Plastic Fantastic 2

[SuperBuickGuy]

those are neat... I'm hold out for one older then you

time to fill the hole in the deck

looks to be about the right depth now

and fitting time *hack*

close

glued

not close

hmmm... is it supposed to veer off to the left? wonder what that would do for aero?

maybe I can counter balance that with a step on the right side?



hmmm.... glue it - nice to have lots of clamps


and as if by magic, it's now lined up.... if anyone asks, it was totally accidental and I have no idea what happened
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[SuperBuickGuy]

Time to Camaro-ize my Corvette. (I told a friend that I was doing this, his look was aghast at putting a Camaro rear end in a Corvette until I pointed out the year)


it is 4" wider per side - which corresponds nicely with the 4" flares


I'm pretty much doomed to upgrading the front because these brakes are large by huge


the basic is this - the front mounts will need a new mount welded to the back of that cross frame.edited The rear is in line with the frame, but I'm not sure how much of a step it is compared between the two.editededited




another view


there's the difference in track width - I know, deep offset looks cool; center offset handles better


as for suspension.edited you'll know the moment I do.edited The Camaro is basically a coil-over, so if I weld a new mount plate - it would work, but I'm not sure how well so we will see - I may use a transverse spring....edited

 

[bobs77vet]

dude you are on fire......that looks awesome

 

[SuperBuickGuy]

so I finally finished buying the new gauges.edited fuel, oil, temp, water, and wide band sensor


good thing I put the bung in place


and rearranged the car on the lift


then took an easy task to cut the hole for the fuel filler


mark

install


more random suspension pictures


yes, 3.27 gearing


this should be fun to see if it works


yeah, don't need locks


gratuitous side shotedited


and filler drying so I can blend the nose in
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[rtj]

dude you are on fire......that looks awesome

X2. Looks good.

 

[SuperBuickGuy]

I just ordered the C5 spindles for the front.edited I haven't, yet, decided whether or not I'll use stock C5 A-arms or build my own....editedI'm thinking maybe stock lowers with custom, adjustable uppers... the biggest issue is, since I'm turning the spindles around - making certain my bump steer is controlled... I'm using the stock, C3 steering because while rack and pinion is neat; I'm not certain it's necessary for a fast, track car.

Feel free to weigh in on that issue.

 

[bobs77vet]

how about just the weight savings of going to a rack and pinion set up.....i didnt think much about the drag link set up and it weighed a lot as I recall. and besides those pitman arms are useful for using with a hydraulic press, they are nice and flat and have a big hole in them.

i guess you could always do it later

 

[vette427sbc]

I seem to recall reading that steering arm design was different for front and rear steer applications (good chance Im wrong here)... Just throwing it out there before you spend too much time on getting the rear steer to work. Also If youre making your own control arms, be sure to take the C5's KPI into account with your upper arms. I happen to be selling a set of fully adjustable SPC arms for a C3...

Cant wait to see more of the camaro rear!

 

[SuperBuickGuy]

we may need to talk about those SP3 arms.... your wish, however, has arrived
this, needs to fall out


nice, new brakes... that will never be used


today's tutorial.

How to remove trailing arms in 2 hours or less
first, loosen the outside nut and take all the cotter pins out (including the one that holds the shims in place)

then pry out the outer-most shims (it actually is pretty easy)

then cut the bolt on the outside
now move to the inside bolt, cut the head off

knock the head off with a air chisel

pry in, cut the bolt on the inside
remove.... this took - to this point, 3 hours.
If anyone needs a 3.36 gear rear.... it's for sale.


it seriously took more time to get the tools out and ready, I went through 2 blades - mostly because you're only using the very end.... I used them later.... see below
first fit without obstruction... well, the well boxes are obstructing


beside the boxes, problem 2 is apparent in this picture too


better seen here


I'll build a battery boxy for behind the passenger seat.... cap the rest


in all of this, getting windows tinted.... I hope he does a good job because I know hundreds of people who'll use him if he is

tinting booth



a few cars


but here's where I'm at now


I'm considering simply welding the entire structure in place.... it would be stronger and eliminate some bushings... as far as I can see, all the bolts would be accessible - which is why I have a production pause going on....edited

I think it looks pretty cool



I suspect I can use stock C7 wheels


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for anyone who subscribes to this forum, this is way too easy... best part is I should get my money back from selling my 3.36 gear rear that just came out.

