FRAME BUILD-UP PART III

WELDING OUT THE FRAME

04-26-07

     With everything located on the frame, or at least as much of it as we could do at this time, we turned our attention to dismantling the frame.  We need to remove everything so we can go ahead and weld out the frame then get on with the build-up.  Surprisingly, the tear-down went super smooth and only took about two (2) hours.  We marked all the exhaust pieces so they will go back in the same order, and make things much easier.  The engine came out very easy, this time I lowered the frame by removing the supports that kept it level and at ride height.  This allowed the engine to swing free of the cross-members and was a joy to remove.  We left the engine and transmission together for now, it has to go right back in once all the work is completed on the frame, so for now it is resting on a pallet jack supported by a 6" x 6" on one end and a 2" x 6" on the other.  Good graces that engine is big and heavy, everyone that comes into the shop swears it's a Hemi.

     With the frame now down to it's bare rails, we used the big lift to lift it off the welding table and onto the rotary racks.  Gee, this lift was the best single item we made, we use it for everything and it makes short work of what would be a back breaker.  Back in section I,  we show the lift with it's Blue Prints if you would like to make one of your own?  The rotary racks are also in that same section, these are what we strapped the frame to for the final welding.  We bent up a few U-Bolts out of 3/8" all thread and everything worked out perfectly.  The racks are simply sweet, they make turning the frame over a simple one man deal.  We can lock it in any position we want just by turning a 1/2" bolt. 

The MIG (Metallic Inert Gas) Weld Process.

Lincoln Electric...The best in Welding equipment.

GMAW weld area. (1) Direction of travel, (2) Contact tube, (3) Electrode, (4) Shielding gas, (5) Molten weld metal, (6) Solidified weld metal, (7) Workpiece.

      Before welding, I took a few minuets and cleaned the frame up with a wire bushed grinder, I just wanted to clean the areas around where we will be welding.  This little trick makes all the difference in weld penetration and appearance, I would suggest that anytime you are about to weld up a joint, you take the time to clean the area up before.  Something else I like to do, is to have plenty of light on hand.  I have two (2) flood lights that I use to illuminate the welding area, this makes a huge difference with respect to seeing the weld puddle and final weld appearance.  Most would say that there is plenty of light once you strike the arc, but the extra light really does make a difference.  It illuminates the whole area and allows you to see so much better, that I try and use the extra lights as much as possible.  Give it a try, I think you will be impressed. 

      I took the time to break down the MIG torch and clean it up real good.  Just install a new contact tip, clean the diffuser and torch nozzle and your ready.  Something else I like to do is take the time to apply some wire lubricant, this stuff work great. Especially when you know your going to be welding a lot.  There is a wool type pad that clips on the MIG welding wire just before it enters the wire feed device, and you simply apply some lubricant to this pad and it helps lubricate the wire path from roll to gun tip.  Sure makes the wire run much smoother thru the cable, especially when weld thicker metals with the very high wire feed rates.  Something else to remember is the cable liner itself.  While these tend to last a long time, they are berried within the gun cable where you never get to see it.  If you notice any jerky operation or noise as the welding wire is running, it's probably time for a new liner.  Also, you can damage or ruin the cable liner if you kink the gun hose severely or drop something heavy on the cable.  I always try to look-out for my MIG welding equipment, this means not standing on the gun cable, and keeping it up and off the floor as much as possible.  You should also avoid straining the cable, this means moving the work closer to the welder or moving the welder closer to the work so as not to strain the gun cable.  It's all pretty simple really, just show your equipment the proper respect it deserves and it will reward you with years of trouble free service. 

GMAW torch nozzle cutaway image. (1) Torch handle, (2) Molded phenolic dielectric (shown in white) and threaded metal nut insert (yellow), (3) Shielding gas nozzle, (4) Contact tip, (5) Nozzle output face

05-05-07

     Hey....I got a new welding helmet from Miller since the last time we talked.  I choose the "Joker" helmet from the elite series of welding helmets.  I was saving it till I welded the frame out, I just wanted this to be special, and it was.  The new helmet is 300% better then my older one.  The viewing area is much larger and I can see better.  Also, it reacts so much faster, the older welding helmet you could see the change, but this one is too fast, and you see nothing.  That has to be better for your eyes.

Miller "Elite" Series Auto-Darkening Welding Helmet.

