Preparations for Cab fitting...
Discussion
Hi Guys,
I am getting close to the point-of-no-return so I wanted to get some pearls of wisdom from you guys who have successfully made this transition as to what to check has been done before the cab is fitted just in case I have missed something that I might regret after!
Also any fine-tuning points or methods I should follow to make my life easier during the fitting, and to avoid mistakes!
Cheers
Keith
I am getting close to the point-of-no-return so I wanted to get some pearls of wisdom from you guys who have successfully made this transition as to what to check has been done before the cab is fitted just in case I have missed something that I might regret after!
Also any fine-tuning points or methods I should follow to make my life easier during the fitting, and to avoid mistakes!
Cheers
Keith
Already gone past that point. When it's back from the painters I will find out what I have forgotten!!!
Covering on the inside of the roof is a lot easier to fit before the roll cage is in the way.
Insulation of the rad pipes!
I have no luggage containers so have access to the inside of my side pods but running a piece of ducting down each side may prove useful in the future for those with containers.
Probably easier to pre-fit the seats and get the holes in without body too.
Hope these help.
Paul
Covering on the inside of the roof is a lot easier to fit before the roll cage is in the way.
Insulation of the rad pipes!
I have no luggage containers so have access to the inside of my side pods but running a piece of ducting down each side may prove useful in the future for those with containers.
Probably easier to pre-fit the seats and get the holes in without body too.
Hope these help.
Paul
If you have the body prefitted at the factory put it on the chassis and use Cleco pins to secure it via the holes they drilled.
Thereafter fit the front and rear sections and only then should you start drilling for final fitting. I did't use any sealant at the joint with the chassis to allow easy removal if needed.
Pay special attention to the vertical line/joint with the engine cover. Realized that you can adjust the rear edge of the doors but the engine cover and the radiator cover are pretty much a fixed shape. Use a bunch of foam tape for insulation. It weighs nothing and is easy to put on. Get it from Aircraft Spruce. Use the washers that come from the factory under the rivet heads or use large flange rivets.
STRONGLY consider making a removable panel on the cabin wall in front of the motor. There will never be an easier time to do this than right now. Cover the engine side of the firewall with alloy plate, cut a hole the largest hole in it the chassis tubes will allow and make a panel that overlaps the hole, secure it with rivnuts.
Prefit everything and look it over carefully prior to finalizing. If you make a mistake accept the fact that you can just drill out the rivets, spray something inside the rail to keep them from rattling around and redo the point. Elongate the hole in the fiberglass, not the chassis. Use a rivet spacer from Aircraft Spruce to speed this up and make it effortlessly perfect. Use an air rivet gun.
Take a million pictures.
Thereafter fit the front and rear sections and only then should you start drilling for final fitting. I did't use any sealant at the joint with the chassis to allow easy removal if needed.
Pay special attention to the vertical line/joint with the engine cover. Realized that you can adjust the rear edge of the doors but the engine cover and the radiator cover are pretty much a fixed shape. Use a bunch of foam tape for insulation. It weighs nothing and is easy to put on. Get it from Aircraft Spruce. Use the washers that come from the factory under the rivet heads or use large flange rivets.
STRONGLY consider making a removable panel on the cabin wall in front of the motor. There will never be an easier time to do this than right now. Cover the engine side of the firewall with alloy plate, cut a hole the largest hole in it the chassis tubes will allow and make a panel that overlaps the hole, secure it with rivnuts.
Prefit everything and look it over carefully prior to finalizing. If you make a mistake accept the fact that you can just drill out the rivets, spray something inside the rail to keep them from rattling around and redo the point. Elongate the hole in the fiberglass, not the chassis. Use a rivet spacer from Aircraft Spruce to speed this up and make it effortlessly perfect. Use an air rivet gun.
Take a million pictures.
Well 7 weeks have gone by and I still have not fitted the cab.
Reason is, there is always just-one-more thing to do before the big day...
Procrastination? Maybe! Fear? Defo!
Yes I am a nutter, I have just competely sealed (I hope) the front of the side-pods where they meet the front chassis - what a game and a half that was - copious amounts of sealer all over the holes around the radiator tubes and various wiring. Getting past the suspension bits and the hangers was a nightmare! Smoothed it all out and managed to plaster all up my arm, my hands and about everything in close proximity - even the cat got some! Jeez - what horrible stuff this mastic is!
Anyhow - sealed I think...and then (hold breath) in with the perlite... into the void in front of the side-pods filling liberally, then covering the hole with self-adhesive firewall stuff to finish.