 

[SuperBuickGuy]

and a little more
got the mounts out


I need to shave 1/4" from here....edited


the yellow marks are the centerline of the old set up


give or take, that's about ride height.... 28" tire


so I welded some scrap to hold the front up


and some motorcycle straps for the back


there it is, hanging from the car


my are those big brakes


I should be able to finish this up this week, then *hack*, back to bodywork.... hopefully in a couple weeks I'll be able to get a first coat of primer.... and I still need to build the cage.... lots to do.editededited

 

[rtj]

Wow, those guys looking for a cost effective modern replacement will wish they’re gone this route (instead of the mustang irs).

Plus, lots of aftermarket upgrades available.

What was the final part cost with shipping?

 

[SuperBuickGuy]

Wow, those guys looking for a cost effective modern replacement will wish they’re gone this route (instead of the mustang irs).

Plus, lots of aftermarket upgrades available.

What was the final part cost with shipping?

$850 from Georgia to Seattle.

 

[Kacyc3]

Does it look like it would work with stock body but aftermarket wheels?

 

[SuperBuickGuy]

Does it look like it would work with stock body but aftermarket wheels?

not with the widest suspension. You'll have to verify this (because there is a conflict on the various webs as to how wide the track is), but the non-SS Camaro (v6, 4 cyl) have a 62.5" track width. If that is true, then you could with a positive offset.

So here's the work behind that

Stock C3 Corvette hub-to-hub measurement is 57.5" (verified on my own car).
If the Camaro is 62.5, then you're 'only' 5" difference or 2 1/2 inches per side. The stock C3 wheel is a 4.5" backspace on the 8" wheel. Said another way, you have 3.5 to the rim face. Most modern cars have the hubs closer to the wheel face, even the BMW wheels - which look super-deep have hubs that are only 12mm back from the center and the center of the wheel is convex.

Now with that said, the listing for a 2010 SS is 64.5 track width, that translates to 66.5" hub face to hub face.... which means probably 64.5" hub face - and that puts the hubs flush with the face of the wheel in the location of the stock wheel. In that case, you'll have to decide if you want to move the wheel further out in the wheel-well (and you have about 2" to get flush with the lip). A lot of people run 10" rims (with the same backspace) on stock C3s - so there is some play here.

the tl;dr is a highly qualified "yes" you can...

 

[SuperBuickGuy]

So this set of pictures is after disconnecting the sway bar and seeing how close to perpendicular the axle is moving.edited I think, this is just a guess, but I think the mounts would be about 1 1/2 below the cross bar on the C3... no big deal to cut and re-shape, but that's my eduguess as to where this is going to end up
pictures

zero(ish) at full drop

3 degrees at full compression (which is about 2" into the tire so not going that far)

I know it seems like 4 but it was zeroed and moved before this picture....

that's about middle of the travel (it has roughly 6 inches maybe a touch more if pushed - which is kind of amazing itself since that's about 1 inch more then my H3 Hummer had on the front)


29" opening at full drop


If I was a snot, I'd not tell you that it's really easy to get the suspension where it needs to be....
level this bar - at ride height this bar must ABSOLUTELY be level.... the suspension is designed to toe in/toe out during travel - and it actually helps it turn, but it must be level otherwise steering inputs won't be predictable.


all that's left is rotating the axle so the tire goes (close to) straight up and down in the wheel opening.edited With that said, advanced suspension says you want the wheels to get closer together on the inside of the turn and wider on the outside.... HOWEVER, not too much otherwise you'll have to steer after every large bump... in this case, 1* is enough (which is back to my prediction as to the orientation of the axle as view from the side... tl;dr - front needs to go down about 1 1/2 inches, I think)

the tire size Custom Image Corvette designed the flares for is 28".... that means this is basically the most downward travel


Sunday I said I needed to take 1/4 inch off... no, it needs 1/2 inch




and knock that cussable front support offedited

done


and if you look really closely, you'll see the wheel is more centered


Thursday I'm going to start making front brackets then start pondering what the rear is going to look like.edited the last fun bit will be figuring out the coil over mount... there is an elegant solution for the driveshaft... but that you'll just have to wait to see

 

[69427]

Looking good, man. :thumbs:

 

[SuperBuickGuy]

thanks.

so I measured.edited 26x12.3 .... you'll see how I verified this at the end



oh an 9" backspace ... means I can use Z06 wheels
of course all things do not work perfectly the first time.... one hole was just a tad undersized.. easy fix on the drill press


1 degree difference - the transmission is 2.85 degrees


now to put it in place for permanence


trim, tack


knock apart,


tack again in the right spot


get the welds I can't reach from the bottom




and there it is... front is still on temp stands, but it should all be in place Sunday



hmmm,, I think these brakes are bigger then stock


verification.... fits








and yes, centered even




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[SuperBuickGuy]

Parts arrived...edited
clever solution (probably should have done the other one so I could use a smaller U-joint but this means I need to put enough motor in front of it to warrant the use of the 1350 u-joint... otherwise, I'll be laughed at).




these arrived too.... now all that's left is everything
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[bobs77vet]

its coming together very nicely.

