My Cuda Project Part II...now at Bruning Auto Design

[DRJDVM's '69]

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.


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.

[DRJDVM's '69]

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...


After......much cleaner look..




Then I boxed the motor mounts..probably overkill, but it never hurts..

[DRJDVM's '69]

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.


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 !!!!

[DRJDVM's '69]

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



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......

[GregWeld]

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??


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. :>)

[96z28ss]

Would custom upper and lower a arms be needed to bring everything in?

[DRJDVM's '69]

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...

[syborg tt]

Your welcome and not a problem.

Also sound like your fender may be pushed in. Take a tape and measure from the fenderlip plumb bob to the frame rail and see what you get on both sides.

If that is the case i have the fender lip roller that you can use and instead of rolling the fender lip you can gently flare the fender back out. I did this on the bed of my truck and it worked great.

Originally Posted by DRJDVM's '69

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 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.
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......

[DRJDVM's '69]

Thanks again Marty..

I've measured from just about every fixed point I can find to the fender lip and they are all about 1/2 off from side to side. If I sight down the fender, I'm pretty sure I can see it bow in just alittle. Plus on the Cuda there is a little flare just over the opening and if I put a straight edge from lip to body line it's pretty perpindicular on the "in" side and angles inward (body line above is inboard). The definition to this small "flare" is not nearly as crisp as on the "good side" either. Both are original fenders, but both have had some damage over the years

So I'm pretty sure its pushed in about 1/2 inch near the opening on the driver side.

[DRJDVM's '69]

Today I started to mess with the rear tires.... I'm using my stock rearend just to get me in the ballpark for BS and see what I have to work with. The plan is to get the rims and tires and then measure and order a custom Dana 60. Right now I just want to see where I stand......




This is the passenger side lip clearence right now... the tire is alittle crooked in the pix..... I havent done any trimming or rolling of the fender lip yet, but that is the plan for sure. I should be able to move the rim out just a tad more and still have fender clearence and enough space up top to sink the tire up into the wheelwell when its aired out..... I have about 3/4 inch of clearence on the inside right now...so probably move it out about 1/4 inch and I should be perfect.