     We got everything welded out, and it only took about 2 hours.  The rest of the day was spent grinding on the joints and sanding the frame rails.  We made pretty good progress for the first day, I think one more full day and the chassis will be looking very nice.  I have to invest in a TIG unit, the clean-up is so much less with that weld precess, and the welds themselves look so much nicer.  I should have bought one for this project, but I had my eye on one of Lincoln's larger units and it priced out at almost $5,000.00.  That was just to much at the time, I guess I should have gotten a smaller unit for now, but I had one of those a few years ago.  It was a Miller unit and although it worked well on mild steel, it didn't have enough capacity to weld aluminum, so I sold it to a gun smith down in Louisiana.  Oh well I'll put that TIG welder on my list of must haves and work on getting one when I can.

06-01-07

     I have some very exciting news !!!!......I went ahead and bought that new TIG welder I was needing.  I'm very pleased with my self right now, I have been wanting one of these for years, and now I finally have one.  Since I have had such great luck with Lincoln Welders, I went ahead and bought there Precision TIG 275, Model # K1825-1 welder complete with water cooler and running gear.  I also added the optional ADVANCE CONTROL BOARD.

Advantage Lincoln

Physical specifications

    This was the frame back together with all it's suspension pieces after the weld-out.  While these wheel type casters are nice, I went ahead and built some new frame mounted types that get the car up higher off the floor for improved access, and they take up much less room.

Here you can see the new frame jack-stands, there in yellow.  These allow me to store the frame without taking up so much room, plus they get the frame up where I can work on it much easier.

     Here's a shot of the Engine Oil Cooler

     There is a picture of the Engine Oil Adapter Plate from Moroso and the An-12 Hoses and fittings.

Transmission Fluid Cooler Hoses

     For the Transmission Fluid Cooler, we ran AN-8 hoses from the Transmission Cooler Outlet Fitting to the Radiator-Automatic Transmission Fluid Cooler.  Then we ran a Hose form the Outlet side of the Radiator-Automatic Transmission Fluid Cooler to the inlet side of the B&M HY-TECH Cooler mounted on the passenger side rear, just in front of the axle.  Then we ran a hose from the outlet side of the B&M HY-TECH Cooler back to the transmissions Inlet Cooler Fitting.  This system was pretty easy and straight foreword.  The following is what it took to route this system.

1.  1-B&M HY-TECH Cooler

2.  4-AN-8 to 1/4" NPT Fittings

3.  2-AN-8 to 1/2" NPT Fittings

4.  2-AN-8 Straight Hose Ends

5.  1-AN-8 45° Hose End

6.  3-AN-8 90° Hose End

7.  4-AN-8 Hose Separators

8.  5-Padded Hose Clamps

9.  20'-An-8 Performance Hose

These are some shots of the Transmission Cooling System, The double reducing fittings on the radiator will be replaced with a single reducer once those parts are ordered.

Inter-Cooler Water Cooler Hoses

     This system starts at the super-charger which rest under the hood.  Directly below the Super-Charger rest a Inter-Cooler.  This piece is used to help remove the heat associated with Super-Charging an engine.  The heated air passes through the Inter-Cooler on it's way to the engines combustion chambers.  Here inside the Inter-Cooler is cooled water, and they use this cooled water to help remove some of the heat in the compressed air.  The Inter-Cooler acts just like a radiator, the cooled water runs thru the Inter-Cooler and as the heated compressed air passes thru, the heat is exchanged to the water, where it is then pumped to another cooler which takes the heat out of the water, cooling it so it can return to the Inter-Cooler and repeat the process.  In our case, we used another B&M HY-TECH cooler to remove the heat from the water.  It is very important to have an efficient and quality Inter-Cooler on a Super-Charged engine, heated intake air robs Horse-Power and can cause engine damage if left UN-checked. 

     On our engine, only a portion of the original system is intact.  The Inter-Cooler with it's entrants and exit pipes is all that we have to go with, the rest will be on our own.  We start with the heated water leaving the Inter-Cooler Assembly, there it heads to the Aluminum coolant expansion tank.  This is used so you have a place to add the coolant to the system and for expansion, but the critcal use is to allow trapped air to escape.  The Expansion tank has to mounted at the higest position in the system.  The tank has a pressurized radiator cap just like the normal radiator in any other vehicle.  From there it goes to the B&M Cooler thru An-8 Hoses.  Once it leaves the Cooler it runs to a Electric Water Pump, which is used to pressurize the system.  After the Electric Pump, The water is run to the front of the vehicle, where it travels through another cooler, but this time the cooler is front mounted so as to be in the slip-steam, and cooled by the air.  Then the water returns to the engine Inter-Cooler, where the cooled water returns to remove more heat from the compressed intake air.  To plumb this system we used the following items:

