Coupe into Speedster Conversion

[JTR70]

Yeah, I feel like that blind squirrel at times Jack. What was that old saying about "even the sun shines on a dogs ass sometimes"?? That could apply here as well.

Hey Phil, I must have missed that question on your thread; glad you got an answer just the same. Without access to the inner face of the wall its going to be tough to detect any severe rot short of just removing the stop plate for an inspection. I suppose you could ream the channel see what comes loose and what if anything is packed in there. This frame is a perfect example of how nice a frame can look from the outside but what lies beneath is another matter. I know what you mean about explaining to family and friends as to why a restoration is taking so damn long. I am 25 years behind schedule on that old coupe of mine.

3/14/14

Spoke with Steve Hogue this morning and the new sides should be ready to ship by next week.

Filler strips cut and shaped today. Thanks again guys! Justin

[Jack Staggs]

As my granddaughter says, Grandpa is building a car out in the garage. Phil

Phil, I am very pleased to hear that she doesn't say that you are building a car in your basement.

[Carrera_The_Kid]

incredible stuff Justin, thank for sharing

[tperazzo]

Awesome! Some one is bound to ask later, " Was this a frame off restoration?" And you can say YES!

[JTR70]

Thanks Tom! I could honestly say that part of the frame was off at some point.

Thank you Joris! Its always appreciated!

Justin

[JTR70]

3/18/14

Seat pan prep continued.

Last of the forward filler strips welded and dressed

test fit. All ready for the final seam weld when the time comes to put this pan in for good.

Ready for the rear portions of this repair/ install

templating begins. Thanks for looking! Justin

[JTR70]

3/20/14
left rearward seat pan repair section formed.

Template now fills all the holes and is in final form. Ready to go onto metal.

new metal replacement section complete. A few relief cuts in the flange to achieve the right profile and two slices required to "jog" the flange so it hugs the profile of the wall embossments.

Test fit. went on almost as well as the paper template.

Test fit with new pan. Of course some fine trimming and tweaking to come but its at least within striking distance.

I thought about maybe tacking this piece in now but soon realized that it would cause more fitment issues down the road. I'll have it at the ready but its best to keep it out of my way for the moment. The example is pictured above; the eventual replacement flange for the new X-member is represented here and it mounts first under the seat pan. X-member can't go on until I have the new panels from Steve Hogue fully mounted on. Perfect example of why the layered sequence order has to be followed otherwise you make this miserable job even more unpleasant than it had to be. I of course have learned this lesson the hard way.

Flipped the left template over to save time and am almost ready to go to metal on this right hand side. Thanks for looking! Justin

[JTR70]

3/21/14
donor seat pan repair panels complete.

right side now in metal

Same contouring required on this flange for a flush fit against the wall.

All ready to begin welding BUT it cannot go in just yet. New X-member prep and repair up next. Thanks for looking! Justin

[JTR70]

2/24/14

Cross-member prep and repair.

Cross-member prep began by removing the mount flange strip of the old parcel shelf.

Now gone with lots of factory fresh metal. So much nicer than the original one.

Next was removing the left over mount flange of the fire wall.

The new donor was cut well short of its original length at its flanges so I'll be templating the new sections from my coupe.

Template just about complete but I'm a touch short at the bottom. I would be at a loss for correct detail without a reference car!

Just about ready to cut it out of metal. This extra length perimeter section was the perfect width for this particular repair. What I also like about this piece is that its made from heavier 18 gauge sheet.

Cross-member end cap repair:
while its very important for these repairs to appear factory its probably more so for this area to be structurally sound enough to deal with the demands of the entire weight of the motor and part of the transmission directly hanging from it. Then there is all the torsional forces going through it as the drivetrain operates.

While experimenting I found that this 1X1 inch square stock fit beautifully between the two pieces that comprise this member.

This square stock will make for the perfect structural stand-in for the factory reinforcement which was found angle mounted on both sides. Being an actual tube made from heavier gauge metal will provide far more integrity over that original sheetmetal version.

I angle cut the ends of the cross-member so that the weld joint will run along the spine of this new tube once in place as this mock up shows.

It was really nice to able to repurpose some of this jig to complete this repair.

I cut it just a touch longer so the ends will terminate into the top and bottom for additional support.

New reinforcement now welded into position.

New repair section now cut out and in rough initial shape. A bit of adjusting and fine trimming yet to do.

Internal view; new piece mimics the original design but much stronger and it bridge supports the weld joints.

Just about ready to weld this new section on. Thanks for stopping by! Justin

[roy mawbey]

Justin,

Great sequence of photo's and method of doing it. Cardboard templates and being able reverse them like you did on the carrera makes life easier and that square stock tubing must have made you really happy.
Its great when you can see a lot of time saving like that.

Roy

[JTR70]

Thanks Roy! Yes, every little bit helps in the way to save a little time and effort. That square stock was a natural fit in deed! Like I said every once in a while I get lucky. Thanks again Roy!

2/26/14
Right side of cross-member:


Embossment knock-out for the optional Gas heater and its ducting had to be leveled for both a snug fit against the square stock and for a accurate T1 structural detail.

Zipped it off right across the step flange.

Stepped shoulder was ground off and the original piece was welded back in. Reinforcement now welded into position here.

Replacement flange template with "locating" tabs in position here. Ready to trim to final size.

Template complete and ready once again to go onto metal.
Thanks for stopping by! Justin

[JTR70]

3/27/14

Front repair flanges for new Cross member complete.

new section trimmed and now ready to tack on here. I put my square on it first to make sure the new flange is at 90 degrees with the rest of the part.

Both sides now finished and dressed smooth.

Starting the inner flange sections tomorrow. Thanks for looking! Justin

[JTR70]

3/28/14
template for left side inner cross member panel.

New cross member was clamped into position so paper modeling could begin

The outer flanged half of this template just about complete here. Due to the shock mount embossment this flange is not set at 90 degrees in relation to the cross member like the outers and it also has a kick at the top. Needless to say the only way of getting an accurate copy was to build it stages right on the frame.


After several generations of cut, tape and splice I finally had representation of the part I now need to make.

Moving onto steel tomorrow. Thanks for looking! Justin

[Jack Staggs]

Justin Komenda

[Pat]

Jack--that is a good one! Justin Komenda! Love it.