Hot Rods Started spec'ing out parts

So, I had to switch gears (no pun intended) because the diff I put in when I built the car has a huge pinion seal leak. I'm taking this as an opportunity to make this a bit more highway friendly though. The nodular case in it now has 3.89's and while those are fun, it turns some rpm at speed. I don't need 3.89's in it and sure don't need a nodular case, so I bought another pumpkin with 3.25's to put in it. I've learned my lesson, so I'm putting in a new pinion seal and rather than use a crush sleeve I'm taking the easy way out and going solid spacer. The nodular and 3.89's will go into the '32 where they are needed. This has to get done as well as the interior as the wife will be taking it to the Plaza Car Show next month. Back to the interior tomorrow night and I'll throw this in in the next week or two.

 

The clips came today and the door and kick panels are done and look good. The upper corner panels need to be formed to a 4" radius and rather than try to wing it, I started looking for something to use as a form. Found just the right thing and it was pretty cheap too. I'll get around to those in the next few days while I'm waiting on more windlace so I can finish the doors.

 

Here's the door panel showing the clips. A little more obvious than I thought it would be, but kinda follows the whole utilitarian theme. I'm holding off on the corner panels until this weekend as the way I want to do it isn't the easy way (shocker). The windlace is going in with more coming in a couple days. It really REALLY quiet and solid now. You close the door and it closes with authority.

 

It's going to seem like I'm dragging ass the next couple weeks, but there'll be a lot done that just won't photograph well until it's completed.
I have to get the new diff installed as well as finishing the interior. I've been creeping up on how to bend ABS but will be getting those panels done this weekend. I need to blast, weld and paint the package tray, too. Last, I'll be dying the seat black to match the rest of the interior since the gray doesn't really hack it.
It'll be nice to get this done so the wife can drive it and I can devote more time to the '32.

 

Something always has to come before something else and that's what this (and this weekend) is all about. Put the headliner in but can't final tack it in until I have the panels done (to determine how much tension to put on the edges). I had to get more windlace 'cuz the vertical sections on the B pillar have to go down before the panels. I have to remove the seat (again) to put down the windlace and make the lower panels. As long as the seat is out I'm going to dye it black to get by until it's upholstered. Got the driver's side around the 1/4 window done and only took 2-1/2 days. The passenger side should be alot easier. My little Chinese screw caps should be here Saturday too.
I don't think I'll be putting the new diff in this weekend.

 

Where didu get the black ABS sheet, local supplier or big box store? In considering using it also. Assumed u used a heat gun to bend it. Im workin on a '30 Model A

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Nice work.
Tech thread on bending ABS please!
Had decided not to continue around the back behind my seats on my roadster because it did not look like it was easy to bend.
Was gonna take the easy way out and spray it with bedliner, would rather do ABS if It looks as good as yours.

 

Got it at a local plastics supply house... Orange County Plastics 4'x8' sheet for $45 each and using 2 sheets for everything.
I found by doing some test panels that a heat gun is fine for small localized bends (and I'm using it in a couple spots), but the side panels are 20" high and by the time I got to the other end with a gun the beginning is cold. That means an inconsistent crappy looking radius (ask me how I know).
That meant I needed more heat that I could control, so....... off to Harbor Freight. Uses the small propane bottles and the wide tip is perfect. Takes some experimenting, but starting getting a handle on it. Cutting ABS is a learned skill too. Found a die grinder with a cutoff wheel works pretty well for rough cuts, but the die grinder with rotary bits is what you need for finish trimming. A 6" belt sander helps give you straight edges as well. I'll see if I can take a few pics on fabbing the passenger side panel.

 

If I can do it, you can. Cool thing is when you're done you get a decent looking interior AND a torch to boot!

 

Its a good job u did, i like the look. I have a wide adapter like that for my heatgun....wonder how it wud do, or u already try? Did u use a form ( like pipe, barrel, etc) to help with those corners, nice work

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I tried a wide attachment on my heatgun but it's not the width necessarily, it just requires more heat in addition to a broad tip. I'm going to start a "tech" thread on making the other side panel. I'll be cheating a little since I can use the first panel and mirror some details. I learned a few things that don't seem real intuitive at first and will pass them on. First thing I learned? A form only made it worse........

