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Saw this car on LX related forums and WOW this thing is beyond killer. I'd love to see this thing when it's finished. Guys I'll give you an A+++++ on the quality of this build and I'm personally very envious of this car.
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19's are starting to get a little more popular with the pontiac g8 gt and one or two lexus runnning them. |
So I got the car back from Bruning this weekend.... there was alot done since my last update.... bottom line is the work is awesome.... I couldnt be happier (except if I had taken my car there in the first place and my budget allowed them to do even more work on my car)
So here we go... last update was about getting the stance I wanted.. so once we got it to sit where we wanted Tim figured out a way to make it happen... First was to modify the stock mounts of the Air Ride stuff out back. Tim started with the stock bracket and essentially shortened it almost 2 inches. http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/e...avemount-4.jpg http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/e...avemount-2.jpg http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/e...avemount-1.jpg http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/e...vemounts00.jpg |
Then it was the front end... this was more of a limiting factor...... we could only change it so much without opening another can of worms...... motor too high, huge trans tunnel etc etc. So Tim basically "channelled" the RMS k-frame into the stock frame... so rather than bolt to the underside of the frame, it sat inside it and was welded in for good.....that raised the frame up 1.5 inches...allows the body to sit lower but not give up precious ground clearence. After much debate we also raised the UCA mounts too to keep the geometry correct
http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/e...rstance010.jpg http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/e...rstance014.jpg http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/e...rstance017.jpg |
Then back to the rear of the car.... the next was the rear valance. After making a plan, it was evident that it was going to be a real PITA to bolt and unbolt the tank once the valance was welded in for good. So Tim came up with a new way to mount the tank...completely strapless...very clean..
http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/e...esstank004.jpg http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/e...esstank009.jpg http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/e...esstank005.jpg Then the valance.....we went back and forth with a design...lots of back and forth with overall width and depth etc etc..... http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/e...valance005.jpg Nice and tight against the tank...it flows real well into the tank...especially without the straps http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/e...valance006.jpg Then we had to design an exhaust opening...lots and back and forth again... I wanted some of the "stock Cuda" look but something that flowed with the valance recess. We tried several different ones....... alot of the rear of the car has been inspired by Sick Fish so I wanted to not do a carbon copy...... but none of the other designs really worked and looked right....so the final design is alittle more "Sick Fish" that I was originally shooting for, but boy does it look good. Tim and I went back and forth about that.......in the end he convinced me that "what looks good, looks good".....yes someone has already done something very similar but look at all the 1st gens and Chevelles etc that copy each other over and over again....if it looks good it will get repeated no doubt. Its when people dont copy you that you need to worry... http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/e...valance010.jpg http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/e...valance014.jpg |
Once the shape of the tip was finalized, Tim made a form to shape the opening flange so it was strong and had a nice rolled edge and gap.
http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/e...andtips001.jpg http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/e...andtips003.jpg Then the tips.. http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/e...andtips004.jpg http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/e...andtips009.jpg http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/e...rogress003.jpg |
It looks great. Only advice I have is on the gas tank. From my experience with off roading (jeeps and rock buggies) a lot of people have problems with solid mounting their tanks when not using straps. The most common thing I have seen is cracking around where the ear that the bolts go through meets the tank. I put some rubber bushings that I had cut down between my tank and frame to help soak up some of the vibration.
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Very nice Ned!
She's getting there.:thumbsup: |
Tips in place....just resting in there for now. Once I finalize the exhaust there will be a little fine tuning of the shape to flow with the valance
http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/e...pmockup003.jpg http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/e...pmockup004.jpg http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/e...pmockup012.jpg http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/e...pmockup016.jpg http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/e...valance001.jpg |
Xmas day has arrived !!!!
The day of pick up.. http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/e...n/IMG_3626.jpg http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/e...n/IMG_3629.jpg http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/e...n/IMG_3633.jpg http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/e...n/IMG_3636.jpg http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/e...n/IMG_3637.jpg |
So she's back in my garage...next plan....order brakes and get those mounted in front....measure for my rims and get those ordered.
Once I get those, then measure and order my rearend. While I'm waiting for parts etc, I was planning on adding some additional supports for the frame to triangulate it in a few areas....notching the rear tubs so I can lower my rear windows all the way......decide on a trans... I'm now thinking of a T56 magnum and see if that will fit... I may need to change the tunnel....figure out my mufflers... I may raise them into the floor to get them up high. MuscleRodz has a Hydroboost and the new PS and overflow tanks coming to me soon, so I'll get those all mounted up... And tons of other stuff.... |
Great to see you have it back home . The guys did you right!!! What a difference.. Now lets get some paint on this thing:yes:
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Packing up the backspacing tool and shipping it out tommorow.
