carterb Posted May 7, 2022 Report Share Posted May 7, 2022 Some backstory - during racing season we usually work on the car at least one night a week. A racecar is never finished. Also, there are many racecar taxes to keep up with. A new window net and 6-point harness is on order (replace every two years) and we sent in the fire bottle for the on board fire extinguisher to be re-certified (every two years) and we haven't even raced yet this year! : ) Anyway, while real companies are working on the stuff above, Jeff, Paul and I are working on the car. On my list for Wednesday to was to replace the mangled drivers door. The old door was really flimsy due to the old door bars intruding so much. I marked out what skin we might be able to keep using duct tape. I realize this "adds weight" but we need a door that closes reliably so : P Meanwhile Paul and Jeff began extracting our broken rear differential. After stripping if of all the hardware, here is the replacement door with center cut out. I mostly followed the perimeter of the large cut-outs already in the door. Then I needed to remove the mirror mount from the old door. Diff now out - head scratching to follow... Door set in place - not mounted since we will need to remove to paint. It didn't take much additional structure to make a HUGE difference in stiffness. We still have some work to do! 1 Quote Link to comment
carterb Posted May 7, 2022 Report Share Posted May 7, 2022 (edited) Now about that door... Even the little red triangle at the bottom makes me wish we had something other than an all-white car. Look back through this thread and you can see dreams of a *real* paint job. Seeing all those sweet 510 racecars at Sonoma last weekend made me think, come on - we should at least be able to add a couple stripes before the next race don't you think? How long could it possibly take to go from here: to here: Maybe paint the hood and front spoiler pink while we're at it? Edited May 7, 2022 by carterb 2 Quote Link to comment
carterb Posted May 14, 2022 Report Share Posted May 14, 2022 (edited) Last Wednesday Jeff continued clearancing the right rear wheel opening and also tried his hand at using a shrink disk on the 1/4 panel. Meanwhile I removed the mangled left outer rocker in preparation for replacement. It's fully gone now - that pic was in-progress. Paul meanwhile performed some engine bay modification to fit the worlds larges K&N cone filter. Jeff is hoping for a 20hp increase! : ) Then he installed the new NISMO fuel pump and helped Jeff reinstall a diff so they could check wheel travel/clearance and also measure for wheel spacers. The weather forecast is dismal. Rain almost every day and only one day hits 60 degrees in the 10 day forecast. We have a LOT of work to do still! Come on sunshine! Edited June 11, 2022 by carterb 2 Quote Link to comment
carterb Posted May 14, 2022 Report Share Posted May 14, 2022 Made a CAD model of one of the clutch disks in case we need to have some made - if we can't locate any new. Optical comparator was very helpful... The tooth geometry was a little complicated though - not sure I have it exactly right. I'll print one out to compare. Anyone know the exact material of these (or similar) clutches? I measured the hardness at RC45-46. It looks like heat treated 4130/4140 would get us there spec-wise. 2 Quote Link to comment
carterb Posted May 19, 2022 Report Share Posted May 19, 2022 Finally, an evening with nice weather. More work done! Escape hatch for the worlds largest K&N filter Jeff and Paul spent the night working on clearancing the rear fender wells - including trimming the underside of the unibody for trailing arm clearance. Jeff "Tin Man" Hino Paul "4th of July" Bindon I finished fitting the left side outer rocker, which Jeff kindly welded in place. We finished the night by measuring for wheel spacers and longer wheel studs. Who has a favorite p/n for a wheel stud 3/4" to 1" longer than stock? Oh, and the re-charged fire bottle came in the mail! Next stop - order brake pads and hood prop. Racing is the most expensive subscription I've ever signed up for! : P 2 Quote Link to comment
