Jump to content
HybridZ

Pop N Wood

Members
  • Posts

    3012
  • Joined

  • Last visited

  • Days Won

    5

Posts posted by Pop N Wood

  1. Datsunlover, I would like to get that link!

     

    Do a quick search. The convertible frame rails come up all the time. The guy who sells them is at (I believe) Hollywood Motorsports. Last time they came up he posted so I know they are still available. Look to be bolt in units that run along side the stock frame rails all the way from front to back.

     

    Try searching on Hollywood motorsports, or convertible+frame and see what you get.

  2. Dream Car Garage is always doing shows where they replace the floor pans on a classic Shelby or other car. They always advocate building a metal rack out of square tubing and actually welding the car to the rack. They use short, upright pieces of tubing to connect the rack to a half dozen mounting points on the car. They of course put oversized castors on the rack so they can move the vehicle about the shop (not a huge advantage with my 1 car garage).

     

    But the important thing they always stress is to get the car perfectly straight, then rigidly lock it into position before removing structural sheet metal. I admire these guys who build rotisseries and think they would be great for resurfacing the underside of a car. But I have often wondered how they can be sure the frame is within spec with all the odd forces acting on the car.

     

    Been done hundreds of times so manybe it is just not as big of an issue as I think.

  3. Why waste money and back pressure on all that extra pipe?

     

    I have a feeling this will be the new "thing" for FWD.

     

    Can't believe it is legal. Looks like a ticket magnet to me. Or a lawsuit when a 4 year old grabs a hot cat in the parking lot.

  4. The job market for new engineers is smoking right now. It's OK if you don't want to work in defense cause all those defense jobs are sucking up graduates. It is all supply and demand and right now demand still exceeds supply.

     

    Even in the best of times getting a job takes time and effort. Put a few months work into it and treat every job interview as those it is the only job you have ever wanted and you should have no trouble finding a good job.

  5. LOL! What makes you think democracy is the answer? True democracy only works when isolated from class, religion and ethnicity...

     

    I don't. Go back and read JohnC's links he posted earlier. Also research the situation in Somalia. They didn't lack food, just the political will to distribute it fairly. Kind of hard to feed people when there is a total lack of social order. IMO stability is much easier to achieve in a country run by some form of democracy than one run by warlords.

  6. Alright first off the Canada bashing that has occurred since the beginning of the war has depressed me to no end. It is off base and does nothing but foster ill will. So if you think I am bad mouthing Canada or our relationship with them then I am simply not making myself clear.

     

    Second, as for the 5500 deserters article, a 5 minute google search turned up this article which says there have been “at least 4â€

     

    http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn/A22671-2004Oct10?language=printer

     

    Not to sing the praises of the Washington Post, but isn't the 5500 article from the same 60 minutes crew that brought us the Dan Rather controversy?

     

    Someone needs to tap into Pentagon numbers showing desertion rates. Guys go AWOL all the time (just like that North Korean guy). Undoubtedly the wars may have driven the numbers up, but I would be amazed if the desertion rates were anywhere near what that 60 minutes article says.

     

    My point on Quebec isn't whether they stayed or left. The point being made is that there is a difference in opinion. Can't argue that. Perhaps I should rephrase the statement to have read in the past tense?

     

    The point with the hockey players is that the high Canadian taxes relative to the US (especially for people making millions a year) makes them want to claim residency in the US. Might have something to do with the high level of government services?

     

    I am not trying to say one country is necessarily better than the other either. What I am saying is both countries have their problems and both countries have people on either side of the political spectrum. If these romanticist think they will go to Canada and find the whole country is populated with people of the same mindset as Ben and Jerry, then they are just setting themselves up for further disillusionment.

     

     

    And one other thing. As for the deserter covered in the news article. Kudos to him for following his inner conscience, but all I have to say is be a man about it. Mohammad Ali didn’t believe in the Vietnam war, but he had enough convictions in his beliefs to stand up and defend them. The guy in the article is another story. It is not like the US military has changed the ground rules since that pussy enlisted. If he really feels like he could not look down the sights of a weapon and kill someone, even in defense of his fellow soldiers, then something tells me no commander is going to put him in that position. A bad conduct discharge and maybe some brig time sure seems a hell of a lot more honorable than backing out on his commitment like he did.

  7. Kind of hate to get into this, but people starving to death often has little to do with the availability of food but everything to do with politics. Look at Somalia. The country was more than capable of feeding itself. Even wonder why the people in the rural areas were dying but the people in the citys were not? Because the criminals who ran the country and stole the humanitarian shipments knew that if people in the cities are starving, they will riot. But when people in the rural areas starve they just die.

     

    Sudan is a more recent example. There are large groups of people who simply don't like other groups. Yet we as Americans are suppose to feel guilty about that?

     

    Want to solve world hunger? Maybe the first step is to spread democracy. The second step might be education.

  8. According to the CBS program, some 5,000 American men and women have deserted the military since the war began.

     

    I don't believe that for a moment. Would like to see a reference.

     

    And to all those people going to Canda, my guess is they will just keep moving. Canadians aren't exactly "one voice" either. Hell, they aren't even one language. If Quebec had it's way they wouldn't even be one country.

     

    The US expatriots will move to Canda and realize there are disenting opinions there also. Eventually they will see that their leaving the US has accomplished absolutely nothing. They might even begin to understand why Canada can't even keep there own hockey players. Nothing in this world is free. Government social programs just shift the cost from one person to another.

     

    And if they are really lucky, they might eventual realize that geographic fixes rarely accomplish anything because the one constant is yourself. You bring your problems with you.

     

    Good luck to all those leaving. See you again in few years.

