The Brew City Cobra - 427W / IRS - Trans Cover Leather and Custom Shifter Install

[BrewCityCobra]

I’ve been meaning to kick this off for a while – no better time than the present I suppose. I’m a bit behind but will try to put together a few posts to get me up to date.

Step one, goals. The major plan is to build a Cobra emphasizing a few points:

1) A summer cruiser that I can drive to and from work during the (too-short) Wisconsin summer;
2) Hopefully clean enough to bring to a show or two and not be too embarrassed to open the hood; and
3) Be able to bring it to 3 or 4 track days a year.

So with build goals in mind, the build specs are as follows:

Complete Kit Specs:
- Powder Coated Chassis
- Hydraulic Clutch Master Cylinder Kit
- Body Cutouts
- Black Vinyl Roadster Seats
- Power Steering Kit
- Gauge Delete
- Exhaust Delete
- Blank Dash
- IRS

FFR Options:
- [[17" Halibrand (with 10.5" rears)]] - NOW 18" Halibrand Wheels
- Chrome Drive and Passenger roll bars
- Willwood Front and Rear Brakes
- Front and Rear Sway bars

Drivetrain (from Forte):
- [[427W w/ Dart Block]] - NOW 427W w/ Ford BOSS Block
- TKX Trans w/ 2.87 First and 0.81 5th.
- Carbureted
- Forte Hydraulic Clutch Kit
- Forte Mechanical Throttle Linkage
- Quicktime Bell Housing
- [[Midshift Kit]] - NOW Traditional shift position.
- 3.55:1 Torsen IRS Rear End

Other Scheduled Options/Mods:
- Wind Wings
- Breeze Radiator Shroud
- Gas-N Side Pipes
- Driveshaft Loop
- Dropped Trunk Floor
- Footbox Air Vents
- Relocated Battery (Breeze)
- Russ Thompson Turn Signal Kit
- Detachable Steering Wheel
- Speedhut Gauges (w/ Legacy shift-light Tach)

I’m sure some mods and other features will be added/removed as time goes on.

But with the initials set, the first step of this odyssey is to get the garage ready to go - namely - Heat!

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[edwardb]

Looks like a fun build. You've done your homework on that engine/trans/diff ratio combination? That's a lot of engine for a 3.55 and .81 5th. You're going to see very short gears and high RPM at cruise IMO. If you're positive you want that 5th ratio, maybe go to a 3.31 diff? Or if you want the best of both worlds, a T-56 with .80 5th and .63 6th. Would fit with your IRS Roadster.

[Jim1855]

My earlier cars were similar to your indicated configuration.

427w 540hp/530tqe, TKO-600 .064 mid shift, 3.27 gears in the T-Bird 8.8. 275/315 17s, 780cfm ProSystems double pumper, no choke.

My current Challenge Car build will have the same motor and trans unless I change to the TKX or T56. Forte built an aluminum, Torsen 3.31 diff. BTW the new 2015 Super 8.8 uses 3.31 not 3.27 gears, not a big change.

55k miles on first car 10k on second. Lots of city, country roads, highways, cross country, rain, hail, sleet & snow. About a dozen track events at Gingerman, Grattan, and VIR-South Track. I always drive to the track, got trailered home once.

I like the .64 OD, cruises better, 2,200 @ 80. 4th gear on the track and just spin it, good for 140 easy. Ran 11.8/120 qtr. On the indicated tracks I ran all in 3rd & 4th but in one turn at Grattan I grabbed 2nd, pivoted and then ran up the climbing S. Not the best way but was great fun. First gear roll-on at 2,500 lit up the tires and rev limiter.

If you are considering track use, HPDE assumed, a full width bar and the forward diagonal to the passenger side frame tube may make the track official happy. I find the full width bar affords a better rearward view as well. SVT, Olthoff, Porsche officials passed my cars through tech w/o issues with the full width bars. Only the Miata group declined entrance but I think this was more due to a disparity in power rather than the roll bar height.

Enjoy your build and plans. Keep those cards, letters and questions coming.

Jim

[460.465USMC]

Hello BrewCity. Welcome! Looks like you've done your homework to put your options together (I don't have any comments on your gear ratio--I'll leave that to the experts). Only long after I ordered my kit did I become aware of being able to delete options. Did F5 offer you a credit for the deletions? If so, that's pretty cool. If I had known, I would have also deleted the F5 exhaust in favor of ordering from a forum vendor.

Glad you were able to put in garage heat. My wife and I recently built a house a few years ago, and I was able to finagle a gas heater for the garage. Makes a world of difference for the cold winters here in Spokane--though not as cold as Wisconsin...burrrrr!!

Again, welcome to the Roadster build forum! Glad to see you kicking off your project.

[BrewCityCobra]

Looks like a fun build. You've done your homework on that engine/trans/diff ratio combination? That's a lot of engine for a 3.55 and .81 5th. You're going to see very short gears and high RPM at cruise IMO. If you're positive you want that 5th ratio, maybe go to a 3.31 diff? Or if you want the best of both worlds, a T-56 with .80 5th and .63 6th. Would fit with your IRS Roadster.

In short - not yet. I am still in the process of nailing down the exact transmission specs. The ones I listed on my spec list were those originally given to me by Mike. That said, the 3.55 rear diff is already purchased and prepped so I'd hope to avoid any changes on that end.

I was playing around with the Tremec RPM calculator in view of everybody's comments here and it looks like I would be running a bit over 3,000-ish RPM for highway cruising (80 MPH). I'm hoping to drive this thing to the track and to shows so that probably isn't acceptable. Looks like the 0.68 5th would produce a much more acceptable 2500 RPM for 80 MPH.

Edward, you said that I'd have short shifts all around with this setup. If I went with the 0.68 5th - that seems like it would solve the highway/cruising problem but do you think the TKX will be too steep all around with a 3.55?

[BrewCityCobra]

My earlier cars were similar to your indicated configuration.

427w 540hp/530tqe, TKO-600 .064 mid shift, 3.27 gears in the T-Bird 8.8. 275/315 17s, 780cfm ProSystems double pumper, no choke.

My current Challenge Car build will have the same motor and trans unless I change to the TKX or T56. Forte built an aluminum, Torsen 3.31 diff. BTW the new 2015 Super 8.8 uses 3.31 not 3.27 gears, not a big change.

55k miles on first car 10k on second. Lots of city, country roads, highways, cross country, rain, hail, sleet & snow. About a dozen track events at Gingerman, Grattan, and VIR-South Track. I always drive to the track, got trailered home once.

I like the .64 OD, cruises better, 2,200 @ 80. 4th gear on the track and just spin it, good for 140 easy. Ran 11.8/120 qtr. On the indicated tracks I ran all in 3rd & 4th but in one turn at Grattan I grabbed 2nd, pivoted and then ran up the climbing S. Not the best way but was great fun. First gear roll-on at 2,500 lit up the tires and rev limiter.

If you are considering track use, HPDE assumed, a full width bar and the forward diagonal to the passenger side frame tube may make the track official happy. I find the full width bar affords a better rearward view as well. SVT, Olthoff, Porsche officials passed my cars through tech w/o issues with the full width bars. Only the Miata group declined entrance but I think this was more due to a disparity in power rather than the roll bar height.

Enjoy your build and plans. Keep those cards, letters and questions coming.

Jim

Appreciate the info. Sounds like I may be a bit steep on my diff ratio (that has already been installed) but I did pick the 3.55 to make sure I could always swap in new gears if absolutely needed. Always good to hear other people are tracking these things as well. And yes, HPDE/ is the goal.

[edwardb]

In short - not yet. I am still in the process of nailing down the exact transmission specs. The ones I listed on my spec list were those originally given to me by Mike. That said, the 3.55 rear diff is already purchased and prepped so I'd hope to avoid any changes on that end.

I was playing around with the Tremec RPM calculator in view of everybody's comments here and it looks like I would be running a bit over 3,000-ish RPM for highway cruising (80 MPH). I'm hoping to drive this thing to the track and to shows so that probably isn't acceptable. Looks like the 0.68 5th would produce a much more acceptable 2500 RPM for 80 MPH.

Edward, you said that I'd have short shifts all around with this setup. If I went with the 0.68 5th - that seems like it would solve the highway/cruising problem but do you think the TKX will be too steep all around with a 3.55?

The 0.68 5th is the main point IMO. With the numbers you can see why I suggested it. Been there done that and 0.81 5th isn't ideal for cruising. You have plenty of engine and could handle the 3.31 diff. But since you already have the 3.55 it's fine. Probably the most common and for good reason. Yes, it will shift a bit short but that's not unusual with these cars. You can change it down the road if you want. But I suspect you'll get used to it and it will be fine.

[BrewCityCobra]

Catch-up #1 – Delivery / Inventory / IRS Prep

So to catch up on a few items, my build has been a bit “out of order” as COVID has caused my backorder list to be a bit longer than what I assume is normal. Understandable given the times but the vast majority of the missing parts were suspension and brake related so it made it a bit difficult to get started on the chassis items right away. That said, FFR was very forthcoming with information during the entire process so I thank them for that!

So first up was getting everything into the garage, organized, and inventoried. Pretty standard fare.

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With the panels removed and marked, the first actual building task was to prepare the IRS knuckles and differential from a Mustang 3.55 Torsen rear end I had purchased ahead of time.

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Like many before, the idea of cutting off a large chunk of my newly acquired IRS parts was a bit daunting. I was a bit frustrated that the cutting line (e.g., right in front of the rear threaded hole) caused the cut itself to pass through one or the threaded apertures to produce a “scar” on the newly formed cut surface. Nothing I can do about it now (I don’t want to remove that much material to remove it) but I guess for future reference cutting behind that hole would have been better aesthetically. Live and learn.

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Once the knuckles and differential were prepped, my father helped by spraying the aluminum portions in clear coat and the steel in black epoxy. I was very happy with the end results.

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[Fman]

Don't loose any sleep over that cut, you will never see that once the wheel is on the car.

Nice progress!

[BrewCityCobra]

Update #2 – Front Suspension

So apparently sometimes good things come in very large packages. About a month and a half after ordering the kit I was graced by an entire pallet of parts – including the much-needed suspension elements, rims, engine mounts and the like. The Wilwood brake kit also arrive around the same time. Now we are cookin!

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With the suspension and brake parts in hand – it was finally time to start getting the chassis put together. But first, obligatory Wilwood safety wire photos:

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For the most part, the suspension assembly was pretty straight forward. I ended up going with the Howe ball joints which are incredibly precise and smooth. Probably more than what I needed – but this car will be seeing the track so I figured that excuse was good enough to pop for the extra bucks.

The only major setback was a result of my own error where I galled one of the bolts connecting the upper control arms to the chassis. Instead of using a screwdriver to hold the nut in place I had used a thin sheet of sheetmetal. Bad Idea. Apparently the sheetmetal was a bit too thick as it ultimately against the bolt causing the threads to gall and made it an absolute pain to pull back apart. Lesson learned.

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FFR was nice enough to send me a new one and we were ultimately able to get the front suspension in place – which begs the question – can somebody please confirm that I got the upper control arms install properly? Everything look OK?

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Unfortunately the power steering rack isn’t in yet so I can’t dig into that yet but we did have the front roll bar so we installed that all at once.

Anyways – good progress and exciting to see some actual equipment attached to the chassis. IRS update to follow shortly.

[JB in NOVA]

Since you're running power steering, you may want to think about trimming the rear UCA sleeves. See: https://thefactoryfiveforum.com/showthread.php?27330-Unable-to-get-enough-Caster-amp-Camber

[BrewCityCobra]

Since you're running power steering, you may want to think about trimming the rear UCA sleeves. See: https://thefactoryfiveforum.com/showthread.php?27330-Unable-to-get-enough-Caster-amp-Camber

Agreed, I was planning on doing that but a band-saw breakage put that on hold for now. Hopefully it can be accomplished without having to pull too much of what I've already assembled apart.

[BrewCityCobra]

Aaaanndd. Setback #2. While preparing the gas tank I cracked the white bushing that the tank vent screws into (below). Any idea if this is a standard Ford part I can order or am I stuck going back to FFR for another one?

I had considered trying to fix it since the crack does not extend along the entire length of the part with super glue but I'm hesitant to mess with anything "gas tank" related.

Thoughts?

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[edwardb]

Or buy an upgraded part from Breeze and have it in a couple days. https://www.breezeautomotive.com/shop/big-bore-vent-check-valve-kit/. IMO, don't try to fix it. Gas fumes won't be friendly to the repair or you.

[BrewCityCobra]

Or buy an upgraded part from Breeze and have it in a couple days. https://www.breezeautomotive.com/shop/big-bore-vent-check-valve-kit/. IMO, don't try to fix it. Gas fumes won't be friendly to the repair or you.

Sold! Exactly what I was looking for. Not sure I would have been able to sleep soundly if I was on the hook for repairing it.

[Railroad]

The white plastic bushing should have been put in the tank first, then the vent fixture.
It looks like you tried to put them in the tank after put together.

[BrewCityCobra]

The white plastic bushing should have been put in the tank first, then the vent fixture.
It looks like you tried to put them in the tank after put together.

Unfortunately you hit the nail on the head. The instructions had said to screw the brass vent into the white piece using a vise and then putting the resulting assembly in the tank. I was just a bit over-zealous with how far I screwed it down and it cracked.

[BrewCityCobra]

Well the strange situations keep on coming. I was getting ready to mount the gas tank when I noticed that the mounting brackets don't seem right. They both hit the frame before they come anywhere near the second mounting point and would require significant bending to fit. The second and third photos I have below are me pushing the brackets until they interfere with the frame.

Can anybody confirm that I received the wrong part? Am I missing something?

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[Fman]

Those brackets are correct, yep you bend them around the bottom of tank and tighten them down. I ran a little longer bolt on one side to make it easier to capture the bracket and nut.

[hineas]

Exactly what Fman said. Mine were the same way and I just bent them as I installed it. I ended up buying a longer bolt for one side as well as the one that came with the kit was too short. I recommend getting a socket head cap screw because you can't get a wrench into the area to tighten the bolt, but you can get an allen wrench into the area.

[edwardb]

X3. Bend 'em. Went through that on my truck build a few weeks ago. Out of the box they hit the frame just like yours. Haven't seen that before. Must be a new vendor or whatever. But no big deal.

[BrewCityCobra]

Thanks guys - much appreciated. Bending shouldn't be that big a deal, just wanted to make sure before I bent something beyond recognition in case I had to go back to FFR.

[BrewCityCobra]

Had a pretty productive weekend. My father and I were able to complete the front and rear brake lines all in stainless. We actually made it a bit bigger of a job than originally needed as we first ran the car in the coated steel lines that came with the kit to work out the pathways and any other gremlins and then again in stainless once all the bugs had been worked out.

Hopefully filling and bleeding to follow shortly.

A few photos of our layout:

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[Fman]

Very nice work, those stainless lines look great.

[BrewCityCobra]

So I have a pair of questions for the group to help finish up a few nagging projects I have outstanding. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

1) I purchased a used rear clip for my IRS setup. I did some digging and I'm 90% sure it is from an automatic Performance Pack Mustang (the final product is a 3.55 Torsen, photo of the identifying label is below) so the "clear" adapter plate should be appropriate. However, since I'm not 100% sure (and so I can avoid any undue damage) is there anything I should be looking out for while installing the plate to make sure I'm using the correct one? I'd hate to strip some threads or bottom out a bolt because I have the wrong plate and mistakenly thought my diff was out of an automatic.

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2) My plan is to rivet the brake and gas lines to the 4" tubes once I've finalized everything - but given the location of those mounts I'm a bit concerned about corrosion since i've now drilled holes into the 4" tubes and they are exposed below the car. Is there anything people are doing to help minimize corrosion in those areas? I was thinking possibly stainless rivets? Is some kind of sealer necessary?

[edwardb]

The "3L55" number positively confirms it's a 3.55. Been there done that. As for confirming it's a Torsen, my 3.73 Torsen in the Coupe is marked GR3W 4000 BA. So similar to your part number but not sure can assume anything. Quick search and can't find the part number for either. Bottom line, if it's from an '18 or newer Mustang with a Performance Pack, almost for sure Torsen. If nothing else, you'll probably be able to tell when you start driving it. They do like to clack around a bit. :p

As for the driveshaft adapter plate, pretty sure if you have the wrong one the holes won't even line up. Been there and done that too. Just watch the length on the screws. The ones FF supplied for my Roadster bottomed out before tighening all the way. Several got into trouble with that. The ones they provided for my Coupe only engaged about half the threads. Didn't like that either. I shortened longer ones to use the maximum thread without bottoming out.

As for the holes in your frame, personally I wouldn't worry about it. Stainless rivets wouldn't hurt anything, but not sure it's necessary. For mine, I tapped the holes and used SS button head screws. Nothing magical about that either. Just my preference. I did use a little Loctite on the threads, so perhaps provides a little sealing action. My take on this subject is it's not going to be a concern for the life of the vehicle. Hundreds of places the frame is drilled for rivets (or screws) without any added protection.

[Hoooper]

If the main housing of the diff is aluminum its from an auto, if its cast iron its from a manual, unless its a PP. What year did it come from?

[BrewCityCobra]

If the main housing of the diff is aluminum its from an auto, if its cast iron its from a manual, unless its a PP. What year did it come from?

According to the seller it is from a PP, 2018+ generation. The housing is Iron.

[BrewCityCobra]

The "3L55" number positively confirms it's a 3.55. Been there done that. As for confirming it's a Torsen, my 3.73 Torsen in the Coupe is marked GR3W 4000 BA. So similar to your part number but not sure can assume anything. Quick search and can't find the part number for either. Bottom line, if it's from an '18 or newer Mustang with a Performance Pack, almost for sure Torsen. If nothing else, you'll probably be able to tell when you start driving it. They do like to clack around a bit. :p

As for the driveshaft adapter plate, pretty sure if you have the wrong one the holes won't even line up. Been there and done that too. Just watch the length on the screws. The ones FF supplied for my Roadster bottomed out before tighening all the way. Several got into trouble with that. The ones they provided for my Coupe only engaged about half the threads. Didn't like that either. I shortened longer ones to use the maximum thread without bottoming out.

As for the holes in your frame, personally I wouldn't worry about it. Stainless rivets wouldn't hurt anything, but not sure it's necessary. For mine, I tapped the holes and used SS button head screws. Nothing magical about that either. Just my preference. I did use a little Loctite on the threads, so perhaps provides a little sealing action. My take on this subject is it's not going to be a concern for the life of the vehicle. Hundreds of places the frame is drilled for rivets (or screws) without any added protection.

Thanks for the input on the plate side. I'll make sure to keep an eye out for how long those bolts run (need to run a tap through them as well).

As for the rivets, just another classic example of having the time to overthink everything I suppose. I'll have to consider the drill/tap method as well. May look a bit better with the size of the holes in those insulated hold-downs.

[Hoooper]

According to the seller it is from a PP, 2018+ generation. The housing is Iron.

Yeah if thats the case it doesnt really tell you much. 2018+ a PP could be automatic and would have the cast iron diff.

[BrewCityCobra]

So big news this week was a minor change on the build spec - I ended up sending back the 17" rims I had originally ordered with the Kit and instead ordered a set of 18" halibrands offered by FFR.

The reason basically came down to tire availability. I wanted to be able to autocross from time to time (and potentially time attack some day) and wasn't too keen on being sent up to the top unlimited classes if I did. For all the research I had done before purchasing the kit I didn't really dig too deep into what tire options would be available (a mistake) and more specifically failed to appreciate that the TOYO R88Rs were 100tw and basically the only performance tire available.

That said, the 18's should give me at least a few options for 200tw and the R888R's will still be an option. Lesson learned.

CAM-S or Bust!

[msbrown6]

Nice garage. Hope you got heat. Here in Idaho that's an issue too. Fun build thread.

[BrewCityCobra]

Another update from the garage. I've been in and out of town the last few weeks so time in the garage has been a bit limited. That said, the time I have been able to spend has been spent getting the panels drilled and placed - and drilled - and drilled - and drilled. So far I have the front (engine compartment) and cockpit panels in place and will be sending the front panels off for powder coating as soon as I'm somewhat comfortable that no more major holes or adjustments are needed. A few photos on the panels below:

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I have to admit that I'm very impressed with how well the panels fit and how little modification was needed to get everything in place. Cudos to FFR.

That said, I did have a quick question/concern I was wondering what the forum thought. My two F-panels have an awfully shallow bend on the flange to which the elephant ears are attached (photos below). I was wondering if I should increase that bend a bit before getting the panels powder coated as I don't want to damage the coating by altering the panels too much after they are finished. If so, does anybody have an idea as to what angle that bend typically is?

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[egchewy79]

Another update from the garage. I've been in and out of town the last few weeks so time in the garage has been a bit limited. That said, the time I have been able to spend has been spent getting the panels drilled and placed - and drilled - and drilled - and drilled. So far I have the front (engine compartment) and cockpit panels in place and will be sending the front panels off for powder coating as soon as I'm somewhat comfortable that no more major holes or adjustments are needed. A few photos on the panels below:

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I have to admit that I'm very impressed with how well the panels fit and how little modification was needed to get everything in place. Cudos to FFR.

