#1104 (Gen1) Steve's 33 Rod Build - door panels

[FF33rod]

Hello everyone. Steve (ff33rod) here up in the Vancouver area on the West Coast of Canada. I'm getting bored waiting for my engine parts and 33 kit to be delivered so thought I'd start my build thread. I've put some of the brake parts together so hopefully I can say I've officially started building ;)

Here's the plan for my '33, all new parts no donor:
Powder Coated Chassis
347 SBF power (see below)
Tremec TKO600 (0.64 o/d)
2015 Mustang IRS with 3.55
Leather Roadster Seats
Standard Hood
Double adjustable Koni shocks front and rear
Rear Exhaust
Chrome/tilt steering column
Electric power steering
AC/Heat
Roadster and Hard top options
Power windows
Bike Fenders
12.88" Wilwood upgrade front and rear with Black Calipers

I decided building the HR wasn't enough, I might as well do an engine too :) I chatted with the BluePrint guys and they were super responsive and helpful but didn't have exactly what I wanted nor did anyone else have something right out of the box. I was looking for something in the 450 HP and torque range. So since I'd have to get someone to build it for me I decided, what the heck I might as well put together an engine too. To avoid all the high precision machining, I decided to go with purchasing a short block, adding a known combination of top end components along with other added bits. Enter the gents at TRE Performance in California. Here's the list...

TRE Short Block Performance 347
AFR-195 top end kit, TrickFlow Trackmax hydraulic roller stage 2 cam
Autotec -5cc flat top pistons
Canton Racing 1/2" steel main girdle
block paint
Edelbrock Performer RPM air gap
Holley Sniper EFI, HyperSpark ignition system
March Pulley System, with alternator and AC compressor

Milestones (will be edited as more happen):

Canadian kit Ordered: August 20, 2018
Canadian Completion kit ordered: August 30, 2018
Engine components ordered: August 30, 2018
Kit Ready at FFR: October 6, 2018
Canadian Completion kit received: October 12, 2018
Stewart Pickup at FFR: October 17, 2018
Pickup kit at Border: November 4, 2018
Engine short block and components received: November 6, 2018
Build school: November 9-11, 2018
Large # of back order parts received: November 30, 2018
Horns received: December 6, 2018 (still missing hardtop glass)
First Start: April 30, 2019
Last POL part received: July 2, 2019
Go Cart: September 28, 2019
VIN Application submitted: September 14, 2020
VIN Received: October 7, 2020
Inspection & Weight: October 15, 2020
Registration, Plates & Insurance: October 16, 2020
Paint scheduled: February 2021
Paint complete & returned home from shop: 10 June 2021

[FF33rod]

To prove something is in the works, here's a pic of the assembled Willwood hat and rotor along with the tranny and Boyd gas tank.958219582295823

[AJT '33]

Welcome fellow Canuck!! I had bought my engine nearly three years in advance and tinkered with it until i got my kit last year. Good luck and don't give yourself a deadline just goals, just enjoy your build!

[FF33rod]

Definitely won't be in a rush, I don't want something that will look like it was thrown together. However, when I'm excited about a project I do tend to immerse myself :) I've been following your build thread, keep up the great work!

[wrp]

You will certainly be pleased when everything arrives....Good luck!!!!

[FF33rod]

Got a new tool in the mail and tried my hand at safety wiring tonight. Not bad for a first attempt I think.

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[wallace18]

Got a new tool in the mail and tried my hand at safety wiring tonight. Not bad for a first attempt I think.

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Looks great!

[FF33rod]

Rented a pickup and trailer and dropped below the border to meet Scott from Stewart Transport. As you can see, I got the full FFR signage experience. Scott was fantastic. He's been doing this for years and has all sorts of FFR stories. Friendly as heck and knows what to stick where for easy transport home. A great experience....

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My Darling wife came to help out. I'm such a lucky guy to have a partner that lets me indulge....
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Safe at home...
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and now inventory begins..

BUILD/INVENTORY TIP: I read somewhere that before removing the aluminum floors, etc from the frame (as delivered by FFR) you should use a marker and outline where all the frame pieces are and this will save time later when you go to drill the rivet holes. My recommendation - DO NOT DO THIS. I did do that and drilled the holes accordingly. Unfortunately, when FFR puts the floor pieces in for delivery none of the firewall pieces are in place and so the floor is not accurately positioned at that time. I found that floor was about 0.5" different when I went to install it and I had to change the rivet locations. Now I have some unwanted holes in the floor I need to seal.

[Svtfreak]

Steve, looks like you're as lucky a man as me to have a beautiful wife who let's you play with great big hot wheels!

[OnlyAndy]

Scott was my Stewart deliver man also. Sure gets around,,,I am here in SoCal, Inland Empire. He was an absolute Peach of a guy. Very friendly and helpful. WE dropped the chassis and body in back of my F150, took to my rear garage and set in place on jack stands. One trip for boxes and one for misc fiberglass parts, top, fenders etc. 3 Trips and done. Less than an hour he was off to San Diego. Pick up at F5 and travel time to west coast took a while BUT delivery was easy peasy. Thx again Scott.

[CVOBill]

Congrats!

[Bgardner]

Steve

Good to see you had a good weather day to pick up. Off to the races now.

Have fun

Bob

[FF33rod]

Well Santa came again today. I think I've tapped him out and I'm not expecting anything for Christmas now... All the engine components arrived.
Garage is darn full now.

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Key components are a TRE performance 347 short block with -5cc flat tops and main girdle with an AFR 195cc Renegade top end kit. All this stuff just gives me goose bumps!

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[Chris C]

Hi Steve,
We received #1102 in Kirkland before Scott drove to Blaine. Really great guy.
How is the quality of your hard top? Mine looks like crap! Seams are not joined in places, and I put my finger thru the gelcoat near the back window. It's really rough.

Chris

[FF33rod]

Hi Chris
Yeah Scott was a gem. I haven't looked at the hard top yet (or much else for that matter) as I was pretty busy at work last week and this past weekend I was at the build school. Just making my way home now. Will have a look at it in the next couple of days and report back. Cheers.

[FF33rod]

Chris, the top actually doesn't look to bad from what I can tell. Some parts of the door shells are a bit rough though - where they are bonding the 2 pieces together, not consistent. I'm sure I'll eventually find some gel coat inconsistencies, there's bound to be air pockets in some places. That's what filler is for :)

[Chris C]

Chris, the top actually doesn't look to bad from what I can tell. Some parts of the door shells are a bit rough though - where they are bonding the 2 pieces together, not consistent. I'm sure I'll eventually find some gel coat inconsistencies, there's bound to be air pockets in some places. That's what filler is for :)

This is what mine looks like:97505975069750797508
My first upload attempt. Hope I did it right...
The holes along the bottom exterior, I put my finger thru. Found them by accident.
There is also gaps/failed bond along the windshield and back window openings.
Waiting to hear what F5 has to say.

[Dodgeman]

Chris,
I'd make Factory Five pick all this crap up and deliver all new fiberglass.
This is totally unacceptable in my book.

Bob

[JOP33]

Chris,
I'd make Factory Five pick all this crap up and deliver all new fiberglass.
This is totally unacceptable in my book.

Bob

I think I would have to agree with Bob...a few thin spots here and there seem to be expected, but not to that extreme. Any kind of quality control at all would have caught that!

[FF33rod]

Looks horrible Chris, going to check mine extra careful again now. Almost looks like it was dropped or hit. Hopefully F5R takes care of you.

[erlihemi]

This is what mine looks like:97505975069750797508
My first upload attempt. Hope I did it right...
The holes along the bottom exterior, I put my finger thru. Found them by accident.
There is also gaps/failed bond along the windshield and back window openings.
Waiting to hear what F5 has to say.
That is definitely a QC miss. That is just a headache in so many ways to unscrew. FFR needs to replace that. Remember that roof has to anchor and align with the body.

[myjones]

That is definitely a QC miss. That is just a headache in so many ways to unscrew. FFR needs to replace that. Remember that roof has to anchor and align with the body.

If you haven't already sent those pictures to FF you need to. I don't believe that Dave Smith would be OK with that level of quality on one of his products.
Dale

[Chris C]

I sent the pics to F5 on monday. Haven't heard back yet. I'm glad you guys don't think I'm overreacting. I'm no fiberglass expert, but this looks terrible from any angle.
I looked at the rest of the glass, and it looks like what people have described. The only other damage I see is one end of the waterfall? looks broken off. No idea how this fits, so I don't know if it's a problem.9754297543

[TDSapp]

I sent the pics to F5 on monday. Haven't heard back yet. I'm glad you guys don't think I'm overreacting. I'm no fiberglass expert, but this looks terrible from any angle.
I looked at the rest of the glass, and it looks like what people have described. The only other damage I see is one end of the waterfall? looks broken off. No idea how this fits, so I don't know if it's a problem.9754297543

Both sides of my water fall look like your left one. Both are squared off. Looks like the one on the right hand side has been dropped and broken.

[Chris C]

I heard back from FFR this morning. Here's what they suggested:
"As for the damaged hardtop, after speaking with my manager, he wanted me to ask and offer for you to have fixed, re-glassed, and Factory Five will pay for the bill to fix the end/opening towards the front and back lip where broke away as previously sent in pictures. You should be able to bring and/or send pictures to a body shop and they should be able to quote you on adding material to both damaged sections."

I'm not sure how I feel about this. How will a shop know what to add where, if they don't have a body to fit it to? Will I just be adding or grinding glass when it comes time to fit the top, or paying to have someone go over the repaired areas anyway?
What do you guys think?
They obviously don't want to ship me a new top.

Chris

[Dodgeman]

I'd tell them that it is unacceptable, and ship me a new undamaged top and waterfall.

Bob

[Smoking Joe]

FFR need to replace the top and waterfall. I would keep trying. If FFR does not send you a new top I thank we the builders all need to step in encourage FFR to do so I'm welling to do my part.

[RoadRacer]

"he wanted me to ask and offer for you to have fixed"

As written, that seems fair enough - they're just asking if that's a deal you'll take. I'm sure it's fine to say no. For example, I'm permanently bonding my top, so maybe there'd be a deal to work out. But yours is pretty far gone - I'd ask for a replacement.

[FF33rod]

All right, we have an update on my build - inventory is done!!! woohoo.
All the stuff they said was there, was there and the stuff they said was missing was indeed missing. :)
Only issue was the rear view mirror was broken. However, it doesn't look like something I would have used anyway.

Stay tuned - I've started the engine build and will post some pics soon...

Steve

[Chris C]

Excellent!
Mine was good less some bolts/nuts and my headlight housings were crushed. And of course the top...
Sorry for steeling your thread by the way. Figure I'll update after they reply on monday if you don't mind.
And you're not kidding about that mirror. What a piece of junk! Surprised they would include something so poorly designed/made.

Chris

[Chris C]

Ok, last update hopefully so I don't steel any more of Steve's build thread. I should try and figure out how to do one myself.
Nate the production manager texted me saying that a new hand picked top and waterfall will be on the next truck heading this way (I'm guessing it might be a while). He contacted me personally when the original pickup date was missed due to not coming back from powder coating in time. My day just got better :)

Curious, did any of you receive an entire box of brochures with your kit? I got a box of at least 50, all the same.

Thank you all for your advise.

Chris

[JimLev]

Chris, congrats on getting your kit. The fun now begins.
Glad to hear your getting a new top and waterfall.
Yes, I also got a box of brochures. I'm sure that are intended for you to hand out when you bring your Hotrod to car shows.

[JOP33]

Curious, did any of you receive an entire box of brochures with your kit? I got a box of at least 50, all the same.

Thank you all for your advise.

Chris

I did as well...I use them as coasters in my shop. I understand the intent, but by the time my car is in shows the Next Generation on everything will probably be out! I guess it stills stirs the interest, right? Sales ABC...Always Be Closing!

[FF33rod]

But seriously, advertising brochures? I got those dumb things too. I'm astounded that after popping well over 20K USD they can't throw in a hat. A hat is all of $10.... That would be the best advertising.

[idoxlr8]

But seriously, advertising brochures? I got those dumb things too. I'm astounded that after popping well over 20K USD they can't throw in a hat. A hat is all of $10.... That would be the best advertising.

Knew I’d find you here.👍
I’ll sell you my FFR hat for $8.50cdn.

[FF33rod]

Knew I’d find you here.��
I’ll sell you my FFR hat for $8.50cdn.

What a deal! you're such a great friend Dean...

[FF33rod]

TRE Performance 347 Short block with -5cc flat top forged pistons, Trickflow Stage 2 roller cam
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Bottom end with main girdle
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AFR 195cc head, 58cc combustion chamber
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Add some jewelry on top, Comp Cams Ultra Gold ARC series
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I've added the timing chain cover and water pump and tried to start adding the pulley system but there's one or two bolts that don't seem the right size so I'll be stalled for a couple of days...

[FF33rod]

General update and thoughts this Saturday 24 November
This week I emailed Tony at FFR and he confirmed that 18 x 11 with 6 inch backspace and 18 x 9 with 5.5 inch backspace works. Let's hope he's right!

I've discovered that cast wheels are more reasonably priced than forged. I narrowed it down to Foose Knuckle or Coupe. I ended up ordering the Foose Coupe F238 locally. I sure hope it works. I don't think the fronts will be an issue but worse case I may end up with a spacer on the rears, we'll see.

I took a trip down to the US border today to pick up some tires. I bought some BF Goodrich G-Force Rival S through Tire Rack, couldn't find a source in Canada. 315/30R18s for the rear and 245/40R18s for the front. Man I hope it works.

So far, I've managed to complete inventory and then I started building the engine. It's been a bit frustrating - with every step I have to go buy something else. I bought 90% of the parts from TRE performance in Californ-eye-aye. I told them I wanted a turnkey package. Hasn't worked out that way. Have no bolt kit for the intake, have no bolt kit for the oil pump and oil pickup, have no bolts for the oil pan.... �� I keep trying to remind myself that patience is a virtue.

