"Mechanix Menace": An LS7-motivated, chopped and heavily modified 1973 Datsun 240Z

[chevyz240]

I am pretty pleased with the general shape of the car. I have started to add in more details, for instance I have made the hood a separate piece. I also took the tires from a model that was included in a Blender course I have purchased; 3D Cars: Inside And Out ( https://blendermarket.com/products/3...out-in-blender ) I had to modify them by changing the diameters and widths. They absolutely look like they are real! One of the more fantastic things is that the text and all the sidewall details actually are three dimensional! It is made by converting a picture in grayscale to a three dimensional texture. I can highly recommend the course; it includes some nice tricks to make modeling a lot easier and with better results!

Now I am at a stage where I will try different changes to the shape of the car to see what I like the best. When that is done, I will add all the remaining details. I have for instance tried three different curvatures of the body side. I have also started to experiment with the shape of the door opening.



Even though you can rotate the the model on the computer screen, use different focal lengths and depth of field on the camera, I still think that it's really important to have a physical model to feel and view. I already have a model car in 1:18 scale, so I 3D printed mine in the same scale. They body was printed in two pieces with 0.12 mm layers. I took more than 86 hours! I also 3D printed the tires and rims. Before I make a final decision on the shape of the car, I will probably 3D print one in 1:8 scale or larger.

The renderings are getting more refined, with depth of field and real backgrounds. They start to feel more and more realistic. I also enjoy trying out different colors and types of paint. In the course I learned how to create a customizable metallic paint where you can change the size of the metallic flakes, how much orange peel you have, plus a lot of other parameters. It's really cool, and you can make the paint look more realistic.

I think I will try to go back in the garage soon and continue the physical work on the car!







A lot more pictures at https://www.facebook.com/MechanixMenace

[chevyz240]

I was planning to creep into the garage to continue the physical work on the car, but I got stuck at the computer! I have been fine tuning my Blender model and tried different shapes and proportions. This is an example of what I have tried.





This time there's not more to see on Facebook, due to some problems there. However, much more can be seen on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mechanix_menace/

[chevyz240]

The first video shows some rough versions of different door openings I am trying out. I want the door opening to harmonize with the DLO (Daylight Opening) or side window area. I will probably go with something like the last one. I feel that that the backwards sloping front edge of the door gives a sense of speed.

In the second video, to get a better feel for the car's size, I have put an 18 year younger version of myself next to it!

I first found a photo of me next to the car in the garage. I then adjusted the camera angle and focal length in Blender to match that picture. Then I had to cut myself out from the garage picture. Next up was to download a Blender model of a man. After that I changed his size and posture to match mine. Then I could match my size to the Blender man's size in Photoshop. I had to change my right arm and hand a bit and I also had to tweek the Blender man a lot to get the shadows to match me. Then I added some shadows, blur and changed other parameters of the picture of me to make it fit as good as possible in the entire scene. It's not perfect, but considering I am a novice at this, I am pretty happy!

So here is Henrik standing with his Datsun 240Z at Münsterplatz in Ulm, Germany in 2005!

[https://youtu.be/l60XrXXGtfM]

[https://youtu.be/hUNyTeoN1p8]

[chevyz240]

I have made a little compilation of different views of the car.

[chevyz240]

I am back in the garage again! I have managed to get all the pieces for the rear suspension towers in place. Seam welding will be done later.







A lot more pictures at https://www.facebook.com/MechanixMenace

[chevyz240]

A couple of wheelwell corner pieces more have been tacked in place and the left hand side outer C-pillar panel has also been tacked in place. This will create a very bending stiff beam reinforcing this part of the chassis. Together with sheet metal that will make up the front part of the rear quarter panel, this will add stiffness to an area of the chassis that, due to the placement of the rear subframe, might not be stiff enough as it sits now.







A lot more pictures at https://www.facebook.com/MechanixMenace

[TANKMASTERJ]

Looks like some great progress Henrik. But damn you got mountains of patience and perseverance!
Looking awesome and the renderings as well

[chevyz240]

Looks like some great progress Henrik. But damn you got mountains of patience and perseverance!
Looking awesome and the renderings as well

Thanks, Jason!

Yeah, I guess you need that for a project that has stretched out over half your life.

[chevyz240]

The final sheet metal pieces for the left hand C-pillar have been welded in place. The top piece is pretty complicated; it has a varying radius, it's twisted and it has a sharp bend. It took me a while to figure out how to make it. When it was almost done, and I just had to trim off a triangular piece, I cut out that piece oriented 180 degrees wrong... I had to start over again! Frustrating! This time, instead of using my sheet metal roller, I tried to make several sharp bends in the sheet metal brake. It din't work out very well, so I went back to the initial method. Plus I used the stretching tool to simplify the twisting of the piece. In the end it came out pretty nice.

I have also tried two alternative designs for the front spoiler in Blender. One that has a smooth rounded edge, and one that has a sharper edge that also is aligned with the outer hood edge. I haven't decided fully yet which way I will go, but I am leaning towards the smooth one. I think it makes the car look wider.

On the right hand side I have tacked in the outer C-pillar panel.







A lot more pictures and a film clip at https://www.facebook.com/MechanixMenace

[chevyz240]

The right hand side sheet metal work on the C-pillar is now finished.

