94 Cobra #3815

[95opal]

That is going to be insane. I commend you for taking on such a huge endeavor and look forward to watching this thing come to life. You are going down a road seldom traveled in the mustang world and for that you get my balls of the year award lol. I cant imagine trying to accomplish what you are about to do as the amount of time needed to complete something like this just isn't there for me, heck Im stuggling for time on a simple little remake never mind a complete body build. Bravo hats off to you.

 

Few questions.

 You have youre wire buks sitting up on the top of the rear quarter. With a sheetmetal overlay that will put the new skin higher than the trunk. Do you plan on raising the trunk height and rear window trim? or is that just mock up and your going to drop them down below the finish height of the rear quarter so that when you skin it the top of the quarter will be at trunk height?

 

Also noticed you have the door open a bit. I take it your going to widen the doors by the amount you have it opened? does that mean your going to strip the door skin and reskin it out to your proposed rear quarter?

 

Im also assuming you will be fabricating new wheel wells. Are you going to run an IRS back there? If you minitub and notch the frame youd be able to run some serious tire and wheel back there. Like a 20x13 or 20x14 which would look absolutely insane.

 

Good luck Ill be watching this build for sure.

[SublimeRT]

That is going to be insane. I commend you for taking on such a huge endeavor and look forward to watching this thing come to life. You are going down a road seldom traveled in the mustang world and for that you get my balls of the year award lol. I cant imagine trying to accomplish what you are about to do as the amount of time needed to complete something like this just isn't there for me, heck Im stuggling for time on a simple little remake never mind a complete body build. Bravo hats off to you.

 

Few questions.

 You have youre wire buks sitting up on the top of the rear quarter. With a sheetmetal overlay that will put the new skin higher than the trunk. Do you plan on raising the trunk height and rear window trim? or is that just mock up and your going to drop them down below the finish height of the rear quarter so that when you skin it the top of the quarter will be at trunk height?

 

Also noticed you have the door open a bit. I take it your going to widen the doors by the amount you have it opened? does that mean your going to strip the door skin and reskin it out to your proposed rear quarter?

 

Im also assuming you will be fabricating new wheel wells. Are you going to run an IRS back there? If you minitub and notch the frame youd be able to run some serious tire and wheel back there. Like a 20x13 or 20x14 which would look absolutely insane.

 

Good luck Ill be watching this build for sure.

Balls of the year award, haha. Thanks for the kind words, Rich. Yes, it will take a long time, but I have no deadlines and am generally pretty patient. It probably won't be done this year. I'm not even going to say it'll be done the next year. It would be cool to make it to Mustang Week 2k16 though.

Sharp eye you have and good questions. You're correct, the buck is higher than the panel. Perhaps I shouldn't call it a buck just yet. If the new panel were made already this would fit the outside of it. This did start out as more of a mock up than a dedicated buck to build a panel off of, so that I could see what I'm after in a full scale 3d version. I'm not Chip Foose, or a Photoshop expert, or a clay modeler so for me i think this was the best route. I will likely build another to actually use as the buck out of mostly 1/4" rod as this one is all 1/8" and a little flimsy. I plan for the final panel to have the same attachment points as the factory panel around the trunk, sail panel, and side glass.

Yes, the door is spaced open 3/4" and I plan to widen them starting at the front of the door to eventually line up with the quarter. And correct again, I'll take the skin off, widen the skeleton of the door a bit, then make the necessary adjustments to the skin and put it back on.

And yep new wheel wells will be made up. I love the look of some nice fabricated wheel tubs in the trunk so I'll do away with the whole factory tubs instead of just making a wider outer tub. I debated between a solid rear or IRS for a long time and have decided to go with a solid for this car. As for wheel and tire sizes, it might seem silly to do all this and not go huge in the rear, but I just want a nice 18x12/13 with a 345 or so. It is tempting though to stuff the most meat back there as possible.

[Drake]

Moar meat

Looks great I love looking at your build thread plus all the others it jus reminds me that I need to get off my butt and start working on my car.

[Tony]

once it's finished up i'd say an 18x13 with an offset of around "0" and about a 6-8" lip would give so many boners to many mustangers omg man!!

[95riosnake]

I think this might be one of my favorite builds in the history of sn's to be honest. You rarely see people put truly ambitious work into these cars anymore, so this is a breath of fresh air. I think we have a great collection of builds on this site, and this one is no exception. As you know I love the Saleen Allen SR widebodies with a passion, and have fantasized about the idea of creating my own version for many years now. I think what solidified my love of SN95's back in the day was seeing Tim Allen's SR. My biggest limitation is space (not nearly enough room to work in my garage) and honestly, skill. Body work is not a skill I'm gifted in at all, but I'm still going to do it someday. Looks like you'll have beaten me to the punch, but I have no problem with that because if anything I can draw some inspiration and guidance from what you end up doing to pull all this off. Besides, it'll probably be about a decade before I actually get around to having the time to do it! lol

[Blackmage]

Yeah, sheet metal will be used. The cage will not become part of the car though. It is just used as a guide for shaping the new panel. Then the new panel will replace the old and all the underlying structure will be modified/extended to join it just like the factory configuration. This is mainly the outer wheel house, trunk floor drop offs, and rockers.

ah ok cool. thanks!  