This afternoon I tried to kick off the build on the chassis. I'm missing steering components, shocks,.... Decided to start on the IRS. Hammered the studs out of the hub, cut off a small portion of the new studs for clearance, and.... I have no lug nut to pull the new studs onto the hub. I have no 5/8" drill to modify the spindles... Decided to have a drink, patience is a virtue...

[FF33rod]

The build has moved along not bad this week. Have managed to spend an hour or two every evening and made some decent progress. Feeling good.

Work on the IRS: Got the new lug nuts in place. Cut off the appropriate "tab" of the spindles. Got the upper and lower control arms out and greased, along with the toe adjustment arm.
BUILD TIP:Here's a cool tip we learned at the build school. The polyurethane bushings have small slots in them to allow grease to spread along the length of the bushing. Before installing, cut small shallow slots on the outer flange in line with the inner ones to allow the grease to travel to the sides. You can do this with a hack saw blade or I used a dremel lightly.

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As others have found, getting the IRS center section in place was challenging. Actually getting it into position wasn't that big of a deal, I did it myself with a floor jack and a lot of grunting. Also used a ratcheting strap to help support it while getting the mounting holes lined up and bolts into place. 3 out of the 4 bolts weren't too bad but the last one took me a long time. It was off by a significant amount and so I tried all sorts of things to get it lined up better - loosening the other bolts, ratchet straps, mallet,...

One of the things they mentioned in build school was a drift punch is helpful in getting holes to line up so of course I bought one of those and tried it too... no luck, the drift puch was just a little too small to be helpful. So I decided to get a section of appropriate sized metal rod and taper the end - essentially making my own custom sized drift punch.
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Well the only rod I could find locally/quickly was aluminum and as you might guess it was too soft. BUT in the process of fiddling with that, the metal bushing in the mount came out part way and finally a light went on in my head. Without the bushing there, there was more wiggle room for the bolt to push into the mount - so I left the bushing half out, pushed in the bolt, gave it a few friendly taps and eureka... there was enough of the bolt into the differential mount tab to do the job, I think I used a socket on the bolt head to thread it in and pull everything together. The solution was so obvious but took a long time to come me.

[FF33rod]

Last week I started adding the March pulley system to the engine I'm building up. The timing chain cover and water pump use bolts that are integral part of the pulley system so you have to put the whole assembly together at once even though I'd like to leave off the shiny bits until later in the build in case they get scratched up. I guess I'll put a bunch of tape over them to protect it. However, as I started to put the system together it didn't seem like there was enough of the right sized bolts in the kit and I had to order more online. I finally got those bolts and got the system together.

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[FF33rod]

Driver's side IRS done.

Seasoned builders, please let me know if you see anything that doesn't look quite right.

BUILD TIP: Take the spindle and trial fit it to the LCA and toe adjustment arm first before putting the CV axles in place. It's much harder to spread the mounting tabs to fit the spindle while having to hold the CV out of the way. Once you've got the tabs spread apart enough then put the CV axle in place and connect the LCA, etc permanently.

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[Chris C]

Since I didn't go to the build school, I really appreciate these tips! Keep em coming.

[FF33rod]

I've been working on the front suspension, a lot of powder coating to do. Will post a pic or two when it's all together. BUT, in the mean time, I picked up the wheels & tires today. Super pleased with how they look. Went full on for the rears, 18 x 11 with 315s. Tony confirmed it should fit but man it's going to be close.
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[progmgr1]

Nice looking wheels! What are they?

[FF33rod]

Thanks! Cant tell you how long I agonized over the decision. Anyone else make lists of options in word or excel day after day? Valvecovers were even harder. Anyway, these are Foose Coupe F238

[TDSapp]

Anyone else make lists of options in word or excel day after day?


Yes! I have a spread sheet with multiple tabs in it for my build. One tab was for nothing but wheels and tires, photos of cars with tire specs, links to web sites, and prices and sizes. Took me over a year to finally figure out what I really wanted. I now have the tires waiting on the wheels, which have been ordered and I am just waiting on them to be delivered.

[FF33rod]

okay, busy time of year with family and friends. I'm kinda the main cook in the family, at least for large family feasts so there hasn't been a ton of time for the rod. The front suspension is all powder coated except for the upper arms as they are too big to fit into the Eastwood oven. So I've moved on to other things including working on the firewall. Some interference in fitting the 3 firewall pieces - the welds are bulging out in the odd spot.

Here's a pic of the lower firewall, drive side. Note how it can't sit flat against the frame.
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here's a couple of pics with the interference areas circled
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So some grinding is necessary. Also put a chamfer in some areas of the aluminum to help with the fit, rather than take away more of the weld.
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Fits much better now
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Using a laser level to ensure everything is symmetrical, first leveled out the chassis and now marking the firewall pieces so they end up mounted level as well.
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[Chris C]

It's interesting to see what parts you didn't get vs mine, since we got our cars delivered(1102) on the same day. Scott just stopped by and dropped off my new roof and waterfall this morning. Looks much better than the first one.

[Chris C]

Does your frame have the straight top rail in the door opening, or does it drop down in front like the Gen 2 design? Mine drops like the Gen 2, but the body and floor panels are Gen 1.

[OnlyAndy]

I have #1095 delivered mid Sept 17' and the chassis Has the drop door opening but the body does Not. I am not near the body work yet but planning ahead I think I will cut the fiberglass and make my body match the chassis. I am not an expert at glass work but have done a little in the past. ALSO, I notice the newest version of 33's have functional louvers on side engine panels. Always liked louvers and considering adding them to my side panels but have no idea how to get there. Yet. They can be only cosmetic but functional would be nice too. Any ideas out there? I have done internet search and found very little, at least in fiberglass. I guess I could get new side panels if they are available.

[1932]

They work very good to get heat out, was going that way but now have opening under and around turbos.

[FF33rod]

Does your frame have the straight top rail in the door opening, or does it drop down in front like the Gen 2 design? Mine drops like the Gen 2, but the body and floor panels are Gen 1.

Frame drops at the door but like yours, body is Gen 1

[peterh226]

I asked FFR and they told me that louvered side panels are planned for the 32 and 33 style grill. No availability date yet.

[FF33rod]

So the holiday season is behind us along with a quick vacation to mexico, then a biz trip, some family birthdays, and finally I have some time to spend with my mistress (that's what my wife is referring to the 33 as these days).

Build Tip: drilling the firewall After marking up and then drilling the firewall you will place the firewall panels back on the frame and clamp them in place ready to drill into the frame. Only drill a couple of holes, and then install clecos (or button heads if that's what you're using) to hold the firewall while you drill the remaining holes. The clecos or screws hold the panel much firmer than a clamp that may allow some slippage.

I've finally finished powder coating all the front suspension, have installed the front spindles and brakes and test fit the wheels. Feeling good about this!

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[AJT '33]

So the holiday season is behind us along with a quick vacation to mexico, then a biz trip, some family birthdays, and finally I have some time to spend with my mistress (that's what my wife is referring to the 33 as these days).

Build Tip: drilling the firewall After marking up and then drilling the firewall you will place the firewall panels back on the frame and clamp them in place ready to drill into the frame. Only drill a couple of holes, and then install clecos (or button heads if that's what you're using) to hold the firewall while you drill the remaining holes. The clecos or screws hold the panel much firmer than a clamp that may allow some slippage.

I've finally finished powder coating all the front suspension, have installed the front spindles and brakes and test fit the wheels. Feeling good about this!

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Would suggest that you flip your fronts 180 degrees if you intend on adjusting them or they will be a PIA to adjust.
PS. Clecos are my best friend!

[JOP33]

I believe these are the KONI DA’s and if so they can’t be flipped (or at least what I was advised by FFR on mine).

[AJT '33]

I believe these are the KONI DA’s and if so they can’t be flipped (or at least what I was advised by FFR on mine).

These are mine and don't seem to be the same so you may be right, I would also suggest asking FFR or contacting Kioni direct. I know that mine can be flipped over.
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[FF33rod]

I believe these are the KONI DA’s and if so they can’t be flipped (or at least what I was advised by FFR on mine).

You are correct, these are the upgraded shocks (dual adjustable) and you can mount them one way only - with the body down.

[FF33rod]

Brake lines are in along with steering rack, shafts, electric power steering, column and wheel.
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[FF33rod]

So when I put the steering colum in place and added the steering wheel with adaptor, the wheel wouldn't move. The adaptor tightened down right onto the column with no space as shown in the first picture below. The second picture shows the top of the steering colum that the adaptor goes onto. What is needed in some cases is a washer. I picked up a 1/8" thick rubber washer with an inside diameter hole of 3/4". Cut out a space for the horn button contact and installed as shown in pic #3. Last picture shows the steering adaptor and wheel back on with a bit of a space now that allows movement. This is a good thing ;)

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[FF33rod]

I stared at the fuse panel mount and the description in the manual of where it should be installed. Not sure why but it just didn't click initially although it's simple and makes sense. Here's a couple of pictures showing the install so anyone else tripping through this thread will have the visual. Also note that for the hot rod you do not use the aluminum mount for the fuse panel that comes in the Ron Francis wiring box - discard that and use the one that is found in the box of aluminum pieces for the hot rod. Note that I have installed replicaparts' inner firewall which shows in the pics.

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[FF33rod]

I was perusing the panel before installing it in the aluminum frame and I discovered a wire that had pulled out of its crimp. A quick solder job fixed it but have a look before installing to make sure yours doesn't have any similar issues...

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[Chris C]

You've been busy!
I've been talked into fitting the body and panels first, before putting all the shiny parts on. It's the crappiest part of the build, so if I do it first I hope not to burn out on it later.

[FF33rod]

So after laying the wire harness in the frame I turned back to drivetrain prep and the clutch.
In the last post regarding the engine, I hadn't picked out the valve covers nor had the distributor and spark plug wires in place. So that is now done.

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So I'm now pulling the engine off the stand that attaches to the rear and placing it onto one that supports it from the bottom.

On the TKO600 I pulled off the sleeve for the throwout bearing and replaced it with the RAM unit

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Then I placed the Ram hydraulic throwout bearing onto the shaft - ready to mount the bell housing and take measurements to see how many shims are needed to get the correct spacing between the face of the bearing and the clutch

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Attached flywheel and then clutch plate and housing.

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With the added weight of the clutch on the rear of the block, the whole thing was a bit unstable on the stand so I had to support it with the floor jack. Going to be fun when I add the tranny.

[wallace18]

Looking good!

[erlihemi]

I stared at the fuse panel mount and the description in the manual of where it should be installed. Not sure why but it just didn't click initially although it's simple and makes sense. Here's a couple of pictures showing the install so anyone else tripping through this thread will have the visual. Also note that for the hot rod you do not use the aluminum mount for the fuse panel that comes in the Ron Francis wiring box - discard that and use the one that is found in the box of aluminum pieces for the hot rod. Note that I have installed replicaparts' inner firewall which shows in the pics.

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It looks like FFR improved the mounting somewhat. I didn't get as nice a mount in my kit (#640). I would still add a light aluminum brace from the passenger side of the bracket to the firewall to stabilize it a little.

[FF33rod]

Yes, the aluminum panel was part of the FFR HR parts and you discard the one included with the Ron Francis harness. I will be looking at a bit more support once I understand and decide where to put all the other stuff that is going on the firewall - aux fuse panel, power steering control, A/C, etc....

[Chris C]

Yes, the aluminum panel was part of the FFR HR parts and you discard the one included with the Ron Francis harness. I will be looking at a bit more support once I understand and decide where to put all the other stuff that is going on the firewall - aux fuse panel, power steering control, A/C, etc....

Lots of pics please when you get that all figured out.

[FF33rod]

Had some time to work on the 33 Saturday, added a number of wires.
Through the console to the rear - speakers and window switches.
Added to the main harness going under the car - door switch (for courtesy lights), door poppers.
Need to get some wire loom to cover it all up now...

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[FF33rod]

So before finalizing the routing of wiring and installing various parts on the firewall I wanted to understand where the engine would sit. So I spent a couple of hours tonight putting the sucker into the frame. Went very smooth but had to move the jackstands on the front part of the frame to allow room for the legs of the crane

Step 1 was attach the TKO600 and then I removed it from the engine stand
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and then I just had to set the Sniper and Scoop on top to see how it all looked. I'm stoked! Love it. The scoop is a bit high, it will be used if/when I run with no hood...

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Build Tip: It's fine to have the headers on but remove the upper rear stud where the J-pipe attaches, it's very easy for it to hit and scratch the fire wall. Actually, probably best to remove both studs.

Build Tip: Although you don't have to remove the electric power steering motor to get the engine in, it's impossible to tighten the nut on the stud that drops into the mount with the steering motor in place so remove it before putting the engine in.

[Bgardner]

Steve

Looking great

Do you sleep?

[FF33rod]

Only putting in a few hours a week. I was doing more before it got so darn cold. The tiny heater I have in the garage doesn't make a dent in the temperature when it's below freezing outside...

[FF33rod]

Looks like Hot Rod 2.0 has a newer more compact Vintage Air A/C heater system. The install instructions for this newer generation is now on the FFR web site instructions page. For those looking for the instructions for a Vintage Air Compact Gen II system (used in the last couple of years before 2019), here is a link to the appropriate instructions https://www.factoryfive.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/AC-HEATER-DEFROSTER-HOT-ROD.pdf

[FF33rod]

Wow, a long time since I posted an update. In the past 6 weeks I have been working on the 33 but not quite as much as I would like. The '33, according to my wife, is my second mistress. I've been spending some time with my first mistress as well - a sailboat. This time of year it's the start of race season, just finished an over night (100 nautical mile) race on this past Easter weekend. We managed a first in division and a second (out of 45) for the course we raced. Happy with that. We have a 2 week race going around Vancouver Island at the beginning of June. After that, it will be enough racing for awhile and I'll hopefully be focused more on mistress #2....

