Re-body My Zed

[Sim]

Wow, this is such and incredible build. Love it.

[Hansburger]

The amount of work and craftsmanship is amazing!

[Falcata]

On 06/05/2022 at 04:30, Stutopia said:

This is so close now I can smell fresh lacquer. Absolutely stunning build mate, thanks for detailing it on here, been a fascinating follow.

 

I may have missed it (or forgotten), what colour will it be?

Hi it will be mostly white with red , Black and silver graphics , I have the livery in my mind but I am not talented enough to do a rendition sorry , I would love it though .

Thanks for fallowing along .

Cheers Phil

[Falcata]

Hi everyone as you know I am losing the fiberglass shop soon , not sure exactly when , I am going to ask for an extension to get the molds done on the big parts , like the whole back and front of the cat before having to move it .

Ok enough of that depressing thought .

 

Alright a while back I had to change part of the trunk area , i thought it was too tight a curve and might be a problem or a weak spot in the trunk lid , it's a bit confusing even for me lol so I will try to explain as it goes along .

 

So now I have to remake the part that goes to the back of the car ,from where I cut it off .

This is this going to be the new plug for the new bottom of the trunk ( boot ) lid

( I have to temporarily fill in the slots for the wing )

 

 

Ok you see the part on top of the yellow tape around the trunk opening , well that from the original one I made .

But where it turns at the bottom it was too tight and I didn't like it , it got too thin in ths area and i was afraid it would break .

So I made the turns softer right where you see it cut off .

 

 

 

I glued in a piece of wood and just taped over it 

 

 

next is to simulate the back outside edge of the trunk lid with the piece I made earlier for this reason .

 

 

 

 

Here I glued 2 pieces of 3/16 ths together to mark the edge ( couldn't use a square because it's on an angle )

 

 

 

This get cut off , as it represents the gap for the bottom of the lid to make clearance 

 

 

next is the foam core to make the bottom , now this was cut for the previous version  , so it will need to be modified

 

these are spacers to support the foam core underneath , and will give clearance for the rain water escape , they get glued down temporarily 

 

 

Hear you see the back piece is set back so the inside face will become the finished face , I know confusing ....

 

 

next is gluing a piece of foam core to the top of the back edge to make the bottom flange to bond to the bottom of the top part of the lid .

 

 

 

 

it gets taped to seal the edge of foam core , and you can see I am making some patterns to add foam core to the large base cover where I changed the corners .

 

 

the black line represents the edge of the base cover , so I need to fiberglass this area to match the top part around the opening .

 

 

 

Here I am adding some thin aluminum flashing to the upper part to run the fiberglass on , this will allow extra space for an even thickness later when making the part .

( I know I don't have a pic crazy ) you will see when its back on the car .

 

 the bottom side

 

 

this line shows me how thick the fiberglass needs to be to form the proper gap

 

 

checking to make sure it level and figuring out a pocket for the Hinge to go in .

 

 

flashing to make the form extensions for the back sides

 

 

they have little dams where the new piece needs to terminate 

 

 

 

 

these will get waxed so it will release after .

 

 

a few layers of glass

 

 

 

 

here i remove the end dam and the turned up part will get trimmed off to match the top 

 

 

 

trimmed 

 

 

and the RHS  

 

 

 

 

test fitting the foam core base before adding to corners that nee to be altered

 

 

 

here you see the flashing on the upper part , which now get temp glued to hold for glassing .

 

 

 

making the addons for the foam core .

 

 

testing the addons 

 

 

it's good so the base gets held down temporarily with 2 sided tape ,can't fasten from the top , no access after it glassed to remove it from the car

 

 

 

when it\s lined up and ready just press down evenly  only one shot at it !!!

