Hi gang! Just figured I'd drop you a few lines to update you on what's going on. My website is finally up!
A few months ago, I picked up a rough, rusty 1963 Ford Thunderbird for $300 (scrap value). It would start if you poured gas in the carb, but it had been sitting for nearly 30 years (with a collapsed shed on top of it), so the tires were dry rotted, the brake and fuel lines were swiss cheese, and the unibody frame was rusted out in all the key areas. About three weeks ago, we gave up trying to make a 1990 BMW V12 fit in the '61 Cadillac for the Detroit area race last weekend. Without redesigning the massive X frame of that 5,000 lb. car, it just wasn't gonna fit. We took the beefy roll cage out of the pink Cadillac, cut the roof off of the Tbird, removed the windshield, cut the windshield frame (A-pillar) and leaned it forward, and dropped the cage straight down in it. Because of all the rust, the car wanted to fold in half just sitting here on the jackstands! I had to spend 4 days cutting and welding reinforcements, using the roll cage and scrap steel to tie the whole car together.
My worst paint job ever. Couldn't find my spray gun (I think it's at Jason's), so I used the old Wagner electric again. It was gummed up, and barely spit drops of paint on the car. As I was out of time and working in the dark anyway, I just went ahead and spattered paint on the whole car. Nothing but runs! Still, it got painted, and should look good from the far side of the track. In the dark. To a blind person.
So, after weeks of prepping the now-deceased Caddy and gutting the BMW for the V12 and wiring for the terminated Gingerman build, we switched gears two weeks ago and started trying to resurrect the rusty '63 Tbird. My help left town after assisting me in getting the roof off and the interior gutted. The engine idled, and the car resembled a Thunderbird, but we had all rotten brake lines, no unibody frame left in the key areas, and months of hard work to do in two short weeks. After burning the midnight oil day after day for two weeks, I'm pleased to report that we might actually make it to Gingerman with a serious IOE contender after all!
Here's a little racing from the back yard. There's a dirt track back there that has some wide points, and some narrow ones. You have to be good on mud so you don't end up in the water!
A few months ago, I picked up a rough, rusty 1963 Ford Thunderbird for $300 (scrap value). It would start if you poured gas in the carb, but it had been sitting for nearly 30 years (with a collapsed shed on top of it), so the tires were dry rotted, the brake and fuel lines were swiss cheese, and the unibody frame was rusted out in all the key areas. About three weeks ago, we gave up trying to make a 1990 BMW V12 fit in the '61 Cadillac for the Detroit area race last weekend. Without redesigning the massive X frame of that 5,000 lb. car, it just wasn't gonna fit. We took the beefy roll cage out of the pink Cadillac, cut the roof off of the Tbird, removed the windshield, cut the windshield frame (A-pillar) and leaned it forward, and dropped the cage straight down in it. Because of all the rust, the car wanted to fold in half just sitting here on the jackstands! I had to spend 4 days cutting and welding reinforcements, using the roll cage and scrap steel to tie the whole car together.
