G-body 25.3 SFI rebuild

[10secBu]

I took some time yesterday to measure all the tubing in the 25.3 cage/chassis. I wanted to try and calculate and compare weight of the car before & after the upgrade/changes.

The old 10 point cage had 68' of tubing and weighed 155 #'s with the swing out side bars.

The 25.3 cage has 197' of tubing and weighs 197 #'s.

I also boxed the frame rails with 1/8" plate which added and additional 14 #'s.

Other weight additions are the fire system (25#'s) and the driveshaft enclosure (8.5#'s).

Now weight removed that I was able to weigh:

12 bolt vs new 9" housing complete = -17#
stock vs f/g trunk lid = -27#
stock vs f/g doors = -132#
stock vs f/g dash = -10#
swap mufflers = -3#
remove wood storage lid = -12#
remove coil spring mounts = -8#
remove trans X-member and flat strap driveshaft loop = -11#

Total of the weighed removed items is 220#'s.

Car originally weighed 3200 lbs w/driver and no ballast.

3200
-155
3045 net
+211
+33.5 fire sys & d/s encl
3289.5 after 25.3 cage
-220 weight removal
3069.5 net weight after 25.3

Now there were other items removed which I was not able to weigh, so I had to make some educated guesses.

- middle floor crossmember = ~3#
- rear seat floor crossmember & body mounts = ~6#
- rear steel floors, package tray and rear firewall = ~12#
- 6 aluminum body bushings eliminated out back = ~6#
- outer frame rail skins = ~10#
- old floor brace pads = ~1#
- steering column bracket = ~1#
- trunk lid latch bracket = -0#
- 4 gauge power cables (2) = ~6#
- #10AN return fuel line = ~2 #
- removed plastic inner fenders & metal bracing from fenders = -5#'s
This list totals approx 52 lbs.

So the potential new weight if nothing else is changed would be:

3069
- 52
3017#'s.

Now I still have a couple more small things that could take a little more weight out.

- swap remaining stock glass for lexan.
- build chromoly tube core support to replace stock (mine is lightened and weighs 21 #'S). Tube would likely be less than 5 #'s.
- swap huge 19 x 31 radiator for smaller unit.

I could even get rid of the hinges Glasstek f/g hood as it weighs around 45 lbs, but I had a lift off hood and refuse to go back. lol

I'd like to get the car under 3000 lbs, 2950 would be great, but doubt it'll happen.

 

[motorhead]

Looking good.

 

[BLOWNic]

very, very nice build man! keep up the good work.

 

[futten]

awsome build high quality

 

[Squid4life]

NOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The pics are gone due to "exceeded bandwidth"... "too many views"! Hopefully that is temporary, losing pics on this build would be a tragedy! Been following this thread closely and have really loved all the progress and updates. It is amazing! I am amazed at how light you were able to make the car. Serious car there!

 

[10secBu]

Pics should come back up tomorrow.

 

[10secBu]

This morning I dropped off all the fabricated parts to be chrome plated. The motor & midplate will be hard anodize coated black as well. They tell me the parts might be done yet next week. Would be nice to get them back before Christmas so I can get to work on the rest of the car assembly.

I also stopped by my buddies body shop to use his blast cabinet. He showed me the door repair, it's looking pretty good. The top/middle portion has been re-glassed inside and out. The lower damage area has been glassed on the inside, now the jamb area needs grinding and re-glassing. Door should be good as new once it's done.

Lastly, I snapped a couple pics with the dash set in place. Still need to trim the gauge opening some more, then fiberglass a flange in place, then send it off to be painted. More than anything I just wanted to see what it looked like with the data logger dash in place. lol

 

[10secBu]

Picked up the parts from chrome today.

Pics make them look alot nicer than they do closeup. They were done in a nickel/chrome process skipping the copper and buffing. Any flaws show through since the copper fill is not there, but for race car stuff it looks decent and is alot more affordable. Once the car is assembled, it usually looks pretty nice, not show perfect, but nice.

I also had the shop hard coat anodize the motor & mideplate black. With the car silver and the engine all silver, I felt some contrast was needed. I will eventually have the valve covers done the same way.

Once were past Christmas, I'll hopefully be able to get back to work on some real assembly.

More to come...

 

[10secBu]

Definitely showing some decent progress now. Most of the major mechanical pieces are in place, plenty of small detail items to attend to.

I have a basic rear suspension setup thanks to Mike from TRZ. I also spoke with Eric at Afco on a couple things and have decided to send the front shocks back for some upgraded valving. By our conversation, I think the changes will make a big difference in calming the front end down and allowing me to remove the wheelie bars.

Once I get the front shocks back, I'll put the car on the ground in an attempt to get the car out for carpet installation.

Need to also get the rest of the sheetmetal parts back so I can get the body put together.

 

[10secBu]

Hmmm, decisions, decisions...

Holeshot Sun Star

Mickey Thompson ET Drag

I also have a third set of brand new M/T ET Drag, but in 15 x 12 I picked up to cut down to 10" and beadlock.

Front wheels will be existing M/T ET Drag.

 

[motorhead]

Sun Stars... assuming the fronts will be the same.

 

[10secBu]

Fronts are my old M/T ET Drags.

 

[LS-GN]

Beautiful work! Thanks for posting this!

 

[10secBu]

Pedals are done.

 

[lrayzer]

This build is very inspiring ! even using some of the little details will improve most eveeryones cars.

Any idea what the end budget (forget the initial estimates <grin>) are on this ride ?

You did most of the fab work which equates to what I do, so it would be good fodder over a few brews.

 

[Squid4life]

I prefer the ET drags. They have a classic "bad mo fo" look to them in my opinion.

 

[10secBu]

This build is very inspiring ! even using some of the little details will improve most eveeryones cars.

Any idea what the end budget (forget the initial estimates <grin>) are on this ride ?

You did most of the fab work which equates to what I do, so it would be good fodder over a few brews.

Well, I stopped adding up all the nickel & dime stuff a while ago. Paint and parts, no labor, the chassis rebuild has cost me $25k, plus there's a couple thousand more to finish (carpet, tires, seat covers, beadlocks, etc). The fabrication portion of the rebuild accounted for 600 hours. Haven't kept track of any of the assembly hours.

Also keep in mind that this was a complete running car before I tore it apart to redo the cage, etc. The engine, trans, converter, etc have not been touched, nor upgraded, but most everything else has. LOL

 

[10secBu]

I prefer the ET drags. They have a classic "bad mo fo" look to them in my opinion.

I plan to use both sets of wheels. I had the Holeshots made before I found the M/T wheels used (which match the M/T front wheels I already had). I kinda like the M/T as it's a match to the front wheel, plus they have no bolts, easier to clean.

 

[lrayzer]

I prefer the ET drags. They have a classic "bad mo fo" look to them in my opinion.

Good data and a reality check for people who think they can, or want to build a similar ride, that would be a 24-26 week build in a shop at shop rates ! and close to 1.5 years working evenings and nights for most people.
Your skills make up for deeper pockets, very detailed work, keep posting pics. I knkow I will incorporate a few details into my TSO build, but first the dually still needs the trans stabbed back in and a new posi and gear set, got to love personal fleet maint !

 

[10secBu]

Brakes have been bled, driveshaft sensor installed & wired, pressure transducers mounted, vacuum sensor mounted, main fuel line up front completed, brake light wire corrected, shock bumpers cut down and shocks remounted inverted.

Have the stock core support mocked up taking measurements to fabricated a chromoly tubular replacement. Oh yea, the new smaller/lighter radiator/fan assembly came in this week.