 

 

next is to add the foam block which will be the pocket for the hinge 

 

 

I am kind of cheating here , normally you would glass over this and bodywork it etc before glassing , but I am under the gun to get everything glassed now that can't be done off the car , because of the move and it will be easier to bodywork from the other side and off the car . so I am just taping the foam and the edge seams , kind of an experiment  , hope it works !!!! what could go wrong lol 

 

 

 

next is a few coats of wax and spray with PVA mold release

 

cut all the material before getting sticky 

 

 

 

 

 

a few coats of PVA

 

 

 

and we are ready to glass stage one 

 

 

 

 

 

Ok looking good , on to stage two some stiffeners to keep the base in place and firm for body working the other side , going to make them out of foam with a 45 degree edge that's easy for the glass to go over 

 

 

if I tape them back to back I can bevel them in the router table 

 

 

 

 

a quick sand and they are ready

 

 

 

next is to lay them out and glue them down 

 

 

 

 

next is to prep some material and glass them

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Well I am happy with how it turned out , I know its probably a little boring but its all part of it .

This morning I will pop it off the car and trim the edges 

 

thanks again for all the comments and support , would have loved to do a YouTube series on the build but I would have needed someone to shoot the vids and help produce it it takes about 3 hours a day , unfortunately I just don't have the time , maybe I will do one on installing the body on the car , let me know what you think .

Cheers Phil

 

 

 

 

[andy james]

I will tell you what I think Phil.

Bloody amazing skills and dedication to this project which is probably the best build thread this forum has witnessed for many a year.

We are are all so looking forward to seeing this car finished.

Keep going chap.

[The Bounty Bar Kid]

Thank you for my weekend dose of zed porn. Loving this build. The front and rear shots looking down the side of the car look so good. Can't wait to see how it turns out. Just wish I could see it in real life to really appreciate the effort and design you've put in.

[DoogyRev]

25 minutes ago, The Bounty Bar Kid said:

 Just wish I could see it in real life to really appreciate the effort and design you've put in.

 

Its only a 9.5 hr flight and a ferry ride away 🤣

[The Bounty Bar Kid]

Just now, DoogyRev said:

 

Its only a 9.5 hr flight and a ferry ride away 🤣

Need a passport too.

[Falcata]

Hi everyone back with a teaser until tomorrow

 

 

 

 

 

[Falcata]

Hi everyone last update on the trunk lid bottom plug .

This is always fun an a bit nerve racking getting the part out !!!

 

 

Starting out with a thin flat pry bar it get under the edge , then put wedges in all around where you can 

 

 

 

 

the danger here is breaking something on the car by prying or breaking the part , if it's a finished part coming out that is gel-coated you don't want to scratch it with tools such as screwdrivers .

 

I found this little gem at the tool shop on day in the line waiting to check out , it goes flatter than a piece of regular cardboard and you inflate it , it's very strong , I bought the smallest one to try it out , next time I am there I will get another one for sure .

 

 

here you see it under the part , it's great because it's not sharp and can press on a larger area .

I took a couple of videos and will try to put them on .

 

 

 

 

got it off the car ok , now to clean it up , trim the edges and wash the remaining PVA off  , it's great stuff also it washes off with water .

 

 

 

 

still need to sand the edges 

 

 

As you can see the carnage from the temp setup to make the part 

 

 

 

the back

 

 

the front with the pocket for space for the hinges

 

 

test fitting looks great !!

 

 

It still needs to be bodyworked and then make the proper mold for the part  , so the finished part has the finished side on the out side , fiberglass is such a lot of work , you need to make three things to get one .

1 the plug

2 the mold

3 the part

but once you have the mold you can make lots of them .

 

you see here there is clearance for the part to fit in .

 

Next will be jumping onto the roof , although I feel like jumping off the roof sometimes lol lol

 

this is the part I started to make a while back too attach the roof scoop , not too sure if I like it , it's going to be a bugger to glass and mold , been thinking of a better way .

 

 

 

While I was sitting thinking about the roof I got out the masking tape and laid some on the side of the car to get an idea of it filled in .

 

Wow Can't wait !!! to do the doors now ......

 

 

 

 

 

 

Enjoy !!

 

Stay Safe and Stay Tuned In !!

