MJS Mk4 Build Thread

[Railroad]

I used some nearly flush mount rivnuts in some places. Due to the reduced surface contact, I thought some loctite bearing and sleeve retainer would assure the rivnut did not decide to spin at a later date. Only time will tell, whether this was needed or works. I also found there was enough metal in the thicker wall tubes to use a self tapping screw/bolt.
Just throwing out some of my thoughts. Not that you need any, looks like you plan very well. Nice work.

[MSumners]

Good idea on the flush mount rivnuts. I had found something similar on McMaster and I think I’ll trial some. I’m working on finalizing my plans to make the rear dash area easily accessible yet still have it covered and integrated to the partial dash cover I made. Some people browse social media at night, lately I tend to explore the McMaster site. My wife is typically not nearly as impressed with finds such as stud-rivets as I am.

[bldr.rob]

Under dash panels look great! Great idea to cover up everything under there. Gives it a much cleaner look.

[MSumners]

Decided on USB hookup placement.

[MSumners]

Trying to fit the doors still. I feel like a caveman that was given a trigonometry exam.

[egchewy79]

have you checked out any of Jkliener's threads on the topic? he has some excellent insight on how to position the rocker panel to get the doors to fit ideally.

[MSumners]

have you checked out any of Jkliener's threads on the topic? he has some excellent insight on how to position the rocker panel to get the doors to fit ideally.

Yep thanks for looking out. Ive read through quite a few threads on the fitting. I think I have it about as close as its going to get for the passenger side and now will look at the drivers side. I'm just trying to make sure the position is acceptable before putting the latches on to try to avoid re-drilling them. I actually plan to have Jeff do the bodywork and paint next year when available so really I’m just trying to get it functional, not screw it up and get some miles in. On the passenger side all corners line up well except for the leading edge of the upper to mid front where it is about 3mm too high.

[Jeff Kleiner]

...On the passenger side all corners line up well except for the leading edge of the upper to mid front where it is about 3mm too high.

Don't make yourself crazy trying to make all the corners line up...they won't

Jeff

[MSumners]

Don't make yourself crazy trying to make all the corners line up...they won't

Jeff

That’s all the nudging I needed. Trimmed so slightly, bolted in and time for latches. Then just have to get the pipes back on and a temporary manual wiper to get through inspection and start registration. Hopefully still in time to get some good test miles in this Fall.

[MSumners]

Doors mounted, not perfect but functional and trimmed the minimum amount I could to get them fitted. Got the latches attached and quite pleased with how secure they seem. As some have noted, I had to use two spacers for the latch on the drivers side and none on the passenger. Other small work, drivers seat is in with the breeze setup. I'm still debating high back seats from kirkey or nrg but will likely use the FFR for a bit as its already in and see how I like it. Looked at sidepipe fitting to the pre cut openings and body. Looks like I'll need about 1/2 spacer for the passenger side and a 1.5" wedge for the drivers side and have these on order from Mark. I have a manual wiper and bracket on order. I still have to make a small adjustment to the windshield to see if I can get to exactly 27" and close that gap on the drivers side. Thought it was dead on but re=measured and is slightly off. Once that is wrapped up I'll try to get inspection done.

[Jeff Kleiner]

That door actually looks better than most

Jeff

[MSumners]

Thanks for the reassurance on the doors!

Some questions regarding the side pipe fitting as it relates to the body openings and front elephant ears. I've been reading the manual and some build logs and I see recommendations for both "trimming to fit" the front elephant ears and also the possibility that the elephant ears will push out the fender some when in place.
1: Should the elephant ears be adjusted to fit into place so that they don't put too much pressure on the body?

As everything stands currently, the passenger side pipe appears it will bolt up with a 1/2" of spacer and be in a good position and essentially centered in the current (untrimmed) side pipe opening. The drivers side is quite a bit off. The main interference currently is with the front edge of the fender (again currently untrimmed). If I were to simply trim the opening to fit I would end up with about a 2.5" gap between the back edge of the pipe and the edge of the fender which seems like too much. I've read about shifting the engine slightly and maybe I'll have to consider that to get a reasonable fit. Anything else I should check before I blaze forward?

Thanks all!

Mike

[MSumners]

What’s the over-under on this wiper being sufficient for initial Michigan inspection prior to installing the real system this winter?

[MSumners]

I figured out my side pipe spacing and wedging issue to get them aligned.
For the body side-pipe cutout opening, is there a standard clearance from the pipes to the body(front, top, rear) that is recommended?