That said, I did have a quick question/concern I was wondering what the forum thought. My two F-panels have an awfully shallow bend on the flange to which the elephant ears are attached (photos below). I was wondering if I should increase that bend a bit before getting the panels powder coated as I don't want to damage the coating by altering the panels too much after they are finished. If so, does anybody have an idea as to what angle that bend typically is?

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you could always do a quick fit of the body to see how far off you might be. I used spray on bed liner and had to bend things a bit without any flaking of the paint. I'm sure the PC will be much more durable.

[BrewCityCobra]

you could always do a quick fit of the body to see how far off you might be. I used spray on bed liner and had to bend things a bit without any flaking of the paint. I'm sure the PC will be much more durable.

Good point, I suppose I can give that a try. I figure so long as I'm close now that should be good enough to get the panels coated - then some small adjustments can be made later for final assembly.

[edwardb]

That said, I did have a quick question/concern I was wondering what the forum thought. My two F-panels have an awfully shallow bend on the flange to which the elephant ears are attached (photos below). I was wondering if I should increase that bend a bit before getting the panels powder coated as I don't want to damage the coating by altering the panels too much after they are finished. If so, does anybody have an idea as to what angle that bend typically is?

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That bend is maybe slightly soft. But if so, not much. You won't be able to easily adjust the bend on the F-panel after it's attached. If necessary, you can add a very light bend on the front of the splash guard. Without going crazy, slight bends can be added or adjusted on PC'd parts. Do it all the time. But you won't know anything about that splash guard fit until you have the body mounted into it's final location. They typically take some tweaking and or trimming to get just right. Your experience may vary. Personally, I'd wait until then to do much more.

[BrewCityCobra]

That bend is maybe slightly soft. But if so, not much. You won't be able to easily adjust the bend on the F-panel after it's attached. If necessary, you can add a very light bend on the front of the splash guard. Without going crazy, slight bends can be added or adjusted on PC'd parts. Do it all the time. But you won't know anything about that splash guard fit until you have the body mounted into it's final location. They typically take some tweaking and or trimming to get just right. Your experience may vary. Personally, I'd wait until then to do much more.

That is reassuring to hear. I thought they looked shallow but had no real point of reference aside from some photos on here. If that is the case I'll probably just let them be for now, get them powder coated as is, and worry about making any changes in final fitment.

Thanks!

[BrewCityCobra]

So garage time was a bit split over the past few weekends as my father and I are attempting to simultaneously replace the water pump on the 944 to get it ready for track duty and keep progress going on the Roadster. It is quite the juxtaposition to switch from the Roadster, where everything is clean – new – and I have ample clearance to work on things, to the 944 which is dirty – old – and absolutely no clearance anywhere.

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That said, on the Roadster front I was able to finally get the emergency brake system installed and finalized. Of all the systems I’ve encountered so far, this is by far the least – shall I say – refined of those provided by FFR. I ended up making two (relatively standard) changes. The first was to use Wilwood brake cables, and the second was to incorporate the “pulley-mod” so I could run the cables over the 4” tube instead of under.

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I had contemplated also extending the bottom leg of the e-brake handle but ultimately decided against it as the current setup appears to work fine and I don’t have immediate access to a welder (and would have to re-paint the handle even if I did). The downside is that the cable bracket does “rub” against the bottom of the handle mount but I think I can live with it for now.

As for mounting the handle itself, I followed the general consensus of the board and flipped around the bolts/mounting order to give as much clearance from the transmission tunnel as possible and did a little trimming to the aluminum. One other change I did was to adjust the angle of the brackets (open up the rear bracket and close up the front bracket) so that the handle itself is slightly tilted away from the tunnel. This change seemed to provide the greatest gains on the clearance front so I kept it. With the handle disengaged you can’t really tell but it does cause the handle to travel a bit into the passenger area when it is engaged. I figured that shouldn’t be too much of an issue and was worth the trade-off so I could keep the aluminum trimming to a minimum.

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I was also able to finally get the gas tank installed. Again, this was mostly standard with the only major changes being 1) replacing the vent with an upgraded unit from Breeze (I accidentally broke the stock vent provided by FFR), and replacing the stock pickup for an in-tank pump (Holley EFI) I got from Forte’s.

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[nucjd19]

Brew..... I just LOVE your 944. My older brother had a 944 ( Champagne color) when I was a teenager and I was just in love with it and anything Porsche ( actually to this day if I could find a good quality 928 I would snatch it up). Back to the Roadster. I have really enjoyed catching up on your build thread. Great job man!!!! Keep it up!

[460.465USMC]

That said, on the Roadster front I was able to finally get the emergency brake system installed and finalized. Of all the systems I’ve encountered so far, this is by far the least – shall I say – refined of those provided by FFR. I ended up making two (relatively standard) changes. The first was to use Wilwood brake cables, and the second was to incorporate the “pulley-mod” so I could run the cables over the 4” tube instead of under.


Hi BrewCity. Did you have to modify the Wilwood cables you used, or did they fit well out of the box? Also, where did you source them?

Thanks for posting your e-brake pictures. I will be tackling this soon. I also did the Edwardb pulley mod, and from your pictures now see I probably should have left my transmission tunnel panels just Cleco'd in place until I have the e-brake installed.

[BrewCityCobra]

Hi BrewCity. Did you have to modify the Wilwood cables you used, or did they fit well out of the box? Also, where did you source them?

Thanks for posting your e-brake pictures. I will be tackling this soon. I also did the Edwardb pulley mod, and from your pictures now see I probably should have left my transmission tunnel panels just Cleco'd in place until I have the e-brake installed.


Chris,

Yeah, I had to shorten the length of the "sheath" on the cables so they would end at the bracket just above the rear diff input shaft. To do so I removed the cable from the sheath and then cut the sheath with a cutoff wheel. I was surprised how thick those things are. I haven't done so yet but eventually I'll need to shorten the cables themselves as well but I'm waiting a bit as Wilwood recommends actuating the system a few times to allow the cables to stretch and settle in a little. Once I'm comfortable I'm done adjusting the cables I'll cut those as well. The extra length makes it a lot easier to handle and manipulate them for now.

As for sourcing - I actually just ordered them from Amazon "Wilwood 330-9371 Parking Brake Cable Kit." That model number has the correct "barrel" style end that jives with the Wilwood-style e-brake calipers that come with the Wilwood rear brake kit for the IRS.

I think you should be fine with the panels instaled so long as you have the pulleys in place. I ultimately trimmed my aluminum in place before removing the panels for powdercoating.

[BrewCityCobra]

It has been a few weeks so I figured I’d provide another update.

The past few weekends were primarily spent trying to fit and drill the front aluminum panels so I could send them off to the powder coaters. Speaking of which – the panels are officially being coated. Decided to go with a grey/black textured look (below). Excited to see how they turn out.

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As for the fitment issues, the first project was finding a location for the master cut-off switch and the brake bias knob. The plan is to mount the battery in the forward location (using the Breeze kit) so a "forward" mounted cut-off switch seemed appropriate (I also happen to like the look of the cutoff switch below the dash and plan to mount a fire extinguisher between the seats). I also wanted to keep the bias knob accessible but no too prominent. In the end I decided to place both on the central panel below dash. I have a plan to run the brake bias knob cable through the wiring harness grommets, so I guess I'll have to wait and see how that works out.

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Second, was locating the throttle linkage and fuel regulator. For the throttle linkage I followed the advice given on the main page (thanks to everybody for all the great photos and insight) and decided to mount both heim joints on the square member extending across the frame instead of mounting to the fire wall alone. I had to do a bit of guessing on the left/right location since I don't have an engine for reference yet. For the hardware change I ditched the bolts that came with the kit and used two, 3" long 3/8”-24 stainless rounded head screws. Hopefully the direct mount will give a bit more stability to the assembly.

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For the fuel regulator I, again, relied on photos and such from the boards to try to find a good location without an engine for reference. Nothing too crazy, just a standard passenger-side location. Since the mount was to the firewall sheetmetal alone – I ultimately decided to add a support bracket on the back side to reinforce the mount and give the regulator a bit of additional support. I'll be cleaning up the bracket once the sheet metal is installed for good.

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Finally, I also wanted to address the small gap on the driver side footbox. I always felt the overlapping panel FFR provides looked a bit off so I went about preparing a “flush” mounted panel to help with aesthetics a bit. I also tried to minimize the number of rivets involved where possible. It will be interesting to see how it looks after the powder coat comes back.

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All-in-all there has been some small, but incremental, progress over the past few weeks. Next major steps are to take care of the remaining projects I want to have complete before I start permanently attaching panels (e.g., the gas lines; gas pedal stop; clutch stop; radiator mount; and the like).

If there are any other assemblies or parts I should make sure to get installed before I install the cockpit and engine compartment aluminum panels please let me know. I've tried to think through everything but I know how easy it is to miss a step.

[Fman]

On your bias adjuster just a heads up this is about the only way I could figure out how to install the 90 degree fitting. It will not fit on the other side of the bias bar. Just make sure the cable can be routed to end up in this location.

Build is looking great, keep up the good work!:D

https://thefactoryfiveforum.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=143322&d=1614143358

[BrewCityCobra]

On your bias adjuster just a heads up this is about the only way I could figure out how to install the 90 degree fitting. It will not fit on the other side of the bias bar. Just make sure the cable can be routed to end up in this location.

Build is looking great, keep up the good work!:D

https://thefactoryfiveforum.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=143322&d=1614143358

I appreciate the pic. I have the same Tilton 90 degree coupler but wasn't sure how to mount it without it interfering with the throttle linkage and such. This looks promising. I'll give it a try.

[BrewCityCobra]

With the panels due for delivery in the next few days, I have a few questions for the group regarding sound-deadening and undercoating.

I've done a good amount of reading on the pluses and minuses for the internal coating of the cockpit, specifically the dynamat vs. lizard skin discussions and am still working out which direction to go on that front. Right now I'm leaning toward Lizard skin but have not pulled the trigger yet.

That said, the big question I have right now is what to do with the underside of the cockpit panels that are exposed below the vehicle and to the wheel wells. Like many, I've only had the front panels powdercoated (basically firewall forward) so the panels forming the majority of the cockpit and all of the trunk panels are bare aluminum. How are people treating these? Should I just leave them un-coated or is there a stronger coating (Like Raptor liner) that could work? I'm a bit skidish to try any type of paint as I figure it will just chip and look even worse than nothing at all.

Any help/guidance would be greatly appreciated.

-Brew

[Blitzboy54]

I left mine un coated and put thermotech on the inside for heat. For me, if you can't see it I don't really care that much. It's not going to rust.

[edwardb]

With the panels due for delivery in the next few days, I have a few questions for the group regarding sound-deadening and undercoating.

I've done a good amount of reading on the pluses and minuses for the internal coating of the cockpit, specifically the dynamat vs. lizard skin discussions and am still working out which direction to go on that front. Right now I'm leaning toward Lizard skin but have not pulled the trigger yet.

That said, the big question I have right now is what to do with the underside of the cockpit panels that are exposed below the vehicle and to the wheel wells. Like many, I've only had the front panels powdercoated (basically firewall forward) so the panels forming the majority of the cockpit and all of the trunk panels are bare aluminum. How are people treating these? Should I just leave them un-coated or is there a stronger coating (Like Raptor liner) that could work? I'm a bit skidish to try any type of paint as I figure it will just chip and look even worse than nothing at all.

Any help/guidance would be greatly appreciated.

-Brew

Like many other aspects of the build, just depends on what you want. Many leave them bare aluminum and that's OK. Will will fade a little as it oxidizes, but still holds up fine. I'm not a fan of painting the tins, so agree with your opinion there. Some do put undercoat on the underside panels. My thoughts there are if you do that, use a durable one like UPOL Rapter. Some of the other solvent or water based ones aren't nearly so durable. The disadvantage from my standpoint is that (1) not really much is gained by having it there, and (2) it's difficult to keep clean if that's what you expect. I personally powder coat all the panels, including the underside, because my definition of what's visible includes the underside. But I know many don't share that opinion.

[Fman]

I also used thermo tech cool mat on my entire car every panel has it for heat and sound deadening. I would encourage you to add as much heat barrier as possible, especially with a 427. I have been battling footbox heat and engine compartment heat since driving the car in warmer conditions. The FFR 351w headers on the drivers footbox are only about 3/4" away from the alum paneling which generates a lot of radiant heat which turns into conductive heat when the panels start to heat up. It slowly starts to spread through everything metal on the footbox. Plug off every seam and hole that you can. Anything you can do to reduce engine compartment heat will also benefit your footbox heat.

[BrewCityCobra]

Like many other aspects of the build, just depends on what you want. Many leave them bare aluminum and that's OK. Will will fade a little as it oxidizes, but still holds up fine. I'm not a fan of painting the tins, so agree with your opinion there. Some do put undercoat on the underside panels. My thoughts there are if you do that, use a durable one like UPOL Rapter. Some of the other solvent or water based ones aren't nearly so durable. The disadvantage from my standpoint is that (1) not really much is gained by having it there, and (2) it's difficult to keep clean if that's what you expect. I personally powder coat all the panels, including the underside, because my definition of what's visible includes the underside. But I know many don't share that opinion.

So it sounds like the main choices here are 1) bite the bullet on costs and have all of the panels powder coated, or 2) just leave the lower sides as is. That's good to know.

I'll have to do some thinking on that front. Thanks for the insight.

[BrewCityCobra]

I also used thermo tech cool mat on my entire car every panel has it for heat and sound deadening. I would encourage you to add as much heat barrier as possible, especially with a 427. I have been battling footbox heat and engine compartment heat since driving the car in warmer conditions. The FFR 351w headers on the drivers footbox are only about 3/4" away from the alum paneling which generates a lot of radiant heat which turns into conductive heat when the panels start to heat up. It slowly starts to spread through everything metal on the footbox. Plug off every seam and hole that you can. Anything you can do to reduce engine compartment heat will also benefit your footbox heat.

Actually interesting that you bring up heat, I was just having a discussion with my dad and we were trying to decide if it is worth adding the footbox blowers or not. One of the things we discussed was whether the heat in the footbox itself was really that bad or not. This seems to indicate that including the blowers may be more important than I originally thought.

I'll make sure to keep that in mind as we add shielding.

[BrewCityCobra]

With the panels still out at the powder coaters I decided to try to tackle the fuel system and lines. As a bit of background, the engine was originally going to run a mechanical fuel pump but I ultimately decided to go with a Holley in-tank electric fuel pump and Aeromotive return-style regulator. As for the lines, the hard lines are 3/8" stainless lines from InlineTube while the corresponding flexible hoses are -6AN PTFE style from Aeromotive. I'm not sure if the upgrade to PTFE was really necessary seeing as I probably won't be running anything exotic fuel-wise but I figured it was an easy way to check one less "worry" off my list and it is supposed to help cut down on gas smell in the garage.

Finally, I also decided to run a canister style fuel filter from Aeromotive with a 10 micron element. I understand that may be a bit fine for a carbureted setup, but it should be able to flow plenty so I don't think it will be a problem.

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[Fman]

Well done, nice job on running those stainless lines. I am using the same Aeromotive fuel filter with EFI and no issues at all (58psi). You can also pick up a fuel pressure gauge to mount on the regulator, kind of nice to have item that takes away the guessing game for fuel pressure.

[BrewCityCobra]

Well done, nice job on running those stainless lines. I am using the same Aeromotive fuel filter with EFI and no issues at all (58psi). You can also pick up a fuel pressure gauge to mount on the regulator, kind of nice to have item that takes away the guessing game for fuel pressure.

Good call on the gauge - did you need an adapter for the 1.5" gauges to fit on the 3/8" NPT?

Also, I was snooping through your build thread and really liked the stainless mesh assembly you used to protect the radiator. Quick question - did you use anything as padding between the mesh and the radiator itself? I was a bit concerned about what vibrations would do with the back of the rivets rubbing against the fins of the radiator.

[BrewCityCobra]

So a quick update on the "engine" front.

As many of you are likely aware - Dart has been extremely difficult to get any parts from. To the point where I had put in my order with Mike Forte for a Dart 427W short block back in Jan/Feb and have still have no idea when it might be available. So with that in mind, Mike was kind enough to work with me and I'll be swapping out the Dart short block for a Ford BOSS 427W short block with the remainder of the build staying the same. From the bits of research I did and speaking with Mike it appears the BOSS should be more than up to the task and is roughly on par with the Dart SHP. I figured COVID was going to hit this build one way or another and it looks like it finally struck. That said, I believe either block would result in a strong build regardless (fingers crossed).

Anyways - the panels have officially come back from the powder coaters so I should have some good updates on that front here in the next few weeks.

[BadAsp427]

That BOSS 427 is going to be just fine... just be cautious with the right pedal...

[Fman]

Good call on the gauge - did you need an adapter for the 1.5" gauges to fit on the 3/8" NPT?

Also, I was snooping through your build thread and really liked the stainless mesh assembly you used to protect the radiator. Quick question - did you use anything as padding between the mesh and the radiator itself? I was a bit concerned about what vibrations would do with the back of the rivets rubbing against the fins of the radiator.

This is the gauge I am using should just thread right into the Aeromotive pressure regulator.
https://www.motionraceworks.com/products/aeromotive-15633-0-100-psi-fuel-pressure-gauge-w-pressure-relief-button-1-8-npt?currency=USD&utm_medium=cpc&utm_source=google&utm_campaign=Google%20Shopping&gclid=CjwKCAjwgviIBhBkEiwA10D2j1SmflkQHWmFDOr6NlMM l4o5la6hvf5nCm_evrjcHPC_-JXaXT9CaxoCAuAQAvD_BwE

[BrewCityCobra]

----Deleted as the schematics included are old and not up to date------

[BrewCityCobra]

So with the electrical...ummm....in progress, the next big project to complete was some odds-and-ends around the driver side footbox before I started attaching the panels permanently. The big items I wanted to complete before the panels went on were 1) a gas-pedal travel stop, 2) a clutch travel stop, and 3) triple reservoirs for the brake system.

For the two travel stops I decided to call upon McMaster for help. I knew I wanted both stops to be somewhat adjustable, rubberized, and strong (figuring there is a good chance I may be a bit over-zealous with the pedals during a track session from time to time). I ultimately decided to use some rubber bumpers (via McMaster), some scrap angle iron for the clutch pedal bracket, and threaded rod for the job. I have both set as far back as possible right now but can thread out the bumpers if needed. The results seem pretty strong and I didn't see any flex when I pushed on the pedals to test, plus the rubber stoppers make for a good feel with no abrasion.

Clutch Pedal Stop:

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Gas Pedal Stop:

158390158391

As for the reservoirs, I decided to stick with the reservoirs provided by FFR. I was actually quite impressed with the quality of the supplied reservoirs – they were much nicer than I had anticipated. I actually had purchased Forte’s triple reservoir before my kit arrived but the individual reservoirs themselves just felt a bit small for my liking and didn’t quite have the look I was going for. As for the assembly I ultimately fabricated, I used a piece of angle iron as a mounting bracket and inter-locked the individual reservoirs so they were as close as possible. To give a bit more "finished" look, I used some blue and red faux connectors on the underside to help dress up the hose clamps. I couldn't seem to locate any braided hose that I was confident would hold up to the brake fluid so I tried to do the best I could with the black hose provided by Wilwood.

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[Straversi]

I can't tell from your photos, but you might want to check the spacing on your brake reservoirs. Once the body is installed it might be a little tight since the body overhangs the frame a bit.

I used Wilwood reservoirs (prior to FFR upgrading theirs). Similar style mount, but the Wilwood caps are smaller. I mounted mine like yours as you can see in the body-off photo.

https://thefactoryfiveforum.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=78852&d=1515436855

In the body-on photo you can see how the body pushes into the reservoirs. I lucked out because of the smaller caps.

https://thefactoryfiveforum.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=133878&d=1597858900

Build is looking good.
-Steve

[Jessew]

It’s been a while since my last post (work has been crazy) so I have a few updates that I will be posting here soon, but first I wanted to see what the group thought of my electrical schematics I put together as I was hoping to order the parts to get this going sooner rather than later. I’m primarily concerned with my wire and fuse sizes so I don't burn the whole car down. I also thought, if these prove successful, that it would be good to have them on record here on the forum in case others want to delete the headlight switch or design a cutoff switch "engine compartment" harness.

For a bit of context, I was hoping to design the electrical system to accomplish a few different goals:

1) Include a “master-cutoff” switch that would isolate both the battery and the Alternator from the entire system when disengaged.

2) Mega-Fuse the alternator in case of failure so it won’t fry the battery or anything else in the system.

3) Mega-Fuse the battery feed so I don’t have to worry about the main feed lines grounding out without protection.

4) Replace the “pull-style” headlight switch with a pair of lucas style switches and accompanying circuitry.

5) Add a secondary fuse panel to power “always on” accessories such as the charging ports, the headlight circuit, and the trunk lights.

6) While not shown, I plan on using the “heater” circuit for the heated seats so they can only be used when the key is engaged.

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156868 if you put the master cutoff on the ground side of your battery, it isolates everything and you don’t have full battery amperage at the switch. It’s a bit safer.

[BrewCityCobra]

I can't tell from your photos, but you might want to check the spacing on your brake reservoirs. Once the body is installed it might be a little tight since the body overhangs the frame a bit.