Cheers Phil

 

 

[Falcata]

Hi everyone 

Back with another update , been working on the nose and front fenders

 

 

Well it's been a long time since I worked on the nose , 

I remember when I poured the foam in the big cardboard moat , so eager to start carving the foam !!!!

So I carved freehand got it close by eye , tape measure and some bits of paper , well that was stupid .

Should have built some wooden bucks for a guide , it turned out to be not too bad but still , I had gone too far on the passenger side by 1/2 an inch ( 13 mil ) so have been fixing stuff all week and trying to get it the same as possible to the Drivers side .

 

 

I was going to make the fenders separate and a center nose piece , but time in the shop in the forest is coming to an end and the plans have changed a bit .

I am going to make the front mold all one piece , then make one part from the mold and then cut it and make them separate later .

It will make it easier to ship and if you get hit by some bad driver you can just swap out the fender instead of the whole front .

So to do that I have to fill in the funky grooves in the center piece with two part foam.

 

 

 

 

 

Next is to fix the aero bar foam in the center bottom , will take way too long to fix that mess on the car , so I cut it out and made new parts from the foam sheets .

 

it's pretty nasty , and I am too old to lay on the floor and do bodywork .

 

 

So this is it cut out 

 

 

yup nasty ....

 

 

getting the angle 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

So this will be way better ,I can router the soft edge for the fiberglass and glue the parts in and glass them with less bodywork .

 

 

 

 

 

 

I made a piece for the back with some 1/4 inch foam and then a 3/8 backing to keep it stiff for the glass,

Using old wood paneling for the pattern.

 

 

 

Here I cut the back edge off the bottom part to allow the back piece room to get glued on to the base .

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 More to come , need to take a small break ( glass of wine or some tequila )

Came home a bit early to start servicing the JapCad ( G35X it's my winter car hasn't run since the end of feb )

My sister is coming for a visit from Toronto soon and would like to use it .

Stay tuned for more tonight or in the morning .

Cheers

Edited June 5, 2022 by Falcata
added some more info

[Falcata]

Ok 

Now with a beverage I can continue on .

 

Laying out grid lines on the fenders to make templates like I did on the rear quarters , using the lasers and the center jig I made a while back to keep the tops of the fenders level and even with each other 

 

 

 

Here are the lines 

 

 

Ok this is the only way I could figure out how to measure the edge of the fenders. 

I tried going off the front hub but if the steering isn't dead straight would be way off .

My Dad who sadly passed away was a brilliant man , him and I built this laser , it's for pointing up , so if you were installing something like lights or ducts , speakers etc. on a ceiling , you would do your layout on the floor and then put the self leveling laser on the mark on the floor and it projects where to put your mark on the ceiling .

It has a gimbal bearing to stay level and a center point at the bottom to line up with your marks.

 

 

it's made from a piece of aluminum tube and some thick aluminum round stock and a laser .

 

 

 

i didn't have anything to go off to mark the floor , so I placed the 3 foot rulers on the center of the arch in the centering jig on the car , found the edge of the fender with the laser and read the ruler to check and make sure they were the same , the passenger side was out too far by 1/8th of an inch , remedied by the sander .

 

 

 

Ok so now the width is sort of sorted , lets start matching up the rest , yes you guessed it !!! it template and sanding and foaming , and as usual as careful as I try to be , there is always something that needs attention .

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

More grid lines

 

 

 

 

here i was 1/8 tall in this section so I had to sand into the foam and some of the fiberglass fender arch 

 

 

this is the only way I know how to get the same shape on both sides , if anyone know a better way please let me know asap .

 

 

 

added some filler over the exposed foam , it's very tricky , you have to sand it before it gets hard or it tears out the foam , it's a real fine line between wet and hard .

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

the pursuit of symmetry .......... I built this adjustable jig to measure off of it really helps but it all so labor intense .

 

 

So I measure off the center line on the upper tube at the key points mark everything on tape on the tube with a T Square , and then compare each side and fix accordingly . 

