Humdinger's build- Enter Sandman

[Humdinger]

I keep getting carried away in my build and forget to update here so (ehhh... could just be laziness!) here's my big update!

First off i've made a few additions to my parts hoard... not pictured is a benchmount stand and the case that is being machined right now.

Just for kicks I grabbed the tach and the newly shortened (about 4 inches) late steering column to see how the setup is going to look when its done

It rained for a few days so I did a few odds and ends like rust repair and restoration on the old steering wheel (see in pic above) and painted it. This is satin tractor and truck enamel from Tractor Supply out of a spray can... love the stuff!

even the engraving came out nice! The rust right in the center left a little pitting but i'm fine with it

In my last update I showed the narrowed beam... i tried narrowing the tie rods but it took me 4 days to let the last rod end out and after that the threads were just gone and the insides were badly rusted so i ordered some new ones. the cheapest place i found narrowed rods were Airkewld and they are very nice and delivered quickly! I repainted the beam (3rd time) while i waited on delivery and then mocked everything up when they got here... front is pretty much done except for shocks, brake pads, and fluids! Been doing some glass work for the column so its a little dusty!

Sat the body back on to check clearances... grabbed the gas tank that came with the buggy and everything looked pretty good. Since i stepped up to 3/8" fuel lines i took the tank out to see where the best place for the outlet would be. Saw some chipping paint and heard a familiar sound coming from inside the tank... a little screwdriver test confirmed it!

Luckily a very nice tank came with the donor buggy so i will be using that. For the life of me I can't remember what all the outlets on the tank go to though... can i get a little help here? Before anyone says it... i know the big one is the filler!

When i first got the body i sanded about 7 layers of paint down to the gelcoat and left it that way. I posted up a question about the cracks i have and how to repair. Turns out I have gelcoat crazing over the entire body, and then a few (100-200) bigger cracks, and one pretty big old repair on the front fender... still have to check it out but it seems solid. Yesterday I got a wild hair and picked up a 15 pack of 60 grit 5" discs, grabbed the Porter Cable, and went to town on the gel coat. I ran out of pads after a about 5 hours but i got the exterior completely down to bare glass... all that is left is the interior and then the hood which is still in full paint. Here's the aftermath!

That last pic reminds me... I forgot to update about my tail lights. I wanted to recess them a little because they bubble out so i started looking around Home Depot and came home with little 5" plastic discs that flower pots sit in to hold water. Used a hole saw and then sat them in... they have little lips on top that helped hold them in place and with a little tape they were solid. Fiberglassed from the back and then they pulled them out! They had little ribs on them so ill have to sand or fill them out but they were perfect and CHEAP! They're also recessed a hair more than id like but i figure after filler and paint they'll be about right! While i was at it i glassed in the back piece that came with the buggy... still need to shape it back up!
When i first got the body

And after filling the old holes and making new with a little mock up!

Thanks for tuning in! I'll try to start updating this step by step instead of big chunks!

[Humdinger]

Anybody have any input on my new tank outlet questions? Just need to know what to hook up where...

[joescoolcustoms]

[Humdinger]

I'm using a return style regulator so should I use the factory return location or return to the top side? I plan on relocating the filler neck to the top middle... would it be worth it to make a new fuel supply more toward the front making it lower on the tank?

[Humdinger]

I'm using a return style regulator so should I use the factory return location or return to the top side? I plan on relocating the filler neck to the top middle... would it be worth it to make a new fuel supply more toward the front making it lower on the tank?

[joescoolcustoms]

If you have the ability to safely weld on your tank, yes, relocate the access port to the lowest point.

For a return fuel supply, returning to the bottom give the advantage of not splashing and aerating the fuel inside the tank. It will introduce the fuel directly back into fuel.

If you use a vented cap, you can do away with all other ports around the top and eliminate the potential of siphoning through a vent port.
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Bad News Racing 2018 NORRA 1000 3rd in Class
Best Day Ever Racing 2022 NORRA 1000 2nd in Class and first All Female team to complete the race

Everyone is gifted. Some just do not open the package.

Looks like it was painted with a live chicken,polished with a brick and buffed with a pine cone

[Humdinger]

Haven't kept up with this thread much but things are still getting done! I've been collecting more parts and finally started putting them to use! Big news is i went in with 3 friends and rented a 2000 sq ft double bay door shop and moved all my buggy stuff and tools out of the half of a two car garage i've been using. It had an 8x20 carpeted and air conditioned office in the shop so i grabbed that up as my "buggy area"... of course i can always use any part of the shop but i've grown fond of my confined work space! After we destroyed the office we reinforced (not shown) the whole structure and made a hang out loft on top!

It's funny... as soon as I got all moved in it was amazing how fast I was able to get work done compared to before in my garage! A couple day after i moved in i was able to throw this together. 2007cc 78x90.5. Scat 5.4 h-beams with 3/8" arp 2000 hardware, Mahle p/c setup, 40x35 ported heads, Megajolt ignition, w120 cam... still have to build the intake, exaust, and port the end castings. Garrett T3 .60/.63 is sitting on the table beside the engine!

I need to take the longblock to my engine machinist so we can set the crank endplay and torque the gland nut. And i need to pick up another alt. stand, didn't realize there was a hefty amount of aluminum cleaner mixed with my degreaser and turned my first one into swiss cheese!

Since i was at a good stopping point on the drivetrain, i piddled with a little more bodywork (i hate it so it only gets done when im bored and have nothing else to do) and then i rolled my buggy across the street to my buddy's shop and got to work on the next big piece... Roll Cage! I had an original design, but after looking and talking it over we made a few changes. We decided to get rid of the windshield and set the front hoop into the dash and mount the windshield in it, changed up the overhead bars for more head clearance with a helmet, and moved the rear down bars to a large flat area on the top of the body for more room for my pup when she comes along. Still have to do the side bars under the outer wings, rear suspension and frame horn bracing, and a small hoop under the hood to mount the wiring stuff, steering column, and offer a little front protection.

We also plan on adding two braces between the overhead straight bars and a bar across the back hoop for the harnesses. I made some pvc speaker pods to mount under the hood but i think they might be too big so i might use some 16 ga sheetmetal to box in the upper 45's overhead and make those speaker boxes like Joescoolcustoms... jury's still out on that one though because the speakers would have to be much smaller.

I know a lot of people regret running 5 point harnesses in their buggy but being as i will be racing mine this buggy will have them. I made a post asking questions about my seat shape and shoulder straps, i'm afraid they may try to roll off my shoulders. I believe Dale said they make a small belt that runs between the shoulder straps across the chest to keep them from spreading. Does anyone know what these are called or where i can buy them?

Btw... I set myself a deadline of April 15th which is my birthday. It's gonna be a mad rush but i'm hopeful!