I used Wilwood reservoirs (prior to FFR upgrading theirs). Similar style mount, but the Wilwood caps are smaller. I mounted mine like yours as you can see in the body-off photo.

https://thefactoryfiveforum.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=78852&d=1515436855

In the body-on photo you can see how the body pushes into the reservoirs. I lucked out because of the smaller caps.

https://thefactoryfiveforum.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=133878&d=1597858900

Build is looking good.
-Steve

Steve - Appreciate the heads up. Do you happen to know how far away from the frame your caps are?

I think the photo I uploaded makes mine look a bit closer than they really are (see below) - but I did a quick measure today and it looks like I have about 5/8" of gap between the frame and the caps. Hopefully that is enough.

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[BrewCityCobra]

if you put the master cutoff on the ground side of your battery, it isolates everything and you don’t have full battery amperage at the switch. It’s a bit safer.

That's a good point, I'll have to consider that as I finalize things. Appreciate the input.

[Straversi]

Steve - Appreciate the heads up. Do you happen to know how far away from the frame your caps are?

I think the photo I uploaded makes mine look a bit closer than they really are (see below) - but I did a quick measure today and it looks like I have about 5/8" of gap between the frame and the caps. Hopefully that is enough.

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Good, you should be fine. My body overhangs the frame by 3/8”. My caps are 1/2” away. I thought you might be flush looking at your first photos.
-Steve

[Ted G]

So with the electrical...ummm....in progress, the next big project to complete was some odds-and-ends around the driver side footbox before I started attaching the panels permanently. The big items I wanted to complete before the panels went on were 1) a gas-pedal travel stop, 2) a clutch travel stop, and 3) triple reservoirs for the brake system.

For the two travel stops I decided to call upon McMaster for help. I knew I wanted both stops to be somewhat adjustable, rubberized, and strong (figuring there is a good chance I may be a bit over-zealous with the pedals during a track session from time to time). I ultimately decided to use some rubber bumpers (via McMaster), some scrap angle iron for the clutch pedal bracket, and threaded rod for the job. I have both set as far back as possible right now but can thread out the bumpers if needed. The results seem pretty strong and I didn't see any flex when I pushed on the pedals to test, plus the rubber stoppers make for a good feel with no abrasion.

Clutch Pedal Stop:

158389158388158387

Gas Pedal Stop:

158390158391

As for the reservoirs, I decided to stick with the reservoirs provided by FFR. I was actually quite impressed with the quality of the supplied reservoirs – they were much nicer than I had anticipated. I actually had purchased Forte’s triple reservoir before my kit arrived but the individual reservoirs themselves just felt a bit small for my liking and didn’t quite have the look I was going for. As for the assembly I ultimately fabricated, I used a piece of angle iron as a mounting bracket and inter-locked the individual reservoirs so they were as close as possible. To give a bit more "finished" look, I used some blue and red faux connectors on the underside to help dress up the hose clamps. I couldn't seem to locate any braided hose that I was confident would hold up to the brake fluid so I tried to do the best I could with the black hose provided by Wilwood.

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Looks great! I like the reservoir set up; did you have to purchase extra reservoirs from FFR? I am assuming they provide just one brake reservoir and one clutch reservoir. Looks like a good deal at $67 each too. Thanks in advance!

[BrewCityCobra]

Looks great! I like the reservoir set up; did you have to purchase extra reservoirs from FFR? I am assuming they provide just one brake reservoir and one clutch reservoir. Looks like a good deal at $67 each too. Thanks in advance!

Much appreciated. So I ultimately was able to find somebody on the forum who was willing to sell one they weren't using so that helped me save a few bucks (so many people seem to replace their reservoirs that I figured somebody had to have one laying around). That said, if I couldn't get somebody to bite my plan was to order direct from FFR. For how expensive some of those billet reservoirs are $70 bucks is good and cheap.

[460.465USMC]

Hi Brew. I like how you staggered the F5 reservoirs. Turned out nice! I, too, bought a third F5 reservoir from a forum member, but installed it on the firewall over concern about extending too far forward of the DS FB. Looking good!

[BrewCityCobra]

Now the car is starting to get some bulk! A pair of big updates on the build front.

First - the engine has officially arrived! I have to thank Mike Forte for all of his assistance in getting this thing built and delivered - especially with all the supply chain issues through the pandemic. Really excited to get this thing in the car and fired up. The final build specs ended up being:

Ford BOSS 427 block and bottom end.
Weiand Stealth Intake
AFR aluminum heads
Quick Fuel Carb.
QuickTime Bell housing.
Tremec TKX transmission with standard shift location.
Ended up just shy of 500 HP and about 530 Ft./Lbs. of torque.

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Second, the powder coated panels finally came in and got installed. Again, I have to give FFR props for how well everything fit. I was expecting to have to either accept big gaps or reform a bunch of panels and none of that was necessary. Everything fell into place quite nicely. I learned pretty quickly that you needed to work fast and have a BUNCH of paper towels ready to clean up all of the excess silicone but in the end I was happy with how everything came out. I’ll eventually be spraying Lizard skin in the cockpit and in the trunk so stay tuned to see how that goes.

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For a bit of background, I ended up deciding to powder coat everything from the firewall forward - keeping the “cockpit” panels plain. I figure by the time all of the carpet is installed and the wheel well inserts are in place the only pieces of raw aluminum that should be exposed are the small areas below the floor ahead of the seats. The rest should be covered. This was a purely budgetary decision as I would have preferred to powder coat all of the panels but I figured this was the best trade off I could see.

Also, for the engine compartment I chose to go with the black rivets from McMaster - just really liked the look.

Trunk is up next.

[BrewCityCobra]

So the next big project on the list was the trunk. Like many, my plan was to fabricate some form of drop-trunk to help increase the storage capacity a bit. I also wanted to install lights and a charging port.

That said, after doing some initial investigating into the various kits available online (and examples I saw in build threads). I decided to vary a bit from the standard drop box configuration by anchoring the sidewalls of the drop box on the metal cross-bars instead of attaching items to sheetmetal alone. Kind of a win-win as it also allowed us to expand the box itself to more readily fit the available space and added a bit of strength. For depth, we decided to position the floor of the box as low as possible so it would actually rest on the top of the gas tank itself (using some adhesive rubber strips from McMaster for cushioning). The obvious downside being that I’m going to have to figure out how to tastefully cover the ends of those 2x4” steel members when it comes to the carpet phase - I’ll cross the bridge when I get there.

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The second phase was to add a charger port to the trunk area and install a switch for some future trunk lights. I was able to locate a charger panel online (Amazon I believe) that had one traditional port, two USB style ports, and a switch. I also purchased some waterproof LED boat lights (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07H1CFK8B?psc=1&ref=ppx_yo2_dt_b_product_details) that I plan on using both in the trunk and as courtesy lights in the cockpit in the future. The plan is to have the chargers constantly hot with the switch operating the trunk lights.

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I don’t have the lights wired quite yet (photos to follow) but wanted to show a picture of the panel installed. I thought it turned out pretty good and should provide a perfect “lockable place” for me to charge phones, and the like and allow me to walk away from the car while doing so.

Next step…lizard skin.

[BrewCityCobra]

While I wait for the Wisconsin winter to settle down a bit so I can have a reasonable chance of heating my garage up to the requisite 70 degrees for Lizard Skin application I decided to take on a few side projects that needed to be taken care of before I can get the engine put in.

First, I started putting together the "battery" harness in the engine compartment and installing the Breeze front battery box. The battery box was a relatively straight-forward installation. I had my father paint everything in epoxy first for a bit of a cleaner look (and hopefully some durability). Boy are those 3/8” stainless rivets an absolute bear. I had my pneumatic rivet gun break off one of the studs mid-way through and only my manual rivet tool would grab on. Not easy. But in the end everything got where it needed to go and I have to say, it is in there solid. No way that thing is going anywhere.

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Second was the harness itself. Many thanks to the main board whose help was instrumental in allowing me to finalize my circuit design. The big strokes here are:

1) A protected alternator feed (via the resettable 200 Amp circuit breaker);
2) Complete power isolation via the battery disconnect (both alternator and battery).

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I ended up not including the second circuit breaker for the positive terminal of the battery and a few other complications I deemed unnecessary. Simple is good. Simple doesn’t break.

For the wires themselves, I have had the joy of fishing out a broken tap in the 4” frame rail (not fun) while trying to install the clamps but otherwise I really like how things are coming together.

Also decided to cover all the wires individually with a fiberglass wrap to help cope with the heat given how close the harness gets to the headers. I was torn between the fiberglass (better for heat but less wear resistance) and the standard corrugated plastic looms (less heat more wear resistance). I think this should turn out pretty good though as I’ve seen plenty of people on the forum run their wires in this area without issue.

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As a side note, I decided to go with soldered joints as I don’t have the necessary crimper for connectors this size. Hopefully they are sufficient although the first two went on a bit less than ideally. I’m not sure if there is an easy way to test these things to make sure I have a good connection but I have been putting them in a vise and giving them a pretty good tug to make sure they are firm. So far so good. I guess I’ll just have to wait until the first start to make sure everything holds up.

[jiriza84641]

Build is looking fantastic.

[BrewCityCobra]

So question to the group. I'm trying to run wires to some lights I'm planning on installing in the trunk (post to follow) but wasn't sure how (and if) the body actually lays on the hoop extending across the upper shelf of the trunk (see below). The installation manual appears to show that the body does not rest on there but I just wanted to make sure as I am not in a position to put the shell on at this time.

For those of you that have run wires across here - how did you do it? I was thinking of running the wires along the back of the hoop but wasn't sure how to best avoid the hinges for the trunk. Does anybody have a good photo showing how they did this - or if not - showing how the body and hinges are mounted in that area? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Some photos showing how I have my wires currently mocked-up are below:

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[BrewCityCobra]

Another quick update before the big lizard skin spraying this weekend (if all goes to plan, fingers crossed).

In addition to adding the drop trunk as discussed above we decided that it was worth adding interior panels to the side-walls of the upper shelf portion of the trunk to aid with the carpet installation and just provide an overall cleaner look. While doing so, we thought it would also be helpful to try to incorporate some trunk lights into the upper panels. You’ll notice we were also able to incorporate a pair of lights into the side-walls of the lower shelf as well. The electrical system is still in its infancy but I was able to charge the circuit for some testing and have to admit I was quite happy with how the light coverage turned out. The lights are controlled by the switch in the charging panel (the left-most element as shown in the third photo). The two charging elements are also now wired and ready to go. Both circuits (the trunk lights and the charging elements) will ultimately be powered by an auxiliary fuse panel but that project will have to wait for another day.

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[BrewCityCobra]

Happy to announce another big step - lizard skin application complete. I’ve been a bit nervous about this given all the moving parts but in the end I was very happy with the result. Time will tell on how much sound and heat protection this stuff provides but a quick wrap with my knuckles on the panels does appear to confirm a more “solid” sound – certainly less tin-can-y.

I do have to admit I over-estimated the ability of this stuff to fill cracks during the first coat of the sound deadner. After the first coat dried I ended up going back and re-applying aluminum tape everywhere I could see sunlight. In the end the aluminum tape and lizard skin worked together nicely to fill in all the gaps but it probably would have been best for me to do so right off the bat. So future build tip – use aluminum tape to cover all the gaps before applying your first coat.

I know Edward B has a great analysis / instruction regarding lizard skin so I won’t go into too much detail here aside from including copious photos.

Time to tackle the wiring and the dash….

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[460.465USMC]

Nice job on the Lizard skin. I wasn't brave enough to go that route, but yours looks really good. You have some serious lighting in your trunk. It's a good reminder for me to add something to mine to light up the Breeze cubby area I will be installing.

[JohnK]

Nice work on the Lizard Skin. That turned out great.

[facultyofmusic]

Another quick update before the big lizard skin spraying this weekend (if all goes to plan, fingers crossed).

In addition to adding the drop trunk as discussed above we decided that it was worth adding interior panels to the side-walls of the upper shelf portion of the trunk to aid with the carpet installation and just provide an overall cleaner look. While doing so, we thought it would also be helpful to try to incorporate some trunk lights into the upper panels. You’ll notice we were also able to incorporate a pair of lights into the side-walls of the lower shelf as well. The electrical system is still in its infancy but I was able to charge the circuit for some testing and have to admit I was quite happy with how the light coverage turned out. The lights are controlled by the switch in the charging panel (the left-most element as shown in the third photo). The two charging elements are also now wired and ready to go. Both circuits (the trunk lights and the charging elements) will ultimately be powered by an auxiliary fuse panel but that project will have to wait for another day.

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Dude I love those aux power outlets in the trunk. Nicely done! How's that wired on the other side? Are you using weatherpack connectors?

[BrewCityCobra]

Nice job on the Lizard skin. I wasn't brave enough to go that route, but yours looks really good. You have some serious lighting in your trunk. It's a good reminder for me to add something to mine to light up the Breeze cubby area I will be installing.

My dad has been helping me with this build and we considered the Lizard skin spraying a "tier 1" event worthy of effectively locking ourselves in the garage for a weekend and the following Monday. It actually went on easier than I anticipated but we were ready to put a layer of Dynamat on top of everything if things went south.

[BrewCityCobra]

Dude I love those aux power outlets in the trunk. Nicely done! How's that wired on the other side? Are you using weatherpack connectors?

Thanks, I figured it would be the perfect location if you needed to charge your phone at a show or something - just throw your phone in the trunk and lock the door and you can walk away.

I used a weatherpack to connect the "mini-harness" to the main rear harness so I can ultimately remove everything as a unit (there is another weatherpack not in this picture that attaches the switch to the light harness as well). For now (I'm still playing around with this part) I just made sure to put shrink wrap on the connectors but the connectors themselves are exposed. Now, if you look underneath that portion of the trunk you'll find it is quite well protected from the diff and all of the other elements for the IRS so I think it will be OK but I'm still toying with the idea of putting some kind wrap or splatter shield to protect it. If I do I'll make sure to post an update here.

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[BadAsp427]

I can tell you that with the Lizard Skin Sound & Heat protection in my build, I've never had any kind of a heat issue. And yes, the panels are much more solid with that stuff on them. In my trunk, I've never finished it and it is only the lizard skin and it is tough and looks good. I've never top coated it and just clean it with some multipurpose cleaner and it looks like new again. One day I'll actually get to finishing up that task... Your build is looking great...

[BrewCityCobra]

I can tell you that with the Lizard Skin Sound & Heat protection in my build, I've never had any kind of a heat issue. And yes, the panels are much more solid with that stuff on them. In my trunk, I've never finished it and it is only the lizard skin and it is tough and looks good. I've never top coated it and just clean it with some multipurpose cleaner and it looks like new again. One day I'll actually get to finishing up that task... Your build is looking great...

That is great to hear. I never would have assumed that the material is that resilient un-covered. Good to know I have a bit of flexibility when it comes to finishing the trunk.

[BrewCityCobra]

The push for the engine install is on! The next milestone is set – do whatever is needed to get the engine in and running, basically get the electrical locked down and get the dashboard mocked up. With that said, my most recent projects included building a pair of electrical “modules” to control the brake light and head light operation.

BRAKE MODULE

The first module is an insert to accommodate the brake-light device provided by FFR to accommodate the transition to square taillights. I know a few people placed this device in the rear of the car, but I decided it would be best to install the device behind the dash as a removable part of the main harness for a few reasons. 1 – it can be completely removed from the car and rebuilt should something fail, and 2 – I can now utilize the un-used wires in the rear harness (e.g., the purple brake lights wire) for other purposes.

Generally speaking, the finished brake module is intended to be positioned between the main harness and the rear harness with (as seen in the picture) the left end attached to the main harness and the right end attached to the two connectors of the rear harness. You will also notice a third connector as well (a two-port at the top) that provides a connection point for the two circuits I added to the rear 1 – the trunk charging port and 2 – the trunk courtesy lights. The extra connector will ultimately be wired to the secondary fuse box once I get that installed.

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As you can see, the module is setup so that all the wires influenced by the brake device are directed through the brake device while any wires not influenced by the brake device are just carried through.

HEADLIGHT MODULE

The second module is a panel configured to accommodate the headlight operations and to act as a primary buss for the entire car. I decided early on that I didn’t want to run the pull-style headlight switch but rather wanted to replace the pull switch with three Lucas switches – 1) an “on/running/headlights” switch, 2) a high/low beam switch, and 3) a courtesy light switch. This panel will accommodate the operation of all three.

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Below is a schematic of the entire headlight circuit using relays and toggle switches (a Lucas 35927 and Lucas 34889 to be exact) to replicate the headlight pull switch:

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One of the more difficult aspects of the headlight module was how to mount it. I knew I wanted to keep the firewall clean of any bolts or fasteners so a separately mounted panel was needed. In the end, I decided to mount the panel to the square cross-member using a series of brackets. The brackets, in turn, serve two roles – to support the headlight panel and to act as a mounting location for the under-dash panel. I plan on using hidden fasteners for the dash so it was important that I be able to remove the under-dash panel without needing to remove the dash or body-shell first. I believe this design should accomodate that and be aesthetically pleasing. Time will tell once I get the dash finalized.

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You’ll notice I used two bolts to connect the bracket and the under-dash panel together. That was a small trick to allow me to remove the under-dash panel without having to disassemble the entire assembly. Basically, if I remove the left (driver) bolts, the panel will come off but the rest of the assembly stays connected. If I remove both bolts, the electrical panel can also be removed and maintained if needed.

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With the Headlight module in place, next step is to start wiring it in and running the front harness. More updates to follow.

[460.465USMC]

Impressive stuff on your electrical design, Brew! Makes my chicken scratch on notebook paper look like pre-school level electrical. I look forward to seeing yours all come together. The preliminary pictures look professional grade! Thanks for sharing.

[BadAsp427]

This electrical planning is impressive. :-)

[BrewCityCobra]

As the electrical work continues to progress, I decided to provide a quick update on the “under-dash” panel. Generally speaking, I decided to build the under-dash panel from scratch as I liked the aesthetic of a completely enclosed bottom and thought it would help hide the tuft of wires building up behind the dashboard itself. The below photo also does a good job showing the underside bolts holding the panel in place which is the finished version of the bracket system I described in my previous post.

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As for the panel itself, there were a few items I was looking to mount underneath the dash 1) the courtesy lights, 2) a charging port, 3) the hazard flashers switch, and 4) an anchor point for a cell phone / lap timer mount. The courtesy lights and charging port are relatively straight forward, being positioned to emphasize utility and ease of access.

The hazard switch was positioned more for aesthetics. Originally I wanted the Hazard switch to be positioned on the dash at the 2:30 position but I wasn’t able to find an appropriate DPST switch from Lucas so I decided to put the courtesy light switch on the dash and move the Hazard switch to the underside. Likely not much of an issue either way but just one of the million adaptations these cars require.

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The biggest adaptation for the underdash panel was the “Cell Phone” anchor points. The idea here was to provide a few threaded anchor points where a ram mount ball could be installed for attaching a cell-phone or lap-timer mount (or anything that can be attached to a ram mount ball really).

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To form the anchor points, I drilled and tapped a 6”x6” piece of 1/8” thick aluminum with two ¼-20 holes. The idea was to use the size and thickness of the plate to act as reinforcement so that the ram mount ball would be sturdy when threaded into either of the two anchor locations. The plate, in turn, was riveted to the underdash panel itself. By using the plate, the entire system is still self-contained so I can remove the underdash panel without having to detach any additional brackets or fasteners.

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The result was surprisingly sturdy but the true test will come when this thing is driving down a highway / around a track. In the end I was very happy with the two mounting locations as well. I set one a bit further back so the phone/lap-timer would be recessed a bit under the dash and a forward location where the phone is just ahead of the dash and a bit more visible.

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Of course, one of the nice parts of this system is that if you don’t plan on using it you can un-thread the ball and the result is a nice clean look (like the first photo).

Dashboard/wiring updates to follow.

[zee]

Brilliant. My design has the ram mount too, except I have quadlock with wireless charger.

Alternatively, 3D print something and connect a magsafe charger to it.

[BrewCityCobra]

Brilliant. My design has the ram mount too, except I have quadlock with wireless charger.

Alternatively, 3D print something and connect a magsafe charger to it.

I really like that quad-lock (I've never heard of those before). I've struggled with the X-Grip a bit in the past so I'll have to dig into that a bit deeper. Perks of the universality of those Ram Mount Balls I suppose.

[Gizmosrcool]

The ram mount ideas are great. It can hold a cell phone/GPS and maybe a tuner for track days. Just have a USB power, CAN Bus port, etc under the dash and you can mount a variety of devices. Very clever.

[BrewCityCobra]

The ram mount ideas are great. It can hold a cell phone/GPS and maybe a tuner for track days. Just have a USB power, CAN Bus port, etc under the dash and you can mount a variety of devices. Very clever.

Exactly what I was thinking - and why I mounted that charging port right next to the anchor points. Should allow anything that is supported by that RAM ball to have easy access to that charger.

That said, I'm still doing my research on the best way to setup a CAN or other data acquisition system for these cars, especially with a carbureted version like mine since everything is "dumb" and there is no computer to tap into.

