Randy's RCR40 MKI

[Randy Folsom]

I would not want that much metal inside the cockpit unless purely race and always with a helmet

Too close to an unprotected skull in street use

The crossbar on the FW is behind the seats, so should be OK, the rear hoop will be behind the FW

The front hoop is still a problem. So two options: scrap it, or make one that forms to the A-pillars and matches the curve of the front window top. That will move the front hoop 5” further away. Then thinking to cut a channel in the spider for the connecting bars so they are completely out of the way.

I am kinda fixated on having a front hoop to prevent someone from grabbing an A-pillar and breaking the front glass.

 

[Randy Folsom]

Looking good Randy, check the clearance on the headers between the clamshell and upper pipe, either the pipe or the clamshell will need to be modified. Also the valve covers are a bit tall and the valve cover vents will also touch the clamshell.

Vinny, I received and installed the flat top valve covers. They look awesome. Cheers, Randy.

 

[Paul T.]

The crossbar on the FW is behind the seats, so should be OK, the rear hoop will be behind the FW

The front hoop is still a problem. So two options: scrap it, or make one that forms to the A-pillars and matches the curve of the front window top. That will move the front hoop 5” further away. Then thinking to cut a channel in the spider for the connecting bars so they are completely out of the way.

I am kinda fixated on having a front hoop to prevent someone from grabbing an A-pillar and breaking the front glass.

Randy, Cutting a slot in the spider and reglassing was what I plan on doing when and if I add front hoop and supports. Good way to get the bars up out of the way.

 

[Vinny P]

I like the new valve covers they should solve the clearance ht. problem as well. Did you decide which clutch you are going with? I went with a hydraulic, but I saved all of the mechanical clutch parts in case I decide to change it up.

 

[Randy Folsom]

I like the new valve covers they should solve the clearance ht. problem as well. Did you decide which clutch you are going with? I went with a hydraulic, but I saved all of the mechanical clutch parts in case I decide to change it up.

I went with the Safir clutch package. It has an external slave. I have heard there are way too many problems with the internal slave cylinders and when they go bad, it is a mess.
The Safir package included the bell housing, dual disk clutch, reduced size flywheel, gear reduction starter, yoke, slave cylinder, bearings and bearing seals.

 

[Randy Folsom]

Jumping all over the place while waiting for parts, answers and materials.

Today I decided to attach the rocker panels. As usual, I am totally confused.

I did find a post here that explained that the lip on the bottom needs to be cut off. Looks like some folks are putting the bottom edge inside the gap between the sponson and floor while others are fastening it directly to the floor.

My thinking is that I am not going to worry too much about the position and instead just create slots for the screws so I can move the panels back and forth an inch until I get to final fit.

I would like to know what this distance is typically.

 

[Vinny P]

In my case I needed to place the rockers as far back as possible for tire clearance. you will want to have your spider and front clamshell in place. You can make the final adjustments to the rear section if you will be adding the flares to your rockers. I am going to have to do some glass work to the front of the rocker panels anyway to get the wheel openings to look seamless. I am using stainless flathead countersunk hex screws, threaded into the chassis for my rocker and latch hardware mounting where applicable.

 

[Randy Folsom]

In my case I needed to place the rockers as far back as possible for tire clearance. you will want to have your spider and front clamshell in place. You can make the final adjustments to the rear section if you will be adding the flares to your rockers. I am going to have to do some glass work to the front of the rocker panels anyway to get the wheel openings to look seamless. I am using stainless flathead countersunk hex screws, threaded into the chassis for my rocker and latch hardware mounting where applicable.

Vinny,

Thx much for the info. Well back is what I expected that’s why I asked about the picture from the manual

I spent most of the day massaging the rockers to get the mounting surfaces straight and the thickness uniform. I am having to add a bit of glass to the front top corners because the ends kick up about 1/8” and need to be sanded down right through the existing flange material.

I measured the edge to edge distance of the front and rear clips where they rest on the rocker panels and found the front clip is narrower. The front clip has some flexibility, but rear is quite rigid so for now I am only going to screw down the back and I am going to make a slot so I can easily move the panels back and forth 3/4”.

I also expect to have to tweak the front clip width to get the doors to fit properly since moving the bottom front of the door in/out can have a big impact.

When I do the final installation, I will do like you and use flat head screws.

Cheers, Randy

 

[Vinny P]

You can use a heat gun and make adjustments to the fiberglass panels, I used that method to get my front fenders lined up better with the rockers by heating and wedging something between the inner fenders and the chassis and letting it cool overnight. Of course the alignment pins will hold the clamshell in place but I wanted the fiberglass clam shell to fall into the correct position naturally without any tension.

 

[Randy Folsom]

You can use a heat gun and make adjustments to the fiberglass panels, I used that method to get my front fenders lined up better with the rockers by heating and wedging something between the inner fenders and the chassis and letting it cool overnight. Of course the alignment pins will hold the clamshell in place but I wanted the fiberglass clam shell to fall into the correct position naturally without any tension.

No need for a heat gun here in Texas, just leave it in the driveway for a few hours

 

[Howard Jones]

Hot.....Guns.......must be Texas!!!!!

