anyone have any info on the mounting of that antena under the fender ?

I might figure something out, but just incase

88GTFormula. Check out Skitimes Build thread. He explains it pretty good. Basically what he did was remove the antenna from the chassis. Then using an L bracket mount it sideways and tilted about 45 deg. to the front. The antenna staff is then hooked under the fender. I can get some pix for you if you need them.

[This message has been edited by Fiero1Fan (edited 05-06-2006).]

quote Originally posted by Fiero1Fan: 88GTFormula. Check out Skitimes Build thread. He explains it pretty good. Basically what he did was remove the antenna from the chassis. Then using an L bracket mount it sideways and tilted about 45 deg. to the front. The antenna staff is then hooked under the fender. I can get some pix for you if you need them.

I'd appriciate the pix if you dont mind...

Thanx alot,
~Tim

(sorry for interupting your build BlackTree) I thought my question kinda went along with your motive...(that and I'll be getting there soon)

------------------

" Life is short, Live alittle and If you feel froggy, jump. "
86 GT Build-Up----> https://www.fiero.nl/forum/Forum1/HTML/059108.html

88GTFormula. You have a pm.

The topside of the hood/scoop/fender mod is done, except for some minor detail stuff. So that allowed me to spray on some primer... so it can be one solid color again.





Pictures like these are what keep me going.

quote Originally posted by Blacktree: Pictures like these are what keep me going.

Yep they should! Looking good. Do you consider some dress up of the now exposed area's with the hood open?

That's coming out really good.

quote Originally posted by Blacktree: Pictures like these are what keep me going.

Yea, and for some reason its making me wish i finished it when i started it before... exellent job. I'm interested in seeing the dress up ideas that you have for the now exposed fender well...

Keep up the good work 'good inspiration for the rest of us...'

Thanks for the compliments. But you guys have stumped me.

I never would expect the words "bare frame" and "dress-up" to be in the same sentence. Ya know, form follows function and all that. So what are you guys referring to? Paint? POR-15? A good washing?

It does need a good washing...

quote Originally posted by Blacktree: So what are you guys referring to? Paint? POR-15? A good washing? It does need a good washing...

I was thinking something along the lines of a fiberglass shell to cover up that inner fender, frame, etc... I'd like to do something along these lines as well, so a few weeks from now hopefully i'll be able to show you better than i can tell you (not the best at expaining things)

~Tim

quote Originally posted by 88GTFormula: I was thinking something along the lines of a fiberglass shell to cover up that inner fender, frame, etc... I'd like to do something along these lines as well, so a few weeks from now hopefully i'll be able to show you better than i can tell you (not the best at expaining things) ~Tim

I'm fairly sure but not 100% that you're talking about right above the tire in the picture which looks like it will be covered when the hood is closed because he added the extra onto the side of the hood...?

I would just por-15 the frame and paint the backside of the exposed body panels black as well..
adding a fiberglass cover for the frame after you open the hood is something you'd only see on a show car, not someone interested in performance

quote Originally posted by divilspawn: I'm fairly sure but not 100% that you're talking about right above the tire in the picture which looks like it will be covered when the hood is closed because he added the extra onto the side of the hood...?

yea, mainly for show as koh had mentioned... Im attempting this hood modification (thanx to the inspiration of Blacktree and a few others that wont be mentioned... I'll see if i can also do this 'dress up' later on in my project... But its mostly just a diffrent finished look for show, thats all. Nothing performance or anything.

[This message has been edited by 88GTFormula (edited 05-09-2006).]

Nice work, very nice.

How much of a pain are the fenders if you have to work under the "hood"? Is it somthing that can be lived with?

It does look pretty cool. I am thinking of paying you a complimant by copying you if the fenders aren't too much in the way

*nods to Kohburn*

That's basically the plan. This car will never be a show car, thanks to the "all gruff, no fluff" mentality of its owner.

ARGGGGHHHH!! Now you're making me want to do the same thing to my fenders. Jerk...

Looks great!
Nolan

quote Originally posted by Sourmug: ARGGGGHHHH!! Now you're making me want to do the same thing to my fenders. Jerk... Looks great! Nolan

My sediments exactly!!

What's the area in front of the tire look like? Could you take a pic of it from a lower view and pointing forward?
Thanks!

[This message has been edited by Gokart Mozart (edited 05-09-2006).]

Do you want it with the hood open or closed?

Also keep in mind I'm not finished yet. There's still work to be done in that area.

The hood mod looks very trick. Nice job. Now the questions...
- How will you stiffen the fenders (or hold them in position) so they don't flop in and out?
- Any reason you're using epoxy over polyester?

thanx,
Good job...

Bob

[This message has been edited by RCR (edited 05-10-2006).]

I originally thought of molding in some reinforcing ribs in the fenders to keep them from flopping around. But I think the "gap-fill / anti-chaffing" mod, as described near the bottom of Page 1, may do the trick. If the panels are restrained from rubbing against each other, then it stands to reason they won't flop around either.

I use epoxy resin because of personal preference.

quote cire36 said: How much of a pain are the fenders if you have to work under the "hood"? Is it somthing that can be lived with?

I really don't know. I haven't done any work under the hood lately. All of my work has been on the hood itself!

Today, I worked on the fill pieces where the two halves of the fenders will meet. The idea here is to mold ledges in the top and bottom pieces, so there will be 2 flat surfaces facing each other when the hood is closed. Some felt or weatherstrip should keep them from rubbing.

The process was relatively simple. I traced the shape onto some 1/4" thick plywood, cut it out, and covered it with duct tape (so the resin won't stick to it). Then I taped it in place on the hood, as a mold for the fiberglass. See photo below.



