Roadracer's #997 build

[RoadRacer]

Sounds pretty good! My son was laughing at your "seat"!

Yeah until stage 2 gets here next month it's 3 garden cushions and my mechanics pad - can't wait for seat belts too, feels VERY weird sliding around in there!

[RoadRacer]

w00t!! Seems like my stage 2 is going to be on the Texas run from Stewart for the week of July 6th!!

Apparently 2 more 33's getting parts in Austin that same trip - one apparently <20 miles from me according to Todd. I told him to give them my details in case they want to get in touch.

I can't wait to have seats, belts, exhaust - luxuries!! Oh and a body will be nice so I can actually see what one of these looks like in real life.

So I'll be finished by what, August? LOL

[RoadRacer]

Feels like Christmas. I can't think of much else except stage 2 coming in a week. SO EXCITED!

BTW, it wasn't two more 33's - Todd was wrong - but two more Roadsters coming into town. Todd introduced us and we're already chatting. Welcome to the club Steven, Eli, Rob *waves*

[RoadRacer]

Just saying..

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[fostia]

Sweet. Now you can have all the fun the rest of us are having with the doors and trunk. And itch countless nights on end. Be one with the fiberglass! Been a long time coming as I remember we got our kits roughly the same time. I bet you are stoked.

[RoadRacer]

Sweet. Now you can have all the fun the rest of us are having with the doors and trunk. And itch countless nights on end. Be one with the fiberglass! Been a long time coming as I remember we got our kits roughly the same time. I bet you are stoked.

Yeah, I am excited to get into this next stage - ah the naivety of the unexperienced!

I was kinda surprised how little comes in stage 2. Yeah, I've been waiting for exhaust, seats, belts... and there's not much more except literally the body. And the body is.. minimal! I didn't realize I'd be able to carry it around.

I'm not sure I'll do any finishing though.. even the part lines. Previous cars I've put together and driven for a good year to shakedown before any kind of finishing. But we'll see!

[1932]

I am in the build and drive school, change things- fix cracks- add this or that, then paint.

[RoadRacer]

Stage 2 begins!

I wanted to put the body and top on to see how it all looks - remember I haven't seen my car with clothes on before - so I chopped off the new shape door opening to let the body sit down on mt Gen 1 chassis.

2020-07-11 14.58.20.jpg

There's no documentation, so I'm just winging it I have a piece of aluminum that fits perfectly on the outside of the chassis to fill this hole. A quick measure and the body already seems a perfect fit 45.5". I had no idea if my wheels would fit, but they do - loads of gap between body and tire.

The top is one I bought secondhand, hence there's some work by previous owner that I'll have to undo - I'll be permanently bonding it.

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[RoadRacer]

I also test-fitted the drivers side exhaust - and it went on perfectly. Everything just fit. And quite differently to my 2R manual - so they've made good changes since Gen1. The brackets and hangers were nicely improved. I'll test-fit the passenger side tomorrow and then wrap everything before final fit.

2020-07-11 14.58.04.jpg

[RoadRacer]

Well I just did something super-dumb.. but I'll tell you so you don't make the same mistake

Punchline: I connected my battery backwards and tried to start the car!

All that happened was that the starter made some whirring sounds but didn't engage.. strange, I thought, since it's been shimmed and been super reliable! Except of course it was going backwards..

It was only 10-15 seconds before I stopped trying, disconnected the battery again and went exploring. Something made me think it wasn't the starter, so I'm googling and thinking what could it be? Someone said the battery may not have enough juice to engage, and I hadn't given the solonoid a tap yet (!), so I go back outside.. to test the battery (it's a junker, and I have no alternator yet).

And of course as soon as I looked at the battery my heart sank. Red to -. Gulp.

How? Well, I'd removed the battery that was sitting on the floor, so I could install the exhaust. And the red cable that was tie-wrapped to the battery handle had slipped to the other end.. next to the earth terminal. Yep, dumb. I immediately painted one terminal red

Any who.. no computer on this SBC car, no fuses blown, so I may have got away with it? Not so fast.. there's no spark anymore.

I have a (wonderful) DUI distributor, so I guess I killed my ignition module inside. We'll see.

[1932]

I can't count all the ---- things that have been done, and some have been $$.

[RoadRacer]

Got the replacement ignition module and that has my car running perfectly again. It's so reliable using the DUI distributor/coil.

DUI.jpg

With it running I could finally hear what the complete exhaust system sounds like - much nicer than open headers A nice sound! Almost immediately I took it all apart to wrap everything, so I'm looking forward to finishing that and getting some time around the neighborhood to get used to the new sound.