[SublimeRT]

Moar meat

Looks great I love looking at your build thread plus all the others it jus reminds me that I need to get off my butt and start working on my car.

 

Thanks dude!  I agree, all the awesome build threads on here is one of the best parts.  And yeah, don't forget about your own car, haha.  I was enjoying watching your progress on it.

 

I think this might be one of my favorite builds in the history of sn's to be honest. You rarely see people put truly ambitious work into these cars anymore, so this is a breath of fresh air. I think we have a great collection of builds on this site, and this one is no exception. As you know I love the Saleen Allen SR widebodies with a passion, and have fantasized about the idea of creating my own version for many years now. I think what solidified my love of SN95's back in the day was seeing Tim Allen's SR. My biggest limitation is space (not nearly enough room to work in my garage) and honestly, skill. Body work is not a skill I'm gifted in at all, but I'm still going to do it someday. Looks like you'll have beaten me to the punch, but I have no problem with that because if anything I can draw some inspiration and guidance from what you end up doing to pull all this off. Besides, it'll probably be about a decade before I actually get around to having the time to do it! lol

 

Thanks man, and right back at you.  I've been drooling over your build/car for a long time now; we have similar tastes, I think it's safe to say.  What I'm up to is ambitious, but I would rather try and fail than wonder what could have been the rest of my life.  I also think these SNs have huge potential and need a chance, and many people on here are seeing that and giving them one!  As evidenced by all the builds here.  Don't shortchange yourself too much though.  With your patience, attention to detail, artistic abilities, and skills you already have you should be able to learn body work no problem.  The fact that you're still going to do it is important.  A man with an idea that he is committed to is a force to be reckoned with.  When the time comes for you, if I have completed my car by then, I will be more than willing to help out any way I can.  I'd come lend a hand if you want, but distance is a problem.  And a decade from now.....you still might finish before me, haha.

[95riosnake]

Thanks man, and right back at you.  I've been drooling over your build/car for a long time now; we have similar tastes, I think it's safe to say.  What I'm up to is ambitious, but I would rather try and fail than wonder what could have been the rest of my life.  I also think these SNs have huge potential and need a chance, and many people on here are seeing that and giving them one!  As evidenced by all the builds here.  Don't shortchange yourself too much though.  With your patience, attention to detail, artistic abilities, and skills you already have you should be able to learn body work no problem.  The fact that you're still going to do it is important.  A man with an idea that he is committed to is a force to be reckoned with.  When the time comes for you, if I have completed my car by then, I will be more than willing to help out any way I can.  I'd come lend a hand if you want, but distance is a problem.  And a decade from now.....you still might finish before me, haha.

 

I'm sure I could pull it off, but like you it will likely take me quite some time. Hence why I'm holding off for a while lol.

[Sleeperstang1994]

any updates on your wide body yet? I feel like if I managed to get a set of headlights done you should have this wide body finished lol!

[SublimeRT]

Haha, no updates with it yet. I still need a new welder before I can get started with everything. Saving for a 220v TIG. I could start some things with my 110v MIG, but I really don't want to. There is a certain order I want to build the car. I want to do the chassis/cage first and it needs to be on a jig/chassis table, neither of which I want to build with the little MIG. The material is just too thick for it IMO. Could probably get decent penetration with bevels and preheat and maybe co2 gas, but I don't see a good reason to rush it and do it that way. After I make a table, get the car on it, and get the chassis squared away then I'll start the sheet metal work. I don't want to do that with the MIG either, it is just not the ideal process. I have signed up to take a 4 day course in the beginning of May with an expert metal shaper though. So that should help immensely when it comes time to do the exterior.

I have been messing with a little something for the interior, so once I get a little further along with it I'll post up. I was thinking I'll probably go ahead and finish the little bit left in the engine bay soon and throw a coat of paint on it too. My new plans will have me redoing a lot of the metal work in the bay, but it'll be nice to see my original plan completed, and I figure some people might want to see it done too. Plus, I just want to work on the damn thing, lol.

