks for the tools and learned to do it myself. It's actually kind of fun and interesting.

OK. I will reconsider. I will go search your threads and WarEagleScott and see if I can't figure out what to buy and where to start. My only remaining hesitation is "red locktite". That stuff is my mortal enemy!!