Technical > Roo Man's Room

To build or buy built

(1/6) > >>

hemidakota:
I know this subject has been asked before but I'm torn on what to do. I really want to build my own fed. I am a large guy 6'3" 230 lbs. wide shoulders. It is difficult to find a chassis that I fit in comfortably. I would like to build a 6.0 cert chassis but there is so many directions to go. Who's kit is good, who's is not? Just get prints and bend all yourself? I do know I would like an open chassis with just a nose cone and simple body around driver. Don't really like torsion bar front ends, would lean more toward a pointed front end. Thinking starting with a kit would be much easier. I know this is not fair to ask if there is a better kit or not but any advice would be appreciated. I know there is so much more to it but this is a good place to start with this question I hope.

rooman:
In your case building would most likely be your best option due to your size and some of the chassis specifics that you list. The first thing that you need to buy is the relevant SFI spec so that you can make sure that the car will pass tech.
 If you have access to a bender (and the skills to run it) a basic blueprint would most likely be your best option as you can adjust the dimensions to suit your size. Most kits will be a pile of straight tubing and a small collection of bends along with possibly a mid plate and maybe some tabs.  In your case I would put the shoulder hoop a little higher than what will be the norm with most plans so that the roll cage does not end up too tall. Put the motor out far enough that the car will not have a tendency to wheelie--remember that your body weight is mostly behind the axle. Invest in (or borrow) a line up bar to keep the engine and rear end aligned. Search the net and find the Hot Rod Magazine story that details Don Long's construction of Ed Pink's Old Master as it has a lot of useful info that still applies some 50 years later.  Mark Williams and Chassis Shop have front axles available off the shelf and shops like MW, McKinney, S & W, Chassis Shop and Neil and Parks will have all of the brackets and tabs that you need along with dragster specific components like mid plates.
  If you don't have a jig or access to one you can still do it the way that Long did when he was starting out. Set the driveline up on a flat floor with the rear axle and motor where you want them and connect the dots. :) One way that works well for a one-off build is to make a base out of plywood (or similar) and screw/glue blocks of wood to it to locate the lower frame rails at ride height and work up from there using a marked centerline on the wood to keep things straight. Use a pre profiled motor plate and you will have the location for the upper rails as well. Sit  on a block to locate your butt at the correct height with your legs draped over the rear end and have a friend measure to establish the height of the shoulder hoop. Use a good quality level to keep everything square and use the mid plate as a datum point for longitudinal measurements. Your shoulder hoop will be wider than the lower rails (unless you have a really big arse) so put the level vertical and measure in to center the hoop. A plumb bob hung off either side of the top hoop/rail is also a good way to make sure that the upper rails are centered.
  Some of this may be TMI if you already have chassis building skills but I figured that this was a good chance to give some tips to any one else who is contemplating their own build.

Roo

hemidakota:
Thanks for the info. I am sure there will be more questions as this goes further. I appreciate the advice/info here. It is great that there is so many willing to share info/help along the way. It is an addiction that will never go away...

dreracecar:
You must as a novice all the pre-planning involved before you start laying out tubing and the realization that it takes an enormous amount of time to build a one-off. Magazines only show you 5% of the complete build process in 2 pages. There are no comprimises in building your own frame, at $3+ per foot of tubeing you must be willing to scrap a piece and start over because you missed a fitment and not just cover it with bad weld . The basic frame is an easy build, its all the little crap that takes time. Running tunnles through motorplate uprites takes only minutes if put into process in the beginning, but hours if it is an afterthought. You can most deffinatly build your own frame and I incourage it, But when you are paying a chassie shop to build it for you, what you are paying for is the builders knowlege of the process

dreracecar:
Yes, Long built many chassies on the floor of his shop, however he did build many cars and they were very simple cars compared to the required spec chassies of today. To build todays chassie on the floor as he did and for a novice would add 52.3% to the already difficult factors involved. Building a fixture to get it up off the ground would make things so much bertter and give you a quality product, but that takes more time and money added to the build, but that to is also added into the pro builders price tag

Navigation

[0] Message Index

[#] Next page