Transcona, the Dirty Old XR7

[Kuhlhaus]

[egoman]

After a little racing break we needed to get back at the front end. That measurement of 71-1/2 is 2 inches wider than the stock rear-end width. I had planned for the front to be slightly wider than the rear so I could mildly IMSA the front fenders for heat release. Of course I maybe can’t leave that alone and maybe I will see if I can run 325s on the front also?
The plates for the upper control arms are clamped in place and needed a small trim to fit.
I actually left some really nice welds behind on this frame section.

[egoman]

That little bubble on the level is everything to me. The frame kick ups are very precise fitting and I agonized about them for hours. The drawing doesn’t do them justice for the amount of time put into them.
And you know, I didn’t finish them because I wasn’t comfortable with what I had done. Don’t rush a project just so you can do it over. That’s the best advice I can give a builder right there.

[egoman]

The sharp eyed amongst you will notice a change in the name of the thread. Apparently a robot decided that like the car itself, the thread title was too spicy. Apparently they thought it was porn? After a civil conversation with the moderator we decided that this should placate the robot for now. Don't worry the content and the car will remain the high quality we have come to expect!

[egoman]

With a new day I forged ahead with the welding when I felt it was perfect. I also heated and pulled the frame back to straight with a little water and a lot of straight edges and levels. Welding those upper brackets caused a lot of pulling.

[egoman]

This post is my first that I am writing where I didn’t already have a description made up. We are bridging the UCA mounts and developing a LCA coilover mount that is a temporary substitute. I will from now on write less here and insert more text into the pictures.

[egoman]

I have a ton of pictures for this segment. I am going to spread them out over a few posts. Normally when I put the photos together that is just one day of work. The previous post along with this one and maybe one or two more are that ONE day of work.

[egoman]

Remember the last 3 posts equate to a single day of work. Plus this one!

[egoman]

Here we have the finishing touches on the front end. I made a coilover substitute from a farm implement turnbuckle. The nice thing is that when I am checking clearances later it allows easy setting of different heights.

[egoman]

We have both frame sections back at home and we are about to set up the frame jig and have a little fun with what we have. This is the classic vroom, vroom stage!

[Vimes]

The way it is now all you need is a C7 Corvette engine and transaxle, without the torque tube, and a seat.

[egoman]

The way it is now all you need is a C7 Corvette engine and transaxle, without the torque tube, and a seat.

Then we fill it up with clowns and head for main street, LOL

[egoman]

Setup of the jig is actually quite easy as the level of the floor is unimportant. Just have to find the high spot first.

[Kuhlhaus]

Always entertaining! Look forward to seeing more.

[egoman]

We have the jig locked to the floor and if it sat there too long with nothing on it junk could pile up. Nature abhors a vacuum I guess? Let’s toss a few sub-frames and some tubing up there and see what goes down!

[egoman]

My buddy Brent who you will get to know better later dropped by and while he was here we decided to experiment with the tires. I got it in my head that I had left clearance for a really big tire up front. Well we had the rear tire so let’s try that? Damn, it fits really nicely! Doesn’t hit the frame anywhere.

[egoman]

Naturally I started a project in a garage that needs to be taken down and replaced. I managed to talk the wife into a shipping container for the current garages contents while we rebuild. It also gives me room to store the Cougars extra parts for a few years.

[egoman]

Well the cars last few days as a complete car are coming to an end. We are stripping this thing down and we are gonna save and tag everything! SURE WE ARE……………

[egoman]

Never afraid to admit I don’t know stuff, but it doesn’t seem to make me stop working.
You will see as I go along that I pull off some ridiculous feats through sheer stubbornness.

[egoman]

The chassis jig is a tremendous tool but like our car projects it is dynamic and always changing.
The thing I knew from the start was that it would have to be capable of more than just being a level surface.