Hide your shame with seam sealer and silicone.
Looks good enough to go fast!
Looks good enough to go fast!
MONTE CARLO "COPO" Monte Carlo SS - Turbosaurus Build (Swinging Dick Racing's c*ck got bent... she bounced a little too high & hard, & came down awkwardly)
- Thread starter motorheadmike
- Start date
- Status
Now it’s time for something serious
Enough of this welding on something other than intake and exhaust piping !!!!
Enough of this welding on something other than intake and exhaust piping !!!!
Boomtube goes here. Ground clearance is a big concern, as is fitment to the body. Hanging it under the factory frame would be... unsightly (and lazy). Now it will be tight to the pinch weld under the rocker and quarter panel.
Needed a couple of reference marks to get the cut lines where I wanted them. The goal was to have the sectioned area square with the pinch weld... so that was my guide.
The cuts will be angled toward the rear tire, the boom tube will be square to the wheel lip. I made templates to validate this. The cut will be 8.5" wide to go around the 8x2 tip.
More on this chunk in a moment.
Cleaned out the oils and waxes that would otherwise run down into the welds. Been there done that.
I am not sure if it is because of inflation or being a cheap Scottish descendant - but I decided to work with the stock section rather than making a whole new part. It would be welded front and back before re-installation.
Welder goes bzzzzt... bzzzzt... bzzzzt...
Grinder goes... bzzzt? whirl? whatever. It sucks.
I am going to soften and smooth the welds in the corners (and any other unsightly areas) with the TIG later on. Maybe.
Now I just have to connect A to B. Easy enough.
Time to craft another bespoke part to fill the void.
Needed a couple of reference marks to get the cut lines where I wanted them. The goal was to have the sectioned area square with the pinch weld... so that was my guide.
The cuts will be angled toward the rear tire, the boom tube will be square to the wheel lip. I made templates to validate this. The cut will be 8.5" wide to go around the 8x2 tip.
More on this chunk in a moment.
Cleaned out the oils and waxes that would otherwise run down into the welds. Been there done that.
I am not sure if it is because of inflation or being a cheap Scottish descendant - but I decided to work with the stock section rather than making a whole new part. It would be welded front and back before re-installation.
Welder goes bzzzzt... bzzzzt... bzzzzt...
Grinder goes... bzzzt? whirl? whatever. It sucks.
I am going to soften and smooth the welds in the corners (and any other unsightly areas) with the TIG later on. Maybe.
Now I just have to connect A to B. Easy enough.
Time to craft another bespoke part to fill the void.
Last edited:
Arts and crafts. This step is critical to get the fit, finish and design of the final part. There are two critical components: the boom tube and the transition from the 4" round tube to the boom tube. The areas that restrict the final form are: the outlet (which I wanted trued to the lower quarter panel), the floor pan, and the relationship between the tip and the existing exhaust pipe. One other limitation was tucking the tip and transition up as tight as possible, and have it hang no lower than the exhaust currently is. This is partially why the frame was cut, but also lends itself to the overall aesthetic .
The tip, as slash cut/angled, measures out to about a 10" opening. Significantly more visually impactful than if it came out square at 8x2.
This gives you a good idea of what "math" was involved in getting the transition to move between two offset and irregular planes/angles. Because science. It pays to have a background in design and engineering
Fits a 4" tube perfectly.
The tip, as slash cut/angled, measures out to about a 10" opening. Significantly more visually impactful than if it came out square at 8x2.
This gives you a good idea of what "math" was involved in getting the transition to move between two offset and irregular planes/angles. Because science. It pays to have a background in design and engineering
Fits a 4" tube perfectly.
Last edited:
Cardboard to 16 gauge. The templates are critical to getting a good output. The templates were strategically laid out on the leftover 16 gauge I had from my work bench build project last Summer, and cut out with Senior Plasma. This project was the other reason that I built that sheet metal brake. The challenge I found was that there wasn't enough bite in the brake to the corners of the cut pieces, this was easily rectified in a vice with a hammer, and I used a dolly to work the exhaust tube side to fit around the 4" pipe.
Fit up was not tea bag...
Fit up was not tea bag...
Last edited:
All built. Almost. After everything was cut and fit, it was time to burn it all in. The transition was MIG'd, and the boom tube was a combination of MIG and TIG. I fusion welded the outside of the boom tube to minimize the slag and slop.
To change things up visually I set the risers/braces back 1/2" into the boom tube. Why? Just because. Obviously they were plug welded in, the reason I did this over the bent u-channel solution used in the Dr. Gas products... it just looks sloppy and lazy to me.
It will get scuffed and sprayed with John Deere black muffler paint when the time comes. It will help hide my shame.
To change things up visually I set the risers/braces back 1/2" into the boom tube. Why? Just because. Obviously they were plug welded in, the reason I did this over the bent u-channel solution used in the Dr. Gas products... it just looks sloppy and lazy to me.
It will get scuffed and sprayed with John Deere black muffler paint when the time comes. It will help hide my shame.
Last edited:
Test fitting. Always nice when things work out as planned. Measure twice, cut thrice.
It is hanging a bit low here, tucking it up a touch higher will improve the overall look.
Trying to decide if I am going to use a v-band or a slip fit here. Each has it's pros and cons. As you can see there is still sufficient room for a lift or jack stand behind the boom tube, and if need be I can take the boom tube off and use that space.
At this point I was a physical wreck, the car crash was clearly becoming a factor after a day of work (everything you see above was done in one day). Next step is to make mounting tabs and connecting A to B.
It is hanging a bit low here, tucking it up a touch higher will improve the overall look.
Trying to decide if I am going to use a v-band or a slip fit here. Each has it's pros and cons. As you can see there is still sufficient room for a lift or jack stand behind the boom tube, and if need be I can take the boom tube off and use that space.
At this point I was a physical wreck, the car crash was clearly becoming a factor after a day of work (everything you see above was done in one day). Next step is to make mounting tabs and connecting A to B.
Last edited:
I should install some frickin' laser beams into it.
---
I was bagged when I posted those pics last night... for those that care I went back and added some text to explain what's what.
- Status
Similar threads
