Build #2, No huge car progress...but...cool new toys! Options

[jd74914]

Hello all.

I figured I’d throw up a progress thread for my car’s second rebuild. For those who don’t know me my name is James and I’ve been a 914 addict since age 13 (now 26) and used to hang around here a bunch more. It seems like a good start to this thread would be some background information. Its first build took place when I was in high school (age 13) and ended as a freshman in college. When I originally purchased the car it didn’t run and had some pretty serious external rust problems. I rebuilt the motor, fixed tons of electrical issues, replaced all of the rotten metal with new (all hand-formed since I didn’t have the money to pay for reproduction pieces), and repainted. Everything was done in my garage with the exception of turning/balancing the flywheel and I learned how to MIG weld and paint from my dad, some books, and through a lot of practice.

After reassembly, it was my daily driver for 3.5 years during my undergrad degree. I pretty much drove it hard and put it away wet for the entirety of these years and it never saw a garage. Something about getting a mechanical engineering degree, dating a few girls, working throughout the year as a design engineering intern, and finding FSAE cars really limited the amount of time I spend on my own car. By the end of my undergrad degree there were some pretty rough spots, mostly in terms of the suspension/brakes and a pesky ignition switch (replaced 3 or 4 times and it kept failing), which pushed me to taking it off the road and fixing everything correctly. I thought it might take about a year-that was 3.5 years ago! (IMG:style_emoticons/default/wacko.gif)

Just like after the first rebuild, life got in the way and the car sat as I went through a master’s degree, worked full time, continued to play with FSAE cars, and starting working on friend’s real racecars. Now I’ve finally finished my MS (and know way too much about fluid dynamics and heat transfer (IMG:style_emoticons/default/laugh.gif) ), am applying to schools for a Ph.D., still haven’t stopped [advising] FSAE design, and really want to drive her! The play was to start and finish rebuilding the suspension last summer (I saw Chris Foley-Racer Chris in the grocery store one day and told him this), but I got carried away and a bit behind. This thread is to chronicle the build back to the road.

We’ll start with a few pictures from when it was originally completed in 2006/7 (well, it's missing the plates and still has the original windshield but...).

[jd74914]

Curious about that trailing arm inner and your strategy for the end bolts. Are they torqued down super tight? Did you keep them "loose" and use locktite on the threads?

The reason I ask I my set-up, and it's propensity to get loose. I have an aftermarket roller bearing trailing arm pivot and it is secured on both ends by bolts like yours. They get a little loose, so I just re-tighten them....but soon will get in there to re-grease and rehab and likely coat the threads w some sort of locktite.

I'm planning on torquing them down normally and possibly using just a little loctite tape on the threads (and lot of anti-seize on the shank). I'd be a little afraid of using too much loctite because any corrosion also adds to the locking effect and it would be a shame to have to drill out big bolts.

One of the reasons I didn't like the needle bearing kits is that I couldn't see any way for them to allow misalignment on the inside ear. When you bolt the outer side to the piece that lets you adjust toe the bearing lines up nicely and won't cause any loosening if there is a little bit of bind. The ear is fixed however, and at least the kits I've seen didn't seem to have anything in there to allow for misalignment. I might be wrong, but I've always figured that the misalignment where wouldn't allow the bolts to stay tight or promote even thrust bearing wear. In my setup, the bolting point in the ear can pivot as it's a spherical bearing, so you're always bolting exactly perpendicular to the bearing if that makes sense.

I could be totally wrong, so take that with a grain of salt, but that was my rationale for going this way and not building with needle bearings. If this doesn't work I've been thinking I'll put a needle nearing setup together with misalignment washers to allow bolting perfectly normal to the thrust surface.