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Rhino's Type 65
Our Type 65 complete kit arrived this past Saturday. I felt like a six year old on Christmas morning. My wife and I are both ready to get started. We recently sold our "cruise-in car" to make room in the garage. Some of the basics are:
302 SBF
Tremec T5
IRS
Powder coat
Carpet
Hood and cowl scoops
Manual rack and pinion
Carpet
15" Haldibrands
The AC/heater unit was not chosen, nor were wipers, side windows or exhaust system. We really enjoy driving with the wind blowing through the car. We don't care for the sun beating down on our heads, so the coupe was our choice. Besides, the coupe looks incredible! One of our main concerns is getting a good ventilation system developed. Until we see the space under the dash, we won't make final decisions about what goes there. We will be using the Boig exhaust in hopes of lessening noise.
Like many newbies, I'm not sure how to approach the build thread. We will be posting our progress on the car and sharing any worthwhile discoveries which might be helpful to others. However, if we have questions, should those be posted as separate threads?
Pictures will be posted as soon as I figure out how to do that.
Well, it's time to get back to our inventory and to building a body buck.
Terry
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I would post everything in one build thread. (Thats what I did) It will be easier for you to find that info in the future if your only looking in one place. It will also help others following your thread if they see a problem posted and the solution in the same thread. A lot of the other builders will be following your thread "watching over your shoulder".
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Congrats! Welcome to the forum.
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Good luck Rhino. Look forward to seeing more.
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Senior Member
Congratulations and good luck!
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Congrats! I kind of envy your build plan, keeping it simple and slim. I went opposite with big coyote, ac, wipers, pwr steering, cruise, elec. parking brake, and more which fills lots of space behind the dash and under the hood. Lots of space behind the dash if you keep it simple.
Good Luck!
John
Gen 3 Coupe #334 received 11/4/21. Coyote, IRS, TKX, Wilwoods
'02 GT donor, 4.6 sohc, Received #5488 on 5/29/06. 3-link, ps, pb. Hoosier Cobra member (Hoosiercobra.com)
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Welcome! My build has seen its challenges, I am sometimes frustrated, but still fun. I think the 2 things that have helped me most is putting something on the box that tells me what is in the box like in the Cobra Daytona build video (A great reference BTW) and my kanban board. I added notes to it so I knew what box each step involved. I wish I had indicated what parts I wanted powder coated when I reviewed the manual, It probably would have saved me some time. Good luck and have fun
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Originally Posted by
Namrups
I would post everything in one build thread. (Thats what I did) It will be easier for you to find that info in the future if your only looking in one place. It will also help others following your thread if they see a problem posted and the solution in the same thread. A lot of the other builders will be following your thread "watching over your shoulder".
Thanks for the advice. It can be difficult to navigate the forum. I don't want to make it difficult for others.
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Originally Posted by
Indy Shu
Congrats! I kind of envy your build plan, keeping it simple and slim. I went opposite with big coyote, ac, wipers, pwr steering, cruise, elec. parking brake, and more which fills lots of space behind the dash and under the hood. Lots of space behind the dash if you keep it simple.
Good Luck!
We kept is simple for several reasons. Our new car is so loaded with features, gizmos, apps and gadgets that it required a co-pilot for the first few thousand miles. One of us actually kept the owners' manual in hand to figure out things. Some of the safety features are actually distracting or (in my opinion) dangerous. For example, at night, the backup camera is so bright that it's impossible to see out the side windows!
New cars are designed to insulate us from the road. I miss "the feel of the road". The old MG was a blast to drive. It made me smile every time I drove it. The feel of manual steering and manual brakes in a car as light as the Type65 should be fun. Trading away the comfort/convenience features for the giggle factor made more sense.
Finally, omitting some things from our initial order gives us the chance to know the car and its construction before we finalize its features. Our top priority for the cockpit is good ventilation. Fabricating floor vents and dash vents and routing the hoses is very important. That's another topic that will receive lots of attention as the build goes on.
I see that we are practically neighbors. I look forward to showing the finished car to you.
Terry
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Originally Posted by
TangoUniform
Welcome! My build has seen its challenges, I am sometimes frustrated, but still fun. I think the 2 things that have helped me most is putting something on the box that tells me what is in the box like in the Cobra Daytona build video (A great reference BTW) and my kanban board. I added notes to it so I knew what box each step involved. I wish I had indicated what parts I wanted powder coated when I reviewed the manual, It probably would have saved me some time. Good luck and have fun
Great tips! The garage wall has no wall space left so there's no room left for a kanban board. We are labeling boxes as we do inventory. To get rid of the pile of boxes, we will be putting similar items on their own shelves, e.g. fuel system, brakes... We also keep a calendar on the workbench to record each day's activity and schedule. Clipboards will go on the edge of the workbench for "notes to self", questions for the forum,etc. The tip about identifying parts for powder coating is a big help. Separate storage for parts which will be coming in/out for powder coating, welding or whatever.