I've been multiplexing between a few things:
- brake and clutch reservoirs are installed
- hydraulic clutch lines are installed and bled
- brake lines bled
- most of the wiring is complete including the Holley Sniper and HyperSpark ignition, plan on doing a post specifically on Sniper wiring in the next week or two
- have extended the wiring for the electric power steering to go to the control unit which will be mounted on the people side of the firewall
- been fiddling around with the gas pedal install, cable, and throttle bracket for the Sniper (details in the next post)

[FF33rod]

When I bought the pieces to put the engine together there were a lot of "incidentals" that didn't get thought of. Not sure if you guys that bought from Blueprint or another full meal deal crate engine got things like a throttle cable bracket, but that is one of the incidentals that I needed to figure out. It doesn't come in the FF kit, the Edelbrock manifold has a plate for a bracket to mount to but no bracket. An email to Edelbrock asking for recommendations went unanswered (as most do to the big suppliers). Long story short, I went shopping at Summit. First attempt was to pick up a fancy billet aluminum Edelbrock bracket (8041) that is supposed to work with 4150 style carbs. It did not provide enough clearance for the Sniper throttle linkage. Second attempt was to pick up a Lokar unit XTCB-40HS and it works great.

The FF throttle cable is quite long and is not easily shortened given the crimped ends. So I picked up a "universal" Lokar cable (TC-1000U36) and trimmed it to length (about 30 inches) to allow for fairly large radius bends to minimize friction but not take up a huge a mount of room in the engine compartment. Here's how it looks....

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For the gas pedal installation I followed the build school suggestion and mounted it on a piece of aluminum extrusion that spaces it out from the firewall a bit. I also have the Tim Whittaker pedal that matches the brake and clutch pedal design. The pedal operates relatively free, no binding. Force is a little high as you approach full throttle and that causes some flex in the firewall but I'm hoping that all stiffens up once it's installed properly and attached to floor panels, transmission tunnel, etc.
Here is how that all looks - the hydraulic line you see is for the clutch, decided to keep it relatively short and not route through the engine compartment.

106279

[JOP33]

I had (have) some similar issues with my set-up, in fact the throttle cable still is not straight in line. I will need to make or purchase a longer mounting bracket in the rear to offset the cable a bit more. Your set-up looks really good.

[FF33rod]

Well, it finally happened!
I had enough progress on the overall wiring, Digital Guard Dawg keyless ignition, and radiator/grill install to go for first engine start.
Actually, I'm still missing a 3/4" heater hose/adaptor so the cooling system is still not functional. Needless to say that limits the run time!

First, I apologize for the state of my "workshop". This is the smallest 2 car garage I've ever had so it is squishy trying to build a car in there. About once a week I have to make a conscious effort to go around and clean things up. Clearly I didn't do that before this event. I'm very envious of you guys that have a nice dedicated space and are super organized.
Second, I apologize for the quality of the video and the commentary. Next time I'm going to try to get an assistant to at least hold the camera. Doing that, pushing on the brake, pushing an ignition button and trying to sound intelligent seemed to be too much multi tasking for me LOL...

The strategy here was to see if the engine would crank without the coil connected to the distributor. Then connect that up, add gas and see if it would run.
So here's the first video, had to laugh as I hadn't even connected the battery before starting to record....

https://youtu.be/4WjPPAeJt4U

Without another foot, hand or something to depress the clutch I pulled the wires off the clutch switch and just shorted them out.

https://youtu.be/kXNXWVJJ5Ik

Added gas, connected the distributor and let it rip... I quickly found out that a fuel line was loose and shut it down after a second or two running. Tightened up that and went at it again....

https://youtu.be/W5W1DXRaljQ

Well that was darn exciting and satisfying! Time to find the proper size heater hose and get some coolant in so I can run it longer and see what the Sniper is doing - need to get it into closed loop learn mode and get a 20 minute period to break the engine in... maybe I'll add some mufflers before that as well to spare my ears... for now though, I still have a smile on my face

[peterh226]

Congratulations! Wonderful milestone. I ordered my engine, so I now will focus on bodywork before the mechanical stuff. All looking great there,

[wrp]

Awesome first start

[FF33rod]

Just a quick update...

After the first start shown above, I did get the heater hoses straightened away and some coolant in the engine so I could run it longer. As some may have seen in a separate engine thread, I had issues with the engine not running right at all which during about a 2 week period was eventually tracked down to an error I had made in missing a plug needed in the intake manifold.
https://thefactoryfiveforum.com/showthread.php?32114-Backfiring-why That was rather all consuming for that period of time as I read different articles and tried a few things.

For the last week and the next 3, my first mistress (as my wife refers to her) is demanding attention. We have a 40 foot sailboat that we cruise and club race here on the West Coast of Canada. Every 2 years there is a race that circumnavigates Vancouver Island over the period of 2 weeks - 9 different legs/races. https://www.vanisle360.com/about-2/history/
We have a team of 9 including myself and it is a ton of fun (provided there is wind, otherwise it's extremely frustrating). This will be the 5th time doing this and requires a lot of preparation and work to do though. So this week is crazy busy renting liferafts and putting other safety requirements in place, buying stuff at Costco, etc. And then starting this weekend, we are off! We won our division in 2015, which was the last time we did it, but the wind gods were very generous at that time.

The bad news, no work on the '33 until the latter half of June. I'll be checking in once in awhile though to follow your builds....

Cheers
Steve

[Chris C]

Best of luck to you! Sounds like fun.

[peterh226]

Good luck and may the wind gods blow in you favor!

[FF33rod]

About to start posting some updates again, thankfully.
This is just a quick note that I've gone back to my delivery post on page 1 of the thread and added a cautionary note about the floor location as delivered by FFR. This of course applies to Gen1.

I read somewhere that before removing the aluminum floors, etc from the frame (as delivered by FFR) you should use a marker and outline where all the frame pieces are and this will save time later when you go to drill the rivet holes. My recommendation - DO NOT DO THIS. I did do that and drilled the holes accordingly. Unfortunately, when FFR puts the floor pieces in for delivery none of the firewall pieces are in place and so the floor is not accurately positioned at that time. I found the eventual floor position was about 0.5" different when I went to install it and I had to change the rivet locations. Now I have some unwanted holes in the floor I need to seal.

[FF33rod]

It finally happened, out of the blue the last POL item (power window glass) has shown up. It amazes me how FFR packages this stuff though. The glass is in a tight cardboard sleeve and that is just thrown into a much larger box with a bit of crumpled paper. The internal package flops around like crazy. A single small orange sticker is on the outside of the box declaring there is glass inside. Somehow it survived. A lot of stuff comes that way but thankfully the only problems/damage I've had has been minor - bent brake lines and a broken rear view mirror.

[Chris C]

You didn't want to use that crappy mirror anyway...

[FF33rod]

Will put a few posts in here over the next few days to get the thread caught up on where I am here in July.

Back at the end of April I put together the radiator, fan, fan shroud, AC condenser and the grill. The stackup of grill, condenser and radiator is a bit of a nightmare to get put together. You have to fiddle with rivnuts, try to drill through a number of pieces in a straight/vertical manner. I remember now why I didn't post much at the time, it wasn't pretty - some oval holes were had that's for sure. The result is fine in the end but a challenge to get there.

The manual suggests that the grill needs to be notched out for the AC condenser but I found that was already done.
110110

The fan shroud from Replica parts is great, very easy to put in place and by all accounts works very well.
http://www.replicaparts.com/Hot%20Rod%20Radiator%20shroud%20page.htm

When putting the fan shroud on its recommended to seal up the edges were it meets the radiator to eliminate vibration and possible air noises... I used a metallic gray RTV, worked well.

110111 110112 110113

[FF33rod]

With both the AC Condenser and the fan shroud in the stackup, the whole assembly is pushed back towards the front suspension and clearance with the top of the shocks can be a challenge. I created a separate thread that covers the subject and shows a couple of different solutions that have been used.
https://thefactoryfiveforum.com/showthread.php?31957-33-Front-Suspension-clearance-on-fan

For me, changing around the orientation of the bolts that mount the top of the shocks, notching the plastic fan guard a little, and adding a washer in behind where the radiator assembly mounts to push the assembly forward was enough to resolve the problem.

110114 110115 110116

I also used Replica Parts' upper and lower radiator hoses instead of the corregated steel stuff that comes in the kit.

http://www.replicaparts.com/hot%20rod%20rad%20hose%20page.htm

Super easy to install and looks so much better than the FFR solution

[FF33rod]

Exhaust install went fairly smoothly. I tried the approach the manual suggested for attaching the hangars to the frame but trying to bend those tiny stubs of steel is next to impossible. I took a different approach, I bent the pins that are attached to the pipe instead of the hangar parts.

111012 110347

I double wrapped the mufflers to try to reduce the heat coming up through the floors. DEI exhaust wrap around them first then wrapped in the DEI muffler shield

110348

I purchased the rear exhaust option and the instructions suggest that the pipe should be routed inward and over top of the IRS center section as shown here...

110349

However, fit wasn't good at all. The passenger side might have worked out the driver's side was a problem. I couldn't get the angles to line up properly so that the pipes wouldn't hit the frame.

110350

Apparently this is a common problem and others suggested installing them straight back instead of coming inward. So this will now be the routing, as you can see I have to change my brake line routing accordingly but clearance with the frame is great.

110351 110352

[FF33rod]

Fitting the emergency brake was pretty straightforward. The instructions said that if you have the Wilwood brake option (which I do) then you have to put in some extra links to extend the cables to the brake lever... It fit fine the way it was so I'm not sure what has changed but I'm not complaining :)

Note that there was some interference between the cable attachment brackets and the chassis mounting tab for the emerg brake. Had to grind away a section of the mounting tab.

110353 110354

[FF33rod]

This weekend I got into fitting the floor panels, rear of the cockpit, transmission tunnel... Went fairly smoothly.

There was a lot of fiddling to get the transmission tunnel in place but in the end I'm really pleased how it is sitting. There's lots of space between it and the transmission (TKO600) and also lots of room for the gas pedal which is a surprise as everyone seems to complain about that.

110355

My strategy for the panels is as follows
- Underside will be undercoated with 3M rubberized undercoating. This will protect the aluminum a bit, will also help deaden the sound and give some weight to the panels.
- inside will be Lizard skin sound and heat treatment with the FFR insulation on top of that

Scuffed up the panel with some 100 grit and masked off where the frame attaches.

110356 110357 110358

[TDSapp]

Everything looks great. The only thought I have is where you turned the bolt around for the front shocks. With having the bolt head in the direction it is in if you ever decided to replace or change any part of the shocks (like changing springs) you will have to remove the grill\radiator to get the bolts out.



Tim

[FF33rod]

Everything looks great. The only thought I have is where you turned the bolt around for the front shocks. With having the bolt head in the direction it is in if you ever decided to replace or change any part of the shocks (like changing springs) you will have to remove the grill\radiator to get the bolts out.



Tim

Thanks, now that I think about it, that was pointed out in one of the original posts. I'm pretty sure I've turned that around now... Thanks for asking, I'll double check.

>>update: the first pic is before I did any mods and as you pointed out the bolt direction is not optimal. The second pic is after the mods - I've turned the bolt around and shortened it, it's really hard to tell which end is the head and which is the nut...

[FF33rod]

Decided to upgrade the A/C lines and use DIY end fittings, avoids having to crimp the stuff you get in the kit and looks a lot better. Aeroquip has a great line of the appropriate parts.

I started by finding a location for the dryer and put in the -6AN lines first, big mistake, had to redo them later. The -8AN and -10AN lines are much bigger and less flexible so put those in first and then the -6AN can install at the end.
To mount the dryer, I bought a 1" pipe clamp used to mount lights on a light bar, worked great. Here's a couple of pics, haven't secured the lines in place yet but happy with the routing...

111009 111010 111011

[JOP33]

Decided to upgrade the A/C lines and use DIY end fittings, avoids having to crimp the stuff you get in the kit and looks a lot better. Aeroquip has a great line of the appropriate parts.

I started by finding a location for the dryer and put in the -6AN lines first, big mistake, had to redo them later. The -8AN and -10AN lines are much bigger and less flexible so put those in first and then the -6AN can install at the end.
To mount the dryer, I bought a 1" pipe clamp used to mount lights on a light bar, worked great. Here's a couple of pics, haven't secured the lines in place yet but happy with the routing...

111009 111010 111011

I like the accumulator bracket you used. Do mind sharing where you got that or did you make it?

Thanks

[FF33rod]

I like the accumulator bracket you used. Do mind sharing where you got that or did you make it?

Thanks

http://www.vintageair.com/hose-kits-fittings/?subcat1=Driers&subcat2=Standard%20Drier&subcat3=Mounting%20Brackets
Part #65980

[FF33rod]

Wow, no posts through August. Well I have been working on the '33 albeit, mostly just an hour or two some week nights.

Fitting the transmission tunnel and the top cover.
I've found the fitment on the tunnel in general is not great but not terrible either. After some grinding and cutting out bits to go around gas pedal mount, emergency brake mount, etc it doesn't look too bad.

113161

I placed some tape around the perimeter of where the top cover goes, laid the top cover onto the tunnel and traced the outline. In this way I could measure how oversized the cover was. I took these measurements and marked them out on some tape on the cover and then cut it down to size. A bit of fine tuning and voila.....

113162 113163

Now that all that is done, I can pull out the tunnel, the floor boards and then pull off the firewall pieces to "finish" them before installing all that back again permanently.

[FF33rod]

How to finish the firewall was about as contentious as what the heck colour to paint this beast when it's finished. I had been thinking satin black but for some reason at the last moment I decided on brushed aluminum.
Technique: clamp the pieces to the bench, use sandpaper and emery cloth on any deep scratches that might be in the metal, clamp a sanding guide parallel to the metal piece to ensure my direction of sanding is not random, use 150 grit sandpaper running in a single direction to create the effect I want. My sanding occured in strips a few inches wide so I had to move the guide a few times to cover the whole piece. I spent a few minutes of sanding each strip. Once that was done, I did the same thing again but with WD40 sprayed onto the surface of the metal. This created an effect different from the sandpaper alone and also different from going with a finer grit like 220. For whatever reason, the final finish appealed to me. Once done, a cleaning with acetone and lacquer thinner and then a few coats of Rustoleum satin clear.... Overall I'm happy. Not nearly perfect but hopefully good enough. The satin clear finish is a bit delicate (I didn't bake it) so we will see how well it stands up.