 

[Michael]

Could be Florida too…

 

[Vinny P]

Could be Florida too…

New York, M-16, 9mm, a couple of pellet guns and a Slingshot

 

[Randy_NorCal]

1) Skip the cage if you’re not racing the car. We’ve already lost one of our beloved members due to head impact with a cage.
2) Read lots of build logs….
3) I like the period look of the 15” BRMs.
4) RCR’s Exhaust systems are very nice.
5) Porsche G50 transaxles invert easily and are very capable.
6) Have RCR Fit the spider, doors, rear flairs / clip and front clip If it’s in your budget.
7) In case you didn’t read #1, please skip the cage…

Hmmmm....what is it with "Randys" and GT40s!?

 

[Randy Folsom]

Its been a busy couple of days.

Dash Board

I managed to get the dash fitment sorted. The following is not in any particular order because it was a very iterative process.

• Determined that the forward position of the dash should be a bit short of the front lip of the spider so that if I needed, the spider can be moved back a bit.
• Evened up the underside of the dash lip, but careful to take into account the dash was warped.
• Cut out the switch panel recesses. This helped with flexing the dash to make it lay flat.
• Cut the pillars to 11-1/2" as measured from the bottom of the dash lip. The dash deck supports are 11-1/8" so saved 3/8" for later adjustments.
• Cut slits in the dash at the ends where the dash top is bonded to allow the pillars to flex to 90^ in relation to the dash top.
• Cut the sides off the pillars, leaving about 3/4" for later adjustment.
• The demister recess extends below the lip on the dash which makes positioning the dash very challenging so I cut out the demister recess. I cut it off about 3/8" from the top of the dash and made the cut as flat (horizontal) as I could to make it easier to reattach. I could have cut a hole in the dash deck, but it is hard to know where to cut and there are braces under the dash that have to be taken into account.
• Rather than cut notches in the dash for the A-pillars, I trimmed the A-pillar to fit the top of the dash. This was one of the final steps because to dash has to be very close to its final position. I did a little bit at a time, alternating sides.

Hmmmm....what is it with "Randys" and GT40s!?

Well, Randys are just naturally cool and race cars are cool, and GT40s are ultra cool so it just works that way

 

[Randy Folsom]

Dash pics

End of dash cut at the seem to allow the pillar to flex to 90^

Front edge of pillar trimmed to fit the dash support post. If installing the six point roll cage, more room is needed between the post and pillar for the roll cage mounting bolts.

A-pillar shaved to fit dash instead of the other way around.

Dash pillar trimmed to fall just shy of the sponson to allow for carpet to fit underneath.

Demister recess cut away so the dash rests flush on the deck. I can now see exactly where I need to cut a hole in the deck. I may need to modify the recess so that I don’t need to cut the brace attached to the bottom of the deck.

 

[Joel K]

Great Job Randy, I’m enjoying your build thread and all the detailed updates.

 

[Randy Folsom]

Spider

I spent the morning, and wore out many blades, trimming the spider flanges.

I used an elevated disk to measure the distance on the flanges. To avoid the flange fillet, I cut out some circles in 1/4” plywood with a hole saw and glued them together. Then stuck a marker in the hole and rolled it along each flange. The picture shows the bottom side of the disk stack.

It worked well to get nice even cut lines.

But before trimming the flanges I decided to move the wiper mount. I cut the mount out first, then used it as a template for cutting the other side. Spring clamps were used to hold the pieces in place while applying glass mat to the underside. Once that was hardened, I mixed up some epoxy with glass fiber powder and filled the gaps. I will likely further reinforce the mount before installing the motor.

After that hardened, I went work on the flanges. I wasn’t planning on trimming the flanges at this early stage, but to fit body panels requires that the spider be propped up to fit the windshield, and if reshaping the spider to fit the windshield, then it should be in its trimmed state.

With the flanges trimmed, it was time to trial fit the glass. I first made sure the spider was flush to the dash deck. All it took was one screw in the center to hold it down and clamps at the ends. I laid out some pillows for protection and fit the glass. Not even close :-(

The inside edge of A-pillars are bowed slightly inward and the sides of the glass curve outwards quite a lot. The pillars match the doors, so I decided that the glass would have to be trimmed.

It will require removing at least 3/16” on the PS and 1/8” on the DS. I’m about halfway way done after four hours of sanding. The high spots are getting longer so I expect another five or six hours to finish the job.

I am using a belt sander with 80-grit. It’s really important use light pressure, take lots of breaks, and switch from the left to right sides to allow the glass to cool. The sander’s belt path has to be in line with edge to avoid chipping. Belt sanders are heavy by design so holding one up for more than a few minutes is difficult. The sander also has to be twisted as I go up and down the side of the window because the curve of the glass changes from top to bottom so a bench mounted belt sander is not an option.

I still get little chips on the edge corners. I feel it is best to sand those smooth with 320-grit to remove stress points before each windshield fitting attempt.

I might have to remove another 1/16” to 1/8” after getting the edges to match because the windshield also needs to move up for an even top and bottom gap. Mama said there would be days like these

 

[Jean-Marc]

Randy, thank you for sharing, I measure the work to accomplish, and I am glad that it was already do,ne on my car.

 

[Jeff B.]

Can you tell us what that glass is doing? I can't quite tell in the photos. I can see the larger gap toward the bottom of the A-pillar but is it gapping away from the pillar down there and the A-pillar should be forward more? Not sure I understand where you're taking off material. Thanks!