[SublimeRT]

Alrighty guys. Finally have a little update real quick. I'm exhausted and have to get up at 5 am tomorrow. I can't even explain how excited I am. I have been wanting a TIG for a long time now. Been jumping around with what machine I want, but it seems fate has made the decision for me. I planned to buy new and had decided the HTP 221 DV was the machine for me, but I came across this and jumped on it.

Just browsing around I found a guy in charge of a shop that is downsizing that does government contract work for the Air Force, so they are selling a lot of their equipment. He had three Miller Syncrowave 250s for sale. So I talked to him, did some research, thought about it, and decided I'd get one. The worst part was they were in Lubbock which is an 8 hour drive west of me. Still in the same state. Gotta love Texas. I haven't ever driven out that way though so it was cool to see.

But anyways made the drive early yesterday to get there in time before they closed so their lead weldor could demo the machine for me. I brought along my welding helmet and he welded up some aluminum and stainless for me. The machine works great. Was my first time actually watching someone else weld and first time seeing TIG in person so that was very cool and helpful. He gave me some tips and played with the settings on the machine so I could see what happens.

I left the machine there overnight since I stayed in a hotel and went and picked it up today. I originally thought I was getting just the machine and pedal, but he threw in some extras. He gave me a water cooler, a couple of torches, and some tungstens. I paid $1150 so i feel like i made out pretty good. I will most likely not use the water cooler as it is pretty noisy and an air cooled torch should handle what I deal with, but I will hang onto it just in case. I have no idea if it's a good piece so I'm going to look into it.

The plan though is to do a minor cosmetic resto on the machine, clean it out, and service it. Then I'm going to replace the ground cable and clamp, get a new air cooled torch, get a bottle of argon, then have the electricians come out and get the power plug squared away (there is a 220v outlet but the plug is different and only a 30 amp breaker is installed), then build a cart for it. Then I'll be in business and will just spend a lot of time practicing then I can get back to work on the Cobra and it will also help improve the quality of work with other projects vs the MIG. I will keep the MIG though. It is a good, handy machine. So that's that. Here's some pics.

Got it out and into the garage with the engine crane.

Here is the water cooler. It is a Bernard. I will clean it up also. That is one of the extra torches on top of it.

Here's the foot pedal. I've heard these are good. It feels good.

Another pic. That's another torch under it and that brass thing he said is an extra pump for the water cooler.

[95riosnake]

Congrats Blaise! That is one hell of a deal! If bought new, the machine itself runs about $3,400 with no extras so $1150 with all those accessories is excellent. Consider me extremely jealous, that is the last TIG you'll ever need.

[Sleeperstang1994]

very exciting and nice find. Im looking for some TIG tips and tricks soon sean and i have been struggling with our welding so id love some insight from you!

[SublimeRT]

That's an awesome deal!!!!! Can't wait to see how the cobra will move along now!!!!

This message courtesy of crapatalk!

[emoji106] Thanks! I'm very excited and anxious to get back to the car as well. I pretty much put everything on hold. This doesn't mean that I'm gonna have it done in 6 months either though, lol.

Congrats Blaise! That is one hell of a deal! If bought new, the machine itself runs about $3,400 with no extras so $1150 with all those accessories is excellent. Consider me extremely jealous, that is the last TIG you'll ever need.

Thanks man! Yeah, I'm lucky to have found it I think. I was hesitant to pull the trigger, but I'm glad I did. I feel relieved to have finally gotten a TIG and now I can move on with life. And yeah, I wanted to get a machine that I wouldn't easily outgrow. That was one of my biggest regrets with buying my little MIG. This goes to 310 amps, so with that and a water cooled torch I should be good to go for nearly anything I'll run into.

very exciting and nice find. Im looking for some TIG tips and tricks soon sean and i have been struggling with our welding so id love some insight from you!

Thanks! Haha I will definitely post up my progress with the machine and my welding. In the sheet metal shaping class I'm going to attend soon, he does teach the TIG process as well, and I believe he uses the big brother to this machine, the Syncrowave 300. So that should be helpful and give me a little jump start. What kind of welding are you guys doing? I've posted up about this before on here and I have learned a lot from Jody at www.weldingtipsandtricks.com . Check it out if you haven't.

[Sleeperstang1994]

we went the bargain route and maybe that is our problem. we have the Eastwood TIG 200. its a 220v system so I feel like it should do the job. steel is not a big problem I think just a lack of practice and skill at this point. however we have been struggling with a piece of 1/4 aluminum plate for awhile now. just doesn't seem like it gets hot enough to hold the puddle. IDK ill check out that site though. thanks!

[SublimeRT]

Hmm, well I have seen some really great results from the Eastwood TIGs so I wouldn't say it's a bad machine, but the 1/4" aluminum might be pushing the capabilities of the machine.  I'm no expert, but just a few quick thoughts....that thick aluminum is a big heat sink as I'm sure you know, so you could try preheating it with a torch, and also a 75/25 or 80/20 argon/helium gas mix can be used to help with aluminum, and also if the AC balance is adjustable on that machine you could turn it to more penetration than cleaning, I think around 30% cleaning.

[SublimeRT]

Hahaha.  Just buttoning up a few last minor details then I'm taking it for its maiden voyage.  

[Tony]

excited as hell to see this take shape. you will fit a wide tire wheel under there i know.....but think of the offset you could run without destroying your tire on the lip. damn you could have a 5" lip in the rear i bet 

 

damn you could maybe even have a 3-4" lip in the front...the visual 

[SublimeRT]

I will likely do something like a 335/345 or so in the rear.  I've seen 335s on stock SNs and 345s on stock New Edges, and it looks a little stuffed to me.  Dare I say it, almost too much tire in proportion to everything else.  Whereas you get a car like a new Z06 which has 335s or even a Viper with a 355 stock on the rear and it doesn't look forced or stuffed.  So I'm hoping to get something like a 345 to sit and look natural with the rest of the car.  We'll see.

 

What size are the lips of your wheels?  I like the way they look.

[95riosnake]

I remember the first time I saw a Viper in person at a car cruise when I was maybe 14 or so, those tires looked a mile wide. It's not just that they're 335's, theyre kind of mildly stretched 335's lol. They look insane. A viper will always be a dream car of mine, I don't care if they sound like ass with an aftermarket exhaust lol.

 

Blaise I think that given the track inspired styling you're going for, a super wide competition wheel with a center lock would look INSANE and would definitely set it apart. I've never seen a late model mustang with center locks. I would imagine that it wouldn't be too tough to pull off, other than finding a decent deal on some badass used race wheels.

 

Ugh, just imagine this.

 

[SublimeRT]

Haha, I feel the same way about Vipers.  Love them, even with the noises they make.  I saw a mint Red/White 2nd gen Viper GTS and an equally clean Red 1st gen RT/10 following it on the way back from picking up the welder.  I think I get more excited seeing Vipers out on the road than any Ferrari, Lambo, Porsche, etc.  Though I did see a White/Blue FGT around DFW just cruising down the highway and that was pretty awesome.  Another dream car.  

 

Hmm, the center lock wheels are pretty bad ass.  Not something I've thought about.  I'll have to look into it.  I think Forgeline makes a lot of the center lock wheels for race teams, so they might not be too hard to stumble upon.  Thanks for the idea Dan.  

[SublimeRT]

@Sleeperstang1994 Speak of the devil. Jody just uploaded a new video today about using argon+helium when welding aluminum. Listen to what he has to say around 5:22.

Tig Welding Aluminum with Argon Helium Mix: https://youtu.be/yhDvRJ7HZ6E

[Sleeperstang1994]

@Sleeperstang1994 Speak of the devil. Jody just uploaded a new video today about using argon+helium when welding aluminum. Listen to what he has to say around 5:22.

Tig Welding Aluminum with Argon Helium Mix: https://youtu.be/yhDvRJ7HZ6E

@WildWillyWalker good stuff!

 

Thanks Blaise!

[WildWillyWalker]

Understandable but we're not buying that. I tried preheating the metal too but the bottle emptied on me. I give up on that piece of metal. I'll try something else.

[Drake]

Updates !!!!

Sent from my XT1031 using Tapatalk

[SublimeRT]

Hey @Drake, sorry, I've been on here a little bit. I wanted to give a somewhat detailed reply with a few pics though and haven't had the time really till now.

Nothing too big to report though. I attended the coachbuilding class in May. It was very good. I learned a lot. The teacher, Wray, has each months class work on a project he has going on. For example, some of the classes before me had been working on making a Shelby Daytona coupe out of aluminum, using a very accurate fiberglass replica to work off of. The idea is to have each class pick up where the last left off until the car is finished. For our class though he had us working on making some fenders for a 34 Ford, again using some accurate fiberglass replicas. Some of the guys chose to work on their own little things though, which Wray is okay with. One guy made a piece for his 914 Porsche, one guy and his brother worked on a gas tank for an old Honda CB750 iirc, one guy made a section of a front fender for a 57 Ferrari Testarossa to hang on his wall. With Wray's guidance, he found some good pics on the internet, then used them to make a full size drawing of the side profile, then used that to make the fender. Anyways, the 34 Ford rear fender, we divided into 3 sections. Wray made the rear while we observed. Another guy named David made the middle, and I made the front section.

First i made what Wray calls a flexible shape pattern to work off of from the original fender, along with some profile gauges. This is his system he developed and an alternative to the traditional wood bucks. In his opinion, a much better way, and I'd have to say I agree. I didn't take as many pics of everything as I'd wanted, but hopefully you can get an idea of the process.

With the pattern removed, you can see on the right edge, some pie shaped sharpie marks, this is where I shrunk the metal by making tucks with a mallet and tree stump, then hammer the tucks back into themselves to shrink the metal. This makes it thicker in these areas. You can also see some dimples in the middle of the panel, this is where I hit the panel from the backside with a mallet with a large beater bag behind it. This stretches the metal and thins it. This is what Wray calls area change, and what the flexible shape pattern tells you.

All the bumps and lumps are planished, or smoothed out, with the English wheel. The wheel can also do some stretching via compression. Continually checking progress with the pattern lets me know where I need some more shrinking or stretching then wheeling. Once that part is done and the pattern is tight against the piece the shape, form, or what Wray likes to call arrangement, is set. Here it is with the pattern tight.

Also, each solid line is where a profile or contour gauge was made. The gauges are just strips of 18 gauge or so about 3/4" wide. Made to fit the contours with a shrinker/stretcher. The gauges are used as a guide to set the arrangement. Arrangement is set by hand, moving the metal over various forming blocks. You can see the English wheel gives it a nice polished finished. The wheels of the machine are polished and this acts like a printing press.

Here is the fender almost finished at this point. It just needs the wire edge done around the lip and a few other minor details. The front section you see is the piece I made, from the weld seam down. Wray took care of the bead rolling operations though for the whole fender.

After that I started working on a front fender section, also for the 34 Ford. It was a piece someone else started, but i didn't finish either. Here you can see the rear fender we made, then a few sections of the rear for the other side, and in the bottom right corner is the front fender section I had been messing with.

All in all a really great experience. Like I said I learned a lot. Wray shows many different methods to achieve the same end result and lets you choose how you wanna get there. The class was 4 days, so not enough time to master the techniques. But he really got the wheels in my head turning about so many things. And I think that along with the knowledge gained are the more important things to take away from it all. I'm glad to have met and learned from him. He is a true master at his craft and probably the most innovative in the field. For anyone interested look up Wray Schelin at Pro Shaper Sheet Metal in MA.

Aside from that I've been practicing my TIG welding. No weld porn going on yet, but I think I'm doing okay so far. I've been trying to keep a good variety of joints to weld. Lap joints, corner joints, butt joints, thin stuff, thick stuff, tube, plate, etc. I need to do some reading though, and do some more consistent 'tests' I think. And then do more destructive testing and checking penetration. Because I weld things and they look halfway decent, but if they really are, I'm not always sure. Unless it's something thin and i can actually see the penetration. For example, butt welding sheet metal is fine. Still, probably the hardest thing is feeding rod. I can dab, dab, dab just fine, but actually feeding it could be better. I notice many of the thicker things I weld are undercut as well. I'm guessing either too hot, or not enough filler. Maybe both.

This is an 18 gauge butt weld. It is a bit wiggly, but otherwise a good weld as far as penetration goes. My torch hand was way out of position but I just rolled with it.

Here is a 1/8" lap joint I did. I did a root pass and did a sorta freehand weave on top of it about halfway down it. Also that outside corner joint. It looked good until I flipped it over and did a couple passes back to back on the inside corner. I think I overheated it. You can see a little undercut though on that lap joint and cover pass. Still working on that.

Here's another lap joint on the other side of that piece, and also that inside corner. I tried doing another root + weave cap and not sure what happened there, but it just didn't work well. Maybe my tungsten was contaminated, it was welding like crap for that inside corner.

Another little outside corner joint on some 1/8" angle that I boxed up.

This is the second freehand weave I tried a while ago. Undercut like crazy ha.

With the Cobra itself, all I've done is finished welding up two patches on the firewall, and smoothed them out some, though not to 100% yet. One patch was where the stock throttle cable passed through. I MIG'd it cause I had started it with the MIG. The other patch was for where the HVAC box drain passes through. I TIG'd it. Honestly no real problems with it. Penetration was fine and it cleaned up just fine, no porosity or anything. But I really wasn't too enthused so I didn't take pics. Really wasnt the best spot to TIG my first patch in though. Was low, not much room, light, and couldn't get very close. It was like welding something an arm's length away. Without a before and after it'll prob be hard to tell what I even did.

Edit: here's an older pic I found, you can see the triangle patch in the back, that's one of the ones I finished welding up.

Just a few more things to tidy up and then I'll throw some paint on it and the engine and a few other parts for a mock-up so I can see if I like my idea for the color scheme of it all.