113165 113166

It also occurred to me that end of August is the 1 year anniversary for ordering my kit. Thought I'd be a little further along but I'm not unhappy. :)

TIP: if you want to make quick progress on a build, stop modifying things from the standard kit and upgrading things like hoses, clamps, etc. Just use what ya got... (ok, I'm stating the obvious)

[sethmark]

I think it looks great. The nice thing about these cars it’s all just bits and pieces. If you hate something you can, always throw it away and start again.

The time requirement is an interesting thing. I have been convinced since I started that I could have this car running in two months. Today is August 30 — 57 days since I started. If I spent all day finishing the wiring on the car, i could start it today. But I don’t want to. Finishing the car too fast is starting to make me sad. I enjoy the process and even though motivating my kid to participate has gotten more difficult, I still like working on it with her. I guess that’s why am dragging my feet because I really don’t want to be done.

[TxMike64]

TIP: if you want to make quick progress on a build, stop modifying things from the standard kit and upgrading things like hoses, clamps, etc. Just use what ya got... (ok, I'm stating the obvious)

My idea has been, build the car as is for the most part - just get it built. Then you can always change or upgrade something later. Iterative builds are something I've become accustomed to as an R&D Engineer. "Get it built, use it. Then make worthwhile incremental improvements." This is one reason why the bodywork and interior finish-out are of no concern to me - as far as I'm concerned the body can stay as it's delivered. Build it, drive it, tear it down, rebuild it, drive it, and on and on. But I'm kind of blowing smoke here, as I still haven't cut the check and ordered it yet....

[sethmark]

I share that mentality. I’m not Roy Brizio. I don’t have $175,000 or more to spend on this car. So having the best of everything is also not in the cards.

[NAZ]

FF33Rod, wish I'd have checked your build earlier -- could have given you some feedback on Rustoleum in general and the satin clear specifically. In my experience the satin clear lasts maybe a year exposed to the elements and starts to get cloudy and eventually peel. These panels are a PITA to remove IF you can even get them out once the engine and other items are in place. I've had better luck with Sharkhide on aluminum and it's a lot easier to apply and touch-up years down the road. But I ended up powder coating my firewall and foot well panels -- much more durable for an open engine compartment. Hope your choice of coating works out for you.

BTW, Mike & Seth -- told my wife it would take a few months to build my "kit car". The "kit" didn't survive long before it could no longer be considered a "kit". This build went so far off the reservation it took 2-years to complete. Now somewhere around the three-year mark and one racing season and I'm getting to the pre-planned upgrades. My wife tells me all my projects take twice as long and cost twice as much as I planned. Between scope creep and my very optimistic planned estimated time to complete she's usually right.

[FF33rod]

In my experience the satin clear lasts maybe a year exposed to the elements and starts to get cloudy and eventually peel


Hmmm, well it will be interesting to see what happens. This was actually a recommendation of Kleiner's in a thread specifically on brushed aluminum... They will be a PITA to pull out later if need be but I've made it easier by not adding RTV between them and the frame. I've done the RTV on all the other panels (floors etc) though

[FF33rod]

Okay, so seems like I've been fiddling with them for ever but with the firewall stuff all done in brushed aluminum it was time to finish up the engine compartment plumbing - namely the AC system with drier and the heater hoses and control valve. I did not want ugly black hose so for the AC I ordered Aeroquip steel braided AC hose and fittings (that was not a cheap proposition, see note above about continuously modifying things). Then for the heater hose I ordered Russell Performance nylon braided hose - unfortunately, that was in AN sizing and was not compatible with 5/8 heater hose fittings so I ended up going with Spectre Performance steel braided heater hose and some magna clamps. That thankfully was a more modest investment than the AC section.

Speaking of clamps, the tube clamps that I used to mount the drier and the heater valve to the frame were off Amazon https://www.amazon.ca/House-Tuning-Brackets-Clamps-4-1inch/dp/B071G2VB5R/ref=sr_1_8?keywords=tube+clamps&qid=1568090615&s=gateway&sr=8-8

Build Tip: If you work with a steel braided hose where the braid isn't tightly coupled to the hose (like that of the Spectre Performance), some have complained how it loosens up and is tough to look good. I found that if you used electrical tape wrapped where you are going to cut it and leave that tape on when you add the clamp it is much less likely to "unbraid" on you. The magna clamp covers the end anyway including the tape.

So here are a few pics, pretty pleased with the result. The observant ones in the audience will note that there is still a black rubber hose laying on the ground - this is the radiator overflow which I hadn't connected to the firewall mounted reservoir when I took the pics. As it stands all hoses are inside and above the frame. The only hose that will be below the frame will be the lower radiator hose and that is still above the bottom of the grill. Although it's difficult to see from the pics, there is a fair bit of space between the hoses and the exhaust.

114078 114079 114080

114081 114082

Note that the blue spark plug wires are temporary. Those are an off the shelf set that I used to do the first start. I have black ford racing set that I made up but a couple of the wires have bad connections so need to fix that before putting it back on.

[Michael101]

Hose install looks really clean, nice work!

[MBB Larry]

Where did you get the Frame Bracket for your Dryer Mount?
Thanks

[MBB Larry]

Sorry, I saw the Vendor. Was Canadian, but I found it on Ebay.

[FF33rod]

Here we go, finally go carted. Such a darn fine feeling to have it move under it's own power... can't stop smiling....

https://youtu.be/hD6xSMCt22M

[sethmark]

You built a car!

[Bgardner]

Great job Steve

get a few daily down the road trips in before the rain starts.

[FF33rod]

Great job Steve

get a few daily down the road trips in before the rain starts.

Thanks Bob, there's one neighbour a few houses away that's an arse so I don't want to press my luck unfortunately...

[sethmark]

Steve, definitely drive the car as much as you can. Little things start to show up when you heat cycle a little bit. I’m at 10 or 12 miles now and I’m starting to find things.

[FF33rod]

So had the car out for spins around the block twice. If that doesn't put a smile on your face, you're dead ;)
So, time to get some energy and focus on the dreaded body phase....

Got the chassis back up on jack stands, made sure it was level side to side, and disconnected the gauge panel and tucked it away in a box.
Wifey joined me in the garage and with one of us on each side we went for it.
After a lot of tugging, wiggling, angling, it eventually dropped down quite a ways but stopped short of sitting all the way down. A quick look around and found that the dash had caught the hydraulic clutch hard line and bent it over. It was stopping the body from going all the way down. What a bummer. Bent it out of the way which of course broke it, I "expressed" my disappointment in the situation, made sure wifey understood it was my dumb mistake and moved on :)
With that over, it sat down quite nicely on the top of the firewall and the sides of the chassis.

115809

As I went around the car looking at what was resting on what, I noticed that the body actually needed to move forward another 1/8" or more. However, the tabs on the door hinge mounts were stopping that from happening. I eventually pulled them off but here is what I'm doing to fix the situation....

115811 115813

With that obstruction out of the way, the body moved farther forward and I started to level things out including getting the 45.5" from dash to back deck as described in the manual.

115814

In the end, to get both the front cowl and back deck level, I:
- front cowl was fairly level when it was pushed full down onto the top of the firewall, so I clamped it there
- driver side back deck was high and the distance dash to rear was about 3/4" too much. So as I raised the rear, I did so more on the passenger side than the driver's to even things out and get the right measurement. In the end, I ended up with about 3/8" or so of the passenger side door sill above the frame (a space that doesn't exist on the driver's side). This seems consistent with other experiences I've read.

[FF33rod]

So my good forum friends have said the real fun begins when adding the engine side covers and the hood. They're right.

Long story short.... I placed both side covers on top of the body extension that comes forward (gen 1 body) and low and behold we have 2 situations
- they come to different heights on the grill
- the bottoms stop short of the grill by about an inch or so

115815

The first one isn't too surprising, there are a "few"things that are assymetrical but this can be finessed. The second problem, panels too short, is absolutely ridiculous given this is chassis number 1104. This type of stuff should have been fixed long ago before FFR should be playing with Rat's Glass bodies, a new super car and such.... They do a great job in so many areas and say the practice "continuous improvement"... Okay, rant over...

If I did not have the A/C option, this may not have been a problem. The A/C condenser pushes the radiator closer to the chassis which significantly restricts the adjustment range/angle of the grill assembly. If that range were not restricted, I could probably changes angles and such to get rid of the gap. However, I do have the A/C option and it is sold by FFR so this really shouldn't be occuring. I guess I'm learning how to fiberglass now, hello youtube....

Steve

[sethmark]

Your post made me laugh. I too killed my hydraulic line. Exactly the same reason exactly the same place. I’d love to tell you it gets better, but the bodywork is the challenge. At least for me.

[FF33rod]

So here is Steve's attempt at fiberglassing. So far, I think it's turning out okay. Pretty easy really. I'm posting this as support for newbies that may be apprehensive about it, I was a bit. However, there are many seasoned builders on here that could give us all lessons and point out areas I should have done different.

Steps: cleaned the gel coat, marked the point where I wanted to start the extension, tapered the edge where I was going to add the extension, taped a piece of cardboard and wax paper onto the panel (cardboard took the existing shape of the panel so I'd have close to the same curve), cut a piece of cloth and a few pieces of matt, mixed up some resin and went to town.... Now that is dry, I'll properly add 1 or 2 more pieces of matt to thicken it up and make it stronger...

115938 115939 115940 115941 115942

[tony]

So had the car out for spins around the block twice. If that doesn't put a smile on your face, you're dead ;)
So, time to get some energy and focus on the dreaded body phase....

Got the chassis back up on jack stands, made sure it was level side to side, and disconnected the gauge panel and tucked it away in a box.
Wifey joined me in the garage and with one of us on each side we went for it.
After a lot of tugging, wiggling, angling, it eventually dropped down quite a ways but stopped short of sitting all the way down. A quick look around and found that the dash had caught the hydraulic clutch hard line and bent it over. It was stopping the body from going all the way down. What a bummer. Bent it out of the way which of course broke it, I "expressed" my disappointment in the situation, made sure wifey understood it was my dumb mistake and moved on :)
With that over, it sat down quite nicely on the top of the firewall and the sides of the chassis.

115809

As I went around the car looking at what was resting on what, I noticed that the body actually needed to move forward another 1/8" or more. However, the tabs on the door hinge mounts were stopping that from happening. I eventually pulled them off but here is what I'm doing to fix the situation....



115811 115813

With that obstruction out of the way, the body moved farther forward and I started to level things out including getting the 45.5" from dash to back deck as described in the manual.

115814

In the end, to get both the front cowl and back deck level, I:
- front cowl was fairly level when it was pushed full down onto the top of the firewall, so I clamped it there
- driver side back deck was high and the distance dash to rear was about 3/4" too much. So as I raised the rear, I did so more on the passenger side than the driver's to even things out and get the right measurement. In the end, I ended up with about 3/8" or so of the passenger side door sill above the frame (a space that doesn't exist on the driver's side). This seems consistent with other experiences I've read.


I just got my body on too. My passenger side is up 3/16" like yours. Did you use the original screw holes in the sill to pull it in tight? Or just leave it relaxed and shim. I worry pulling it in would make the door not fit properly and the door would stick out at the bottom

[peterh226]

The body work is really a case of just get in there and do it... For the door support, you can move it fore and aft enough to not have to grind off anything. I ended up doing a lot more fiberglass work then I expected on the Gen 2 lowers. I agree that these are off far enough that the should have resolved in the re-design.

The Gen 2 main body seems really goo and improved. The passenger door seems to be great. The drivers door is a pain in the *** and I may well request a new one once I get to the body work. The Fuel system interference with the body is pretty annoying as well.

This is a kit and you have to make a lot of adjustments to make some of these things work, however, some of these are manufacturing quality issues and a few are design, it would be nice if they were cleaned up.

[FF33rod]

I just got my body on too. My passenger side is up 3/16" like yours. Did you use the original screw holes in the sill to pull it in tight? Or just leave it relaxed and shim. I worry pulling it in would make the door not fit properly and the door would stick out at the bottom

Tony, so far I"ve only drilled holes for the rear wheel well attach points, not the door sills or the firewall. In those areas I'm just using clamps at the moment. However, I do not plan on screwing the side sills all the way to the frame if there is space (and when I clamped them it seems there is some space) as, like you, I'd be concerned of warping the area and causing door fitment issues.

[FF33rod]

So been quite awhile since the last update. I had the body on the chassis for some time and was looking at the fitment and adjustment of most of the other parts to that. After finding that I needed to extend the engine side covers, I added the fiberglass as shown a couple of posts earlier and set that aside. I've been spending hoards of time with the doors. When lining up the outside half moon trim bit on the door with the rest of the body, the drivers side door was about 1/4" too low. Now I know that the top of the door is supposed to be a little bit lower than the rest of the body so that it won't rub on the hard top but we are talking about 5/16 below. I should have taken a pic of this but didn't. I ended up added 1/4" of fiberglass and grinding away some of the original fiberglass so the door could slide far enough back and fit properly with the front cowl and dashboard area. Here's a couple of pics showing the rough work that I had to do....

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Lots of filling and sanding to be done.

Additionally, I found that the chassis I was sent had the striker mount in the location needed for Gen2 - it seems to be a hybrid chassis for some reason with some of the Gen 2 mods made, this being one of them. Unfortunately, the gen 2 location of the striker is a couple of inches higher than Gen 1 so my gen 1 door frame assembly doesn't line up properly with the stiker. After some back and forth with Tony @ FFR, they are making some custom brackets to get things to line up properly

Steve

[FF33rod]

So the gen 1 body quality is not great in some areas. This has been noted numerous times by other builders. If you read the newer gen2 build threads, you see that some improvements have been made but significant problems still exist. It would be nice to see FFR continue to make revisions to get this close to the quality of the roadster. Doors are warped, as noted in previous post door alignment can be way off, the "chin" fitment is hugely challenging, and where different sections of the mold are put together the alignment is off in some areas.