Right now I have my eyes on a AIM Solo 2 DL with the expectation that I can start out with just the unit itself (giving me GPS, timer, and the software) but can always expand the system to include additional sensors (throttle, brake, RPM, and the like) as I gain experience and can actually use those inputs.

[BrewCityCobra]

So it has been a while since my last post due to some big family developments (my wife and I welcomed our first child) - so I have a few updates in the hopper that I will be posting here soon.

First up, I am pleased to report that we officially have a working electrical system. I probably spent a small fortune on weather pack connectors, electrical components, and beer but in the end everything worked on the first go-around so I can’t complain. I still need to clean up the wire routing and packaging but at we are all set from a functionality standpoint.

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As discussed in my earlier posts, I had a few modifications the RF harness needed to be modified to accept, the largest of which was removing the headlight pull knob provided by FFR and replacing it with a pair of Lucas toggle switches. I also wanted to incorporate the Russ Thompson turn signal kit, a modified cooling fan circuit, some indicator LED lights, heated seats, and charging ports into the RF harness as well.

In the end, I felt the easiest path forward was to basically go-through the various harnesses wire-by-wire to make sure all of the new systems played nice while maximizing how much of the original harness could be used and eliminating as much waste as possible. The result was the “master schematic” shown below which I was able to incorporate into the harness during the build.

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By finalizing the schematic, I was also able to finalize and assemble the layout of the dashboard which was a welcome accomplishment. Nothing too crazy here, just a variation of the competition dash layout with added indicators and a modified switch layout. I’ll install the padded leather and glovebox a little later in the build.

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A few changes/modifications to point out:

- The two left toggles next to the speedo now control the headlight operation (in place of the pull switch from FFR). The lower switch is a Lucas 35927 (from Period Correct) and is wired so that when the switch is in the “down” position all lights are in an off condition; when the switch is in the “middle” position just the running lights and dash lights are activated; and when the switch is in the “up” position all of the running lights, dash lights, and headlights are powered. Furthermore, when the headlights are powered (e.g., the lower switch is in the “up” position), the top switch serves to control the high/low beam setting through a Lucas 34889 (also from Period Correct; in low beam “down” position and high beam in the “middle” position).

- The lower right switch next to the speedo serves to turn the courtesy lights in the cockpit on and off. Pretty straight forward.

- The upper right switch next to the speedo controls the cooling fan operation using a Lucas 35927. When the switch is in the “down” position the fan operates automatically (e.g., being controlled via the thermostat); when the switch is in the “middle” position the fan is disabled and will not run regardless of engine temp; and finally when the switch is in the “up” position the fan will run manually regardless of engine temp. I did run this switch off a keyed source to stop passers-by from accidentally (or intentionally) turning on the fan without having the key.

- All four switches are wired so that they are positioned in the “down” position when the car is in its normal operation condition (e.g., headlights off, low beams, courtesy lights off, fan on auto) - purely aesthetic but I thought a nice touch.

- I added a “cooling fan indicator” (e.g., a green LED) that is activated only when the fan is running manually (e.g., the fan control switch is in the up position). I added this indicator so that I would not have to worry about accidentally leaving the fan on during a track day or the like and running out the battery. It won’t be illuminated when the fan is running as a result of the thermostat, just manually.

- I also added a “fuel pump cutoff” switch below the dash on the left side of the steering column to allow the driver to cut the electric fuel pump in case of an emergency (or any other purpose really) independent of the inertia switch. I figure this can serve as kill switch if needed as well.

- Due to aesthetic reasons I only included a single turn-signal indicator to represent both left and right directions. To make sure there was no feedback in the circuit I incorporated a Hy-Power Diode. The Hy-Power is a nice unit that allows two power sources to merge into one load without allowing back flow to either of the sources. (https://www.amazon.com/Roadmaster-792-Hy-Power-Diode-Pack/dp/B0002UHVHI/ref=sr_1_25?crid=WNQUK0DFS23I&keywords=trailer+diode&qid=1668738290&sprefix=trailer+diode%2Caps%2C95&sr=8-25)

- Finally, I also added a secondary fuse block in the driver’s foot well. The secondary fuse block is intended to power any “always on” accessories like the headlight circuit, charging ports, heated seats, footbox vent fans, and the trunk lights.

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[460.465USMC]

Congrats on the birth of your first child, Brew! I hope everyone is healthy and well.

You have some mad electrical skills. Not just anyone can whip out a schematic like that. My chicken scratch schematics on lined college rule paper are in some serious envy.

It's a great feeling to have the gauges and electrical in place and functional. Nice work reaching this milestone. Your build is really taking shape.

[BrewCityCobra]

The engine is in! With all of the electrical and other prep work completed on the Roadster it was finally time to mate the heart with the body. A nerve-racking few minutes but in the end my dad and I were able to wrestle the engine into place.

The setup and process was pretty standard fare following many of the build threads I’ve seen on here (and thank you to everyone who posts). The rigging included using an engine leveler and attaching the four chain points on the heads directly. We were forced to use some washers between the brackets and the heads to give a bit of clearance so that none of the chains would rub or leave a mark (especially on the gasket surface for the thermostat housing). We also had to remove the thermostat housing, alternator, and power steering pump for clearance.

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As for the install itself, the only kink we ran into was that the front chassis sat too low so we couldn’t initially get the engine hoist in place. We ultimately placed the wheels up on some blocks which felt a bit precarious - forcing us to place a 2x4 against the brake pedal so the wheels wouldn’t roll off as we jacked up the rear end. In the end - we were able to get everything in place. Beers all around.

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Now to get the engine grafted to the rest of the car and first start.

[Mike.Bray]

The engine is in! With all of the electrical and other prep work completed on the Roadster it was finally time to mate the heart with the body. A nerve-racking few minutes but in the end my dad and I were able to wrestle the engine into place.

The setup and process was pretty standard fare following many of the build threads I’ve seen on here (and thank you to everyone who posts). The rigging included using an engine leveler and attaching the four chain points on the heads directly. We were forced to use some washers between the brackets and the heads to give a bit of clearance so that none of the chains would rub or leave a mark (especially on the gasket surface for the thermostat housing). We also had to remove the thermostat housing, alternator, and power steering pump for clearance.

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As for the install itself, the only kink we ran into was that the front chassis sat too low so we couldn’t initially get the engine hoist in place. We ultimately placed the wheels up on some blocks which felt a bit precarious - forcing us to place a 2x4 against the brake pedal so the wheels wouldn’t roll off as we jacked up the rear end. In the end - we were able to get everything in place. Beers all around.

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Now to get the engine grafted to the rest of the car and first start.

Congratulations! A very exciting time for you. Love that engine.

I see you've got the same "good" leveler that I used the second time. It really makes it easy.

[460.465USMC]

Congrats, Brew. It's a good feeling to have it nestled down and in place. I hear you on the nerve-wracking minutes while the drivetrain is suspended mid-air, above the chassis. Looking forward to hearing your 427 rumble to life.

[BrewCityCobra]

With the engine in place the next step was to get all of the peripherals installed and connections made so we can get to first start. It is amazing how much more substance the build has with the engine in the chassis. Also gives a big momentum boost knowing how close the next major milestones are.

ACCESSORIES / WIRING / FUEL

The first item on the checklist was to get the accessories bolted back on to the front of the block after being removed to make room for the chains during the lifting process. This was a pretty straight forward process using Forte’s tensioner system although copious pictures were taken to make sure we re-assembled everything in the right order.

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As for the wiring and fuel connections, we tried our best to keep everything neat and tidy. I used the corrugated plastic wire looms for organization but are considering replacing those with the woven fiberglass high-temperature looms in the future. For now, I think we are OK as I can’t imagine it gets all that hot where the looms are run (e.g., along the top of the intake manifold). If I am mistaken temperature-wise please don’t hesitate to let me know as I’d rather replace that now than find out the hard way later on.

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For the sending unit connections, you will see that I ended up drilling and tapping the thermostat housing for the cooling fan thermostat while the water temp gauge sending unit is mounted to the boss formed in the intake manifold just below the ignition coil on the driver side (it is hidden in these photos). As for the oil pressure and idiot light switch I installed a two-port pressure extension to accommodate those two elements.

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The hardest sending unit to accommodate was the oil temperature gauge (whose wiring harness is freely dangling in the above photo). Unfortunately, the oil pan that came with my engine did not include the necessary port for mounting the oil temperature sensor so I needed to be a bit creative. Mike Forte was nice enough to drill and tap the oil thermostat sandwich plate to accommodate the oil temperature sending unit.

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For now, I am waiting to install the sandwich plate (and oil cooler) until later on in the build. I figure it is just another complication that can go wrong during the engine start/go-cart process and isn’t really needed at this point. I’ll circle back to that when I dig into the “nose” aluminum panels later on.

THROTTLE LINKAGE

I also worked to finalize the Forte throttle linkage assembly. I totally underestimated the amount of adjustability present in the linkage assembly (especially when paired with a Russ Thompson throttle pedal) so it took a bit to decide exactly how I wanted to set things up. In the end, my goal was to maximize pedal travel from idle to full throttle so I could have more nuanced control over engine power deployment. I also tried my best to align the gas pedal with the brake in the idle position to help with heel-toeing (although some final adjustment may be needed once I get the car out on the road).

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One item I failed to appreciate was how important it was to install the provided roll pins to secure the aluminum arms to the central linkage rod. When testing the throttle I pushed the gas pedal too far causing the aluminum arms to rotate and throwing off my alignment - lesson learned. I subsequently pulled the throttle out and drilled for the pins. It was a little difficult to install the pins in-situ but in the end I think everything turned out alright (in the end I was only able to partially insert the pin so it is in single-shear not double-shear but I don’t think that will be an issue given the forces at play here).

One part of the throttle linkage that had me up at night was trying to decide how to seal the point where the linkage passes through the driver-side footbox. I originally attempted to merely drill a hole through a rubber grommet but not only did that result in a bad seal - the friction between the two elements ended up messing with the smoothness of the throttle itself.

In the end, I found the best solution was to combine 1) the provided FFR grommets initially intended for use with the battery cables, and 2) a 3/8 black oxide bushing from McMaster (PN 93762A300). The bushing creates a smooth rotating joint with the linkage rod with impressively tight clearances therebetween, while the grommet is thin and flexible enough to permit the relative angle between the footbox wall and the rod to be accommodated. The resulting joint also has effectively no rotating friction between the two elements and probably as sealed-up as possible without going totally overboard.

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Time will tell how it holds up but for now all seems well.

Next up - the power steering and coolant overflow tank.

[Fman]

Engine looks great, those Ford valve covers add a nice custom look... I also really like your serpentine set up with the auto tensioner. Nice work!:cool:

[Mike.Bray]

I used the corrugated plastic wire looms for organization but are considering replacing those with the woven fiberglass high-temperature looms in the future.

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I'm not a big fan of the corrugated wire loom either although I did keep some that was on the RF harness. I much prefer these (https://www.summitracing.com/parts/SUM-890342).

Just out of curiosity, why did you run the fuel line up and do a 180 the the carb feed?

[BrewCityCobra]

I'm not a big fan of the corrugated wire loom either although I did keep some that was on the RF harness. I much prefer these (https://www.summitracing.com/parts/SUM-890342).

Just out of curiosity, why did you run the fuel line up and do a 180 the the carb feed?

Agreed on the loom comment. After posting this it has been bothering me more and more. I actually used the Del-City fibeglass woven loom (https://www.delcity.net/store/Fiberglass,-High-Temp-Wire-Loom/p_806821.h_806822) for the battery/starter harness which appears to be similar to what you linked to. I have a bit of cleanup to do on the wiring front anyways (I need to incorporate the MSD 6AL I just installed) so I'll probably swap that out. Appreciate the input.

As for the 180 connector (I figured somebody would comment on that). The short answer is a bit of laziness. This was my thought process - the carb was originally setup for a mechanical fuel pump (thus the forward facing input connector). I was about to swap it around (so it would be attached using a straight connector at the rear) but I ended up deciding against it because 1) I didn't want to mess with it and any resulting leaks (e.g., lazy), 2) because my regulator is just close enough to the rear mounting point the resulting line would be relatively short and stiff while running it the long way and using a 180 degree connector would result in plenty of flex in the line for when the engine moves around during operation, and 3) I figured the actual gas flow wouldn't be all that great so the flow losses through that connector probably wouldn't matter. Basically I figured it was a horse a piece and didn't have to disassemble anything to do it the way I did.

That said, if you are aware of any reasons what I did may be a problem let me know as changing it to a shorter straight connection wouldn't be all that difficult and I have the necessary fittings sitting in a box in my garage.

[Mike.Bray]

My Fast EFI harness came with that type of loom which was the first time I had seen it (was out of the car building business for a few years). I really liked it although it's a bit of a pain to install.

LOL on the fuel line. TBH I haven't touched a carburetor since the early 90's so who am I to offer advice, I'm strictly an EFI guy. It was just an unusual setup and peaked my interest.

Love your engine!

[BrewCityCobra]

After completing the wiring, throttle, and fuel connections, it was time to tackle the last of the connection points in anticipation of first start - the power steering system, coolant overflow tank, the exhaust, and the Boig cool tubes.

POWER STEERING

Like many, my engine build included a KRC power steering pump and the FFR provided power steering rack. After doing a bit of reading (primarily EdwardB) I decided it was worth including a small power steering cooler just to make sure the fluid temperatures stayed in check during track and autocross action.

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The cooler itself was a Derale 2 pass cooler having a -6AN inlet and outlet (https://www.jegs.com/i/Derale/259/13310/10002/-1). I positioned the cooler on the back side of the radiator attaching it to the radiator shroud - again referencing EdwardB's build. I had considered some locations more directly aligned with the airflow through the car but I figure the cooling capacity needed here is probably borderline overkill anyways so this should be fine. If any cooling/temperature issues do arise in the future the cooler itself can be moved pretty easily.

As for the fittings and hoses, I ended purchasing -6AN Stainless Steel PTFE Power Steering hose from Pegasus along with the appropriate steel -6AN fittings to handle the pressure. Assembly was actually quite smooth overall but I am glad I purchased a few extra “acorns” when an adjustment/redo was needed.

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COOLANT OVERFLOW TANK

The other major installation was the overflow tank for the coolant system. Like a few other builds, I decided to replace the provided FFR overflow tank with a larger unit. I ultimately went with a 2 QT. Canton tank (No. 80-201) - the thought process being the larger can would assure that even on the hottest track days and red lights the catch can should be able to contain any expansion without spilling over. My original plan was to mount the tank on the driver-side F-panel but the fit didn’t seem right. Mounting on the driver side would result in the tank being positioned directly above the alternator’s 200A circuit breaker and there wasn’t really enough space on the passenger side with the power steering (and future oil cooler) plumbing. In the end, I decided to build a bracket to position the tank in front of the engine above the circular cross-members and generally aligned with the radiator cap.

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I mocked-up the bracket in cardboard first and re-made it using sheet metal. I went with thicker material to help support the weight of the fluid in the tank but may have over-done it a bit - that bracket sure is sturdy and the material was an absolute pain to work with. Nothing quite like excess.

There is still some finish-work to be done on the bracket (powder coating, a support bracket at the bottom for stability, some reinforcing side-walls on the bracket for added strength and a finished look, etc.) but the current mock-up seems to show proof of concept and should be sufficient for engine start/go-cart.

I used some left over stainless braided hose to plumb the connection between the tank and the radiator pressure cap, and an overflow line directed to the underside of the car to dump any excess overboard. I’m not really sure if there is any strategy to locating the overflow line (any spilt liquid will be a pain and mess regardless) but if I am missing something strategic here please let me know.

QUESTION TO THE GROUP: I’m not crazy about the cap for the Canton overflow can and was looking for something a bit more “aesthetically pleasing”. Does anybody know where/if one can be sourced? I couldn’t find anything for that type of connection. Any ideas or suggestions would be appreciated.

EXHAUST

Finally, I also got the exhaust assembled. Following what I found to be the general consensus of the Board, I decided to ditch the gaskets and seal the two primary connections with Ultra Copper RTV Silicone (e.g., between the inlet flange of the header and the head, and between the outlet flange of the header and the side-pipe).

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I really can’t get over how well made the GASN side pipes are. Truly beautiful parts. I ended up going with the “Standard” sound level pipes which I understood to strike a decent balance between sound (Cobra side-pipes are the best sounding cars around, I will die on that hill) and not blowing my eardrums out.

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Those who look closely will see I accidentally installed the side-pipes on the wrong side (e.g., with the brackets up) but I will swap that back when I assemble everything for the last time. For now, I want to limit how many times I crank on those ball joints.

And with all of that the Brew City Cobra is officially ready for its first start and go cart. Let the games begin!

[cc2Arider]

Looking good! :)

Craig C

[Fman]

WOW! Really looking sweet... nice work on everything. Looking forward to seeing your first start video! #427 :cool:

[BrewCityCobra]

She runs! I was fortunate that both my father and father-in-law were in town and able to take part in the first start and first go-cart experience. Both are big car guys and have been invaluable when it comes to helping out with the build. Milestones like this really help re-charge the emotional batteries for the final push to finish things up.

That said, before we could get the engine going there were a few tasks that needed to be checked off the list, namely, to get the engine filled with coolant and to set the timing (we had to remove the distributor to get the engine in the chassis and lost our spot).

As for the coolant – the attachable radiator funnel was absolutely invaluable (thank you Fman for bringing it to my attention; https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00A6AS6LY/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1). I honestly don’t know how you can fill these engines without one unless you are ready to spill everywhere.

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As a side note, I struggled like crazy trying to decide what coolant to run for the engine setup (probably more a symptom of analysis paralysis than anything). I ultimately decided to keep it simple and go with Napa Green Antifreeze & Coolant (https://www.napaonline.com/en/p/NAF1GAL). It was the one conventional ethylene glycol coolant I could find that explicitly said it was safe for engines with aluminum parts. Done and Done. I swear if you read enough boards that you will find somebody advocating for and against each coolant that exists in the universe, add that to the fact the engine has both aluminum and cast iron parts and it is just enough to make one second guess himself from time to time. In the end I figured you can’t go wrong with the green stuff so I just decided to run with this. If anybody knows this is a mistake just let me know.

As for getting everything started – we struggled a bit not realizing we had installed the distributor with the rotor being off by a tooth so we couldn’t get it to fire up. In the end though, a little trial and error, a few tasteful cuss words, a puff or two of smoke, and it fired up like a champ. Per Mike Forte’s recommendation we ended up setting the engine to 32 degrees of total advance at around 3000 RPM with the vacuum advance disconnected. I didn’t have a timing light so decided to go with the following: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000EVYGV4/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o06_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 worked like a charm. Just listen to that puppy purr…..

VIDEO: https://youtube.com/shorts/FNB4_uR-WOs?feature=share

Special thanks to GasN for that lovely sound (GasN Sidepipes, Standard – MidRange sound).

After spending the rest of the night letting the engine get up to temp, making sure the overflow tank was working as intended, and re-checking the timing; we took to the road the next day for the first go-cart.

VIDEO: https://youtu.be/KhbkJe9RMD4

VIDEO: https://youtu.be/IK4q-mBTSy0

Unfortunately, we weren’t able to really get the car up and running at any form of speed as we soon discovered the rear-driver wheel was WAAAYYY out of alignment and the back end started slipping around like it was on ice skates above 25 MPH, but the drive itself was a success. Brakes worked great, engine and pedals felt great, power steering was a dream, and the gauges all worked as intended.

Hopefully by the time the weather in Wisconsin is nice again (or at least somewhat acceptable) I’ll have the seats, dash, interior, and alignment finalized so we can give the ole’ girl a bit more of a push and get a better feel for how it handles. But for now, a few beers are in order before re-setting and getting back to the grind. The push for paint has officially begun.

[460.465USMC]

Congrats, Brew! Two big milestones back to back. She sounds really good. Sharp looking motor and build.

[cc2Arider]

Nice! :)

Craig C

[BrewCityCobra]

As the weather starts to turn the race is now on to get the car ready for the painters. My painter said he should have an opening sometime near the end of the year so it should be close – but hopefully I can pull it off. I feel like reaching go-cart stage is always interesting as you feel like you have completed so much – but still have a good amount to go.

The first two projects I tried to tackle included 1) a test fit of the body shell to get an initial feel for fit, and 2) fabricating the quick-disconnect for the steering wheel.

As for the shell, I have to admit I haven’t really touched it since I took delivery – so it was a bit of an adventure to see how things would actually fit. The primary concern with this first fitting was the dashboard – and specifically to confirm that all of the gauges and LEDs have enough clearance from the “dash lip” so I can begin work on wrapping the dash in leather. All looked good aside from the blue “high-beam” LED that I’ll need to shift down a bit but otherwise I think we are good to go on that front. The water temp gauge is a bit closer to the lip than I'd prefer but not sure it is worth digging into the dash material to move it a 1/16" or so down. Will probably just let that be.

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Aside from the dash there does seem to be some potential fitting concerns on the body that will need to be tackled eventually – primarily the side-pipe fitment (passenger side in particular) and the passenger side windshield opening. I still need to trim the dashboard lip to move the entire body forward about a half inch so I guess I’ll just table those concerns until I have the body on and located for good. Fingers crossed.