  9. You're 19 and already have an ex?

     

    Sorry, I know I am being rather blunt, but now that you have an ex and a love sick heart, sounds like you need to get a life. Too many daytime TV shows in your young existence. At your age you should be figuring out what you want to do with your life and not trying to live out a country western song. As Jack Nicholson said, you ought to be out riding around in a convertible bird dogging beaver without a care in the world. Believe me, there will be plenty of time in your old age for misery and depression.

     

    Just learn from the situation. Try to make things right with this girl. Not to get back with her, but just because it is the right thing to do. As Will Rogers said, good judgement comes from experience, most of which comes from bad judgement.

  10. MSA sells the quick steering knuckles

     

    http://www.zcarparts.com/store/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Product_Code=23-4181&Category_Code=PSDC11

     

    Not really designed for what you are asking, but if they make the wheels turn "quicker" with the same steering wheel movement, then they might increase the overall turn.

     

    Is this what you are asking?

     

    BTW, I have heard these are twitchy on the street. The one quy I knew who had them said one lapse in concentration and you will find yourself in the next lane.

  11. MSA sells air dam kits that cover the crash bumpers and IMO look good.

     

    They also sell fiberglass 240 style bumpers for a reasonable price. You would still need to mock up mounting brackets. If you are interested I am sure someone can give you details. Buying a new set of steel bumpers is expensive. But since you are already going to be illegal in most states, might as well go fiberglass and save weight.

     

    There a lot of other subtle differences between the 280 and 240. Things like vent locations, door strikers, tail lights, dimensions of suspension parts etc. But I think most people would agree the bumpers are the #1 visual difference. There is a big difference in weight, but like said above it is not all bad.

  12. uncalled for!!!!!!

     

    Ever heard the phrase "turn about is fair play"?

     

    Guess if was trying to be a prick it would have been. We are all friends here. No reason to start a flame war.

     

    As it was I just misread your poorly worded statement. Guess I didn't grasp the relavance of reducing the load by 50# a person when even the reduced weight is more than 4 guys standing shoulder to shoulder can safely handle. Especially if they are walking sideways while trying to hold onto an exhaust manifold.

     

    One idea is to get a $13 come along at Autozone or Sears.

     

    http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/Displayitem.taf?itemnumber=30329

     

    Laying a 2x6 across the garage rafters and straping the cable hoist to it will lift the motor allowing you to drive your truck out from under it. Or you can go total redneck and tie it to tree. You could even construct an A frame out of some old pipe.

  13. Some good advice. I would plan on getting a gas set up right away. Buy it with the unit. Smoke from the flux core flat sucks. Like someone said, you need it if there is any type of breeze at all (even a shop fan). But once you factor in the extra cost of the wire, a gas set up is just as cheap. You will get cleaner welds with the gas and be able to weld stainless.

     

    Harbor Freight sells gas bottles really cheap. All you need then is a factory regulator and some tubing.

     

    BTW, not to dis Lincoln or Miller. Both great machines and I agree with everything said about buying quality. But I wonder what percentage of the Lincoln-Miller-Hobart machines are made with Chinese parts? Same with helmets too. An unfortunate fact of life these days. I can remember as a kid how everything had a "Made in Japan" label on the bottom. And I mean everything. Use to mean cheap junk. Now it is perceived as "quality"

  14. Looks like you are getting a pretty good reality check in this post. You know the old saying. Speed costs. How fast can you afford to go?

     

    500 HP in a small block is a premium V8 . Probably 90% of the guys with V8's don't have near that much (and that 90% number is generous). For a 350 it won't be overly streetable either

     

    You can buy in to a turbo L6 pretty cheap, but the words cheap and Rebello don't really go together. Good company, but not consistent with your goals.

     

    You need to go back and start reading old posts. V8 vs. turbo 6 have been discussed to death. From a cost, HP and street reliablity point of view a cheby V8 is hard to beat. You just need to set goals that are more consistent with your reach.

  15. 450-500 HP is on the high side for any "factory" type crate engine. You can surely get a "packaged" one from a private engine builder. But that is more of custom engine than a crate.

     

    Car Craft mag dynoed a factory LS1 engine. It pulled 402 HP right out of the box. A little expensive, but it is complete and will have excellent street manners.

     

    Probably better to build up your own 383 short block using all forged internals. Most of the GM blocks have PM rods and hypueritc pistons. You're getting into the HP range where you would want to go forged.

  16. * With enough setback' date=' the engine mounts get close to the mounting location of the tension/compression rods (front suspension), where the frame rails are already beefed up. This is a great place to carry a point-load like the engine’s weight. So, you can take advantage of structural synergism.

    [/quote']

     

    Have to disagree with this statement. The stock cross member does a better job of off loading the engine weight onto the front wheels. The sheet metal "frame rails" at the TC mount point do a marginal job of managing the fore-aft forces from the TC rod. (That is why most racers reinforce this area with additional metal.) Can't say they would do much to handle an up-down jolt of an engine from say a speed bump or pot hole. Not without some significant gusset plates to distribute the load.

     

    Hear what you are trying to say about reducing the lever arm for the engine torque. But once again have to disagree. I think the differences would be minor, especially with the short distances involved with the JTR set back plates. I still like the idea of keeping as much of the engine weight and torque in the same plane as the front strut towers. And remember, longer shafts can handle more torque than short ones. Thus a longer chassis can sustain more deflection without failure than a short one ("all else being equal")

     

    My 2 cents anyway.

     

    TAlchemist: if you really dislike the non-stock look of set back plates, why not cut the stock engine mount towers off the stock cross member and rework/reangle those so they end up where the JTR mounts end up?

×
×
  • Create New...