looks like your rounding 3rd base on this project. thank for sharing.

Did you ever get that trunk latch back in?

Also what has been the most frustrating part for you about working on the car?

Thanks for looking. No haven't got the trunk latch back in. I hope to tackle it soon. I'll admit I've been procrastinating on that part as I don't want to screw up drilling the hole through the floor for the fuel neck. As for the most frustrating part, I'd have to say it's that I have absolutely no prior mechanical training so I get that overwhelming "I'm in way over my head" feeling quite often. That and hoping that I'm doing things correctly.


Got to spend some time in the shop the past few days. Unfortunately not as much as I wanted to. I ended up getting a new wireless router that allows us to print from our laptops wirelessly using an older USB printer. Took a little longer to get set up than I thought as I was having an idiot day and couldn't follow instructions. Enough whining and on to the updates.

Got the motor back together with all new gaskets. Decided to install the intake, throttle body, fuel rails and starter also

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010275.jpg

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010274.jpg

Unfortunately the mounting holes are off on the fuel rails. Not sure if I'm going to drill new holes or get different rails. You can see the hole to the left of the bolt.

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010276.jpg

The starter fit good. Lots of room

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010295.jpg

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010294.jpg

Decided to mount the coil relocation brackets. First had to drill and tap some holes

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010277.jpg

Painted the brackets with Duplicolor rattle can

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010284.jpg

Mounted them in place. I haven't decided which direction I'm going to mount the coils. I'll likely keep them the way they are. If I do, I'll paint the passenger side ones black as I don't like the yellow color that's facing up.

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010286.jpg

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010287.jpg

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010289.jpg

From the side, lots of room for the pulleys to clear

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010290.jpg

As you could tell from some of the other pics, the motor and trans are back into the car.

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010285.jpg

Installed the Lokar oil dipstick. Thought I'd put it in now so no debris can get in the open hole

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010305.jpg

The dipstick I'm using is one of their tight seal ones. It actually locks into place and you have to push the release down to get it out

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010307.jpg

Now onto some bad news. When I put the motor in, I was doing it by myself. Should have grabbed someone, but I wanted it in now and I've done it by myself several times. Unfortunately though one of the coil mounting bolts did this

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010279.jpg

And it got worse from there. As I was looking at the new gouge I put into the paint, I saw this

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010291.jpg

Unfortunately there are two bubbles a few inches apart. As first I was mad, but the more I thought about it, there was really no point in getting mad. That's part of doing these builds. So I think what I'm going to do is concentrate on getting a bunch of things done over the winter. In the spring, I'm going to strip the firewall and when it's time for paint, I will paint the entire shell at once. Hopefully over the winter I can get all the gaps done. I still haven't decided if I'm going to try and paint it myself or pay someone to do it. The one positive note is that there were a few things that I wish I could have done, but couldn't since the firewall was already painted. This way, I can fix up a few things and don't have to worry about the paint since it's coming off anyways. The worst part of it though...the cost. The firewall cost me about $400-$500 to do. Ouch!!!!

Oh also as promised, here's some pics of the Muscle Rodz firewall closeouts.

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010293.jpg

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010292.jpg

Mike sorry to hear about the damage. The motor came out nice and looks good in there. Thats a nice place for the coils the wires won't have to be too long. Keep the updates coming.

Thanks Wayne.

Well it's been quite a while since I posted an update. Unfortunately haven't gotten much done on the car at all. Had some other projects on the go, lost motivation for a while, trip to Vegas and now am sick. But I'll post a small update anyways.

First, I found out why I ended up with moisture in my paint. I decided to take the plug in the side of compressor out. Found out that I had about 8-10 inches of water in the bottom of my tank. I always emptied out the air after each day, but never thought of actually draining it. That's changed. I fixed the drain that was on the bottom and made it easier to access. Then I was told that most filter systems don't work that great unless they have gone through 50 feet of line first. So I had an extra 50 feet of air line that I ran between my tank and filter. Then it goes into an air reel with 50 more feet. So far it's working alot better.

Picked up a few new tools over the holidays.

One of my cordless drills packed it in, so replaced it with this. Got it for half price.