I wrapped the two pipes in the 'lava rock' wrap, and the mufflers in 2 layers of the Design Engineering insulation so we'll see how effective that is. Then I plan to put Dynamat Extreme and Dynamat Dynapad on top of the aluminum floor.

muffler wrap.jpg

I couldn't finish and put the exhaust back on the car as the stainless tie wraps I bought sucked - I wasn't paying attention and bought 3/16" tiewraps which don't have the strength. So I returned them and bought 5/16" tie wraps which are coming soon.

[TxMike64]

Are the LiveWires fabric sheathed for the entire length? I've been considering those wires as they have the ends I need (using EDIS coilpacks on my 5.0) and they're available in several colors. If I could get them sheathed that will be what I get.

[RoadRacer]

Are the LiveWires fabric sheathed for the entire length? I've been considering those wires as they have the ends I need (using EDIS coilpacks on my 5.0) and they're available in several colors. If I could get them sheathed that will be what I get.

Yeah, they come like that - no assembly required - fully sheathed and numbered, and the perfect length I'm very impressed with them.

[RoadRacer]

Quick update on last weekend - final wrap and fitting of my exhaust system.

Because I had double wrapped the muffler, including the ends, I wanted to create some aluminum pieces to cover up and secure the ends from unwrapping. That aluminum was then held in place by stainless tie-wraps, lengthways.

I also made up two simple brackets to bolt the gen2 system up.

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Now it's installed I'm also going to wrap the joints in that DEI insulation - won't be as pretty by I'm looking for effective

By the way, I tested but I couldn't find my temperature gun so I did it with my hand. The muffler went from "holy cra*p, sear a steak on that" to "hot but I can touch it with my palm". So I'll leave the rest to the dynamat extreme + dynapad on top of the floor.

[FF33rod]

Really, you can touch the outside of that wrapped muffler after it's been running awhile? I've double wrapped mine and I can barely touch the floor for more than a second or two never mind the muffler itself!

Steve

[RoadRacer]

Really, you can touch the outside of that wrapped muffler after it's been running awhile? I've double wrapped mine and I can barely touch the floor for more than a second or two never mind the muffler itself!

Steve

Well, yeah, I wasn't holding my hand on it, but it wasn't scary to touch. Not like the unwrapped one was I'll have to find my temp gun.

[RoadRacer]

Started to fit the body today. I had issues around the firewall where the 'glass return was holding the body too far away from the chassis so I measured and cut a new line along the 'glass firewall return so it pulls in much closer. Will tweak it one more time, but much better now.

Getting the rear to sit in the right place was next, so the measure meant was perfect but the fuel line was in the way of the body, so I'll have to do the same as Peter Heath mentioned on FB and redrill the fuel pickup turned like 20deg to move the fuel line out the way. I already mocked this up and now the fuel line fits behind the body and waterfall.

I focused on 3 areas to set the height - where the body touches the chassis just in front of rear wheels..

2020-08-15 17.57.38.jpg

..where the chassis touches chassis at bottom of firewall..

2020-08-15 17.57.58.jpg

..and that the inner door lip sat flush on top of the chassis.

All those are perfectly lined up, and the body is about where I expected - although maybe a little close to tire so I may need to raise my rideheight (a lot of weight still not in car). But since the chassis matches/lined up with body I think this is a good starting point.

One 'niggle' is that the firewall and the front of body seem to be at very slightly different angles.. the firewall is leaned forward 1/8" compared with the body. I don't have clamps long enough to properly clamp that area, so they may just pull in given a little pressure!

So here's a question: In the picture below there will be fixings attaching the body along the inner door openings, and top of firewall (arrows), but I don't see anywhere in the main area shown where the body is attached? I must be missing something, this whole area can't just rely on the door to hold it in place?

2020-08-15_17_58_59.png

By the way, it was a surprise to read all about the waterfall fittings around the hinges.. and then find that the waterfall I got doesn't even go around the corner near the hinges. It's totally different shape.

[FF33rod]

Correct, nothing holding that part of the body to the frame, just door sill area and the firewall. Ends up fairly solid actually

Steve

[sethmark]

I fabricated two small brackets to pull the pontoons into the frame. I didn’t care for the fluffiness of it all once I started driving the car. Now mind you, I’m not running a hood or sides which probably makes a difference.

[RoadRacer]

I fabricated two small brackets to pull the pontoons into the frame. I didn’t care for the fluffiness of it all once I started driving the car. Now mind you, I’m not running a hood or sides which probably makes a difference.

