You're a true artist, D....and my hero. 
😊👍 Awesome work.
😊👍 Awesome work.BUILD THREAD “The Juggernaut”
- Thread starter Rktpwrd
- Start date
Wow, That's pretty awesome work Donovan. It look smoother and straighter than the original. What material is the original made out of? Is it that sort of fiberglass type material, or is it urethane? It looks like its coming along well. Looking forward to your next update.
Thanks for all the feedback and support guys!
Thank you very much! I’m very pleased with the results so far.
It truly, absolutely is. I’ve made do with what I had in the past so I know what it’s like, so having the right tools for a specific task is beyond gratifying. The reason I have as much done as I do already is because I’ve been slowly picking away at it for the past two weeks now as time allows. I felt it prudent to withhold posting until I actually had something worth showing.
It’s like a lot of these fabrication projects I undertake Mike, I go into it with somewhat of a half-assed plan and idea, then start figuring the rest out as I go along. On this particular project, I figured if I could get to this stage (and get it right), then I could individually create all the rest of the pieces and add them to it.
So far, so good.
Thank you Jared, I appreciate it.
Cheers!
It’s unfortunate that they changed some things between years, and that not everything interchanges. Even with a little customizing, is there still no way to make the steel one work? I sometimes forget that the plastic bits really didn’t survive well down there south of the 49th. Perfect example, Buick Regal bumper fillers.
Thank you Jack, although that’s the first time I’ve ever been referred to as anyone’s hero!
I do appreciate the sentiment though sir.
😊
Much appreciated, thanks!!
Thanks Jeff, it’s been a pretty fun and rewarding project thus far. To be honest, I haven’t checked the backside for the manufacturer's mark that usually denotes the type of material that was used yet. I’ll have to check the next time I think of it, but I believe it’s either urethane or some sort of other thermoset plastic. Regardless it’s not very structurally supportive but it is relatively lightweight, which I suppose was more important at the time.
I’ll keep posting updates as the work on it progresses, and I feel it’s warranted. I do have a couple of other small things to update on with the work on the back of the car that are unrelated to this too, so that update might be coming sooner than later.
Thank you very much! I’m very pleased with the results so far.
It truly, absolutely is. I’ve made do with what I had in the past so I know what it’s like, so having the right tools for a specific task is beyond gratifying. The reason I have as much done as I do already is because I’ve been slowly picking away at it for the past two weeks now as time allows. I felt it prudent to withhold posting until I actually had something worth showing.
It’s like a lot of these fabrication projects I undertake Mike, I go into it with somewhat of a half-assed plan and idea, then start figuring the rest out as I go along. On this particular project, I figured if I could get to this stage (and get it right), then I could individually create all the rest of the pieces and add them to it.
So far, so good.
Thank you Jared, I appreciate it.
Cheers!
It’s unfortunate that they changed some things between years, and that not everything interchanges. Even with a little customizing, is there still no way to make the steel one work? I sometimes forget that the plastic bits really didn’t survive well down there south of the 49th. Perfect example, Buick Regal bumper fillers.
You're a true artist, D....and my hero.
Thank you Jack, although that’s the first time I’ve ever been referred to as anyone’s hero!
I do appreciate the sentiment though sir.
😊
Much appreciated, thanks!!
Thanks Jeff, it’s been a pretty fun and rewarding project thus far. To be honest, I haven’t checked the backside for the manufacturer's mark that usually denotes the type of material that was used yet. I’ll have to check the next time I think of it, but I believe it’s either urethane or some sort of other thermoset plastic. Regardless it’s not very structurally supportive but it is relatively lightweight, which I suppose was more important at the time.
I’ll keep posting updates as the work on it progresses, and I feel it’s warranted. I do have a couple of other small things to update on with the work on the back of the car that are unrelated to this too, so that update might be coming sooner than later.
Using it as a core it could have the outer edges altered to work with the '79/'80 taillights. Then there's the lower edge that would be the challange due to the way it is for the lower plastic trimthat needs to be glued/siliconed to it. In a way I wished the plastic used would of been more like the stuff used in modern bumper covers & most plastic cladding.
liquidh8
Comic Book Super Hero
Once again, it appears I’ve been remiss in providing updates on the car.
A lot has been done since the last post, so let’s get down to it shall we? Still working on replicating the rear plastic filler panel in metal, once I had the main basic shape of the outer shell I started gradually fleshing out the little bits on the underside. I created these half round pieces in the metal brake and got them welded in next:
Once those were in place, I dug out my panel beater bag…
…and started forming the two cove shaped pieces on either side:
After welding those in…
…it was time to create the main “roof” piece. Simple matter of templating the shape with more masking tape…
…and transferring it to metal. It should be noted here that this method is not an exact science. The differences from one side to the other are actually quite surprising considering they’re supposed to be mirror images of each other. I had to decide which side of center best represented the correct shape and make the other side match for symmetry.
