I can't blame you for pressing the Easy button. That looks good. Glad to see you making progress.
I'm planning on taking a set of my older wheels to a place about 40 minutes away to see if they can media blast them for a good price. New Wide 5 15 x 10s are under or around $150 so they'll have to come in way under that or include power coating.
We started at 9am. Everything sanded, taped, wiped and shot with white epoxy primer. 1.5 gallon of primer sprayed. Nap time.
Did you have that all dustless sandblasted?
How much bodywork are you planning on doing? I can understand replacing rusted away sheet metal, but a few dents and dings might be in character with the whole vintage race car look.
Yep. Dustless blasted by the mobile guy. Money well spent.
And i want it straight-ish. We'll wind up with body filler and a little blocking. Goal is miata level of okayness on the paint and body.
In reply to Dusterbd13-michael :
Nice! I think I'm going to need that done whenever I finally get to fixing up my e28.
Your Miata looks great, so that's a great goal. :)
In reply to AWSX1686 (Forum Supporter) :
Ive only been able to justify the expense and effort twice. This shell due to rust and bondo and many layers of paint that was flaking off, and the neon with lifting paint.
This reveals far more damage, and causes some as well. Such as blasting out all the seam sealer and factory fillers. So be cautious and go in with eyes open before having the bmw done.
In reply to Dusterbd13-michael :
It's got so many layers of paint already... and the best paint strippers are no longer sold. I could still use citri-strip or something, I guess we'll see. It's also got rust, and dings and dents. It's definitely going to be a long learning experience.
I got your PM. Replying back is another matter. The forum won't let me reply. Email me direct k4rt80y at yahoo
In reply to Appleseed :
You should have mail. Yous came through, we were having family movie night.
Have you committed to a color scheme yet? I was thinking of doing a mockup of the car in something like the original color scheme but with Neon Lapis blue in place of red...
In reply to GameboyRMH :
I have not committed a one yet. The problem is there are far too many good options to choose from
Given the colors you optioned, we have no choice but to go full Britten.
I have a long list of colors in my head. Lapis blue, Panther Pink, plum crazy purple, f8 green off the new challengers, white, 90s HKS race car livery, White, all sorts of things sound really good. I'm just not sure where I'm going to go. Hell at this point in the game teal and magenta sound good too.
Nitro Yellow Green?
In reply to eastsideTim :
Maybe! Again, it ALL sounds good. Except red and black.
Appleseed said:Given the colors you optioned, we have no choice but to go full Britten.
I know I shouldn't like that but I'm enough of a 90s kid to love it. Wouldn't do that on my race car though.
In reply to Dusterbd13-michael :
Aww...
Blowproof bellhousing acquired thanks to Patrick.
I'm not skimping on safety if i can help it.
Lifes been kicking me around for a minute. Hopefully back on it with a clear head sometime soon. But until i can focus and enjoy the work, i dont need to force it. After all, i dont need it to get me to work!
the blue 71 taillight panel is not savable. The bumper is minty for a fiberglass mold though. Hopefully the brown 70 taillight panel is worth saving. After i get the bumper removed from this one and the chunks added to the scrap pile, ill see.
+1Million on plum crazy purple or a cool mopar nascar livery.
Check your Email. You should have colorful goodies.
Previous budget was 4813.66 with 2019 recoup
new money:
sandblasting: 500
white epoxy primer gallon kit (2 gallons spray, split with dad): (175) 90 effective
fuel cell tig: 10
4x8 sheet 22 gauge, 20ft ½ tube,20 ft 3/8x3/8 tube, 10ft 1x1 tube: 108
Windshield gasket: 88
Ls standalone harness:105.17
Fuel fillere:39.95
Pass 73 duster headlight bezel: 23.99
Ls eBay brackets: 47.20
Throttle cable bracket: 9.68
Fbody water pump and spacers: 105.98
Blowproof bellhousing: 250
2005 4.8 3500 clutch disc: 60
Front bumper filler and 71 duster taillights and panel: 75
Ls7 pilot bearing 10
Valley plate bolts and front clip studs: 15
Sales
None that I can remember
new total: 6336.63 with 2019 recoup
sometimes, things work out perfectly like planned. Others, it’s a dumpster fire. With race cars, as with life, its usually a mixture.
First up ill talk about the fuel cell. What we have is a 25 gallon jaz poly cell, a used nascar filler and rollover valve setup, an internal pump, and no fear of failure. The design goals were to have an integrated pump, no notable maintenance required, and ease of trackside service. Being efi, I needed to create a way to keep fuel at the pump. What I came up with is a multiple layered approach. First order of business was a sumo tray, which I used a repurposed breadpan for, drilled a couple holes in it, and done. Baffles were made form 16ga aluminum, hung with straps and rivets from the cell plate reinforcement flange. I ran some vertical bent aluminum outriggers to the outside walls to keep the baffles from flopping around too much.
