Finished up some minor spit and polish from the last couple of evenings. I took my front brakes apart and painted everything. The rotors are notorious for rusting on the surface, which looks terrible when you’re running “open toed shoes” (ie: large spoke type wheels). I found a solution on the web where you can simply paint the non-pad contact area with high temp engine paint and it’ll stay looking fresh longer.
So, I followed the advice and primed and painted mine aluminum-silver. Turned out pretty good. You’ll see that my electrical tape masking wasn’t exact, but that’s not a big deal. The pads themselves will do the final minor 1/8″ or less clean up and round them out. I’ll probably have to redo them every few years, but not a big deal.
I also took my calipers off and painted them high temp Chevy orange. Since the car will now definitely be Orange (thanks for the votes, btw), I wanted the peekaboo elements like the calipers to match. The pics make the color look more red, and Chevy orange has that tint anyway, but I’m confident that once it’s up against the orange body, it’ll look great and add some accents. The engine block will also be orange, and the heads and pan will be silver, topped off with some Cobra accents.
My buddy Aaron dropped by this morning to help me undress the Cobra. We got the body off and on the buck, so I’m ready to dig in. It’ll be nice to start working on the panels and see where I am.
First things on the to-do list are:
1. Body Off – Done
2. Drill out rivets on the passenger box for DIY extensions – this is still a maybe due to all of the work involved in removing what’s been installed.
3. Sand and paint existing panels in the engine bay (hammered rustoleum)
4. Remove and Paint front rotors – hate the rusty look.
Pictures:
Well, took the first step I guess. I got the body buck built/rebuilt from what Bryan had done. I actually put this on on stilts so I can put the body on it, and then roll it in and out of the garage OVER the chassis. This will conserve some garage space until the shop is finished.
The nice thing, it didn’t cost me anything, everything was scrap and extra lumber I had laying around.
I’m hoping to get the body unbolted in the next few days and then get moving on the build a little more quickly. I ordered some aluminum and some other parts. The first step will be drilling out the footbox that Bryan put in so I can mod it and make it a little bigger. Michelle is tall so I want to make sure she has room for her feet.
NOTE ABOUT THE COLOR CHOICE:
As you can see by the poll, the response I got was overwhelmingly leaned towards Orange. It seems like the consensus is to do the Orange with the tan interior, and of course, since that’s also the opinion of Michelle, my hot wife, I guess I better do that. So, Orange it is.
I really like the AmericanMuscle.com Bullitt Wheels (Wheels in Anthracite.) I’d probably choose the Team III’s for a little more vintage look, but I just can’t bring myself to pay $1600 just for the wheels.
Pics of the body buck, nothing exciting:
As I started shopping for wheels, I realized that I’ll actually have to pick a color scheme way earlier than I thought. This is because to get to go-kart stage, I need wheels and tires. I was surprised to see just how much body color actually influences the style and finish of wheels.
The previous post shows some different mockups on an orange car, which I like.
I’m now leaning more towards a Silver car instead. It would be a much different look, instead of an orange with tan interior, possible wood dash, this would have a more high-tech look to match the silver look. I would either go with carbon fiber on the dash, or simply a painted dash to match the body paint. Either way, the idea is to create a fighter jet type look and feel, rather than the more simplistic orange and tan.
It looks like I’ll just have to do another one so I can have both. ;->
Here are some pics of both orange and silver cars.
Orange:
Silver:
If you’d like to vote, I’ll be using a poll gadget, so please do. Thanks!
I did up some mockups of some different wheel choices for an orange car. I figured I’d go ahead and post those here for others who might want to see them.
The wheels are from AmericanMuscle.com, and they are the FR500 series 17×9 and 17×10.5.
I also did up one with the Team III Vintage Pin-Drive Bolt-ons. They are pretty pricey for me though, but I like the look.
It seems the most popular combo is with those wheel sizes with 255/40/17 in the front, and 315/35/17 in the back. This would be for the 17’s, 15’s might be different.
Chrome FR500
Black FR500
Black FR500 with Black Side Pipes
Anthracite FR500
Team III Pin Drive Bolt-On
Silver Car with Anthracite Bullitt’s
What a great adventerous trip! 43 hours straight on the road, 2.5 hours of sleep, and an hour of load time, and the Cobra is sitting in its temporary home in my garage.
I’m hoping in the next month that the shop will be ready to move it in there, as it will be its permanent home.
Bryan Goehl and his family were awesome, and the kit was just as I had expected and more. The trailer we borrowed worked perfect, and we had no problems with anything mechanical.
Other than Peanut trying to lock us out of the suburban at the Goehl’s house, it all went off without a hitch! A HUGE thanks to Aaron Brucks for being a willing participant in my insanity, and of course, for my wife being willing to let me do the car.
Now the adventure REALLY begins…
Pictures:
My buddy Aaron and I are leaving in a couple of hours to make a very quick 2500+ mile drive out to Green Bay to pick up my kit. I purchased it from a guy out there that just barely got it started, and needed the money for other priorities (family), and I got a great deal.
We’ll drive straight there, load, and drive straight back. Should be a fun and fast trip…pics in the next post.