All I can say at the moment is it is either going to be a great success...or there will be a lot of traffic wondering where the hell the snow-storm came from when I overtake them!
And so...now to think about that hole in the rear firewall that was suggested. I see the theoretical benefit..so you can get at the cam-sensor and t'other stuff which cannot be reached in any other way easily, but is this really worthwhile? Anyone else done this?
K
Reason is, there is always just-one-more thing to do before the big day...
Procrastination? Maybe! Fear? Defo!
Yes I am a nutter, I have just competely sealed (I hope) the front of the side-pods where they meet the front chassis - what a game and a half that was - copious amounts of sealer all over the holes around the radiator tubes and various wiring. Getting past the suspension bits and the hangers was a nightmare! Smoothed it all out and managed to plaster all up my arm, my hands and about everything in close proximity - even the cat got some! Jeez - what horrible stuff this mastic is!
Anyhow - sealed I think...and then (hold breath) in with the perlite... into the void in front of the side-pods filling liberally, then covering the hole with self-adhesive firewall stuff to finish.
All I can say at the moment is it is either going to be a great success...or there will be a lot of traffic wondering where the hell the snow-storm came from when I overtake them!
And so...now to think about that hole in the rear firewall that was suggested. I see the theoretical benefit..so you can get at the cam-sensor and t'other stuff which cannot be reached in any other way easily, but is this really worthwhile? Anyone else done this?
K
V8 Vum said:
And so...now to think about that hole in the rear firewall that was suggested. I see the theoretical benefit..so you can get at the cam-sensor and t'other stuff which cannot be reached in any other way easily, but is this really worthwhile? Anyone else done this?
Any excuse to cut another hole, hey Keith 
Also watching thread with interest, as hopefully will be at same position soon. I'm more intrigued how you final fit the cockpit section to ensure decent shut lines with doors !
D.
TangoGTR said:
....Also watching thread with interest, as hopefully will be at same position soon. I'm more intrigued how you final fit the cockpit section to ensure decent shut lines with doors !D.
To get the best door shut lines you should not be touching them until the body is all riveted and bonded in place and the windscreen fitted.Get hold of the body section at the door top hinge and see how much you can twist it!!!! try that again with the screen in and you will get no movement.
Steve
One bit I am a tiny bit nervous about is the join between the cab and the side-pods- just under the side repeater holes.
This join should I presume is silcothaned, and when you join, you jiggle the panels for a flush cab-to-side-pod fit, then bolt up, then rivet all along the edge of the side-pod to the chassis in the door opening area? Is that right? Anything I might have forgotten?
This join should I presume is silcothaned, and when you join, you jiggle the panels for a flush cab-to-side-pod fit, then bolt up, then rivet all along the edge of the side-pod to the chassis in the door opening area? Is that right? Anything I might have forgotten?
V8 Vum said:
One bit I am a tiny bit nervous about is the join between the cab and the side-pods- just under the side repeater holes.
This join should I presume is silcothaned, and when you join, you jiggle the panels for a flush cab-to-side-pod fit, then bolt up, then rivet all along the edge of the side-pod to the chassis in the door opening area? Is that right? Anything I might have forgotten?
The side pod has a step in it so water should not enter here. I did not seal mine.This join should I presume is silcothaned, and when you join, you jiggle the panels for a flush cab-to-side-pod fit, then bolt up, then rivet all along the edge of the side-pod to the chassis in the door opening area? Is that right? Anything I might have forgotten?
Steve
Don't be in a rush to rivet the ali skin and side pod at the bottom edge of the doors.
Don't be in a rush to rivet the lower edge of the side pod to the underside of the car.
Fit the body then the clips. You may find you need to ease out the bottom and the rear edge of the pod to align with the lower front edge of the rear clip. You will most likely need to add shims between the vertical flange at the back of the pod where it mates to the chassis. The shims may also need to taper top to bottom.
You don't fit the car body one piece at a time...you put them all in place and shimmy them around until they all line up. Then, and only then, do you rivet them in place.
Steve
Don't be in a rush to rivet the lower edge of the side pod to the underside of the car.
Fit the body then the clips. You may find you need to ease out the bottom and the rear edge of the pod to align with the lower front edge of the rear clip. You will most likely need to add shims between the vertical flange at the back of the pod where it mates to the chassis. The shims may also need to taper top to bottom.
You don't fit the car body one piece at a time...you put them all in place and shimmy them around until they all line up. Then, and only then, do you rivet them in place.
Steve
Oooooh - er - Muva!
