Yet another 2nd Gen Camaro - Project/update

[gerno]

I've been on the board for a while now and met a few of the guys on the board, even some with cars that actually work :whistling:, but never really posted too much about my ride. I've got a 72 Camaro that I use as a driver and have been learning on the Autocross and Road courses. I'm not an idiot with cars but I am not a pro fabricator, welders, or body man. I'm just a normal guy teaching myself as I go along. The car has a 377 SBC I built with a forged bottom end, some 195cc heads, a nice solid flat tappet and a TB fuel injection. Trans is a T56 Mag with a mechanical linkage and Quicktime bell. Brakes are C5 front and LS rear. Hotchkis rear leafs, QA1 rear shocks, QA1 front coil overs, tubular UCA, boxed factory LCA with delrin bushings and DSE subframe connectors. Most of the car was build from used parts where possible because I can't afford all the crazy billet stuff I would love. I'm a bit more into function over beauty but try to balance as best I can. It makes decent power but nothing too crazy. It has run a 12.6 @ 113 at the strip with a miserable 2.3 sec 60 ft. I have also passed some BMW's and Vettes on occasion at T- hill and TWS. All in all a good street car that is fun because most of the time it's actually running.

An issue has come around that I baked the rear axle at texas World Speedway the other week and decided I needed to change the suspension setup. It was 106 outside which along with the large front stretch and a gear setup that was not spot on I ended up with the axle howling at me @ ~110mph. I limped it around for the day and concentrated on hitting lines on the turns more and did learn alot. When I got home I decided it was time to order some new parts because the factory 10 bolt was really starting to scare me anyways.....

I called but Speedtech and talked with Roger for a while to formulate a plan. I decided to get the TA rear kit with Ridetech Single Adj. I also picked up Ridetech coil overs for the front with their Chicane kit so the car would be more balanced. For an axle I decided a full floater from Speedway was not much more than a standard 9". Speedway was also able to install all the Speedtech mounts and any brake mounts I needed so it was a 1 stop shop. Mike at Wilwood helped my with the new rear brakes based on a lot of feedback using Brian's Camaro as an example. I ended up with some 4 piston dynapros, 12.19" rotors and their new MC4 parking brake setup. Later I'll update the front brakes but for now I have to focus on installing all of this stuff.

I'll work to detail out the install in the coming days/weeks. It should be an interesting install. I used to have a nice 2 car garage but earlier this year I relocated from Sacramento to Austin. I now share a garage with some nice guys who play with some Harleys. I no longer have my roller box at the house. All I have are normal hand tools, a 4.5" grinder, drill, sawzall, jacks and jack stand and a 220v mig welder. I think this will be a real test on how a normal guy can do the install. I'm excited to see how it comes together and how different the car will be with the new setup.


He's a pic of the car I'll work to post pics of the parts a bit later tonight.

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[WSSix]

Nice! I'm anxious to see how this works out for you as I'm considering something similar for suspension on my car. I'd liek to also end up doing track days one day. I'm in the same boat as you budget wise so buying all the high dollar stuff just won't be possible. We are lucky that our factory subframes and front suspensions are pretty good to begin with.

Good luck and keep us posted. :welder:

[coolwelder62]

Sound's like a great project.Will be tuning in to see more.:thumbsup:

[Flash68]

Steve! Glad to see you post your project... about time!

I see you took some shots at Rob in your intro. Nice work on that. :D

I'm not an idiot with cars

Well some of us are... :sieg:

[Track Junky]

Awesome Steve!! Love to see the low budget builds making it to the track!! Keep up the good work !! :thumbsup:

[gerno]

Thanks for all the positive responses


I'm in the same boat as you budget wise so buying all the high dollar stuff just won't be possible. We are lucky that our factory subframes and front suspensions are pretty good to begin with.

The car current does work pretty well and I know it already exceeds my driving. All the new parts were far from "cheap" but hopefully I'm building a reliable foundation to help improve my driving skills.

Sound's like a great project.Will be tuning in to see more.:thumbsup:

Thanks it's been a very fun car so far. I've learned a lot from it and the advice on the board. Hoping I can start to give back a little.

Steve! Glad to see you post your project... about time!

I see you took some shots at Rob in your intro. Nice work on that. :D

Well some of us are... :sieg:

My goal is to have the new updates to the car complete well before you get your engine installed.... If I take a day off work I think I could even get it done before dyno day....:twak:


Awesome Steve!! Love to see the low budget builds making it to the track!! Keep up the good work !! :thumbsup:

Thanks. I'm still bummed I didn't get to meet up with you to get a little driving advice and see your car before I left town for Texas.


Here are some pics of the parts.

TA kit
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Ridetech Coilovers

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Speedway housing

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Brakes - I'll work on a better pic tonight

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[gerno]

Started a little bit of work this weekend. Pulled out the fuel tank as well as the old suspension.

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I started to work on the installation of the rear crossmember for the panhard bar and coil overs. There were some random shock mounts I had welded to the frame when I was working to relocate the old shocks to clear the LS brakes and keep staggered setup. These were cut off and cleaned up the frame a bit.

Due to the grinding and cleanup there are some thinner parts on the frame. I'm pretty sure I'll be adding some 1/8" plate to the bottom and inner portion of the rail to assure there is plenty of strength. Speedtech makes the x-member with 1/4" clearance already to allow for factory tolerances so this should be no issue.

During the fitment I became very confused and frustrated. I used the Speedtech measurements based off the leaf shackles but the crossmember was clearly not straight. There was ~1 3/4 difference in the measurement from the x-member to the floor pan. The mounts were also not straight with the frame.Unfortunately the picture in the instructions is impossible to see so I could not figure out the issue. Rather than cause an issue with the install I decided to quit halfway through the day. It was also 102 here so it was probably best for my health too. I called Speedtech today and spoke to Blake. He clarified I was measuring to the wrong part of the x-member. He also admitted the picture was horrible and needed to be corrected. Later this week I'll adjust the mock up to see how the revised measurement looks.

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[gerno]

Got a little more work done this weekend but overall I'm slacking a bit. First, I talked to Blake and he confirmed I was measuring from the wrong location on the x-member. Checked it again from the correct spot and it was dead on. I also talked to him about adding metal to the frame just in case. I want to add 1/8 plate to the bottom and inside of the frame rail. The rails have been welded and ground on prior so I'd feel more comfortable with a little reinforcement added. Blake confirmed it's not a bad idea.

I cleaned up most of the rails and have the general pieces aligned to box the rails. I just need to spend a little more time prepping for welding and it should be done.


Mocked up the housing ends
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Cleaned Frame rails
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High tech tools to bend plate
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Don't look too close at the welds. They need a little cleanup but a least have good penetration...
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[Flash68]

Steve, lookin good man..... what's that black bike in the garage there?

[coolwelder62]

Lookin good.I've thinking of using a SpeedTech Torque arm in our next Project.I like their stuff.:thumbsup:

[gerno]

Steve, lookin good man..... what's that black bike in the garage there?

The bike is my neighbors Harley. They are big into custom bikes. There was another really nice Harley but unfortunately one of the guys totaled it and ended up shattering his leg and in the hospital over a week. Thats the reason I like my huge truck and my car with a roll bar and such.


Lookin good.I've thinking of using a SpeedTech Torque arm in our next Project.I like their stuff.:thumbsup:

The quality of the product is very nice and both Blake and Roger have been great to work with so far. Even with my request to use a custom floater from Speedway they didn't flinch and helped me all the way through the process. Hopefully soon I get off my butt and get it all done so I have some seat time.

[gerno]

Cleaned up the plates I'm using to box in the frame and started welding them on. Work's been a bit nuts so I'm way behind schedule. Despite being behind I'm still trying to take it slow and easy to get it all right the first time.

Even while trying to do it right I screwed up a little. I wanted to drill holes in the 1/8 plate so I could also plug weld (think that's what it's called) it to the existing frame so its not just held by the outer welds. I remembered on the lower plate but not the upper. I'm going to carefully drill some holes mostly thru the plate then weld it up. I assume with the correct setting the weld should still penetrate and bond even if I don't drill all the way through the plate.

I think I've also decided to swap out the front brakes to a 13: 6 piston Wilwood setup including a 7/8 master cylinder. Mike @ Wilwood is working with me to get the parts together. It's beyond my original budget but I figure it's best to just get it all done right the first time.

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[gerno]

Oh, and this time I'm open to any feedback about my welds. I did my best to be patient and keep the metal clean but I'm still trying to figure it all out.

[Flash68]

How's it coming Steve?

[gerno]

The project is moving along, just slowly due to work. As of today I have the full suspension mocked up. Lots of work was need to get the front x-member in due to the Detroit Speed subframe connectors and the lowered body mount. I had to cut the frames apart in order to get the x-member in. Now I need to add some plate to reattach the frames again but this time the front side will be welded and the rear will use a couple thru bolts. I'll try to get a few more pics but here are a few bad ones I took while working.


Picked a good weekend to focus on it. ACL festival is in Austin this weekend and I can hear the entire show from my place since it's only 1.5 miles away.

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[gerno]

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[carbuff]

Picked a good weekend to focus on it. ACL festival is in Austin this weekend and I can hear the entire show from my place since it's only 1.5 miles away.


Congrats on the progress! :) Where are you living now? I thought you were up north for some reason. I'm about a mile from Zilker myself and listening to the bass beat through my windows as I type. :)

[gerno]

Thanks, hopefully soon its back on the road and I can join you on a track. was reading your thread and it's great to hear your car is doing so well. I'm over at Lamar and Oltorf area back behind Blacksheep kinda. I just work up north over at 183 and Oak Knoll

[CURVES]

Looks good!
I'm anxious to see what you do with the exhaust......H pipe?

[gerno]

Exhaust is something I haven't even thought about yet beyond the fact that my current 3" with x-pipe and full madrel tails is not going to work. I might see if I can move the X more forward and clear and most likely run dumped mufflers for a while. I'm more focused on how to convert the brakes to full manual and swap to the 6 piston 12.88 front brakes. I'm going to need to change the pedal ratio and I want to run new 3/16 brake lines all around. Lots to do to get it back on the road....snow ball is in full effect

[gerno]

Made a little more progress this weekend. All parts are painted up. Crossmember is welded upon the rear. Slowly putting the parts back on tightening up the bolts for the last time (I hope). Subframe connectors have been capped off, aluminum body mounts were cut down 3/16 to fit the TA front crossmember and subframe has been realigned (not shown). I also dropped off my driveshaft to have the u-joints changed and rebalance to match the 1350 yoke on the 9" center sections. Luckily I don't have to change the length of the shaft at all, I was shocked to see there was still ~1" clearance at the trans with it test fitted with the old u-joint.

Still need to pack the rear wheel bearing, tighten all the bolts on the rear rotors and do the final mount on the rear calipers but decided to do this on the car after the front brakes are all installed. Tonight I'll be installing the pumpkin in the rear and installing the TA.

I also bit the bullet and purchased the new 6 piston/12.88 front brake kit from MCB on Friday. I opted for the 2nd gen Camaro kit but decided to swap from 1.1 rotors to 1.25 by swapping out the Rotors to the Spec 37, changed the hat offset and swapped the calipers. I also changed from the standard pads to the Poly-E compound to match the rear. To match the kit I decided on a manual 7/8 tandem MC and picked up some bulk 3/16 line to rerun for the entire car. Thinking of lines, I'm probably going to run all new 3/8 fuel lines and a new fuel/axle vent setup while I'm at so it all looks pretty and make me feel more comfortable.

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[gerno]

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[Flash68]

Looks awesome Steve!

[WSSix]

x2 me likey!

Are you planning to add sub-frame connectors back in later on or...?

[gerno]

Thanks for the complements.

I will be tying the frames back together but I'm going to wait until I finish installing the front Chicane coilover bracket just in case there are any issues. I'm not going to weld them back because I need to be able to drop the front frame in order to swap the trans. I didn't know this when I bought the kit but it should not impact me too much. I'm planning to weld 4 pieces of 1/4" x1-1 1/4" flat bar to the front subframe then use some ~6" Grade 8 bolts to thru bolt it to the subframe connector stub that's remaining. I wish I could weld it back but since I saw something similar on Stielow's car I'm pretty comfortable with bolting it...

[WSSix]

Is this somehow due to transmission choice or the design of the rear TA kit that requires the front subframe to be removed in order to pull a transmission? Thanks.