I again figured out the center of the needed bends and marked off additional lines in 1/8” increments from center to create the bends in the metal brake:
Lots of test fitting and mock-ups:
You may have noticed the small LED light in the previous pictures, it was a find off of “that jungle website”, and is super bright and low profile.
The reason I needed to decide on a light at this stage was to finalize the real estate that would be required to fit it, which in turn dictated the size and shape of the middle of the outer face:
After welding this part all together and the roof in, I next tacked a piece of angle iron to the bottom of the “roof” to keep everything straight. Can’t have it sagging or drooping in the middle as it would be super noticeable in relation to the license plate.
This is just temporary, and will be removed once the piece gets more structure to it.
Now it was finally time for the main inner piece. Initially it seemed like it was going to be really daunting, but as with the rest of the pieces, once you break it down into the basic shapes, it’s not so bad. Layout on the metal…
Bead roll in some nice detail with the step dies on the bead roller for aesthetics and strength…
…then make the bends to create the reverse light housings:
Mocked up into place and ready to start tacking in:
Continued >>>
A lot has been done since the last post, so let’s get down to it shall we? Still working on replicating the rear plastic filler panel in metal, once I had the main basic shape of the outer shell I started gradually fleshing out the little bits on the underside. I created these half round pieces in the metal brake and got them welded in next:
Once those were in place, I dug out my panel beater bag…
…and started forming the two cove shaped pieces on either side:
After welding those in…
…it was time to create the main “roof” piece. Simple matter of templating the shape with more masking tape…
…and transferring it to metal. It should be noted here that this method is not an exact science. The differences from one side to the other are actually quite surprising considering they’re supposed to be mirror images of each other. I had to decide which side of center best represented the correct shape and make the other side match for symmetry.
I again figured out the center of the needed bends and marked off additional lines in 1/8” increments from center to create the bends in the metal brake:
Lots of test fitting and mock-ups:
You may have noticed the small LED light in the previous pictures, it was a find off of “that jungle website”, and is super bright and low profile.
The reason I needed to decide on a light at this stage was to finalize the real estate that would be required to fit it, which in turn dictated the size and shape of the middle of the outer face:
After welding this part all together and the roof in, I next tacked a piece of angle iron to the bottom of the “roof” to keep everything straight. Can’t have it sagging or drooping in the middle as it would be super noticeable in relation to the license plate.
This is just temporary, and will be removed once the piece gets more structure to it.
Now it was finally time for the main inner piece. Initially it seemed like it was going to be really daunting, but as with the rest of the pieces, once you break it down into the basic shapes, it’s not so bad. Layout on the metal…
Bead roll in some nice detail with the step dies on the bead roller for aesthetics and strength…
…then make the bends to create the reverse light housings:
Mocked up into place and ready to start tacking in:
Continued >>>
A look at it now welded together, and the opening for the light cut with it temporarily installed:
It was then time to finish out the sides of the reverse light housings, some 3/4” strips of sheetmetal bent to the right shape and welded in/metal finished out wrapped that up nicely.
Unfortunately I don’t have any pictures of it, but the opening for the filler neck was cut out next, and a nice 3/4” inwards facing flange was added for strength and to eliminate any sharp edges. It’s visible in the following pictures.
Now that I had it 95% complete, I could start actually fitting components to it. I started by cutting the openings for the reverse lights, and adding nutserts to mount them with stainless button head machine screws that match the rest of the car:
Speaking of nutserts, two tiny M3 nutserts fit the mounting holes in the plate light perfectly. I added some OEM style thin foam insulation to the mounting face for a factory finish:
Plate frame was next. Once it was positioned squarely in the opening, the mounting holes were marked for it and more nutserts were used. The backside of the nutserts were reinforced with thick stainless steel flat washers to prevent the repeated action of opening and closing the frame from bending the metal over time.
The extremely sharp-eyed members that own these cars might notice that the reverse lights were relocated 1/4” higher than factory. It may not sound like much, but that 1/4” gap looked really out of place. Having the lights flush to the surrounding surfaces looks much better IMO.
This past weekend, I made a sojourn out to one of the local junkyards, and came home with this:
A fuel filler door from a ‘94 Suburban.
