Mounted the Diff. and started adding gussets and tabs and just in general making sure i got my required 40 feet of welding in this weekend.
Then hand carved the bushings that fit between the box tubing (corner posts) and the rams. upper and lowers. lowers have a hydraulic fitting and a locking pin to consider as well.the uppers need to be tight enough to need a little heat to install. (any movement in this assembly will be transferred to the chassis ten fold.) the lowers are shimmed so all 4 rams are aimed exactly vertical. (huge pain in my azz)


front ears for the diff mounted and welded.

back mount for the Camaro diff welded. this is a crazy easy rear end to install. wonder how long before the hot rod community picks up on this.

now to weld gussets, tabs, and brackets.

Starting to feel like a broken record. More gussets, tabs, and brackets. also adding for swaybar, brake lines, camber plates. etc...

hand carved the upper bushings to weld into the cube then honed to not quite fit the ram.

Test fit. looking good so far. requires about 300 degrees for it to drop in. not to hot to burn the rams seals.

ok these sucked azz. these lowers are shimmed to aim the rams perfectly vertical on both axes. then tacked and checked. The problem with weld is it shrinks as it cools so i had to "Learn" compensate. but i got it eventually

 

I am looking forward to seeing what this motivation manifests into. I love projects mild to wild, new and old.

 

Note. the flaking paint on the tubing is because there from the roll cage "mistakes" I paint as things are installed in case i cant get back behind them. figure some weld through primer is better than nothing back there. I have had more than 1 bar get installed and cut out because i didn't like something or just changed my mind. Im sure there is more to come.

 

Finally got all the bushings where i wanted them. set the rams. did a quick air test.
then set the rear cube in place. and started building the top rails.
getting close.


Fully welded with the rams set in.

Air charged the rams for a comparison shot. the rams can travel 12 inches. but will likely never see more than 6.

set the rear beside the car to see what we are looking at for effect. this would be close to its full down position. Needed to see how much of the cube would be visible around the body and tire.

building the top bars, fully welded 2 piece top rails with bushings and cross pin holes

Not a easy fit on the chassis table but got the rear cube placed, need to find its full up position so i can set the top bars and start setting the rear cage.

Grabbed a 29inch tire off my Colorado and set it up in there to get a better feel for axle position in the max up position. fun trick of the camera. full squash should set this on the rails. and in the full lift position it should be set for some sweet murder stance. (muscle car style).

 

That's sweet, great fab work indeed.I'm watching this build!

 

Fatal Flaw...
The rams have to much internal play side to side. there engineered to push and pull very well.
Spoke to a structural engineer about my issue and came up with several solutions (none of them will work on the front) and all of them are very heavy or very complicated. Or very expensive side load rams that wont fit in my cube.
The best solution was to build a box to house the cube,That would prevent it from shifting back during braking or sided to side in the corners. But to support the loads and weight it would be massive.
The other is a link/suspension system to hold it in place. like a 4 link with pan hard rod for the cube. (no room for this up front).

I may have figured out why no one else does this.

After loosing sleep over this for a week i think im gonna abandon the hydraulic over air system and go with alive axle with air bags (like everyone else)
Again i was hit with (what are your plans with the vehicle)
I am going to turn this into a Tow vehicle for my race truck. But...
still want a cruiser, 450-550hp. you know enough to run the AC. stance and look of a ProMod. yet streetable...you know a Unicorn.
I love the idea of my car pulling a truck to the track.
I will cut the cube up and put the suspension mounts into my road course truck.
the rams...Im sure i can fine a excuse to use them.
The frame is already a bit heavy duty so with a few mods it will more than handle a trailer with a vehicle on it.
looking into rear ends that can handle weight, still find parts for, and maybe a good selection of after market parts as well.
Thinking ford 9 inch.
Found a company that will build a housing for me extra thick, put the big bearings in it, and we all know the crazy aftermarket supply for these things out there.

Some go to school to learn crap.
I just made a tuition payment to the school of hard knocks.

 

Made a decision of tires front and rear. then ordered the rear axle from quick performance. these guys are fast. housing showed up in less than a week and the axles a few days later. tires are not here yet.
So I set the rear in and started calculating max up travel (based on tire height), then found where I want this to sit at cruising height.
with that came up with frame rail positions. Moved the rails in for a fat tire (tubed) this way I can run the fat skins as well. Currently the rear tires are a 285/60/18. (11.25 inches) But the frame is tubed for a 390/50/18. (15.5 wide).
Its called a firm understanding.



1/2 studs extra beefy, Quick Performance axles

Never hurts to take photos of numbers you may need in the future (axle length)

Full custom axle housing. 1/4 wall, big ford bearings, internal and external gussets.

