Garage Merch                Ron Pope Motorsports                California Custom Roadsters               

The excitement is building

So another little baby step farther along . . . .

After drilling the shock mount plates with high quality drill bits from McMaster and finding that working with the 316L stainless wasn't as difficult as it is with Home Depot or Ace Hardware quality tools, I splurged on one of those high dollar, ($76) titanium aluminum nitride, (TiAlN) coated bi-metal bandsaw blades from McMaster to tweak my shock mount plates into shape.. . . . . It was a worthwhile purchase . . . a little patience and cutting oil, and it was time for some grinding and flap disk. I did have to improvise a little work surface for the bandsaw which seemed to be exactly what I needed.

Encouraged by the results to that point, I got the little dings welded up and a little more time with the grinder and flap disk had them looking ready to install.

Getting new longer wheel studs that I have confidence in, re-engineering the front end to accommodate the added weight of the big block and add a little ground clearance for the grill shell chin has been a lot more of a task that I was expecting it to be, but it looks like I have it finally all ready to assemble and see what it looks like with the new wide wheels and tires in place . . . . now I'll probably need power steering . . .

Band Saw 1.jpg Shock Mounts 1.jpg Shock Mounts 2.jpg Shock Mounts 3.jpg
 
Very, very nice work on the brackets !
 
I've been a little AWOL lately, waiting for stuff to come in, and then finding time to assemble it.

Anyway, my Stainless Steel front end and my new workbench arrived and I got the bench assembled, put some never seize on the front end threads, and mocked it up.

I haven't bolted the vice down yet, I want to put some aluminum plate under it and under the bench, sandwiching the bench top, to add rigidity.

Was planning a 12" X 34" piece of 1/2" or 5/8" aluminum plate on top and a 12" X 12" piece underneath.

Wanted to have the bench assembled and the vice set in place, so I could get some good measurements before ordering the aluminum plate . . . I'm sure McMaster will be .proud of it $$$

Also got the castor kit so it wheels around nice and easy . . . . .getting to the stuff behind it is no problem.


New Bench 1.jpg

New SST Front End 1.jpg
 
Now that's a high performance bench to be proud of !!!
 
Thanks guys !

I had to go with something that could ship flat-packed and that it was available with a stainless steel top kinda clinched the deal.

You've seen how bad anything else goes to crap in the local environment, especially as it has to be outside on the porch.

They have different widths and lengths, but the 72" is only a few dollars more than the 60", so 20% mote bench for less than 5% more $$ was pretty much a no brainer.

I ordered the 5/8" aluminum [late last night, it may get here in time for next weekend, but McMaster usually takes a full 7 to 8 days to get here, even using Priority Mail.
 
That's a great bench! and 12 x 34 x 5/8 plate isn't fooling around!
FWIW, even though you already ordered...I've had great service and prices from these guys, with pretty much any custom cut sizes, shapes, and materials you need. They usually ship within 24 hours of the order placement.
 
low-clearance-2-jpg.21069
 
I am going to apologize ahead of time for hijacking a 1 year old thread, but for those who wonder how great it would be to have 2 - 6 or more carbs, notice that this is a 600+ cu. in. engine, with a single large four barrel.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

trogdor
Progress!
Replies
5
Views
272
fletcherson
F
G
No Brakes
Replies
8
Views
391
fletcherson
F
C
Problem with steering UJ orientation and phasing using DD bar. Is there a fitting?
Replies
2
Views
256
409T
409T
Spanky
Bless the USA
Replies
2
Views
123
Randy Steel
Randy Steel
S
I'm building my 1st T-Bucket
Replies
11
Views
1K
oldtymehiboy
O

     Ron Pope Motorsports                Advertise with Us!     
Back
Top