[gerno]

It's a combination of things I think, hopefully I can explain it ok. I have 1/2 height alum body mounts which already makes it tight to even get the trans x-member in. The trans I also a T56 Mag which extends very close to the front TA x-member. I could not pull the trans with the x-member in since I need to pull the input shaft out of the bellhousing and droop the rear of the trans. On top of this the DSE connectors are welded in and tight to the floor like the front subframe now is. The front x-member for the T/A is almost like a c-channel and wraps around a floor support where body mounts are and uses the body mounts/bolts to hold it up. Its a nice design in that it's very tight to the floor and avoids issues with exhaust clearance other systems have. Problem with the c-channel is the sides are too tall to get past the floor support without dropping the frame due to the smaller body mounts. With the back 2 frame mounts removed removing/installing the TA x-member is very easy.

[CURVES]

Scared me there for a minute.......

I'm considering the torque arm for my '71 however the trans situation could be a deal breaker.

So do you think if you had stock height body mounts it would solve the issue?
Do you have to remove that "torque arm crossmember" (for lack of correct name) regardless?

[gerno]

I think it would work with stock body mounts but it is tight. I never asked Blake or Roger when I purchased the kit because I didn't think it was an issue. I'd recommend asking them to be sure. I was very frustrated when I discovered it was an issue. Sucks to buy a bolt in kit then hack up the car to make it fit. Hopefully my plan will work out ok becuase I do like how well the x-member fits the floor as compared the to issues Carbuff ran into with the JRS kit. I thought to remake the crossmember with weld on mounts to the frame like was done for "Stance" but decided it was easier to reweld the frame later than to have to buy another x-member if I screw it up.

All in all I am happy with the kit. If it was being put on a completely stock car it would be easy. Only 3 things that have frustrated me so far are the front x-member, bad pics in the instructions (I will be sending Roger some pics from my ride to see if it helps) and the large gap I had to fill in to mount the rear x-member for the coilovers/panhard bar. All seem to have a solution that was not too difficult

[CURVES]

Well if it performs like we hope, all the hassles will be forgotten.

Thanks for being the Guinea pig!

[BonzoHansen]

thanks for sharing all the pics and what you learned.

[gerno]

My pleasure. I can't wait to drive is and provide those details. If I can just make up my mind on the front setup I can continue progress. I have a feeling AFX spindles with high clearance LCA/UCA are in my future....My bank account it going to kill me...

[Firebirdsteve]

Do it!!!:G-Dub:

[gerno]

Do it!!!:G-Dub:

I assume you have the high clearance/AFX setup, right? How do you like it, what wheel/tire are you running and any fender/frame mods to the car?

Assuming you don't mind I ask......

[WSSix]

Thanks for the good feedback and info. Knowing stuff like this really helps out.

[gerno]

As seen in the suspension section, round 2 of the build will be starting soon. Because of everyone else's builds on this site I can't leave well enough alone and am changing the front setup. Good thing I'm not married, have no kids and my dog is very forgiving. If my dog starts to resent the car I'm going to blame all of you.

I called Kim at MCB (great to work with) and I decided to purchase the Speedtech high clearance upper and lower control arms along with the AFX spindle, and revised idler arm/pitman arms. Since I also wanted to match the front brakes more to the new rears I also picked up a set of Wilwood 13.08" 6 piston front brakes with Poly -E pads to match the spindles. I decided to ditch the hydroboost brakes and have a 7/8 Wilwood MC on the way as well.

Unfortunately (kinda) with the new brakes I also need to get new wheels since the current wheels won't clear the calipers. I'm thinking a set of CCW LM20's will be ordered as soon as the suspension is in place and I can measure everything up. I'm also debating if mini tubs should be installed since wheels are a big purchase. This will be decided based on the tires. I'm debating between a 275/315 combo or a 285-295/335 combo (I'm told it may fit....). It seems I need to decide what tire I'm going to run to figure the sizing out. The 615K seems to have the 315/275, the Rival has the 335/295 and the R888 has all of the above and a little more but is it really what usable for street/track

The last piece I picked up was a dual vent for my fuel tank and rear axle from from Finch. Just got it today and the piece looks very nice in person. I can't wait to get it installed Brian was very busy with SEMA and Baja but made time to call me up and chatted for a while about car setups and all the fun he'll be having over the next few weeks.


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He's what the wheel will most likely look like.

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A little more of the progress

Cleaned up the fuel lines, reinstalled the fuel tanks. I rerouted the battery cables and fuel pump wires from under the car to inside the car. I also had to extend the driveshaft 1.5 inches to fit the new yoke.

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I found the exhaust will need to be cut up and I don't think a x-pipe will work with the TA but I need to check a little more. That will be done after I decide to mini tub or not....

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Finally, I also spent a little time pulling the front suspension off. My buddy is going to buy all my hold stuff (front, rear and wheels/tires) for his 73 Bird so it really helps my budget (or lack there of). This week I hope to get the spring pockets cut out for the Chicane kit so I can prep for the next round of parts.

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[gerno]

Front Suspension fully removed.

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I forgot to mention above that I also bought the high clearance front sway bar as well to fit the big meats. Next big picture post will be all the new front end pieces.

[carbuff]

Progress is good!

If you want to trial fit a 315 on an 11.5" wheel, I can stop by with TOW sometime and we can pop one off and see how it fits. I'm out of town this weekend, but next week would work. I wanna check out all the new pieces too!

[gerno]

Progress is good!

If you want to trial fit a 315 on an 11.5" wheel, I can stop by with TOW sometime and we can pop one off and see how it fits. I'm out of town this weekend, but next week would work. I wanna check out all the new pieces too!

That would be awesome. I was thinking to use a 11.5 wheel also so I could swap between a 335 and 315 (I'm told it will work). I'll gladly take you up on the offer whenever you have time. The quality of my ride isn't near as good as yours so you're not allowed to laugh too much. At least I'm safe that Weld won't be with you to point out all my car's issues like he does to others......

[carbuff]

It's Dave and Rob you have to watch out for, they will spend an hour crawling around under your car if you don't watch out! Greg just makes fun of things like air cleaners, but you can't really trust his judgement since he's such a big fan of The Salt Lick. :disgusted:

Front past experience, it's pretty tough to get a 315 to fit without cutting a wheel well lip and pounding in the seat buckle bump if you have one. Even then, it's still tight, but the panhard will help. We'll stick one up and see what it looks like to you. :) Maybe next weekend if you can wait that long?

[gerno]

Next weekend sounds good to me. After testing them out we can walk over to Black sheep and get a few of those Austin Beers Dave and Rob love so much too. With the weather right now you wouldn't want to bring TOW our on the streets. Flood warnings are going off every 15 min and I've run my Falken's in standing water. It's not very fun. I'll most likely end up ordering some mini tubs before the weekend is over but will wait before cutting the car up.

[gerno]

Just found an 06 GTO for sale compete with the 6.0 but with a rebuilt title from rear impact (but repaired). Price is pretty cheap. If I keep the engine, computer and harness and sell off the rest of it does anyone know what the going rate for the shell including auto trans, leather interior and everything else would be?

[tubbed69]

The last piece I picked up was a dual vent for my fuel tank and rear axle from from Finch. Just got it today and the piece looks very nice in person. I can't wait to get it installed Brian was very busy with SEMA and Baja but made time to call me up and chatted for a while about car setups and all the fun he'll be having over the next few weeks.



car is coming very nicely,you will be satisfied with Brians vent,put one in mine with fuel tank and rear axle and works great

[OLDFLM]

From past experience, it's pretty tough to get a 315 to fit without cutting a wheel well lip and pounding in the seat buckle bump if you have one. Even then, it's still tight, but the panhard will help. We'll stick one up and see what it looks like to you. :) Maybe next weekend if you can wait that long?

Our 'birds have more room than Camaros fwiw...

[Rick D]

You can fit a 295 in the rear with out mini tubs, I have them on mine and still have the leafs in the car. If you roll the lips you have some room.

[Rick D]

Here's a few pictures

http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j154/RS_427/73a466810039b9a3b228e3d5af60b53b_zpsff546c2f.jpg

http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j154/RS_427/8c8317c0fe31e47560aac97491d845b0_zps8ad07ea8.jpg

http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j154/RS_427/81a07db6b0f7b34df5be038cf05d660c_zpscba35439.jpg

http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j154/RS_427/4a3044b6cb78eedecb079650be250938_zpsf1ee9bff.jpg

[glassman]

I put an 04' GTO LS1 in mine, it will have clearance issues from the accessories as the alternator is down low, will hit pitman arm. Only substitute is to use the bird pitman arm, but will affect your steering set-up. Reread your suspension thread in the suspension section as Blake and Bonzo had things to say about it.
You can swap out the accessoriies with some truck stuff or a newer F body. I haven't done it yet as i may/most likely will be doing the clip.....

Let me know if you have any questions, btw mine is a 70' Cam...

Mike

Oh, and if you'd asked me two months ago about my LS swap, i would have said dont do it, but after driving it too texas from Bay Area, no question i made the right decision :thumbsup: and got 24.8 mpg at 80mph with 3:73' and T-56....

[carbuff]

Our 'birds have more room than Camaros fwiw...

Agreed. My last car that I tried to fit them on was a 70 Camaro, and that was the one that was so tight... :)

[gerno]

The 295's fit in there nicely but of course I need to push my limits and get as big as I can. My wheel wells are already rolled and the leafs are now gone so I have some more space. It still looks like I'll be ordering some tubs.

If I get the GTO for a good pricing I could change out the accessory drive as needed to make it fit. I need to decide by Friday night if I'll be going down that path since I assume the car won't last too long. It's would only be worth it if I could get the engine other parts for basically a net cost of 0.

[syborg tt]

The 295's fit in there nicely but of course I need to push my limits and get as big as I can. My wheel wells are already rolled and the leafs are now gone so I have some more space. It still looks like I'll be ordering some tubs.

If I get the GTO for a good pricing I could change out the accessory drive as needed to make it fit. I need to decide by Friday night if I'll be going down that path since I assume the car won't last too long. It's would only be worth it if I could get the engine other parts for basically a net cost of 0.

The BFG KDW 295 is wider then most 315's so don't just read the numbers on the sidewalls. Another example is the 335 BFG is wider the 345 Michelin

[gerno]

The BFG KDW 295 is wider then most 315's so don't just read the numbers on the sidewalls. Another example is the 335 BFG is wider the 345 Michelin

Good point, I do need to compare the 3 tires I'm looking at to see the differences. I saw the comparison of 3 different tires in a post and it was amazing to me ho non-standard the sizing is.

[syborg tt]

Good point, I do need to compare the 3 tires I'm looking at to see the differences. I saw the comparison of 3 different tires in a post and it was amazing to me ho non-standard the sizing is.

You mean this one - Yep the Middle tire was a 345 and the one on the right is a 295

[gerno]

You mean this one - Yep the Middle tire was a 345 and the one on the right is a 295

That's the one

[gerno]

New front brakes are in. Unfortunately the Speedtech front end parts won't be here until Monday from installation but these are still nice to look at.

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[markss28]

If u get the GTO and want to part it out. I have a friend needing a trans and I maybe interested in seats. Just a thought

[gerno]

That would have been good but the guy sold the GTO before I could get there.

[gerno]

Did a little more work this weekend. I built a bracket to mount the new fuel/axle vent in the location of the factory vent (or whatever it is). I also started to modify the front subframe for the coil overs. Hopefully the new front end parts will be in today from Speedtech so I can test fit everything soon.


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[gerno]

Some new parts are in....

I have to say the quality of all the parts is top notch but the spindles especially are impressive to me.

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[NorCal72]

Those are some nice looking parts! :ups:

[Flash68]

You're not messing around. :)

[gerno]

Made some good progress today with the front. The driver side front is mocked up and the Chicane mount is welded in. Everything was actually very easy to put in. I was nervous using the angle grinder to cut out the spring pocket but I found it was actually very easy when I did it from the bottom up.

One issue I ran in to is the bolts for the Caliper mounts are not exactly right. I thought they were 1/2" bolts and the threaded in just fine. Unfortunely looking at the thread after mocking them up it seems the 1/2" bolt is a little off. I'm going to head over to the GM dealer tomorrow and see if I can buy a few from them. The 1/2" bolts were also very lose in the spindle so hopefully the GM bolt fixes that too

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[gerno]

In case anyone else is looking for the caliper mount bolt size, the Chevy factory C5 caliper mount bolts are M14x2x47. The Chevy dealer didn't have them in stock but Fastenal had some M14x2x50 grade 8 cap screws (actually the metric equivalent whatever that is). The 50mm bolt with a flat and lock washer is a perfect length and they not actually fit the bore in the spindles.

[glassman]

Steve, did or are you changing rims? or i should ask, what type of b/s or tread can you get up front? I'm watching this closely and thank you for posting in such detail while i make up my mind on which front to get for my 2nd gen....