Setting the rails in, squaring things up. I try every chance i get to get every thing as close to 0.0 as i can. So far the build has been pretty tight.

Setting ride height. haven't decided if a traditional 4 link is the route i am taking, or if a z-link system is more my fit. also considering a triangulated 4 link. Decisions decisions. This is a street car. not a dragster. It could pull a trailer, it could do 150+mph if the hair is just right.

 

Finally got the tires in. 285/65/18 for the rear, 255/60/17 for the fronts. these are the daily driving tires with extra load ratings for that trailer i think i may pull.
Got some fun pics with the right rear in place. Showing clearance. (about 6-7 inches up travel left in the photoed position) then knocked together some rear bumper brackets. Next tossed some plywood at the floor to see how the Mini cooper seats I like will fit. (want this to be a 4 passenger).


Trick of the camera. Playing with rake intentions and ride height. This is a 31.5 inch tall tire

Huge amounts of room to grow. Cooker makes a 390/50/18 that should squeak in there. (very custom rims to pull that off)

Still have 6ish almost 7 inches of up travel left. Some will be lost when the tubs go in there.

Rear bumper brackets.

Mounter rear bumper brackets. A very bad reaction to the weld through primer. this new primer maybe junk.

2011 Mini cooper seats front and rear. We did a road trip in the Wife's Mini and after several hundred miles planted I got out and felt as good as i did when I got in. (I will be putting these things into everything i own)

Custom hunk of plywood floor and checking the leg room front to rear. I would like to see a bit more foot room for the rear seats. May end up modifying the back rests so the seats can go back a few more inches.

 

Notched the trunk frame for the hitch. Built it so it will hide under the license plate.
Then pulled my front suspension jig and started cutting the lower a-arm adjustment plates
Assembled them into a lower arm mount.
Then into the lower front cross member.

Trailer hitch notched into the trunk frame. This will make for a strange gas tank.

Hidden hitch will have a plate bracket in it most of the time. The trailer hitch will have a receiver for the plate bracket built off to 1 side.

Pulled the front suspension jig out, and started mapping out the front end.

Lower a-arm plates. each pair has the slot just a little higher than the last.

Lower arm plates going together

Lots of time spent jigging things up.

Lower arm bracket all ready to be set into the front cross member

The beginnings of the lower cross member.
cross-member.

 

Set the engine back in, cross member set at it, and measured the front suspension over and over again.

Tore up some old pallets i had lying around and built a fixture to help hold the lower and upper rails in place so i can tack and measure.

Measure twice cut once isn't just a saying. It's my life. some of this stuff gets hours of measuring for a single tack.

To those that think I work in a huge facility. This is a shot of my 2 car garage. Every night i clean it up so the wife can park her hot rod in it. (Well almost every night)

Upper a-arms at it to verify the spacing and placement of there mounts with the ability to adjust for alignment.

Forward bars are in, time to start bracing. Added a firewall vertical and a cowl brace to triangulate the fire wall/front clip.

 

Thanks for posting its awesome seeing this car come together, and seeing the work you do.

question how do cut pieces like this and how do you make the slots ? Im working on a motorcycle, but the few peices ive needed to make have been time consuming and are difficult to duplicate. Im working w thinner metal but i dont have any relevant background except velocity TV. Ive been using a cut off wheel on an angle grinder, a grinding wheel, a drill and a dremel. Im getting the job done but when i see your pieces i know theres a better way!

 

The camber plate slots were drilled on each end of the slot. then a third in the middle. A dremel and a lot of patients were used to connect the dots if you will.
If you look close you will see there not perfect. But this is a rubber bushing car, not race car. there all within 1/32 of ideal. Manufactures have far worse tolerances.
I plan on welding 1/4 square stock (or key way stock) to the tops and bottoms to force the concentric bolts sideways.

the outer shape of the plates were from 3 inch strap steal and a hand grinder with a cut off wheel to cut the angle. 4 angle cuts, 4 chop saw cuts. tack the pairs together so they cant shift. drill dremel, cut off tacks. poof done.

 

This is one of the more interesting builds I've seen in a while. Still following along.

 

Nice thanks I guess i just need more practice, ive been looking around for a chop saw that will make it easier too i think.

 

WOW, excellent work!! I'll be following along.

 

I recommend a diamond cutter style chop saw. there pricey (400-600) but you will save money in about 20 blades, and less noise, more accurate, and fast as hell. I am using a Dewalt DW872 (14 inch)

 

That is some serious fabrication. Im watching.

 

Lot of photos this week, front suspension is set, placed the engine and transmission at it. even put a tire on the front to verify clearance.