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010346.jpg

Grabbed a new impact socket set which includes deep. Regular price was $220, picked it up for $65

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010347.jpg

A while back I also picked up this mig light from Eastwood. It works really well. Helps light up the area you're working on.

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010326.jpg

Well onto the car. I did manage to start working on getting rid of the weld on hinges from the 74 doors and making them work with bolt on hinges.

To make the bolt on door work better, I wanted to get the front bolt area from a wrecked set of doors. Thanks again for this Jeff (a member on a different forum). Jeff cut out the front part of some doors that he had and shipped them to me. What these pieces gave me was a better idea where the holes go and it also gave me the piece of steel inside the door with the threaded holes. I didn't want to put nuts on the inside of the door like I've heard some guys have done.

Here's the pieces I got from Jeff

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010345.jpg

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010344.jpg

Once I had them, I took off the brackets which hold the threaded piece of steel. I forgot to take a picture of the actual threaded piece. I'll do that when I do the other door.

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010342.jpg

There was also a piece of steel that added strength to the front of the door. I took that off also. Here's what I was left with after some trimming

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010341.jpg

Here's what I have done so far and how I did it.

Door with weld on hinges

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010319.jpg

I cleaned up the area around the hinges

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010324.jpg

Then I bent some 1/4" round bar so it would fit the corner of the hinges. This allowed me to put the new hinge in the same spot as the weld on

Old hinge

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010327.jpg

New hinge in place. When I took the weld on hinges off, I originally wanted to try and take them off in one piece. I very quickly realized that wasn't going to happen so out came the grinder with cutting blade and air hammer.

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010328.jpg

You can see that the new hinge is a bit shorter than the old one was. That's okay, it will still work.

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010329.jpg

Once the hinge was in place, I used a black felt pen and marked the holes. I then used the front piece that I got from Jeff as a template. I used the holes for the door seals to align the pieces

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010336.jpg

The bolt holes that I marked and the holes in the template piece weren't an exact fit, so I just made the holes slightly bigger. For this I used an air saw as well as a die grinder with a metal cutting tip

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010337.jpg

I held onto the threaded piece of steel and tried the new hinges

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010338.jpg

And the door's on the car

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010339.jpg

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010340.jpg

I haven't finished aligning the door yet, but once I have it where I'm happy with it, I'll drill a couple guide holes in each hinge so I can put them back in the same place. Once that's done, I plan on welding the brackets that hold the threaded pieces in place. That will be a bit tricky as I need to weld inside the door. Once I have the driver's side door done, I'll post some more pics.

Awesome job.:thumbsup:

Slick idea Mke, it looks like it worked out great.

There ya go! I was wondering if you'd dropped off the face of the earth?

LOL

Sorry about the paint issues -- but this is always a learning curve... it's just part of the hobby.

Shoulda seen the piping I helped a buddy replace -- all black steel -- and you know what happens when moisture meets steel... so not only did he have moisture he was blowing RUSTY air thru his tools etc.

Thanks guys.

No still around. Just haven't had anything to update for a while. Yeah that water in the tank really sucked. Even though it wrecked my paint, it worked out for the better. I ended up butchering the firewall around the steering column so now I get to fix it. Plus it was a good (although expensive) practice round to try my hand at painted. I'm pretty sure the water is also what caused two Ingesoll Rand composite die grinders to just up and die on me. The guy at the tool shop was saying that the composite ones don't hold up to abuse as well as the steel ones. Sure glad I bought the expensive ones only to learn that. He gave me a great deal on some replacements though.

ohh boy am i glad this one got an update!!! :thumbsup:

Nice tools.

Nice job on the door hinges Mike.
Sorry about the damage and paint issues, but like you said now you and address some things on the firewall.
Hope you had a great Christmas and New Year!

Thanks guys.

Well it's been a while since I last updated. Haven't been in the shop for a while. Had a block off with the girls out of town a while back, but ended up with a sinus infection and -25 celcius (without windchill) weather made me not want to head out. Well the girls are gone again and I hit the shop.

