# 1002, SVTFreaks build.

[Svtfreak]

Edit: due to Photobucket brain fart, all the pics in my thread became unviewable. I changed some of the later ones out to imagur, especially where I began deviating from FFR build. The first few pages, I did not and will not go back and reupload and change the links. If you have a question, feel free to ask, but it's all pretty straightforward FFR build until I got to the brake lines. It's about there that I closed the manual and will use it for reference only at times. So please scroll down and photos will start working again.

Guess it's as good a place to start as any. Got all parts inventoried. A couple small things missing. Got the frame on jack stands. Friday, I'll cut grass then maybe start on the front end. I do need to build a body buck but I am anxious to start!

[GoDadGo]

Factory Five Racing Is Alive & Well In The Best State To:

Hunt, Fish, Eat, Party, Party, Party!
Hunt, Fish, Eat, Party, Party, Party!
Hunt, Fish, Eat, Party, Party, Party!

A Big Congratulations From Slidell!

[1932]

OK more 33---No body buck needed.

[Svtfreak]

Factory Five Racing Is Alive & Well In The Best State To:

Hunt, Fish, Eat, Party, Party, Party!
Hunt, Fish, Eat, Party, Party, Party!
Hunt, Fish, Eat, Party, Party, Party!

A Big Congratulations From Slidell!

Ain't no doubt about that! Haha! You know, after the flood and everything, I kinda forgot about you guys. I need to make my way over there one day for lunch.

OK more 33---No body buck needed.

You're right. It's not needed. But I prefer to do some things on one. Plus my room is limited so having it on wheels allows me to just open the door and push it outside while I'm working then roll it back inside when done for the day. I'll grind and fill the seams, redo the taillight mounts (I want something flush mount) and maybe do the gas filler cap (putting it in the body somewhere) on the buck.

[myjones]

I suggest buying the storage lift as well as building a body buck. That lets you store the body overhead, out of the way and will be very useful later
when you want to move the body on and off to check various things. The lift has a 4' square platform that holds up to 250lbs and cranks up and
down pretty easy with a battery drill if you want one hand free to guide the body. You just hang the body under the platform and can even store a
few things on the top of it as well. Things like fenders, hood sides etc. that you won't need until much later in the build are out of the way up there.

I also suggest at this point you measure the passenger compartment carefully and find the center of the firewall and the cross tube the roll bar slides into.
The chassis gets a bit wonky beyond that box so use those base points and a laser to put center marks all over the chassis for later use. The body isn't
symmetrical enough to use that line for everything but you will use the line for things like locating and squaring the axle in the chassis.

Anxious to see the body changes you mention, you might look at Hagan for the fuel door changes if you want a sleek look there.
DB

[Svtfreak]

Jones, thanks for the lift idea. I may do exactly that when I start the body work. My shop isn't tall with to work under it though lol. But that might make life easy whbdoing body. And es, I will do the center marks also shortly. Today I had to do the front end though haha. I think I've looked at Hagen already and decided to use theirs.

Built front suspension today. And also a body buck to put castors on to move it around and out of my way. I won't have as much time for the next month to work, as I have to keep my son on my days off. But in a month, we'll have more permanent care and I'll have time. Today I got a sitter so I could have some shop time lol.

Someone please tell me if my shocks can be mounted body up? And I will probably get some lightrrr springs.

[RoadRacer]

Someone please tell me if my shocks can be mounted body up? And I will probably get some lightrrr springs.

Not if silver http://thefactoryfiveforum.com/showt...nt-konis-on-33

[Svtfreak]

Not if silver http://thefactoryfiveforum.com/showt...nt-konis-on-33

Thanks. Wasn't sure if the chrome (nickel) qualified as silver or not lol.

I'll have to figure out how to adjust them and how to set them up for the best ride eventually also.

Thanks road racer.

[Svtfreak]

Hung the rear end yesterday. Got the fox length axles ordered so I can modify the brackets for the sn95 rear brakes. Front brakes installed. Nothing major yet. Marked the brackets I don't need for removal from from frame and rear end when I take apart to paint much later on down the road.

Leveled up the frame and gonna find center next and start on pedal box.

[Svtfreak]

No pics today, but I just finished building my brake lines on paper. 500$ later at speedway (at least it's still in my cart there) I have all stainless lines, all stainless fittings, save 2 3/8-24 IFM to 3an adapters for master cylinder. Oh that also includes a good 37* flare tool for stainless tubing.

