I posted my second YouTube video today with a video of a walkaround of my 962, it's just an informative vid showing my cars' construction and how I varied from original which you can also see from the pictures below. Anyway, I'll embed a link in this page so you can watch it from here and I'll update it as I get closer to completion and driving the car.
With this page being graphics intensive it will probably take a little while to
load so please be patient.
Left is the only picture you'll see of me on the internet, right side is my GT2 914-6 at the Molson Indy support race in Vancouver, B.C.
Below are pictures (left) of the 10 pieces of billet aluminum that will become
the wheel centres that I'm having made. The centres will use the current BBS
16" and 17" rim halves and sealing rings. They are direct replacements for the
962 centrelock wheel centres. The difference with these centres is that they
will have 6 spokes like the first Speedline wheels used on the 956. If there is
any interest in a 5 spoke design just e-mail me as I'm considering making that
an option to the 6 spoke centre. I'll be taking more progress pictures when the
machining starts. I'll be using the first 4 of these on my own 904. The picture
in the middle is after the first milling operation to remove the bulk of the
aluminum before turning. The picture on the right is after all the turning has
been done, now all that's left is to mill the spoke design and drive pin holes
as well as the bolt holes for the rim halves, then the centres will go out for
anodizing. All 10 centres have been done and the original BBS wheel centre is
also shown in the picture.
The first pictures of the wheel centres after the spokes have been machined and
the drive pin holes and rim half holes have been drilled. The right side
picture below shows the wheel centres with the radius machined on the spoke
edges. Just some deburring left then the first 6 centres will be sent out for
black anodizing before lettering can be machined into the spokes.
The finished product below, on the left is the wheel centre after being
anodized and having the lettering machined into the spokes and the middle,
put together with the rim halves and having a Toyo RA1 mounted. The right side
picture is the wheel and tire mounted on the front of my 962. This set of
wheels and tires will be mounted on my 904.
Most recent photos of my own car test fitting the tail section and doors,
although some parts have been painted, I'll be getting everything repainted as
the loser that painted my parts did such a crappy job.
Shown above is the freshly painted tail section to go with the roof in the
preceding picture. This is the only style (latest) 962 tail section that I
produce. It requires the use of a separately mounted rear wing.
Picture of three nose sections, fresh out of the mold, nice and lightweight
with brake ducting installed. Just waiting for a light sanding and some paint.
I'll post pics of my own nose section once it's painted along with the side
pods.
View from left front of tube frame showing front bulkhead, noseframe, master
cylinders and complete front suspension. Note that battery is mounted on left
side as opposed to the right side for the monocoque.
Front and side view of the only upright that I produce. Interchangeable with
the factory front 956/962 upright. Uses a double roller instead of two tapered
roller bearings for easier maintenance and setup. This upright can be also used
on the rear with the CV drive flange installed to attach to your axles as I
have done on the rear of my own car. The uprights are designed to take the
radial mount Brembo calipre with 130mm pin spacing. The uprights will mount the
13 and 14 inch brake rotors quite nicely with the appropriate brake hats which
I also make. This upright is a universal design and can be used on the left or
right side depending on the thread of the hubs installed (left or right hand).
These uprights can be and are being used on other cars besides the 962 such as
GT1 and GT2 racecars as well as some Ford cobras (kit cars) and Daytona coupes.
The picture above left shows the 13 and 14 inch brake rotors that I have made as
well as the appropriate brake hats for each rotor. Also pictured are the
centrelock wheel hub nuts in both left and right hand thread. There are also
steering arms and steering arm spacers, these are anodized in both black and
gold. On the bottom left are parts specific to my 904 project for my front and
rear uprights (the same as those pictured above). On the right are some of the CNC'd pieces I'll need to mount the rear suspension to
the gearbox and uprights. These pieces are the wishbone mounts, pushrod pivots
that attach to the shocks, lower wishbone and toe-link mounts for the rear
uprights as well as a couple of front steering arm adapters. These will be
anodized before being used.
View of footwell from drivers side showing billet aluminum gas, brake and
clutch pedals. Steering rack and wiper motor are above with seat mount in
foreground.