Mike

[gerno]

I will be changing the rims and most likely going with some CCW LM20's in a 18x10 and 18x 11.5 but I don't know from sure yet. I need to install the passenger front suspension hopefully today then start the measurement process. Jay at Speedtech said I could get ~6" BS. Once I get the measurements I'll post them up. I'm hoping a 295/335 tire combo may fit....

[glassman]

thats a sticky combo for sure. I know that will be tight. But i hope you can do it.

thanx for the info, mike

[gerno]

I'm finally getting to the point where I need to figure out the actual wheel/tire combo I'm going to run. I have the front fully welded in and all pieces mocked up. With my 275x17 rear wheels on the front there is loads of clearance with the new parts. I'm starting to lean to the 315/275 combo on a 11.5 rim for simplicity and ability to go to a 335 rear later if desired. The biggest debate is wheel choice. The LM20 CCW's seem like the best wheel for what I am looking to do in my price range. Now I'm just debating gold vs grey centers. Here is a rough photoshop of the gold on the car.

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[gerno]

And an even worse attempt with Grey wheels. Thinking may have to try satin black centers.

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[glassman]

You thought at all about going 18's for brake clearance? or are the 17's good and a little taller sidewall?

[gerno]

Brakes will fit 17s but going to put 18s on the car mainly for looks. The photoshop is just to test what look I want, proportions aren't right

[gerno]

These are 19" Fiskes but pretty close to the 18" CCWs and the look I want on my car. Think I'll be going with 18s with a satin dark grey center and polished lip

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[FETorino]

It's Dave and Rob you have to watch out for, they will spend an hour crawling around under your car if you don't watch out! Greg just makes fun of things like air cleaners, but you can't really trust his judgement since he's such a big fan of The Salt Lick. :disgusted:

Hey we were nothing but helpful identifying potential safety issues.:mock:

Front past experience, it's pretty tough to get a 315 to fit without cutting a wheel well lip and pounding in the seat buckle bump if you have one. Even then, it's still tight, but the panhard will help. We'll stick one up and see what it looks like to you. :) Maybe next weekend if you can wait that long?

I will be changing the rims and most likely going with some CCW LM20's in a 18x10 and 18x 11.5 but I don't know from sure yet. I need to install the passenger front suspension hopefully today then start the measurement process. Jay at Speedtech said I could get ~6" BS. Once I get the measurements I'll post them up. I'm hoping a 295/335 tire combo may fit....

I'm finally getting to the point where I need to figure out the actual wheel/tire combo I'm going to run. I have the front fully welded in and all pieces mocked up. With my 275x17 rear wheels on the front there is loads of clearance with the new parts. I'm starting to lean to the 315/275 combo on a 11.5 rim for simplicity and ability to go to a 335 rear later if desired. The biggest debate is wheel choice. The LM20 CCW's seem like the best wheel for what I am looking to do in my price range. Now I'm just debating gold vs grey centers. Here is a rough photoshop of the gold on the car.

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Steve It looks like you've made a bunch of progress since we hung out at COTA and Blacks BBQ.:thumbsup:

Those grey centers look pretty cool.



He's what the wheel will most likely look like.

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How about some pictures of your rear wheels with the 275s mocked up on your front? How much SB do those rims have and how wide are they? If you want a 295 up front can you fit an 18 x 11" wheel? I have a wheel fit tool you could borrow if you want to check out some fitment options.

:cheers:

[gerno]

Lots has changed since then but now I just need to get it finished. I'm out of town until tomorrow but will get some pics when I get back. If I could borrow the figment tool I would awesome. I'm very nervous I'm going to get the measurement wrong

[gerno]

I've been thinking more about the 295 and it might be too much for now. The 275 is a pretty large tire and we'll above my driving ability. I like the lack of any rubbing issues with the 275 even full lock to lock. The other issue is that the 295 is a pretty tall tires and might not look correct with the rear profile. Had that issue with a 62 Galaxie I build and it drove me nuts

[FETorino]

Lots has changed since then but now I just need to get it finished. I'm out of town until tomorrow but will get some pics when I get back. If I could borrow the figment tool I would awesome. I'm very nervous I'm going to get the measurement wrong

I've been thinking more about the 295 and it might be too much for now. The 275 is a pretty large tire and we'll above my driving ability. I like the lack of any rubbing issues with the 275 even full lock to lock. The other issue is that the 295 is a pretty tall tires and might not look correct with the rear profile. Had that issue with a 62 Galaxie I build and it drove me nuts

Steve just PM me if U want to use the fit tool.

If you read through the front suspension thread or even back in my thread about front rim and tire choice it may make the decision harder.:lmao:

For a 295 you could always run a 295 30 18 which is actually .5" shorter than the 275 30. Mocking up the different height tires would help you decide what look you are happiest with.

Did you ever get a chance to try Bryans wheel out on your car?

[gerno]

Steve just PM me if U want to use the fit tool.

If you read through the front suspension thread or even back in my thread about front rim and tire choice it may make the decision harder.:lmao:

For a 295 you could always run a 295 30 18 which is actually .5" shorter than the 275 30. Mocking up the different height tires would help you decide what look you are happiest with.

Did you ever get a chance to try Bryans wheel out on your car?

Think it was easier to decide to move back to Austin from Cali than to figure out my wheels/tires. I read through some of the threads but will check them out again. I'll shoot you a PM later this weekend after I post the photos.

Tire choice has been limiting me. I've been focusing to use the Falkens or Rival which has limited my sizing. I want to track the car a lot but am nervous about the street ability of under 200 TW tires. If I go with R888s I have a lot more options. Maybe I've been drinking too much of the koolaide...

Bryan and I haven't met up. Weather in Austin has been terrible so I didn't even want to ask him to bring the car by.

[Vince@Meanstreets]

19/295 is a tall tire.

Here is 295's on the front 10" wheel.

[gerno]

19/295 is a tall tire.

Here is 295's on the front 10" wheel.

What's on the rear?

[glassman]

I've been thinking more about the 295 and it might be too much for now. The 275 is a pretty large tire and we'll above my driving ability. I like the lack of any rubbing issues with the 275 even full lock to lock. The other issue is that the 295 is a pretty tall tires and might not look correct with the rear profile. Had that issue with a 62 Galaxie I build and it drove me nuts

My thoughts too. I'm switching from 17's to 18's as i like the stance more. I'm thinking the T1000's with the polished lip and silver painted center or brushed center. and may be going silver stripes as well. i'm going 275/315 for now, still need to tub though.

Looking forward to hearing your feedback on the newer Speedtech set-up. I think their stuff is first class.

[WSSix]

I think the gold centers look good. Regardless, I like the wheel design. Don't sweat the wheel choice too much by trying to stuff as much tire as you can in there. Get a good bit in there and call it good is how I would do it. Good luck!

[gerno]

I can't wait to run the new suspension either but first I have to get through this wheel dilemma.

I think I figured out an issue with my wheel choice. From what I read the LM20 have the same center section for the 17 and 18 but outer rim is different. This means the outer rim is thicker than other rims such as forgeline when running an 18". Given I want the polished outer lip I would have a lot of chrome if I use the CCW so it might not be the look I'm after. At first I thought everyone had pics of smaller rims but then noticed they were 18's. Looks like I'm back to the drawing board for wheel choice. I'm really thinking about a set of Forgelines, but I was soooo close with the CCW's. I'll call John on Monday but hell I've already blown my budget to hell why not keep going.....

LM20's

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Forgelines

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[carbuff]

Bryan and I haven't met up. Weather in Austin has been terrible so I didn't even want to ask him to bring the car by.

Looks like the weather this weekend is going to be good finally, although a bit cool. You mentioned you were out of town. I should be around and available most of the weekend, so touch base when you're back, and let's hook up. I would just pull a couple of wheels off and bring them over, but I don't have my jack and stands here at my place yet... Maybe I'll go get those today. :)

I need to check out all those cool parts you have been ordering too!

[gerno]

Hey Bryan - I'll be back in town late tonight and around all weekend working on the car. I'll give you a call tomorrow and see what's up. I have an extra jack and jack stands we can use unless you just want to get some anyways

[Vince@Meanstreets]

What's on the rear?

The rear is 345/19.

Let me know if you need a set of Forgelines. I can drop ship and get you free shipping.

[FETorino]

I can't wait to run the new suspension either but first I have to get through this wheel dilemma.

I think I figured out an issue with my wheel choice. From what I read the LM20 have the same center section for the 17 and 18 but outer rim is different. This means the outer rim is thicker than other rims such as forgeline when running an 18". Given I want the polished outer lip I would have a lot of chrome if I use the CCW so it might not be the look I'm after. At first I thought everyone had pics of smaller rims but then noticed they were 18's. Looks like I'm back to the drawing board for wheel choice. I'm really thinking about a set of Forgelines, but I was soooo close with the CCW's. I'll call John on Monday but hell I've already blown my budget to hell why not keep going.....

LM20's

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Forgelines

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Call Travis at Formula 43. He can set you up with what you want. If you like the look of the CCW his RAD20s have a similar look.

A couple used tires, an afternoon with the wheelfit tool and a call to Travis can get you dialed.:popcorn2:

:cheers:

http://i291.photobucket.com/albums/ll306/superjinca/forgline_zpsba092566.jpg (http://s291.photobucket.com/user/superjinca/media/forgline_zpsba092566.jpg.html)

Some tinted clear powdercoat RAD6s wouldn't look too shabby.

http://i291.photobucket.com/albums/ll306/superjinca/rad6_zps67d658eb.jpg (http://s291.photobucket.com/user/superjinca/media/rad6_zps67d658eb.jpg.html)

[gerno]

Call Travis at Formula 43. He can set you up with what you want. If you like the look of the CCW his RAD20s have a similar look.

A couple used tires, an afternoon with the wheelfit tool and a call to Travis can get you dialed.:popcorn2:

:cheers:

http://i291.photobucket.com/albums/ll306/superjinca/forgline_zpsba092566.jpg (http://s291.photobucket.com/user/superjinca/media/forgline_zpsba092566.jpg.html)

Some tinted clear powdercoat RAD6s wouldn't look too shabby.

http://i291.photobucket.com/albums/ll306/superjinca/rad6_zps67d658eb.jpg (http://s291.photobucket.com/user/superjinca/media/rad6_zps67d658eb.jpg.html)

Formula 43 is on the list of increased budget wheels. I was focusing on the two you have listed here as well. I'm going to call on Monday

[gerno]

Here's a few pick of the rear wheel/tire on the front. The wheel is a 17X9.5 with 5.5 BS. It fits pretty well without the brake rotor on but does scrub the fender at full lock. I'll definitely get at least a 6" BS and may even try to see if I can get 6 1/4 or 6 1/2" in there so I don't have to worry about rubbing the fender.

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I was pretty happy with the way my final welds came out. Think I'm starting to figure things out a little bit
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[Vince@Meanstreets]

Is the tire hitting the rear section of wheel well or the outer lip area?

[gerno]

When turned to the drivers side it hits the inner wheel well near the middle of the fender lip if that makes sense. If the wheel had 1/4 more BS then it would clear due to the curvature of the tire. I could also try to roll the inner fender a bit and make it fit

[gerno]

I have finally made a little more progress over the weekend. The frames are now bolted back together and the mini tubs have begun. It's pretty scary adding a huge hole to the car but so far the mini tubs seem very straight forward. I hope to have the first tub complete by the end of next weekend if I can find some time outside of work


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[gerno]

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[carbuff]

No going back now! :)

[Flash68]

Cut the sucker! Keep truckin Steve!

[gerno]

Hopefully not too much more cutting. Need to finish up this side and start the other. I might also cut out the back seat support and put some flat or maybe some rolled sheet metal in to make it all look nicer. I'm not planning to put the back seat back in. But that should be all the cutting

Although I am still trying to figure out the exhaust and really thinking to cut a hole in the quarter panel behind the door for an exit like Brian Hobaugh's car....

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[syborg tt]

Although I am still trying to figure out the exhaust and really thinking to cut a hole in the quarter panel behind the door for an exit like Brian Hobaugh's car....

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That only works if your planning on having the mufflers in the back seat.

but yes it looks bad ass but I would have made it exit on the passenger side. So when your sitting and someone walks up to you in the car you can actually here them over the exhaust.

Plus it sure makes it easier in the drive through

[gerno]

I'm pulling the back seat so it might not be an issues. I would like the ground clearance too. You make a good point about the noise. I'm running duals so think I'd run on both sides.

I assume Brian set his up on the drive side due to Thunder Hill noise restrictions and the noise meter on turn 15 but I could be wrong. I saw lots of people at that track directing their exhaust to the driver side.

[gerno]

Finally had some time to work on the car this week. I got the first tub complete and picked up the engine for the new next step in the evolution.