 

[SuperBuickGuy]

Lohnes may joke about Mullet cars (Brian Lohnes, owner of Bangshift.com and ___ of a ___ with a ___ for a ___.... for those who are getting this on broadcast).... but I know you're here for your fix of all things mullet and plastic.edited For that... we carry on and add Camaro to my Corvette (I win the trailer park war)

so I put the other tire on.... and it wasn't right... close, but not right


fortunately, there's this thing called tacks - those are tacks.... big tacks


yep, the problem, the vise grips didn't hold this forward


chop chop


welded up tight

and now welded in the front

eventually, this will get a brace



also started figuring out how the coilovers will install



I love this - I had my laser guy cut out a sheet of tabs... very handy


and then sanded - because the only way sanding gets done is if I do a bit a day


a bit more filling and it'll be done



and I only wish I was rednecked enough to have a 60s 2 ton chevy truck with a pickup bed in my backyard....edited

 

[bobs77vet]

what are you going to do with 100 tabs? thats alot of tabs....is that 1/4" plate

 

[SuperBuickGuy]

what are you going to do with 100 tabs? thats alot of tabs....is that 1/4" plate

order another because that one is about done. Yep, 1/4, those are pretty handle for chassis building.

 

[SuperBuickGuy]

I'm not stopped, but I am taking some time to consider options.edited I have 3" from the hub face to the fender lip (on the rear of the car).edited I can gain 2" by using narrower Camaro arms.edited I can use Corvette rims (79 mm positive offset - that's just over 3" from the center)... or, of course, buy something aftermarket.edited The wheel has to be 19" to clear the calipers.edited So what to use? deeper offset is kind of cool but the latest trend in making cars handle is longer control arms.... so I dunno... I also need to order the front arms... what I don't want to do is order wheels then need to buy new wheels because I don't like the fit/use.

what that means for the project is I'm going to finish body work and decide which is betteredited

 

[SuperBuickGuy]

Now I get why the person whose fenders were the mold for these said to put the wheel on before you finalized.edited This is terrible but I'm not sure getting a replacement would be any easier....



driver's side is actually pretty good (as are the front fenders)


this is the driver's side (and to be clear - the new differential is far closer to perfect then what GM did with the original)



other side




at least in this direction it's close enough



so this is the offset 4 1/2"edited


what's cool is I could fit a 16" wide wheel in the back.edited I'm still going with my plan of Z06 wheels.edited I've now seen it on another car without flares and they look pretty good.

What's really funny, those wheels were on Plastic Fantastic (the last C3 I built) and I utterly hated then and even tried to give them away.edited Glad they didn't go because now I know exactly what will fit and what 20s will look like on the back
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[SuperBuickGuy]

I'll bring this as a separate post because there's a question embedded in it


I'm not sure I know of a good way to fix this.... thinking about using the Dulcich method (cut, foam, mold) - I wonder if that car still is only half flared?edited suggestions on an easy way to get that curve.... tomorrow I verify the suspension isn't part of the issue (even if it is, it's still not round so can only be part of the problem)
edited

 

[bobs77vet]

they make Jigs that attach to the wheel studs that you can rotate to give you the radius you need. i bet you could make one out of ply wood like a big trammel for marking the curve

 

[rtj]

I feel your pain. The old bodies on old perimeter frames shift around. My hookers are asymmetrical.

Take a breath, work other issues on the car, a good solution will probably pop up.

Great job on the irs. The old “battery box delete” was a winner here. Actually might make a nice product for someone/company (i.e., a replacement panel for the deleted box).

 

[rtj]

Could you loosen the body bolts and rotate a fraction of a degree without messing up the front? Just brainstorming a bit

 

[SuperBuickGuy]

back to offending people who hate Corvettes
I've decided I don't care.edited The fix is to pie slice the passenger side about 1/3 up from the front edge... but frankly, I'm the only person who will ever notice



now I need to wait for the coil overs, and get moving on ordering the bits for the front suspension

I think it looks cool so low - it moves up about an inch but it's going to be low (as low as my other, and it was never a problem)
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[SuperBuickGuy]

A bit of progress
first, Buick is ready for his first ride


which requires hood pins




still have to file fit, but close


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