Here is a pic of the area where the main body part of the mold mates with the front firewall area. I've knocked down the flashing and large voids were present, in some cases these "voids" were actually full of clay that I had to dig out.

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Here's a pic of the area with the first round of filler.

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Not shown, but in the dashboard/cowl area this parting line actually has about a 1/8 different in height between the 2 sections - going to be a lot of filler in that area.

Steve

[first time builder]

Make sure to use long release time tape or it will be a bear to get it off/.

[FF33rod]

Just for the record, here's the reason why I had to add a fair bit of fiberglass to the top of the driver's door. After lining up the half moon trim on the door with the body, the top sat far too low and interfered with the door jam....

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[FF33rod]

So without thinking, sometime ago I closed up the access holes in the trunk shelf that would supposedly give access to the trunk hinges and allow to mark up where they attach to the lid. I say supposedly because I'm a bit skeptical that I could have put my arm up through there with the IRS and rear exhaust installed. In any case, here's what I came up with to mark the location, worked great....

1. Install hinges and brackets for the trunk. Make sure the brackets are in the middle of their adjustment range
2. Take a piece of paper a bit bigger than the bracket that attaches to the lid and take a small piece of masking tape to hold it in place on top of the bracket.
3. Carefully trace the bracket details onto the backside of the paper
4. Attach double sided sticky tape on the top side of the paper
5. Put the trunk lid in place and then push each hinge (from passenger compartment side) so they rotate and press the double sided tape and paper against the underside of the trunk lid.
6. Remove the lid and you have your bracket template stuck in the correct spot.... proceed with drilling and placing in rivnuts...

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Worked well

[FF33rod]

Been continuing to grind down the mold flash on the body and hard top. Also been leveling out the cowl and rear deck.

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I wanted something different for tail lights. I had thought I'd put in some flush lights from Hagan but decided that was going to be a bit too much work and I'm already doing a lot more fiberglassing than I had imagined. But I'm pleased with how these turned out.

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[tony]

Tail lights look good. I'm at about your stage too. Boy this body takes a lot of fitting and trimming

[FF33rod]

For the past couple of weeks I've been back and forth on various body parts fitting, trimming, staring, scratching my head and general fiddling. With the exception of the driver's door, I think I'm making progress.

CAUTION: 1/4" Rivet Nuts aren't correct 1/4" rivnuts are included in the kit BUT they are sized appropriately for being installed in quite thin material. The hood and trunk areas where the rivnuts are installed seem to be about 0.2" thick - glass plus metal - so the included rivnuts will not install properly and likely to pull out easily. I've ordered different ones that are for thicker material...

Part of what I've been working on is the trunk and to make things a bit more robust I'm putting in Kootenai Valley's gas strut and reinforcement kit. Quite straight forward and really like how it's firmed up both the trunk and the rear sill where the latch attaches. Before fitting and epoxying these in place I had to make sure that the curvatures were correct. Taking the pieces that embed in the trunk, I held them up to the trunk opening on the body and found they were darn near perfect. For the rear sill reinforcement, I had to cut about 3.5" off each end and then reduce the overall curvature somewhat to get it close to the curvature of the bottom of the trunk and the rear sill. As the instructions say, it doesn't need to be perfect as the panel bond can take care of the imperfections. Also drilled 1/4" holes on the side of the rear sill reinforcement to allow panel bond to enter and help with the overall bond with the body.

Here's a few process shots...
Cut out a slot in the inner panel for the steel reinforcement.

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You need to grind away some excess bonding material on the inside to get the steel piece to fit properly. Note that once you cut these slots, the shape of the trunk is easily changed. Not shown, I used straps to hold it at the right curvature while the panel bond cured.

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Used EverCoat panel bond to epoxy the reinforcements in place and then filled in with Everglass. Will add Rage Gold later to finish off...

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Used the same panel bond to put the rear sill reinforcement in place. May add some fiberglass to help hold it there but that panel bond is strong stuff, don't think it's going anywhere...

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[Tim Whittaker]

As long as you're working on that area, I always suggest to customers that they glass in some 3/4" ( or so ) fiberglass plugs in the area between the the inner and outer skin for the trunk and hood. This give a physical connection between the inner and outer skins. This reduces panel vibration and some some minor strength ans some stiffness. Just a thought .....

[wrp]

We added the strength of the installation by using fasteners on the outer skin, then glassed over them

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[FF33rod]

Been working on a few different aspects of the body in the last few weeks - doors, hard top, engine side panels, hood, chin... I find it beneficial to do a bit of work in one of these areas and then leave it for a bit, when you go back to it you kind of have fresh eyes and different perspective. Stops me from getting impatient and rushing to finish a specific thing. That said, it can create a huge mess in the garage with having multiple things on the go :)

Today I'm going to update the work I've been doing on the "chin" (or nose cone). There's interaction between it, engine side panels, hood, grill and the body rocker panels that extend forward. So before messing with the chin, one has to decide on the correct position to attach the body rocker panel extension to the frame - this is what the majority of the engine side panel sits on. Note I believe Gen 2 is different in this area. So to attach the rocker panel to the frame at the forward position I was concerned about 2 things - making sure both sides were the same distance off the ground (they were) and where to drill the hole in the fiberglass as there is some lateral (in/out) adjustment that you can do.

Shown in this pic is where the rocker would end up if I drilled the hole in a spot that allowed it to be the furthest out. The straight edge is resting on the side of the rocker panel at the firewall end and the other end is on the inner flange of the grill where the engine side panel and chin attaches. Note that the rocker is not far enough out (about 1/2" off as I recall). Since I don't want a "wow" in the rocker or side panel I had to extend the chassis attachment point further out with a piece of steel.

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With the rocker now in the right position, I moved forward with fitting the chin - it was far too wide and hung well below the grill. Bottom line, I had to cut it in half and figure out how much material to take out. The following pic shows it after the it's been cut and the 2 pieces have been temporarily attached to the rocker and the side of the grill.

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After some marking, cutting, sanding and tweaking I finally got to a point where the two halves were working well together and needed to be rejoined. To do that, I drilled a couple of holes at the front and back of each half, to hold it in the right position while I fiberglassed it back together. The cuts that you see I did to help make the part more pliable and form to the front of the grill during fitting. Once I'm happy with the fit of the adjusted part I'll likely fiberglass over those to help with strength and hold the new form better.

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I still will put another couple of layers on it before unscrewing it and making sure it fits (fingers crossed). You may notice that I have cut away some of the glass in the center-rear of the chin, the piece that sits under the lower radiator hose. That's because with the new size and shape of the chin it would have been hitting the hose so I've cut it away.

Will hopefully get this part finished up this weekend.

Steve

[Bgardner]

Been working on a few different aspects of the body in the last few weeks - doors, hard top, engine side panels, hood, chin... I find it beneficial to do a bit of work in one of these areas and then leave it for a bit, when you go back to it you kind of have fresh eyes and different perspective. Stops me from getting impatient and rushing to finish a specific thing. That said, it can create a huge mess in the garage with having multiple things on the go :)

Today I'm going to update the work I've been doing on the "chin" (or nose cone). There's interaction between it, engine side panels, hood, grill and the body rocker panels that extend forward. So before messing with the chin, one has to decide on the correct position to attach the body rocker panel extension to the frame - this is what the majority of the engine side panel sits on. Note I believe Gen 2 is different in this area. So to attach the rocker panel to the frame at the forward position I was concerned about 2 things - making sure both sides were the same distance off the ground (they were) and where to drill the hole in the fiberglass as there is some lateral (in/out) adjustment that you can do.

Shown in this pic is where the rocker would end up if I drilled the hole in a spot that allowed it to be the furthest out. The straight edge is resting on the side of the rocker panel near the panel and the other end is on the inner flange of the grill where the engine side panel and chin attaches. Note that the rocker is not far enough out (about 1/2" off as I recall). Since I don't want a "wow" in the rocker or side panel I had to extend the chassis attachment point further out with a piece of steel.

121773

With the rocker now in the right position, I moved forward with fitting the chin - it was far too wide and hung well below the grill. Bottom line, I had to cut it in half and figure out how much material to take out. The following pic shows it after the it's been cut and the 2 pieces have been temporarily attached to the rocker and the side of the grill.

121774

After some marking, cutting, sanding and tweaking I finally got to a point where the two halves were working well together and needed to be rejoined. To do that, I drilled a couple of holes at the front and back of each half, to hold it in the right position while I fiberglassed it back together. The cuts that you see I did to help make the part more pliable and form to the front of the grill during fitting. Once I'm happy with the fit of the adjusted part I'll likely fiberglass over those to help with strength and hold the new form better.

121775 121776

I still will put another couple of layers on it before unscrewing it and making sure it fits (fingers crossed). You may notice that I have cut away some of the glass in the center-rear of the chin, the piece that sits under the lower radiator hose. That's because with the new size and shape of the chin it would have been hitting the hose so I've cut it away.

Will hopefully get this part finished up this weekend.

Steve

Nice job Steve

As we figured out earlier today I am figuring out the same issue. I did do the engine side panels and hood previously and decided to wait on the nose cone. I will have to do the same and cut the middle out of the nose cone although not as much as you according to the pics. With all the builders assembling or approaching assembly/fabrication a little different and variation in the shape and size of panels we are receiving every build becomes unique.

121806

[FF33rod]

Bob, that isn't that bad but just enough to be annoying I'm sure.

Finished up the rough in of mine yesterday and today. Looks so much better....

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Small gap that some filler will help with, but overall I'm happy

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[FF33rod]

Had a bit of fun today with some customization. Pretty pleased with how it's looking!

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[JOP33]

Had a bit of fun today with some customization. Pretty pleased with how it's looking!

121892

Those turned out sharp Steve!

[wallace18]

Very Nice!

[Michael101]

Had a bit of fun today with some customization. Pretty pleased with how it's looking!

121892

Like it!

[Bgardner]

vents look great

Did you manage to get them functional.

[FF33rod]

yes, no problem. There is a separate plate at the end held in place with just 2 "indents" of the surrounding metal. Couple of touches with the dremel and they're out... Need to fabricate a simple bracket for each to hold them in

[FF33rod]

So after messing around with the doors for weeks (or maybe it was months) they got tossed. The inner shell was too low and too far forward when it was bonded to the outer shell. In the end, the bottom of both doors hit the door sill on the body and was still sticking out too far. So FFR sent me 2 Gen 2 doors. The curvature of the Gen 2 door is slightly different but with a bit of body work I don't think anyone will notice. The Gen 1 door frame bits fit them just fine. However, the doors still required a lot of work. The top of the inner shell is lower than that of the outer shell AND the inside of the door did not line up with the dash curvature. But at least the door fit halfways decent with the body.

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So after a couple of weeks mucking about with HSRF etc I'm finally starting to feel good about it.

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Still requires some finessing but looks one heck of a lot better than the original pieces.

Steve

[sethmark]

Looks good! How did you flatten the seam on top?

[FF33rod]

Brute force - ground down the raised bits and then a layer of Everglass followed by Rage Gold.

[JimLev]

I've got the same problem with the door to dash fit, your 2nd pic.
I've already ground both surfaces down and need to do a lot more, then re-fiber glass it.
Put the front fenders on yesterday, the curvature is way off.

[tony]

I had to do the same reshaping at the cowl to door. seems that's very common. I used evercoat everglass in areas like those prone to chipping.
Luckily, my body is almost done (probably have 150 hrs including mostly fitting panels). Just working onto the waterfall, which WAIT, PAUSE.... doesn't fit very well just like everything else.

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123847

[FF33rod]

With a little bit of trimming, the rear cockpit cover (aka waterfall) fell into place. Using 10-32 rivnuts to hold in place. Quite pleased with the fit around the door (fills up the hinged area) and is pretty close to blending into the door sill. Will probably put another bolt/rivnut down in that area to hold it snug.

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Steve

[wallace18]

Looking Good!:cool:

[FF33rod]

Shaping and filling various body parts and panels is tedious. Seems to go on forever and every once in awhile you stand back and can finally see a bit of progress. Been focused on the fenders the last week or so and that has shown more instant gratification.

So, I have the FFR bike fenders. I chose 315/30R18 rears and 245/40R18 fronts. Both of those have a diameter of around 25.5". The front bike fenders barely fit on these!!! I guess it depends on how much of the fender you want to use but you'll see from the pics below that I wanted a fairly full fender so it would go low at the rear to stop rocks and crap kicking up on the body and also wanted it to come over the top and down the front a bit. It appears that the front bike fender is about a 27" diameter at the fullest (middle) point. So to get the wheel centered in the fender (in order to figure out where to drill the holes in the fender for the fender mount) here is what I did - placed 2 spacers at different spots on the tire and then rested the fender on top.

124808

Taped the fender against the mount and then marked and drilled the holes. I gotta say that I totally lucked out with the centering of the tire in the fender - used the standard spacers that came in the kit and used a 5.5" backspace on the front 9" wide wheel. Bonus!

124809

Okay, so having a fender that's barely larger than the diameter of your tire means that you can't have much of a side lip if you want to be able to change the tire without taking the fender off! Another interdependency that showed up that I hadn't thought of is the size of the brake calipers relative to the wheel. I have the upgraded Wilwood brakes, 6 piston fronts, and although the wheels seem to clear them no problem when they are in place, just wait until you try to put the wheel into a tight fender with those suckers in there! In the end, I decided on a 24.75" diameter opening on the fender. I cut a template out of corrugated plastic and used that to mark the fender and then trimmed it. I can say that I can just barely get the tire in place with that opening. I may open it up a little bit more yet.

124810

Used the profile of an ellipse to shape the leading edge of the front fender

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I think I'm pretty pleased with how that turned out!

