Rich's 328 Compact Project

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Re: Rich's 328 Compact Project

Postby rally_rich » Wed Oct 22, 2014 1:04 pm

Rollcage

I hummed and hawed for a while between which roll cage kit to go for i.e. custom cages / hockley. I wanted a weld in kit and I wanted to have a go at installing it myself. However I really wanted an open main hoop for ease of access to helmets stored behind the seats. I also wanted a full roof cross and a few other things and budget is always a factor. You are a bit limited with certified cages and any changes you can get away with without log book issues. I think most of us like to go about things in a slightly different way for personal preference.

So I had a go at making the cage from scratch. I set up a set of string lines in the car as a datum to measure off. The string lines are not necessarily where the cage would be but acts as a reference to work out how close to the body shell I could get.

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I measured and checked and measured and checked as there was definately an opportunity for a cock up here.

Then using the string geometry I designed the roll cage in CAD to MSA Blue Book requirements and played about with it until I had what I wanted. This is the easy bit for me as it's sort of my day job (CAD not roll cages). And then I checked my measuring again!!!

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I had the bent tube work done by BMS Engineering in Coventry. It was CNC bent to the CAD drawings I provided. He did a brilliant job and the bends were spot on. I had them made 100mm longer in length so I could trim them on fitment or put the scallops on.

All the straight pipes I had laser profiled so they were like a jigsaw to install. The laser cut quality is brilliant and the price was really quite reasonable.

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I made this forming tool out of box section and 38.1mm roll cage off cuts to make the taco shell gussets. I use it in my hydraulic press and it gives a nice tidy radius.

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Getting it jigged in place.

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All tacked in and square.

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I used the drop it through the floor technique to weld across the top.

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Setting and tacking the rear X.

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I tacked it on the bench and then done the full welds in the shell as I was worried it might warp and pull if I did it on the work bench. It would have been a lot easier out of the car.

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All finished.

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I am really pleased with it for my first attempt at a roll cage. Its all tidy and square. Its definately heavier than a certified cage as it is all 12swg tube but it is the way I want it. I did use the Martin (mef) inspired technique of putting the shell on the spit to make the welding easier. The shell went round and round so I was always welding down hand. I was actually sitting inside the shell one day on an MDF sheet on the roof X. I don't fancy overhead welding either and my technique isn't up to that.

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Re: Rich's 328 Compact Project

Postby is-si » Wed Oct 22, 2014 9:24 pm

brilliant posts & top quality work 8)

I cant see anything wrong with your 640x480 photos, I've just saved one to my PC and it looks the same as I'm reading on the screen :?
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Re: Rich's 328 Compact Project

Postby rally_rich » Wed Oct 22, 2014 11:44 pm

Roof Scoop

Probably the most defining part of a rally car. I found a 2nd hand carbon one on ebay for a bargain. It had already been fitted once but I could blend it down again to fit the compact.

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I dimpled die swaged the vent holes upward as I figured this may help in keeping any surface water out.

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Re: Rich's 328 Compact Project

Postby mrfuzzyfelts » Fri Oct 24, 2014 10:34 am

Wow fair play Rich!

Top work 8)
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Re: Rich's 328 Compact Project

Postby Adam Gardner » Fri Oct 24, 2014 10:09 pm

Looking good!
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Re: Rich's 328 Compact Project

Postby lahondal » Fri Oct 24, 2014 10:42 pm

Wow, what a proffesional way to build a roll cage!
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Re: Rich's 328 Compact Project

Postby mef » Sat Oct 25, 2014 6:34 pm

Absolutely brilliant workmanship and a much better fit than a so-called Custom cage!

Well done, I'm looking forward to reading and seeing a lot more progress.

Martin
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Re: Rich's 328 Compact Project

Postby M3 Compact » Sun Oct 26, 2014 9:53 am

Superb.
Well done. 8)
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Re: Rich's 328 Compact Project

Postby rally_rich » Wed Feb 11, 2015 11:46 pm

A change of plan
I have plans to go wide body with this car and I have the fibre glass kit and wide track suspension sorted. However I would like to make my own moulds off the panels, particuarly the front quarters and bumpers. I expect it will be quite time consuming to do. As you can all appreciate the build is taking a lot longer than I ever imagined and a lot of time is going into it. So I have decided to finish the car narrow body for now and get it out on the stages. Then I will start on the wide track 'Evo' version. It will be a small step backwards to mod and paint the rear arches but that wont be a big deal.

Ford Frozen White
I decided to go for a bright white like Daishags Compact. So I dug out the £50 ebay paint booth again. The difficulty in painting in a tent like this is there is no ventilation so when spraying large areas you get a lot of spray dust settling and a floury finish. I just had to do it in small sections in some cases.

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Considering it was painted in a tent, in a barn and in winter I am really pleased how it finished up.I used a 2K non isocyanate paint and primer from Jawel. Time will tell how durable the paint is. I wet sanded and polished the outside. There is a bit of classic orange peel and a few small defects but you have to get close to notice. Good enough for a rally car.

So the workshop has been cleaned up and the final build has officially started.

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Re: Rich's 328 Compact Project

Postby rally_rich » Sun Apr 12, 2015 8:10 am

Final Assembly

A Hockley kevlar tank gaurd. It required a fair bit of trimming to fit around the hand brake cables.

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Re: Rich's 328 Compact Project

Postby rally_rich » Sun Apr 12, 2015 8:11 am

I have fitted a T7 Design micro heater to demist the front windscreen. It is mounted inside the front bulkhead compartment where the original heater would have been.

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I needed to cut a lot of the air vent ducts off the dash to clear the roll cage dash bar. However I managed to keep the front duct that vents to the windscreen. I made a filler section from ABS plastic (door card off cuts) and fibreglassed it in. So the micro heater feeds the original windscreen vents.

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Re: Rich's 328 Compact Project

Postby rally_rich » Sun Apr 12, 2015 8:12 am

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Re: Rich's 328 Compact Project

Postby rally_rich » Sun Apr 12, 2015 8:12 am

The roll cage front turret brace interfered with the original accelerator pedal so I fabricated a replacement.

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Re: Rich's 328 Compact Project

Postby rally_rich » Sun Apr 12, 2015 8:13 am

At some point I fabricated this lifting bar for fitting the engine with the gearbox attached. It works well.

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Re: Rich's 328 Compact Project

Postby rally_rich » Sun Apr 12, 2015 8:13 am

A bit of a jump in the story line here. It took exactly 2 months for the final assembly but it took every available evening and weekend. I had a deadline as I had to move workshops due to a situation involving a new neighbour, my angle grinder and the local council planning enforcement agent. So you may notice a change in the background.

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