I also got a 4x8 piece of insulation foam from Lowe's to start making one of the new quarter panels to get a pattern off of. While at the class, I asked Wray what to do if you have a project where the original metal is so messed up you can't use it, or just plain don't have a panel, or want to do a one off custom panel, where you wouldn't be able to make a flexible shape pattern off of. For the one off panels, basically a full scale model needs to be made. I'm going to try cutting this sheet of foam up, gluing it together, shaping it, then fiberglass and bondo over it until it is smooth enough to get an accurate pattern off of. One of the perks to the flexible shape pattern is it can be flipped inside out and used to make the other side. So hopefully, I can get away with just doing this for one side. I haven't started it yet though so no pics yet.

Let's see, other than that, I've been tuning up my welder with a few new parts and some paint soon. And also I started building a cart for it. I drew up some plans a while ago. I made a compromise in the drawing and made it all 2x2 square tubing, even though I really wanted an assortment of bigger material. But one day I remembered I had a big heavy duty well built engine hoist someone gave me. I already have one and this one doesn't collapse so I took some measurements and to my surprise it is working out perfect. There's going to be very little scrap leftover. It's like this engine hoist was made for me to cut up and turn into my welder cart. Not finished yet but here's a little progress pic.

Well here it is before I cut it up. The front leg extensions and the arm aren't pictured but you get the idea. The thinnest metal is 1/8". The 3x4 metal is 3/16" and what I'm using for the base. I almost felt bad about cutting it up.

I also started thinking about how I'll design my English wheel. I came up with this and really like it, though I still need to design a stand for it. And then of course, make the real thing. Lol. I drew inspiration for the shape from the SN quarter glass. You can see the shape in the outside edge of the wheel frame.

I drew up a few other designs that I like also. So really, it's just a matter of what kind of metal I can come across. I do like that one the best though.

So lots going on I guess, but at the same time, not really, lol. Just making fake tools out of cardboard, melting things, and thinking I'm gonna make a car out of a shape I'll carve from foam.

[Tony]

i'm no welder but to me those welds look awesome lol....and that engine bay is going to look incredible 

[95riosnake]

Blaise, I agree with Tony, your welds are looking great IMO. I really can't wait to get a new house and garage so I can have a TIG at home to really spend some time practicing. I'm not anywhere near where I want to be with it.

 

I have to say I am floored at how awesome that fender turned out! You should be immensely proud of yourself for that. Metal shaping is still a "black art" to me... I would LOVE to get into that kind of stuff eventually. The welder cart is going to be awesome, and I 100% approve of salvaging the materials to build it. There's something so much more satisfying about building something out of scrap rather than new metal. My dad has been building all kinds of things out of metal for as long as I can remember, and I don't think he has ever bought a new piece of metal yet lol. He has always had jobs where they were getting rid of scrap, and it's always big, heavy pieces so he asks if he can bring it home and they never care. He has an entire wall in one of his garages that is pretty much covered with stacked/propped metal scrap. It reminds me of the big box of Legos I had as a kid, so many possibilities in that pile.

 

Your plan for making quarters out of foam should work just fine. I've seen a lot of the pro-touring shops do it that way. Just glue it up into the rough shape, then go at it with a big file, hand saw, etc. You can use expanding foam to add material back when you take too much, or when you need to fill in gaps. Then you can just skim coat it with bondo and sand it smooth to get a good idea of how it will look. You could even hit it with a coat of red to really give yourself a good feel for it. I know it will be a slow process, but I guarantee that your build will go down in the record books for SN95 builds. I can't wait to see how this widebody project pans out.

[Tabres]

I couldn't make a fender half that nice if you gave me the best tools and 10 years to do it.  Your work is incredible.  I love seeing new posts in your thread.

[RedTwilight]

That is some outstanding metal work right thare!

[Lanter]

Truly amazing work on that fender!  Makes me even more excited to start seeing updates with wide-body SN content 

[SublimeRT]

i'm no welder but to me those welds look awesome lol....and that engine bay is going to look incredible 

 

Thanks, Tony.  I guess I'm just looking for more consistency with the welds and to stop undercutting the base metal.  I'm excited to see the bay in all one color.  Going to try to mix a little black with white to get a real light dove gray, and paint the engine the bright Ford blue.  Undecided with the finish on the valve covers, though I'm sure I'll probably replace them with something else anyways.  Maybe some kind of engine turned aluminum or something.  I really like the engine turned finish and it goes along with the theme of the old Trans Am cars a little bit.  

 

Blaise, I agree with Tony, your welds are looking great IMO. I really can't wait to get a new house and garage so I can have a TIG at home to really spend some time practicing. I'm not anywhere near where I want to be with it.