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QUICK-DISCONNECT STEERING WHEEL

On the fabrication front, I finally got around to pulling together the quick-disconnect for the steering wheel. Like many, I purchased and modified an NRG thin quick-connect and the provided FFR steering wheel for the final assembly. The help on the board for this particular project was invaluable. I didn’t end up using the 3D-printed jigs that I saw floating around but did purchase a drill press for the project. I don’t really see how you can do this without one (plus I had been meaning to get one anyway).

In the end, I was really happy the end result. The utility is certainly an advantage and the connection itself is nice and sturdy with very little (if any) play.

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Started tackling the seats/seat heaters/seat sliders so should have another update soon.

[Jeff_J.]

Looks great.
Jeff_J

[Ted G]

Looking great! I just did my steering disconnect this past weekend too! Love the ease of this disconnect and, going forward, when you need to get into your footbox or fuse panel, this will be a back saver for sure.

[Mike.Bray]

What model are you guys using? Do you have a link?

[Ted G]

I think you can use a couple of their styles, I used NRG SRK-400CF. Here is the link: https://getnrg.com/collections/quick-releases/products/srk-400

All will need to be modified to fit the FFR Steering wheel and hub. Took me a few hours to complete.

[BrewCityCobra]

Looking great! I just did my steering disconnect this past weekend too! Love the ease of this disconnect and, going forward, when you need to get into your footbox or fuse panel, this will be a back saver for sure.

Agreed, I was a little nervous at first as to how "sturdy" the thin model would be but am very impressed with the finished product. I think the utility will be much appreciated next time I'm crawing in the Driver footbox.

[BrewCityCobra]

So a bit of a side-quest over the past two weekends as I took a break to install a MaxJax lift in the garage to help with this and hopefully future builds. It was something I have been wanting to do for some time. The install itself consisted of two primary segments, the first having someone contracted to pour a pair of 12” thick pads into the floor, and the second installing the lift itself.

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As for the layout, I tried to expand on the utility of the MaxJax being movable by establishing two “configurations.” The first or “narrow” configuration is tuned to the width of the Cobra (and my 944) and allows me to still have enough room to park a car in the second stall. In contrast, the second or “wide” configuration places the towers as far apart as allowable to accommodate wider cars but at the tradeoff of not allowing enough space for a second car to be parked in the garage.

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(Dark blue rectangles represent tower mounting locations, yellow areas are the pads, the cobra box represents the general length and width of a cobra)

In all, I was happy with how the pads turned out and the install itself went very smoothly. One variation from the traditional MaxJax install was the ditching of the cart and instead mounting the pump to the wall and running the hoses along the ceiling to keep them out of the way. I’ve seen others do that and it just seems like a much cleaner install. I still have a bit of work to do to get the hoses completely cleaned up – but we have a working lift! A few photos below. Now back to the build.

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[zarnold]

That looks great, and maybe gives me a path to do it too. So, did they basically cut the floor, break out the old, dig to the correct depth, pour the new?

[BrewCityCobra]

That looks great, and maybe gives me a path to do it too. So, did they basically cut the floor, break out the old, dig to the correct depth, pour the new?

Yup, basically you can install them one of two ways - first, your existing concrete is already thick enough so you can just drive the anchors into it, the second is to have some pads installed. As for how it was done, you basically hit the nail on the head. My father and I measured and marked the outlines for the two pads and contracted a team to come in to cut the floor, break up the existing concrete, install connecting rebar, and pour a new pad. The MaxJax instructions actually set forth the type of concrete and size of pad needed to support the lift (basically 3 foot by 3 foot square that is 12" thick - the instructions can be downloaded from their website if you are interested in the specifics).

In the end I decided not to even test my existing slab as I wanted to be extra safe and went with the pads. A bit more expensive, but I think worth it given I'll be under that thing.

[BrewCityCobra]

So I ran into a pair of “Stray from the Build Plan” projects the past few weeks. So far I have been pretty lucky in the sense the build has been following the original plans I set forth at the beginning and any provisions that needed to be taken into account early-on (e.g., wiring, brackets, etc.) was in place when things were easiest to get to. That changed these past couple weeks as I decided to pull out the old E-brake system and replace it with an electronic Wilwood kit, and upgrade the ignition to include an MSD 6AL unit. Not the worst changes, but man this would have been a lot easier if I just planned on using these items from the get-go.

WILWOOD E-BRAKE KIT

As for the E-brake swap, ever since I installed the original manual system the quality of the FFR E-brake handle and its operation just did not sit well with me. As I got closer and closer to installing the carpet I realized that my window for doing anything about the manual lever was about to close and finally decided to pull the trigger on the Wilwood kit – which seemed just a little too good to pass up (price-point not withstanding).

The Wilwood kit itself is very intuitive to install. Basically a switch (a high quality billet piece), a control unit, a harness, and a pair of electronic calipers. The calipers are a one-for-one swap with the manual calipers that come with FFR’s rear IRS kit. The key is to install them “backwards” (or what I perceived to be backwards) so the motors are facing the front of the car so as to avoid interference with the coil-overs.

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The fit is certainly tight but I found mounting the harness to the frame nearby made sure there would not be any clearance issues with the spring through the suspensions range of motion. The harness provided by Wilwood appears to be very high quality with all high-quality connectors. Running the harness through the frame would have been a much earlier job if I had done it earlier in the build (e.g., before the cockpit and trunk aluminum was installed) but I was able to get it snaked through without too much issue.

The control unit mounting was where I had the biggest problem. Since I had not planned on using the Wilwood kit initially, I did not work out a mounting location ahead of time and had to mount the unit with whatever space I had left. I ultimately settled on placing it behind the dash against the firewall – relying on the MSD box on the opposite side to hide the resulting bolt holes from view. It wasn’t a perfect solution and will likely cause me to shrink the glovebox a bit, but it was the best I could come up with given the options I had left. Biggest draw back is that I’ll need to remove the dash to access it should it ever fail. Here’s praying to the Wilwood gods that never happens.

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The control switch was another conundrum. The switch itself is a very high-quality item – billet aluminum with a very crisp action. It even has a built-in red indicator ring that lights up when the E-brake is activated. If I was going for a more modern aesthetic I would have had no problem showing that switch off but because I wanted to keep my dash traditional, I decided to mount it on the underside of the dash just outside the steering wheel column.

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The biggest downside to this mounting location is that you lose utility of the red indicator light incorporated into the switch itself. Fortunately, Wilwood does include instructions on how to wire-in a remote indicator (although it requires the use of a sold-state relay). I did end up wiring up an LED that matched those I already had incorporated into the dash and plan to mount it next to the manual fan light indicator. Aesthetic maintained!

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In the end, install was pretty straight forward and the only issues I ran into were the result of when I installed it, not due to the kit itself. One item to mention is that I would have preferred to power the kit from my secondary fuse block as I left a few circuits open for exactly this type of situation. Unfortunately due to the 40-AMP draw the kit requires, my BlueSea Systems block was just not up to the task (30A per individual circuit max) and I was forced to purchase a separate Maxi fuse block for the 40 amp duties. So in the end I needed to find a mounting location in the cockpit for 4 new items (Billet switch, Maxi Fuse Block, Wilwood Control Unit, and the Solid State Relay).

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MSD 6AL

The second “re-do” was to incorporate an MSD 6AL into the ignition system of the engine. When I originally selected the specs for the engine with Mike Forte, I had wanted to make sure I had a rev-limiter to avoid getting too high into the RPM band during track duties (and just for missed shifts in general). Due to the COVID backlogs and part shortages, I was forced to go with an Ignitor II instead of the planned Ignitor III – which did not have a rev-limiter built in. I thought I could just deal with it but the situation bugged me enough that I decided to do something about it now before the body was on and it was REALLY difficult – enter the MSD.

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[Railroad]

Those look nice. Wonder how long before someone uses them on the front for line lock, burnouts?

[F500guy]

Great Info, I have the e-brake kit sitting on the shelf ready for my kit. (delivery slated for end on June).

[460.465USMC]

The Wilwood E-brake is nice, and very functional upgrade, Brew. I like it.

[FLPBFoot]

I just got the brakes on the IRS and left off the manual ebrake because I'm upgrading to the electric ones. Thanks for the details. Answered my question of this caliper being a direct swap out of the manual ebrake to the electric one. You mention 40 amp run rating, is this while the motor is running to actuate and then remove the ebrake? Once done locking or unlocking there is no current draw?

[BrewCityCobra]

I just got the brakes on the IRS and left off the manual ebrake because I'm upgrading to the electric ones. Thanks for the details. Answered my question of this caliper being a direct swap out of the manual ebrake to the electric one. You mention 40 amp run rating, is this while the motor is running to actuate and then remove the ebrake? Once done locking or unlocking there is no current draw?

The kit requires two power feeds, a constant feed and a keyed feed. The constant feed has a 40 amp fuse incorporated into it and the Keyed is 5 (I'm pretty sure.

As for the operation, the motors only draw power when they are transitioning between engaged and disengaged configurations. Once locked (or unlocked), they do not draw any power that I can tell. The "keyed feed" is to allow the system to shut off with the ignition. For example, if you engage the brake, the motors will draw power as they lock-up, then the red LED (and switch ring) will glow so long as the ignition is powered. Once you turn the car completely off everything shuts down. When you turn the car on next time, the LEDs will light back up and remain so until you unlock the system or turn the key back off.

[toadster]

fantastic build! love your electrical diagrams! what software are you using to create those?

[BrewCityCobra]

fantastic build! love your electrical diagrams! what software are you using to create those?

Thanks! Much appreciated. I just use Visio for those diagrams (and any diagramming I need to do in general). Not exactly what it is designed for but certainly does the trick and is easily correctable.

[BrewCityCobra]

Over the weekend I was finally able to start fitting the body shell on the chassis (thanks to everybody for all for all of the “body fitment” tutorials – they were invaluable). And while I the body went on without much issue, it revealed a much larger problem that I have no idea how to address – side-pipe fitment and install.

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Generally speaking, my passenger side head is WAAAYYY off (or so I think it is) and I’m not sure about the driver side (it appears off but much more manageable). I have no idea how to fix it without major surgery or purchasing new headers all together – which Is why I now put myself at the mercy of the board.

For background so nobody has to go fishing through the build thread, the engine is a 427W, I have FFR headers (the version with the ball joint), Gas-N side-pipes, and I had FFR cut the holes in the body so the current side pipe openings were formed by FFR at the factory. I have not enlarged the openings at the moment as I wanted to check with the board first.

As you can see in the photos below, if I position the passenger side-pipe so that the bottom of the pipe is more-or-less parallel and even with the bottom edge of the body the alignment is off vertically by almost half the width of the collector. I will say, the side-pipe aperture is extremely tight at the moment such that it is very difficult to maneuver the side-pipe into the position shown, the secondaries are basically touching at the rearmost point and along the top. I will also note that the photos were taken with the sides of the body pushed tight against the chassis (e.g., as far in as possible).

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For comparison, the driver side is a bit more palatable, where (under the same alignment conditions) it is only off by half an inch or so. I will note that this aperture is also pretty tight with the secondaries of the side-pipe touching the aperture at the rear and along the top.

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For a bit more reference, the condition of my two engine mounts are as follows:

Passenger Side:

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Driver Side:

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So in view of this I’m just at a loss for how to correct these mis-alignments and wasn’t sure if the issue lies with me (e.g., the car as I’ve assembled it) or the parts themselves (e.g., headers wrong shape) or somewhere inbetween. I wanted to talk with the forum before enlarging the openings for fear of cutting something too far and just making the issue worse.

So I was wondering:

1) Has anybody else had this same issue and, if so, how did you address?

2) I was thinking of possibly messing with the engine position, but given both mount pins are already at the top of their respective slots I’m not sure how to nestle it down at all short of modifying the mounts themselves.

3) Does anybody have an idea of how large (e.g., how tall and wide) the side-pipe openings should be once they are finalized so I have an idea of how tight or undersized the current openings may be?

Help me Obi-Wan Kenobi – You’re my only hope.

[Railroad]

You do need to verify the engine is sitting level with the frame.
I would loosen the ball connector and bolt the headers on the flange.
It looks like you have the ball connectors tightened down in line with the headers. This may or may not be the best position. It looks like, it is not.
With the headers bolted on regardless of their relation to the body, you will have an idea of what wedges and any body cutting you may need to do.
Hope that makes some kind of sense.
Good luck,

[460.465USMC]

Help me Obi-Wan Kenobi – You’re my only hope.

Hi Brew! Padawan learner here. Times 2 on getting the motor as level as possible. I know of another builder who had to adjust the slot in one of his motor mounts.

With the ball flange adapters on my Coyote, I adjusted them to minimize cutting and yet keep them parallel to the ground and body. The adapters ended up a little angled in relation to the header flange, especially on the passenger side. I did not need any wedges, but did need to trim the tops of the exhaust cutouts (I also have the F5 pre-cutouts), as well as the edges. Not sure how Coyote header position compares to your 427W, but thought I'd chime in for an additional data point FWIW.

[egchewy79]

Agree w/ above, loosen the ball joint at it's connection w/ the header and angle it a bit. Might be easier to attach the flange to the side pipe first since there's no adjustment at this location without wedges and figure out where the pipe looks best, then figure out how to connect it to the header at an angle.

[BrewCityCobra]

Hi Brew! Padawan learner here. Times 2 on getting the motor as level as possible. I know of another builder who had to adjust the slot in one of his motor mounts.

With the ball flange adapters on my Coyote, I adjusted them to minimize cutting and yet keep them parallel to the ground and body. The adapters ended up a little angled in relation to the header flange, especially on the passenger side. I did not need any wedges, but did need to trim the tops of the exhaust cutouts (I also have the F5 pre-cutouts), as well as the edges. Not sure how Coyote header position compares to your 427W, but thought I'd chime in for an additional data point FWIW.


You do need to verify the engine is sitting level with the frame.
I would loosen the ball connector and bolt the headers on the flange.
It looks like you have the ball connectors tightened down in line with the headers. This may or may not be the best position. It looks like, it is not.
With the headers bolted on regardless of their relation to the body, you will have an idea of what wedges and any body cutting you may need to do.
Hope that makes some kind of sense.
Good luck,


Agree w/ above, loosen the ball joint at it's connection w/ the header and angle it a bit. Might be easier to attach the flange to the side pipe first since there's no adjustment at this location without wedges and figure out where the pipe looks best, then figure out how to connect it to the header at an angle.

Appreciate the input - I can't thank the three of you enough. So from what I'm gathering, I should try to address this in the following steps:

1) Loosen the engine mount bolts and see if I can nestle the engine a bit lower in the cradle. Specifically try to see if I can get the passenger side a bit lower (like a half inch) and the driver side less so (like an 1/8th). Seems like the trick will be to try to compress the engine mounts themselves so the engine sits lower overall - I'm thinking a little bit of downward pressure plus some small knocks on the mount itself with a hammer to see if it will nestle down a bit.

2) To the extent the engine doesn't want to move (or doesn't move enough) I should see if I can get more play out of the ball-joints in the headers themselves to angle down a bit more to see where everything lies.

3) To the extent the top two options don't work, I may need to look into some wedges to seal the gap.

This is good stuff - I'll give this a try.

One last question, are any of you able to provide what the final vertical dimension is (as shown below) for the openings? I understand the two sides are probably different but I was just trying to get an idea of where my openings stand as the ones I see in photos on the board appear to be a good deal larger than what I am currently working with.

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[BrewCityCobra]

So to circle back on my earlier posts, I have come up with a plan of action to address the header/side-pipe fitment issue I've been having.

I spoke with Gordon Levy and will be swapping out the FFR provided engine mounts with a pair of his "thinner" models. In theory, this should drop the engine deeper in the V-saddle of the engine mounts giving me two advantages - 1) both sides will be lower overall (which is needed), and 2) with the mounts lower I should have more flexibility to level out the engine and more accurately position the header outlets. Right now my engine mounts are pinned as high as they can go in the location slots which makes any adjustment really difficult.

I'm hoping the above adjustments should get me within "ball-joint" range for any fine-tuning needed after that.

Hopefully good news to follow....

[Fman]

So to circle back on my earlier posts, I have come up with a plan of action to address the header/side-pipe fitment issue I've been having.

I spoke with Gordon Levy and will be swapping out the FFR provided engine mounts with a pair of his "thinner" models. In theory, this should drop the engine deeper in the V-saddle of the engine mounts giving me two advantages - 1) both sides will be lower overall (which is needed), and 2) with the mounts lower I should have more flexibility to level out the engine and more accurately position the header outlets. Right now my engine mounts are pinned as high as they can go in the location slots which makes any adjustment really difficult.

I'm hoping the above adjustments should get me within "ball-joint" range for any fine-tuning needed after that.

Hopefully good news to follow....

Just make sure you have the clearance available for your oil pan. I am also running the fixed mounts (from Gordon) and it does require a shallower oil pan so it won't hang down below the frame.

[BrewCityCobra]

Just make sure you have the clearance available for your oil pan. I am also running the fixed mounts (from Gordon) and it does require a shallower oil pan so it won't hang down below the frame.

This concern definitely crossed my mind. I did a bit of measuring and I think I will be ok (barely), but hard to tell until the final mounts are in place. Fingers crossed! Hopefully I will be able to get those mounts swapped out in the next week or two.

[Fman]

This concern definitely crossed my mind. I did a bit of measuring and I think I will be ok (barely), but hard to tell until the final mounts are in place. Fingers crossed! Hopefully I will be able to get those mounts swapped out in the next week or two.

From my experience with my car, running fixed mounts if you have anything deeper than a 7" pan you more than likely will be below the frame.

[BrewCityCobra]

From my experience with my car, running fixed mounts if you have anything deeper than a 7" pan you more than likely will be below the frame.

Well some measuring now has me officially nervous. I have the Milodon pan and it appears to be 7.5" deep. I have about 0.5" clearance to the bottom of the frame at the back of the pan and a little less than 0.75" at the front.

So I guess the next question is - any suggestions for a thinner pan that will fit the larger stroke of the 427? The related post (talk about timing) on the main board seems to push Aviaid?

Also a side question, you don't find the solid mounts to be too harsh in the vibration department do you? Just trying to get an idea of what I'm getting myself into.

[Fman]

Well some measuring now has me officially nervous. I have the Milodon pan and it appears to be 7.5" deep. I have about 0.5" clearance to the bottom of the frame at the back of the pan and a little less than 0.75" at the front.

So I guess the next question is - any suggestions for a thinner pan that will fit the larger stroke of the 427? The related post (talk about timing) on the main board seems to push Aviaid?

Also a side question, you don't find the solid mounts to be too harsh in the vibration department do you? Just trying to get an idea of what I'm getting myself into.

With a 7.5" pan I think you might end up below the frame, but every car is different so I would try first and see where you land. I went with the Champ 7" deep pan per recommendation of Gordon. I have noticed no excessive vibration issues with fixed mounts, of course it's a 500+ HP engine so you feel some vibration in the car but nothing I would call not normal for a 427. I had the same concerns when I went with the fixed mounts and Gordon assured me if my engine was balanced properly I would have no problems and he was correct. I also know another person in my area who built a roadster running fixed mounts with a 351 who also has had no issues with fixed mounts.

I will also mention with the fixed mounts my side pipes still required 3 wedges on the drivers side to align properly with FFR headers and Gas 'n side pipes. I was more concerned about air cleaner clearance with the PF4 EFI system I am running. Passenger side pipes required no wedges.

Here is the link to the Champ CP351LT-RR Pan
https://www.champpans.com/products/p/cp351lt-rr/

[BrewCityCobra]

So I had to put the engine/side-pipe project on hold temporarily but I do have a pair of Gordon Levy’s engine mounts ready to go once I have a few other items in place. In the meantime, I was able to return my focus to completing the interior – namely, fabricating the glove box and finalizing the dash.

I know there are a few kits available to incorporate glove boxes into the dash but I really wanted to go with the “flush / integrated” look and therefore decided to try to fabricate my own. I have to admit that this project really felt like a true fabricating endeavor – and aside from fabricating the drop trunk from scratch - was probably one of the more difficult tasks of the build so far.

The first step in fabricating the glove box was to decide on the size, shape, and location of the dash opening itself. Again, there are plenty of plans and styles floating around the board but after messing around with various templates and sketches I decided that the below drawing (also taken from the board but I cannot recall where – wish I could give the creator proper credit) seemed to be the best of all. I didn’t end up using the drawing itself but instead went on Visio and was able to create the dimensioned shape described. I then printed the resulting sketch 1:1 and used the cutout for my template. Location was mostly by eye just making sure the bottom was parallel to the bottom of the dash and that the cutout didn’t overlap with any obstructions behind the dash.

Side note – the “support bar” for the dash hoop near the center of the car was the biggest obstruction to avoid, I ended up placing the left-most edge of the opening just to the right of that bar.

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With the shape selected, I was then able to use the printed template to start work on the glove box body itself. This was a relatively involved process. The first step was to transmit the template to three 2x6 pieces of wood to create a “mold” of sorts about which to form the metal. My skill saw decided not to play nice with the wood being so thick (the blade kept bending – wish I had a bandsaw) and the resulting wooden block was – shall we say – pretty rough. The overall shape was acceptable though so it was drafted into service – not my finest hour.