Built the Vertical bars that hold the upper a-arms in place.

The vertical bars also act as a truss for the upper and lower front frame rails. There intentionally narrow about a 1/4 inch so they can be shimmed out for alignment. Or set for huge camber.

shot standing in the right rear floor area. If it had a floor

Not sure i like the front horns for the cross member.

Fun shot down the throat of the beast.

Set the Corvette engine and transmission at it. Checking out the potential leg room

engine off set photo

Fun top shot

Lots of fun photos


Tossed the tire at it to verify clearance at full lock.

 

This weekend was Motor mount weekend.
Its crazy how something so small can take so long to produce.
Keep in mind the corvette that is donating its engine and front suspension, has been narrowed 6 inches (3 per side) and the engine has been effectively lowered into the frame 1.5 inches (to keep the 6 inches ground clearance with the taller front tires). Think of it as a lift kit but backwards. All the suspension mounts went up.
So the mounts have to go in and up.


Right side tacked together


all welded up and in primer

Frame mount is sweat the flat plate lets the bolt of the mount just sit close and when it finally lines up the motor literately drops in place

right side again with some paint. Final install

 

Took a week off to go play in the sand and keep the wife happy.
back to it..
The glory work is starting to disappear, this week was building mounts for for the front sub-frame, front tie bar, start the transmission, and front pipe exhaust mount,

This is the transmission 1/2 of the transmission mount. It is a solid mount that bolts to the tail housing and has tabs that the exhaust pipes can bolt to as well. A suspended loop over the top will house the bushings and suspend the transmission instead of the transmission sitting on a cross member.

Cleaned up the frame rails around the exhaust. (it is a ugly dance of foot well room and exhaust clearance)

Same thing on the driver side. If you look close the rail on the bottom of the picture is not tacked to the frame. That is part of the bolt in sub frame

Wife watches to much Road kill, and road kill garage. She wanted a hood list. I told her there is not enough hood for my list...my list is easy...1 word (EVERYTHING) So we came up with a compromise... Bets on this number before completion?

Tie bar designed to keep both front rails from moving from side to side, But still has clearance to remove the motor out the top.


building the lower mounts for the tie bar, or the front mounts for the sub frame. The fun was to make them look like there welded to the sub frame. 16mm bolt from the back. (just enough clearance for a short socket and ratchet before hitting the oil pan.

Tacked.

tossed some weld at it and a end of weekend photo.

 

This weekend was learning how to cast Urethane transmission mounts. And how to build casting molds...and how not to...



Built the hanging bridge/cross member that will become the support for the tunnel as well as the transmission

Made a metal mold to build these bushings for the transmission.

Under side of the metal bushing mold

It appears that you have to let the mix thicken slightly before poring. Too soon and it leaks out the bottom.

I need to invest in a vacuum chamber to help draw out the bubbles created when mixing the components together.

Its a little rough. definitely not show quality but it will work.

Each one is getting better. Getting my timing right for each stage of the poor. Stirring slower causes less bubbles etc...

Transmission is mounted. exhaust is done to the tail of the transmission.

 

This week was spent cleaning things up, stepping back and reassessing things, making sure things are heading the right direction.
so i tossed some plywood on the floors, set in the driver seat, tossed in the Corvette column to get a feel. looking at rear foot well room, front pedal room, head clearance. etc...
Put the wheels and tires on it set the suspension at ride height and tossed a fender at it. I do like the look.


Ergonomics. just setting stuff in there to get a feel.

Keep in mind the floors are up about 2 inches to make the pan flat, interior is now full of transmission and engine, those are both up a few inches (compared to original location) I believe engine set back is 12 inches.

foot well test...its actually a little tight. To be honest this whole interior is a ton smaller than it use to be.

trick of the camera to make it look kinda like it is sitting on the ground. (with a tilt...or rake)

slapped the front fender on it.

I really like this photo with the suspension at ride height.

 

Interesting build, still following.

 

Thats on a whole other level of cool!

 

thanks guys. some days it gets a bit overwhelming
Its good to hear back.

 

Wow!!!

 

took some time off to collect my sanity. and working on a side job to help fund this 67. I am hoping to get back on it in March. (6months off).

Just a reminder. I work in a little 2 car garage 24X25 not some super sized Mini Mall sized facility. (and with wife parks in here during the week)

Those little wheel rollers are a life saver. when im done for the day it rolls back into its own bay.


65 Malibu Build. Full electrics, dash,Super Sniper EFI. and a laundry list 5Months long.

Firm Understanding. and the fuel pump/filter system.

468 big block+windmill+dual Holley Snipers. It should get out of its own way at least.