I'll call you in the morning. Quote:
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Glad someone is getting one to him -- he's going to squeeze every last mm of tire in there!! :>) |
Congrats on getting it home safe Ned!
Tim sure does nice work!! :hail: |
Ned, the Cuda looks unreal. Tim sure does some awesome work! :thumbsup:
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Thanks guys...
Greg... thanks for the offer on the Wheel fit tool....Marty has me covered..... I will mooch your AC fitting compressor and Fuel/brake line flare tool when the time comes :) The tank is a Ricks tank.... Tim just made the new mounts. We had talked about Tim making the tank, but the bottom line is that its hard for a smaller fab shop to compete on price for an item like that. We could have customized it alittle more for my particular car, but in the end it would have been more expensive and would have eaten time that Tim could be doing something else on the car. So I just decided to go with a Ricks tank. |
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Marty, Can I borrow it next? Two cuda projects on opposite sides of the country using the same wheel tool would be cool... and kinda funny..:unibrow: :rofl: Heck of a job, Ned. At ride height, what is the distance between wheel lip center and the ground/floor will be for you? Awesome!:hail: |
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Sounds like we need a :lateral: tool crib!! :woot: |
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Amazing Car!!
Well after looking at every page on this post, I am speechless. the body work is artwork on your car.
it is to bad you had to have someone almost destroy your dream of the car you wanted. I for one had a similar exp, but not as bad. Had my car with absolutly no rust, sit a bady shop for a year. And the only thing they did was the passenger side 1/4, door, and part of the fender. It took me a little over 2 years to find a shop that has a rep for their work. I to envision what I want my car to look like, and want to stay with it. Good luck. |
Well I got a chance to wheel her out into the sun this weekend.....pull the boxes and parts out and take some pix...... the car sits awesome when fully dropped.
These pix are with the stock wheels, fully aired out, so it will sit about an inch higher in the back but the front will be about the same. So it will have a little rake to it.... The air shocks have no valves, so she tends to lean alittle when the air moves around http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/e...I/IMG_3699.jpg http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/e...I/IMG_3717.jpg http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/e...I/IMG_3705.jpg http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/e...I/IMG_3708.jpg http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/e...I/IMG_3707.jpg |
Ground clearence when its fully aired out.... with it at ride height I have about 4.5 inches at the front crossmember
http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/e...I/IMG_3703.jpg http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/e...I/IMG_3709.jpg http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/e...I/IMG_3725.jpg http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/e...I/IMG_3719.jpg http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/e...I/IMG_3702.jpg Next step..... I'm gonna ad some frame braces to stiffen the frame up alittle...... Wilwood is sending me some of their new spindles to see if they will work with the Alterkations... if they do, then I can get their biggest and baddest brakes....if not, then I'll do the "2nd biggest and baddest brakes" they have :) Now I have to get off the damn computer and get my ass out in the garage before it gets too hot.... |
Love the wheels Ned!!
BTW -- to properly use a tape measure to measure ground clearance -- it has to be vertical... :lol: |
PS --
Tell the "little lady" that SHE now gets the single car garage -- and "THE" car gets to take it's half out of the middle -- of the double door side!! It won't be that long before you get to come home again.... |
Very nice NED!!
She's gotta be one mean looking mutha!!!:cheers: |
everything looks awsome:thumbsup:
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Always the smartass ....:) Just a little scale to the pix.... I couldnt hold the tape measure and the camera at the same time
The "small" bay is my work area.... the larger section is the home of the '69 and the '98 SS Camaro..... my wife parks in the driveway :D The only way she'll ever get a spot inside the garage is if we move and I get a full shop to myself...... I always tell her the rest of the house is hers and she can do whatever she wants to it....but the garage is mine. The small bay is also about 8 feet deeper that the other section and has a garage door that opens to the back of the house so its a nice space to work in where I can walk out back to grind/cut/pain/weld etc etc.... |
Greg you know, Only the "rich guys" use pressure treated 4x4s...LOL
<<<GIT ER DONE!>>> |
Time for some updates...
Well I havent had as much time into the car as I would have hoped but I've been in "waiting mode" for some parts.. This is the frotn frame rail driver side with the mock up motor, and "pre-new inner fenders" etc. One of the things that bothered me was that there is a big old flange on the inside upper edge where the frame walls met and were spot welded together. http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/e...I/IMG_1029.jpg So since Tim channeled the Alterkation frame up into the frame rails and welded that stuff all solid, I figured I would get rid of that flange and weld the seam and then fill in some of the gaps between the k-frame and the frame rails to give a cleaner look and make sure it was all as solid as I could make it. So I cut off the flange alittle at a time....created a small gap between the vertical edge and horizontal edge to make sure I got good weld penetration, and welded alittle at a time. http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/e...I/IMG_3864.jpg http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/e...I/IMG_3870.jpg http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/e...I/IMG_3867.jpg |
Then a made a small piece and filled in the gap between the k-frame and frame rail. I figured that would look cleaner and also distribute the force and weight over a larger area to make sure my new welded seam would hold up okay. (I'm a relatively new welder and welding an outside corner on a frame was a little concerning for me). I'm also going to fill the gap on the underside of the k-frame to frame so, this thing should be rock soild, so I think the new seam should be fine.