Rear fenders - good luck trying to get the rear fender in place using the method shown in the manual. It's impossible to use a jack and a 2x4 to press it in place, the angles just don't work and the 2x4 keeps ejecting itself, at least with the IRS. In the end I got wife to help hold it along with a couple of clamps. So far I've trimmed the rear of the fender, but haven't quite decided how I'm going to trim the front end of the rear fender yet.

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I'm liking it! Man I want to just get in and go cruising....

[JOP33]

We went pretty low on my fenders and only a motorcycle chain thickness off the tire. I only have about 800 miles on the car and have already had peppering on the front of the rear fender. Have thought about installing a sweep strip to drag the ground on the rear of the fronts, but if it ever got caught or tangled it would likely rip the entire fender off. If I really took my time or had a second set of hands, I could probably get my tires off without removing the fenders (front), but every time I have had them off so far, I have removed the fenders (only four bolts on my set-up though). I finally ended up adding Paint Protection Film to all of the fenders (front & rear). Able to drive with a little more piece of mind.

Your build looks awesome!


124852

[FF33rod]

So I've ended up with Gen2 doors for Gen 1 kit. They seem to fit fine and the Gen2 was better quality for sure. At the same time thought it would be a good idea to use the gen2 window trim pieces that sit on the top of the door. So here's the beginning....
Fitted the weatherstrip around the edge

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Marked and cut the hole per the instructions (it appears that these need to be enlarged per PeterH experience...

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Pulled out the aluminum trip pieces to start fitment and found that I have 2 of the same for the driver's side and an identical 2 for the opposite side - can't even come up with right combo for one side, Sigh....

126224

[Bgardner]

Steve

Did FFR send you new felt with the aluminum for the window to cut out in door, the felt for the Gen 1 goes onto the horizontal edge of the door cut out and the aluminum edge would be vertical like the glass.

Do you have instructions for the installation, not sure what the thinking is for securing the aluminum to the fiberglass.


Bob

[FF33rod]

Steve

Did FFR send you new felt with the aluminum for the window to cut out in door, the felt for the Gen 1 goes onto the horizontal edge of the door cut out and the aluminum edge would be vertical like the glass.

Do you have instructions for the installation, not sure what the thinking is for securing the aluminum to the fiberglass.


Bob

Hey Bob, yes new felt came with the Gen2 trim, different profile as you suggest so that it mounts properly. Give Tony an email, FFR seems to be sending small things out at least. I got the last couple of trim pieces to make a proper set. I'll send you the Gen2 manual by email. Installation of the trim is covered on page 513. Basically once the window is positioned right and at the right angle, you fit the aluminum trim accordingly (opening has to be a lot wider than the 7/8" mentioned in the manual). Then I'm going to have to trim the outer shape of the trim to look proper on the door (it goes to the edge in some spots, not in others). Then you hold in place by drilling holes and using flathead bolts - all the manual says actually is "bolt the trim pieces to the top of the door", doesn't have a pic, doesn't say what size,.... :)

[AJT '33]

Hey Bob, yes new felt came with the Gen2 trim, different profile as you suggest so that it mounts properly. Give Tony an email, FFR seems to be sending small things out at least. I got the last couple of trim pieces to make a proper set. I'll send you the Gen2 manual by email. Installation of the trim is covered on page 513. Basically once the window is positioned right and at the right angle, you fit the aluminum trim accordingly (opening has to be a lot wider than the 7/8" mentioned in the manual). Then I'm going to have to trim the outer shape of the trim to look proper on the door (it goes to the edge in some spots, not in others). Then you hold in place by drilling holes and using flathead bolts - all the manual says actually is "bolt the trim pieces to the top of the door", doesn't have a pic, doesn't say what size,.... :)

Have you got any pics of the felt and have your tried to install one side possibly? I am making new ones with 3/4x3/4x1/16" thick aluminum channel with with felts I bought online, it would be interesting to see how your setting this up to possibly give me some better ideas. much appreciated!

[peterh226]

These new aluminum pieces appear like they will do a better job but as far as finishing the top of the door it's a real head scratcher. Not sure if I want to blend in (need to add fill underneath them at a minimum. Maybe powdercoat in a color to blend in with the car? or silver to match other trim? Fillet the edges? So many decisions!!!
For cutting the holes, just use the door, not much point in referring to to top since the hole is so large and the trim pieces cover most of the door top.

[JOP33]

I have the Gen I and I used Dan Ruth's angle pieces, which are similar to what you have shown in your pic (no added hook flange on the end). We ended up drilling holes in the aluminum, placing underneat the fiberglass and panel bonding through holes to the fiberglass. Then used an extreme 3M adhesive to attach the wipe. We installed on both inside and outside and honestly that was a bit too much at first. Very tight on the window and caused issues moving up and down. Works fine now, but really didn't need to add the inner piece.

Sorry, the attached photos are the best I have with me right now...

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127804

[FF33rod]

I got to the point where a number of things that I wanted to do required some wiring to be completed under the body, needed to take the doors apart to get the power window components in there, needed power window wiring completed,... So, all the body components were taken off and I'm back to chassis only again. The intention is to build it up this time so everything is totally functional and will either get it legal or do the final prep for a body shop.

With the body off, I finished fitting and wiring the gauges and added the AC/heat vents to the sides. For the wiring, I took out the wires that weren't needed and shortened up numerous others. Still need to secure the indicator light wiring a bit better

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Finished off the wiring around the tranny tunnel to get ready for a center console. The wire bundle going towards the rear is for the power window switches and the bundle more forward are for the stereo. Still need to figure out how clean up that ball of wire that will be behind the dash.

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Lastly, I needed to add switches to the doors to activate courtesy lights and also needed to add a relay for the door popper on each side (negative activation pulse comes from the Digital Guard Dawg PBS-II system). This pic shows the wiring on the driver's side.

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Steve

[FF33rod]

Didn't have confidence to build my own center console and have it turn out half ways decent. Quite a few of you have done an excellent job for sure.

Here is the bare console, naturally it is overly large so it can be custom fit into different vehicles.

128631

Starting to get fitted over the tunnel, cutout at rear for power window switches

128632

Lovin' the way this is starting to look! The top of the console will need to be trimmed to fit with the bottom of the dash.

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Steve

[JOP33]

That's a nice console Steve! Where did you get that?

[sread]

looks like you got good taste in music:cool:

[wallace18]

Super nice console!:cool:

[shmelty]

I like that console! Where did you pick that up?

[FF33rod]

That's a nice console Steve! Where did you get that?

Thanks, I fell in love with it and hadn't seen anyone else use it although that's hard to believe. I like somewhat unique things (so no one else get one!!!)
I rolled the dice and got lucky. This is from a company with a VERY bad reputation. Has taken lots of money and not delivered. The product is top notch, if you get it. He is using paypal now so I thought that was a bit of insurance and gave it a try. It was promised to ship in a week and it didn't. A week after that and more promises I stopped getting any information back from him in response to my emails and phone calls. Dead silence. A shipping label was created at one point but nothing handed over to the shipping company for over a week. Finally something shipped (5 or 6 weeks in) and I was praying it wasn't a rock. Thankfully, it wasn't. Google these guys and you'll see all sorts of complaints and stories. Numerous complaints to BBB. So with that buyer beware!!! Modern Classics Interiors. Note that the order status page on the web site is bogus, hasn't changed for months. Edit 28 Aug 2020: order status page seems to be changing/updated now, not sure how accurate it is obviously.

[JimLev]

looks like you got good taste in music:cool:

I agree, nice console too.

[Michael101]

Nice looking Steve. I'd looked at those consoles for my Chevelle before but I couldn't get a good enough image from their website or any response from them to make me want to pull the trigger. That thing looks great though.

Bonamassa is one of my favorites too!

[FF33rod]

So problem statement - the AC/heat vents are flat and I want to put them in an area of the dash that has a curve in it...

128817

Decided to try creating a filler wedge, worked pretty good. Although I think it was beginner's luck as the first one went very smooth and so far the second one is kicking my butt.

Placed wax paper on the dash and wrapped the vent in saran wrap....

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Used some Everglass and went for it....

128820

A bit of trimming and voila...

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Steve

[Chris C]

The man has skills!

[JOP33]

Nice job Steve!

[FF33rod]

Well, time to start assembling it again. Had previously trimmed the console to fit properly on the tranny tunnel and now it was time to trim the top of the console to fit properly under the dash. Good news, I didn't screw it up!

129083 129084

Also got the Lokar Door latch cable release kit to go between the Clayton handles and the latch. Managed to find a way to attach it properly to the handle, that was the tricky part.

129085


Steve

[FF33rod]

So the challenge for those of us who want to run with the engine side panels off once in awhile is how to arrange it so we aren't ripping apart all the headlight assembly to change over.
I can't remember where I saw this solution but whoever it was, I think it was a darn good idea and I copied it.

Here's a pic to show the arrangement, I haven't actually finished cutting the panel in two yet. The front section, with the headlights attached will be permanently on the car and the rear section will come off and go on as desired. The brackets are held on both with panel bond as well as 2 x #10 flathead screws coming in from the exterior. Screws are countersunk and will be filled over with EverGlass. Might also put a layer of glass over the aluminum on the inside.

129086

Steve

[AJT '33]

Hey Steve, I split mine by shaping an aluminum insert onto the backside of the panel, then molding off a flange on one side, then once cured I trimmed it a bit cut through the flat, but not the end flange, added tape and then added wax paper on the newly molded flange so when I laminated the other flange it would not stick to it. Once cured i simply cut the the two end flanges then I just cleaned up the flanges to fit as good as possible. I added Rivnuts to the body and non-removable side so I can simply bolt through the flange to add it on. Here are a few pics.
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129097 Temp Bolts to allow for fairing them
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[FF33rod]

Seems like I'm all of a sudden posting regularly. It's so darn nice to be doing something different from cutting, grinding, filling, sanding, filling, sanding, filling,....

As I'm assembling the body back on the chassis, it was time to do the cutouts for the seat belts and see how the rear cockpit trim fit. Turns out 2 of my waterfall attachment points were in the seat belt cutout area, so I had to change that but otherwise, pretty pleased with how this is setting up. It's not going to be perfect or be show quality in the end but that's okay.

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Steve

[JOP33]

Looks great Steve, you probably already have something in your plans for this, but make sure you baffle your speakers somehow on the backside. I just bought some pre-formed Boom-Mat speaker baffles to size off Crutchfield and inserted before the speaker...

129167

[FF33rod]

Yes sir, got them some time ago, sitting in a box around here somewhere! Also just ordered a powered subwoofer to tuck in behind the passenger seat. Was going to wait to hear how things sound but decided it couldn't hurt :)

Cheers
Steve

[JOP33]

Yes, I am already thinking of a bit a re-vamp with regards to speakers...just need a little more clarity at higher volume.

[HVACMAN]

Well, time to start assembling it again. Had previously trimmed the console to fit properly on the tranny tunnel and now it was time to trim the top of the console to fit properly under the dash. Good news, I didn't screw it up!

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Also got the Lokar Door latch cable release kit to go between the Clayton handles and the latch. Managed to find a way to attach it properly to the handle, that was the tricky part.

129085


Steve

Remember to allow for the tunnel carpet. This will change the fit between the console and dash. Ask me how I know. lol

[FF33rod]

Thanks for the reminder, a bit more trimming will have to be had. One of the reasons why I haven't drilled any holes or made any brackets to attach it anywhere. Fits pretty snug at the moment under a bit of compression from the foam-type FFR sound/heat insulation.

Heading towards the doors this weekend and trying to align the power windows - going to be my fave part of the build I'm sure....

Steve

[BC Huselton]

Thanks for the reminder, a bit more trimming will have to be had. One of the reasons why I haven't drilled any holes or made any brackets to attach it anywhere. Fits pretty snug at the moment under a bit of compression from the foam-type FFR sound/heat insulation.

Heading towards the doors this weekend and trying to align the power windows - going to be my fave part of the build I'm sure....

Steve

Just saw you consul...amazing. Did you make it or source it from a vendor?

Where / how to acquire one?

Sorry if I missed a response to this in an earlier post..Thanks, BC

[FF33rod]

Getting more real all the time....

129609

[Bgardner]

Great progress Steve

My build has been on hold for a bit with a few other things going on but hope to get back on it in a couple of weeks

I will get an e-mail off to you and fill you in on what I know about the registration. The 2 main issues I need to figure out will be a mounting place for front licence plate and a front wiper. I was hoping to get the car registered prior to sending off for body and paint but not sure what to do with front windshield as it would need to be in.

[FF33rod]

Thanks Bob, on the wiper you can always borrow my roadster windshield. No reason to have a wiper if there is no top is what inspector told me a year or so ago. :) For the plate mount, I was thinking the bottom part of the grill as well, for something temporary. But the other thought was maybe a light bar mount bracket on the upper control arm extended forwarded and then attached to a plate holder? might not be sturdy enough
https://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B071G2VB5R/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

[FF33rod]

One of the reasons I stripped the body parts off the chassis again was to get all the power window assembly stuff into the doors - if you're going to take the doors off might as well go the rest of the way, right? So now that I'm putting all the pieces back on I've been procrastinating like crazy to avoid the doors and windows. We all know why. They really shouldn't be as difficult as they are. This is about the 4th time I've put them on and I swear they fit different every time. You spend hours and hours farting around and feeling like you aren't making progress. I think the passenger side is a bit closer after some work tonight. The fit at the dashboard is now decent - this is a gen 2 door mating with a gen 1 body and there was a big misalignment with the dash contour that has taken a lot of glass, filler and sanding... Celebrate the small victories!

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Steve

[AJT '33]

One of the reasons I stripped the body parts off the chassis again was to get all the power window assembly stuff into the doors - if you're going to take the doors off might as well go the rest of the way, right? So now that I'm putting all the pieces back on I've been procrastinating like crazy to avoid the doors and windows. We all know why. They really shouldn't be as difficult as they are. This is about the 4th time I've put them on and I swear they fit different every time. You spend hours and hours farting around and feeling like you aren't making progress. I think the passenger side is a bit closer after some work tonight. The fit at the dashboard is now decent - this is a gen 2 door mating with a gen 1 body and there was a big misalignment with the dash contour that has taken a lot of glass, filler and sanding... Celebrate the small victories!

