E21 Project Thread - Part 2

[m42b32]

Bassboy3313 said:

One step closer

[P_Roloff]

Mmm, I love the way it sits, in my opinion that’s just about the right amount of wheel gap. Definitely a fan of the meatier tire on there too, looks so good.

[YoungCR]

Epic!!

[Bassboy3313]

Thanks guys! I got the passenger side and rear epoxy primered yesterday as well. It still definitely has its flaws, but I am building this car to drive, not to trailer. So I am fine with it.

[Jdesign]

Man this looks stellar. Please finish this year! I need to swing by and check it out when Im in your area next!

[Bassboy3313]

Been real busy so far this year with work and other stuff, but slowly getting more progress done. I have the a, b & c pillars wrapped on both sides along with a few other areas. I am ordering more vinyl today to finish the doors and roof. Then i have to cut the rear arches, weld, modify the flares and get them fitted. Then I can order the remaining vinyl for the quarters and rear.

[HipMF]

Bassboy3313 said:

Then i have to cut the rear arches, weld...

Hahaha!

This can be a pain in the penis depending on how much of a perfectionist you are. Maybe it will be easier with your lift, but for me it was difficult to see what I was doing after I stuffed my head, weld shooter and hands all into the wheelwell, all while manuvering around the brake drum/suspension/etc.

Remember that the wheelwell holds the weight of the car as well. I'm assuming that the connection between the inner fenderwell and quarter panel is fairly important to the structure of the car. In hindsight, I'd like to investigate that area to see how many spot-welds there are, but Ben scrapped out all that metal for me....

It may not matter much, but if possible I'd recommend  angling the  filler pieces up from the quarter panel to the inner wheelwell, rather than making them a simple horizontal filler strip. CAD templates (cardboard-aided design) are your friend.

Good luck and godspeed.

[SteelBlue]

So apparently this thread has flown under my radar. This looks incredible.

Street car or will these see track time?

[Bassboy3313]

HipMF said:

Hahaha!

This can be a pain in the penis depending on how much of a perfectionist you are. Maybe it will be easier with your lift, but for me it was difficult to see what I was doing after I stuffed my head, weld shooter and hands all into the wheelwell, all while manuvering around the brake drum/suspension/etc.

Remember that the wheelwell holds the weight of the car as well. I'm assuming that the connection between the inner fenderwell and quarter panel is fairly important to the structure of the car. In hindsight, I'd like to investigate that area to see how many spot-welds there are, but Ben scrapped out all that metal for me....

It may not matter much, but if possible I'd recommend  angling the  filler pieces up from the quarter panel to the inner wheelwell, rather than making them a simple horizontal filler strip. CAD templates (cardboard-aided design) are your friend.

Good luck and godspeed.

Depending on how the inner and outer skins separate once cut, my plan of attack was to leave the inner a hair longer, pie cut it and bend up to meet outer skin. Then burn them in together. Any and all pics you have of this process would be great! If you don't mind sharing.

[Bassboy3313]

SteelBlue said:

So apparently this thread has flown under my radar. This looks incredible.

Street car or will these see track time?

Thanks! This will mostly be a street car, but planning on attending some track days here and there.

[HipMF]

Bassboy3313 said:

Depending on how the inner and outer skins separate once cut, my plan of attack was to leave the inner a hair longer, pie cut it and bend up to meet outer skin. Then burn them in together. Any and all pics you have of this process would be great! If you don't mind sharing. 

That sounds like a good plan. No pics of mine sadly.

[Bassboy3313]

Getting boring not being able to post pics of the car due to keeping the theme a secret. So, I say screw it. Some of you may recognize the livery design and possibly some may not. Either way, this is where the car stands as of today. 

Started with the rear flare modifications today. I first marked where the top of the flare will sit, then marked a line below that for where the body will be cut. Took the sawzall and cut about an inch below this line through both the inner and outer skin. I then used my air cut-off wheel and cut just the outer skin at the correct line. This left an inner skin lip that I pie cut. 

Using a welders vise grips, I bent the pie cut pieces one-by-one up to the outer skin until they touched and flatten the underside with a hammer. I felt this was the safest/easiest way to reattach the skins back together. 

Next step is to weld the two skins together where they meet, cut off the excess outer skin lip, grind it smooth, weld up any gaps that remain, grind, and primer. I will then take cardboard to make a template to use on the other side and repeat. Once this is all done the remainder of the car gets wrapped. 

[P_Roloff]

I’m loving this, car is gonna look amazing. Can’t wait to see it fully wrapped!

[m42b32]

Looks awesome!! I love the livery choice too. Making those quarter panel cuts would be scary...

[Bassboy3313]

It's not as bad as you'd think. Once the first cut is done and there's no turning back, it becomes easier, lol.

[Jdesign]

yussss. I cant wait to see it in its final form!

[Bassboy3313]

Passenger side done. Now to make a template and get cracking on the drivers side.

[B C]

Let me know if you need your hammers and dollies soon and I can give you my garage code. Otherwise I may be able to drop them by Friday evening when I get home

[Bassboy3313]

Thanks. They shouldn't be needed for this stuff, so you're good. No rush

[Bassboy3313]

Driver side wheel arch cut, welded and finished. On to mounting the rear flares...