With the mold created, I then pre-cut a piece of .040” aluminum for the sidewall of the body itself. One end was secured to the mold using wood screws and the rest “rolled” along the exterior of the block itself to form to the overall exterior shape. The ends were then temporarily riveted together to lock everything in place. The shape wasn’t perfect but I knew that could be refined as fabrication progressed.

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Using the mold’s end surface as a new template, I then measured and cut an end plate from a second piece of .040” aluminum.

188934

The two pieces (side wall and end wall) were then re-positioned on the mold to begin the tabbing process. To make sure the two items remained aligned and straight, I used two pieces of ¾” wood to center the mold within the loop of sidewall material. The end piece was then placed on top and the everything clamped together.

188935

188936

With everything in place, I then used some shears to cut the lip into multiple smaller tabs (making sure to bevel those around the curved portions). The tabs were then hammered over using the mold as a sort of dolly. A few things learned from this process: 1) make sure to secure the side-wall loop to the mold using a few screws otherwise things will shift while hammering, and 2) getting the mold back out can be really PITA – we had to put it in vice and really give it a few hard whacks with a hammer to get it out – which resulted in dents in our end wall. Lesson learned.

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Everything was then locked in place using some rivets for added strength. I did include some JBWeld under the tabs but that didn’t seem to take very well.

188938

The final step for the glove box body was to flare out the open end to provide tabs for securing the glove box body to the dashboard itself. This was relatively straight forward. The number and location of the tabs can be changed as needed – in the end I decided to try to keep it simple, plenty across the top and bottom where the forces would be located when loaded with items, and two smaller tabs to just keep the ends in place.

188939

As a side note, the two holes in the back wall are to accommodate a charging port, more on that later.

Part 2 to follow.

[BrewCityCobra]

PART 2 – Wrapping the Dashboard and Mounting the Glovebox to the Dash

With the glovebox body fabricated it was time to wrap the dashboard and attach the body to the dash itself. First step was to align the glovebox body with the hole in the dash and mark the location of all the tabs. You will notice that I had already cut the hole in the dashboard by this time using the original template.

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With the alignment made, we drilled what will ultimately be the mounting holes and then temporarily secured the glovebox in place using clecos. With the glove box attached, we then re-installed the dash to check for clearance. It was a tight fit (especially with the Wilwood e-brake module installed in that area – which was anticipated) but in the end 4.5” internal pocket-depth (measured flange to the back wall) seemed to fit just fine while still allowing for enough clearance in the back to install the charging ports.

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Drawing from others who have gone before me in this space, I decided to use some 6-32 bolts in the front surface of the dash as my mounting points. I used a counter-sink bit to make sure the heads of the bolts ran flush with the top surface of the dash itself.

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The biggest issue I ran into was how to make sure the bolts wouldn’t move after I wrapped the dash in leather as I would no longer have access to the bolt head. In the end I decided to secure the bolts to the dashboard with a nut to make sure the bolt was held in place securely even with the glovebox removed (this would also allow me to take the glovebox on and off as needed during the entire fabrication process). I will note that the heads of the countersunk bolts were actually thicker than the sheet metal itself (FFR’s 0.040” aluminum) so I needed to also include a washer so the bolts would actually be held tight to the dash. Together, the nut and washer created a bit bigger gap than I originally wanted (about an 1/8”) but we address that issue a bit later in the build.

189167

With the bolts secured and a few other small items taken care of, I finally felt I was ready to wrap the dashboard in leather. I have absolutely no experience with upholstery so it was a bit nerve-racking to start digging into the dash after all the time that was invested into it up to this point. But proceed we did.

First step on the wrapping process was to putty and sand the outer surface to make it perfectly smooth and to cover the various bolt heads. We also saw a few dents and knicks from all the mocking up that we tried to cover up.

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With the “bodywork” completed, it was time to pull out the padding. I ended up using 1/8” Volara Closed Cell Foam. I wanted a padded but tight look (if that makes sense). I did a test panel earlier in the build and this stuff seemed to do the trick. I also have to admit that it was pretty easy to work with so long as you made sure to keep you razor blade sharp and cut against a hard surface such as a piece of plywood. As for adhesive, 3M 77 was the order of the day. I ended up rolling out the foam on a clean table, spraying the dash itself, laying the dash on the foam. After waiting a few minutes for the glue to set, I then trimmed along the edges of the metal itself. Worked like a charm.

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One item that we added was a second layer of foam on the back side of the glovebox opening. This was intended to serve two purposes – 1) to help fill the gap created by the bolt/washer combo discussed earlier, and 2) to allow us to get a larger “radius” on the leather as it wrapped through the aperture to help with aesthetics and positioning the door.

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With the foam glued and trimmed, the final step was the actual leather wrapping itself. Again, we began by laying the leather face-down on a clean table and making sure it was as flat as possible. We then sprayed the dashboard and laid the dash down onto the leather. For materials, the leather I ended up going with was “EO#13 Black Beauty” from the “Leather Hide Store.” The leather was very high quality and Leather Hide Store was great to work with. They sell sample sizes which is nice in this online age of purchasing. I think they had like 6 different “blacks” that I looked into. 3M 77 was the glue of choice again.

As for the edge wrapping, we ended up leaving about ¾” around the entire outer edge of the dash making notches and wedge cuts as needed to accommodate the contour. We tried to only spray the adhesive in the areas we were working in to keep overspray and the mess down. The wrapping for the glove-box aperture was much larger (2 inches if I remember correctly) since we were now wrapping around two 1/8” layers of foam instead of just one. In all, I was very happy with the results.

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With the dash wrapped it is on to the next phase – fabricating and mounting the door.

[John Ibele]

Nice job. I really think some of the most time-consuming parts of the build end up being the most rewarding (while at times the most challenging). It will be great to be able to point to the dash and say you did it from scratch.

[OB6]

This is so cool, great job. I know it's a lot of work and more difficult than it you make it appear, but your write-up gives me a little confidence to tackle it myself. Did you ever consider using fiberglass to create the box?

[John Ibele]

This is so cool, great job. I know it's a lot of work and more difficult than it you make it appear, but your write-up gives me a little confidence to tackle it myself. Did you ever consider using fiberglass to create the box?

Well, Fixit had a fun story (https://thefactoryfiveforum.com/showthread.php?27544-40-Watt-Garage-amp-9365&p=344110&viewfull=1#post344110) about how not to do it ...

[BrewCityCobra]

Nice job. I really think some of the most time-consuming parts of the build end up being the most rewarding (while at times the most challenging). It will be great to be able to point to the dash and say you did it from scratch.

Agree completely, especially with something as closely viewed as the dash. Plus working on these things is half the enjoyment.

[BrewCityCobra]

This is so cool, great job. I know it's a lot of work and more difficult than it you make it appear, but your write-up gives me a little confidence to tackle it myself. Did you ever consider using fiberglass to create the box?

Great to hear. The one thing I told myself before digging into this project was that, aside from cutting the hole in the dash, everything for the glovebox could be re-made if it didn't turn out (e.g., the door and the glovebox body itself). So that helps to take the stress down a bit to know you can always re-do things if need be.

That said, if you do decide to try and have any questions, let me know.

As for fiberglass, I saw that others tried fiberglass but I was pretty set on making it from aluminum from the beginning. I think the flexiblity of the shape you can make with fiberglass is probably pretty helpful if you really want to maximize space but I wasn't too hard-up on that front as I figure I probably won't put more than sunglasses and a phone in there. Plus I trust my metal working skills a lot more than my fiberglass skills.

[Ted G]

Looks good. I went with the carbon fiber dash and had to modify the glove box drastically. Turned out pretty well and I love the custom gauge layout you did.

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[BrewCityCobra]

Looks good. I went with the carbon fiber dash and had to modify the glove box drastically. Turned out pretty well and I love the custom gauge layout you did.

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Thanks! Yeah, i really like the carbon look as well. I like that you powder coated the back wall - should have thought of that.

[BrewCityCobra]

PART III – Gauges and Door

With the dash wrapped it was time to start populating the dash with gauges and switches. This was a step I’ve been looking forward to for some time – finally get to see how the padding and leather looks assembled. It was also the moment of truth for the switches, ignition, and LEDS to make sure they would fit in their “thicker” home. The answer was – just barely - but I really like the final look, just a bit of “cushion” but not too much.

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One thing I wasn’t sure about was how to go about cutting the various hole sizes in the leather without ruining anything. This is the system I came up with (others may differ). LARGE HOLES (all gauges and steering aperture) were pie cut using a razor blade then wrapped behind and secured with 3M 77 glue. MEDIUM HOLES (Ignition switch and Lucas Switches) were trimmed by hand around the perimeter using an Exacto knife. SMALL HOLES (LEDs) were drilled out using an undersized drill bit. In the end, the install for the various elements turned out nice and clean and smooth.

190244

With the dash populated, I was ready to move onto the glove box door. For the layout, I took some inspiration from EdwardB’s design, going for the two-piece “sandwich” layout that would result in finished leather on both sides. Major difference is that I wanted a bit more heft for my door so I went with a piece of 0.040” aluminum sheet metal for the exterior panel and 1/8” aluminum plate for the interior panel. The 1/8” plate was also thick enough to allow me to drill and tap holes for the hinge bolts (more on that later) and resulted in the door itself feeling nice and heavy and solid.

190245

I wanted to door to be a pretty tight fit against the aperture in the dash itself so I ended up making a second pattern by tracing the aperture in the dashboard as it was shaped post-leather wrap. I then used the new pattern to cut the above-described piece of 0.040” aluminum sheet metal. Using the steps described in the previous post I then applied 1/8” padding and wrapped the entire assembly in leather – all with 3M 77 glue. A hole was also cut for the latch whose position was decided by eye.

190246

The same second pattern was then used to cut the 1/8” plate which was also wrapped in leather using 3M 77 glue. No padding used for this side. I also drilled and tapped the eight holes for the hinges at this time using a 6-32 tap.

With both sides ready to go, I then needed to combine the two while keeping the package free of fasteners. Here was a bit of a conundrum. My biggest concern was the forces applied to the handle when somebody is opening or closing the door – I didn’t want adhesive alone to be what was holding the two halves together. Fortunately, the latch was large (e.g., long) enough so that it would pass completely through both panels and be secured from back with the provided fastener mechanically. Basically all pulling force applied to the handle will be transmitted directly to the ¼” plate via the handle itself – so the 0.040” front plate is just there for aesthetics not load bearing in any way. Eventually I’m going to apply some form of glue to help keep the two sides aligned but for now the latch alone seems to be doing the job by itself and allows for final adjustments. As for the hinges, they are secured using 6-32 x ¼” stainless bolts from McMaster.

190247

With the door ready, it was then time to try to align and mount the hinges. The floor of my glovebox was a bit low relative to the bottom edge of the opening in the glovebox so I needed to fabricate a set of spacers - 3/16” aluminum plate for the left side and ¼” for the right to bridge the gap. These spacers shouldn’t have been required but came about as a result of me needing to position the glovebox body a bit lower than I wanted to make sure everything lined up. Building tip – make the glovebox body a bit larger next time (e.g., more clearly oversized) so I have more maneuverability to make everything align as needed. It’s not an end of the world issue but just another landmine to deal with. In the end, it only took two or three bites at the apple to make everything fit.

190248

With the door in place, next step was the fit the “stop” (formed from a leather-wrapped piece of 0.040” aluminum) and the latch pawl (also a piece of 0.040” aluminum). Again, some massaging was necessary to make sure everything fit and looked nice but I think it turned out all right.

190249

After testing the door fit and latch operation, it was time to disassemble everything one last time for final leather wrapping and assembly.

190250

Once everything was back together I installed the charging ports and was able to check this part of the build off the list. Next steps will be re-installing the electrical and getting everything ready for final attachment to the chassis. Almost there!

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[BrewCityCobra]

The last few weeks have been a bit of two steps forward, one step back.

ENGINE:

On the engine front, I was finally able to swap out the standard issue FFR engine mounts for the solid mounts purchased from Gordon Levy. The hope was to use the solid mounts to lower the engine and provide more positional flexibility so I can align the side-pipes with the pre-cut openings in the body. As for the fit, time will tell, but the flexibility to move the engine around is certainly improved. With the FFR mounts there was little to no ability to roll the engine (or really move it at all). With the new mounts I can now rotate the engine about the roll axis several degrees in either direction. I’m hoping to test-fit the body soon to see if everything fits. I’ll make sure to update the thread when that happens.

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As for the step back, my worst fear when swapping the mounts was realized – the oil pan now extends about an 1/8” below the frame rails. My existing pan was a 7.5” deep Milodon pan so my plan is to now swap that pan out with the Aviaid 6.5” Daytona Coupe Pan (P/N 155-55363). More on that later but we aren’t out of the woods yet.

DASHBOARD:

On the dashboard front, I was finally able to get everything re-connected and installed for what (I hope) is the last time.

192384

As part of the final assembly I finally got to try out my “end wing” concept. I have always felt the edges of the dashboard were bent a bit too sharply such that the curve doesn’t match the lip of the body quite right. My original plan, like most, was to just tuck the wings on the inner edge of the two door mounts, but I felt it may be better to try to allow the wings to expand outwardly a bit.

My solution was to create a pair of brackets against which the wings would rest and trim the wings to give clearance to the door brackets themselves. This way the wings could have a larger radius of curvature (more closely matching the lip of the body) but still have some degree of flexibility in the sense they are not bolted down. I’m curious to see how everything looks once the body is on, but so far I’m happy with the results.

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The second half of the install was finalizing the underside of the dash. I posted on this earlier but the general idea was to incorporate reinforced mounting points into the underside of the dash to permit the use of cell phone docks while keeping the mounting points themselves hidden.

192389

I’ve since expanded on that concept adding more mounting points along the entire length of the dash to accommodate the ever-controversial cobra cup holders. When installed the cup holders are certainly a bit bulky (see below), but the idea is that they compensate for that with their flexibility (they can be mounted almost anywhere along the length of the dash and adjusted as needed from there), and the best part is that when not in use there is no evidence they ever existed.

192390

As for my step back, after re-connecting all of the electronics and confirming everything was in working order, I was greeted by a “bad UART connection” error in my SpeedHut GPS speedometer.

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The terrifying aspect of this error is that, while the dash is designed to be removable once the body is on, it would be quite the undertaking (and theoretical) so for all intents and purposes I consider it permanent. So if this error rears its head after the body is on for good it could really be a problem.

For now, I had a few conversations with SpeedHut and they indicated they have only heard of this error in one other instance (lucky me). As an initial solution they sent me a new GPS sensor which, for now, seems to do the trick. I still got a bit to go before paint (hopefully middle of next year) so we will see if the error turns up again. Fingers crossed!

[Fman]

Nice work on the dash it looks fantastic! :cool:

[Railroad]

I am sure you will like the tach and speedo from behind the steering wheel.

[BrewCityCobra]

Just a small update as attention shifts to installing the carpet and finishing the cockpit generally.

The first item on the list is to fabricate and install a dead-pedal. I’ve been scouring the boards for a while now trying to get a feel for the different ways people approached this problem but, in the end, decided to keep it simple (probably the first time I can say that for this build). While I was a bit hesitant to attach the dead pedal directly to the sheet-metal side wall - I decided it was OK so long as the dead-pedal itself was stiff enough and the footprint of the dead-pedal resting against the side-wall was large enough.

Enter McMaster-Carr.

The foundation for this pedal is a 2” x 3” x ¼” piece of 90 degree aluminum. The idea behind this selection was to have a longer “Base” leg to help distribute the load over the aluminum side panel. The thickness is probably more than needed – but there is nothing quite like excess.

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As for the pedal itself, I went for a drilled pattern to try to somewhat correspond with the aesthetic of the other pedals – specifically the two Wilwood foot pads. [I’m still considering swapping out the Russ Thompson pad – but haven’t made a final decision on that yet]]. The pattern was drilled using my press with a standard bit in the middle opened up with a countersink bit. For size, the pedal pad itself is 2” wide by 4” tall.

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As for mounting, I ended up securing the pedal to the side panel of the driver footbox using four 5/16-18” bolts and corresponding riv-nuts. A quick test-fit seems to indicate that the assembly is pretty solid. As for location, I tried to set it at about the same height as and slightly ahead of (e.g., closer to the driver) the clutch pedal. The idea being that it allows your foot to slide over to the clutch without getting caught.

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192998

As part of the dead pedal install I also took my first run at installing a few of the smaller pieces of carpet. For carpet I’ve decided to go with the Welwood All Weather Outdoor Carpet Adhesive. So far – so good. It is pretty forgiving time-wise which is nice for getting the panels in place. Time will tell on some of the more intense pieces going forward.

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[F500guy]

Thanks for doing all the work on this, that was going to be my plan at the time when i get there. I also thought about a little non-skid tape on the dead pedal. Breeze has the gas pedal pads that match the Wilwood.

[Ted G]

Just a small update as attention shifts to installing the carpet and finishing the cockpit generally.

The first item on the list is to fabricate and install a dead-pedal. I’ve been scouring the boards for a while now trying to get a feel for the different ways people approached this problem but, in the end, decided to keep it simple (probably the first time I can say that for this build). While I was a bit hesitant to attach the dead pedal directly to the sheet-metal side wall - I decided it was OK so long as the dead-pedal itself was stiff enough and the footprint of the dead-pedal resting against the side-wall was large enough.

Enter McMaster-Carr.

The foundation for this pedal is a 2” x 3” x ¼” piece of 90 degree aluminum. The idea behind this selection was to have a longer “Base” leg to help distribute the load over the aluminum side panel. The thickness is probably more than needed – but there is nothing quite like excess.

192994

As for the pedal itself, I went for a drilled pattern to try to somewhat correspond with the aesthetic of the other pedals – specifically the two Wilwood foot pads. [I’m still considering swapping out the Russ Thompson pad – but haven’t made a final decision on that yet]]. The pattern was drilled using my press with a standard bit in the middle opened up with a countersink bit. For size, the pedal pad itself is 2” wide by 4” tall.

192995

192996

As for mounting, I ended up securing the pedal to the side panel of the driver footbox using four 5/16-18” bolts and corresponding riv-nuts. A quick test-fit seems to indicate that the assembly is pretty solid. As for location, I tried to set it at about the same height as and slightly ahead of (e.g., closer to the driver) the clutch pedal. The idea being that it allows your foot to slide over to the clutch without getting caught.

192997

192998

As part of the dead pedal install I also took my first run at installing a few of the smaller pieces of carpet. For carpet I’ve decided to go with the Welwood All Weather Outdoor Carpet Adhesive. So far – so good. It is pretty forgiving time-wise which is nice for getting the panels in place. Time will tell on some of the more intense pieces going forward.

192999

Looking great and I love the custom pedal.

FWIW, during my go-kart stage, I decided to move my dead pedal back about an inch further from the clutch pedal. I kept finding that my foot would get stuck either between the the two or slightly on both when I tried to press on the clutch. Also, this made the motion of raising my foot to press the clutch a more natural move rather than just moving it over to the right. Also, the foot rest now seems in a perfect location. Hard to tell in this picture, but the pedal box is actually about an inch behind the clutch pedal.

Ted

193005

[BrewCityCobra]

Thanks for doing all the work on this, that was going to be my plan at the time when i get there. I also thought about a little non-skid tape on the dead pedal. Breeze has the gas pedal pads that match the Wilwood.

Glad you found it helpful! Yeah, I considered non-skid tape but decided against it for now (with the understanding I can always add it later if need be). I figure after a few go-cart runs it will become pretty obvious if I need it or not.

Appreciate the tip on the Breeze pedal - I'll have to check that out.

[BrewCityCobra]

Looking great and I love the custom pedal.

FWIW, during my go-kart stage, I decided to move my dead pedal back about an inch further from the clutch pedal. I kept finding that my foot would get stuck either between the the two or slightly on both when I tried to press on the clutch. Also, this made the motion of raising my foot to press the clutch a more natural move rather than just moving it over to the right. Also, the foot rest now seems in a perfect location. Hard to tell in this picture, but the pedal box is actually about an inch behind the clutch pedal.

Ted

193005

Location was by far my biggest concern so I'll have to take this into consideration during my go-carts once the weather turns. My pictures do make it look a bit further forward than it really is but I did try to make the pedal small enough that you could extend your leg beyond it if you want to stretch. Hopefully not too much of an issue.

[BrewCityCobra]

So production dropped off a bit over the winter but with the onset of good weather I’m hoping to hit the ground running. Sounds like I may have a painter slot opening in the next few months so I’m getting ready to put the hammer down to get the car wrapped and ready for paint. Should have a good run of updates over the next few months.

With that said, my dad was in town so our plan was to nail down some of the “two-man” projects I had pilling up, namely, to finalize the position of the engine, finalize the header/side-pipe fitment, and test-fit the body shell to make sure everything jives.

199335

Earlier in the build, some may recall that I had swapped out the stock engine mounts provided by FFR for a pair of Gordon Levy’s solid drop mounts. The reason for this switch was because the FFR headers were not even remotely close to matching up with the cutouts in the side of the body. Not only did the headers not match up, they motor mounts were so tight in the frame that there was effectively no room for adjustment.

Gordon Levy to the rescue.

199336

With the solid mounts the engine now has a good deal of flexibility about the “roll” axis so the height of the header collectors can be raised and lowered as needed. The whole engine itself also dropped an inch or two which brought both headers into a much more manageable position.