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Steve

Your rough in looks great, interesting to see the wider doors on a Gen 1 body.

[FF33rod]

Passenger side door fitment is not looking too bad. Added the glass for the power windows and ran into a small problem. The support for the vertical edge of the window was too far away from the glass and there's wasn't enough adjustment available to correct it. I ended up adding standoffs to move the vertical channel towards the rear so it would engage and support the glass.

On the driver's side, I had the door all trimmed and working nice. Then when I went to add the window, I couldn't get the window far enough forward to line up with the hard top. The front vertical edge of the glass was hitting the inner fiberglass at the top, where it angles to fit in with the dash. So I've had to push the whole door 1/4"+ forward and then built up the rear of the door to fill in the now much too large gap. Good fun.

Test fit the front and rear glass in the hardtop. Rear fits fine but the front was a bit too big and some grinding had to happen on both the driver and passenger sides to increase the length of the opening. Need to adjust the angles of the power windows now and decide what beltline weatherstripping to use against the windows. Baby steps...

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Steve

[FF33rod]

Actually rolled the car out of the garage today. First time I've taken it out with the body on. Getting close to that day when I drop it at the body shop....

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https://youtu.be/s6tI6fW5WHY

https://youtu.be/FEUEOOoF-IM

[FF33rod]

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[JOP33]

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Where did you get your side vents Steve?

[FF33rod]

Where did you get your side vents Steve?

Sorry Jamie, totally missed your question. They are 1954 Buick portholes (or sometimes called Ventiports). There are a few different shapes depending on year. These had a metal plate blocking them off but a quick touch of the grinder to remove a tab and the plate pops off. http://www.oldbuickparts.com/advanced_search_result.php?keywords=Porthole&search_in_description=1&x=0&y=0

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Steve

[FF33rod]

Wow, almost 2 months since I posted. Really haven't done much on the car since June. There's two reasons for that. We've been vacationing out on the water, we have gorgeous somewhat protected waters here on the west coast of Canada with lots of islands with bays & coves to relax in while in at anchor. But the other reason is the fun part is almost done and the majority of what is left is a real bear to do - aligning the power windows for example! So, I've been procrastinating a lot.

In the past couple of months I have chatted with 2 shops about their doing the final stages of body work and paint. I think I've made a choice, it's a full custom build shop so they don't have an opening until end of the year. That's okay, I can't decide on colour anyway LOL. In the mean time though, I've found a hot rod friendly safety inspector and am putting the paperwork together to get a VIN assigned and the inspection done (as a roadster). Then I can register and insure. Not sure that will all happen while the weather is still nice but a good time to get it done.

What I can share in terms of progress are mirrors! Some of you may have picked up on the oval/elliptical theme I got going on with the Buick ports, AC vents, and interior door handles so it will be no surprise that the mirrors are part of the theme as well. Went with Hagan Flattie for the rear view and Billet Specialties Oblique for the sides. The Hagan is on an extension as the angle of the windshield is so steep the mirror can't be adjusted properly with only 1 point of adjustment

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The angle of the car might look weird in the pics as the rear is up on jack stands while I fix up some of the wire routing to the rear lights.

The other bit of "progress" is that I've now changed out the front springs for 220s. I was going to change the rears on the IRS to 400s thinking that they were 500s but it turns out they're already 400s. So I'll leave it for now and see how it rides initially.

Cheers, Steve

[Michael101]

I like the mirror choices .

Can’t say enough about the console, that thing really looks great

[FF33rod]

Had to take some non-artistic shots for the VIN/Registration process - no angles, no fancy lighting.... Pushing this through as a roadster, better argument as to why there are no windshield wipers (although I may still add them at some point).

You can see my added license plate holder in the rear shot (United Pacific 50187). Has built in backup light and license plate light. Also mounted a backup camera there. For the front, I have a removable STO-N-SHO plate holder on order.

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[FF33rod]

It wasn't until very recently that FFR started including a Charcoal Fuel Vapor Canister with the kit. I didn't get one but wanted to cut down on the gas smell in the garage. I believe it was Pat Landymore that put me onto the canister used for the Fox bodies. I ordered Dorman 911-198 and worked out great. I plugged the smallest vent, one of the large vents and connected the tank vent hose to the 3/8" ID vent. I left the final large vent open but narrowed it slightly with a plastic insert (one of the plugs from the AC system that I drilled out)

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I mounted it on the driver's side under the tank just in behind the cockpit. Sits up in there quite nice...

Steve

[sethmark]

Car looks fantastic!

[FF33rod]

I've been looking for a front license plate bracket that works well and is easily removable. A front license plate is mandatory in our province but I really don't want to permanently mount one. I finally came across something that looks like it will work great. The brand is "Sto N Sho". They make a ton of different versions to different OEM vehicles. I looked through the ones that I could find available on line and rolled the dice on SNS126 - intended for some models of Porsche. I had to bend the front plate a bit but other than that I'm happy with it!! After I ordered it I actually emailed them to see what they would recommend for the '33, I'll update this thread when I hear back from them.

In the mean time, here's what SNS126 looks like with it in place and removed...

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Steve

Update from Sto N Sho: To avoid having to bend the front frame as I did, you can order SNS144 (Roush F150) - it will have a similar base to the SNS126 but with a 90 degree front.

[FF33rod]

I know, I know, having a stereo in these rods makes no sense since they're so darn loud when running. However, I NEED a stereo system (just like I needed all the other stuff I changed up from and added to the kit)!! ;)
Took the passenger seat out and mounted/wired in a Kenwood sub on the cockpit wall. I'm not a thumping, feel it in your bones bass type but it rounds out the sound quite well. Still have some 5-1/4 speakers to go in the doors eventually. With everything tidied up and the seat back in you'll never see it, so here it is before I cleaned up....

135424

Steve

[JOP33]

I know, I know, having a stereo in these rods makes no sense since they're so darn loud when running. However, I NEED a stereo system (just like I needed all the other stuff I changed up from and added to the kit)!! ;)
Took the passenger seat out and mounted/wired in a Kenwood sub on the cockpit wall. I'm not a thumping, feel it in your bones bass type but it rounds out the sound quite well. Still have some 5-1/4 speakers to go in the doors eventually. With everything tidied up and the seat back in you'll never see it, so here it is before I cleaned up....

135424

Steve

I have been shockingly surprised at the quality & volume I have been able to get with just (4) speakers. I was also concerned about the loudness of the vehicle, particularly with the top off, but I have to say it has been a non-issue. I am only running (2) 4-1/2" in the front powered by the stereo and (2) 6-1/2 in the rear powered by a 2x50 amp and the sound is amazing. You will have plenty bump with your set-up - just make sure you keep your fuel line clamps tight from the vibration! ;) Nice job on the insets for the speakers btw!

[AJT '33]

I know, I know, having a stereo in these rods makes no sense since they're so darn loud when running. However, I NEED a stereo system (just like I needed all the other stuff I changed up from and added to the kit)!! ;)
Took the passenger seat out and mounted/wired in a Kenwood sub on the cockpit wall. I'm not a thumping, feel it in your bones bass type but it rounds out the sound quite well. Still have some 5-1/4 speakers to go in the doors eventually. With everything tidied up and the seat back in you'll never see it, so here it is before I cleaned up....

135424

Steve

After deciding to move the battery to the trunk I was able to mount the sub behind the drivers seat in the waterfall. Made a custom speaker box and lined it with Dynamat and some filler to keep the sound throaty and directed. Have 2 speakers in the front with tweeters in the door. Still need to final mount the door speakers but I still have not decided how I will mount my door handles and locate the speakers for clearance to make sure they dont take up space in the car and interfere with my legs and shifting.
135439 You can see the tweeter in the door.
135440 Still need to decide on door handle locations
135441 You can see my 8" sub tucked in behind the drivers seat so it has the best exposure for sound movement and fit

[FF33rod]

Woohoo. My VIN application was approved today! Now I can make my appointment for a safety inspection.

Here's a couple of pics on the fitment of the waterfall at the door jamb. On the passenger side, I have a 10-32 screw holding it on the inside (obstructed by the seat). On the driver's side, I had to put the 10-32 from the top as seen in the pic as it was sitting a bit too high and this pushes it down as well as holding it in alignment with the door outline.

136050 136051

Steve

[FF33rod]

So in prep for the safety inspection next week I installed the horn button last night - didn't work!

The issue is that when pressing the button, it does not make contact with the underlying (internal) connection that it should.
Here's a pic of the underside, the horn wire attaches to this center terminal which is actually a screw whose head is supposed to be the internal contact (shown in adjacent pic)

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Trying to unscrew it didn't work, had to grind off the contact end of the screw and replaced it with a #10 with a few washers under the head to raise it internally. Now it works!

136102

I'd actually like to replace the center section of the horn button with either a plain one or one with a V8 logo on it so if anyone has a lead on a replacement that fits would love to hear it.

Steve

[Bgardner]

Steve great to hear about VIN #

One step closer.

[AJT '33]

So in prep for the safety inspection next week I installed the horn button last night - didn't work!

The issue is that when pressing the button, it does not make contact with the underlying (internal) connection that it should.
Here's a pic of the underside, the horn wire attaches to this center terminal which is actually a screw whose head is supposed to be the internal contact (shown in adjacent pic)

136100 136101

Trying to unscrew it didn't work, had to grind off the contact end of the screw and replaced it with a #10 with a few washers under the head to raise it internally. Now it works!

136102

I'd actually like to replace the center section of the horn button with either a plain one or one with a V8 logo on it so if anyone has a lead on a replacement that fits would love to hear it.

Steve

I had an issue with my horn we could never figure out, when we pressed it we would get a feedback and get shocked, we ended up bypassing it to a separate button on my console, not convenient however better than getting a bad shock. I would have preferred to keep the horn button on the steering so I am not scrambling to press the one in the console.

[FF33rod]

Been doing some work on the trunk, didn't follow the curvature of the body so ended up adding filler on the top and passenger side. Also had to grind down the lower corner on the passenger side to sit flush with the body. Looks pretty good now. Hopefully the body/paint guys will find it acceptable and it won't need too much touch up.

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Also, the rear part (hinged end) of the driver's door was off. With the majority of that door edge sitting flush with the body, the top part was about 1/4" indented from the body. Added filler, still needs some finer work but it's going to turn out fine.

136266

Will continue to finesse the various panels over the next couple of months as I wait my turn for the paint shop. In the mean time, safety inspection is this Thursday. Who knows, maybe I'll just have it legal to take advantage a few sunny autumn days....

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Steve

[RoadRacer]

Good luck!!

[FF33rod]

Well it was a very successful day!!!

Didn't start out that day. Showed up at U-Haul at 7:15 this morning and somehow they botched my reservation. Took them 45 minutes to sort out the paperwork for the pickup and car trailer. The location was a half hour from home so I'm now running into morning rush hour traffic. Saw posts regarding the ramp angle can be a bit steep and you can scrape at the top of the ramp so I put a couple of 2x4s on each side to reduce it a bit, it helped. When I started the hot rod to load it, the belt ripped to shreds - wrapped around various components in the engine compartment. Good thing I had a spare. Got the car up on the trailer and went to put the straps around the front wheels - there wasn't enough room for the straps to go between the fender and the tire so I had to remove the fenders. Finally got on the road and of course there's a traffic accident that bogged down traffic and caused a further delay. Ended up almost a half hour late for my inspection appointment but I had called and gave them a heads up.

The good news, the inspection took about an hour. I have no idea how he checked simple things like horn and headlights because I didn't see him check it but the boxes are checked. The VIN was the the first item to get done and it specifies it as a 33 Ford Replica so they were fine with making sure it conformed to 1933 standards :) Anyways, PASS!!!! what a relief. I had no idea what to expect so was a bit up tight. He commented that the mechanicals looked excellent.

Then he tackled the wheel alignment. It was a computerized system and he clearly new what he was doing, took a little less than an hour.

The final event of the day was getting the car weighed, 2359 lbs (1070 kg). Pretty much what was expected.

Woohoo, now I can take all that documentation to the local insurance guy (we have mandatory government run system) who will register the vehicle in the Province and then can issue me the plates with insurance.
Oh so close!!!!

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[Shades]

Congrats! Good to know about the Uhaul pickup and trailer option. I thought I'd need to have someone come flatbed it, but I might just go that route (when the time comes over a year away). And looks like another reason to make the fenders removeable.

[FF33rod]

Congrats! Good to know about the Uhaul pickup and trailer option. I thought I'd need to have someone come flatbed it, but I might just go that route (when the time comes over a year away). And looks like another reason to make the fenders removeable.

I originally had the front fenders attached with bolts and lock nuts. However, I was unhappy with the lack of clearance between the locknut and the wheel/tire and the fact that I had to remove the wheel to get at those nuts. So I had just changed it to T-nuts a couple of days ago and now it is so easy to remove the fender....

[Bgardner]

Steve

Congrats on achieving this big milestone. Certainly one of the concerns when contemplating doing the car in the first place as there are some things you just have no control over. You must have been wondering what else could go wrong on your trip there.

I am fortunate to have you give me all the ins and out of getting this inspection and registration done and hopefully I'm just a few month behind you. I really appreciate all the info you passed onto me.

Enjoy and take some time to celebrate.

Bob

[j33ptj]

Could you have run the straps through the wheels instead of over the tyre? That would have negated the need to remove the fenders....

[FF33rod]

Could you have run the straps through the wheels instead of over the tyre? That would have negated the need to remove the fenders....

Probably could have BUT the angles would have been weird and no way it would have been the same holding power. With the t-nuts embedded in the fender now it's only a matter of 4 screws on each front fender to remove them

Steve

[sethmark]

Steve, congrats on the progress. Let me make a suggestion for you and everyone else. Buy yourself a set of straps that you can use on the car, no matter the reason. Buy excellent quality straps with whatever assortment of goodies it takes to safely control the vehicle on a trailer... then you have control over methods, preventing costly screw ups.

in particular, I recommend these. They make quick tie down a piece of cake and can be mounted low....

https://www.macscustomtiedowns.com/collections/straps/products/lasso-axle-strap-w-sleeve-121744

[FF33rod]

It's legal!!! Registration, plates and insurance done today. For all you whiners about insurance cost, 3 months was $600. That's the benefit of our government provided insurance system.