 

I have to say I am floored at how awesome that fender turned out! You should be immensely proud of yourself for that. Metal shaping is still a "black art" to me... I would LOVE to get into that kind of stuff eventually. The welder cart is going to be awesome, and I 100% approve of salvaging the materials to build it. There's something so much more satisfying about building something out of scrap rather than new metal. My dad has been building all kinds of things out of metal for as long as I can remember, and I don't think he has ever bought a new piece of metal yet lol. He has always had jobs where they were getting rid of scrap, and it's always big, heavy pieces so he asks if he can bring it home and they never care. He has an entire wall in one of his garages that is pretty much covered with stacked/propped metal scrap. It reminds me of the big box of Legos I had as a kid, so many possibilities in that pile.

 

Your plan for making quarters out of foam should work just fine. I've seen a lot of the pro-touring shops do it that way. Just glue it up into the rough shape, then go at it with a big file, hand saw, etc. You can use expanding foam to add material back when you take too much, or when you need to fill in gaps. Then you can just skim coat it with bondo and sand it smooth to get a good idea of how it will look. You could even hit it with a coat of red to really give yourself a good feel for it. I know it will be a slow process, but I guarantee that your build will go down in the record books for SN95 builds. I can't wait to see how this widebody project pans out.

 

Thanks, Dan.  Yeah, I'm right there with you with the welding; I'd really like to be a lot better with it.  How is the house situation going?  I'm excited to see you get in the new place and set up.  I know you've felt a little held back at the old place.

 

I am pretty excited about the cart.  It will be nice to be able to move the 400lb welder out of the way, lol.  Also going to add some hooks and stuff for storing the torch, ground, and pedal.  It is kind of neat making it out of scrap rather than new.  This will make I think the 2nd thing I've made from scrap.  It's cool to give the old metal a new lease on life and also it kind of takes on a look of its own as its coming together, rather than following a blueprint exactly.  I've said it before, but your old man is the man, haha.  I hope to gather a big scrap pile one day.  I need to make some connections around here where I can get some good scraps.

 

I'm glad to hear you've seen people use the foam and bondo to make panels with success.  The expanding foam is a good tip.  I hadn't thought of that.  I see you don't mention fiberglass....is it okay to just put bondo right on the foam?   I've been wondering if the foam will melt from the fiberglass resin and/or bondo.  I suppose I could just test it out.  Won't be a big loss if it melts.  I don't have much experience with those kinds of things though, so I need to do some reading and testing anyways.  

 

I couldn't make a fender half that nice if you gave me the best tools and 10 years to do it.  Your work is incredible.  I love seeing new posts in your thread.

 

Thanks, Bryan and Dan for the compliments on the fender.  It was a good feeling to look at it when finished and to know I helped make it.  Wray says if you can make that fender, you can make anything.  I'm sure you guys could achieve the same results.  In the class I attended, not one of us had any experience with an English wheel or making panels with compound curves like that.  I encourage you to give it a try and learn from someone like Wray if it's something you're really interested in.  If you are interested, and haven't pursued it because you think you need a bunch of huge expensive tools like a $20k power hammer and stuff like that, that is not the case.  I made that panel with a wood stump, a mallet, and Wray's English wheel he made from scrap metal.  He is one of the only ones that stresses techniques over tools.  Some others say you NEED a big Yoder, Pullmax, or Baileigh power hammer.  Wray actually has a Trumpf, which is like a Pullmax.  It mostly just collects dust, but he showed us how it works with some thumbnail shrinking dies, and the English wheel and stump shrinking yield a much higher surface quality without all the noise and the huge machine taking up space.  And despite what some say the Trumpf did not make things much faster, if at all.  I have seen people make custom dies and pop out a complex trunk gutter or something like that in about 30 seconds, so they have their place, but I'd say that is really just a luxury.  If you're not sure you want to take a class, but still want to try it, you can get a nice large dia hard wood tree stump or make a 'stump' out of lumber, and make or buy a mallet, and go to town on some sheet metal for very little money.  That's what I did before I attended the class.  I made some bowls.  They aren't smooth as that fender since I didn't wheel them, but they can be planished quite smooth by hand with various dollies and slappers, and a shrinking disc too if you want.  And dollies and slappers can be made as well.  You don't need to go buy a bunch of $50 dollies and stuff.  Working with metal is one of those things where you're really only limited by your imagination.

[SublimeRT]

Way too much awesomeness in here!!!! $-)

This message courtesy of crapatalk!

 

 

That is some outstanding metal work right thare!

 

 

Truly amazing work on that fender!  Makes me even more excited to start seeing updates with wide-body SN content 

 

Thanks guys!  I can't wait to get started on it.  The long wait has my mind drifting.......I was looking at Terminators for sale last week......track bikes this weekend.  I just need to focus.  After I finish the cart, I'll turn my attention to the English wheel build.

 

I like the Senna quote, too.  ::bowdown::

[Tony]

engine turned aluminum is awesome! never see that anymore. would be a very cool detail to the bay i bet!