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[glassman]

Nice! Clean up that tranny and my guess is 2k to the right party....so you'll get one kick butt engine for 3k? i paid 3200 for mine (as a base hehehehe)....I've got a really knowledgable LS guy if you run into any electrical gremlins...

[gerno]

I threw the trans on craigslist this morning for 1500 and have a solid bite on it. Hopefully it will be gone by the weekend.

I'll hit you up if I have issues. Right now Im search for the best info on converting to a stand alone harness. I'm pretty much going to leave it alone until all the suspension is 100% complete....so hopefully that means saturday

[waynieZ]

Nice! its looking good.

[gerno]

Driver side tub installed and I think I'm done with the major fab work. I have to say the second tub was much easier than the first. Beside the overall fear of cutting the car up the mini tub install was very straight forward and not too difficult. All that's left now is
-Seal tub seams and paint trunk
-Reinstall the rear suspension
-Lube the axle bearings and install the seals
-Connect the master cylinder
-Tighten all suspension bolts
-Bend up the brake lines
-Install the parking break cables
-Reinstall roll bar and all interior
-Pull SBC
-Install hydraulic clutch
-Install LS3
-Wire LS3
-Build exhaust

No big deal...that should be a week, right?:hairpullout:

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[Ron in SoCal]

^ looks real good! :thumbsup:

[gerno]

Made a little more progress on the car this week but not too much. The rear suspension is back in and hopefully for the last time. I'm now concentrating on getting the wheels ordered up. This part is driving me nuts...

I've decided on Formula 43 wheels and 275/335 18's based on feedback from a few people. I may play around with the possibility of a 295 but probably not. Luckily Travis at Formula 43 is VSRY patient.

The fronts I'm thinking a 10" rim with 6.75 BS. I could push it out a bit more but I'm debating because I really don't want any front rubbing when the suspension compresses. I'm going to check it again to see if 6.5" will be ok.

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The backs i'm debating 12-12.5 rim. Overall the rear is a very tight fit even with the tubs. I think I screwed up and should have stretched the tubs more when I installed them. Another 1/4" would have made things much easier. As of now with a 12.5" setup mocked in place I only have ~3/8 clearance inside and out when the suspension is fully compressed. I think it's going to rub. Most likely I'm going to try to cut the floors and stretch the tubs this weekend.

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I'm measuring everything at full compression for worst case but I don't really know if I'm over compressing the suspension. I assume 2" compression would be accurate, is this correct?

[Vince@Meanstreets]

watch out for that little bump out an inch above the wheel lip. you can chop it out and modify it and it gives you a ton of room.

[gerno]

watch out for that little bump out an inch above the wheel lip. you can chop it out and modify it and it gives you a ton of room.

Good tip. Looks like the suspension is coming back off for some more cutting and welding. 1 step forward 2 steps back... lesson learned.

Tip for anyone else fitting big tires by mini tubbing. Get the tires test fitted before final welding the mini tubs and before seam sealing and painting/undercoating everything. I thought there would be plenty of clearance but it seems I thought wrong. It's still a bit tight.

[GregWeld]

Take a day off -- get Bryan and head for The Salt Lick.... then come home and you'll feel all mo beta.


Seriously Steve - you're tackling a huge project trying to do all this the first time around and at home. So KUDOS to you! Keep telling yourself "it's all part of the hobby and I'm having so much fun!"


:BlahBlah: :BlahBlah: :lol: :lol: :lol:

[gerno]

Take a day off -- get Bryan and head for The Salt Lick.... then come home and you'll feel all mo beta.


Seriously Steve - you're tackling a huge project trying to do all this the first time around and at home. So KUDOS to you! Keep telling yourself "it's all part of the hobby and I'm having so much fun!"


:BlahBlah: :BlahBlah: :lol: :lol: :lol:


No time for a break, need to get this done and only get 1-1. days per week to tackle it. Although, Salt Lick does sound good......

Thanks for the words of encouragement. I'm not frustrated by the issues I found, I'm used to learning by doing things wrong. Been doing it all my life. I am having fun and learning a great deal.

watch out for that little bump out an inch above the wheel lip. you can chop it out and modify it and it gives you a ton of room.

Vince - One question. I'm thinking to cut the inner fender but leave it attached at the edge by the quarter panel. Then I'm thinking to reform it in the car and weld the 3 cuts back together. Is this what you recommend or should I cut the whole section out reform it and weld it all back? I think I'm going to go ahead and to the same thing for the fronts before I get the wheels ordered up.

[syborg tt]

I ran into the same problem in the rear with my car. DSE Instruction are very vaque and leave you quessing at most steps.

It's not to late to go back and remove another inch so you can fit the tires you actually want on the car.

Made a little more progress on the car this week but not too much. The rear suspension is back in and hopefully for the last time. I'm now concentrating on getting the wheels ordered up. This part is driving me nuts...

I've decided on Formula 43 wheels and 275/335 18's based on feedback from a few people. I may play around with the possibility of a 295 but probably not. Luckily Travis at Formula 43 is VSRY patient.

The fronts I'm thinking a 10" rim with 6.75 BS. I could push it out a bit more but I'm debating because I really don't want any front rubbing when the suspension compresses. I'm going to check it again to see if 6.5" will be ok.

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The backs i'm debating 12-12.5 rim. Overall the rear is a very tight fit even with the tubs. I think I screwed up and should have stretched the tubs more when I installed them. Another 1/4" would have made things much easier. As of now with a 12.5" setup mocked in place I only have ~3/8 clearance inside and out when the suspension is fully compressed. I think it's going to rub. Most likely I'm going to try to cut the floors and stretch the tubs this weekend.

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I'm measuring everything at full compression for worst case but I don't really know if I'm over compressing the suspension. I assume 2" compression would be accurate, is this correct?

[carbuff]

The fronts I'm thinking a 10" rim with 6.75 BS. I could push it out a bit more but I'm debating because I really don't want any front rubbing when the suspension compresses. I'm going to check it again to see if 6.5" will be ok.


Don't forget that you can always run a small spacer behind the wheel if you decide you need it. So I would err on the side of tucking the wheel a little more than you think necessary if you are uncertain, and a 1/8" or so spacer will be your friend in the end if needed!

Not sure if I can help, but call if you need it. As we discovered, I'm about a mile away. I will be at The Driveway all day tomorrow though for my first track day. So get this thing together so you can join me soon!

[syborg tt]

and shoot me your address and I will send you the fender roller.

[gerno]

Don't forget that you can always run a small spacer behind the wheel if you decide you need it. So I would err on the side of tucking the wheel a little more than you think necessary if you are uncertain, and a 1/8" or so spacer will be your friend in the end if needed!

Not sure if I can help, but call if you need it. As we discovered, I'm about a mile away. I will be at The Driveway all day tomorrow though for my first track day. So get this thing together so you can join me soon!


Agree completely, I'm measuring with the thought of the 1/8" spacer just in case. Much easier than sending the wheel back.

and shoot me your address and I will send you the fender roller.

That would be awesome. I'll shoot you a PM

[glassman]

:popcorn2:

[Vince@Meanstreets]

Vince - One question. I'm thinking to cut the inner fender but leave it attached at the edge by the quarter panel. Then I'm thinking to reform it in the car and weld the 3 cuts back together. Is this what you recommend or should I cut the whole section out reform it and weld it all back? I think I'm going to go ahead and to the same thing for the fronts before I get the wheels ordered up.

Depends on your skill set...the goal is to have the inner wheel house go straight all the way up. You could cut it out, hammer massage the roll in it then fit it back up.

I usually cut the wheel lip off ( leave a 1/4" to the outer quarter panel) and weld in a piece of 3/16" cold rolled rod to it. Then make a new outer wheel house section and weld that to the top of the 3/16" rod. It makes a nice smooth transition.

If you want the fat tires you gotta do the work.

[gerno]

Depends on your skill set...the goal is to have the inner wheel house go straight all the way up. You could cut it out, hammer massage the roll in it then fit it back up.

I usually cut the wheel lip off ( leave a 1/4" to the outer quarter panel) and weld in a piece of 3/16" cold rolled rod to it. Then make a new outer wheel house section and weld that to the top of the 3/16" rod. It makes a nice smooth transition.

If you want the fat tires you gotta do the work.

Using the rod sounds like a very good plan. I'll see what I can do. Even without the skills I'll still try it and see what happens....

[waynieZ]

Keep at it, you'll definitely get it done.

Nice Marty!

[Ron in SoCal]

Using the rod sounds like a very good plan. I'll see what I can do. Even without the skills I'll still try it and see what happens....

I like Vince's approach. Seems to create the most clearance. :superhack:

[gerno]

Ended up cutting all but ~3/16 of the wheel lip out and leaving the inner fender as is. The inner fender follows the contour if the qtr panel so any more change would mean a paint job which isn't in the budget right now. I also cut ~3/16 out of the floor behind the wheel tubs which allowed me to stretch the tub for a little more clearance.

Looks like a 12.5x 18 with 7 3/8 BS is perfect. With this spacing I have ~3/8 room all around for tire flex. Based on discussions with Travis at Formula 43 1/4' tire flex should be expected. I'm thinking to order 7.5" BS and plan to use a 1/8 spacer

Still debating on the front. Looks like 18x10 with 6.75 BS is best for the outer clearance but the wheel tool hits the sway bar and lower control arm at full lock. Think I need to pull the inner fenders tomorrow to see what mods can be done.

[gerno]

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[Vince@Meanstreets]

looking good!!

You can always narrow your rear end housing 2" on each side and run a 5 3/8" back space....:thankyou:

[gerno]

looking good!!

You can always narrow your rear end housing 2" on each side and run a 5 3/8" back space....:thankyou:



It's narrowed 1" each side already and cost far too much to have built. I'll stick with what I have for now.

[Vince@Meanstreets]

I was mostly teezing.

[Flash68]

Looks great Steve. Keeping chuggin buddy. :thumbsup:

[gerno]

I was mostly teezing.


I know. Truth is I'll most likely change the BS is by adding some flares to the car...


Looks great Steve. Keeping chuggin buddy. :thumbsup:

Thanks. I now feel your pain with the project...Mine was supposed to be a quick change out of a few parts... Wasn't your deadline for completion about now???




In my ever change tire size dilemma I have now pulled the front inner wheel wells and cut/rolled the fenders. I'll cut the inner fenders as needed to make them fit as well. Mocking things up I decided to try the 315 on an 11.5 setup. Based on previous ride height it doesn't seem too bad of a fit. Am I nuts to try this? Anyone know what the min steering angle I should aim maintain is so I can actually drive the car? It seems to turn pretty decent and has ~1" of suspension available at previous ride height. Is that even close to enough compression?


Am I getting greedy and stupid trying to fit this on the front?

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[Vince@Meanstreets]

greedy nope....ambitious yes. throw a couple shims on your control arm too. Lets get more camber. If you have a digi angle finder put in a negative 1.2

Also if you do that mod, be careful of your bolt length. ask me how i know.

you'll find that the more backspace you use the more the tire will clear that rear part of the well.

[gerno]

BS is limited where the tire tool is hitting the LCA and Sway bar when mocked using a 11.5" wheel. I'm not sure how a wheel compares to the tool. I could go to a 11" wheel and have no problems but I'm thinking it would be sub optimal and at that point a 295 may be better due to tire/wheel fitment. The 315 is a 12" tread so even a 11.5 is a little small. 295 may be perfect since it's 11" tread. Only think I don't like is the additional height using the 295

[gerno]

After talking to Travis a decision has finally been made. I'll be ordering wheels tomorrow. Going with a 295 front on a 10.5 rim with 7.25 BS. I measured based on the 275 and offset the tool to make up the difference. Using a 275 with a 10" width 6.5 BS is perfect. I've offset the BS to compensate for 1/2" wheel width plus an additional 1/4 for tire width/height front and rear. I think it's a safe measurement....

I lose ~1/4 steering wheel turn from the 275 so I think it's ok to drive on the street too. I'll find up shortly...:EmoteClueless:

[MX145]

Steve. Glad to see you're getting it all dialed in. I'm looking forward to seeing the final result! :thumbsup:

Man I sure wish I had a wheel measuring tool like that when I did my mockup although I don't know if it would have helped my indecision. Figuring out the tire/wheel combo was more stressful than installing the mini tubs for me. I kept going back and forth on things and was worried I was getting to greedy too.

[gerno]

Steve. Glad to see you're getting it all dialed in. I'm looking forward to seeing the final result! :thumbsup:

Man I sure wish I had a wheel measuring tool like that when I did my mockup although I don't know if it would have helped my indecision. Figuring out the tire/wheel combo was more stressful than installing the mini tubs for me. I kept going back and forth on things and was worried I was getting to greedy too.

