356 Speedster Flat6 outlaw build

[mdmax72]

Hi Gary,
Yes it's a chesil, and yes they do have a duct built into the chassis. Only problem is its a poor design. Problem being is the size of the sill and no direction, sills are to big for the volume of air flowing through it. The original beetle heater channel was nowhere that size. You end up loosing your flow at the other end. Also it has no plates built into the sub-chassis the direct the flow of air so it ends up going up the B post and behind the A posts. I know because as a last resort i've had a camera down the A-post, sills and B-posts to find out what was happening.

When l built the car originally l hooked up to the heater outlets at the back of sub-chassis etc only to find it hardly got any flow coming out up front. Tried various methods including directing the 63mm webasto heater outlet down one sill without hardly any improvement. Wasted and spent alot of time to get it to work with the sub chassis but with no avail. Hence why I've now run it outside the sills with great results.

A few of the manufacture's in the states actually incorporate into the sill a 38mm tube, which is a much better design over the chesil system. Shame really as it wouldnt take much to fab a tube into the build process.

Have you thought of building a heater tube into your sub-chassis if you don't already??

[greg356a]

Hi,
Worked on the top seat belt mounting point today. It needs to be 503mm from the seat base (450mm + 53mm base) to the mounting point. I have around 560mm so should be within IVA spec. I have also lined the hole with 3mm thick tube at the mounting point, I believe this is required rather than just a hole through the tube. These will be welded in place soon.

The front and rear wide arches have arrived in the country over the weekend so need to pick them up, hopefully this weekend. I plan to trial fit these before stripping the whole chassis down for powder coating. This will allow me to ensure the wheels are covered and that it has the correct ride height. Try to get the stance to look lowered but no so low to make it impossible to drive around town.

The two vertical tubes near the main roll bar are tacked in place to stop any movement during welding, these will be removed afterwards,

[merbesfield]

Hi, Latest updates,

I have sent some drawings away for some laser cut steel. Cover over the top of the tunnel at the rear with a slot for the handbrake adjustment.

Trial fitted the seats and three point inertia reel seat belts.



The seat is a tight fit in the confines of the roll bar but does allow for my six foot large frame with some comfort. The plan will be to get the Recaro seats re-covered in a suitable material and maybe shave a 5mm off the width and 10mm off the head rest.



How long does it take to get the accelerator cable connected to the carbs? all day! I have allowed for lots of adjustment everywhere, so once the carbs are fully bolted down should be able to make a very smooth action. I have used self lubricating PTFE lined cable. Unfortunately bought the wrong diameter 6mm instead of 5mm threaded linkage bars so cant check if ok. Obviously will cut the cable shorter once at final fit stage.





Now at the point where I need to decide whether trying to run the chassis is worth the additional effort or not. I need to create temporary fix for fuel, fuel pump, electrics, oil gauge, oil, brake and clutch fluid etc. I must say I am edging towards stripping down the chassis and sending for powder coat ready to move onto fixing the body in place and then rebuild.

Great build. Where did you source the three point inertia belt system from? Thanks

[greg356a]

Hi Mark,
Friend of mine gave me the tip that static harnesses are really uncomfortable to drive in around town.
Suggested using these; http://www.europaspares.com/securon-3-p ... black.html.
Obviously not used them so can't vouch for how well they perform. Some suitable shoulder straps should make them look more classic.

[greg356a]

YES Powder coaters here we come

The chassis is now fully welded and I have cleaned most of the welds. Need to dress the welds on the main central roll bar as these will been seen.

Last job was to create a template drawn on Auto Cad to allow the fitting of the oil tank,


Laser cut 2mm mild steel done by my friendly local steel merchants, then fully welded in place;


The oil tank now fits really well against the seals;


Random shots of the chassis












Now what colour?, kinda like metallic black but any touch ups would be a problem.
Cheers

[sladey]

Good quality work

[jury]

Great work Greg, very impressive !!.......Nice inspiration prints on the wall too

[mdmax72]

Exciting time, what colour you gone for?

[greg356a]

Thanks Guys, Yes the prints on the wall really help when your fingers are cold and just skinned another knuckle!

Colour?? Top five are Black flat/ metallic, Silver, Grey Dark/ Light. I thought black would look great with contrasting silver running gear, Red brembos. Most of the underneath will be coated in waxoil type stuff for protection and the rest you cant see. Main concern about Metallic is touching up any scuffs, chips etc. Maybe use of a low tac tape would help to protect the roll bar during the build.

What have others done?

[greg356a]

Morning all, welcome to the new 356ST

Yep picked up my new set of front and rear ST style arches yesterday, very well made. The tribute look is a perfect blend of racing brute and compound elegant curves, just what I was trying to achieve. The match to the body is excellent so fitting should be straight forward. Cant wait to get them on and down on the rims.







These are just leaned against the body, but you can see the good match of profiles.








The rear roll cage and side bars are now fully welded so everything is off to powder coating next weekend. Going for standrad gloss black over a zinc primer. Any suspension components will be done in metallic silver. They can do a really good chrome look but maybe to much for my tastes.

[Bootsy]

They look ideal

[greg356a]

The chassis is now outside ready to be tailored to the powder coaters next weekend. Looking at the whole chassis reminds me how much work we have done. Glad I did not keep a count of the hours.

[greg356a]

Hi, Water logged chassis and parts taken to the powder coaters this morning.

Also picked up a Fuelsafe cell fuel tank yesterday. Need a little removal of the grp floor to lower into position near the back but should look great and be super safe!

[mdmax72]

Is that the one a fellow ddk er was selling. Good purchase.

[greg356a]

Hi Rich,
Yea got it from Jason, nice guy, fantastic black 356A. Really like the idea of having the additional impact safety plus looks awesome. Need to take a grp moulding from the bottom of the tank then let the new section into the floor to lower around 30mm.