First Time Builder, Early Delivery. Anyone Else?

[cmcintyre]

I read of all these well experienced builders jumping in with no manual and think, Yipes! Just got my call, and while I slipped it to Sept. from Aug., that's comin' round pretty quick. Just curious if anyone else is crazy enough to be a Virgin Beta Builder?

[wleehendrick]

I'm a virgin... builder that is! My delivery date is in October, 'early' in the big picture of the 818, but certainly not a 'beta'. I'm happy to let the first few pave the way for us newbies!

[Ethan818]

I am also a first time builder and Stewart will be shipping my kit early August... Really hoping FFR releass a build manual by then. :)

[tks]

First time builders - what type of auto experience do you have? (I'm in the same boat as you.)

[Frank818]

Virgin on kit cars, not on something else (as wleehendrick said loll), not first time working around an engine, electrical, exhaust and certainly not first time on engine management (what a damn headache, please don't use that for your 818). But I am not on FFR's list yet!! I have to sell my car first. :(

First time doing something on a Subaru (on with Subaru parts), so learning all I can and all that matters to me. These engines have some differences relative to say a V6 or I4.

[Canadian818]

I read of all these well experienced builders jumping in with no manual and think, Yipes! Just got my call, and while I slipped it to Sept. from Aug., that's comin' round pretty quick. Just curious if anyone else is crazy enough to be a Virgin Beta Builder?

When you say you "slipped" it to September, do you mean you just asked to have your delivery date pushed back? I was considering this, my delivery date is September. I won't be able to drive it until march or April though (Canadian winters!), so I probably won't start building it until Christmas.

[Frank818]

When you say you "slipped" it to September, do you mean you just asked to have your delivery date pushed back? I was considering this, my delivery date is September. I won't be able to drive it until march or April though (Canadian winters!), so I probably won't start building it until Christmas.

How many months elapsed you think it will take you?

[wleehendrick]

First time builders - what type of auto experience do you have? (I'm in the same boat as you.)

I've done basic repair, maintenance and modifications on my own cars and motorcycles (suspension, brakes, engine tuning, audio, etc...), no professional automotive experience and no engine building, welding or bodywork. Hence why the 818 appealed to me (none of that required for a stock build). The first time I ever used an engine hoist was just a couple months ago on my donor. I'm sure there will be new challenges to face with the 818, but I have no major reservations given the helpfulness of the forums and the reputation of FFR.

[Xusia]

I am a first time builder. I changed a head gasket once (incorrectly, I might ad) about 24 years ago. BUT, I have fixed 2 motorcycles after crashes (one of which I fixed twice), and I've done all kinds of automotive & motorcycle electrical work (fixing wiring, installing stereos & alarms, etc.).

Also, I can follow instructions and I'm not afraid to ask quetions... :)

[PhyrraM]

The old guys can correct me if I'm wrong, but from what I've seen of FFRs other products the assembly should be pretty straight-forward. No "manual" needed (maybe some good pictures or a blow-up diagram). I even have a hard time saying "built it yourself", as it seems to be mostly a bolt-together proposition with no real fabrication.

I would think that the only real 'thinking' that needs to be done is with the harness/electrical and bending brake lines. The rest seems to be well within the skill set of anybody who works on their own daily driver.

[David Hodgkins]

I have a message out to Dave Smith asking for input. From a previous conversation I had with him, FFR is finishing the manual as we speak. After the Open house the techs tore down the white car to where there were in assembling and documenting the build before the rush to show it at the open house took them off course. I believe they were 2/3 to 3/4 the way through the documentation before they had to quit to get the car ready. So I'd imagine that the manual isn't to far out.

For you new guys, I'd rely on the vets to get you through hanging the suspension and marking/drilling panels. That should take enough time before the manual becomes available. If not there are other things to do, like build the pedal assembly, etc.

I honestly don't think the manual is too far away. Believe me, Dave doesn't want there to be 20 kits out there with no manuals!

:)

PS Plus, you have Erik Treves and Wayne Presley ahead of you. They don't mess around, so there's NO way you guys can catch up tho where they are after you get your kit.

[RM1SepEx]

I'm a first time kit builder but an engineer by trade. I designed and built an electric trike reverse trike with my son. I designed built my super insulated solar house. I worked for years developing MFG processes for semiconductor devices and designed and implemented one of the machine tools that assembles the gate arrays that control guidance for patriot missiles. I used to work on 4-5 processes at a time with 2+ million worth of production equipment development. The processes are new so they were designed by a friend built in the in house machine shop and I implemented them, made em work to build semiconductor devices, in volume. I worked as a mfg process consultant travelling all over the country...

I either own or access to virtually every tool needed to manufacture an entire 818 from scratch, I've built a frame jig and the frame on it. I've made foam core fiberglass panels. I have a small brake, slip roll and shear, a throatless shear and access to a power hammer and english wheel to form aluminum panels. My trike used 1 inch square tubing and riveted aluminum panels. It used over 1100 rivets, thankfully I have an air riveter.

I don't expect any problems, I am a bit timid around the wiring, I'll need the manual for settings and all the wiring changes, that is about it...