I debated buy it but could not imagine fitting the wheels without it. Completely worth the money.

Finally decided on a 18/19 stagger setup. 18x10.5 (275-285/35/18 depending on tire) front and 19x12 (325/30/190 rear

Rear test with 325/30/19

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[gerno]

Got a few more things done this weekend

Fitted the bolt in roll bar to the new wider wheel tubs

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Installed Finch's new shifter boot. I assume it was meant to expose the entire shifter assembly but I spaced it back a bit to fit better.

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[glassman]

Shifter looks just right. Did you install that LS already on the down low?????

295 up front? daaammmm....thats a lot of traction....btw, those tires in the back look huge.....

[gerno]

Shifter looks just right. Did you install that LS already on the down low?????

295 up front? daaammmm....thats a lot of traction....btw, those tires in the back look huge.....

No LS swap yet. Going to get it driving with the current engine and then work the swap in a month or two....at least that's the current plan.

No longer going 295 on the front. Decided the wheel would be too narrow to allow the 295 to work right. Decided a 275-285 on a 10.5 rim would be better. This way I could take Ron's advise and stretch the tread a little.

[MX145]

I really like the color of your car. That rear tire setup goes along nicely with it! :thumbsup:
Tunnel mod looks good too.

[tubbed69]

nice work so far Steve,car is looking great:thumbsup: :thumbsup:

[Flash68]

Pretty sure 275/325 is what Stielow ran on Red Devil. Worked well for that car. :D

[FETorino]

Pretty sure 275/325 is what Stielow ran on Red Devil. Worked well for that car. :D

And Mayhem.:)

[Flash68]

And Mayhem.:)

Look at that... you actually do follow the Camaro stuff.. who knew?!

[gerno]

I really like the color of your car. That rear tire setup goes along nicely with it! :thumbsup:
Tunnel mod looks good too.

Thanks, hopefully I end up leaving the paint alone and not flaring the car to fit more tires...

nice work so far Steve,car is looking great:thumbsup: :thumbsup:

Thanks. Not as good as some can do but I'm learning a ton and having lots of fun.

Pretty sure 275/325 is what Stielow ran on Red Devil. Worked well for that car. :D

And Mayhem.:)

I didn't know Red Devil had the 275/325 combo but I did know about Mayhem. Looking at photos of Mayhem have swayed my decision

Look at that... you actually do follow the Camaro stuff.. who knew?!

He's got plenty of time to follow all the Camaro's since he's only working on Bobcats instead of the Torino

[Flash68]

He's got plenty of time to follow all the Camaro's since he's only working on Bobcats instead of the Torino

Such is life on the ranch....

[BigJoe]

So nice I'm a second gen lover too. Keep it up man love the thread.

[gerno]

:waveflag: I'm going nuts again on my wheel/tire selection. I had some 335/30/18 rivals on hold due to potential backorder. Apparently these tires shipped because they were at my door this morning. Given I had the tires I decided to test out the fitment. Now I'm really confused again. I still have time to change my wheel order and think I may go with the 335 since it's only slightly widens and much shorter than the 325.

325
Pro - slightly narrower but not much
Con - increased height interferes with Qtr flare

335
Pro - shorter height fits flare and lip
Con -Just wide enough to barely fit. Overall ~3/8-1/2 max inside and out. Possible rubbing issues

Tire selection - Overall I feel its pretty equal if not better for the 325.
325 - mainly Michelin, Goodyear, Bridgestone and Hoosier
335 - mainly BFG, Hoosier, Michelin, Toyo (R888)


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[Vince@Meanstreets]

Get the cut off wheel out.....:bur2:

[gerno]

Working to finish up the car this week. Most just buttoning everything up, checking all the bolts, running the brake lines, parking brake cables and setting up a temporary exhaust until I swap the engine.

I have the front inner fenders reshaped to clear the wheels but I have to say it's not the best work. Good thing is that it can't be seen. Bad part is, when I get back to having a full shop I will need to redo the work. I now have A LOT of respect for the work people post on this forum.

More importantly my wheels will be arriving next week. Travis sent me over some preview pics that I had to share. I'm excited to see the new look of the car with them mounted up

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[tubbed69]

Working to finish up the car this week. Most just buttoning everything up, checking all the bolts, running the brake lines, parking brake cables and setting up a temporary exhaust until I swap the engine.

I have the front inner fenders reshaped to clear the wheels but I have to say it's not the best work. Good thing is that it can't be seen. Bad part is, when I get back to having a full shop I will need to redo the work. I now have A LOT of respect for the work people post on this forum.

More importantly my wheels will be arriving next week. Travis sent me over some preview pics that I had to share. I'm excited to see the new look of the car with them mounted up

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Those wheels will sure look nice on your car.

[carbuff]

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Looks great! :thumbsup:

[Flash68]

Killer. You can't wait to get your hands on those I bet. :D

[glassman]

What tire size combo did you end up with?

[gerno]

Those wheels will sure look nice on your car.


I'm hoping so...

Looks great! :thumbsup:

Thanks

Killer. You can't wait to get your hands on those I bet. :D

Feel like a kid wanting for Christmas. Luckily I have lots left to do to the car so I can stay busy..

What tire size combo did you end up with?

Decided on the 275/35/18 with 325/30/19 in the Bridgestone RE11. I just hope all my measurements were correct....

[FETorino]

:thumbsup: Steve they will look even better in person. I bet you are going nuts waiting.
:cheers:

[rickpaw]

Them wheels will look great in the car.

I see you're in Austin. What part of Austin are you located? My sister inlaw lives in N. Austin (Palmer Lane/SH45) and I come up there every other month.

[gerno]

:thumbsup: Steve they will look even better in person. I bet you are going nuts waiting.
:cheers:

Saw a set on someone else's car last week. Got me really excited to get them. Excited and nervous that Iay have measured wrong.....


Them wheels will look great in the car.

I see you're in Austin. What part of Austin are you located? My sister inlaw lives in N. Austin (Palmer Lane/SH45) and I come up there every other month.

I live just south of the river downtown and work up by Parmer. Let me know when you're in town and we can meet up for a beer or something

[rickpaw]

I live just south of the river downtown and work up by Parmer. Let me know when you're in town and we can meet up for a beer or something

Will do. I'd like to meet up with you and Brian (carbuff).

[gerno]

Bryan lives about 1/2 mile from me so I assume we could fine a place close by to get into trouble.

[carbuff]

^ what he said...

[WSSix]

Congrats on approaching the finish line. Good choice on the wheels also. I think they will look great!

[waynieZ]

Sweet looking wheels.

[cwylie]

Did someone say trouble? I like trouble! If you guys decide to meet for drinks or what not I would love to join. Always looking for new car people in the area. I live just south of 290 and South Lamar.

[gerno]

Sweet looking wheels.

Soon....I hope....

Congrats on approaching the finish line. Good choice on the wheels also. I think they will look great!

thanks. They come in today to its almost the moment of truth.

Did someone say trouble? I like trouble! If you guys decide to meet for drinks or what not I would love to join. Always looking for new car people in the area. I live just south of 290 and South Lamar.

You're just around the corner. Sounds like to certainly need to grab some beers soon. Should also meet up for cars and coffee on April 6. I hear the Discovery channel will be there.


I have done a few more things to the car. After looking at the cars at the USCA event I decided the rear seat needed to go. I pulled the factory rear panel out and installed a a flat sheet. I need to decide what to do with the factory floor seam. Most likely I'll cut this out too but wanted to test with it in place first.

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I also plumbed all the brake lines and routed the parking brake cables.

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The biggest issue was the front inner fenders. They aren't pretty but they now clear the wheels...at least I hope they do. I'll find out tonight.

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[Stovebolter]

Looks great. Bet you can't wait for the maiden voyage!

David

[carbuff]

Do you know where you'll get the tires mounted? I had mine done at the Discount Tire in Lakeway. It was a haul, but was the only place I found that had the machine which holds the wheel in the center instead of on the lip. Had them road-balanced there also...

Look forward to seeing them!

[gerno]

Do you know where you'll get the tires mounted? I had mine done at the Discount Tire in Lakeway. It was a haul, but was the only place I found that had the machine which holds the wheel in the center instead of on the lip. Had them road-balanced there also...

Look forward to seeing them!

I went ahead and had Tire Rack send the tires to Formula 43 and they mounted them for me. When they get here today they will be ready to put on the car. I was too nervous letting a local tire shop mount them for the first time. Good to know Discount in Lakeway can do them next when I where these out.

[carbuff]

Good call! :thumbsup:

[Flash68]

I went ahead and had Tire Rack send the tires to Formula 43 and they mounted them for me. When they get here today they will be ready to put on the car. I was too nervous letting a local tire shop mount them for the first time. Good to know Discount in Lakeway can do them next when I where these out.

You will likely need a local source at some point so I'd suggest getting one of the exotic car forums (6speedonline or similar) and see who they use locally.

Actually, now that I think of it, just ask SW. :idea:

[gerno]

Got the wheels and like the full combo. I was nervous of the wheel depth but really like the the more shallow rear rim rather than a huge lip. I also really like the 18/19" combo. I think the sizing looks perfect on the car and would do it again in a heartbeat.

There are 2 issues but they can be addressed

The tolerance for the rear hub is too tight so the wheels don't fit all the way on.

I'm either going to need to send them back to have the hubs bored out or machine down the hub flanges and add 1/4" spacers. I went concervative on the spacing to allow more clearance with the quarter panels so there is room to space out but it's still a little frustrating.


With the lower ride height that looks awesome the wheels could have used a little more BS.


I'm going to change the inner fenders one more to allow from more clearance. Think I'm going to cut out the entire edge and rather than try to reshape and weld it I'm going to simply fiberglass the edge.


Time for the pics. I'll try to get better ones in the morning.

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[ma73z]

Very nice! :popcorn2:

[glassman]

yep looking great Steve. Love the stance.....cant wait to see the pics in the daylight.

[gerno]

Very nice! :popcorn2:

Thanks

yep looking great Steve. Love the stance.....cant wait to see the pics in the daylight.

Don't worry, I will. I love the stance too, unfortunately as it sits you can't really turn the wheel.... nothing a small spring adjustment and more cutting won't fix....

[WSSix]

Gorgeous! I hope I can get my stance down low. I see cars like your car and just drool.

[GregWeld]

Those look great Steve!


I know how worried you were... but they turned out awesome.

[Payton King]

I would not be worried about running a spacer on those. Also on the speedway hub is it the standard Ford size register of 3.06? Did you have the wheels made for a Chevy register of 2.78?

If the material is there, I would have the hubs turned down. Had to to do that on my Moser rear for the yellow car I had.

[gerno]

Gorgeous! I hope I can get my stance down low. I see cars like your car and just drool.

Thanks, I like it low too. Now I just have to figure out the other issue, exhaust...

Those look great Steve!


I know how worried you were... but they turned out awesome.

Thanks Greg. I am pretty happy with them but still think a few small changes would have made them perfect. The real test comes on the track so I'll leave it until then.

I would not be worried about running a spacer on those. Also on the speedway hub is it the standard Ford size register of 3.06? Did you have the wheels made for a Chevy register of 2.78?

If the material is there, I would have the hubs turned down. Had to to do that on my Moser rear for the yellow car I had.

No, I would not have such an issues with the 2.78" diameter. I gave Travis a rough measurement of 2.5" x1.5" which is the end of the hub and told him it was the Speedway Mod-Lite hub. I thought incorrectly they had cut wheels for the hubs before and knew the specs so they could leave plenty of clearance.. Instead he took my rough measurement and added .003" for clearance. Completely my fault for assuming, I should have given detailed specs for every dimension of the wheels I needed and not made any assumptions. This was my first time to buy expensive custom wheels so I didn't know any better. Hopefully in a few years when I save up the money again to build another car I'll be much more detailed when making my purchase.

I think I could shave ~.030" off the hub (Will call Speedway today) and run the 3.06" inner diameter spacer to clear the radius without issue. It will be tight but I think there will be enough clearance. Expansion of the metal when hot is my greatest concern. Just frustrating given I'm already well over budget both time and money wise.

[Payton King]

Wheels look great! I am sure you can get it worked out.

[gerno]

Talked to Speedway. The drive plates are hardened so they can't be turned. They can be ground but anything more than .01" is not recomended since it may cause cracking near the bolts holding the dust caps. Looks like the wheels will be headed back to Michigan.

[gerno]

If you couldn't tell from the other posts I was a little frustrated with the issue but after talking to the team at Formula 43 I'm feeling much better. Travis and Trisha are going to take care of me and adjust the bore on the rear wheels. I'm really glad I chose Formula 43.

Here are a little better pics with light.

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[carbuff]

Thanks, I like it low too. Now I just have to figure out the other issue, exhaust...

Just a minor technicality, which Eric and I are still working on for TOW. I should get mine back from the second ceramic coat tomorrow and then hopefully have TOW back together by the weekend.

Car looks really good, I like that stance! You going to have her ready for the Spokes event at SAR on April 27th? :)

[gerno]

Just a minor technicality, which Eric and I are still working on for TOW. I should get mine back from the second ceramic coat tomorrow and then hopefully have TOW back together by the weekend.

Car looks really good, I like that stance! You going to have her ready for the Spokes event at SAR on April 27th? :)

Luckily I can change my exhaust more because I'm too cheap to get the pipes coated...Until I swap the LS the headers are going to be the biggest issue. I'm really thinking to cut out the rear floor pans and raising them 1-2" so the mufflers are a little higher...

She will be ready for the SPOKES event one way or another.....I'm ready to get this thing back on the road.

[carbuff]

Yep, the mufflers themselves are my lowest point now, and they can't go much higher without cutting the floor. Having the Tri-Y headers makes it easier to tuck them up in the front for sure...

If you need another pair of hands, let me know, but it sounds like you are pretty close! :)

[johnzSS]

Sweet build sir! Keep the updates coming!

[glassman]

If you drive my car (i will be there in Oct with the goodguys road tour) or drive Bryan's car, ummmm you'll be puttin that LS in before you know it.

But man, i hate when there on the stands for that long....drive that beotch!!!

How long the rims gonna set u back?

[gerno]

Sweet build sir! Keep the updates coming!

Thank you

If you drive my car (i will be there in Oct with the goodguys road tour) or drive Bryan's car, ummmm you'll be puttin that LS in before you know it.

But man, i hate when there on the stands for that long....drive that beotch!!!

How long the rims gonna set u back?

The LS will be in long before oct unless I need to be out of the country for work. Don't worry about that.

Rims will only set me back 2 weeks. Travis says he'll have the chamfer corrected in 1 day. Shipping is the longest part.

[gerno]

I've been talking to others and found the hub should be a tight fit to support the wheels. I took the drive plates off and checked them on the wheel. The bore Travis put on the wheel is very close so he obviously knew more than I did. The issue with the fitment comes only with the radius in the end. The wheels and drive plates are headed back tomorrow for a slight adjustment on the chamfer.

I feel like I ranted too much in the previous posts as a result of other stresses in my life and might have shed a bad light on Formula 43 due to my ignorance with the fitment. It's important that everyone knows Travis has been extremely patient throughout my wheel purchase and delivered an awesome wheel to my specs very quickly. The more I look at the wheels the more I love them. I'd highly recommend Formula 43 to anyone out there. I might be overthinking my comments but on the web things can be taken many ways. Reputation is also critical in the automotive aftermarket so I want to make sure everyone knows how pleased I am with both the product and service.

[tubbed69]

Perfect job on the wheels and the stance,that looks great:thumbsup: :thumbsup:

[FETorino]

Hey where are those daytime photos you promised everyone:headscratch:

Steve

In the end all the effort in getting the combo together will be worth it. The stance and the wheels look stellar:thumbsup:

, in the dark.:lmao:

[Vince@Meanstreets]

I've been talking to others and found the hub should be a tight fit to support the wheels. I took the drive plates off and checked them on the wheel. The bore Travis put on the wheel is very close so he obviously knew more than I did. The issue with the fitment comes only with the radius in the end. The wheels and drive plates are headed back tomorrow for a slight adjustment on the chamfer.

I feel like I ranted too much in the previous posts as a result of other stresses in my life and might have shed a bad light on Formula 43 due to my ignorance with the fitment. It's important that everyone knows Travis has been extremely patient throughout my wheel purchase and delivered an awesome wheel to my specs very quickly. The more I look at the wheels the more I love them. I'd highly recommend Formula 43 to anyone out there. I might be overthinking my comments but on the web things can be taken many ways. Reputation is also critical in the automotive aftermarket so I want to make sure everyone knows how pleased I am with both the product and service.

ahh your fine. sometmimes thoughts and written words can be misunderstood. Happens to me all the time. Might be due to my accent.

Anyways, There are a bunch of things you can do to get more tire room.

Question, how much room did you have to the brake calipers? You maybe able to shave a bit off the center since its gonna be on the mill anyways. 1/4" can make a huge difference.

[Flash68]

Happens to me all the time. Might be due to my accent.



uOpjYE-iPnY

[gerno]

Hey where are those daytime photos you promised everyone:headscratch:

Steve

In the end all the effort in getting the combo together will be worth it. The stance and the wheels look stellar:thumbsup:

Here are your pics since I know you can't see much on your crackberry. You know I have a connection who can hook you up with a real phone.....

When I'm able to pull the car out of the garage I'll get better picks. For now the car hauler is blocking the drive and I didn't want to take the time to move it.


, in the dark.:lmao:

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ahh your fine. sometmimes thoughts and written words can be misunderstood. Happens to me all the time. Might be due to my accent.

Anyways, There are a bunch of things you can do to get more tire room.

Question, how much room did you have to the brake calipers? You maybe able to shave a bit off the center since its gonna be on the mill anyways. 1/4" can make a huge difference.

I'm not too worried but wanted to be sure.

I'm going to start cutting out the outer edge of the inner fender first. I tried to reshape them but it still does not have a sharp enough bend at the fender. I'll cut them out and fiberglass the edge instead so I can get a sharper radius.

I don't want to cut the pads on the front because BS is already as far back as I am comfortable. I went with 10.5" rims rather than 10" so the turning radius is a little tighter. Worse case I will keep the car a little higher for a while until it comes time for a repaint. When I finally paint the car I'll go ahead and add a little more flare to the front.

[Ron in SoCal]

Love the wheels and stance Mr. G. :cheers:

[carbuff]

I should sneak over there and take some pictures since you're just down the street and I'm working at home this week. ;)

Looking good!

[rickpaw]

Love the wheels and stance Mr. G. :cheers:

Same here. The car looks great.

[waynieZ]

Your car looks great.:thumbsup:

[gerno]

Update on the wheels. Travis received them yesterday morning. I was shocked how quickly he adjusted the bore and added a much large chamfer to the end. I had UPS tracking information by ~3PM the same day. If all goes well with the shipping I should have them back on Friday. I have to say the service from Travis was awesome.

I can't wait to get them back up have a lot of stuff left to do. It's going to be a busy weekend.....

[FETorino]

Update on the wheels. Travis received them yesterday morning. I was shocked how quickly he adjusted the bore and added a much large chamfer to the end. I had UPS tracking information by ~3PM the same day. If all goes well with the shipping I should have them back on Friday. I have to say the service from Travis was awesome.

I can't wait to get them back up have a lot of stuff left to do. It's going to be a busy weekend.....

Looking forward to tomorrows updates.:thumbsup:

[carbuff]

Did they make it back? Are they on the car yet! :)

[gerno]

Did they make it back? Are they on the car yet! :)


Wheels are back and on the car. They now fit the hubs perfect. I'll try to get some better pics of them this weekend and I hope to have it very close to driving by Sunday night.

The exhaust is driving me nuts. Too many options that take a lot of time to test out.... Not sure what to do.

[GregWeld]

Wheels are back and on the car. They now fit the hubs perfect. I'll try to get some better pics of them this weekend and I hope to have it very close to driving by Sunday night.

The exhaust is driving me nuts. Too many options that take a lot of time to test out.... Not sure what to do.




Get it running on Sunday --- and your test drive can be over to Driftwood to pound some ribs and beans at The Salt Lick! :>)

[gerno]

Get it running on Sunday --- and your test drive can be over to Driftwood to pound some ribs and beans at The Salt Lick! :>)

How did you know the plan? Bryan keeps insisting to go

[glassman]

You guys are couple of hours from DFW? I hope you and Bryan can make it to the good guys event in October. I'll be auto crossing the camaro there after the Texas road trip if all goes well.

Good luck getting that thing together this weekend! You've inspired me to seriously consider the formula 43's and they gave me some numbers last week for the rims I'm liking......

Get'r done!!!!!'

[carbuff]

I plan to be there again. Just wish we were getting Round 2 of USCA in Texas in 2014! :\

[WSSix]

The exhaust is driving me nuts. Too many options that take a lot of time to test out.... Not sure what to do.

Focus on the needs and overall design, then decide what parts you're wavering on. From there maybe figure out a way to allow those options to be tested over time.

For me, I have no idea what mufflers I want and am thinking of building my own. I'm going to build the rest of it any way. Might as well build the mufflers too, maybe. I intend to build the exhaust system in such a manner than I can easily drop out the mufflers and bolt new ones in without having to change much if anything else. To do this I figure I'll have a section, say 18-24 inches, under the car where a muffler would reside that can be unbolted. That would allow me to try different length mufflers out and only have to use extension pieces to make up the difference and reconnect the system together. The rest of the system won't change because that's how I know I want it to run. The mufflers are my unknown.

Good luck. Glad the wheels are fitting correctly now.

[gerno]

You guys are couple of hours from DFW? I hope you and Bryan can make it to the good guys event in October. I'll be auto crossing the camaro there after the Texas road trip if all goes well.

Good luck getting that thing together this weekend! You've inspired me to seriously consider the formula 43's and they gave me some numbers last week for the rims I'm liking......

Get'r done!!!!!'

I'll be there fir sure and hopefully with an LS in the car. Unfortunately the trans blew out in my truck this week an stole all my LS funds. With 165k on an 8K lb truck I drive like a BMW I guess I can't complain......


Focus on the needs and overall design, then decide what parts you're wavering on. From there maybe figure out a way to allow those options to be tested over time.

For me, I have no idea what mufflers I want and am thinking of building my own. I'm going to build the rest of it any way. Might as well build the mufflers too, maybe. I intend to build the exhaust system in such a manner than I can easily drop out the mufflers and bolt new ones in without having to change much if anything else. To do this I figure I'll have a section, say 18-24 inches, under the car where a muffler would reside that can be unbolted. That would allow me to try different length mufflers out and only have to use extension pieces to make up the difference and reconnect the system together. The rest of the system won't change because that's how I know I want it to run. The mufflers are my unknown.

Good luck. Glad the wheels are fitting correctly now.

I have the old mufflers which are basically new magna flows so I'm sticking with them. my big thing is ground clearance. I want everything tucked above the frame which is tough with 1/2 height body mounts.

Since I'm going to have to change things again when I swap the LS and my current Dynatech headers already sit really low I think I'm simply going to throw a dumped exhaust on it to get it going for a but. It's going to be obnoxiously loud but I'll deal with it.

Eventually I really want to exit the exhaust just behind the door. I have a lot of work to think about to get this done with floor pan mods. I'll put the car back together and am working on a clean way to closeout the rear seat area so I have room to package the mufflers but it's really tight.

[gerno]

I've been working a little bit on interior cleanup. I tried to make a set of door panels a few years ago. They turned out good at the time but heat caused the glue to release and they really started looking bad. I grabbed a sheet of 1/8" black ABS and built some new door panels.

I plan to use the same material on the rear seat closeout. I added some allen head bolts with stainless washers to create a little more texture. I also cut down the bump in the rear section from the floor seam and welded it closed. '

For the lower area I'm thinking to grab some 1/2" or 1/4" square tube and build a box big enough to house the side exit exhaust if I go that route. I can this cover with the ABS. If I decide not to put the exhaust there I may also move the battery there in the future. I need to weigh the car to better understand my corner weights before making this decision.


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[Flash68]

I like the look of that panel Steve.

[gerno]

I like the look of that panel Steve.

Thanks. They are simple but look much better than the log ones. They are also flat so there is room to add some lower bars on the roll bar I have as well.


I continued not he rear seat closeout today. I decided to grab some 1/2 sq tube and build up a structure to lay the ABS on. The whole structure will be bolt in in cans I need to access something. I'm pretty happy with the results so far. I wish the metal supply house was open today because buying steel at Home Depot is such a rip off For now the ABS will be flat panels using 1/4" cap screws with washers to add a little flare. If I decide to do the side exhaust the panels will stay flat. If I decide to exit the exhaust out the back I'm thinking the battery can go in the rear section and I can build out 2 storage compartments in the front.

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[Flash68]

Now that looks great too. What ya gonna hide under there? :peepwall:

[Vince@Meanstreets]

side exiting exhaust......:thumbsup:

[Flash68]

side exiting exhaust......:thumbsup:

at least that... :)

[Track Junky]

Yup :thumbsup:

[gerno]

Still not sure on the side exit, cutting out the floor and getting back together cleanly is my issue. If I don't do the side exhaust I'm thinking to raise the floor ~2" with a flat piece of steel (thinking 18 or 16 ga) for both muffler clearance under the car and also a clean place to mount the battery

[GregWeld]

Still not sure on the side exit, cutting out the floor and getting back together cleanly is my issue. If I don't do the side exhaust I'm thinking to raise the floor ~2" with a flat piece of steel (thinking 18 or 16 ga) for both muffler clearance under the car and also a clean place to mount the battery



Take it over to Eric and have him bead roll some pattern into it - or be sorry.... it will oil can if you don't put some structure in to a flat piece.

[gerno]

Take it over to Eric and have him bead roll some pattern into it - or be sorry.... it will oil can if you don't put some structure in to a flat piece.

You think even the 16ga will flex/warp? I was thinking it was thick enough to not have an issue for the ~12"x12" piece that would go in the floors.

[GregWeld]

You think even the 16ga will flex/warp? I was thinking it was thick enough to not have an issue for the ~12"x12" piece that would go in the floors.

No 16 would be fine --- I thought you were cutting out more of the floor than that.


On my buddies '55 that I built -- I simply pie sliced his rear floor foot well --- and moved it up an 1" and welded it back together... gave me enough room and some clearance for his mufflers.

[Formula43 Wheel]

Update on the wheels. Travis received them yesterday morning. I was shocked how quickly he adjusted the bore and added a much large chamfer to the end. I had UPS tracking information by ~3PM the same day. If all goes well with the shipping I should have them back on Friday. I have to say the service from Travis was awesome.

I can't wait to get them back up have a lot of stuff left to do. It's going to be a busy weekend.....

Steve,

Wheels, tires & stance look great! Thank you for choosing F43 wheels, enjoy!

:thankyou:

[gerno]

Steve,

Wheels, tires & stance look great! Thank you for choosing F43 wheels, enjoy!

:thankyou:

My pleasure. Thanks for the terrific support. Hopefully I'll be working on a new project in the near future and contacting you for another set of wheels.

[gerno]

Progress has been slower than expected on the car due to more focus than I thought on the interior. I ended up building up a new console as well to make it all look a little more complete. I'm using 1/4 20 cap screws to add some texture. Before starting I should have thought it thru more. I'm having to drill and tap ~150 hole. My hands are killing me but only 40 more to go.... Here are some pics of the progress.

Still no decision on where the exhaust is going. Hopefully I'll have it figured out by Sunday...


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[glassman]

Steve, is that the stock color? I think that is the oem color on mine

Interior is gonna be nice with that console and shelf. Keep up the great work!!

[sovain]

Progress has been slower than expected on the car due to more focus than I thought on the interior. I ended up building up a new console as well to make it all look a little more complete. I'm using 1/4 20 cap screws to add some texture. Before starting I should have thought it thru more. I'm having to drill and tap ~150 hole. My hands are killing me but only 40 more to go.... Here are some pics of the progress.

Still no decision on where the exhaust is going. Hopefully I'll have it figured out by Sunday...


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I`ve just read this whole thread and amazed at the job you did.

[gerno]

Steve, is that the stock color? I think that is the oem color on mine

Interior is gonna be nice with that console and shelf. Keep up the great work!!

No idea. I bought the car already painted and haven't taken the time to check what the factory options were on the car. Only issue I have with the color is that I'm a UT grad and the color is very close to A&M colors.... I would paint it orange but then I'd be copying Hobaugh too much

I`ve just read this whole thread and amazed at the job you did.

Thanks a bunch. The car and overall work isn't up to par with many other builds on this site but I've learned a ton and had a great time doing it.

[gerno]

The week is not off to a very good start. I was close but ended up missing an autocross yesterday because the car wasn't ready. I'm now installed the exhaust, finished out 95% of the interior, started retuning the engine, set the ride height (I was overthinking this in previous posts) and overall have the car drivable.

Today I took the car to get aligned and the bad luck started. It's a shop where lots of the load autocrossers go so I decided they would be good. They put it up on the rack and start the measurements. Right way the tool slipped on the front wheel and put a 1/4 gouge in the lip. Not happy about that at all.......

Good news right away is that the rear of the car is perfectly straight. Bad news is they can't get the caster/camber to the required specs. To get one close the other is way off. I call Speedtech to ask what they usually do and see if there are any pointers. After talking to Blake I found the crossshafts in the UCAs are offset ground. Apparently I put them in upside down because it's not mentioned in the instructions. Blake tells me they are thinking to update the instructions in the future..... Hopefully for other customers they do. Between this issue and pictures you can't even see, the instructions are much more difficult than they should be. I am a little more worried since they UCAs were also incorrectly labeled when I received them. I had to put the one marked driver on the passenger side and passenger on the driver. If I didn't they completely bound when cycling. I hope my common sense is good and its just a labeling issue with speed tech.

I pulled the car back off the rack and put it in the trailer. Tonight I need to flip the shafts over and bring it back to the shop to try again. Nice waste of 4 hours of my life.. When I bring it back of the shop owners is going to do the alignment so there is no possibility for more scratches. I hope they can get the specs Speedtech suggests. If not I'm going to be pretty pissed after spending so much money on everything.

[carbuff]

Well this completely sucks on all fronts! As one of the people that recommended that shop for the alignment, I really hate that. They weren't able to get my car perfect, but they did a quality job and seemed to take care of the car while I was there...

[rickpaw]

SorrLiuy to hear about your trouble, especially the shop scratched a brand new wheel. That's why I'm doing as much work as I can.

Btw I'm in town for work thru Wed so if you want to hook up, let me know. I'm staying near i35/sh45.

[WSSix]

Oh man, that's no good scratching the rim like that. Are they going to pay for the damage?

Can you post up a picture of the correct way the UCA's are to go on the car? I haven't done anything more than look at mine. I've got a ways to go before I put them in too.


Thanks and I hope you're luck improves.

[gerno]

Well this completely sucks on all fronts! As one of the people that recommended that shop for the alignment, I really hate that. They weren't able to get my car perfect, but they did a quality job and seemed to take care of the car while I was there...

Overall they are nice and want to help. I think the issue was just a fluke. The tool slipped off


SorrLiuy to hear about your trouble, especially the shop scratched a brand new wheel. That's why I'm doing as much work as I can.

Btw I'm in town for work thru Wed so if you want to hook up, let me know. I'm staying near i35/sh45.

Guess I should have bought an alignment tool. Hopefully I'm more excited about the scratch than I should be. I'll look at like later and see

Oh man, that's no good scratching the rim like that. Are they going to pay for the damage?

Can you post up a picture of the correct way the UCA's are to go on the car? I haven't done anything more than look at mine. I've got a ways to go before I put them in too.


Thanks and I hope you're luck improves.


Not sure what will happen. I need to talk to him later this week.

I'll post up pics when I swap them over. I was going to do it tonight but have new problems. My fan clutch went out on my truck and I overheated it driving home towing the car. It pegged over 250 degrees and I now have a cyl 1 contribution fault. Pretty sure I cracked a head. Today is truly a ****ty day.

[CURVES]

Looks good!
I'm anxious to see what you do with the exhaust......H pipe?

The moment I've been waiting for!
Any pics of the pipes?

[gerno]

The moment I've been waiting for!
Any pics of the pipes?


Sorry but I'm afraid to touch anything right now. Everything I touch is falling apart today. I'll get pics later.

[CURVES]

We all have those days....:bang:

You'll get it all sorted out, just takes time.

[Flash68]

Sorry to read this Steve. Any progress or new info?

[GregWeld]

Steve --

Sometimes cars are just "like that".... Like the Mustang motor that lost a tip off the titanium valve -- no biggie just get it fixed (complete overhaul) -- next track weekend (a two day drive for me) - the head intake runner is cracked -- the motor comes our AGAIN -- Two days home -- Next track weekend -- I break a rocker arm... The motor comes out again... That's 6 days of travel -- 3 weekends of sitting around watching everyone else run... 3 weekends of entry fees down the tube. But HEY!!!
Think of the wear and tear I saved on the tires and brakes!! LOL


You'll get it... and then the smiles will come.

[gerno]

SorrLiuy to hear about your trouble, especially the shop scratched a brand new wheel. That's why I'm doing as much work as I can.

Btw I'm in town for work thru Wed so if you want to hook up, let me know. I'm staying near i35/sh45.


I checked the scratch again and it's really not that bad. I can most likely polish it out.

Are you still in town for the weekend? Week was a bit rough and I forgot to reply

Sorry to read this Steve. Any progress or new info?

Steve --

Sometimes cars are just "like that".... Like the Mustang motor that lost a tip off the titanium valve -- no biggie just get it fixed (complete overhaul) -- next track weekend (a two day drive for me) - the head intake runner is cracked -- the motor comes our AGAIN -- Two days home -- Next track weekend -- I break a rocker arm... The motor comes out again... That's 6 days of travel -- 3 weekends of sitting around watching everyone else run... 3 weekends of entry fees down the tube. But HEY!!!
Think of the wear and tear I saved on the tires and brakes!! LOL


You'll get it... and then the smiles will come.


Looks like the truck somehow managed to stay alive. I'm still nervous driving it but it seems after a fan clutch replacement and code clearing it's working just fine. I'm pleasantly surprised

This was the issue

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As far as the car, I finally started back on it last night. I flipped the cross shafts over last night without an issue. It's difficult to show the issue in a photo but basically 3 of the 4 sides on the shaft are concave in the center. My logic told me the one flat side should be the mounting surface... apparently this is not the case.... The flat surface of the cross shaft needs to be facing the engine, not the mounting surface.

I have not had a chance to check the alignment, I will try to have this done next Mon/Tues if work allows

here are some bad pics but maybe you can see the difference

Wrong - hard to see but there is a slight gap you can see near my thumb. When you feel the UCAs its much easier to notice

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Right

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Here are also some pics of the exhaust. I have some rubber isolators coming in today so will be pulling it off and taking better pics. I'm also going to cut the top of the pipe near the x-members to allow a little more clearance.

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[WSSix]

Thanks for the pics. I hope things start looking up for you soon.

[rickpaw]

I checked the scratch again and it's really not that bad. I can most likely polish it out.

Are you still in town for the weekend? Week was a bit rough and I forgot to reply

Looks like the truck somehow managed to stay alive. I'm still nervous driving it but it seems after a fan clutch replacement and code clearing it's working just fine. I'm pleasantly surprised



Glad to hear nothing too major with your truck. Great progress on the camaro. I'm still fighting with the wheels/tires issues with my car.

I'll be back in Austin Mon-Wed (driving back Wed after lunch).

[gerno]

I finished up a little more not the car today and confirmed there is a problem with the front suspension.

I previously flipped the UCA cross shafts based on guidance from Blake. Yesterday I took the car for an alignment. I found a shop that has a brand new Hunter machine using the sensors that mount to the tires and not the wheel. This was much easier to watch rather than fearing wheel damage.

Unfortunately even with the fancy new machine they still could not get the alignment to the spec Speedtech advises. Below is a shot of the screen with the final spec we set the car to. We removed all front shims but needed the front of the UCA to move even further to outside of the car. It seems either I need to cut and move the UCA mount or the Speedtech cross shaft is too thick and needs to be milled down. I left Blake and voicemail yesterday and will hopefully discuss the issue with him tomorrow. I didn't know what the best non-optimal alignment was so I decided to meet the caster spec at the expense of the camber.

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Good news for the day is that the truck is very much alive and not damaged by the overheat. I ended up replacing the fan clutch since the fan decided to cut the wire. Otherwise I added more coolant and cleared the codes but that's all. I was very excited to be able to pull the loaded car hauler up a very steep grade without issue. Huge relief.


It was also took the time yesterday to finish up the exhaust a little more. I added some clearance for the x-members and some isolator mounts to reduce the vibration.


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It was a nice day with the sun going down so a photo op was needed at the shop


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[Vince@Meanstreets]

finally a full frontal!! Looks great man.

I hope you can just off set the upper shaft. That would be the easiest option.

I wonder if the support rolled in a bit when it was cut and rewelded. We usually cross brace the hell out of that when we modify them. Ive seen a bunch under pressure when you cut the top.

[CURVES]

Nice!

New desktop until mine is worthy. :thumbsup:

[gerno]

Nice!

New desktop until mine is worthy. :thumbsup:

Thank, that's a great compliment

finally a full frontal!! Looks great man.

I hope you can just off set the upper shaft. That would be the easiest option.

I wonder if the support rolled in a bit when it was cut and rewelded. We usually cross brace the hell out of that when we modify them. Ive seen a bunch under pressure when you cut the top.