Was thinking exactly the same, thanks Seth. Without sides etc I figured the wind will be howling around there at 80-90mph

[RoadRacer]

Here's the fix I made to the fuel pickup to rotate it and let it clear the body and waterfall.

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and how the body sits today, just recording for later reference. It may change once I test fit doors/top/trunk.

2020-08-16 11.17.12.jpg 2020-08-16 11.17.32.jpg 2020-08-16 11.17.03.jpg

Next step is to fit the outer chassis aluminum that I was sent to fill the gap on the Gen1/Gen2 combo.

[peterh226]

I trimmed the body around the frame so it would not rub. Either it's attached to the chassis/firewall or there is clearance to not rub. I attached the vertical wall in the door area (Your arrow) to the frame. I'm running full fenders and hood sides so all of that stuff is just hooked together. If the need to, I guess I can add a spacer at the attachment point on the frame and push out the door opening if needed. So far, I'm not at a point where I'm quite that picky. There is really no load on the body in that area anyway. The door closure pin is another contact point where I've got the body locked to the chassis. So, is only the area below the door latch that is no fully locked down. But it's pretty solid anyway and I'm not worrying about it at this point.

[fostia]

For your fuel line fitment, I just cut a rectangle in that body flange. The waterfall butts up against it so you would never see it. Also, before I got my Boyd tank, I bonded some clickbond studs to the fuel tank so I could use some p-clamps keep the fuel lines from rubbing against that edge. Best place for clickbonds is from the flight shop. They are a bit pricey but open up mounting options that you wouldn't normally have. And they are pretty rock solid. Just some thoughts for access and keep things neat and routed nicely.

[RoadRacer]

I bonded some clickbond studs to the fuel tank so I could use some p-clamps keep the fuel lines from rubbing against that edge. Best place for clickbonds is from the flight shop. They are a bit pricey but open up mounting options that you wouldn't normally have. And they are pretty rock solid. Just some thoughts for access and keep things neat and routed nicely.

wow, thanks for that - I've never seen those before, no idea how I missed that. They look very handy!

[RoadRacer]

Holy crap.

[cob427sc]

WOW. Never knew these existed. I could have used lots of these over the years on various projects.

[j33ptj]

WOW!! no more nutserts!!

Very intesting product, trying to find a provider to private persons will be interesting....

[bldr.rob]

Ok, that is awesome!!

[fostia]

WOW!! no more nutserts!!

Very intesting product, trying to find a provider to private persons will be interesting....

The company I work for makes composite aircraft so they use these clickbonds all over the place. Since I really like the concept of them but can't take any from work, I've found this company that sells them individually: https://www.theflightshop.com/

This is by far the best place I've found to get them. You can order small quantities. Let me just reiterate, they are NOT cheap. But if you have a couple select locations that nothing else will work, I think it's worth the splurge. Like bonding a stud to a gastank or a strategically located p-clamp for a wire or e-brake cable so it doesn't rub. I've used a couple them on my gas tank and e-brake cable routing (on my rear diff because I didn't want to weld on it).

[RoadRacer]

The company I work for makes composite aircraft so they use these clickbonds all over the place on the aircraft. Since I really like the concept of them but can't take any from work, I've found this company that sells them individually: https://www.theflightshop.com/

This is by far the best place I've found to get them. You can order small quantities. A bit pricey, but they are awesome for certain circumstances you need. Like bonding a stud to a gastank or a strategically located p-clamp for a wire or e-brake cable so it doesn't rub. I've used them on my gas tank and e-brake cable routing (on my rear diff because I didn't want to weld on it).

These responses to your casual comment at least made me feel better about not knowing about these things! I can see so many options - fitting wiper motor to hardtop for example. I really don't like the idea of nutserts in 'glass (seems no one does). And your p-clip idea would work where you can't pop a rivet.

What other aerospace tricks/tools are you sitting on?

[fostia]

These responses to your casual comment at least made me feel better about not knowing about these things! I can see so many options - fitting wiper motor to hardtop for example. I really don't like the idea of nutserts in 'glass (seems no one does). And your p-clip idea would work where you can't pop a rivet.

What other aerospace tricks/tools are you sitting on?

Hmmmm, other aerospace tips and tricks? Only other things I've really learned is how to have a project double in cost and take twice as long. A concept I've really taken home and applied to the kit car project. Thats about all I got, I'm a one trick pony, clickbonds is it.