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I should have said, "Our new family car". The Type 65 won't be loaded with gizmos, apps and gadgets.
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If you need to see anything along the way let me know, I'm always up for a drive. My coupe is roadworthy, although without paint.
John
Gen 3 Coupe #334 received 11/4/21. Coyote, IRS, TKX, Wilwoods
'02 GT donor, 4.6 sohc, Received #5488 on 5/29/06. 3-link, ps, pb. Hoosier Cobra member (Hoosiercobra.com)
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Originally Posted by
Indy Shu
If you need to see anything along the way let me know, I'm always up for a drive. My coupe is roadworthy, although without paint.
John,
My wife and I would really appreciate getting to talk to you and see your coupe. We could use a boost of confidence as we get started.
I'll see if I can figure out to send a private message.
Terry
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Photo upload test.Type65.jpg
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Photo upload Type65.jpgtest#2
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Photo upload <img src="https://thefactoryfiveforum.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=196341&stc=1" attachmentid="196341" alt="" id="vbattach_196341" class="previewthumb align_0 size_large" style="">test#2
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Originally Posted by
Indy Shu
If you need to see anything along the way let me know, I'm always up for a drive. My coupe is roadworthy, although without paint.
I live just south of you. I wouldn't mind driving up to see what you got so far. I haven't ordered my coupe yet, so I like comparing ideas to consider. I've got $26,000 in parts so far.
Michael
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Here's the coupe arriving. I'll try to post pictures of the body buck/dolly after we complete inventory. Oh yes, I'm the happy old guy in the green hat. We were all freezing. The previous day reached sixty degrees. Indiana weather!!!
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The kan ban board is just an simple website called trello.com. way easier than a physical board.
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Senior Member
Congrats on the Coupe Rhino! I like your build plan, keep it simple and know what it is. I agree with Namrups on trying to keep everything in your build post but if you have very specific questions on something I've found throwing up a specific question in the general section will get you answers relatively quickly if you need them. Going through everything myself, studying build threads were great, but having the opportunity to see about 6 built coupes now has helped me immensely, so getting to see others' builds and details as you get into the weeds on yours is helpful. One of the coupes I saw had very functional air vents into the cabin from the hood scoops constructed from Cessna parts, and if I have space on my firewall I will be attempting the same.
Also my only tip is if you move something from 1 box to another box or store it somewhere else write it down (I wrote everything on my inventory sheets), because you might not think about those 2 bolts you moved elsewhere for 6 months then completely forget where you put them (not that that has ever happened to me of course )...welcome and have fun!
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The body buck is finished. Inventory is moving along and along and along...Cobra body buck.jpg Some research was done about body bucks. In the end I went my own way.
DESIGN CONSIDERATIONS
Simplicity and ease of construction were important. Wood was chosen over steel. Wood has adequate strength. It can easily be disassembled for reuse. I had lots of scrap wood around.
Mounting was the next issue. The body was transported almost a thousand miles by resting the door sills on the frame rails. No other body support at the rear was used to transport it. A call to one of the Factory 5 techs assured me that development has made the bodies much stronger and more warp resistant. So, the buck will use only the door sills for support.
Balance was the next issue. Much of the body weight is behind the sills. The buck has an extended bottom rail for stability.
Height of the buck was simply a matter of making it a comfortable working level. It will also be used to paint the body so the bottom edge should't be too low. The length of my scrap wood made some difference. Did I mention that there is lots of scrap wood in the garage?
CONSTRUCTION AND WOOD LENGTHS
2 base rails are each 48"
2 sill rails are each 31"
2 cross rails 55 1/4"
4 spacer blocks approx. 6"
6 diagonals approx. 22"
4 verticals 19" (your choice)
The sill rails extend beyond the verticals 1 1/2" onto the spacers. Total width across the sill plates is 58 1/4". The purpose of the spacers is to move the verticals in and away from the bottom of the body. The frame is reasonably square with one exception. The sill plates are kept in plane. Check level across the sill plates at the front and back. Check level along the sill plates. Sight across the sill plates. Cockeyed sill plates could create twist in the body. Diagonals provide rigidity to the whole structure. The photo should provide info to aid in construction. The whole assembly was mounted on four locking caster wheels.