The body was pre-fitted a while ago by the factory, and shims were in place, then once back I removed, and fitted the tanks etc, and then fitted the side pods, rivetting the bottom and rear only. That was over a year or more ago!
Thanks for the advice, looks like I am going to have to X fingers and hope it is as it should be, otherwise I can see me having to drill out all those damn rivets underneath!
It is amazing...you think you are there, then you find you are not!
I need to finish covering the dash-front with leather. My bespoke Dash top was collected from the trimmers last week sfter a second go, and now looks pretty good.
I used a removable panel which is bolted from underneath for the flat dash area towards the glass, covered that myself with not too much drama, and that has come out well also.
Next I need to look at the rear of the cab, where it fits on top of the side-pods (where some put speakers). I am not sure I like the floaty nature of the join, there seems to be nothing to stop that bit flapping around or vibrating so am thinking about making a small wide ally bracket for each side to give this area some meat to rivet to. Dunno yet of there is sufficient overhang of the ally top yet...Have others done this?
Once the top is on, I can get to finsh the extended LS7 loom! The original was part of the engine package (before the Factory supplied LS7s) and thus only long enough to have the ECU positioned in the rear clip. I hated this and wanted to put it inboard between the seats so plugging in diags would be easier, but found no economic alternatives until recently. Managed to get a longer 2nd hand loom, and as not all plugs are exactly the same decided to chop off the ends (ECU end) and mate it to the longer tail from the purchase. LOADS OF wires everywhere! So I have an interesting and lengthy job - and the fun bit is the colours are not the same, the longer loom does not have twin colours like my old one - fUN.fUN.fUN!
I know -I know! Get on with it Keith!
The body was pre-fitted a while ago by the factory, and shims were in place, then once back I removed, and fitted the tanks etc, and then fitted the side pods, rivetting the bottom and rear only. That was over a year or more ago!
Thanks for the advice, looks like I am going to have to X fingers and hope it is as it should be, otherwise I can see me having to drill out all those damn rivets underneath!
It is amazing...you think you are there, then you find you are not!
I need to finish covering the dash-front with leather. My bespoke Dash top was collected from the trimmers last week sfter a second go, and now looks pretty good.
I used a removable panel which is bolted from underneath for the flat dash area towards the glass, covered that myself with not too much drama, and that has come out well also.
Next I need to look at the rear of the cab, where it fits on top of the side-pods (where some put speakers). I am not sure I like the floaty nature of the join, there seems to be nothing to stop that bit flapping around or vibrating so am thinking about making a small wide ally bracket for each side to give this area some meat to rivet to. Dunno yet of there is sufficient overhang of the ally top yet...Have others done this?
Once the top is on, I can get to finsh the extended LS7 loom! The original was part of the engine package (before the Factory supplied LS7s) and thus only long enough to have the ECU positioned in the rear clip. I hated this and wanted to put it inboard between the seats so plugging in diags would be easier, but found no economic alternatives until recently. Managed to get a longer 2nd hand loom, and as not all plugs are exactly the same decided to chop off the ends (ECU end) and mate it to the longer tail from the purchase. LOADS OF wires everywhere! So I have an interesting and lengthy job - and the fun bit is the colours are not the same, the longer loom does not have twin colours like my old one - fUN.fUN.fUN!
I know -I know! Get on with it Keith!
V8 Vum said:
......Managed to get a longer 2nd hand loom, and as not all plugs are exactly the same decided to chop off the ends (ECU end) and mate it to the longer tail from the purchase. LOADS OF wires everywhere! So I have an interesting and lengthy job - and the fun bit is the colours are not the same, the longer loom does not have twin colours like my old one - fUN.fUN.fUN!....
When you join the looms together try and spread each wire join down the length of the loom otherwise the collection of jointed wires will leave you with a loom looking like a snake that has just had a very large meal.Steve
V8 Vum said:
Next I need to look at the rear of the cab, where it fits on top of the side-pods (where some put speakers). I am not sure I like the floaty nature of the join, there seems to be nothing to stop that bit flapping around or vibrating so am thinking about making a small wide ally bracket for each side to give this area some meat to rivet to. Dunno yet of there is sufficient overhang of the ally top yet...Have others done this?
For various reasons (mainly that my GTR started out as a Sport) I fabricated my own ally tops to the side pods. I made the same observation as you, so I made the ally top panel long enough so that I could put a 1" vertical bend just behind where the cab meets the panel. A few rivets later and there was a lovely solid joint twixt cab and side pod. Gassing Station | Ultima | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff