Cam - thanks for the heads up! I was planning to paint the buckets so I'll be sure to use the high temp version. Are you running a 60mm high beam like I am? I think this may have been the "old" way of doing things. Seems like the buckets were originally molded to accommodate the 60mm then at some point the switch was made to the 90mm. It's too bad, I much prefer the sealed housings but I didn't like having two different "eyelid" looks right next to each other. Damn OCD ...
I'm really feeling like I'm making significant strides to getting this SLC on the road. As of today I think I've completed all the major bodywork/mods/whatever to the rear end of the car. I have a few items to close out at the front, then that'll be complete as well. Some more work on the spider and I'll be able to do some final bondo work before painting - I'm planning to paint my center with "real" paint but I'm plastidipping the front and rear clips a few different colors till I decide on what I want as a permanent color.
So stepping back a bit before moving forward -
I haven't really discussed the mounting of the diffuser much so I'll start there and finish with the mounting of my rear wing. Getting from point A to Z took quite a few steps!
To start, the diffuser can't be mounted to the rear of the car until the lower center "wing" is removed as it interferes with the Graziano transaxle. A quick rip with a grinder and it came off pretty easily.
I reattached it with some L-metal and made it removable in case the Graziano needs servicing later. This piece needs to be reinstalled otherwise the diffuser is pretty flexy. Since it supports the entire aero loading from the wing and the weight of the rear clam, it's important the diffuser be as secure as possible. It needs to be held fixed in all axes and from twisting.
My RCR supplied brackets simply didn't fit. In one orientation the diffuser was too wide; in the other, the diffuser was too narrow. I would have had to bend the diffuser endplates to get the factory pieces to work so I decided to make my own (more on that in a sec). After getting the diffuser mounted I test fitted the rear wing stanchions and the right support interferes with a bolt on the Graziano. I did some grinding of the Graziano but relieving of the plate was also needed.
To secure the diffuser endplates I made some steel brackets - I can't weld for a damn and my father in law's material of choice is steel. So we made what I'm calling the "beefcake" brackets. These guys are stout... real stout. You can probably support the weight of the entire car on these. I really liked Dan's hood prop design so I copied it and combined this function along with the diffuser endplate support requirement.
With the diffuser secure, I could now mount the rear hinge. I used a combination of washers and thrust bearings to create a mount assembly that would rotate freely while still getting a good amount of preload - too tight and the assembly binds.
Each side of the hinge is a set of 5909K231 washers and a 5909K23 thrust bearing (McMaster PNs). A 1/4" bolt runs through the stack. You'll want to use a partially threaded or shouldered bolt so you're not riding on threads.
With the rear hinges secured I could now rotate the rear clam open! There's a small window of positions for the rear clam between the balance point and when it contacts the wing supports. You want to be far enough from the balance point that the clam will "swing open" with gravity, but not so close it runs into the rear wing supports.
Before I could mount the hood props I had to install the inner wheel well liner. Similar to other pieces, this required a good bit of massaging to fit. Not too difficult actually, just a lot of going back and forth. Be sure to articulate the suspension in full droop and compression to verify there's sufficient clearancing.
Here's what they look like all cut up and ready for installation:
Installed:
Finally, the last piece to the rear wheel well puzzle is in!
Once I figured out where the second hood prop anchor point was going to be, I added an aluminum plate for reinforcement before drilling the mounting hole.
Here's what the hood prop looks like with the rear clam closed:
It's tucked in pretty nicely!
I plan to make my rear wing movable (tiltable?) without the need for tools so I plan to use some quick release pins; this means the plates can't be fixed so tightly that they can't be rotated once the pins are removed. The upshot here is there's going to be some amount of slop that can't be fully eliminated otherwise the plates will bind when you try to rotate them. That's complication #1.
Complication #2 is the rear wing supports, while being super heavy, are also super flimsy on their own. You'll need to add a support brace to combat any side to side or moment forces on the wing. I don't think a single diagonal brace is sufficient; it only gives you moderate lateral stiffness and almost zero rotational. So I added 2 diagonal cross braces and a rectangular plate to box out the wing supports. The wing support assembly is now super stiff in all directions - except for the slop where it mates with the diffuser. I decided I could live with this - with aero loading the assembly loads up in one direction and any slop will be eliminated. If I'm parked ... meh, I can live with a little rattling at idle.
I made my own endplates for the rear wing by laminating sheets of fiberglass. The factory supplies 1/8" metal for the endplates but I'm concerned someone might cut themselves if they accidentally bump into the endplates. The fiberglass pieces I made are thicker and I can put a gentle radius on all edges - lighter, safer, and I think this shape looks more aesthetically pleasing.
This is a super quick summary of what took me a LONG time to do! It's incredible how many tools / techniques you need to use just to do a few seemingly simple tasks.
So now all the major rough work for the rear is done! There's some detail work that needs to happen but it's getting real close to final bondo, primer, and paint for the rear clam! Wow, it feels great to finally get here.
More photos and detailed discussion on my blog:
38. Winging it – Cam's Superlite SLC