[edwardb]

What’s the over-under on this wiper being sufficient for initial Michigan inspection prior to installing the real system this winter?

Depends solely on the LEO who does your inspection. In four I've had a couple do a cursory look over the car, and two others that barely looked. Just asked me if everything was there. I've never had an inspection where anything (lights, horns, wipers, whatever) was required to be operated during the inspection. So I would say your chances are pretty good. Now washers, which I don't see present, are a different story. I've had to do some fast talking on that one. Finally installed them on my Coupe. Only to have them not inspected or even noticed. He just checked the box.

[MSumners]

Depends solely on the LEO who does your inspection. In four I've had a couple do a cursory look over the car, and two others that barely looked. Just asked me if everything was there. I've never had an inspection where anything (lights, horns, wipers, whatever) was required to be operated during the inspection. So I would say your chances are pretty good. Now washers, which I don't see present, are a different story. I've had to do some fast talking on that one. Finally installed them on my Coupe. Only to have them not inspected or even noticed. He just checked the box.

Yeah I noticed that washer requirement. I think for now I’m just going to take my chances and see what happens. Time to strap the pipes on and schedule the inspection!

[MSumners]

Belts and ready for laps around the neighborhood

[EbourqueIII]

Just found your Build. It is looking great!!!!!!!!!!!! The caveman with a geometry problem remark had me laughing

[MSumners]

Just found your Build. It is looking great!!!!!!!!!!!! The caveman with a geometry problem remark had me laughing

Thanks!
I’ve had a great time with the build and still a lot to do but the list of major items is getting shorter. I think not setting artificial timelines from the get-go is important. Every item is simply going to take as long as it takes.

[MSumners]

Between some recent needed R&R spent climbing the Red in KY I was reading some build threads regarding front body fitting again.
Specifically relating to centering measurements of:
1) the hood opening to the chassis rails - and-
2) the distance of the shock-mount tower to the body wheel-well lip.

I know measuring in general here can possibly drive you nuts but where is this supposed to land? Right now I’m striking a balance between the two. The hood-opening to chassis rails is close but the shock mount to wheel well lip is about 1/4” off with more gap on the drivers side. Just wondering if either is really more noticeable.

[Jeff Kleiner]

Between some recent needed R&R spent climbing the Red in KY I was reading some build threads regarding front body fitting again.
Specifically relating to centering measurements of:
1) the hood opening to the chassis rails - and-
2) the distance of the shock-mount tower to the body wheel-well lip.

I know measuring in general here can possibly drive you nuts but where is this supposed to land? Right now I’m striking a balance between the two. The hood-opening to chassis rails is close but the shock mount to wheel well lip is about 1/4” off with more gap on the drivers side. Just wondering if either is really more noticeable.

Position the body based on measurement from the shock mount to the body wheelwell lip and don't reference anything based on the hood opening to tubes. As you can see in this photo the hood opening isn't centered on the body and is skewed with the front shifted to the driver's side (it also shows that the radiator opening is crooked and the headlights are crosseyed but that's another story ).



Remember too that if you're measuring 1/4" difference side to side it will only take 1/8" of movement to bring it to zero.

Cheers,
Jeff

[MSumners]

Position the body based on measurement from the shock mount to the body wheelwell lip and don't reference anything based on the hood opening to tubes. As you can see in this photo the hood opening isn't centered on the body and is skewed with the front shifted to the driver's side (it also shows that the radiator opening is crooked and the headlights are crosseyed but that's another story ).



Remember too that if you're measuring 1/4" difference side to side it will only take 1/8" of movement to bring it to zero.

Cheers,
Jeff

Perfect thank you as always!

[MSumners]

Disassembled and pulled the body to do some re-adjustment (front centering,heater, etc). I have it suspended as shown essentially just with 4 hooks to the wheelwells and a support bar in the cockpit. Think it’s ok to suspend here for a week or two?

[Jeff Kleiner]

Think it’s ok to suspend here for a week or two?

Absolutely.

Jeff

[MSumners]

Still plugging away 20 minutes at a time here and there. I was able to get the clutch master cylinder switched out for a 1” for a shorter throw disengagement. Haven’t had it back on the road to test yet but the stationary disengagement test seems much improved. I through bolted all of the breeze roll bar connections with 5/16 shoulder bolts after marking the body position when it was on. I have a whole list of other small things to work on including the heater setup, making a small adjustment to the front outriggers to center up the front end, various final electrical work and additions. In short, probably enough to keep me busy for awhile. I think my push to get some miles in this fall is officially over as the snow is flying now and I can’t seem to get the car scheduled for inspection. Now that it’s partially disassembled I’ll shoot for spring.