I have decided to run the ABS power brake inc electric assist system that Tim, basmith and a couple other guys using. So I need to get that order d soon also I guess. Another 1350$ for the short master cyclinder version.

[Svtfreak]

Put the fox length axles in, bolted up the back brakes, centered the rear end, laser shot the center line and rough aligned the front end. Then put the wheels on (just my build wheels) just to see what it looks like.

Next is firewall and brakes lines! Still need to order the power brake set up.

[Svtfreak]

Lots done today on my first real full day able to work on her!

Finished the firewall with 10-24 button head stainless bolts. Installed the steering column and shaft, the power steering unit but probably have to reclock it later. And started in brake lines. With the right tool, flaring stainless is easy! Got the rear line ran and ran to one side of the rear end. Have to cut the tabs off the rear end to mount the lines solid to. Fwiw, the Eastwood tubing straightener works like a charm!!

[RoadRacer]

Looks neat going through the lower firewall like that, most I've seen (myself included) just go behind that panel.

Did you notch your firewall that infamous 1/4 inch? http://www.ffcars.com/forums/120-fac...ml#post5656258

[Svtfreak]

Looks neat going through the lower firewall like that, most I've seen (myself included) just go behind that panel.

Did you notch your firewall that infamous 1/4 inch? http://www.ffcars.com/forums/120-fac...ml#post5656258

Thanks! Yeah I wanted to seal that lower corner to prevent water ingress so I went with bulkhead 90*s to be able to. Inside, I'll build a "dead pedal" to cover up the inside. Outside, I was going to put a cover over them to hide them but I think I like to show them off lol.

I sure did. But I measured 1/2" difference when I mocked it up to the body. So it got 1/2". I had read that thread already and that info saved me a lot of time later. I don't mind undoing and redoing many times to get it just perfect, but that sure saved a lot of time and heartache later on!

[RoadRacer]

But I measured 1/2" difference when I mocked it up to the body. So it got 1/2". I had read that thread already and that info saved me a lot of time later. I don't mind undoing and redoing many times to get it just perfect, but that sure saved a lot of time and heartache later on!

Good to know about the 1/2". I have no body, but this is why it's cleco'd until the very end

[Svtfreak]

Looks neat going through the lower firewall like that, most I've seen (myself included) just go behind that panel.

Did you notch your firewall that infamous 1/4 inch? http://www.ffcars.com/forums/120-fac...ml#post5656258

Here's the other side of going through. I had a chance to run the first part of the front line today. This came out nice, I think. I got my abs systems power brake setup today. It's gonna be a feat to fit it all there behind the dash. I may have to either move the entire pedal box toward the firewall or turn the MC around and do a bell crank to 180* the force from the pedal. A simple stud with a bearing and a 1:1 arm would suffice but I also have to keep the MC low enough for the reservoirs to drain correctly. They are nice polished aluminum. I think illmount them on the firewall and use tubing and AN fittings to run the supply, return and pump supply lines. I'll put pics of hag I end up doing up. Gonna put the body on next and make that decision.

[RoadRacer]

Just curious, are you assuming your firewall won't come off now? Did you silicone yet? I was amazed to see the next step was called "Final Firewall Install". Most seem to cleco until much later.

[Svtfreak]

Just curious, are you assuming your firewall won't come off now? Did you silicone yet? I was amazed to see the next step was called "Final Firewall Install". Most seem to cleco until much later.

I shouldn't have said final. I meant final for now, not held on my c clamps any longer lol. No, it isn't siliconed on yet. Just bolted up. It will come off for paint and finish later on. Everything will come apart again for that (this car will be built twice basically). When I do final assembly, I will use GM seam sealer, which is more like the glue that manufactures use to seal together body panels. If I can still find it. It's some pretty serious glue.

[Svtfreak]

Today, I finished the brake lines except for the axle end flex hoses. The ones I bought are too short and 45* ends will work better. Then I started on the master cylinder. I have the abs systems power brake kit. The two people I talked to used bell crank to change the direction to fit the MC. I put the body on and measures the room I had and opted to attempt to install backwards. I had 13" to the firewall tubing. I moved the pedal box forward, cut off the brackets for the wilwood cylinders. Then I threw the brake pedal out and moved the clutch pedal over to use. I drilled and tapped the end to fit the abs cylinder rod threads and screwed it in. Once I got the basics there, I ground out some more aluminum to move it forward a bit more and allow me to raise the brake pedal a bit more. Next, I put the body on again and checked fit. It fits! It's tight but works fine. So I ground a little more to improve fit and pedal placement a bit more. Then I made two angle brackets to bolt it to. One will be double bolted to the box and the other bolted to the box bolt and welded to the frame. I also have some gussets cut to add to the sides of each bracket to improve strength and I will add a bracket to put all 4 pedal box bolts in. I think it should work wonderfully once finished.