What on earth for??? Well, many people don’t even realize that this is a thing, but many vehicles have a bracket to hang your filler cap in while refueling. I only recently learned this, but apparently the actual G bodies (81-87) already have one in the bottom right hand corner of the backside of the plate frame. Since I’m using a 3rd gen Camaro stay-down plate frame however, it doesn’t have one. Regardless, no more setting it on the bumper, filler panel, trunk lid or pump, or trying to wedge it in to keep the plate frame down.
Sometimes it’s the little convenience things that make all the difference.
After splitting the bracket from the outer door and trimming it down, this is what I had:
Note how the two sides of the bracket are actually on different planes to accommodate the filler cap threads:
I could’ve easily made one myself, but no sense in reinventing the wheel when one already exists.
After stripping off all the old paint and locating it on the panel where it would be invisible behind the plate, I marked out the outline and drilled a couple of 1/8” holes to plug weld it on from the backside.
And that very nearly brings us up to date. Not yet shown here is a 3/4” tall factory style rubber bumpstop that the plate frame rests against when closed, to eliminate any NVH or metal on metal contact. I had planned on using a G body door bumpstop for this, but it wasn’t quite tall enough to provide the required clearance to the filler cap bracket.
The fabrication on this is very nearly done, just a few small tweaks and details left to address. Then I will be able to start fitting it to the shape of the back of the car, and devise a mounting method.
I have other progress on the actual car itself that Mike has been making on his days in The Skunkworks, but that’s to cover in another update on another day.
Thanks for following along friends!
D.
It was then time to finish out the sides of the reverse light housings, some 3/4” strips of sheetmetal bent to the right shape and welded in/metal finished out wrapped that up nicely.
Unfortunately I don’t have any pictures of it, but the opening for the filler neck was cut out next, and a nice 3/4” inwards facing flange was added for strength and to eliminate any sharp edges. It’s visible in the following pictures.
Now that I had it 95% complete, I could start actually fitting components to it. I started by cutting the openings for the reverse lights, and adding nutserts to mount them with stainless button head machine screws that match the rest of the car:
Speaking of nutserts, two tiny M3 nutserts fit the mounting holes in the plate light perfectly. I added some OEM style thin foam insulation to the mounting face for a factory finish:
Plate frame was next. Once it was positioned squarely in the opening, the mounting holes were marked for it and more nutserts were used. The backside of the nutserts were reinforced with thick stainless steel flat washers to prevent the repeated action of opening and closing the frame from bending the metal over time.
The extremely sharp-eyed members that own these cars might notice that the reverse lights were relocated 1/4” higher than factory. It may not sound like much, but that 1/4” gap looked really out of place. Having the lights flush to the surrounding surfaces looks much better IMO.
This past weekend, I made a sojourn out to one of the local junkyards, and came home with this:
A fuel filler door from a ‘94 Suburban.
What on earth for??? Well, many people don’t even realize that this is a thing, but many vehicles have a bracket to hang your filler cap in while refueling. I only recently learned this, but apparently the actual G bodies (81-87) already have one in the bottom right hand corner of the backside of the plate frame. Since I’m using a 3rd gen Camaro stay-down plate frame however, it doesn’t have one. Regardless, no more setting it on the bumper, filler panel, trunk lid or pump, or trying to wedge it in to keep the plate frame down.
Sometimes it’s the little convenience things that make all the difference.
After splitting the bracket from the outer door and trimming it down, this is what I had:
Note how the two sides of the bracket are actually on different planes to accommodate the filler cap threads:
I could’ve easily made one myself, but no sense in reinventing the wheel when one already exists.
After stripping off all the old paint and locating it on the panel where it would be invisible behind the plate, I marked out the outline and drilled a couple of 1/8” holes to plug weld it on from the backside.
And that very nearly brings us up to date. Not yet shown here is a 3/4” tall factory style rubber bumpstop that the plate frame rests against when closed, to eliminate any NVH or metal on metal contact. I had planned on using a G body door bumpstop for this, but it wasn’t quite tall enough to provide the required clearance to the filler cap bracket.
The fabrication on this is very nearly done, just a few small tweaks and details left to address. Then I will be able to start fitting it to the shape of the back of the car, and devise a mounting method.
I have other progress on the actual car itself that Mike has been making on his days in The Skunkworks, but that’s to cover in another update on another day.
Thanks for following along friends!
D.
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Wow, awesome work as always Donovan!. Lots of nice little touches there too. The nutserts, the stainless button head screws, and the fuel cap holder. I like it!
Yet another instance of really great fabrication work that, for the most part, nobody will ever notice. That's a shame..... Nice work, Donovan! 👍