Thought I'd get the other door done. Weld on hinges gone

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010397.jpg

Template from donor door

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010398.jpg

Template in place

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010399.jpg

Holes marked

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010400.jpg

Drilled some holes

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010402.jpg

Then out came the die grinder with cutting tip

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010401.jpg

After about 20 minutes of sounding like I was at the dentist

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010403.jpg

Before I put the door on, I thought I would rebuild all the hinges first. So had to take the passenger side door back off and did all the hinges.

Here's what you need to rebuild each pair of hinges (one side)

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010396.jpg

For those that want to rebuild their hinges, here are the part numbers from Classic Industies

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010390.jpg

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010391.jpg

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010392.jpg

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010393.jpg

First thing I had to do was grind off the ends of all the pins

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010386.jpg

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010387.jpg

Once all the ends were ground off, I used a hammer to pound the pins out. They cam out pretty easy. Once all the pins were out, the new ones went in. It's pretty straight forward though.

Before rebuild

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010388.jpg

Rebuilt

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010394.jpg

Decided to replace the spring arms. Since I don't have the tool GM used to split the end of the pin, I decided to weld it in place

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010404.jpg

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010405.jpg

The passenger side hinge is pretty basic. You just replace one pin. In the picture that has all the parts, you'll see that the pins have brass bushes on them. The one with the same size bushings is for the passenger side. The one with the different size bushings is the driver's side.

The rebuild of all the hinges went really smooth expect for the driver's side with the spring. It turned out to be quite warn out. I didn't want to get a new one though, so I decided to fix what I had. First I had to run it through the cabinet blaster to get the rust off it. I then noticed that the area around the bushings were quite warn.

One of the holes wasn't that bad so I was able to put the bushing in and run the pin though. This allowed me to figure out where the bushing was supposed to sit on the side that was really warn out. You can see the area around the bushing where it's warn.

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010410.jpg

Broke out the welder and built it up

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010408.jpg

After some cleaning up

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010415.jpg

The pin fit nicely. Hinge back together

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010416.jpg

And it works

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010418.jpg

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010419.jpg

Called it a night there.

Also made a new purchase recently. I had a 2007 Nissan Murano that I was selling privately. I got a call from a dealership claiming to have a potential buyer and wanted me to bring it in so they could see it. I thought "what the hell, I'll humour them and see what they have to say". Well they got the last laugh. I left that day with a 2011 Ford Fusion. I know I know....it's a Ford. But it's get mid 30's for fuel economy. Can't argue with that. Plus full leather package, awesome stereo, sunroof, etc. It's a really nice car.

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010380.jpg

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010382.jpg

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...P1010383-1.jpg

Nice work Mike!


I've had the Fusion as a rental car a couple of times and really liked it!
Like it way better than the FBI Crown Vic I had for the Grand National Roadster Show... that thing drove like a real POS.

Awesome progress :cheers:

Thanks guys.

Time for an update. Not a huge update, but it's one none the less....and as always lots of pics.

I've wanted to make some 2x4 wheel stands for a while, just needed to actually do it. So I did. The back ones are 18" x 16" and the front ones are 18" x 12". I wanted to add extra boards on the ends just in case the car ever rolls. Here's how they turned out.

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010454.jpg

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010457.jpg

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010458.jpg

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010453.jpg

I originally put 2x4's on each end of the front stands but thought it would be better to use some 2x6. Looks better.

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010468.jpg

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010467.jpg

I also picked up a couple new tools. Aluminum floor jack from Costco. It was only $100 so we'll see how it holds up.

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010463.jpg

Also got some rubber pads for both floor jacks

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010466.jpg

The other day I got a surprise in the mail. I got an envelope from the dealership where I bought my Fusion. I opened it up and to my shock, it was a cheque for $1000. I went online and realized that they had a $1000 cash back offer during the time period when I bought my car. So I thought I would treat myself. I've wanted to get a new tap and die kit for a while so I picked up the Irwin/Hanson 76 piece. I forgot to take a pic so this is taken from their website.

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...ie-set-895.jpg

Well enough of that and onto the progress on the car. I decided that it was time to work on the filler neck. Damn it has taken a while to get it all into place. Here's some pics of how it progressed.

When I first got the Ridetech filler neck with their gas cap, I noticed that down tube was set off to a slight angle to accommodate for Camaros. I wanted mine to go straight down so I ended up cutting it so it could be welded on straight. I took it to a local welder and you can see the butcher job they did on welding it back together.