20230211_075926 by Michael Crawford, on Flickr
20230211_075957 by Michael Crawford, on Flickr
20230219_074908 by Michael Crawford, on Flickr
Then onto the pump module. I had previously used a tanks in module in my duster, so I decided to mimic it in this application. Using leftover nascar parts, an fittings, and a bread pan. The racetronics wiring bulkheads are nice pieces, and everything else is pretty off the shelf. Except for the tig work that I had the welder at work do for me, because I suck at aluminum.
20230306_071000 by Michael Crawford, on Flickr
20230306_071010 by Michael Crawford, on Flickr
Nailed it!
s-l500 by Michael Crawford, on Flickr
I also picked up a gas cap setup for external fill from eBay. It’s a boat part, but does what I need it to do I believe. Have to decide if I mount it behind the quarter or on top. Not sure which will look better in the long run….
Screenshot_20230408_180857_eBay by Michael Crawford, on Flickr
Next up, and out of order, well talk about the engine and trans. Trans first.
The four speed leaks from every orifice, and I needed to sort out the clutch and flywheel to mate to the ls. I had picked up a low mileage ls1 flywheel and clutch a while back based on a few threads I found. They were depending on an earlier disc fitting in the later pressure plate to make it work. Or using the 2004 3500 truck flywheel and clutch. I had the bright idea to try the clutch disc from the 3500 (10 spline) with the ls1 pressure plate I already had. Fit like the factory designed it that way. It also appeared that the pressure plate would be a perfect interchange between the two as well. So, I got a disc from rockauto, as well as a gasket set and ls7 pilot bearing. It was also discussed about having a blowproof bellhousing in this. I’ve not seen them used in a road race application, but can’t say it’s a bad idea. Especially when I plan to go aluminum flywheel at some point. My friend Patrick found me one in Ohio, and I grabbed it. Needs sandblasted and a little cutting and grinding, but what doesn’t with this project?
Screenshot_20230408_180243_Facebook by Michael Crawford, on Flickr
With the engine, I went ahead and finally got the broken exhaust bolts out.
20230318_124049 by Michael Crawford, on Flickr
20230318_124138 by Michael Crawford, on Flickr
Went on to mock up the intake, and ran into issues. First was that the throttle body hits the water pump and accessory brackets. It also hits the steam vents and the bolts for the valley plate. And there’s no place for the throttle cable bracket.
20230311_140202 by Michael Crawford, on Flickr
The water pump was first tried to be adjusted with a large pipe. The outlet wasn’t able to be moved enough, and I also worried that the hose would hit the hood with how close it was. So, I ordered the f body water pump and spacers for 105. Not here yet, so use your imagination.
The accessories have multiple solutions. But with concerns about hood clearance, I was hesitant. Upon test fitting, we found that the alternator was almost entirely above the hood. So, I went looking for inexpensive solutions. Bought the $49 one from eBay, and I’m not unhappy with the quality. It’s a lot of individual pieces, which I don’t care for, but well made. The hardware is pure chinesium though. The alternator clears the outer skin of the hood by a hair. I’ll modify it to lower the alternator as much as I can so as to not cause rubbing and damage to the as yet unmade fiberglass hood. I think I can get a solid inch out of it.
Screenshot_20230408_182638_Google by Michael Crawford, on Flickr
The valley tray was sorted with a handful of buttonhead Allen bolts from the Salisbury bolt house.
The throttle cable was solved (in theory) by a ~9$ eBay bracket. If it doesn’t work, ill fab something.
Screenshot_20230408_180816_eBay by Michael Crawford, on Flickr
We also ran into issues with the coil packs. The number 7 and 8 coil packs hit the cage. I think I have a solution in cutting the mounting brackets, relocating the two offending coils closer to the intake, and rewelding it. Haven’t tried it yet, but I have spare coil packs to try out on. If that fails, it gets harder and more expensive. But there’s a commercial version of this idea, so it may be a viable option. Just need to play with the welder and find out.
Screenshot_20230408_182638_Google by Michael Crawford, on Flickr
The dipstick sticking above the hood was easy, just rebend and bolt down under one of the header bolts. The steam vents will be sorted via an an kit at some point, but I need to learn a lot more about where to hook it up to the cooling system. For wiring, I bought the eBay $100 harness. I know ill need to check it thoroughly, but it’ll still save me a ton of hours vs working with the stock harnesses I have here.
20230408_172107 by Michael Crawford, on Flickr
Anyway, it clears the cowl, looks neat, and should run strong as long as its going to run. I know it’s a hand grenade with the pin pulled after being rusted stuck, but it’ll be fine for shakedown. Hopefully ill pull it about 2 laps before windowing the block….
20230318_193206 by Michael Crawford, on Flickr
Until next time
You'll need to log in to post.
