Kaspa's scratch build GT40

[John]

well its been 50 odd years in the planning but its finally happened, a mate and myself did the big road trip last week end to the bottom of the country and picked up 2 40 bodies and one chassis jig, a mammoth 3700k round trip in 2 days,
the only down side was we had a slight encounter with a member of the local wild life, in the shape of a reasonably sized skippy [kangaroo] that modified the left hand front of the ute [Pick up] slightly. but luckily we were still ok to drive it so we soldered on.
the covered trailer we took turned out to be exactly the right size for two bodies, as you wouldnt have got a pack of fags in there when we went to close the door, but unfortunately the jig had to get cut up to fit on the back of the ute



and my body hot of the press



so when we got home i had the enviable task of putting it back together



I will over the next week or two build a substantial base for it to sit on so that it wont twist etc before i start laying any tubes in it, but in the mean time i still have a customers Lotus seven in the shed thats about a month away from being finished, so dont expect any miracles for a while.

but like everything there has to be a starting point, and at last this is it.
let the games begin.
cheers John

 

[Jimmy P]

John, we're all pulling for you mate and hoping for a successful build. One day at a time and before you know it you'll be shifting into top gear!

 

[John]

Thanks Jimmy, considering 3 years ago i wasnt expected to still be here, this is more than a dream its a bloody miracle, and the best part is my step son is coming in with me, as it will wind up in his garage eventually anyway he may as well help build it aye, fairs fare.

cheers John

 

[Randy V]

This is going to be a GREAT build!!!

Quite curious about the jig.. It does seem to be a bit on the light side.. What sort of control arms / uprights will you be using?

Glad the wildlife didn't cause any injuries....

 

[John]

Hi Randy, no we were very lucky, if we had of hit amidships we would have lost the radiator for sure, and possibly had him come through the windscreen as a bonus. there big solid buggers and can do a lot of damadge, which is why evrey truck and a lot of cars out in the country have roo bars on the front. like we should have.
a typical roo bar, this ones on a Hilux ute i think, all alloy and bloody strong


Now uprights, front will be Mustang11 Wilwood drop spindles with their big brake kit installed, rears will be DRB alloy uprights with 4 pot calipers on vette discs and hubs etc. all pretty basic off the shelf items, trans will be an 016 i have under the bench coupled to a Coyote engine, that should be fast enough for the time being.

yeh the jig is on the light side, is was on a reasonably stable table which we had to leave behind, so i will make up a 100 x 50 HRS base for it, which should hold it all together.

cheers John

 

[Randy V]

Roo bars are very much like the Deer Bumpers that grace the front ends of many trucks here in the states... My wife's Ford Focus could have used one last summer...

Another Coyote build!! Great choice.. If I wasn't so heavily invested in my current driveline, I would have chosen the same powerplant.. A bit more challenging though - given their width..
I'm sure you'll do great with the strength of your jig from the sounds of your plans. Plus the jig gets stronger still as you add tubing and start tack welding.

 

[John]

well i'm pleased to announce the journey has begun, the first thing i did was build a solid base for the jig to sit on out of 100x50x4mm RHS.



then the jig was mounted ,leveled and squared up.



then this morning i picked up some material, and now have the base rails tacked into place.


and i purposely extended the bottom rails so i have the option of a rear trans mount and a decent mount point for the rear clip.



great to see something actually taking shape finally
watch this space
cheers John

 

[John]

I'll be following your build - Good Luck!

John

 

[Randy V]

Love the Shin Bumpers on the ends of those square tubes in your jig! :thumbsup:

 

[John]

Love the Shin Bumpers on the ends of those square tubes in your jig!

Hi Randy, yeh i think we all know how much they can hurt, if you dont.

cheers John

 

[conrad f]

Hi John,great start with the project,will be watching your progress.Cheers Conrad.

 

[John]

Conrad hi mate, jeez you got a bit to answer for getting me involved in all this. lol.
so far i have almost finished chassis number one, just the door hinge posts and dash support to go,




i finished adding all the diagonals on fri as well as the front clip radiator support frame, so chassis number one is almost done just 4 more to go.[so far]

cheers John

 

[John]

Bugger i thought i posted two pics yesterday, oh well here is the center bit, just the door hinge mounts and tunnel to go.



cheers Kaspa

 

[John]

Chassis No.1, is finally out of the jig, just have to wait now until the lads decide on what pedal arrangement and steering rack their going to use, so i can add the appropriate mounts etc.







i must admit a little more involved than a Lotus seven chassis thats for sure.

cheers John

 

[Randy V]

Good job...
I am compelled to ask about the blue paint on all the tubing though.... What's up with that? Supplied that way?

 

[John]

Hi Randy yeh supplied like that, you have 3 choices, Plain, painted or galvanized, i like the painted as in our humid climate surface rust appears overnight.

cheers John

 

[Randy V]

Okay - I get it.. Would be a pain to have to grind off but should clean even raw steel, so it makes sense.. I guess what might complicate things though would be repainting or powder coating as you might have to remove all the rest of it (blue)... I'm sure you have that all worked out. I'm not in a coastal area but it does get pretty humid here in the summer (Minnesota is known as the land of ten thousand lakes - but there are really more than that)..
So are you going to be building turn-key units for those less skilled than yourself?

 

[Ryan L]

Hi Randy, we are working though the project slowly. I don't think we are allowed to legally build turnkey cars in Australia with out a lot of paper work.

Ryan

(when I get my body - #5 - ill get a build log started as well, should only be a few more weeks.)

 

[John]

Randy the blue is actually just a base under coat and there's no problem powder coating over it.
no I'm just doing a few chassis for a few that are either inexperienced or time poor, then i can start on my own.

cheers John

 

[Phil]

John:
Great story and looks like a really good start. I can tell you I know the feeling minus that extra long drive.
As Randy said we have the same deal here with the Deer population, more killed by cars and trucks than hunters, and at certain times of the year (Fall) one can't take a 5 mile drive without seeing at least 2 or 3 on laying by the roadside.
Chassis look great and I am looking forward to your fit-up and seeing a roller come out of your shop...should be a real looker.
Good luck with your project and I am looking forward to watching this thread.
Cheers
Phil