As part of the process today I had to get a temporary permit to be able to take the car down to the insurance agent so they could verify that the VIN plate was installed, etc. Today was a dark, rainy fall day and there was a break in the rain thankfully. I only had to 6 blocks but the looks I got were many - not sure if it was because it was a cool car or because I looked like an idiot running around in a roadster when it was about to downpour any second....

Back to the body work...

Steve

[junglejim]

Been keeping up with your build. Looks nice and I can tell you're enjoying the ride. Quick question; I see you're using the Digital Guard Dog keyless ignition. Any comments on it? Ease of installation, performance? I am considering one & would like some input.

[FF33rod]

Been keeping up with your build. Looks nice and I can tell you're enjoying the ride. Quick question; I see you're using the Digital Guard Dog keyless ignition. Any comments on it? Ease of installation, performance? I am considering one & would like some input.

I like it and have no regrets but it's not as intelligent as an OEM keyless system and that frustrates some. The wiring instructions are fine but the description of the operation isn't super complete and takes some experimenting to figure out. Eventually it makes sense.

In a nutshell, the system has a 3 states that it cycles through once you activate it with the fob (which can be a manual process or automatic with proximity detection)
OFF - Accessory - Ignition On - Off

At any point, if you depress the brake and hold the ignition button down for 2 seconds, the engine turns over. At this point, the system assumes the engine is running even if it has stalled for some reason. In any case, you must turn the engine off (whether its running or not) by depressing the brake and holding the ignition button for 2 second. Now you can try to start it again or just walk away and the system times out and shuts off....

Hope that helps

[wallace18]

Congrats!!:cool:

[FF33rod]

It's been ages since I've had the hood off and the scoop on the engine. Love it....

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Will be pulling the Sniper and intake manifold off the engine next week. I've got steam in the exhaust and coolant is disappearing from the cooling system. I had issues lining the intake up properly so I'm pretty sure that's the issue. New gaskets on the way and I'm going to change the bolts to studs. Thankfully, the oil is clear so doesn't look like the coolant is leaking in the block. Good fun. :)

Steve

[FF33rod]

Having tried to fix an engine internal coolant leak twice without any luck I decided I'd do something a lot more fun, back to bodywork! :(

Earlier in this build thread I've documented that I'm holding the bottom of the side panel to the rocker panels with #10 screws into well nuts. I've split the front of the panels so that I don't have to mess with the headlight mounting when I pull the panels off. The one thing I hadn't yet figured out what how to attach the side panels at the cowl. The issue being that the top mount tabs of the side panel would not fit between the cowl and the hood, I had to grind the tabs off entirely. So what I decided to try was a ball and socket arrangement and it's working out well. In the attached photos you will see the ball portion is mounted to the side panel on a standoff. The length an be easily adjusted to get the side panel to line up with the body properly. The socket is mounted on the firewall. In the second picture, showing the outside of the panel and the alignment to the body, you can see a bit of masking tape sticking out part way down. This tape is attached to a rubber bumper that I placed between the panel and the body to help curve the panel to better match the body shape. Works well I think.

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The mount for the ball is just panel bonded at the moment. I'll glass it in as well once I'm happy with the whole thing.

Steve

[FF33rod]

I have to chuckle looking at back at my 22 October post above, wishful thinking that it was a gasket. A lot of water under the bridge, or burned through the engine, since then. Turned out to be a cracked cyliner #1. https://thefactoryfiveforum.com/showthread.php?38384-Making-the-Engine-Decision

So pulled the engine out, huge mistake not removing the grill and radiator. Very difficult to remove engine with tranny attached without removing the front bits. Ended up damaging things. Currently waiting for the engine to come back, should be within the next few days. It's back together and will be put on a dyno to break in and check power. Work done - sleeved #1, overbore all cylinders by another ,01 (now 0.04 total - why the additional overbore> because pressing in the sleeve distorts the adjacent cylinder), new pistons and rings, some small work on the crank to clean it up, new gaskets of course. Will be cool to see what it puts out on the dyno.

In the mean time, when I can muster up some motivation, been block sanding the hood and gapping. Might as well due some basic prep before sending it to the shop in February. Hopefully I'm saving a few dollars and not creating more work that will cost me more ;)

140437

Steve

[FF33rod]

So took the front grill and radiator off in prep for the engine coming back and to repair the damage I did to the grill when I pulled the engine out. Decided to go with the "engine is the jewel" philosophy and change the firewall from brushed aluminum to satin black. Also painting the rad black. Slowly starting to piece this back together so feel like I'm moving forward again....

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Paint used - VHT roll bar and chassis satin black for the radiator, jury is out on how well it matches anything of the other satin black. The pic shows it as pretty glossy but the paint was still wet.

Used SprayMax 2K hot rod satin black for the firewall, matches the chassis perfect, even did some chassis touch ups with it (this is the same as Eastwood 2K rat rod satin black as best as I can tell)

Steve

[peterh226]

Take a picture once the radiator is back on. I like that idea I think!

[FF33rod]

I like how it turned out Peter, think it looks better. Paint match (sheen of the satin) is pretty good too.

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Steve

[peterh226]

Looks good. I was trying to figure out how to keep all that aluminum looking nice anyway.. Thank for the pictures.

[FF33rod]

I guess the engine is back in the car, I ran out of parts to put back...
Starts, comes up to temp and no sign of the "steam engine"!!!

Time to tackle the power windows and get ready to send it for final body prep and paint....

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Steve

[FF33rod]

With the engine back in the car and February fast approaching (my time slot for final body and paint) the last major item to tackle is the Power Windows. This will be at least the third time I've tried to tackle it; the other times ending in frustration and easily finding something else to do :) Spent time yesterday and today on this and in general I'm actually happy with the progress. The passenger side fits much better than the driver's. The issue with the driver's side is that the window is very forward in the door causing the vertical channel at the front of the assembly to interfere with the front door structure. This has required me to grind away some fiberglass inside the door as well as chamfer the corner of the aluminum channel. Required a lot of fiddling.

If you look back in this build thread you will see that the original doors (gen 1) had issues with the alignment of the inner shell with the outer. FFR replaced them with Gen 2 doors and at the same time sent the gen 2 trim pieces for the power windows. Finishes the window opening a bit nicer than the crude gen 1 trim pieces. I also have sourced better (IMO) window felts from Steel Rubber to go on these trim pieces. The aluminum requires a fair bit of reshaping to fit properly but I think it will turn out fairly well in the end.

Fit of the passenger window to the hard top went quite quick, I clearly lucked out. The driver's side, was a different story of course. Due to forward vertical window channel interfering with the door fiberglass, adjustment ranges were very limited. In the end, following the FFR instructions paid off. Had the window up, most of the adjustment bolts loose, pushed the wind against the hard top felts and tightened up the bolts. Still required a little finessing afterward but its darn close.

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Steve

[wallace18]

Looking Good!

[HotrodMike]

Didn't have confidence to build my own center console and have it turn out half ways decent. Quite a few of you have done an excellent job for sure.

Here is the bare console, naturally it is overly large so it can be custom fit into different vehicles.

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Starting to get fitted over the tunnel, cutout at rear for power window switches

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Lovin' the way this is starting to look! The top of the console will need to be trimmed to fit with the bottom of the dash.

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Steve

Good morning Steve,
Your build is coming along nicely, just one question. Is that the "Stiletto Series Part #1006 center console? I really love the way it looks!!

[FF33rod]

Good morning Steve,
Your build is coming along nicely, just one question. Is that the "Stiletto Series Part #1006 center console? I really love the way it looks!!

Thanks Mike, It's getting there! The console is the tall stiletto without cup holder. Be careful with seat position, even though it narrows between the seats it takes up some extra room. I may end up modifying the side of the seat slightly to stop rubbing on it.
Also, please please, do your research on that company. BUYER BEWARE. Lots of commentary on the web about poor customer service and non delivery. Use paypal so you have a chance of recovering your money if things go south. Please read about my experience in post 159 of this thread. That said, its very good quality. Good luck!

[FF33rod]

Fitting the trim around the driver's window today. Requires some cutting and grinding but eventually will look pretty good.

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[FF33rod]

The day that started to feel like it would never come and now it's here!
Feels so weird to have an empty garage after more than 2 years. I've been playing with my mistress in the evenings for so long, I have no idea what my wife does in the evening anymore ;)

How the heck am I ever going to decide on a paint colour? spray out samples here we come....

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Steve

[sethmark]

Huge congrats Steve. I think this is the most important milestone. You’ve achieved!!!

[Bgardner]

Steve

Good to see, exciting times. Timing should be good to get rolling about the same time as we see some good weather. I should be off for paint sometime in March.

Bob

[Brastic]

This build is looking great. Good job.
Quick question about your headlights. Where did you get them and how do you like them?

[FF33rod]

They are what FFR has been shipping with the hot rod and truck kits for the past couple of years now. They seem fine but to be honest I havent driven at night yet

Steve

[Brastic]

Thanks for the reply. I live rural and headlights are a big deal for me. I will call Factory Five up and ask which lights they are using now days.

[FF33rod]

The gents at Wicked Customs are doing a great job and I've learned a few things. First, they really favour the Everglass type of product over Rage Gold for any initial filling. So they're replaced some/most of my Rage Gold work even though it was quite thin (e.g.1/16). They feel it really adds to the longevity. Their comment was the body work I did wasn't bad - okay, I know it wasn't great but I can take a hint ;) I guess I'll chalk it up to a learning experience. Here's a few progress shots

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Steve

[33fromSD]

Might have missed it, what color combo are you going with? Jim

[FF33rod]

LOL, we both missed it! No decision yet. I'm trying to find something in the HOK range similar to Brandywine but not Kandy. I'm thinking reddish, bit darker but pops in the sun, maybe even slightly purplish. Many of the HOK kolors look pretty much identical on the computer so it's hard to decide without seeing them in real life. To that end, Wicked is supposed to be doing a couple of sprayouts for me. One of the Kolors I was interested in on the computer was Wine Glow

[33fromSD]

LOL, we both missed it! No decision yet. I'm trying to find something in the HOK range similar to Brandywine but not Kandy. I'm thinking reddish, bit darker but pops in the sun, maybe even slightly purplish. Many of the HOK kolors look pretty much identical on the computer so it's hard to decide without seeing them in real life. To that end, Wicked is supposed to be doing a couple of sprayouts for me. One of the Kolors I was interested in on the computer was Wine Glow

:o

Wine glow sounds cool......

If your into a slight purplish tint, 2017/2018 Vettes had a color called Black Rose Metalic....stunning in the sun.....a really deep / rich color.

https://www.google.com/search?q=Dark+Rose+Corvette+color&client=safari&sxsrf=ALeKk004ko-F5d8fYqkTi15kEDVjo7U5ZQ:1614824361790&tbm=isch&source=iu&ictx=1&fir=kIFuRUyHRDP3cM%252Cz7A93zQmiNlPkM%252C_&vet=1&usg=AI4_-kS87QX3p-bbITTae-5l7bqZBkCYGA&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjQ19XDyZXvAhUGH80KHa74BW8Q_h16BAgLEAE#i mgrc=kIFuRUyHRDP3cM

Jim

[HotrodMike]

The black radiator looks *****in, first time I have seen anyone paint the radiator black. I will have to keep that in mind as I plan for my build. Your build is coming along great!!

[FF33rod]

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[FF33rod]

Getting rid of the flat spot (might even be concave) in the roof and bonding square tube to the top of the engine side panels so they don't bulge relative to the hood...

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Steve

[RoadRacer]

Looking awesome

[FF33rod]

These are starting to look very similar but I actually went out and had a boo at the progress in person this afternoon and got all excited ;) Wicked Customs is doing an excellent job, straight as an arrow. Should be ready to shoot some Slick Sand on it at the end of the week.

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Steve

[narly1]

Looks like a lot of work is going into that top!

[FF33rod]

That is true. Inner shell wasn't bonded well to the outer shell in spots, voids in behind the gel coat, some of those voids are right on the edges, top was concave in a large section,.... Their comment on the glass work was it's typical for a fiberglass car but off all the pieces, the doors were the best - the doors are gen 2 while everything else was gen 1.

Steve

[33fromSD]

Now that your getting closer with the body prep almost complete, have you settled on your color yet? I know you had some ideas above in the string just curious if your settled on a color yet.

Jim

[FF33rod]

Not super exciting but it's progress. The work is fantastic, bone straight and some of the asymmetry is gone, hood and trunk action is fantastic, doors are solid,.... better than I had hoped.
As for colour, I can say that I'm still looking at red... :)

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Steve

[FF33rod]

More progress
Second spray of Slick Sand, much reduced and thinner this time. Getting close to colour aka color.
Body guy (Doug) has done an excellent job of making this sucker straight and has reworked a lot of the belt line and other features to give them more definition. Looking like it's a steel body now (ok, maybe not quite)

Steve

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[wallace18]

Looking good! It takes lots of work to get them right. :cool:

[FF33rod]

I believe we have a winner, Has some pop in the sun and in the shade/night is reminiscent of the vintage non-metallic burgundy colour.
The good news, it isn't a tri-coat nor HOK, rather it's an OEM colour

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[narly1]

Nice to see some updates...I was wondering how the bodywork and paint was progressing.

[Chris C]

What car is that color from?

[Chris C]

That really looks great!

[Bgardner]

More progress
Second spray of Slick Sand, much reduced and thinner this time. Getting close to colour aka color.
Body guy (Doug) has done an excellent job of making this sucker straight and has reworked a lot of the belt line and other features to give them more definition. Looking like it's a steel body now (ok, maybe not quite)

Steve

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Looking good Steve. exciting times

[FF33rod]

Last pics before colour.

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Steve