Bottom of rear cockpit wall attachment-more questions

[Mastertech5]

I wondered about this ever since I took the panels off when I got my kit. The rear cockpit wall is bent at an angle and meets the floor. How can you rivet that to the floor if they don't meet flat together? I admit that I haven't looked in the manual about that specifically but I am as soon as I post this. What have others done, just sealer of some sort? Thanks for any opinions/advise.

174527

[facultyofmusic]

Mine doesn't meet either. I plan to use a lot of seam filler. Once you spray it with black paint (like Jeff kleiner suggested in other posts) and put in the carpet it shouldn't be noticable at all.

[michael everson]

never seen that before. I have built several including a couple GEN 2s. wonder why it isnt bent at a 90?
Mike

[33fromSD]

Not sure why they bend them like that but my kit in Sept 2020 had the same, however, my floor pan was also bent up in the rear to meet the bend of the back panel (you can see it in these pics).

Jim

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[Dgc333]

My 33 has the floor bent up at 45 to meet the back wall that is bent at 45.

[edwardb]

The truck is the same way. The floor pieces are bent up at an angle to match the angle on the back wall. Looks like they missed the bends on the floor pieces. :(

[michael everson]

So maybe it needed to be that way for the truck so make them all that way.
Mike

[Mastertech5]

So now that my floors are down for good, the only option I see is to go with what I have or try to bend the rear of the floors up (much harder than it sounds) or get a 3/4" x 3/4" strip bent at a 45 deg. angle made to mate the two properly.

[Mastertech5]

I also have a question about the upper trunk panels. Did you all rivet this piece in?

174531

The manual isn't real specific, but seems to suggest that the panel that goes against the back of the gas tank should be screwed in place. This makes sense if you need to remove the tank at some point for service of some kind.

174532

[33fromSD]

I also have a question about the upper trunk panels. Did you all rivet this piece in?

174531

The manual isn't real specific, but seems to suggest that the panel that goes against the back of the gas tank should be screwed in place. This makes sense if you need to remove the tank at some point for service of some kind.

174532

I riveted both pieces

Jim

[Mastertech5]

Problem solved with the rear floor. I cut a piece of angle iron to fit between the seat belt anchors and clamped it in place one side at a time after drawing a line on the floor with the back panel in place. Using a variety of pliers I slowly bent the rear edges up trying to keep the aluminum as straight as possible. Then I used the angle iron as a dolly and hammered the edges as straight as I could. They are close enough that the rivets will pull them together.

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Another of many problems solved!

[33fromSD]

Problem solved with the rear floor. I cut a piece of angle iron to fit between the seat belt anchors and clamped it in place one side at a time after drawing a line on the floor with the back panel in place. Using a variety of pliers I slowly bent the rear edges up trying to keep the aluminum as straight as possible. Then I used the angle iron as a dolly and hammered the edges as straight as I could. They are close enough that the rivets will pull them together.

174548 174549

Another of many problems solved!

Great job. To me running into an issue like this and solving it, was the best part of building the 33, I like when I need to solve problems. This is where some people really struggle and get over their heads. Their vision of a "kit car" is stuff just fits and when everything is put together they have a cool car but that is not the case with the FFR Kits cars, they go together fairly well for the most part, but there is mechanical stuff that needs to be figured out and then there is the body (the fiberglass parts) that need quite a bit of attention to get a good fitting completed product.

All fun. I Liked it so much I may order the 35 truck after I finish my 55 F100 pickup I'm currently working on (hoping to have this on the road by spring).

Keep plugging along, you're doing great!!

Jim