After hearing some mixed reviews of multiple shops locally I wanted to see who on here has an option/contact for chassis fab. Let me know any experiences you have had, quality of work, etc.
Vito has time for me Aug 4th but before I say yay/nay I just wanted to explore some options. If I could find a pre fab kit that kept the rear seats I would weld it in myself! So if anyone knows a good enough bender that would do the fit-up I would consider that as an option.
Call up STM and see what they can do for you? I know Vito charges top dollar as he did the cage in “ricer” way back in the day
Gary Burch has my bender at his shop, only have a 1 3/4" die for it now. I can bend up a main hoop, if you are happy with it use it, otherwise you have scrap tube for gussets and supports.
We did the zombie 240SX LeMons cage in two days total, so not the best example of fitment.
Can we listen to metal while we doit?
You do moly before?
I PMed you a recommendation.
I worked with moly very briefly with the FSAE car. The only concern I would have with bending is the amount of spring back. What we could do is bend a reference piece to 90* and measure the spring back. Probably can measure the spring back of each bend while it is still in the bender before it is released from the die.
The die is 6" radius. The only info that I found is it can go down to .083" wall thickness for 4130 (max is .134").
How much a weight advantage is moly going to be over mild?
I don’t do any of the welding, but I like the idea of simplicity/workability with mild.
Just take it to STM. They have a manual bender as well as a new CNC mandrel bender. Their work speaks for itself
just take it somewhere, relax, sit back, and drink beer while someone else swears and gets burnt while welding/bending your cage. lol
Going faster then a 9.99/135 opens up a can of worms.
You need other stuff too:
“9.99 (*6.39) to 7.50 (*4.50 ) or any vehicle exceeding 135mph: Jacket and pants meeting SFI Spec 3.2A/5 and gloves
meeting SFI Spec 3.3/1 mandatory, except as noted above.”
You need a 8-point rollcage obviously. Even if you decide to build it yourself (not recommended), you HAVE TO GET IT CERTIFIED at a shop. Not sure how that will go unless you know you’ll do a stellar job the first time out. The bar placement is important as are the welds, and mounting plates. A 6-point bar doesn’t need to be certified.
You need a window net too.
You need an external shut off switch for the battery AND alternator.
You need SFI padding anywhere that your head may hit the bars.
You need an SFI flexplate, and SFI flexplate shield
Full face helmet is needed. Get an SA2010 rating, that will be good for a long time
I might be missing a few things but you get the idea. You MAY need your comp license as well. If you go flying into the mid 9’s without a license they might get pissed. If you crack a few 9.95’s they will probably let you slide.
I hear Jason staples does cages. They seem to turn out pretty well not sure on moly though. @esford90 had his cage done by him as well as a bunch of other local people.
I don’t have his number anymore.
I’m going to need one too. I was thinking of having Jason do it.
Spend the money=go faster. Go faster=more safety requirements. More safety requirements=more money.
I think the biggest issue like Joelster said is having some random person do it and it not getting certified.
I think the biggest issue Drew is going to have is squeezing into those tight race suits:
[ATTACH=CONFIG]33257[/ATTACH]
[sarcasm]Wait so you guys mean that to drag race a fast car I need safety equipment and it might even cost money! [/sarcasm]
Thank you to those who addressed what I have asked for. Holy shit.
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I would go with Vito since he already has the time slot for you. He will certify it right after he finishes it (good for 3 years), and can mount the window net tabs for you at the same time. If/when you need a recertification, take it right back to him. A helmet, jacket and gloves you can easily borrow for the time being.
Drew… just something to think about. You don’t need a cert until 9.0 for IHRA. but at this point just take it to vito. He will take care of you. then go rip off 8 something.
How would I have had 10sec cars since 2003 without a helmet? I have allllll of that other stuff you listed already.
Drew I’ll go in on a group buy w you. Haha. I had my last cage done by Jason Vitez and it was real nice. This next go around I am considering STM, need to get some quotes and talk about the design though.
Add me to the group buy… I need a 25.5 bad lol. $$$