Since I need to know how tall the rocker panel can be in order to get it through the inspection (this can be tricky in Sweden), I have built a seat mockup and measured myself sitting in it, to enable me to make a CAD model of myself. This makes it easier for the inspection guy to get a feel for how tall the rocker panel is in proportion to a driver. Also, I think I will have other uses for the driver model in the future.

For fun, I took the picture of me and inserted it into the CAD model, this gives an even better feel for the size of the cabin.

After a lot of trial and error, I have decided on the design of the front part of the rear wheelwell. I wanted to make it as easy as possible to get a good connection to the rear firewall composite panel, and at the same time getting everything as stiff as possible. It will be a bit tricky to weld everything up, but in the end I think the result will be pretty good.

Today I started cutting away not needed parts of the stock rocker panels and the sheet metal work I did before I decided on building a full tube chassis.







A lot more pictures and a film clip at https://www.facebook.com/MechanixMenace

[chevyz240]

Summer has come and the progress on the project gets EVEN slower! There will still be rainy days, and I will try to use at least some of them for garage work.

The last thing I have done is to model a hood that is wider at the rear. It now ends at the inner edge of the A-pillar. I think this is a cleaner look, where the shut lines of the door and the hood line up with the A-pillar edges.

Also, if you imagine the hood shut line as an air streamline, it now goes around the cabin, instead of crashing into the windshield. This also gives the impression of a smoother, more streamlined look of the car.

Comments are welcome!







A video showing this better can be seen here:
https://www.facebook.com/MechanixMenace
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W-22FSRpPik

[David Sloan]

Killer work ! Always impressed when I come to look for your build.

[chevyz240]

Killer work ! Always impressed when I come to look for your build.

Thanks, David!

[cornfedbill]

very nice work. I always enjoy seeing progress on your build.

One comment from experience. You may want to consider helmet clearance to your rollbar and roof.

[chevyz240]

very nice work. I always enjoy seeing progress on your build.

One comment from experience. You may want to consider helmet clearance to your rollbar and roof.

Thanks, Bill!

Of course there is room for me to wear a helmet! That's one of the reasons why I am sitting directly on the floor. If you look at earlier posts, you can see the cabin mockup I built to perfect seating position, pedal position, steering wheel position and other ergonomics. I spent many hours doing this.

[chevyz240]

Today I have tweaked the hood bulge. I have made it a bit wider at the rear. I think this looks better in general, and especially now that the hood also is wider at the rear (stock it has a more or less constant width).

I have also learned how to add a YouTube clip! Why haven't I found the method before? Well, at least I have proved that you can teach an old dog new tricks!

[chevyz240]

Some more changes to the Blender model. This time even more minute. I have sharpened up the center crease of the hood and the spoiler. I think I will go with this instead of the previous softer version, but I have not decided fully yet. Maybe I will end up somewhere in between. One disadvantage to the sharp version is that it will be much harder to make. Just a small error in the centering of the crease will be much more visible. Maybe this is what will make the final decision. But I think I want all the edges and creases that exist on the stock body appear a bit sharper. I think I like that look better. I think...

[chevyz240]

After the usual summer break from the project, I have gotten back modeling in Blender. I have tested a few more front spoiler variants and I have also tested what the car would look like with bumpers. This is something I have planned to do for a long time. I think it adds more of the original car's DNA. The bumpers also make the car look wider, which is nice. I definitely need to let the different looks simmer in my mind for a long time before deciding which route to go.

Today is also the first time I have made a video with me talking. It took quite a lot of time to do, but it enables me to explain stuff better. I think it also makes things a bit more personal. What do you think?

Please also tell me which version you like the best! Comments about other stuff are welcome as well, of course! It would be nice with some interaction with you guys!

[Vimes]

Of all the options I liked the one matching the sidelines best. It tied the whole thing together. I would be concerned about sticking the nose out too far, as well as how low to the ground it is. The further past the front tires the nose is, the less of a grade you can take when entering parking lots, steep driveways, ect.

It also looks better without the bumpers. If you want them, I wouldn't extend them down the sides. The long side bumpers lend another line to the car, and having the rear higher than the front looks off-balance.

[chevyz240]

Of all the options I liked the one matching the sidelines best. It tied the whole thing together. I would be concerned about sticking the nose out too far, as well as how low to the ground it is. The further past the front tires the nose is, the less of a grade you can take when entering parking lots, steep driveways, ect.

It also looks better without the bumpers. If you want them, I wouldn't extend them down the sides. The long side bumpers lend another line to the car, and having the rear higher than the front looks off-balance.

Thanks for your input, Vimes!

The ground clearance will not be an issue, as I will be using a lifting system raising the car around 75 mm (3") when encountering speed bumps, etc.

I can agree that ideally the bumpers should be at the same height, but that would mean that the rear bumper would need to be lowered quite a bit, which would look strange from the rear. I could maybe shorten the sides of the rear bumper a bit. I may try that. Regarding the front bumper, I think it needs to end where it does, as the corner is a big radius. If I shorten the sides, it will not reach the full width of the car when seen from the front, which will also look strange.

It is very likely that I will go with my initial idea, that is; no bumpers!

Before I make the final call, I will try out more variations!