FabricationCustom fabrication ideas and concepts ranging from body kits, interior work, driveline tech, and much more.
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no, i'm trying to encourage others. I like your attitude about fixing cars like this and I was speaking on it. I guess i should have worded myself a little better, sorry.
Alright, sorry I took it wrong, long day and not thinking well so I kinda took that offensively. Keep up the good work!
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jeeze, I'm pretty good at pissing people off aparently, lol. thats 3 users in this thread.
firechicken2.8-don't leave us hanging, feel free to post some pics when you get progress!
Transmission:
Rockland gear T56, Ram aluminium flywheel, SPEC Stage 2+ clutch, GM slave and master. Rear End:
3:73's, other then that stock until she blows.
Other Mods:
Energy Suspension bushings, Hotchkis SFC, Hotchkis rear LCAs, Front vented rotors, New Ball Joints, New Tie-Rods, New Center Link, New Idler Arm, All Brakes are new, Struts/Shocks. Big Block Fiberglass Hood. Griffen 19X31 Radiator W/ custom shoud. Spohn Trans Crossmember with Adjustable Torque Arm, Spohn Driveshaft. 4th Gen leather Seats. M/T ET street tires....
I too would pass on this car and find one that's more solid to begin with. Solid 3rd gen shells can still be had for a bargain and I prefer to work on just about any aspect of a car build more than working on rust repair! Kudos for taking on such a project. The rusted away drivers side floor pan above the front subframe rail would have been a deal breaker for me. Are you planning to replace that rail too? Is it still strong enough to clean up and weld a new floor pan to?
__________________ Bright Platinum Metallic exterior with painted hoodbird. Black interior with 2002 Trans Am Ebony leather seats. Smoothed inner fenders.
Current Drivetrain: LT1 and T56 with SLP 1 3/4" primary headers and catback: 8.85 seconds in 1/8 mile w/ lousy street tires.
I'm not planning on replacing the rail, its still in pretty good shape and will hopefully clean up nicely. Of course I can't rule out the obvious, the rail may need replacing. We'll find out soon, I have the metal, a 4x10' sheet of 22 guage, now I just need to borrow the welder and get some time. I chose 22 guage because the metal yard had 16 or 22 guage and I picked the one I could bend, lol.
Does anyone know what the stock floor pan guage is? I think it is thicker than 22 and it also has contrours that add to its strength. Adding SFCs after this repair would be a good idea.
__________________ Bright Platinum Metallic exterior with painted hoodbird. Black interior with 2002 Trans Am Ebony leather seats. Smoothed inner fenders.
Current Drivetrain: LT1 and T56 with SLP 1 3/4" primary headers and catback: 8.85 seconds in 1/8 mile w/ lousy street tires.
I agree, subframe connectors should be considered a must. The floors are thinner than 16 gauge, but I don' think they are as thin as 22ga. I used 16ga to repair the rust hole in my driver's floor for the main reason that I COULDN'T bend it. I don't have the tools to put the little indents in the metal to strengthen it like the original floors have so I went with a thicker repair panel to offset that weakness. My patches also aren't as large as yours will be.
i think stock floor pan is 20 gauge, i was hoping for 18. 22 guage will be fine without sub frame connectors, but I'm still putting them on. keep in mind the roof and transmission tunnel provide a lot of structural support and they're fine. i haven't found a place to buy por-15 so what does anyone think about using bed liner?
You can go right to their website at http://www.por15.com/ to get it. I've ordered it before and they are pretty prompt.
One note about POR 15: when they say its bad in the sun, they mean it. The stuff flakes off if exposed to much sunlight at all. Be sure you get it covered quick!
POR-15 now offers a product called "topcoat" to eliminate the UV-sensitivity problem. I used the original POR-15 in gloss black on my T/A's underbody and on the k-member and it has held up great for years.
__________________ Bright Platinum Metallic exterior with painted hoodbird. Black interior with 2002 Trans Am Ebony leather seats. Smoothed inner fenders.
Current Drivetrain: LT1 and T56 with SLP 1 3/4" primary headers and catback: 8.85 seconds in 1/8 mile w/ lousy street tires.
jeremynyr-i know what you mean. if i have to worry about uv sensitivity I have a serious problem. lol. do you have any pictures of the por-15 cured on the car? how thick is it?
campin1983-thanks for the link, really helpful stuff.
It's no thicker than any other brush-on paint and it self-levels so it doesn't retain any brush marks.
__________________ Bright Platinum Metallic exterior with painted hoodbird. Black interior with 2002 Trans Am Ebony leather seats. Smoothed inner fenders.
Current Drivetrain: LT1 and T56 with SLP 1 3/4" primary headers and catback: 8.85 seconds in 1/8 mile w/ lousy street tires.
damn that looks good. I'm gettting rid of my cavalier and getting a DSM and now I'm thinking of doing this to the underbody when I get one. actually your car looks like a really cool car (from underneath, lol). LT1/T56 is an awesome thing. any plans with your rear end?
funny you should ask. I was planning to rebuild the 9-bolt and do a gear swap, but I was just looking at aftermarket 12 bolts today and thinking about upgrading.
__________________ Bright Platinum Metallic exterior with painted hoodbird. Black interior with 2002 Trans Am Ebony leather seats. Smoothed inner fenders.
Current Drivetrain: LT1 and T56 with SLP 1 3/4" primary headers and catback: 8.85 seconds in 1/8 mile w/ lousy street tires.
I've started tearing everything apart in my final searches for rust and to make room to repair known rust. got some pictures taken tonight for something to look at.
while I'm tearing the pedal area apart, anyone know how to make our pedal set up better for heel-toe shifting? usually the gas pedal needs raised to be level with the brake pedal and that definitely seems to be the case here.
any ideas how to do that?
Last edited by chevyracingrox; 07-22-2009 at 12:07 AM.
One other coating system that you might want to consider is magnet paints: http://www.magnetpaints.com/. I just did the floor pans of my car with it. The thing I like is that it seems to be a lot more user friendly than por-15, and you can brush it on straight out of the can. I did end up with some minimal brush strokes, but I think it was the way I was applying it and the fact that it was 90 degrees out. I plan on using it on the underside of the car. I can tell you that it is very durable.
you think his car is bad!!!! I am working on my girls car as practice for my 87 hard top l98 camaro that needs some rust work. hear are a few pics of her metro vert to give you a idea of what is possible with enough time and willing to do the work.
pan from donor car
so If I can fix this junk box it is worth it for a third gen as long as its still strait.
c4boom-hey thanks for posting those pictures. people think I'm crazy, but it's what people have done, are doing, and will continue to do. your car is a great example of what it means to restore a car. we're not crazy. crazy would be just letting the rust go with a half *** or no fix at all. btw, what's your method to getting a good ground to weld those panels in?
jg04222-damn, now I have to decide between the two. both sound like good products too. thanks for the link though.
for some of the rough stuff i use the door brace, for the stuff that is real important that i need to make sure i have a real good ground to I tend to just spot weld a piece of sheet metal to the thicker of the two parts Or grind a spot clean and clamp on If i can.
c4boom-hey thanks for posting those pictures. people think I'm crazy, but it's what people have done, are doing, and will continue to do. your car is a great example of what it means to restore a car. we're not crazy. crazy would be just letting the rust go with a half *** or no fix at all.
I totally get what you mean. I fixed my floor's worst rust a while ago, so don't have pics to share. But its not crazy. Some people just hate it that others are willing to spend more time and develop more skills than they have. Sure its hard, sure its a pain in the rear. But what's the point if its not? The more work you put into this car, the more you'll appreciate it in the end. I also think there's a great deal of respect to be given to someone who can raise a car from certain demise, into something nice again. The most compelling stories are the ones that took the most effort.
I also think there's a great deal of respect to be given to someone who can raise a car from certain demise, into something nice again. The most compelling stories are the ones that took the most effort.
great way to sum it up. if I can take a car like this and build it into something I can be proud of. the skill it takes to do that speaks volumes.
ok, after doing some competitive pricing, Magnet Paints is about $43 cheaper than por-15 for a gallon and its gotta be damn near the same thing. so it looks like I'll be getting Magnet Paints. http://www.magnetpaints.com/underbody.asp
ok I need some advice. the rear axle is all but dropped. the only thing attaching it to the car are the LCA's. I've opted to take the bolts out of the frame because I'll be putting sfc's there anyway so they need to come out. I don't have a torch where the car is, and I need a way to get the damn things out. the nuts are off, and the bolts have that springy feeling when you turn on them. probably seized to the bushing really bad. I've used a lot of PB Blaster, and got some leverage on them. I can wiggle the attaching point on the frame but the bolt won't move. that's how stuck they are. I have an angle grinder, but that's not going to be very helpful here. gimme your advice on getting the bolts out!
They aren't threaded into the body mount or anything, they're just being squeezed by the rubber bushing. Try pushing/prying/hammering on the threaded end of the bolt while turning the head with a wrench and it should help the bolt "unscrew" from the tight bushing.
__________________ Bright Platinum Metallic exterior with painted hoodbird. Black interior with 2002 Trans Am Ebony leather seats. Smoothed inner fenders.
Current Drivetrain: LT1 and T56 with SLP 1 3/4" primary headers and catback: 8.85 seconds in 1/8 mile w/ lousy street tires.