The next step is to lay in the fiberglass. I also stuck an angled piece of wood between layers of fiberglass, to stiffen the area. In the photo below, you can see the fresh fiberglass.



Now if it'll stop raining, I can actually get something done...

How well is the fiberglass sticking to the platic? If the plastic flexes, will the bonded area crack apart?

So far, it's holding up really well. For example, the hood/fender seam is nice and strong. I think I might be able to rip the fender off the hood if I really tried, but in the process I'd probably destroy the fender and/or the hood.

I think the key is to rough up the plastic with sandpaper, and clean it thoroughly before laying up the fiberglass. It also helps to have a wide overlap at the seams. I've been overlapping at least an inch.

This is an excellent thread. Keep up the good work.

Nolan

Thanks.

I just want to mention that I'm basically a novice with fiberglass work. I've read a couple books on the subject, but don't have much hands-on experience. Until now, my experience has been mostly with crack/chip repairs and a few small parts. This is the biggest fiberglass project I've undertaken. When I started this project, I was actually afraid I might not be able to pull it off.

So if I can do this kinda stuff, then just about anybody should be able to do it as well. It all boils down to patience, careful planning, and most importantly reading the directions!

[This message has been edited by Blacktree (edited 05-12-2006).]

Just curious Blacktree,.. would it have been better if maybe you had rivited say a connecting metal or aluminum plate on the under side of the hood that connected both parts (the fender and the hood) then glassed over that ?

My thinking is that maybe it would provide further strength while displacing the stress at the same time.

No offense, but putting rivets in fiberglass is not something I'd want to do. Too many things could go wrong... dissimilar materials, stress risers, corrosion...

I think I gave you guys the wrong idea about the fenders being floppy. Yes, they do wiggle a bit. But they don't flop around like dog ears or anything like that. I decided to nix the reinforcing rib idea specifically because the fenders aren't as floppy as I expected. I've been driving the car around for about a week without any kind of reinforcement, and haven't noticed any problems. Granted, I haven't driven over 55MPH, but still...

quote Originally posted by Blacktree: No offense, but putting rivets in fiberglass is not something I'd want to do. Too many things could go wrong... dissimilar materials, stress risers, corrosion... I think I gave you guys the wrong idea about the fenders being floppy. Yes, they do wiggle a bit. But they don't flop around like dog ears or anything like that. I decided to nix the reinforcing rib idea specifically because the fenders aren't as floppy as I expected. I've been driving the car around for about a week without any kind of reinforcement, and haven't noticed any problems. Granted, I haven't driven over 55MPH, but still...

No offense taken. I am sure you know a heck of a lot more about it than me hehehehe. I was just more or less asking out of curiousity's sake more than anything else.

The hood looks great BTW.

I think it looks great, even better than having the entire front flip open. I had considered doing something similar (in the distant future) having looked at how some of the Ferrari kits open up. I was concerned about movement, that's why I asked. I wasn't expecting "floppy dog ears" though. That's a funny visual.

Again I think it looks great, so I hope it works out well.

Bob

Very Nice indeed!

Here's a quick shot of those ledges I molded into the fender pieces:



On a side note: After chopping the fender in half, the bottom half of the fender isn't held in place very well. There's only a couple rivets on the bottom and a couple screws along the wheel well. The rest is unsupported. But I found a simple solution for that. Stay tuned...

Blacktree: Have you considered cutting the wheel well up and having the top half move with the hood, similar to the Vettes?

Bob

I thought about it, but decided against it (too much hassle). I think it would look neat, though.

May I see another pic of how you "smoothed" in the scoop from under the hood?

I am in the process of glasssing mine in as this is being typed.

John

quote Originally posted by Blacktree: Do you want it with the hood open or closed?

Open. Like this but to see the area around the headlight.

[This message has been edited by Gokart Mozart (edited 05-18-2006).]

To 1986GTV8 and Gokart Mozart: I'll snap a couple photos tomorrow.

Another update for today.

I started the metalwork for the bracketry that will support the edge of the fascia and the bottom fenders. Today I made brackets for the edge of the fascia, to replace the parts that were sliced off the fenders. See photo below.



The replacement pieces are made from aluminum 1" angle stock. They provide a more secure mounting point for the side marker lights. And I think that after they're painted black, they should look better than the plastic pieces they replaced. Here's a shot of one installed.



Tomorrow I work on the bracketry for the bottom fenders.

Well, the weather man says it's gonna rain all day. That sux.

But I have an underhood photo that I forgot about. Here it is:



It's hard to see in the photo, but those paint sticks molded into the hood are curved on the back edge (by the scoop opening). The idea is to make the curve match that of the scoop, for a nice flow from hood to scoop.

I'm sure you're aware that the hood is made from 2 sheets of fiberglass glued together. I used the paint sticks, because they're almost the same thickness as one of the fiberglass sheets. And unfortunately, that part of the hood had a structural rib running across it (which had to be cut out). So I couldn't just sand a curve into the fiberglass... because there was none!

bump and pm sent

Another update! Now the hood scoop has a fresh coat of primer on the underside. It's all over but the shouting, as far as the scoop is concerned. Here are a couple shots:





I also made the metal bracketry for the bottom fenders. This was pretty simple and straightforward, just some aluminum 1/16 x 1/2" bar stock bent into an L-shape with a couple holes drilled in it.


The end attached to the frame has a self-tapping screw in it. And the end attached to the fender uses a body nut/screw combo. I also drilled the hole in the fender oversized, so I could make adjustments.

And BTW, the bracket goes under the fender when installed... for a relatively 'clean' look. The end result was a very sturdy body panel. I dare say it's more sturdy than the original.