jeffball610 Posted May 19, 2022 Report Share Posted May 19, 2022 The car is low enough to need frame clearance? Did I miss a part when you raised the rear crossmember? How do you compensate for alignment if you're that low? Maybe my care just isn't extreme enough for me to even think about clearances like this, but I didn't realize it would be an issue at all. I'll need to investigate more 😛 Quote Link to comment
iceman510 Posted May 19, 2022 Report Share Posted May 19, 2022 I had a similar question. Are you clearancing because you are already too low and hitting, or planning on going lower? Thanks. Quote Link to comment
carterb Posted May 19, 2022 Report Share Posted May 19, 2022 (edited) Too low?! No way! This thing sits like a stomper! Ride height was limited by tire clearance and we do want to go lower but not *that* low... Too many off-track excursions in this series to be racing at ground effect height. We actually wanted a little negative camber which we can now achieve. Not sure if the frame clearancing was required but you can't stop Jeff once he has a cut off wheel in his hands. Our racecar is lighter now anyway. : ) Edited May 19, 2022 by carterb Quote Link to comment
Icehouse Posted May 19, 2022 Author Report Share Posted May 19, 2022 5 hours ago, jeffball610 said: The car is low enough to need frame clearance? Did I miss a part when you raised the rear crossmember? How do you compensate for alignment if you're that low? Maybe my care just isn't extreme enough for me to even think about clearances like this, but I didn't realize it would be an issue at all. I'll need to investigate more 😛 It's in the BRE build book. I was actually amazed at how limiting that seam is on our cars. I wonder how often it gets hit and guys don't even know it. From experience I never want suspension bottoming out in a race scenario. I had TC to sway bar collision at an autox in my tan car. I looped in on the straight and almost hit the wall. So scary. This car will not be going crazy low. Just lower. But while we were in there...... Quote Link to comment
slowlearner Posted May 20, 2022 Report Share Posted May 20, 2022 On 5/15/2022 at 3:00 AM, carterb said: Last Wednesday Jeff worked continued clearancing the right rear wheel opening and also tried his hand at using a shrink disk on the 1/4 panel. Meanwhile I removed the mangled left outer rocker in preparation for replacement. It's fully gone now - that pic was in-progress. Paul meanwhile performed some engine bay modification to fit the worlds larges K&N cone filter. Jeff is hoping for a 20hp increase! : ) Then he installed the new NISMO fuel pump and helped Jeff reinstall a diff so they could check wheel travel/clearance and also measure for wheel spacers. The weather forecast is dismal. Rain almost every day and only one day hits 60 degrees in the 10 day forecast. We have a LOT of work to do still! Come on sunshine! How does the shrink disc work? P.s. Love this car. Swamp to track. 🙂 Quote Link to comment
Icehouse Posted May 20, 2022 Author Report Share Posted May 20, 2022 19 hours ago, slowlearner said: How does the shrink disc work? P.s. Love this car. Swamp to track. 🙂 The shrink disk worked. I'm not the best operator but it's a great car to practice on. Quote Link to comment
Josh K. Posted May 23, 2022 Report Share Posted May 23, 2022 You cut a lot more then I did. You going to tunnel for the axles or no need? Quote Link to comment
Trophy24 Posted May 27, 2022 Report Share Posted May 27, 2022 Work continues to get ready for the upcoming race days. Here is our best body guy Carter sanding the door down. Fabricator guy (Jeff) in the backround knocking out the mini tub. Jeff and I put in some more time and got some paint on the repaired areas of the car. Looking much better now. And some of the weight saving pieces that ended up on the ground 2 Quote Link to comment
carterb Posted June 3, 2022 Report Share Posted June 3, 2022 (edited) Jeff and Paul took advantage of some rare sunshine and got the door and rocker painted along with the right side mini-tub. Thanks guys! That meant next time we were together we were able to get the door mounted! Still much work to be done - oh yeah, remind me - I need to order some new go-pro mounting stuff... and a new shift boot! Edited June 3, 2022 by carterb 1 Quote Link to comment
carterb Posted June 3, 2022 Report Share Posted June 3, 2022 Brakes, mirrors, and new seatbelts and window net have arrived. Best addition yet though, Jenn made some driver's decals for me! Last night was our last chance to get things done before the race this weekend. Time to button things up! Working in the rain again... Common theme here. Paul finishing the baffles for the new air box. Every part of this car tells a story Tango air box (it takes two) No looky Paul! Mr. Sparky Pants welding through the front indicator housing hole... Showoff! : ) I think that just about does it. If it's not done now it's not going to be done. We are packing up tonight to hit the track bright and early for the track day tomorrow before the race weekend. Maybe not bright and early. Just early. Forecast is for rain ALL weekend! *blech* 1 Quote Link to comment
carterb Posted June 7, 2022 Report Share Posted June 7, 2022 (edited) Forecast says it all No matter, we are going racing! Everybody packed up Thursday night in the rain, ready for the early morning trip down to the track. We drove through a storm complete with lightening and thunder on the way to the track but thankfully we were spared the bad weather when we pulled in and started setting up. It remained dry through the ProFormance Racing School track day driver's meeting too. Jeff took the car out first for a shake down and then turned it over to Paul. First time in a racecar! Does he look like he's having second thoughts? Off he goes! (notice VQ35 powered Nissan Sentra (orange and blue) and V8 powered S13 (gray car under blue tent) behind us. Success! Car ran flawlessly throughout the day. We were not spared the rain. During my only stint of the day, the entire straight was yellow flagged due to standing water. Still fun! After the track day is over, we had to wait a bit to take the car through tech for the Luckydog race weekend. We got a new number panel for the door and a few new sponsor decals but I didn't get a photo I guess. You'll have to take my word for it... I ended the day tracking down a new GoPro battery at Target. Double Rainbow!!! Edited June 7, 2022 by carterb 1 Quote Link to comment
carterb Posted June 7, 2022 Report Share Posted June 7, 2022 (edited) Saturday morning the forecast looked decent for the day so we swapped to a set of worn tires (to save the new tires for the rain later on - or Sunday) I started the race in the B line (oops) and was quickly overtaken by a number of faster cars but then found my pace and held position for a good half hour. The rest of my stint was filled with a red flag and about 30 minutes of full course yellow, so I came in a few minutes early and handed over the car to Paul. Paul had a great first stint of actual racing and safely handed over the car to Jeff. https://datsun510.com/uploads/monthly_2022_06/986029384_06042022swampthing(1).MOV.4ad5bb09d3f5e6703f3fbad1caea39bb.MOV Jeff had a good stint and set our fastest laps of the day. https://datsun510.com/uploads/monthly_2022_06/711915535_06042022swampthing(2).MOV.f6d44096e899611c15107129ecb7adff.MOV Half distance now I got the car back for my second stint and had a blast 'till it started raining. Okay, it was still a blast, but a little hairy at times. Fortunately it started drying again just as I handed the car back to Paul. We were in 6th or 7th place (in class) at the time. Not too shabby! Paul was doing great until, with about 30 minutes left in his stint, he lost the rear in turn 2 and skidded to a stop on the inside of the turn where, within seconds, he was collected by a Miata who failed to take avoiding action. Paul got slammed pretty hard in the left rear quarter, but fortunately only the car was damaged. He was able to drive it back to the pits but the left side was toe'd out by about 3" We tried to adjust it but even with Byron brackets, we didn't have enough to correct it at the track. We assume we have a bent lower control arm. A little crazy, the wheel was unmarked and seems to run true. Nothing left to do but pack it up and head home. It seemed too late to try to stay up and give it a temporary fix only to come back the next day and race in the rain (the forecast made Sunday out to be the worst day of all) so we will look toward OPR at the end of July instead. We'll race again little 510! I just happen to have a 1/4 panel in stock. It's even race car red! Jeff and Paul are collecting parts as well... All part of racing I guess. : ) Edited June 7, 2022 by carterb 2 2 Quote Link to comment
bilzbobaggins Posted June 7, 2022 Report Share Posted June 7, 2022 That sux. Got any pics of the miatas front after the wreck? Quote Link to comment
Z23T Posted June 7, 2022 Report Share Posted June 7, 2022 I'm glad you all got some seat time, but bummed that you got smashed by another car. You guys brought this car back from the dead, I know it will race again. Good luck with the rest of the season. Are you going to race at PIR in June? Quote Link to comment
slowlearner Posted June 8, 2022 Report Share Posted June 8, 2022 21 hours ago, carterb said: Saturday morning the forecast looked decent for the day so we swapped to a set of worn tires (to save the new tires for the rain later on - or Sunday) I started the race in the B line (oops) and was quickly overtaken by a number of faster cars but then found my pace and held position for a good half hour. The rest of my stint was filled with a red flag and about 30 minutes of full course yellow, so I came in a few minutes early and handed over the car to Paul. Paul had a great first stint of actual racing and safely handed over the car to Jeff. https://datsun510.com/uploads/monthly_2022_06/986029384_06042022swampthing(1).MOV.4ad5bb09d3f5e6703f3fbad1caea39bb.MOV Jeff had a good stint and set our fastest laps of the day. https://datsun510.com/uploads/monthly_2022_06/711915535_06042022swampthing(2).MOV.f6d44096e899611c15107129ecb7adff.MOV Half distance now I got the car back for my second stint and had a blast 'till it started raining. Okay, it was still a blast, but a little hairy at times. Fortunately it started drying again just as I handed the car back to Paul. We were in 6th or 7th place (in class) at the time. Not too shabby! Paul was doing great until, with about 30 minutes left in his stint, he lost the rear in turn 2 and skidded to a stop on the inside of the turn where, within seconds, he was collected by a Miata who failed to take avoiding action. Paul got slammed pretty hard in the left rear quarter, but fortunately only the car was damaged. He was able to drive it back to the pits but the left side was toe'd out by about 3" We tried to adjust it but even with Byron brackets, we didn't have enough to correct it at the track. We assume we have a bent lower control arm. A little crazy, the wheel was unmarked and seems to run true. Nothing left to do but pack it up and head home. It seemed too late to try to stay up and give it a temporary fix only to come back the next day and race in the rain (the forecast made Sunday out to be the worst day of all) so we will look toward OPR at the end of July instead. We'll race again little 510! I just happen to have a 1/4 panel in stock. It's even race car red! Jeff and Paul are collecting parts as well... All part of racing I guess. : ) Coz racecar. I guess that's the risk on the track. Great that it's just a quarter and boot. No doubt it'll let you deal with some more rust. Quote Link to comment
Draker Posted June 8, 2022 Report Share Posted June 8, 2022 Not the first time this thing has been smashed up. Probably not the last. Looks like you all had fun out there! it'll be back up and running in no time! Quote Link to comment
docbainey Posted June 8, 2022 Report Share Posted June 8, 2022 On 5/18/2022 at 11:20 PM, carterb said: Who has a favorite p/n for a wheel stud 3/4" to 1" longer than stock? ISR Performance 70mm Long Wheel Stud for Nissan 240sx - Enjuku Racing Parts, LLC Quote Link to comment
Trophy24 Posted June 11, 2022 Report Share Posted June 11, 2022 Thanks for the link to the wheel studs! Lots of work ahead for us Quote Link to comment
carterb Posted June 11, 2022 Report Share Posted June 11, 2022 On 6/6/2022 at 10:23 PM, bilzbobaggins said: That sux. Got any pics of the miatas front after the wreck? Very little damage to the Miata actually. He was on the binders pretty hard and the final collision wasn't very high speed. But the back of our 510 is an empty pop can compared to the front of a Miata. Quote Link to comment
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