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Low buck 68 LeMans

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  • Being a mechanic from MI I bet you can't count how many times you've snapped or seen someone else snap those shock studs. I know I've snapped a few.

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    • In addition to building tools, I mounted the radiator in the screen door suport. Used scrap steel to hold it in, sliced fuel line down the long axis for a cushion on the bottom, and bolted some channel that came with farm sale stuff.





      Use whatever you have laying around to build what you need. Cheaper that way. I think for now it's going to get Ralley II wheels instead of finding some 15" slots for the rear, eventually I'll get some with the right offset, but for now I just need the right size under there. Cant get the stance right without the tire sizes it will have.

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      • I've driven my Formula maybe 5 times now and the headers are already wasted. Those oval ports ain't cheap man, now you know why I didn't go with ceramic coated.

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        • Have some progress to document. Battery is wired in the trunk, grounded to the frame, custom length positive #2 cable. Need to find some all thread and drill some holes in a piece of flat stocK to hold it down. Holes are in the trunk floor already, so it's just finding stuff thats laying around. This is like a one man episode of junkyard wars, go digging for parts and throw em on. I dug up some tires and a set of Rally wheels rather than buying some slots for the rear.




          The top is the mold, the bottom is the bumper. Added some material to it because it was a bit thin in places, tomorrow I'll trim it and sand the surface smooth. Came out better than I thought it would, gives me confidence for the hood, and for the front end of the 65 LeMans. I have a good system for laying it up now, had to eat a couple gallons of ice cream for the bucket, but it works great. I decided to try canola oil cooking spray as mold release, worked quite well and washes off with soap and water.

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          • Having spent a bunch of years in the boat industry......those look very nice. That car is going to be light!
            Of all the paths you take in life - make sure a few of them are dirt.

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            • Low buck and light, how they look isn't a huge priority, but thanks. I think I have somewhere around $25 in resin and cloth/mat in the bumper, the hood brings the cost up to around $200 total for the mold and a hood. Might pull a mold of the GTO scoops and put them on a second hood pulled from the mold. Have four cars that can use it, so why not?

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              • Gasser stance has to go. Check out the rollers I had laying around, 255 70 15 for the rear, 205 65 14 fronts, cost $0.00.



                The wiring is almost sorted, been dragging my feet on firing it for the first time, open headers for now, the E carb Scott let me borrow, and once I have the new mounts in it, throw plugs, wires, prime it with my modified busted up HEI primer tool, and hear it crank. Could start it now, but the mounts are very​ old​ and the important one is separatedalready.



                ​I think it looks bad like this, just how I wanted it to look. Get the front dropped, the hood, nose, grille, and wheelwells on it, then put the glass back in. Something about satin black with a lowered attitude says sinister.

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                • Put trim rings on, still looking for center caps, but I know there's a bunch of them somewhere around here. No they don't match, no I don't care, it adds to the pos thrown together by a novice look.





                  Laid up the hood today, have a plan for the edges once it's out of the mold. More screen door aluminum.

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                  • That Eddy carb isn't on lone. I don't want it back.

                    You can get all thread at any hardware store in 1 ft and 3 ft lengths. I just use aluminum flat stock for a hold down.
                    BS'er formally known as Rebeldryver

                    Resident Instigator

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                    • Thanks Scott, appreciated. The allthread should be around somewhere, I'm trying not to buy more stuff.

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                      • Dirt cheap lightness to make up for my largesse.




                        Yes it looks like crap, but for what I'm working with the body lines look surprisingly good. There are aluminum channel pieces goung into the sides, and one across the front to stiffen and add strength. Don't need it to fly off while driving. Once I figured out a system, it didn't take that long to make these parts, if I wanted them really nice it would take far longer. Spent about three hours glassing it this weekend, so with better materials this would be something worth doing. Really looks bad, but I like crappy on this one.

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                        • The line across the hood is where the resin didnt fill in because of gaps around the stiffeners. I have a plan, its mostly filled in now. Been working out how to bond aluminum, wood, and glass together. Shaped the stiffeners that will also be the hood sides today, going to glass it tomorrow. Yes it looks like crap, but not for long, I've seen worse. Its floppy without the sides, but very sturdy with them clamped in place, they also fix the shape issue you can see with it on the car.







                          The mounts, and fuel pump showed up today, they go on tomorrow which means I can break in the cam and see how this thing sounds. Going to need a remote start switch for this thing.

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                          • I don't want to smooth it out until I get the shape set, which is why it looks like bas-relief of the Andes. It was quite a bit smoother when it came out, but without a gelcoat the resin was very thin. Needs built up to cover the matt.

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                            • Bumper. 51.2 vs 4.6
                              Bumper mounts 12.0 vs 0
                              Hood. 67.0 vs 29.4
                              Hood hinges 10.0 vs 0
                              Core support 34. 0 vs 5.8
                              Fenderwells 26.4 vs 0.


                              Going to manual steering lost the pump, hoses, and a manual box is lighter than power, I'll weigh my spare manual box when I get back north, I have both up there.

                              200lbs stock, 39.8 home made, for a loss of at least 160lbs from the very nose of the car. Battery moved to the trunk is another 40-60 lbs off the nose, but still with the car. I bet I can make the hood lighter than this one and stronger too. A pair of fenders drops more weight, I just don't have the time to make them now. The interior is gone, heater, AC, swaybar, and later an aluminum radiator to replace the heavy copper and brass 4 core I have in it now. Some ported aluminum heads drop more weight and add considerable power, KRE D ports fit the budget at $1800 ready to go, flowing 100cfm more than these iron 6x heads, and bump the compression to 12.5 or so too. That has to wait a while, I have someone else to pay before I spring for heads.

                              Time to get working on hearing it run.

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                              • Getting light there, Todd!
                                Can't wait for results of start up..

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