In the end, we used washers between the header and the side-pipe as stand-ins for future wedges and by playing around with how many were stacked in each corner were able to get the side-pipes to both extend through the original cutouts and properly align the pipes relative to the body. The cutouts are admittedly a little tight but I’ll allow my painter to trim that as necessary once the body is in the final position. We wanted to err on the side of having things too small so there is material to be removed for final fitment during the painting process. The key at this point was just to confirm general fitment and alignment so we could lock down the engine.

DRIVER SIDE – Current Fitment:

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PASSENGER SIDE – Current Fitment

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With the side-pipes fitted, we locked the engine in place torquing all the necessary hardware. We also measured how thick our washer stacks were at each corner. Surprisingly, no “spacer” will need to be thicker than about 0.3 of an inch, so that seems pretty good.

199343

With those measurements, the future goal is to have a pair of custom spacers machined to reproduce (more-or-less) to the measured distances. Theoretically, this concept should provide perfect placement with a single spacer so less joints and chance for leaks. I will report back with how that works.

[cc2Arider]

Hi Brew,

Glad you got the sidepipe alignment issues pretty well sorted out. I'm not quite to that part of my build, but I did have a question about how your hydraulic reservoirs fit with the body on your chassis now.

I guess they fit fine since you didn't mention it. I noticed your reservoir bracket mounts to the bottom of the 3/4" tube. Is the vertical portion of your reservoir bracket more or less flush with the body flange in that same real estate?

My bracket will be mounted horizontally to the 3/4" tube and wondered (before I test fit it myself), if you had any fitment issues. Here's a picture of my mock-up with an 1/8" panel thickness 199344

Also, did you had to lower the reservoirs once you fit the body (and hood)?

Appreciate your feedback :)

Craig C

[BrewCityCobra]

Hi Brew,

Glad you got the sidepipe alignment issues pretty well sorted out. I'm not quite to that part of my build, but I did have a question about how your hydraulic reservoirs fit with the body on your chassis now.

I guess they fit fine since you didn't mention it. I noticed your reservoir bracket mounts to the bottom of the 3/4" tube. Is the vertical portion of your reservoir bracket more or less flush with the body flange in that same real estate?

My bracket will be mounted horizontally to the 3/4" tube and wondered (before I test fit it myself), if you had any fitment issues. Here's a picture of my mock-up with an 1/8" panel thickness 199344

Also, did you had to lower the reservoirs once you fit the body (and hood)?

Appreciate your feedback :)

Craig C

So I did not have any clearance issues but I did not fit the hood at all (probably should have now that I think of it). If I understand your question correctly, the top of each reservoir is below the top of the corresponding 3/4" tube. The mount is also spaced far enough inward so that there is no interference with the shell itself (the shell "hugs" the top and inside lips of the 3/4" tube). With that said, because I used the stock mounts, there is a decent amount of vertical adjustment available if I would need to move the reservoirs down a bit for more clearance.

I took a few pictures that hopefully help a bit on where everything stands:

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[cc2Arider]

Yes, thanks...that helps!

Craig C

[BrewCityCobra]

With the side-pipes in “good enough for now” mode, I removed the shell and got back to finalizing the chassis with the expectation that next time the shell goes on will be the last time before the car goes off to paint.

Next up, the carpet and seats.

Now these two projects kind of occurred simultaneously but in order to get as many pictures as possible into this thread, I tried to split everything up into a few posts. Hopefully everything still makes sense.

For the carpet, the first thing I wanted to do was incorporate a wear pad into the inner wall of the driver’s footbox. I’m not crazy about how close that “bend” is to the accelerator and I figured the vinyl pad would help limit wear and provide a smoother surface for my foot to run along.

For the job, I ordered a black “mini” heel pad from heel pad warehouse (https://heelpadwarehouse.com/?syclid=260dc59f-20d7-41f3-8f9e-9866d255dfbd). Cheap and simple. Just what the doctor ordered.

Given the tight gap between the wall and the accelerator pedal, I was also hoping to “embed” the pad into the carpet as best as possible to keep that gap as large as possible. To do so I decided to give the carpet a bit of a haircut - literally.

199931

After figuring out where I wanted to locate the panel, I taped off the area where the panel would be positioned and used a beard trimmer to cut away the pile from the carpet backing. It took a while given how tough the pile was but in the end the result was a nice clean recess.

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To secure the panel in place, I then glued the panel to the carpet (using Weldwood All-Weather Carpet Adhesive - https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0009X8PEQ/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_image_o09_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1) and then ran a stitch along the perimeter using an upholstery needle and heavy duty thread. If you look closely in the third picture you can see the stitch along the perimeter to lock everything into place. The result was a secure panel but it was noticeably more stiff than the rest of the carpet piece – making install a bit more difficult but not too bad.

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With the panel in place, it was finally time to start installing the carpet in the car. For my install I ended up going with a combination of Weldwood and 3M 90 spray adhesive. The Weldwood served as the primary adhesive being used almost everywhere with the 3M 90 only being used for difficult spots where extra hold was needed. As a first-timer in upholstery, the extra play provided by the Weldwood was critical to make sure all the panels were properly positioned before everything got locked down. Once in place, a roller was used to make sure everything was seated and smooth.

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One of the locations where the 3M 90 spray was used was along the “bend” on the inside of the driver footbox where the heel pad was positioned. After getting the passenger side, middle, and majority of the driver side of that particular panel of carpet in place using the Weldwood (effectively assuring the panel was properly positioned), I then sprayed the 3M 90 along the inside wall of the driver-side and laid the panel into place. Result was a perfect fit and the 3M made sure the particularly stiff panel stayed tight to the wall along the bend.

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As a side note, I did find it helpful to remove my Russ Thompson accelerator pedal to help with the install, and then put it back into place once everything was setup and dry.

With the panel piece in place, it was then just a matter of installing the rest of the carpet pieces, using primarily the Weldwood and supplementing where needed with the 3M 90. A little bit of trimming was needed on most panels but nothing severe. I also made sure to burn/melt apertures into the carpet using a pipe and propane torch before fitting the carpet panels for the last time.

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And we have a carpeted cockpit!

More to follow.

[cc2Arider]

Nice work Brew! :)

Is that the stock carpet? Looks really good!

Craig C

[BrewCityCobra]

Nice work Brew! :)

Is that the stock carpet? Looks really good!

Craig C

Thanks! Yes, in the end I decided to go with the FFR provided carpet. Was actually pretty happy with the quality.

[Jeff_J.]

Really nice work!!
JJ

[BrewCityCobra]

As I continue to work toward finalizing the seats and trunk area, I took some time to finish a few side-quests to help finalize the chassis.

The first project was to finally close up the driver-side footbox. I’ve read similar accounts on the board, but there is just a strange feeling of “finality” that comes with closing that space. A bit of a “holy crap I might actually finish this thing” feeling. An exciting milestone.

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When closing out the driver-side footbox I did partake in two small modifications. The first was to swap out the “slot cover” that normally overlaps with the end wall of the footbox and is a bit unsightly – for a flush piece (see above). A purely aesthetic addition.

The second modification was to add a second access cover to the outside of the footbox. I understand that this panel will be inaccessible once the body is on the car, but the idea here was to allow emergency access to the hydraulic clutch master cylinder in a worse case scenario. From all the talk on the board about failing master cylinders, I thought if mine did fail, removing the body would be a huge PITA, but at least I wouldn’t have to permanently damage the driver-side footbox panels if that part would need to be replaced. Basically, now that portion of the footbox can be accessed in a difficult, but completely non-destructive manner.

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CHARGING PORT

Another side-quest was to install a battery tender charging port under the passenger side of the dash.

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The panel itself is a C-TEK unit that works with in conjunction with a CTEK MXS 5.0 battery tender/charger. To wire the panel in, I ended up running the positive wire to the hot side of the battery cutoff switch (so the battery can be charged even when the car itself is shut-down for the winter and the battery key removed). The system also came with an inline 15 AMP fuse that I had to cut out and re-wire with the fuse holder pictured above on account that the provided holder would be inaccessible without disassembling the dash.

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The reason I put the panel under the dash instead of in the engine compartment (as I originally planned) was because I wanted the panel to be in a location where I could plug in the tender and put a cover on the car for the winter without issue. That meant anything in the trunk or engine compartment was less desirable as it would require those items to be left open or at least partially ajar. The idea is that the cockpit is accessible even with the doors closed and a cover on the car.

BRAKE BIAS KNOB

The last side-quest was to get the brake bias knob installed. The biggest decision here was location. I’ve since seen some really nice hidden mounting spots on the underside of the driver footbox but unfortunately I saw those too late. Early on in the build I had decided I wanted to position the brake bias knob between the seats next to the Battery cutoff switch.

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The only real problem solving for mounting in that location was deciding how to run the cable in a semi-clean way. The best solution I could come up with was running the cable through the combined internal upper-footbox / behind the dash space, then out through the cable openings, and finally to the knob itself. In the end, I was pretty happy with how that turned out and now I can adjust my brake bias – likely one time during the entire car’s existence – Hah.

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[BrewCityCobra]

The seats are in (finally).

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For this build, I went with the FFR Vinyl Roadster seats. They seem comfortable enough but if the car ends up on the track more regularly I may need to switch to something with a bit more support and a high-back in the future. But for now, still trying to maintain the semi-60’s authentic look.

I also had a few “features” that I was hoping to incorporate into the seats that drove many of the design decisions – 1) adjustable sliders, 2) a properly positioned submarine belt, and 3) heated seats.

SEAT MOUNTS

First up was to develop a seat mounting system for the sliders. The design is a “plate sandwich” design using two 1/8” aluminum plates positioned above and below the sliders. As for the sliders themselves, I ended up going with a set of Recaro sliders for this build. I always liked the “Cross-bar” style of release mechanism and this was the only set I could find that provided that option. The key was to mount the sliders inverted so that the release bar attaches along the outside of the sliders instead of along the inside so the width matches the narrower FFR seats.

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The “upper” set of plates are positioned between the sliders and the seat itself. They serve two purposes, the first is to act as a spacer to keep the sliders from rubbing against the vinyl (I didn’t want any rubbing as I figured that was just a matter of time before something snagged or ripped). The second is to serve as a mounting location for my electrical pouch (discussed below).

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The “lower” set of plates are positioned between the sliders and the floor. The purpose of these plates was to strengthen the connection between the sliders and the frame. When the seat was set in place I found that only 1 of the 4 mounting bolts actually went through the provided “seat plate” in the frame. By adding these plates I increase the mounting locations to 8 total, with 3 going through the “seat plate” and two being threaded directly into the frame itself. As you can see in the below picture, the rear plate also doubles as a reinforced mounting location for the submarine belt. The front plate is reinforced with a ¾” aluminum bar for rigidity.

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SUBMARINE BELT

As for the submarine belt, I purchased a set of plastic bezels and cut the appropriate holes through the seat and heat pads.

Side Note: At first I tried gluing the bezels in place – that was a mistake as all it did was create a bunch of gunk that looked terrible. I ultimately had to remove the glue and clean the vinyl. Second time around I just let friction hold the bezel in place and that seems to work much better.

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As for the strap itself, the strap passes through the bezel and is then threaded through the seat elements where it is bolted to the above-described mounting location in the lower aluminum plate. The manner in which the strap passes through the members of the seats (picture is not the best) helps make sure the forces are directed vertically and not backwards at the point of connection.

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HEATED SEATS

The heated seats are a standard COBRAHEAT kit that many on the board have used. Installation of the heat pads themselves was pretty straight forward – although nerve-wracking when I had to start pulling apart the cushions.

For wiring, I was having trouble coming up with a solution that would allow for the necessary seat movement and still be aesthetically pleasing. I ended up coming-up with an “electrical pouch” concept. Basically, I mounted a small leather pouch to the upper plates of my mounting solution behind the seats. All the wires were then packed in that case. This had a few advantages: 1) easy access to the wiring should I ever need to fix anything, and 2) there is only one “loose” wire lead that needs to compensate for the motion of the seat as the whole assembly moves together with the seat itself.

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On to the Trunk!

[Mike.Bray]

Love the way you did the anti-submarine belt!

[BrewCityCobra]

A quick update as the push to finish the chassis continues. With the cockpit effectively complete, finishing the trunk became the primary goal – namely – finalizing the carpet, getting the fire extinguisher mounted, finalizing the wiring, and re-mounting the charging port. I also took this time to mount the shoulder harnesses and drill the mounting holes for the roll bars before those bolts became difficult to access with the body on. Like the cockpit area, standard FFR black carpet was the name of the game.

As a side note, I am having some chrome covers made for the two access openings, but that is still an ongoing project. I will post some pictures after they are complete.

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The only part of the carpeting I was unsure about was how to finish the edges where the weatherstripping is located. I wasn’t sure if I should leave it overlapping (like it is shown in the picture) which hides the weatherstripping but is a bit unkempt, or trim the carpet back on that edge. I suppose in the end it will be effectively invisible given the location so maybe I’ll just leave it as is. Any advice is certainly welcome.

[BrewCityCobra]

A quick update as things start to kick into hyper drive on the build.

The goal over the next few days is to finalize the chassis and put the body on for the last time so the car can be finalized for paint. The first major step in that process is to finally address the body itself and coat the underside with Raptor Liner.

Before we started taping up the body for the actual spraying process, a tip of the cap to FFR as the MKIV body was in really good shape and very little – and in many cases no – trimming was needed to straighten everything out. The dashboard lip was addressed earlier in the build so we didn’t have to worry about that this time around.

At this point, the only major surgery was trimming back the wheel well lips and filing the resulting gap with HSRF. I used a spoon to give a smooth radius but unfortunately didn’t get any good pictures of that area. Probably not absolutely necessary (again, the MKIV was pretty well shaped in this area out of the box) but I do feel the trimming and filleting with HSRF makes for a better and more finished look.

With the wheel wells trimmed and filleted, we went over the entire underside with sandpaper to knock down any loose fiberglass and taped everything up. The spray process itself was surprisingly simple and straight forward. Even less overspray than I was anticipating. I was also very happy with the end result. On to the chassis!

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[cc2Arider]

Looks good Brew! :D

I like the idea of simply painting on the lawn. Did you use a paint gun with compressed air, or did you have aerosol cans of the Raptor?

Craig C

[BrewCityCobra]

Looks good Brew! :D

I like the idea of simply painting on the lawn. Did you use a paint gun with compressed air, or did you have aerosol cans of the Raptor?

Craig C

I used the provided spray gun and my air compressor.

In the end, the material was so heavy that there was very little overspray with no appreciable material on the lawn after we were finished. We did put a tarp below the cockpit area since we would be aiming in that direction but otherwise it made for a nice, easy to clean situation.

[F500guy]

I did not trim any of the edges at the top of the carpet, some places it barely went to the bulb seal flange, pretty invisible there.

[BrewCityCobra]

I did not trim any of the edges at the top of the carpet, some places it barely went to the bulb seal flange, pretty invisible there.

Yeah, in the end I ended up just leaving it overlapped a bit. Figure somebody would have to have quite the crane neck to see that area.

[PMD24]

Awesome thread! Noted several things for my build. Kit should arrive early November.

[BrewCityCobra]

Awesome thread! Noted several things for my build. Kit should arrive early November.

Thanks! and congrats on the kit. If you need any additional photos/description on anything just let me know.

[BrewCityCobra]

So the chassis is officially DONE!

Over the past few days my father and I went through the final “chassis checklist” to confirm that everything on the chassis was complete and ready to go. The goal being that once the body goes on it won’t be coming off again (aside for in the painter’s shop). Few things are more stress-inducing than having full access to nearly everything on the car for 2+ years, only to now have to finally make the conscious decision that you don’t want to mess with anything anymore.

Before signing off, we did a round of checks on the electrical, dashboard, trunk, brakes, suspension, and a number of other items we felt would be difficult to access once the body was on for good.

As a final “chassis graduation” of sorts we pulled the ole’ gal out onto the driveway for a few photos and a walk-around video to memorialize some of the work that will ultimately go unseen in the finished car. An exciting milestone.

https://youtu.be/dbbL82rHmV4?si=0_5WEPXN_-asH6Hu

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[cc2Arider]

Looks great Brew! :)

Craig C

[cv2065]

Looks and sounds great!! Congrats!

[BrewCityCobra]

BODY-ON

With the chassis complete it was finally time to get the body installed and to start the final pre-paint assembly of the build. As stated in an earlier post, we already did an initial fitment so the dashboard edge and trunk sheet metal were already trimmed. The current position appears to be a smudge too far to the rear, but I think we are close enough for the painter to take on any additional trimming that may be needed (if anything at all). My biggest fear at this point is taking too much material off – so I’m generally erring on the side of leaving things untouched and/or oversized. I don’t plan on doing much driving aside from an initial break-in so it is really just a matter of getting things assembled to make sure any holes and trimming is taken care of.

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As an aside, it was really exciting to see the dashboard and cockpit framed-in by the body. Really starting to pop.

HEADLIGHTS

With the body on, the first project was to get the headlights installed and wired-up. Like many on the site, I decided to ditch the lights provided by FFR and swap in some LED units. For my build I decided to go with the Holley RetroBright LED lights in the 5700K Modern White temperature (https://www.holley.com/products/restoration/lamps_and_lighting/retrobright/round_headlights/parts/LFRB155). It’s a really nice unit, with a major advantage being that the whole assembly – bulb, driver, and lens - is effectively the same size as the standard halogen lights so no modification or extra wiring is required. A 1:1 replacement that gives out really good light.

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TURN SIGNALS

When wiring up the lights, I also decided to upgrade the turn signals as well. The main idea being that since the headlights and taillights were both LED, it made sense to make the turn signals LED as well for a consistent look.

The bulbs themselves are a 1:1 swap from superbrightLEDs.com (https://www.superbrightleds.com/led-light-bulbs-universal-finder/miniature-and-subminiature-bulbs/1157-led-bulb-dual-function-27-smd-led-tower-bay15d-bulb+color-Amber). As for the lenses, I went with a new set of clear lenses whose bezels were recommended by many on the board for fitting better against the body (https://jollyrogersmotors.com/store/p/770-Lucas-L539-Clear-Lens-Rim-Pair-New.html). Like the bulbs, the lens/bezel combo is a 1:1 replacement for the existing FFR unit. The base of the turn signal lights provided by FFR were ultimately retained.

[cc2Arider]

Lookin' good Brew! :)

Craig C

[BrewCityCobra]

Some quick updates on the build as we march closer to paint.

QUICK JACKS

After getting the headlights and tail-lights installed, the next major hurdle was installing the quick-jacks and locking down the body position for good.

For a quick rundown of the build specs, I chose polished stainless quick-jacks, the stainless quick-jack “sleeves,” and rubber grommets all from ”the company that shall not be named.” Underlying the entire assembly are 7/16”-20 stainless threaded rods to support the whole assembly from McMaster.

Starting in the rear, like many I choose early in the build to adopt the “Kleiner Mod.” Boy am I glad I did that now. MUUUCCHHH easier than the stock layout.

The biggest design point was to decide how far away from the body to position the quick jacks themselves. I found the stock FFR length to be a bit long for my taste and ended up shortening everything up a bit.

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One interesting point I didn’t necessarily appreciate when selecting the stainless sleeves, the larger diameter and corresponding grommet size required me to drill out the quick jack holes in the body. A step-drill made short work of that and in the end I think having the sleeve extend all the way through the body makes for a more finished look on the exterior.

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Another note, since the stainless sleeves actually have a larger outer diameter than the steel sleeves from FFR, I ended up using lengths of 7/16” ID by 5/8” OD PVC tubing to fill in the gap between the sleeve and the 7/16” rod (see above). The stainless sleeves are clearly intended to slide over the top of the steel FFR sleeves in practice, but I felt the PVC tubing would provide a bit of cushion and avoid any chance of rattling so I went that route instead.

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Lastly, the whole assembly was topped off with stainless acorn nuts.

The front was a similar story, using the same 7/16” Threaded Rod, PVC pipe, and stainless sleeve construction. Also like the rear, the actual quick-jack position was chosen by eye, shortening the length a little bit for what I feel is a better look.

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I did not polish the stainless sleeves before install but am still considering doing so to make the sleeve match the quick jack more closely. I’ll make sure to update the build thread with pictures showing the differences if I decide to do so.

HORN MOUNT

Taking a few steps back, I decided to re-visit the horn mounts. My original mounting location and layout just never really sat well with me. The horns seemed exposed and the mounting solution itself seemed prone to a future failure.

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NEW:

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In response I decided to fabricate something a bit more solid, swapping out the old FFR metal tabs for a 1/8” thick piece of 1.5” wide aluminum. The mount is not painted in the photo but I do plan on painting it black before graduation so it blends in a bit better. The horns themselves are just bolted directly to the mount itself being positioned so that the wire connectors serve to stop the horns from rotating. The mount also has the added advantage of hiding the wiring a bit better than the old layout.

[gbranham]

I dig that new horn mount. I don't love the way they are mounted per the manual, either. Might have to plagiarize your idea.

Greg

[BrewCityCobra]

I dig that new horn mount. I don't love the way they are mounted per the manual, either. Might have to plagiarize your idea.