FINAL NOTES
I did not see the need to create supporting bulkheads as is done on roadster bucks. The steps and flanges in the cowl/firewall should be reasonably stiff. The rear fender bulges slope sharply downward, consequently the body would tend to slide down the partial bulkheads and spread outward rather than be supported.
The body hasn't been mounted yet. There may be unanticipated problems with the design. Measure your project before taking my measurements as gospel truth. If you think the design is idiotic. Let me know. My ex-wife got me used to the word idiotic.
Finally, if the need arises to make mods and improvements, I'll let you know.
Terry
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The body is off. It's on the buck, but the measurements were off. The fit is horrible. It will take revision. Complicated projects always seem to involve doing some things twice. The buck will need to support the back of the body. Support under just the door sills may have worked to transport the car here, but it won't work for doing body work. It's just too tail heavy. Support under the rear wheel openings will be the first modification to the body buck.
Body buck.jpg
buck 2.jpg
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Originally Posted by
Rhino
The body buck is finished. Inventory is moving along and along and along...
Cobra body buck.jpg Some research was done about body bucks. In the end I went my own way.
DESIGN CONSIDERATIONS
Simplicity and ease of construction were important. Wood was chosen over steel. Wood has adequate strength. It can easily be disassembled for reuse. I had lots of scrap wood around.
Mounting was the next issue. The body was transported almost a thousand miles by resting the door sills on the frame rails. No other body support at the rear was used to transport it. A call to one of the Factory 5 techs assured me that development has made the bodies much stronger and more warp resistant. So, the buck will use only the door sills for support.
Balance was the next issue. Much of the body weight is behind the sills. The buck has an extended bottom rail for stability.
Height of the buck was simply a matter of making it a comfortable working level. It will also be used to paint the body so the bottom edge should't be too low. The length of my scrap wood made some difference. Did I mention that there is lots of scrap wood in the garage?
CONSTRUCTION AND WOOD LENGTHS
2 base rails are each 48"
2 sill rails are each 31"
2 cross rails 55 1/4"
4 spacer blocks approx. 6"
6 diagonals approx. 22"
4 verticals 19" (your choice)
The sill rails extend beyond the verticals 1 1/2" onto the spacers. Total width across the sill plates is 58 1/4". The purpose of the spacers is to move the verticals in and away from the bottom of the body. The frame is reasonably square with one exception. The sill plates are kept in plane. Check level across the sill plates at the front and back. Check level along the sill plates. Sight across the sill plates. Cockeyed sill plates could create twist in the body. Diagonals provide rigidity to the whole structure. The photo should provide info to aid in construction. The whole assembly was mounted on four locking caster wheels.
FINAL NOTES
I did not see the need to create supporting bulkheads as is done on roadster bucks. The steps and flanges in the cowl/firewall should be reasonably stiff. The rear fender bulges slope sharply downward, consequently the body would tend to slide down the partial bulkheads and spread outward rather than be supported.
The body hasn't been mounted yet. There may be unanticipated problems with the design. Measure your project before taking my measurements as gospel truth. If you think the design is idiotic. Let me know. My ex-wife got me used to the word idiotic.
Finally, if the need arises to make mods and improvements, I'll let you know.
Terry
The body is on, but the design will need to be modified. Vertical supports will be needed over the rear dolly wheels. These supports will carry a cross brace which will go under the fender openings.
Terry
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Senior Member
Hi Terry. I'm a little late to the party, but welcome aboard! Good info. on the body buck. Most of my forum research has been on Roadster stuff, so this is the first Coupe buck I've seen. I'll follow along to see what changes you make to it.
Congrats on delivery day! Like Christmas morning on steroids! Exciting stuff. Thanks in advance for doing a build thread.
Chris
Coupe complete kit delivered: 4/22/24.
Build Thread. Coyote. T-56. IRS w/3.55. Wilwoods. PS. HVAC. Side windows.
MK4 Complete kit.
Build Thread Index. Delivered: 10/15/2020. Legal: 7/25/23. Coyote Gen3. TKO600 (0.64 OD). IRS w/3.55. PS. Wilwoods. Sway bars. This build is dedicated to my son, Benjamin.
Build Thread.
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The body buck has been modified from its original configuration, The top longitudinal plates (sill plates) have been extended to four feet in length. Uprights have been added from the rear of the base plates and attached to the sill plate extensions. A cross support was added to the uprights to support the rear fender arches. Notches were cut in the front uprights to clear the bottom edge of the body.
Everything is pretty stable, but it's getting tougher to get inside the buck. It reminds me of the old jungle gyms which were found on every playground when I was a kid.
buck 2.jpg buck3.jpgbuck4.jpg
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