1.  4-An-8 Hose to Barbed Fitting Adapters

2.  8-An-8 to 1/2" NPT Fittings

3.  1-12V Electric Pump

4.  1- Pump Bracket

4.  2-B&M HY-TECH Coolers

5.  20'-An-8 Performance Hose

6.  2-An-8 to Water Pump Fitting Adapters

7.  8-An-8 Hose Separators

8.  4-An-8 Padded Hose Clamps

9.  1-Expansion Tank

Fuel System

     The Fuel System starts in the rear, back at the fuel tank.  Our fuel tank has the electric pump mounted inside, so we don't need to worry about that part.  The pressurized fuel exits the fuel tank and travels thru An-8 hoses to the frame mounted fuel filter.  There it leaves the filter and continues along the frame and to a bulkhead fitting located by the firewall on the frame.  From there it travels up the firewall and to the rear of the engine around to the drivers side where the fuel regulator is mounted.  From there it comes back to the rear of the engine and splits into two different hoses, each supplying fuel to the two fuel rails on each side of the intake manifold, there it goes to the fuel injectors and then into the combustion chambers.  At the fuel regulator, any UN-needed fuel returns to the tank thru a An-6 hose.  It takes the same route but reverse and without running thru the filter, back to the fuel tank.  We also use An-4 hose and fittings for the vacuum line to the regulator.  We needed this so the fuel pressure will be referenced to the vacuum/intake pressure, this way the fuel pressure will rise with the boost pressure, insuring that our engine stays ahead of the fuel curve.  To plumb our fuel system, it took the following:

1.  1-Fuel Tank,15 Gallon

2.  1-Electric Fuel Pump,Walbro 255/hr

3.  1-High Capacity Fuel Filter, Canister Type

4.  1-Fuel pressure regulator, Aeromotive

5.  2-Aluminum Fuel Rails, Aeromotive

6.  1-An-8 Tee Fitting

7.  8-An-8 Straight Hose Fittings

8.  2-An-8 45° Hose Fitting

9.  3-An-8 90° Hose Fitting

10. 4-An-6 Straight Hose Fitting

11. 1-An-6 45° Hose Fitting

12. 1-AN-6 90° Hose Fitting

13. 20'-An-8 Performance Hose

14. 15' An-6 Performance Hose

15. 4-An-8 Hose separators

16. 4-AN-6 Hose Separators

17. 6-Padded Hose Clamps

18. 2-An-8 Bulkhead Fittings

19. 2-An-8 Bulkhead Nuts

20. 2-An-6 Bulkhead Fittings

21. 2-AN-6 Bulkhead Nuts

22. 1-AN-8 to 1/4" NPT Fitting

23. 1-AN-6 to 1/4" NPT Fitting

24. 4-AN- O-Ring to AN-8 Straight Fittings

25. 2-AN-8 O-Ring Blank Fittings

25. 1-AN-8 O-Ring  to AN-6 Straight Fittings

26. 1-An-4 to 1/8" NPT Straight Fitting

27. 2-AN-4 Straight Hose Ends

28. 5'-AN-4 Hose

29. 4-Weld on tab for the bulkhead fittings

Power Steering Hoses 

  

     With most systems now in place, I ran the emergency brake cables from the backing plates on the rear Willwood Disc Brakes to the Lokar Emergency Brake Lever which is mounted to the side of the automatic transmission.  I go over this in much greater detail in the "Brake Section", but with the quality of the hardware and the design of the system, it went together very easy and without any drama.  I used the sides of the drive-shaft loops for securing the brake cables and used rubber lined clamps with 1/4" hardware.  The only thing to watch out for is the drive-shaft and exhaust system, both were rather easy to avoid.

1.Vintage Air II Air Conditioning Kit…..$450.750.00

2.Dakota Digital Climate Control Kit…. $250.350.00

3.Dome Lights…………………………............$45.00

4.Courtesy Lights………………….........….…$25.35.00

5.Under Dash switch strip…………...…....$30-40.00

6.Under Dash radio Box…………….....…...$45-75.00

7.Access Panel for floor………………........$45-65.00

8.Small panel for front speakers/light……$35-55.00 set of 2

9.Inside Door Panels…………………........…..$???

10.Door lock Cylinder…………….……........…$10.00 ea

1.Anything 4.6L Ford (Look For cooling)

1.Heidt’s Power Steering Rack……………$250.00

2.Flaming River Steering Joint…………….$75.00