A couple of brake line pics just for novelty, and the last is the master cylinder mount work in progress. This is the abs 6 3/4" MC. I don't think the long one would fit. The reservoirs will be on the firewall with an lines to feed the MC, pump and overflow to tank.

[Svtfreak]

Today, after fixing my old mans truck, I finished up the master cylinder mount. It works great. Plenty pedal travel. I'm certain it'll lock the brakes long before bottoming. Welded up the gussets andast bolt mount plate. Made a mount for the proportioning valve and ran the tubing from the MC and valve to the bulkheads at the base of the firewall. Other than two flex hoses and some mounting on rear end, brakes are done.

Now I gotta figure out how I'm gonna plumb and where I'm gonna mount the reservoir and pump the brakes. I am gonna use ss line and an for the high pressure leg for sure and I think braided line and an for the supply side to the pump and the return.

[1932]

Will this stick out of the dash?

[Svtfreak]

Will this stick out of the dash?

No sir. I measured with body on to make sure and then once mounted, I put the body on to make sure it fit. It's all behind the dash.

[Svtfreak]

It appears Photobucket has changed their rules to not allow linking pics. Well, that's a bummer.

I'll try to get them all fixed when I can.

[Svtfreak]

Today, I finished mounting my reservoir and started on the bracket for the hydraulic pump. This is the current plan. I haven't welded it on yet to let you guys critique and make sure I'm not missing something. It's far enough off cowl to allow for wiper stuff, far enough back (deeper than the ac Evap) to allow for gauges, and still not as low as the echo so should be hidden. It is inlet low so the pump itself is well below the reservoir. My only worry is removing the accumulator (the ball thing) to prime it. Might make a mess the way it's facing.

[Svtfreak]

Ok. Calling brakes done with mock up. I may charge the system later on but all equipment and pipes and tubes are in place. Finished up the hydraulic pump mount today and tubed everything up. When I take apart for paint, I've got a couple hose clamps to mount to the frame but otherwise, time to move on (after I get home from family beach trip).

Personally, I like the way it turned out.

Next I'll rough in some wiring, I think.

[Svtfreak]

Installed the grill stack today. After about 20 hours of getting it all to fit together right. Forgot the overflow tank. I'll toss it in next week when I work on it.

This really makes it start looking like a 33 and not a dune buggy.

[Svtfreak]

Nothing major today. Spent the last week nursing my baby girl then myself back to health after stomach flu. Yesterday I prepped the cobra and brought it to church for a men's night attraction. Other people think it's nicer than j do, I guess lol. I did finally figure out its motor noise so that's a plus.

Modded and tossed on the pickup and level sensor and tossed in the rear compartment panel. I'm mounting with just a couple rivers and drilling all girls to make removal easy for paint and powder coat later. I think I'll go ahead and mount all aluminum and get the body started so I can be done with the manual lol.

[Svtfreak]

Had to work some overtime and keep baby boy a couple days. Not much done in the last week or so. Finally had some free time today to do some "loomium" work. E-brake stuff tomorrow.

[Svtfreak]

Put in the e brake handle today. Gotta wait on the trans tunnel for the motor and trans. Installed trunk floor, door hinges and set the body on. This weekend I'll watch some videos and read some threads about how best to ensure it's in the right place. I already see where I need to grind some glass around the bottom of the firewall. Not quite clearances correctly to fit. Nothing major changed from FFR build other than I had to turn the e brake mounting pad to opposite side to get the handle to mount in the right place.

I think now I'll go on to getting all the body panels to fit and work correctly. After that, when it comes off for primer and slicking, then I'll get the motor and trans and continue the mechanical parts, fuel lines, etc. Just keep saving, just keep saving (wasn't that a line off finding nemo?)

Looking more and more like a car!

[RoadRacer]

Looking good!! Looking forward to having a body

[Svtfreak]

Good day today!

I started out by trimming the edge of the body at the lower. Firewall corners so they would tuck correctly. Then I trimmed the edge of the lip there so it wouldn't hit the frame and prevent the body from pulling in just right. Before and mid trim. Didn't get a decent after shot, just be warned the manual doesn't say anything about this and it won't fall in just right without it.