Before... http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/e...I/IMG_3865.jpg After......much cleaner look.. http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/e...I/IMG_3884.jpg http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/e...I/IMG_3881.jpg http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/e...I/IMG_3888.jpg Then I boxed the motor mounts..probably overkill, but it never hurts.. http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/e...I/IMG_3883.jpg http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/e...I/IMG_3885.jpg |
Then I made a new mount for the AC condensor from some flat stock aluminum. Since we opened the radiator area and moved the mounts, the Vintage air bracket wouldnt work.
http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/e...I/IMG_3859.jpg Then my next big goal was to get the brakes worked out so I could get my wheels alll measured and ordered. Thats where the big delay came up.......... I've been working with Tarrant Tutogi at Wilwood and he's been fantastic. Probably one of the best company reps I've worked with.... He really wants me to be able to run the big WS6 calipers but right now they dont have a caliper bracket that will work with my application. So Tarrant has been putting in a lot of work to get the guys at Wilwood to make one for future production for my application etc. So that took some time to sort out and we werent sure if that was going to happen. So after alot of back and forth Wilwood sent me out their 14 inch rotors and some other stuff to get started while we figured out the bracket situation.... Its a Wilwood Christmas !!!! http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/e...I/IMG_3889.jpg http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/e...I/IMG_3895.jpg http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/e...I/IMG_3894.jpg http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/e...I/IMG_3906.jpg http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/e...I/IMG_3909.jpg |
At first we had some clearence issue with the steering arm attachment, so I we had to swap out to a more shallow hat and move the rotor out a tad... its close but they fit now :)
http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/e...I/IMG_3915.jpg Since thats been all mounted up, I've been trying to measure for wheels....that has been a huge PITA. I wanted to thank Marty (Syborg) for lending me his Mount Mate to help the job. I borrowed it back in late July (anticipating my brakes would arrive soon) and then we had all the brake delays and its been sitting in my garage unused.... thank you Marty for being so understanding on the delays. I'll have it back to you next week, I promise..... I've also been bugging Jason Rushforth with questions and trying to work out a way to get a decent lip on the front wheel. Unfortuately with these big brakes, its widened my track width some and then the caliper overhang is gonna push the spokes out some, so it dosent look like I will be able to get the dish I was hoping for, but thats life I guess. Then I got back and forth on the 19x8 or 19x9.....245-35-19..... I tried a ton of BS setting for both, at the current ride height (based on the Air Ride ride height suggested for this shock etc), its pretty close the fender lip near full lock. So I decided on either a 19x8 with 6 BS or a 19x9 with 6.5 BS and everything clears on the pass side (the one I've been working on the entire time). Figured I should make sure on the driver side.....and neither one works on that side !!!!! I dropped a plum bob from the fender lip and measured to the hub on both side and it looks like my fender is about 1/2 inch pushed in on the driver side. Everywhere elese I measure, it appears that the frame to hub etc is the same so I dont think the frame is moved over. There was some previous damage to the driver side fender, so I think it bowed it in slightly near the fender lip....great...more work...... If I do more BS, then the Mount Mate hits the tie-rod at lock...plus I guess 6 BS is the most I can really do on an 8 inch rim anyway....so best I can figure is do the 19x9 with 6.5 BS, have a slighlty larger lip, and fix the driver side fender opening..... I can go with a shorter hub and hat and move the track width in, but the caliper is the most "outboard" piece, so it wont do anything for my dish....so by doing the shorter hub, all I'm doing is changing the BS reading.... the mount pad gets thicker and the dish stays the same.... So decisions, decisions...... |
Or..... You could cut off all the suspension - narrow it... and put it all back on with different pick up points... then you would have header clearance issues... and have to do some custom whacked out header deal - which would cause an issue with the steering column and the "whatchamacallit"....
LOL Isn't building a custom car phun?? :lol: Seriously Ned... Glad to see you're working on it. There is a solution for everything... some just require a lot more work than others. :>) |
Would custom upper and lower a arms be needed to bring everything in?
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Sure I could do custom UCA and LCA but thats getting into bigger $$...and then I'll probably have issues with getting the airbags in there...its already a tight fit.
Oh yes.....fun, fun...there are so many variable that can be changed, but they all effect each other...make one better and two worse... |
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