I made a wooden template of this so I could use it repeatedly to fix the other side

 

Here is the foam I had to add from my eager sand way back when .

 

I use everything I can to help me  , I have a drawer in the tool box full of paper and cardboard and wood patterns .

 

 

 

this is so hard to see what's going on sometimes , too low too tall too deep ahhhhh 

That explains the beverages , should have built a lambo could have just used plywood lol 

 

 

and yes you have to improvise sometimes , I hope my wife doesn't see her missing knife on here lol

 

 

 

 

 

 

Thanks again everyone for fallowing my build and the great comments , the kind words it really helps to keep going on the frustrating days , been a long haul 

Hope to have the nose sorted and a couple of layers of glass on it so I can bodywork it in the next couple of days , looking forward to seeing the front in primer .

Cheers

Stay Safe and Stay Tuned in !!! 

[The Bounty Bar Kid]

I've been wondering where you've been. I look forward to reading about your progress. Looking good 👍🏽

 

[ShortPaul]

As people have said amazing skills you have, looking forward to seeing it in primer, keep up the good work your doing👌

Edited June 5, 2022 by ShortPaul

[LRF4N]

Amazing skills and dedication to get it perfect 

[StormtrooperZ]

Not had an update on this thread for a while...👀

 

Hope everything's ok @Falcata

[rodgeevans]

Wow, just wow.

Absolutely amazing stuff

[ZMANALEX]

[Stutopia]

Is this ready yet??? I'm sooooo excited!!!

[Falcata]

Hi everyone

I know everyone wants to know whats happening with the build .

Well as you know I was having an issue with the fiberglass shop in the forest , well the owner kept jerking me around and changing her mind , I just could'nt stand the anxiety an longer , she agreed to the middle of july and a week to move after that .

That was just enough time to finish the nose and take molds off the front and back .

so i arranged to have a couple of mates come and help to accomplish this .

Then june 1st she said she wanted me out in two weeks .

so this made me furious !!!

So I was forced to purchase a 28 ft enclosed trailer to store my Nissan pickup and a @*!# load of stuff to make room to take the car to my home shop . 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I will post so pics of the Falcata out side tomorrow !!! I have to go at the moment 

Cheers

[The Bounty Bar Kid]

That must have been frustrating.

[DoogyRev]

Well that must have been very annoying, looking forward to further updates 👍

 

I think you should also tell us about the Lambo 😎

[Falcata]

Hi I have some time at the moment better do this now .

I was totally stressed out , had to move at a moments notice , a full workshop and the car ...... all the storage places were full or too expensive , just to put the car in was $500.00 a month then to put the rest of the stuff would be another $500.00 a month , and even move if it was on the ground floor where you could drive up to it !!!! .

Another Car builder friend of mine was using his brothers car hauler to house his next project the Lambo until his storage container arrived .

If the container haden't been delayed I wouldn't have found the trailer .

It was a great bit of luck , as there is a shortage of enclosed car haulers here new or used .

So with the trailer full of stuff and my Nissan pickup in it it costs $100.00 dollars a month to store it all.

So the Lambo belongs to my friend Don who just finished a 308 build .

Had a BMW M70 V12 and a Porsche 915 gearbox to go in it , we all talked him out of that !!!.

So now he is going LS3 or LS2 So much less hassel and almost double the power .

 

 

The Deck or balcony I am standing on needs to be replaced , 25 years old and water has gotten in so it's not happy ( been on the list scince before starting the Falcata )

 

 

 

and before the Falcata came it was what I call DNR which stands for  Dump N Run 

I had no time to put stuff away .

 

 

 

this is before three truckloads in my little truck arrived from the other shop !!!!

And two loads to the dump .

So scince the move I have rebuilt the deck and fixed a few cars and done some maintenace on the house .

Still a @*!# load of stuff to sort , re arrange etc

 

[DoogyRev]

Nice Lotus BTW 😎 ..... don't see many of those on this side of the world

[Andy_Muxlow]

Blimey what a faff. But at least it seems sorted out now. Good luck with the rest of your build.