[MSumners]

Hoping someone might be able to help me avoid buying another $100 paperweight to decorate the garage with. At this point if I had to relocate my desk to the back of a flatbed truck I'm pretty sure I'd have enough wrong-purchase artifacts to keep the whole enchilada secured down. Anyhow, I'm currently working on positioning and installing the heater and keep looking behind the dash at all the wiring and its driving me crazy. As it currently stands I have, in addition to everything else, my master disconnect switch in the middle of the dash and 2-0 wire coming in and returning from it as shown in my prior images. I would like to keep everything as accessible as possible after everything is together and I'm going to spend some time organizing this further. What I'm considering doing is essentially using the master disconnect as a simple switch to activate a relay on the engine bay firewall to gain some space. Seems simple enough as currently everything is wired and working correctly so should just be a matter of re-routing some wires. I've done some reading over the past couple days but still unsure about which specific relay to buy. This is the one I'm looking at. Looking for any guidance on whether this would work and whether I could essentially wire it like a normal box type relay with the current master disconnect as the switch?

https://shop.advanceautoparts.com/p/...-bx/11044678-P

[MSumners]

Finishing up prep for installing the heater/defroster and I’m going to switch out the water neck for one with an extra return port. Aside from the included gasket should this be sealed with anything else?

[TMartinLVNV]

Finishing up prep for installing the heater/defroster and I’m going to switch out the water neck for one with an extra return port. Aside from the included gasket should this be sealed with anything else?

Before you replace your water neck, please read the saga that Fman and I went through and learn from our mistakes. It cost both of us a LOT of time and frustration. If you have the Ford Performance Parts water neck, modify it as in my post. If you don't, get one.

https://thefactoryfiveforum.com/show...l=1#post433741

https://thefactoryfiveforum.com/show...l=1#post432824

[egchewy79]

I put a very thin coating of RTV on both sides of my gasket. no leaks yet. also don't forget to RTV the bottom of the heater (vintage air I assume?) to fill that gap.

[MSumners]

Perfect thanks for the tips!

[MSumners]

Exhibit A:
Photographic evidence of the last known position of my 9/16ths wrench

[MSumners]

Still plugging away. Working on the dash panels, under fill area and seat heaters. Might not look like much but for a beginner like me this has been a TON of work making the panels fit together flush. I don’t want to think about how many hours I put in getting the passenger side dash panels to fit perfectly. Everything is Riv-nut together and held with 8-32’s so it’s all easily disassembled. I think all of the heater parts are ready and thought through so it’ll just be a matter of execution. Once that happens I’ll try to get some more go cart time in before considering re-assembly for the final time before paint. Still a lot to do.

[Railroad]

Nice DASH!

[Mark Eaton]

I agree your dash looks great, and your trans cover is definitely not going anywhere with all those rivets!

[MSumners]

Thanks gents. Love this project.
True on the rivets those holes are overkill, I’ll likely put in half that many in the end.
On to dash work phase 3 - toning down the dash metal effect.

[MSumners]

I’m working on the heater air duct lines. I’m using the vintage air system from FFR. Anyone see a problem with creating a Y connection in the hose using aluminum tape?

[egchewy79]

Creating a Y connection or connecting a Y?
Are you going to cut a hole in the side of a hose and tape another hose in?

[MSumners]

Creating a Y connection or connecting a Y?
Are you going to cut a hole in the side of a hose and tape another hose in?

I would essentially be cutting a hole in the side to add a limb that would run to the footbox.

[MSumners]

Because of my gauge interference I had to get a bit creative to fit both the heater box and the wiper motor line. I used a bump-out box as many have done to gain more room behind the dash. This however interfered with the wiper line. Tried to come up with a solution that was a bit simpler but in the end after mocking things up quite a few times realized I essentially had to run the wiper through the heater box. Doesn’t look like but but as usual a lot of hours of ‘entertainment’ here. First I finished the box that would space the heater out from the dash and Powder coated it Ford black. Found the appropriate spot on the firewall and cut the hole with an air saw. I had to drill 4 holes through the box and through the heater assembly itself, which meant these had to be sealed up tight. I used solid grommets and punched out holes using a leather punch. I ran a short length of flared 5/16 through the grommets and secured the wiper, that way I can run the rest of the lines with the body on later to line up the wiper boxes.

[MSumners]

About to run the 5/8 heater hoses, it mentions running the send line to the LEFT heater fitting. Does this mean left (driver side) or left as I’m looking at it (passenger side) ?