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010420.jpg

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010423.jpg

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010436.jpg

I decided to use 2" exhaust for the filler tube going through the floor

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010422.jpg

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010427.jpg

Test fit going through the floor

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010438.jpg

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010441.jpg

Once I got the angle where I liked it, I started to fill in the holes in the floor

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010452.jpg

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010451.jpg

This allowed me to put the bottom of the tube on and finish it. The tab sticking out is going to be welded to the floor to make it more sturdy once welded into place.

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010482.jpg

Once I had that done, I found out that I cut the hole in the floor too far forward. So I had to make a patch. Since the area where the patch was going was rounded, I used a round piece of steel and a body hammer to shape it.

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010474.jpg

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010475.jpg

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010477.jpg

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010480.jpg

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010471.jpg

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010473.jpg

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010481.jpg

And here's an idea of how it will look in place. What would you guys suggest that I do to the inside of the filler tube to prevent it from rusting? I'm not sure if I should paint it or not as it will have gas running through it, but I want to try and stop any rust from coming while I complete the car.

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010484.jpg

Here's how it will look from the back. The bumper will cover it up

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010487.jpg

I also realized that I have never posted any pics of the Ridetech filler cap in place. Here's a few

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010443.jpg

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010444.jpg

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010445.jpg

I also bought a couple new parts. First thing I got was a LS3 valley cover. I was reading another thread that was discussing PCV valves. I checked my current valley cover and found it doesn't have a pcv tube on it. So I checked ebay and found a 2011 Camaro take off valley cover for $15.95. With shipping it cost me $50 but still a lot cheaper than buying a new one. I also ordered a Norris Motorsports PCV catch can. Should be here next week.

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010428.jpg

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010429.jpg

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010434.jpg

Here's the one currently on the motor

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010432.jpg

I also found on another thread where someone bought some cup holders from a poker supply store. I really didn't like the size of the cup holders that I have, so I checked a poker supply store. I picked up 4 stainless holders for $32 shipped. I can't fit a pop bottle into the new ones, but cans and the bottles of water that we buy fit, so they will do

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010459.jpg

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010470.jpg

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010469.jpg

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010460.jpg

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010461.jpg

We're heading to Vegas (yes again...it's just so cheap to go) on Monday so I have a couple new parts waiting for me at the border. I've got new valve covers and my serpentine kit waiting. The nice thing about getting the serpentine kit out of the way is the only two big items I have left to buy is the gas tank and the radiator. It's very very faint, but I can actually start to see the light.

Yaya for Tim Hortons! haha

You're turning into a regulator fabricator there Mike!

Good for you!

Do you wear your red woolies when you're walking around Vegas? It might keep those card flippers from bugging your with the porno stuff! :rofl:

Thanks Greg. It's funny, I know the fabrication that I'm doing is very minor compared to a lot of builds, but I'm really finding that it's the favorite part of my build. I've even been looking at English wheels even though I have absolutely no clue how to use them. Hell I haven't even used the sheet metal tools I bought last year.

And no don't wear the red woolies in Vegas :D . Some trips I try and get as many cards as I can. This time we are taking the mother in law and i use her as a barrier. She needs an electric scooter to get around so when I don't want cards I put her between me and the flippers. I've tried to get her to take some cards a few times. I'd love to see the look on their faces when and 80 year old lady in a scooter starts taking porn cards. :rofl:

Looking good Mike!!! :thumbsup:

John

Looking good Mike.

It's really inspiring to see these project threads that take place in a garage. Stuff is really coming along too, I am a huge fan of that filler cap too.:thumbsup:

Thanks for all the comments guys.

Car looks awesome.

I have a suggestion. Since the filler neck is exposed in the trunk you should consider shrouding it. In the event that you get rear ended fuel could spill in the trunk and that would not be a good thing.

Don't want to see you or your car cooked




http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010438.jpg

Thanks Marty and thanks for idea. I had already thought of making a cover that would bolt to the floor to hide the filler neck. It would be removable in case I needed to access the rubber hose. Is that what you had in mind by shrouding it?

just read your whole build thread. It's amazing to see how far the car has come along. I'm super impressed and you should be proud of what you've accomplished. I was dissapointed though when I got to the last page and there was no more to read. What I mean is, I can't wait to see how the car turns out. Best of luck on the rest of the build!:

Hi Mike,

That is what I was thinking.

