Projects BRIAN MADE ME DO IT: 34 Roadster Build

Unibits work really well for that.




https://www.harborfreight.com/3-pie...oated-high-speed-steel-step-drills-91616.html

 

What happens when you get the edges so thin they won't carry 100 amps let alone 500 amps. ??

 

What’s all this talk of 100-500 amps capacity nonsense
Are you guys secretly adding arc welding generators into your cars?
As far as I know most auto electrical systems are nowhere near that much amperage.

 

Doesn't a perfectly running high torque mini starter have the capability to pull over 200 amps?

 

I'll bet you that your battery has something close to 500 cold cranking amps.
Every engine is different and every starter is different but pulling 300 amps plus on a performance engine is pretty standard operating procedure. Let something get out of whack, heat soaked, or anything else that happens to hotrods and the amps go up from there.
Yes It's short duration.

 

Ah yes short term cranking amps. I see

 

For an extra 20 bucks I'd rather be safe than real, real sorry.

 

Wowza! That's stunning.

 

i hate connections in the middle of a battery cable. i think i would just plan to disconnect it at the solenoid [10 extra minutes?], for that most likely, odd time, that you decide to remove the body.

 

Agreed completely, if that were possible. But that 1 gauge wire has to be run outside the body as there is no room inside for it once it gets tot he door jamb. I don't like cables tied to the frame rail personally so I have hidden mine under the car's channel. It must move inside the car after the door opening though and that requires bending a rather large cable (not going to happen) or some type of bulkhead terminal.

 

Considering the source, I take that as the highest compliment!

 

I’m not going to be able to hide my battery cables that way so I’m trying to come up with some ideas on routing them along the frame.

The main issue I envision is that #2 welding cable is not stiff and will sag between mounting clips.
What to do . Hmmm

 

Before I opted for my solution, I was facing the same dilemma. One idea was to run the power cable inside a stainless tube (polished of course). Number 2 cable is .378 diameter, so a run of 1/2" tube will make it easy to push the cable through, a little WD40 wouldn't hurt. It would look a lot tidier than a droopy cable. The tubing would be easy to bend without crimping with the cable run inside it too.

 

Not a bad idea, the only concern I might have would be the end of the tubing cutting it's way through the insulation and causing a short out at some time.

Wonder if there are any other similar solutions.
Having a sealed rectangular tube frame I don't have the option of going inside that.

 

Black PEX tubing.
It wouldn't look too bad if available in straight sections to eliminate sagging, it's ridgid and non conductive. Not sure how you would deal with bends, maybe use the coiled type.

Example
Looks like the 5/8" has a .584 I.D. perfect for 1/2" cable.

Edit
Note the true O.D. differs from the call out dimensions.

https://www.pexuniverse.com/pex-tubing-technical-specs

 

Nah, just hammer a flair in the end. Think stainless spark plug wire looms. Same idea.

 

Much easier to pull than push

 

Since I’m using cunifer (nickel copper) for my brake and fuel lines I wonder if you can get it in 1/2” ?
It would look good and bend nicely too.

 

i built a 31 chevy, a whole lifetime ago, and before i boxed the frame i tacked a length of 1"emt to the inside of the frame and bent both ends in. i drilled the boxing plates [big] and slid them over the ends of the tube, welded them [filling in the big space around the tube] then cut and ground them flush. i did this on both rails and could fish wires through. i know it is too late for this build but i wonder of it could be done with the flexible conduit, used by electricians, for an existing boxed frame like in Larry's situation?

 

https://www.homedepot.com/p/AFC-Cab...llic-Liquidtight-Conduit-6003-22-00/100027081

 

Another interesting solution however for my frame there’s no way I could get anything from one end to the other inside the rails because of the large angled holes I built into the frame for my exhaust to pass through.

On top of that there’s a very large number of pieces of mig wire sticking out inside them from fabrication of the frame reveal and also the curving of the frame.

 

It's available
https://cunifer.com/hikashop-menu-for-categories-listing/category/51-1-2-fuel-hydraulic-line

 

I hate straightening heavy tubing (anything over 3/16). I needed a straight 6 foot piece of Stainless 3/8" and summit delivered it to me the other day. Beats rolling it out on the floor.

I think this would be a cool alternative to a long run of red cable under the car.
I was at the shop the other day to yak with the owner, he had a hot rod on the lift so I got to walk underneath and see her underpinnings. Nice car on the surface, I'd been embarrassed to own what was underneath. Not saying every ones car should be a show car but they should at least be good cars.

 

I'd agree with that, at least clean tidy and functional.

 

Exactly! It would be silly and a waste of resources to take it any further than that.

 

Another weekend in the trenches. I made some progress, kind of Texas two step, one step forward, two steps back. I prepped the body for mounting. The light coming in via the roll up makes the shade whiter but this is the underside.

It came out very nice for an underside that most will never see.

Then I slid the frame under the body and aligned it for the drop

I ran into a couple of issues, nothing that cannot be remedied in the next couple of days but needless to say the body is not bolted down yet.

I did run over to Tandy leather store in Portland Saturday and grabbed 3 complete hides, 2 dark brown and one tan.

This is going to be cool. The soft hand leather is for the seat and door panels, the waxed is for the trunk, seat back and kick panels. They had full hides for 99 bucks each. Hard to beat that price and those are 4oz hides.

 

will 3 hides be enough?

 

I have no idea. Seriously! The upholsterer came by Friday and he though2 and half would do it. It is a bench seat roadster, but I worry that I don't have enough. This is all they had at that price. We will soon see. The upholsterer is already working up the door panel ideas. fingers crossed.

 

he should know. if i plan on something, i always buy more or run out.
here is a math problem i posed to a contractor friend of mine:
you are fixing up a room in your house and calculate that you need nine 2x4's. you already have six new ones in the basement. you go buy eight more at home depot........how many will you be short?