[SublimeRT]

Here's a few of Wray's stumps if you guys are interested.  He has different dishes carved in them all.  He said this front one works really well.  He calls it the swimming pool stump as it starts very shallow and gets deeper.  That's also a mallet he makes and sells that works very good, though there are cheaper alternatives if you want to just experiment.  My mallet is a welding bottle cap that I welded a handle onto.  It works ok....a bit too large sometimes though.

 

And these are what he calls his Home Depot stumps.  I used this first one below for the fender and it worked well.  That little dinky mallet is from Harbor Freight.  I have one and it isn't heavy enough for stump shrinking.  

 

 

Obviously much wider and more freedom to experiment.  Finding a real tree stump that wide might be somewhat of a challenge.  They are softer than the real stumps though, so each individual piece is replaceable.  I'd say it'd be good to have a real one that is a hard wood and also a Home Depot stump.  

[95riosnake]

Thanks, Dan.  Yeah, I'm right there with you with the welding; I'd really like to be a lot better with it.  How is the house situation going?  I'm excited to see you get in the new place and set up.  I know you've felt a little held back at the old place.

 

I am pretty excited about the cart.  It will be nice to be able to move the 400lb welder out of the way, lol.  Also going to add some hooks and stuff for storing the torch, ground, and pedal.  It is kind of neat making it out of scrap rather than new.  This will make I think the 2nd thing I've made from scrap.  It's cool to give the old metal a new lease on life and also it kind of takes on a look of its own as its coming together, rather than following a blueprint exactly.  I've said it before, but your old man is the man, haha.  I hope to gather a big scrap pile one day.  I need to make some connections around here where I can get some good scraps.

 

I'm glad to hear you've seen people use the foam and bondo to make panels with success.  The expanding foam is a good tip.  I hadn't thought of that.  I see you don't mention fiberglass....is it okay to just put bondo right on the foam?   I've been wondering if the foam will melt from the fiberglass resin and/or bondo.  I suppose I could just test it out.  Won't be a big loss if it melts.  I don't have much experience with those kinds of things though, so I need to do some reading and testing anyways.  

 

Regarding the foam, I work with a bunch of people who have backgrounds in special effects so I just went and asked one of them about the foam melting. He said to use blue foam, and bondo should be able to go on the foam without melting, but to test it out first on some scrap before you risk ruining your big piece. He said if it doesn't work, or you want to lay fiberglass over it, coat the foam with wood glue using a cheap brush and let it dry. The wood glue will sort of seal the foam and give you a hard, non-porous surface that can be scuffed to accept the bondo or fiberglass resin. You might need to do a couple of coats of glue to get the thickness you need, kind of trial and error.

[RideTech_Ryan]

WOW!  that is all

[RedTwilight]

Also you can get epoxy resin instead of poly resin.  The epoxy resin doesn't melt the foam like the the poly stuff does.  Check out the West Systems Epoxy for the good stuff. 

http://www.westsystem.com/ss/105-epoxy-resin/

 

I've also heard of people covering the foam in plain ole clear packing tape before fiber glassing for the mold.

[SublimeRT]

Regarding the foam, I work with a bunch of people who have backgrounds in special effects so I just went and asked one of them about the foam melting. He said to use blue foam, and bondo should be able to go on the foam without melting, but to test it out first on some scrap before you risk ruining your big piece. He said if it doesn't work, or you want to lay fiberglass over it, coat the foam with wood glue using a cheap brush and let it dry. The wood glue will sort of seal the foam and give you a hard, non-porous surface that can be scuffed to accept the bondo or fiberglass resin. You might need to do a couple of coats of glue to get the thickness you need, kind of trial and error.

 

Good deal.  Thank you, Sir.     The foam I have is blue.  I'll get some bondo and see what happens.  I'll be happy if I don't have to mess with fiberglass.  I was also thinking too many layers of fiberglass, bondo, etc would make the final product thicker so I'd need to account for it.  So the less layers the happier I'll be.  

 

 

WOW!  that is all

 

Also you can get epoxy resin instead of poly resin.  The epoxy resin doesn't melt the foam like the the poly stuff does.  Check out the West Systems Epoxy for the good stuff. 

http://www.westsystem.com/ss/105-epoxy-resin/

 

I've also heard of people covering the foam in plain ole clear packing tape before fiber glassing for the mold.

 

Cool.  Thank you too, Sir.    I don't think I'll want to use the tape though.  In order to make the flexible shape pattern I use two layers of tape.  First, a low tack transfer tape, and then on top of it a fiberglass reinforced tape so the pattern does not stretch or lose its shape and give false readings.  

[Det_Riot]

I'm absolutely floored. that is awesome man!