 

Since I had to pull the seat to finish the interior panels and windlace, I figured I'd get rid of that gray Caravan seat and dye it black. Looks good enough until it gets a proper upholstery job.

 

Looks decent for now....sorry for so many questions, but is that a second row Caravan seat.....late 1990's...early 2000s

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Exactly what it is. Stripped off the fabric and foam, cut off all the brackets and welded on my own mounting brackets. Sits nice and low and gives plenty of headroom. I modified the package tray which allowed the seat to go back another 3". The only thing that makes you feel cramped is the width and there's nothing I can do about that (and it's not bad).

 

Cool, thanks. Im debating some ideas on seating in my Coupe, has buckets from like an S10 or Toyota p.u.....want a bench instead

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Gotta tell ya, this seat is REALLY comfy.

 

I have 2 weekends left to get the interior done and the diff swapped out. Damn.

 

Go the interior done last night (except for some stainless trim screws I ordered), so just need to put the new diff in this week and it's done. It'll be interesting going from 3.89's to 3.25's...... it'll like it on the freeway, but we'll see how much it hurts the launch.

 

Gear change is gonna dog it out, depends on cam, converter, tire size, etc....

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It's '90 Mustang 5.0 roller motor converted to carb, 2000 stall converter, shift kit and 29.5" tires. I haven't weighed it, but I'd be surprised if it's more than 2600 lbs. The wife isn't racing it so it should move well enough with 3.25's.

 

One little detail that has been bugging the crap out of me is where the throttle shaft goes through a hole in the firewall. I've been looking for something to give it a more finished look and came across a throttle shaft boot from a 240Z.
It's all about the little details......

 

OK, I was ALMOST done, but Fedex didn't deliver the carpet I was going to use on the inside of the firewall, so I started thinking (yes, it's dangerous). I decided to paint the firewall rather than carpet it, so spent a couple hours prepping and spraying it. It was never meant to be viewed so I didn't spend any time making it pretty. I can always put carpet over this later if I want, but this look is kind of growing on me.
The delayed carpet will be here today, so at least I can put it on the package tray and be done with that part.
As far as I'm concerned, the car is done and ready for the wife to take to the Plaza Car Show on the 15th.

 

So, I continued a couple themes today..... getting only one thing done a day and fun with ABS. The Caravan 2nd seat has holes for seat belts but I'm not using them so I figured I could take care of 2 problems at once...... plug an ugly hole and have a place to put the cellphone while driving. When the real interior is done and the seat is upholstered it'll go away, but it's fine for now. Did it take too long for what it is? Absolutely, but I'm used to that by now.....

 

Looks great, sometimes the smallest successes are the most gratifying.
You have inspired me to try some more things with abs.

 

The wife's going to show her '31 at a local high school fund raiser car show, so I needed to convert it over to "her" look. So it looks a little street roddy, but she likes chrome spoke wheels and that's what it takes to make her happy (and get her OK on spending stupid money on the cars), so guess what's going on it? Yup, her street-roddy chrome Cragar spokes.

 

Just read through all 13 pages of this thread. great job on the car and the documentation. I'm using the same seat in the '32 (except I'm modifying a set of third row sliders for the mounts). What did you use to dye it black? Any tips?
Thanks

 

I used Duplicolor aerosol vinyl and fabric dye. Vacuum the fabric while you brush it with a fine nylon brush. When you think you're done, do it 2 more times. When you're ready to spray, brush the fabric so the "grain" is all in the same direction and even. Spray even coats and before a section has a chance to dry hard, brush it to soften it. Don't spray too far away (it'll be "powder" when it hits the fabric and won't penetrate) and not too close (it'll dry hard like paint - which is what it really is). My seat took 4 cans to get even coverage.

 

Kind of a bummer, but the wife never really took to this car. Looking at another vintage OT car she really wants tomorrow, so this one may need to be sacrificed for the space. C'est la vie........

 

Bummer, next time ask her what she likes before building it !