Greg

Absolutely. The result is much more robust (at least I think so). The only thing I ran into is making sure to mount the bar far enough forward so you don't have to worry about clearance issues with the tire.

[OB6]

I did a similar thing with the horn. It's most likely a solution to a problem that doesn't exist, but I was looking to kill an hour in the garage one evening.

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[gbranham]

It's most likely a solution to a problem that doesn't exist, but I was looking to kill an hour in the garage one evening.

I relish these activities...solving problems that don't really exist. Garage therapy. It's partly why I'm somewhat slow-rolling my build. I don't want all those sessions to end.

Greg

[OB6]

I relish these activities...solving problems that don't really exist. Garage therapy. It's partly why I'm somewhat slow-rolling my build. I don't want all those sessions to end.

Greg

Exactly, and then the longer it takes, the more I change decisions and/or add things. Good thing Jeff isn't taking it for paint until 2026.

[BrewCityCobra]

I relish these activities...solving problems that don't really exist. Garage therapy. It's partly why I'm somewhat slow-rolling my build. I don't want all those sessions to end.

Greg

I can't agree more. I swear I've added a year to this build messing with items that were probably perfectly OK on their own.

Not sure what I'll actually do when this thing is done. Guess I'll have to find a new project.

[BrewCityCobra]

A few more quick updates on the build. I apologize for the lower quality photos – I’m a bit under the gun trying to get the car ready in time for my painter’s start date and haven’t been able to take my time to make sure I capture everything as thoroughly as I typically like. I'll supplement some of these posts with more photos in the future.

SIDE-PIPES

With the quick-jacks finalized and the body locked in place, it was finally time to address the side-pipes for (what I hope is) the final time.

For those of you who have been following the build, you are likely already aware that the side-pipe and header fitment has been an ongoing issue for some time. When the engine was originally installed using the stock FFR engine mounts, the passenger-side header location was so far off it was unusable and the driver side wasn’t much better. In response, I installed some Gordon Levy hard engine mounts to get the headers in a much more tenable position. The lower engine position and added flexibility in engine orientation provided by the mounts appeared to do the trick.

Today was the last step in this process, seeing if I could lock everything down using a combination of the “wedge spacers” sold by Breeze Automotive.

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I’m happy to report that after playing with a few different combinations and orientations of the Breeze wedges I was able to get the side-pipes installed and aligned on both sides of the car without having to enlarge the stock FFR apertures at all. This is a huge check-off for the build and really an end to what I considered the biggest “what-if” left on my checklist.

GAS TANK VENT

Another side-project was to finalize the end of the vent tube for the gas tank. Like many, I had always planned to put some type of activated charcoal filter on the end of the vent tube to help minimize gas vapor smells in the garage. While searching around the forum for details on the traditional PVC-style assembly, I stumbled across a post using a fuel filter body instead (sorry for whoever came up with this as I can’t find the original post to give you proper credit). I really liked the finished look this provided and decided to go in that direction instead.

I ended up purchasing the following fuel filter from Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07VDXFKQM/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

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For roughly $30 bucks it is actually a very well-built unit – all anodized and machined aluminum - and comes with press-in AN fittings that fit perfectly with the hose provided in the Breeze fuel tank vent kit. The body itself can also be completely removed from the included mount and disassembled for ease of maintenance.

Due to the time crunch, I ended up just installing the assembly on the car for now. I’ll include a future post on building out the interior itself to actually function as a filter.

WINDSHIELD

Another item I tackled was getting the windshield installed. There are plenty of videos out there that go into detail on how best to attack this so I won’t get into too much detail here. On a high-level, I did end up threading the windshield supports for ease of assembly which I would highly recommend. I also had a minor issue where one of the bolts wouldn’t thread into the window frame during assembly. I had to go to the hardware and get a slightly longer bolt to remedy the situation (and it was a bit terrifying tightening it in).

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[BrewCityCobra]

The car is officially aligned and off to paint!

It has been a busy couple weeks to finalize everything but the last “paint-essential” items were put on the car, the car was aligned, and then shipped off to Georgia to be placed in the expert care of Mike at Spotlight Customs.

Similar to my last post, due to the time rush my pictures aren’t the best but I’ll make sure to update these posts after the car is back to document some of the specific details of the build.

ALIGNMENT

First stop after getting the body and windshield on was to bring the car in for an alignment.

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I originally intended to do the first round myself, but between trying to get the IRS figured out and time ticking toward my paint appointment, I decided it was best to leave this one to the professionals. That said, the best part was getting to drive the car afterward. My initial alignment was so bad my first go-cart trip was a pretty slow and sketchy affair. Post-alignment was the first time I really got to give the car some pep and feel what the acceleration and handling was going to be like – and boy did it deliver. I’m hooked.

FINAL PRE-PAINT ASSEMBLY

After the alignment was complete I created a final “to-do” list, separating the remaining tasks into “before” and “after” paint. Greatly simplified, the pre-paint list effectively read – hood, trunk, roll bars, and doors. I choose not to mess with the wheel wells at this point as I assumed the body was still likely to move a bit at the painters. The same holds true for some final trim pieces – I’ll work with the painter to get those installed at the shop or once the car is returned and I’m going through final fit and finish.

A few pictures of the last elements going on the car:

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OFF TO PAINT:

And with that, the car was onto the trailer and off to Georgia. Amazing to think I’m actually entering the final stages of the build. Really exciting.

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[Blitzboy54]

Congratulations! Incredibly detailed and clean build. What color(s) or is that going to be a secret until the reveal?

[F500guy]

What was your shipping arrangement? I am trying to determine my path for final paint and body work, some options will entail hauling the car.

[BrewCityCobra]

Congratulations! Incredibly detailed and clean build. What color(s) or is that going to be a secret until the reveal?

Thanks! And yes, I should have the paint details locked down in the next day or two and I'll post a full rundown.

[BrewCityCobra]

What was your shipping arrangement? I am trying to determine my path for final paint and body work, some options will entail hauling the car.

I ultimately went with Nexus Auto Transport. There are a million "get quotes" websites and I spent countless time looking into those but I was having trouble determining how legit some of the smaller companies are given my lack of experience setting something like this up. I was also told you need to be careful because some companies will give you a low quote but then demand a higher charge when they show up to actually pickup the car.

in the end, Nexus is one of the largest transport businesses in the country so I figured at least I had somebody to complain to if the worst were to happen and it is safe to assume they have all the necessary licenses and insurances. They also gave me a website to track the shipment (the fidelity wasn't the best, but it gave me a decent idea of where the car was). Cost was about on point too, I figured the larger companies would be a bit more expensive - but in the end it was about on par with most of the estimates I was getting.

[BrewCityCobra]

It was a nerve-racking 24-ish hours but the car was officially delivered at Spotlight Customs. We are officially off to the races! Mike promised pictures throughout the process so I’m excited to see how things progress (this is my first experience getting a professional custom paint job).

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With the car delivered, I figure now is as good time as any to reveal my plans for paint. Like many, deciding on a color combination has been one of the more thought-intensive steps of the entire build. Stripes? No Stripes? Traditional colors? Something modern? Meatballs? Etc. Etc. Etc. Etc. If there is a picture of a Cobra on social media I haven’t looked at, I’d be stunned.

Generally speaking, I’m a sucker for simple and classic (especially when a car has as much history as these do), but I do like to incorporate some twists where possible.

To that end, I decided to go with a variation of the traditional blue and white by supplementing it with black pin stripes and red team stripes on the driver-side fender. I really like these cars in blue and white and despite playing around with a bunch of different color combos, kept coming back to it.

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As for specific shades, Mike was kind enough to prepare a series of test sprays for me to confirm the specific shades of blue, white, black, and red. The color codes I ultimately tested were just mined from scouring the internet.

The real question was what blue to go with. Again, I was a torn between the classic shades (Viking, Guardsman, Princess) and some newer colors I identified through photos online. In the end, I decided to go with a modern-ish version of a darker traditional blue

The final selections ended-up being:
- Body - Ford Performance Blue
- Primary Stripes – Ford Oxford White
- Primary Pinstripes – Ford Ebony Black
- Team Stripes – Victory Red (GM)

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[Blitzboy54]

Heck yeah!!

I am a sucker for 3 or more colors in a scheme. This is straight fire as both my kids would say. :) An absolute home run. Can't wait to see it finished.

[BrewCityCobra]

The first photo-dump from the painter has arrived. So far the panels have been hung and the gaps finalized. The first bits of bodywork are also in progress. Exciting to see everything starting to come together.

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[BrewCityCobra]

What a day! We officially have color on the body. To say this has been one of the most exciting days of the build so far is an understatement (even if I am taking it in via photo dumps from half-way across the country). Finally being able to see the colors come together has been quite the experience. Mike at Spotlight has been great throughout the entire process making sure to send me updates every step of the way.

One aspect that really blew me away was how much getting clear on the car really pulled all the colors together to create the finished look. Really happy with how it all turned out.

So without any further ado:

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And a final walk-around after the clear was put down: https://youtube.com/shorts/5IXmn4SCEEY?si=py9tFtd1pJ4yYKYX

Doors, Trunk, and Hood are next on the docket along with getting the body back on the chassis for final assembly.

[BrewCityCobra]

Really excited to report that the paint job is officially complete and the body/doors/hood/trunk/windshield have been re-assembled to provide a first glance at the car’s final look.

For now, the car is still at the painter’s shop but I was given a walk-around video to share. Once the car arrives back home (and the Wisconsin weather behaves), I’ll be sure to upload some more photos of the final design.

Can’t wait to see it in person.

https://youtube.com/shorts/GdcEOFPzXfU

[Mike.Bray]

It looks great! Amazing! Very, very nice.

I just hope you don't get yelled at for using a GM color for the red stripes:)

[cc2Arider]

Looks awesome Brew! :)

Craig C

[Highplainsdakota]

Great choices on colors! What was the lead time to get your car in for paint? I’m a ways out but I would really like to get mine to paint during this next winter.

[GoDadGo]

Bravo!
.Well Done!

[nuhale]

Nice choice! Can't go wrong with Spotlight!

[cv2065]

Looks awesome! Congrats!

[gbranham]

That's looks incredible! Congrats...that's a huge milestone!

BTW, I was in your neck of the woods for work last week...spent Tue/Wed in downtown Milwaukee. Was born in Madison and lived in Waukesha, spending my summers on Pewaukee lake. Would love to get back to that area in retirement. More usable warm weather months than Kansas!

Greg

[Blitzboy54]

Love the rookie stripes

[BrewCityCobra]

It looks great! Amazing! Very, very nice.

I just hope you don't get yelled at for using a GM color for the red stripes:)

It is funny you bring that up. When I was writing out the colors I immediately thought - somebody is going to comment about this. Three out of four Ford colors aint bad!

[Mike.Bray]

That's looks incredible! Congrats...that's a huge milestone!

BTW, I was in your neck of the woods for work last week...spent Tue/Wed in downtown Milwaukee. Was born in Madison and lived in Waukesha, spending my summers on Pewaukee lake. Would love to get back to that area in retirement. More usable warm weather months than Kansas!

Greg

Did you know Waukesha Foundry? I've done business with them forever, they make a special lubricated stainless steel that won't gall.

[BrewCityCobra]

Great choices on colors! What was the lead time to get your car in for paint? I’m a ways out but I would really like to get mine to paint during this next winter.

So the lead time in my particular situation is a bit unique. I originally reached out to the painter almost a two years ago with an initial thought that we were going to aim for last winter. That didn't materialize (e.g., i wasn't ready) so I re-contacted him again a few months ago and since I was already on the waiting list I was able to get in with not too much lead time.

I guess the take-away is that you can't really call early enough (especially given that I've heard some painters are a year or two out). I'd recommend reaching out as soon as possible and just working with the painter to get something setup. Better to get on a list now and just say you won't be ready for XX months than wait too long and have a finished car you can't move. At least in my opinion.

[BrewCityCobra]

Nice choice! Can't go wrong with Spotlight!

And thanks for getting me his contact information. He was really good to work with and I'm beyond pumped to see the final result here in a few days.

[BrewCityCobra]

That's looks incredible! Congrats...that's a huge milestone!

BTW, I was in your neck of the woods for work last week...spent Tue/Wed in downtown Milwaukee. Was born in Madison and lived in Waukesha, spending my summers on Pewaukee lake. Would love to get back to that area in retirement. More usable warm weather months than Kansas!

Greg

I'm actually out in the lake country area myself and have downed many a cold beverage on Pewaukee Lake. Great area.

[BrewCityCobra]

So close! The car is back in the garage and the final projects are finally getting checked-off to place the car in “driver” condition. The goal is to get to at least one car show before the summer ends.

PAINT

First off, it was great to finally be able to see the finished paint in person. I was really happy with the finished color combination and layout. Seeing the car in paint just really makes everything seem so much more finished.

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It is worth noting that there were a few “tweaks” required post-paint that I didn’t memorialize here. I re-hung the doors (I wasn’t terribly happy with the door fitment when the car arrived), re-hung the door latches so the doors operated more smoothly, and re-hung the side-pipes so they better aligned with the openings in the body. Otherwise, everything looked pretty good.

REAR WHEEL WELLS

After addressing the above-listed tweaks, the first major item on the list post-paint was to complete the front and rear wheel wells. For each, I purchased the supplemental vinyl wheel well liners form VRaptor Speedworks to supplement the elephant ears provided by the kit and help protect the body from debris.
To fit the rear elephant ears, I decided to go with a set of 10-24 bolts, washers, and corresponding riv-nuts set into the trunk sheet metal. I also anchored a stud to the body using HSRF for the body-side. The main goal here was to allow the panels to be removed should I ever need to access to the rear-most aspects of the car in the future (specifically the gas vent / filter assembly and gas filler tube).

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Overall, both elephant ears (driver and passenger) fit really well out of the box with only a small amount of trimming needed on the driver-side panel to make sure everything nice and snug along the entire perimeter. I’m not sure if others had this issue, but I did encounter some interference with the gas tank flange on the driver side. To remedy this, I simply pulled out the ole’ pliers and bent the flange back as needed. Simple but effective.

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With the elephant ears in place, it was then time to fit the vinyl. Again, more 10-24 bolts and riv-nuts were the answer. Generally speaking, getting the rear vinyl in place was pretty straight forward aside from wrestling everything into position. For positioning, I used the pre-drilled holes provided by VRaptor in both the front and rear. I found that I did not need any reinforcement at the top of the vinyl so long as I made sure the vinyl was properly positioned within the wheel well (E.g., held nice and tight against the body along its entire length).

To note, I found that a riv-nut installed into the rear wall of the cockpit (e.g., corresponding to the bolts to the left of the above photo) worked very well. The riv-nuts themselves are shallow enough that they do not protrude beyond the carpet on the inside of the cockpit so they are all but invisible once installed (e.g., the height of the riv-nut is about equal to the thickness of the pile of the carpet). So long as you make sure the bolt isn’t too long, they make for a clean and simple install without requiring any special fasteners or additional brackets.

[danmas]

I flipping love the driver side stripes and the balance with the blue and white. That is very cool- I imagine it will feel so great driving that around. Very well done!

[BrewCityCobra]

So I have been falling a bit behind on updating my thread, hopefully can make some progress getting things current here over the next few months.
FRONT WHEEL WELLS
After preparing and installing the vinyl inserts for the rear wheel wells, the next job on the docket was to do the same for the front. I had told myself that even though the car was technically drivable, I wanted to wait until at least the wheel well liners were installed before taking it for a spin to try to minimize rock-throw damage and the like.

ELEPHANT EARS
First up for the front wheels was figuring out what to do with the elephant ears provided by FFR. I regularly give FFR accolades for how well the aluminum panels fit throughout the car with really no trimming or bending required. And stand by that. But the elephant ears – at least the front ones – were a bit of a different story.

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I tried putting the panels in my break and bending them, playing with the mounting locations, etc. but just couldn’t seem to bring the gaps down enough for the provided weather stripping to make a seal all the way around with the body. So I decided the best path forward was to fabricate a pair of new ones.

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To secure the elephant ears in place (on the outside), I originally tried going with a bonding stud secured to the body using HSRF but I couldn’t get a good connection and it kept breaking off (In retrospect I think I just wasn’t preparing the surface properly). So instead I decided to just drill a hole and run a stud the body itself. Rock solid and good to go.

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While the underside shot makes it look like the washers/bolt would be an eye sore, you really can’t see it at all unless the car is up on a lift (or you are under the car) so while not aesthetically the best path forward, it worked without too much issue.

INSERTS
For mounting the inserts, I again found the VRaptor Speedworks units to fit extremely well and did not require any trimming. After playing with the inserts a bit, I ultimately decided that mounting solutions for the front and rear was all that was needed to keep everything securely in place. I did play around with the idea of incorporating a “top mount” into the build but, like the rears, ultimately found that if you made a point to really install everything nice and tight (e.g., pressed nice and firm against the body), engagement with the body and frame was enough to really hold everything in place.

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For the rear mounting points I simply used some riv-nuts installed in the elephant ears near the bottom edge (using washers to help spread out the load). I did end up using a spacer positioned between the insert and the elephant ear on the outermost bolt to help keep the alignment proper since the angle of the elephant ear and the angle of the insert don’t necessarily match exactly. The idea was to make sure the bulb seal was firmly pressed against the flange of the wheel opening to create a seal.
As for the front, I fabricated a small mounting block using sheet metal and four riv-nuts and bolted it to the insert itself along the front edge.

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The insert then provided a pair of threaded mounting points for bolts passing through a small “L” bracket I prepared to secure the front edge in place.

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Really pleased with the inserts overall (front and rear). Not only do they fit great, they provide a real “finished” look in each wheel well and – functionally – should help keep the body from getting too beat up from rock throws and the like.
Would certainly recommend.

[OB6]

Thanks for posting the detail about the ears and the wheel well liners... those look great and I need to order a set. They really make for a finished look.

[BrewCityCobra]

Thanks for posting the detail about the ears and the wheel well liners... those look great and I need to order a set. They really make for a finished look.

It really is day and night. I've always felt that there are times the front ends of these cars can look a bit "hollow" when you look in the wheel well area since the front of the body is really only held up by those few small frame elements. These wheel well liners really help make it look more solid, filled out, and finished. Obviously the fact they are also protecting the underside of your body is a huge plus as well.

[BrewCityCobra]

Moving to the interior, the next major task was to finish the transmission cover and swap out the shifter for a new semi-custom setup.

TRANSMISSION COVER

For the cover, I decided to go wrap everything in leather from the same hide I used for the dash. All pretty standard fare. For the metal work, I continued to use the “two-layer patch” concept, using some 6-32 flat-head bolts and my countersink drill bit to keep everything flush. Once everything was in place the entire assembly was bodyworked with body filler to make it as flat as possible. As for the leather wrapping, I tried to reproduce the look and feel of the dashboard as best as possible – so more 1/8” padding and 3M spray glue. Finally, I choose to go with Velcro for attachment, relying on hook and loop strips from McMaster.

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SHIFT STICK/BALL

While preparing the transmission cover, I also decided to address the shifter. Like many, I’ve never been a big fan of the FFR shift knob – not because of the construction (it’s good and heavy and feels well built) or position (I actually really like where it positions the ball) but because the shape and angle of the shift stick itself makes for a weird aesthetic and potentially pinches in 1st-3rd-5th gear.

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When looking for a replacement I initially considered the traditional Cobra shifters that are generally available but ultimately decided against because the fitment just didn’t quite align with what I was looking for. Finding no other shift sticks that were commercially available that fit my needs (e.g., is a bolt-in replacement and will place the shift ball in approximately the same location as the FFR shifter), I decided the best path forward was to either make my own or customize an existing design.

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Enter the Hurst Competition Plus Round Shift Stick – 5389015. Out of the box, the shift stick sits too upright if bolted directly to the TKX but I really liked the look and general shape. After a bit of experimentation I found that it was possible to fabricate an adapter plate positioning the base of the shifter behind and at an angle to the TKX mounting points causing the the ball to be positioned in effectively the same position as the original FFR knob but producing a much better overall shape/look. Perfect! The adapter plate itself is formed from 3/16” steel so plenty rigid to the point where there is no play between the shifter and transmission.

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The assembly looks a little wonky when first bolted-up but add the boot and the look comes together perfectly.

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The shift ball is from TREMEC, a polished aluminum piece with 5-speed pattern on the top (not shown in the photos).

For now I have the original rubber boot installed but am in the process of having a custom leather boot prepared. I’ll update the photos once that comes in.

[gbranham]

Looks great, but I think you need a few more bolts in your filler piece. :)

Greg

[BrewCityCobra]

Looks great, but I think you need a few more bolts in your filler piece. :)

Greg

Hah! I certainly went a little overboard. For whatever reason I couldn't kick the fear that I would space the bolts too far apart and the piece wouldn't stay flush.

But I'll tell you what - that thing isn't going anywhere!

[gbranham]

Hah! I certainly went a little overboard. For whatever reason I couldn't kick the fear that I would space the bolts too far apart and the piece wouldn't stay flush.

But I'll tell you what - that thing isn't going anywhere!

I did the same 2-step filler piece, and simply glued it in place. Your elbow doesn't rest anywhere near it, so it's not going anywhere.

[cc2Arider]

Lookin' good Brew! It's nice to see the Builder's passion to "get it right" :cool:

Craig C