[progmgr1]

Hmmmm, other aerospace tips and tricks? Only other things I've really learned is how to have a project double in cost and take twice as long. A concept I've really taken home and applied to the kit car project. Thats about all I got, I'm a one trick pony, clickbonds is it.

If schedule and budget only double then things have really changed since I was in aerospace. Triple is more likely (based on my Hot Rod build at least). Also you forgot to mention the constant "need" for more, increasingly expensive, tools. However, the Clickbonds is a great tip - wish I had known about them when I was building satellite systems! Another source is Aircraft Spruce (www.aircraftspruce.com) - which is also my preferred source for fiberglass resins, cloth, etc. Keith HR #894

[RoadRacer]

I'm total crap at videos - I forgot AGAIN to take it in landscape mode. But super excited to get this new toy!

[RoadRacer]

Last weekend (and maybe the weekend before too!) I final fitted the floor, rear bulkhead and outer Gen2 'cover-up' panels that I need cos of my Gen1 chassis. That's a lot of drilling and riveting

floor-fitted.jpg

So this morning I wanted to fit seats with the new Breeze tilted bracket, and modify for the submarine belt (which means modding breeze stuff a little), so I took a lot of pics of the process in case it helps someone.

To start, I sat in seat and figured where I needed the sub belt - turns out to line up with this bar perfectly so I drilled a 3/8 hole through it.

seat1.jpg

Next I lined up and clamped the tilted bracket from Breeze, marked the holes through the rivnuts..

seat2.jpg

..and drilled them.

seat3.jpg

Bolted through the rivnuts..

seat4.jpg

..and offered up the hardboard cushion support and drilled through to the frame.

seat5.jpg

Next I marked where the sub belt is bolted on so I can cut a hole.

seat6.jpg

This shows the relationship of the hardboard to the cushion - the hardboard goes inside the leather, and supports the foam.

seat7.jpg

After cutting a hole, I bolted up the sub belt

seat8.jpg

[RoadRacer]

Next I marked in chalk where the seat needed cutting, and cut from outside in, not going all the way out to the lines - the leather stretched when I put in the fittings

seat10.jpg seat9.jpg

Cut through first layer of foam with box cutter, then thick white foam with a very sharp kitchen knife, from the top.

seat11.jpg

Slotted in the sub belt fittings, they push fit.

https://blackrhinoperformance.com/sh...rness-inserts/

seat12.jpg

After putting the seat in the car and lining it up with pedals, equally spaced side-to-side, I marked where the bracket was on floor, then removed it from the seat and drilled all the holes.

seat13.jpg

I riveted the base with just 3 rivets (cos gonna come out again), and bolted up the seat

seat14.jpg

Riveted in the hardboard, then put the seat cushion back in place. Fitted all the seat belts and gave it a trial fit! First time I've had a seat and belts, and it feels great! Good reach to steering wheel and gear shift.

seat15.jpg

[fostia]

Next I marked in chalk where the seat needed cutting, and cut from outside in, not going all the way out to the lines - the leather stretched when I put in the fittings

seat10.jpg seat9.jpg

Cut through first layer of foam with box cutter, then thick white foam with a very sharp kitchen knife, from the top.

seat11.jpg

Slotted in the sub belt fittings, they push fit.

seat12.jpg

After putting the seat in the car and lining it up with pedals, equally spaced side-to-side, I marked where the bracket was on floor, then removed it from the seat and drilled all the holes.

seat13.jpg

I riveted the base with just 3 rivets (cos gonna come out again), and bolted up the seat

seat14.jpg

Riveted in the hardboard, then put the seat cushion back in place. Fitted all the seat belts and gave it a trial fit! First time I've had a seat and belts, and it feels great! Good reach to steering wheel and gear shift.

seat15.jpg

Nice! I may have to get one of those breeze contraptions. Sometimes the seat squishes too much and the seat belt through hole thing bottoms out.

[RoadRacer]

One interesting thing about sitting in seats with belts.. now I need to rethink where the switches are going to be because no way I'm reaching the dash with the belts on!! Everything needs to be a lot closer

[FF33rod]

One interesting thing about sitting in seats with belts.. now I need to rethink where the switches are going to be because no way I'm reaching the dash with the belts on!! Everything needs to be a lot closer

I found out early on that I can't reach the emergency brake either with the belt on! Kinda dumb having to release the emergency brake before strapping in...

Steve

[RoadRacer]

I found out early on that I can't reach the emergency brake either with the belt on! Kinda dumb having to release the emergency brake before strapping in...

Steve

Hmmm, ebrake is next on my list so that'll be interesting!