However, I would make sure it was sealed to the floor. Works case scenero is that you would destroy the semi-removable part if you had to get to it.

Thanks Steve. I am proud of what I've accomplished, I just hope it's all going together properly

Thanks Marty, I agree and have been trying to figure out ways to do that.


I haven't had a chance to get anymore work done on the car as we were in Vegas last week, but I thought I'd show what I picked up on the way home.

I decided to get Wegner Motorsports new diamond cut serpentine kit. From what I understand, this kit was designed with help from Frank at Prodigy for pro-touring cars. The kit usually comes in black with the diamond cuts for accents, but Casey at Wegner did one for me in polished and it turned out amazing. I talked with Casey a few times and I must say that Wegner has amazing customer service. Would highly recommend them. He even put the kit together once it came back from the polisher so he could send me a picture of how it turned out before it shipped.

On to the pics:

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010495.jpg

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010507.jpg

All the goodies that came with the kit. The only part I'm not sure of is the power steering pump. I completely forgot to tell Casey that I was running r&p and am not sure if the high flow pump is the one I need. I read somewhere that I should be using the low flow one. I have an email into Unisteer and Casey to confirm.

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010498.jpg

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010499.jpg

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010500.jpg

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010501.jpg

Here's a pic of the pulleys. You can see the diamond cutting on the front accents

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010502.jpg

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010503.jpg

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010504.jpg

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...P1010505-1.jpg

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010508.jpg

Not everything, but most of the other parts

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010509.jpg

I also picked up these from Casey. They are very nice for anyone looking for new valve covers

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010496.jpg

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010497.jpg

I haven't had a chance to put the kit on yet as I've decided I'm going to paint the motor as soon as it warms up enough, but here's a pic that Casey sent me showing the kit installed. You can see how much the belt wraps around the power steering pulley. This is supposed to help with running wider tires on the front.

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/102_5450.jpg

I hope to get some more work done on the car this week and will update when I do.

So many nice shiny new parts!! :D

Thats going to be nice up against the body colored engine bay.

Thanks guys. I know lots of guys don't like polished parts on the motors anymore but I still love the look of a nice polished engine when you pop the hood. I agree Wayne..I think the polished is really going to look sharp with the deep red engine bay. Can't wait to see the sun hit it.

looks great!!!

Viola...magic!! I likey!!:yes: :yes:

So your the owner of the this Pulley Set up. I saw it a little bt ago. I like it and I think it's going to look great in your engine bay.

Thanks guys. Marty...I'm really happy with how it turned out. Casey wasn't sure as he hadn't planned on doing a polished one. I agree, I think it will look really good in the engine bay.

Spent some time in the shop the past couple days. Got some more work done on the console:


http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010514.jpg

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010525.jpg

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010526.jpg

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010527.jpg

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010528.jpg

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010529.jpg

Looks like Mickey Mouse

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010543.jpg

Welded the parking brake bracket from Ironworks onto the floor

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010536.jpg

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010535.jpg

When I started doing this build, I had tried welding only a couple times. I've tried to teach myself by practicing and watching videos and reading. Not until today have I had a weld that after words I stopped and looked at it for several minutes. Not that it comes even close to the quality of welds that Ironworks puts out, but maybe since it was a part built and supplied by them it inspired me. I know there may still be some criticism, but I'm pretty happy with this:

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010534.jpg

Swapped out the old valley cover and put the new one with the pcv tube on it in

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010537.jpg

This allowed me to try my new Eastwood digital torque wrench

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010538.jpg

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010540.jpg

And I got the Clayton Machine Works brake/clutch pedal assembly installed. Going to mock up the drive by wire pedal soon.

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010544.jpg

Got this in the mail today. It's a pcv catch can from Mike Norris Motorsports.

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...9/P1010523.jpg

Everything is looking good, I think the weld looks great. If you were going for the industrial look you could put a backing on the console cage and let the frame show.