2118 replies to this topic

[Heath]

Wind back to the start of the year and I got the rest of my flare kit, front spoiler, etc. for the car. Started doing a quick trial fit:

Trial fitted some 18" Work VS-XX's and tucked them nice and high. Glass guards on:


Clearance issues even with an 18x9 +28, that ain't no good. Marked out some cutting lines:


Marked out some more cutty lines on the other glass hardware:


Started to screw it together, and clamped this area near the firewall back to clear a better 'swing' of wide wheels. I fibreglassed up this gap to hold the clamped position.


Guard sat about 3-4mm too far out at the top, took a pie section out:




Still a long way to go, lol


Oh yeah and cut too much off:


Pulled apart my re-bushed hinges from the cleanaway blue failed racecar project:


Teenage Heath was a smarty-pants and already added some lightening holes... so all I had to do was make them look nicer:


Media blast before etch primer:


Sanded back my epoxy to start filler work in the bay:



Masked up some lines for seam sealer:


Basically everything has a thin skim of filler. It looks bloody terrible but feels nice, and isn't super thick.


Sealed up again with Epoxy:


Waited a few days, cut it back:


Squirted some high fill and pulled the car off the rotisserie properly.


Pulled a full lip/return into the bottom of this nosecone (the photo doesn't really show this), as younger me just cut it off and it had a sharp, unsupported edge. Trimmed off some extra bits, changed the shape so that it fitted the car better, and speed holes because why the hell not:


Coooooooool:


Test fitting the SLR 'Smile' Brightwork, and filling that silly gap that always exists between the indicators and the front spoiler:

Edited by Heath, 28 August 2018 - 08:08 PM.

[Heath]

Now that the car is off the rotisserie, my front bumper irons were no longer tied up!

3kg in the irons:


5kg in a shitty old bent pair of bumper brackets I picked up the other day:


Jeepers creepers. If that's not low hanging fruit, I don't know what is.

This car will just have fibreglass bumpers front and rear. Brackets for the RHS are fibreglass... but the LHS bracket here needs to retain some strength for one of the car's tiedown/tow point. And yeah I realise that Toranas don't break down but mine will probably find a way.

Young Heath made these for the cleanaway blue racecar project, but old Heath some excess material that needed to be shed:


Assembly before:


Separated the two pieces of the LHS bumper bracket, the straight bit needs to be retained but the other part will be glass too. Got shredding:


Iron received the same treatment, and there was no need to keep it 'symmetrical' which is why they are so ugly normally.


8kg down to 2.2kg off the front end of the car, in addition to the bumpers themselves. Worth doing.

Edited by Heath, 28 August 2018 - 08:40 PM.

[purrlx]

Nice work as usual. I am supprised more people don't glass up the front spoiler around the blinkers, the normal fit there play's up with my OCD.

[Bigfella237]

Love yer work as usual, Heath!

 

It may just be the angle of the photo but is that flare sloping down toward the back?

 

Comparing the flat-ish section above the wheel to the sill panel on the body it kinda looks like the back is about an inch too low.

 

P.S. Nice collection of bicycles you got there too!

 

Still a long way to go, lol

 

Edited by Bigfella237, 29 August 2018 - 12:52 PM.

[ozyozyozy]

You know you can get webbing for tow hooks, lighter than that thick steel.

[308mate]

Hatch is looking awesome Heath, unreal work!

[Heath]

Thanks guys.

Regarding the angle of the flare... I've got no idea if I've put them on incorrectly. No comment?

In hindsight I should have made the actual tow point out of ally so it was thicker and a better jacking point due to the aspect ratio. But easily re-made later. Getting strength to that exterior point on the car obviously takes some metal no matter how you do it.

Finally got my slot of time to take the car to Peter Tommasini's workshop



Cool seeing the rear end together & rolling:


Pulled the trim off the original drop-in panel:



The Porsche drop-in panel also isn't being used... rather it's going to be replicated in ally to suit the profile of the Torana roof.

I helped Peter wheel up a new skin in 1.6mm ally.


Cut it down to size:


Done for now, has a bit of extra crown to compensate to it flattening out when the edges are turned:


The plan is to put the channel from this design, into my own roof skin:


Bearing in mind that I'd made a range of templates, folding tools, gauges etc. to do this... I got stuck in and finalised marking the position of the hole:


Here we go! Got a special generator that runs on the tears of hatchback purists to run this angle grinder.


Look at that smile!

[Heath]

Hole all finished up:


Obviously I'm doing a lot of the work under the durry-punching maestro's instruction but it's going to look like it's all being done for me because I can't take photos of myself easily.

Edges broken and turned with pliers:


Planishing the corners carefully to stretch the material evenly:


Peter's a smart arse...


Whole way around turned part of the way.


Stretch stretch stretch:


Profile cut templates I prepared (clamped with one above & one below) to get the corner shape right:




Not bad.


Putting some cold shrinks in the return edge to restore the crown of the roof. This took aaaaages even with Peter's help.


And the other way... change one shape and everything else moves... these two edges will be propped up a bit by the frame that is welded up between the cantrails.


Then time to break the second edge:


Get the gauge out:


Tap tap:


I already said smart arse right?




Now my turn:




That's a pass:

Edited by Heath, 15 November 2018 - 10:49 PM.

[Heath]

After all four edges were turned the whole way around (no heat at all mind you) the Porsche roof frame rails are looking like they'll fit with a bit more tinkering below.


Have to turn the edge on the alloy sunroof panel skin. Back to the pliers:


Cold shrinking:


Annealing before more persuasion (plenty of on-and-off the car obviously checking out the fit)


Starting to look like an actual sunroof now...


Not that the hard work is anywhere near complete. Plenty to go, and these hours with the maestro are getting bloody expensive!

But it'll be a hell of a sunroof. File finished, lightweight, and bloody huge which is the right size for me, lol.

[Ice]

Impressive to say the least

[76lxhatch]

Nice work! That will be awesome once finished. Now, will you gain more speed from the weight reduction of removing it or from the aerodynamics of having it in place...? :-P

Regarding the flare its really just a matter of how you want it to look as long as you get tyre clearance everywhere you need it. Looking at the top bolts in that last photo the rear may be slightly low but that's far better than the front being too low as that's when you run into clearance issues with a bit of steering lock.

[Bullet]

Awesome stuff Heath, working with guys with a life time of experience is the best!
Keep up the good work mate

[axistr]

Cool, very impressive.

[rodomo]

You've come a long way from bending up a 1/4 panel lower section Grass Hopper.

[Redslur]

Wow....cheers Raj☺️

[neglectedtorana]

Great work Heath, with your skills, creativity and passion you will be the maestro one day

[LXCHEV]

Great update Heath

[GMH-01X]

That is some Amazing craftsmanship executed on the roof ....One of a kind
Well done

[Swarbs]

Impressive stuff 

[UC308Hatch]

Wow, just wow

[RIM-010]

Sunroof as.

[DanWA]

wow Heath.