Project WidowMaker - The Build Thread

[The WidowMaker]

.0000005 lookin good, as usual Bro!

ha. to much time doing what filler could do in 30 seconds. i'll have a better idea of how far i need to go when it comes to the next car.

I dig the harness bar. Is that custom? cant wait to see more!

its a custom deal. im still trying to find new car test criteria and running some numbers to see how much force it needs to withstand. so far ive found numbers of ~1700lbs when 3000lbs is applied to both the chest and the abdomen at the same time. a lot less than i would have expected for a total of 6000lbs. that 6000lbs is what a 200lb driver would see in a crash from 60mph that stops in 3.5' with .5' of belt stretch. 30g's! even hitting a solid wall, the 3.5' would be the front of the car crunching. im not sure a seat belt would save any of us in a crash like this in our old cars.

maybe an engineer can shed some light on the forces.

[The WidowMaker]

well, im still working on the gapping. never in a million years would i have expected it to take this long. if i can keep on my current schedule, ill be done with the sheetmetal in mid may. thats about 2 months behind schedule.

ive been looking into seatbelts some more and i am trying to narrow down my choices. i would really like to just call up morris classics, but he repackages belts into kits that fit our cars. since i dont need a kit, most of the pieces and a lot of money would be wasted. so ive found a few options that are still made in the USA.

what im trying to decide on right now is which buckle im going to choose. i originally wanted a more modern buckle, but after looking at all of the website pics im now leaning towards the chrome "lift latch" style. i would brush the chrome to fit the rest of the car. the problem is that all of the vendors seem to sell the same set, and im not a fan of the male portion of the buckle (see pic). i would either need to fab us some kind of cover, or find a manufacture that has one already done. there is one other choice that is more modern and all black.

what do you guys think?

here is the non retractable version that shows a good pic of the latch. i dont really like the male end. it just seems as if something is missing.


here is one with a cover. not what im looking for, but im not sure why there isnt a cover on the lift latch.


here is what i would consider a more modern latch. it may have the red "push" button that im not a fan of though.

[Flash68]

I like that bottom one.. agree it has a much more modern feel to it.

[The WidowMaker]

youre right it does. im still wondering how the lift latch would look brushed though.

the other problem is that the ends are going to be mostly hidden anyways. the fronts will be next to the seat and the rears arent going to be that long.

[The WidowMaker]

well, im still searching for seat belts. from what ive found the main manufacture that everybody else sells is beams in oklahoma. they claim to be made 100% in the USA and hopefully that ends up being true. there do appear to be two different retractors though. one has some "knobs" on either end and the other is smooth. theres a picture of each earlier in the thread. i know for a fact that beams makes the knob version, but i was told today by a reseller that their smooth version is made in oklahoma as well. not sure if its beams or not. this seems to be the same retractor that morris uses as well.

im still havent made up my mind on the buckle. i thought i narrowed it down, but it appears that any style female end can be purchased with a locking style male end. not that i think my mounting won't work, but if for some freak reason something happened with my shoulder harness, i would still at least have a lap belt.

i also struggled with the decision of lap or 3 pts in the rear. the plan is to attempt them with 3 points that mount the retractor below the rear deck. i will need to reinforce the deck and the mounting point for the retractor. since the belt will be traveling up through the sheetmetal, i will need to make something to redirect the belt that wont shear it when force is applied. since the factory has been using 1/4" d-rings, my thought is anything with a radius will work. the plan is to either mount some delrin or aluminum that has a radiused slot. if anybody knows of something already out there, im all ears. ive also been concerned with the angle of the slot. when the belt gets pulled out, it doesnt get pulled straight forward. rather, it gets pulled across the body. im thinking this slot will have to be aimed in the direction of the pull. not a huge deal, just more on my mind. ive also thought about putting some bearings on it and making it swivel. this would allow it to retract and extend correctly and my wifes car has something similar on the B post. i havent thought a lot about how i would make it though.

other than that, progress is still going on with the sheetmetal. im also hoping to pick up my door handles from ring brothers in the next couple days. staci is supposed to be setting up a group purchase and as those that have been following know, im a sucker for a deal.....

[The WidowMaker]

well im way behind on my sheetmetal work. i wanted to be done by now, and that was worst case scenario. im still on the drivers side. its going to be middle june before im done, and its looking like novemeber at the earliest for paint.

i did pick up my door handles from ring brothers. they are currently having a group purchase with 10% off and free shipping. call staci if you want parts!!!

[Nick.V70]

Just purchased or have in your hands....I hope if you have them in hand you would post pics

[The WidowMaker]

Just purchased or have in your hands....I hope if you have them in hand you would post pics

just got them in the mail today. i ended up getting their last set of full sand blasted that they are making. its the perfect platform for paint, so i will either paint them the grey, or sand them to a brushed finish. not quite sure yet.

the wife has the camera tonight, so i will get some pics up on saturday. they look sick!

[The WidowMaker]

i finally finished the drivers side. i will start working the passenger door tomorrow. heres a before and after of the door to fender gap. one area in the middle looks a little tight in the pic, but i dont see it in person and it measures perfect.

also, ring bros door handle pics up tomorrow. i promise!!!

[Ron in SoCal]

Nice work Tim! I have gap envy...