Left rear view of my 962 sitting in my driveway, showing the completely
redesigned rear suspension with rear
shocks, lower a-arms, pushrods, pivots and redesigned rear uprights (the only
ones that I am now producing). Also shown
is
the oil tank on the left, oil cooler is mounted on the right side. Exhaust
is ceramic coated, car has only one axle attached. This
picture was taken with the new six speed sequential shifting gearbox with the
custom cnc'd end cover in place. The aluminum plates on the gearbox were
waterjet cut and are for the rear tail support beam not in the picture.
The uprights (shown above is the complete right front suspension assembly) are
cast from an
aluminum/magnesium alloy, and while heavier than the original
magnesium versions, are considerably stronger and less
susceptible to heat stress failure, especially if carbon/carbon
brakes are used. My hubs are billet machined from 4140 heat
treated steel instead of the original titanium (which is cost
prohibitive) but again, they are stronger. The front and rear
lower a-arms and rear rockers are fabricated from 4130 tubing and
not the formed sheet metal as the originals were, but again they
are slightly heavier and a lot stronger. The wheel nuts (shown is a steel
transport nut) are
billet machined from 6061 T6 aluminum and anodized
as are all the aluminum parts. Front control and steering arms
are billet machined from 2024 aircraft aluminum
while front caster links, steering links and rear toe links are
4130 steel fabrications. The brake rotors are 14 inch diameter
directional curved vane cast iron, custom made for use with the
Brembo Group C calipre as shown.
Side view of the newly designed rear suspension neccessitated by the use of the
Lola/Hewland transaxle. It's almost finished with only the toe link attachment
points and lower pushrod attachment points to be located and fabricated. Note
the use of the smaller uprights that I produce that are also used on the front
of this car.
Here's the new crossmember that mounts to the front of the gearbox adapter and
ties into the trunion bars giving support to the drivetrain. The crossmember is
CNC'd billet aluminum. This will replace the fabricated 4130 mount that was
used with the 962 suspension. Part of these changes were made due to the fact
that the rear suspension is being changed to a pushrod type instead of the
rocker suspension, this was dictated with the use of the Lola gearbox which has
the castings for the pushrod pivots.
Shown above is the new billet machined adapter housing for my recently acquired
Lola/Hewland 6 speed sequential shifting gearbox that I'll be installing in the
962. This will require a complete redesign of the rear suspension to a pushrod
type with the shocks laying flat over the gearbox as well as changing the
attitude of the complete running gear to a more horizontal position as compared
to the 5 degree tilt of the original 962 setup. As this is going to be a
racecar only it makes sense to use the racing gearbox with straight cut gears,
this would not be suitable for street use. The Lola gearbox also has a
magnesium housing which isn't the best for a street application.
Here's the completed car without bodywork, wing endplates and some of the
chassis aluminum panels. This car is my own tube frame version of the 962. The
956 and 962 were never built as tube frame chassis, only aluminum monocoque
construction. While I do produce the monocoque chassis I chose to use the tried
and true method of tube frame construction as it is quicker and cheaper to
build. The car is driveable and I've been driving in circles
around the cul de sac in front of my shop (makes a good skidpad!). Since this
picture was taken I have installed a Hewland six speed sequential shift
transaxle in the car (which I was told couldn't be done) and subsequently had
to change the rear suspension from
rocker with inboard shocks to pushrod with the shocks mounted horizontal over
the gearbox. Pictures will be posted shortly.
This is monocoque number 4 currently under construction and will incorporate
some of the updates and changes made to the last monocoques produced in the
early 90's.
Test fitting the rollcage to the new monocoque, on right riveting already
started.
This is monocoque #4 finished with the rollcage attached and ready to be used
in a brand new 962. This is probably the last monocoque that I will make due to
the
lack of time I have at my disposal and with the 904 chassis that I have to get
started on.
View of monocoque from drivers side looking into footwell showing steering
mount, dead pedal, and pedal braces.
This is a view of completed monocoque #3 from the drivers side (right hand
drive).