Next, I spent a couple of hours shifting, moving and checking the body, and then calling friends to come see if they found it to be square also. I followed the manual, and when I got done, the package tray was nowhere near the same plane as the cowl. Wut???? So I backed up and it dawned on me that the manual sucks. It never specifies to level up the *** end. Yeah, I shoulda got my head out my butt. So, after this:


I ended up with this:


So, then I had a couple people come over and double check both with tape and level and by eye to ensure it all looked right. Got their deals of approval. Everything looks plumb, square, straight and the gig line, when I put the hood on, even though it's not ground close to right, all looks like it's supposed to and not cattywompus.

So, I went ahead and drilled all the holes and tossed a few rivers at it to hold everything in place while I move forward fitting body panels.

Looking like a car more and more.

[erlihemi]

I had to make similar "reliefs" in the front and have 2 holes in the rear fender well also! I didn't notice your caliper and brake hose orientation at the rear, but I cut my inner wheel well tight to the frame just to make sure the hose cleared if I put a tool box in the trunk. Only use the manual for general guidance. Everyone's results vary along the way. Enjoy

[erlihemi]

I see you ran a single brake line with a tee on the axle housing, soo your clear. Again I followed the manual in the beginning, and got over later.

[Svtfreak]

Yes I did a single jumped to a t at the center section. Thanks for looking!

[Svtfreak]

Couple hours today working on door slots. The manual doesn't detail how to mark the bottom ones or how or when to cut them out. Jumps from marking to putting body back on. Oh well. Here's what I did.

I marked the top and cut it out with a die grinder with body on. Test fitting hinge arm pretty often. Once I had the clearance, I used a rasp to square off the ends. I'll make that better when I take it off for final prep. Then, I measured the distance from the top of the top hinge standoff to the top of the bottom hinge standoff and then measured that distance from the slot top and bottom. That gave me the upper and lower of the lower arm cutout. Then I used a plumb to mark the ends. The cut it out just like the top slot. Worked like a champ.

Even though everything measures the same side to side, the driver upper slot ended up shorter than the passenger *boggle*.

[Svtfreak]

I've got weird stuff going on. I put the spacer under the door on passenger side and got everything leveled and clamped down and firewall fitting well all around and looks great. Except the drivers side door sill is naturally sitting about a 1/2" off the 1.5x1.5 frame. I don't see any reason to try to fix this as everything else fits perfectly and is straight and square. Anyone see any problems in my future over this? The frame does not hand below the body.

[Svtfreak]

No pics but finished the slots for hinges and got the passenger door trimmed to fit in today. The back edge was cut very wrong so I did it first. Used a caliper to scribe a line to get an even edge and then set that in and sanded front to fit. I'll
Post pics when I get more done than just sanding some glas off.

[erlihemi]

I've got weird stuff going on. I put the spacer under the door on passenger side and got everything leveled and clamped down and firewall fitting well all around and looks great. Except the drivers side door sill is naturally sitting about a 1/2" off the 1.5x1.5 frame. I don't see any reason to try to fix this as everything else fits perfectly and is straight and square. Anyone see any problems in my future over this? The frame does not hand below the body.

1/2" is a lot. Most people are complaining about 1/4" difference in the body. Mine was almost equal side to side but about 1/4" up. The roof was crooked. If you have the hard top plan on doing final door gap with the top bolted on. The top pulls the body in a little.

[Svtfreak]

I prolly didn't need a 1/2". Now that I look at it. But what baffles me is why the other side pulled up also. Oh well, I'll work it out as I go. Maybe lol.

I am doing hard top. Thanks for the tip. I won't do any more than the rough door gap fitment until top is on. And then I'll have to figure out how to race it so that doesn't happen since I want to make top removable and changeable to roadster. I already have a plan for th package tray area and cowl area to stiffen the. Up drastically.

[Svtfreak]

More doors. Hey, that rhymes.

Got about 10 hours in the passenger door so far. It's close. The striker sits too deep and I may need to adjust the angle on it's plate. The latch is dragging on it. I will attempt to move the door forward some after I affix the rear plate better than the little screws. I've used a combination of FFR instructions and the members videos (thanks to all). Before I attempt to move the door, so it'll latch easier and open easier, I will have to take a little off the front. The rear gap should wind up perfect then.

Adjusting body panels really isn't my forte. Lol