There is an angled support on the car so I wouldn't have thought it would move but you should know more than me. Worse case I'm thinking I can use a cut off wheel to slice the support, push it forward and weld it up. This is by far the worse case. I'm hoping Blake simply has a solution for me since they know more of the complete engineering up the setup than I do.

[gerno]

I spoke to Jay and Blake for a bit yesterday and today. In general we are a bit stumped with the issue. We compared measurements with Jay's car in the shop. Overall the front UCA mount is the same measurement as Jay's car and to the factory specs. I had to measure from the engine side of the cross shaft since the car is together. Measurement was 28 3/4. Factory mount to mount is 30 5/8" and each cross shaft is .900" which equates to a .075" delta with rough measurements.

We also compared the ball join center to the cross shaft and came up with the same measurements. So it seems they are the correct arms/shafts. Blake is sending me more measurements to verify the arms are correct. He doesn't believe the arms are the issue.

Blake thinks something is wrong with the frame itself but we are both not sure where or why. He's concludes this since he has installed this setup on multiple cars without issue. The odd thing is that I have ~1/2" rear shims and 0 on the front while other cars he's build have 1/8" front and rear to get the setup.

Basically the solution we came up with is to cut the UCA support and push it outward ~1/4" then weld it back together so I can move the UCA out to add static camber. Other option is to raise the ride height or the control arm in the slotted mounts. Both of these can't be done because if the arms are raised I lose camber gain and because the ride height looks perfect as is...

I might also call around for a farm shop to get them to check the chassis just to make sure nothing is bent that I'm not aware of.

[syborg tt]

This car stuff is sure a pain in the butt sometimes. But I agree you can't change the stance it looks perfect.

[WSSix]

Is the subframe squared to the car?

[gerno]

Is the subframe squared to the car?

From the measurements I took it appears to be within a very close tolerance.

[rickpaw]

The car's stance is perfect. Good luck sorting out the issues.

Tu

[MX145]

Not sure if this helps but I had similar issues with my 68 subframe when I went to align the car. I'm running DSE parts but ran into the same situation. The factory tolerances apparently have a wide range. (Beyond 1/8", at least on a Friday). DSE uses a jig that mounts to the motor mount locations and the UCA mounts bolt to it to positively locate them for welding in place. The jig didn't want to sit in the car properly. It was raised up off the crossmember. I had to shim up the jig with multiple shims and slot the motor mount holes just to get the jig mounted. I made sure to keep the jig level and used the same number of shims and hole offset on both sides. DSE told me they haven't run into this before. I noticed the car was heavily shimmed on one side when I bought it but thought something in the ams on that side was bent from a previous owner accident. The frame itself measured out to the GM specs and measured square. Turns out my UCA mounts were off a 1/16 on one side and 3/16 on the other totaling a 1/4" difference between the two. The factory UCA locations were off as well as the crossmember itself wasn't centered. I couldn't get negative camber on one side and the other was in range. The 3/16 on the bad side had a huge impact on the static camber. I thought about machining down the UCA shaft as well but I didn't want to modify a good part to make up for another one out of spec. I would have had to take way too much off anyway so I bit the bullet and cut the UCA mount out and moved it to match the other side. I had to move it approx 3/16. I tacked and measured and checked hub angle what seemed like 20 times making sure my UCA mount height stayed in place and the camber matched with the same number of shims as the good side. This probably goes without saying but the mount can pull on you from the heat tipping it in or out so I went back and forth on my root pass to get it stable constantly checking before the final weld. Maybe both of our sub frames came from the same guy on the assembly line. He must not have built too many of them.

[GregWeld]

This is NOT YOUR issue -- but just saying that these old pigs have a lot of history and can be as wonky as you know what!


I had to make this "body shim" just to get the TCI subframe to bolt up to the car --- because the body had been hit in the driver front. The alignment came out perfect -- but I measure everything to the nth degree and have done this kind of work many times. I call this "cut to cure" hot rodding.



I cut this 1/2" plate and then milled it to the actual dimension (thickness) I needed.... Thank gawd I had the tools and materials to do this kind of work!!




http://i919.photobucket.com/albums/ad33/gregweld/Rudys%20Camaro/IMG_0629.jpg (http://s919.photobucket.com/user/gregweld/media/Rudys%20Camaro/IMG_0629.jpg.html)







http://i919.photobucket.com/albums/ad33/gregweld/Rudys%20Camaro/file-23.jpg (http://s919.photobucket.com/user/gregweld/media/Rudys%20Camaro/file-23.jpg.html)




http://i919.photobucket.com/albums/ad33/gregweld/Rudys%20Camaro/IMG_0640.jpg (http://s919.photobucket.com/user/gregweld/media/Rudys%20Camaro/IMG_0640.jpg.html)






http://i919.photobucket.com/albums/ad33/gregweld/Rudys%20Camaro/file-26.jpg (http://s919.photobucket.com/user/gregweld/media/Rudys%20Camaro/file-26.jpg.html)

[gerno]

This car stuff is sure a pain in the butt sometimes. But I agree you can't change the stance it looks perfect.

The car's stance is perfect. Good luck sorting out the issues.

Tu

I agree there is no possibility to change the stance...

Not sure if this helps but I had similar issues with my 68 subframe when I went to align the car. I'm running DSE parts but ran into the same situation. The factory tolerances apparently have a wide range. (Beyond 1/8", at least on a Friday). DSE uses a jig that mounts to the motor mount locations and the UCA mounts bolt to it to positively locate them for welding in place. The jig didn't want to sit in the car properly. It was raised up off the crossmember. I had to shim up the jig with multiple shims and slot the motor mount holes just to get the jig mounted. I made sure to keep the jig level and used the same number of shims and hole offset on both sides. DSE told me they haven't run into this before. I noticed the car was heavily shimmed on one side when I bought it but thought something in the ams on that side was bent from a previous owner accident. The frame itself measured out to the GM specs and measured square. Turns out my UCA mounts were off a 1/16 on one side and 3/16 on the other totaling a 1/4" difference between the two. The factory UCA locations were off as well as the crossmember itself wasn't centered. I couldn't get negative camber on one side and the other was in range. The 3/16 on the bad side had a huge impact on the static camber. I thought about machining down the UCA shaft as well but I didn't want to modify a good part to make up for another one out of spec. I would have had to take way too much off anyway so I bit the bullet and cut the UCA mount out and moved it to match the other side. I had to move it approx 3/16. I tacked and measured and checked hub angle what seemed like 20 times making sure my UCA mount height stayed in place and the camber matched with the same number of shims as the good side. This probably goes without saying but the mount can pull on you from the heat tipping it in or out so I went back and forth on my root pass to get it stable constantly checking before the final weld. Maybe both of our sub frames came from the same guy on the assembly line. He must not have built too many of them.

This is good to know. My issue does seem exactly like yours. Guess we are both lucky... I'm pretty sure I'll be taking the same actions you did but might head to a frame shop first just in case..

This is NOT YOUR issue -- but just saying that these old pigs have a lot of history and can be as wonky as you know what!


I had to make this "body shim" just to get the TCI subframe to bolt up to the car --- because the body had been hit in the driver front. The alignment came out perfect -- but I measure everything to the nth degree and have done this kind of work many times. I call this "cut to cure" hot rodding.



I cut this 1/2" plate and then milled it to the actual dimension (thickness) I needed.... Thank gawd I had the tools and materials to do this kind of work!!


That's one hell of a body shim....





Today the weather was perfect so I took the car to the office. The engine tune is still not perfect due to my computer crashing and changing the intake/injectors but getting better. Overall the car was a lot of fun to drive. The turn in and rear grip in the corners was so much better. With the leafs the car was a little jittery (for lack of better words) and now it feels smooth and confident. The also rattles much less than it used to. I do need to add 1 more exhaust mount near the front but overall it work well. Even the interior panels didn't rattle nearly as much as i thought.

I'm anxious to see how the grip changes once the tires scrub off. As of now I was roasting the tires leaving lights pretty good even without pushing it all the way

I'm not too fond of the new exhaust tone at lower RPMs but I'm hoping the tune is causing it though it might also be removing he x pipe. It won't kill me with the current sound but was off to hear a difference.

[CURVES]

This is one of the reasons I was so interested in the exhaust, I didn't see any good way to get a crossover to fit and wonder about sound.

The tailpipes look fine under the rear, is there plenty of clearance with full articulation?

Do you get traction when you get on it, or are you just blowing the tires off?

Sounds like fun regardless!

[glassman]

I agree there is no possibility to change the stance...









I'm anxious to see how the grip changes once the tires scrub off. As of now I was roasting the tires leaving lights pretty good even without pushing it all the way
.

Yeah, wait till you put the LS in it, you wont have any tires left.
I loved pushing it to 6500 down the front straight and lettin her wind down, just simply addicting. I left with a 1/2 quart high on oil, came back with the oil at the full, after running 7 sessions at 20 min each.
I love my Speedtech stuff so far, now what to do with the rear, i''m leaning DSE.
Got any plans for the final rear choice yet?

[gerno]

This is one of the reasons I was so interested in the exhaust, I didn't see any good way to get a crossover to fit and wonder about sound.

The tailpipes look fine under the rear, is there plenty of clearance with full articulation?

Do you get traction when you get on it, or are you just blowing the tires off?

Sounds like fun regardless!

Yea, pretty much no way to get the crossover in. The car still sounds awesome at 4500+ so I'll just keep it in that range :thumbsup: The overall fit of the pipe's isn't too hard and I have 1/2 height body mounts. Going under the axle is very simple and has plenty of clearance everywhere. Funny how it's more of a mental thing knowing that you are not "supposed" to run exhaust that way....

At this point I'm bowing the tires off but in corners it feels stable. It will be interesting to see what happens when I start tuning on it.

Yeah, wait till you put the LS in it, you wont have any tires left.
I loved pushing it to 6500 down the front straight and lettin her wind down, just simply addicting. I left with a 1/2 quart high on oil, came back with the oil at the full, after running 7 sessions at 20 min each.
I love my Speedtech stuff so far, now what to do with the rear, i''m leaning DSE.
Got any plans for the final rear choice yet?

I'm excited about the LS but not about spending more money :G-Dub:

When i'm at the track I usually keep the revs at 5-7k. Most of the time I leave the day with my oil baked and down ~10-15psi. Scared the hell out of me the first time I did it. I was using Royal Purple and it never regained pressure. Now with Redline oil the pressure at least returns after it cools. Not that it matters since I change it after a track day anyways.

I already have the Speedtech rear parts on the car. I don't think I'll be changing it anytime soon. Both DSE and Speedtech are nice but I think it's much less work to get the Speedtech parts installed vs the DSE. Mine took forever but if it was only the TA install I think it could have easily been done in 1 weekend

[glassman]

Totally forgot you did the TA. Man the memory. Keith at Custom Works is trying to get me to use the ta, but i dont want to do my exhaust for the fourth time.....so??????
But from what i understand you will be very happy with that setup though.....hope the front fixe is easy.

[CURVES]

I'm pretty much decided on Speedtech for the front, but the rear.....
Not sure.

The 69 has a q-link, thought I would do something else....

Anyway it's fun to see you guys hammering the cars around after all the trials and tribulations!

[WSSix]

I'd start with taking it to a frame shop, too. Maybe a higher end place will be willing to take the time to look at the car and give you some options. That would be my approach anyway.

Your issues have me thinking I might need to build a brace a weld it in place before I go and cut my upper mount apart to add coil overs. Only problem is I have the car completely together and don't really want to take it all apart. I've got a while to go though. I'm working slowly on the SFC's now and have the rear suspension to do first too.

[Vince@Meanstreets]

You can brace against your engine block if you needed too. If your headers are on you can go to the flat surface between or above the primaries.

Remember even if you are braced watch your temps. If you have to hammer the support out after its done something isn't right.

[CURVES]

Hey Steve,

I'm trying to figure out some measurements for my rearend and wheels.

Do you know your rearend width, hub face to hub face?

And what backspace on front and rear wheels?

I dig the shallow lip:thumbsup:

[gerno]

Scott,

Here are the dimensions.

It's difficult to read the invoice from Speedway for the axle but from what I remember I narrowed the axle 1" on each side as compared to a stock axle with LS disc brakes installed. The measurement I see on the invoice is 59 3/4.

Here are the specs for the wheels. I am also running a 1/2" wheel spacer on the rear. I was nervous of the interference on the inner fender due to the flare so I specifically went conservative on the BS so I could adj with the spacer. With the PS2 test tires the fit was much tighter than the RE11's I'm running now


48444

[CURVES]

Thanks bud,

Looks pretty close to what I came up with, Frickin tight in there....:superhack: