SUSPENSION AND BRAKES

I have to say it was pretty exciting to start assembling without the intention of taking it all off again.
The front suspension spindles went on and off several times though when I didn't like the look of the ball joint grease boots.  I ordered some custom models and am much happier with the fit.

Rear suspension.

Note the board which is prying the mount open slightly to make room for the upper arm.   Yes I can walk and chew gum at the same time.

 The rear spindles are from a 1989 thunderbird and came with 4.25" diameter lug bolt circle.  They went over to the CNC mill to drill holes for the 4.5" diameter lug bolt circle.   Now The front and rear spindles match.

 Suspension complete!

 Front brakes, can't wait to scrape the paint off those discs.

The front discs are 2 piece units that have to be bolted together.  To make sure they stay together the bolt heads were installed with Loctite and also have little holes drilled across them for safety wires.  No way they will ever come loose now.

Rear brakes installed.
 

 Love this feature on the front discs.  With a little practice a person could change disc pads in probably less than 30 seconds.

FRAME PREPARATIONS

I decided to paint the frame rather than going with the factory black powder coat option.  I didn't want black and it would have cost $400.  First step was to test fit the suspension and fit most of the sheet metal pieces for the cockpit.  It was also the time to drill all of the holes in the frame and sheet metal panels for riveting in place after the frame is painted.  The idea was to avoid scratches on the frame paint by doing this first.  There are now 500 or 600 1/8" holes in the frame and panels of which I didn't get a picture but you'll see later in assembly.
After the panels were fit and suspension pieces had been back on and off several times it was time to paint.
So outside the frame went in the cold winter rain for a spray down with degreaser, a pressure wash, then a spray down with an etching wash to help the paint stick, and another pressure wash.

Next I wanted to clean up some of the welds around the roll cage where they would be visible.  So after a little grinding and several applications of bondo they were looking better.  Here is a before and after:

After weeks of not getting anything done on the car I decided that Thursday I 

WAS GOING TO PAINT THE FRAME NO MATTER WHAT.  

This was in spite of having an important meeting that evening and leaving town early Friday morning for four days.  Guess how smoothly that went?

The first coat was a black (POR-15) rust preventive undercoat that went on quite well, except I was trying to use a small spray gun thinking that the small tubes needed a small sprayer.  So it took all morning instead of a couple of hours.  Then there were two trips to the paint store because that's just how I do it.  When it was time for the color coat I switched to the larger gun and things progressed much better.   However at six pm, my deadline to stop, the silver color coat was only 2/3 finished.  A call for help went out to good friend Jeff Modjeski who said go out out town and when I get back it will be all silver and clear coated.  

And it was.

I am blessed with good friends and family.

Thanks Jeff M.

Jeff also was the inspiration for the silver color. I had decided on white but he convinced me otherwise.

Thanks again Jeff M.

Here's the result:

Learned:

1.  The rotisserie made frame painting much easier.

2.  Frames are a lot of work to paint.   

3.  I'm really glad I made the rotisserie.

The rear end pumpkin and spindles were also rebuilt with new bearings and seals, and cleaned and painted.

Before:

After:

Finally this thing can start to go together!

Time since delivery:  7 months

THE ARRIVAL

We had one big vacation trip planned for the year and wouldn't you know it, the car was delivered by Stewart Transport while we were enjoying the beautiful scenery of the Icefields Parkway between Jasper and Banff in Alberta, Canada.  Stuff like this:

It was really unfair to be in such a wonderful place and to be torn between loving where I am  and wishing I was home unpacking the Coupe.  So this is what it looks like as shipped.  Along with a big pile of boxes.

You can see that a lot of the cockpit sheet metal was temporarily fastened to the frame before shipment.
That is going to make it easier than trying to figure out where each piece goes.














First order of business was to get the body off and take a hundred pictures so I could reference back to them on how to put it back together.

Passenger footbox as it came from the factory.

And finally the frame was bare.  I had a cart with heavy duty casters that wasn't getting much use in the machine shop so I commandeered it to hold the frame.

Brother Jeff, fellow car enthusiast, came down from Washington State and spent a lonnnggg Saturday helping to inventory several thousand pieces in the kit.  Every body panel, bolt, nut, brake, and washer accounted for and put away on shelves in a way that they can be found again at the proper time.

Thanks Jeff!

It soon became obvious to me that crawling around under this thing was not meant for a 60 year old body and a plan for a rotisserie was hatched.  It was somewhat designed as I went along and isn't perfect but it works!  Notice the body on its wooden frame in the back.  That should keep everything straight until it is reunited with the frame.

I have since made a few refinements, meaning it's no longer held together with c clamps.

And the engine arrived as well.  It is really fat compared to the 1965 original.

I hope there is a shoehorn in my toolbox.

THE SPECIFICATION SHEET

With the decision made to build the Coupe, there were lots of decisions to make,

After some considerable thought, here is how I think I will equip the car.

I went with the complete kit which means that all parts will be new except the independent rear suspension which I found from a 1989 Thunderbird SC.  That has been cleaned painted and has all new seals and bearings, so it should be as good as new.

A new 5.0 liter DOHC Coyote crate engine rated at 420 hp (but we'll coax another 60 or so out of it)

A 5 speed TKO 600 transmission with the wider gear ratio which should be a bit calmer for freeway cruising.

I have read about a number of people with these cars who have had trouble with the clutch cable melting due to its proximity to the driver side headers so I will change to a Hydraulic actuated clutch.

These cars are very loud so something will have to be done with the exhaust to quiet things down a bit.
Still not sure which way to go there but it will still have side exhaust.

An independent rear suspension as mentioned above with 3.27 gearing.  Not the best for off the line acceleration, but should be a good compromise between straight line acceleration and having lower freeway cruising rpms.

A Wilwood big brake kit upgrade with drilled and slotted rotors.  As a friend said recently: "The only thing you really need in a car is good brakes."

High back racing seats with 5 point harnesses.  The vintage lowback seats that come with the kit were either a whiplash waiting to happen or I would have to fabricate some kind of headrest.  Highbacks solve that.

This Corbeau seat is the current top choice.

A heater and A/C.  This is a must.

Paint.  this is a tough one and may not be settled soon.  Here are a couple of my favorite options.  Feel free to send in your votes.

This one is true to the original cars color scheme and it appeals to me though I don't want the decals and race numbers.

This one just looks classy to me.  Anthracite gray with black stripes.

Wheels and tires: 17" wheels with Kumho Ecsta XS tires.  315/35R17 on the back and 275/40R17 on the front.  The most likely wheel at the moment is this FR500 mustang wheel.

Prologue

PROLOGUE

Sometime around 1996 I began to think, plan, and dream about building an airplane from a kit.  It may have started when I ran across this beautiful Lancair model:

Fast, incredible looks, and could be built for "only" about $75,000.  A picture of it went up on my office wall and the planning began.  One year later I had my pilots license and had figured out that the Lancair was too fast, and too complex for a low time pilot and I would most likely kill myself and an unlucky passenger in it.  So the hunt began again, ending with a more conservative, safe, and less expensive Vans RV9.

A new picture went up on the office wall:

Meanwhile wife and love of my life reveals that she severely dislikes flying, particularly in small airplanes.  In an effort to slow things down she strikes a deal with me that no airplane projects begin until the house is paid for.  

DEAL.  

2012

Jump forward about 15 years and what do you know, the mortgage is paid.  And after 15 years to think about it, I realized that building my dream airplane would mean:

         1. She never goes anywhere with me in it.

         2. She would worry terribly every time I went anywhere in it. 

What is to be done? 

A smart man would realize that she is the best thing that ever happened to him and abandon the whole silly idea.  In an unusual move I decided to be smart.

Maybe I should build a car instead.

About this time I see that Factory Five Racing is designing a new car, the 818, a mid engine Subaru WRX powered kit car that is great looking, inexpensive to build, and has near supercar performance.

I had seen their Cobra replicas and considered them, but this was very intriguing.  I sent in a deposit to get one of the first kits, ending up #113 on the wait list.  We planned a business/pleasure trip to Boston which happens to be within an hours drive to the Factory Five Racing facility so I could get a first hand look at the prototype car.  I walked into automotive enthusiast heaven.

I lucked out when Dave Smith, a genuinely nice guy and owner of this wonderful place walks into the showroom and says would you like a tour?  An hour later I am sold, but have been drawn toward another car which I remember from my past.  A replica of the 1965 Daytona Cobra Coupe race car.

 Here it is:

And doesn't she look good in it?

The coupe would cost twice as much as the 818.

She says "You should get the blue one"

I love that girl. 

Spring of 2013 I placed my order.

What follows is a mostly photographic documentary of how Mr. Brady Builds a Car.