The rotisserie will be waiting and I've already prepped some assistance to PC the small fabricated steel kit bits.

My donor parts are done, cleaned, rebuilt PC etc... 100% prepped, moving up 2 weeks means I should have the go kart to autocross at Loring AFB in Limestone August 17, 18

Dan

BTW The 818 will be car 11, to go with 7 motorcycles and three 4 wheelers... I keep busy keeping them all running so I'm pretty experienced mechanically

[cmcintyre]

When you say you "slipped" it to September, do you mean you just asked to have your delivery date pushed back?...
Yep, that's all I did. Jas didn't seem to have a problem, just said the official date would be the 21st instead of the 19th I proposed.

As for how much experience I've had, kinda in the middle, I think. Old School with Healey's and 2002's, built up the Spec E30 race car (engine pulls, interior race prep). I'm doing this to learn as much as possible about the car from the ground up. Roadster school showed me how there is no structural fabrication, but plenty of details and techniques to learn. Looking forward to the process, I certainly won't be one of the fast builds....

[GUNS]

First time builder here. The most I've ever done is the teardown on my donor and that was a huge learning experience. My kit will be ready for delivery on July 6, so we'll see what happens!

[Wayne Presley]

The manual is well under way as Erik and I do have a beta copy which we got at the open house. By the time you get your kits, it will be complete. Don't bother PM'ing or email asking for a copy, not going to happen.

[Frank818]

Well, there are a lot of interesting knowledgeable people here!

I will add a few on myself and my surroundings...
When I was young I knew all cars around with their stats (hp, rpms, etc.). I started a project 21 years ago when I convinced my dad to buy a fresh new VW Corrado VR6, one of the first on the Canadian market in July 1992. I took over early and started a project on it. My mechanic, who became my friend, helped me for the past 19 years. I worked late on Saturdays and at night during week with him, tweaking stuff on the car. I learned a lot of stuff, he's now almost exclusively on Porsches, for race and street. I have learned a lot on stand alone fuel management systems, I only tried 2 but 2 completely different. I have learned so much (I don't claim knowing everything!) that my mechanic's Porsche is soon undergoing a twin turbo setup and he asked me to install and configure his stand alone. Boy, when a mech with 35-40+ years experience is asking you for stuff he doesn't know, that's awesome. lolll

I have people in my family with a lot of electrical knowledge, which helped me do stuff on the car.

I rebuilt a motorcycle (except the engine and tranny which were fine), I own 2, including one I will never be able to make the 818 faster. That bike is a guy killer, I must beware.

I have an excellent ear when it comes to hear sounds around cars/bikes. I once heard a weird airflow sound on my car, one my mech could not hear. I told him "Georges, I have a prob with my valves, there must be a leak somewhere and it starts exactly at the time of full boost". He wasn't really believing me. I then begged him to remove the intake with me to take a look to prove I was right. So we did. Cyl2's valve was loose in its guide and was even starting to disintegrate into small metal powder. He was amazed I could have hear such thing and said that my engine would have blown out at some point. I saved my engine (and mu pocket). Man that felt good. lolll

Though my main knowledge is on the VW VR6 engine (the old school one, not the newer ones), I do own a Subaru Impreza 2.5RS wagon 4-sp automatic. lolll I have done f**k all on it and won't do any mods. loll

I hope I could help someone someday on this forum... cuz already, just after a few days I subscribed, people have helped me a lot here.

[Erik W. Treves]

The manual is well under way as Erik and I do have a beta copy which we got at the open house. By the time you get your kits, it will be complete. Don't bother PM'ing or email asking for a copy, not going to happen.

x2

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[timmy318]

x2

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How's the manual look? Is it like the other manuals or is it a new "breed"? Do you know if the manual will include more hands-on pics (the beta version might not but the final maybe???)?

[Mechie3]

The manual is well under way as Erik and I do have a beta copy which we got at the open house. By the time you get your kits, it will be complete. Don't bother PM'ing or email asking for a copy, not going to happen.

So, as long as we dont PM or email, we can ask? ;)


I'm a first time FFR builder, but have plenty of experience in turning wrenches, designing stuff, and making things work. Rebuilt a few Subaru engines, have done mods on numerous Subarus, complete to stripped frame rebuild of an 86 red devil including redesigning several components, engine swap on the same red devil a year later, hub and brake pedel design and machining for a 97 red devil, and general machine shop stuff.

That said, I still like instructions. I'm not afraid to go on without them, but sometimes things go a lot smoother (read: less undoing work you've already done) if you know the original designers intent.

[68GT500MAN]

In my opinion only, the quality of the early manuals was quite satisfactory to build a roadster (I did back in 2003). When the GTM and Hot Rod came about the manual became "phone book" sized collections of photo's and instructions as the customer base asked for. I would imagine that the manual for the 818 will continue down that path and be an asset to the "new" builders.
Doug

[veloce2]

There are a lot of unfinished parts on these cars, practice your painting or maybe invest in a powder coating system. Anyone can put the cars together, IMO it's the build quality you put into it that makes the end product what it is. Don't rush it, enjoy the process and think about developing a esthetic synergy for YOUR car.