Rusty Slammington v2.0

[M.Burroughs]

Thank you everyone for all of the kind words so far! I'm really excited to get this whole thread put together over the next few weeks/months.

As for all of the track comments, don't worry, I built it to drive, and it will see track time.

[Gamerx]

This car is just - awesome. I would really like to see it on the track.

[M.Burroughs]

April 1, 2014

Okay, so we have to rewind just a touch from my last photo, because there was a little bit of work to get there.

As touched on in a previous post, we actually began building a chassis at Chuck's place, but upon arriving to CA, Byron and I made the decision that if we were going to entrench ourselves in such a big build, we may as well get to say we did all of it, not almost all of it. We cut out everything we had done in Tennessee, which was essentially the beginnings of a cage, floor, and main rails.



If you look closely, you'll see that in Tennessee, Chuck and I had cut the rockers out of the car as part of the "skinning" process, and in turn, we put in a pair of square tubes to help hold the shape and create a new "rocker" for the car. You can also see a steel plate at the front and rear corners of the body, which is where the first chassis attached. We knew we wanted to keep some of this original stuff, so we began by cutting out anything that remained in the way. We also cleaned up the metal in preparation for welding down the road.







As you can see, we were being very precise with our "chassis table" which was several stacks of 2x4s.

We wanted to enclose the rocker panels, leaving the steel plates at each end accessible. It was our first experience using the sheet metal brake (I purchased a harbor freight unit, which is great for the hobbyist, but for anyone attempting a similar build, don't waste your time. Get a good finger brake to start with.)

With that side note, its worth saying we learned an insane amount over the course of the next year and a half, ranging from tips and tricks to proper tools, methods, and more. If anyone has any questions I'd be happy to answer them, although I wouldn't suggest I'm a professional by any stretch, and I know there are some more-talented people on here.



You can see our starting piece and then the finished idea, ready to install, above.



Byron and I began to trim and fit the inner rocker caps. Look at those beautiful locks of his!



tacked in!





Both sides:



There was a whole lot more to complete on the body, but we wanted to make some real, measurable process, so we moved on to beginning the chassis's foundation.
Having helped Chuck build the initial chassis, I quickly learned that constructing the base out of round tube had its drawbacks, so this time around we opted for a square foundation.
We measured out the dimensions of the cab, and then built out a square platform. Unfortunately, I didn't take photos of the build process, or I have since lost them.



It wasn't an intricate piece to make, and was highly reminiscent of building the hot rod frame, so it was a good place to begin. From there, we simply shoved it into the body, and it was a perfect fit.



We threw some welds on each corner to hold it all together. These welds would get cut out in the future as one of the final steps of building the car - we'd have to remove the body to paint everything.





And that brings us back to this photo.. I promise I won't post it again.




The main reasons for wanting a square tube base for the chassis was ease of building "up and out." Attaching tubes, bodywork, and subframes to something square is a lot more simple, and makes for an easier time attaching things like a floor.

From there, we were ready for our first tubes!

[aar0n.]

Not even going to lie, this is probably the first time I've ventured into the non-classifieds sections of the SW forums in a few years but well worth it!

[DUTCHswift]

Making my popcorn now...

[P78]

<3

[mascqp]

I saw it at SEMA and... WOW just WOW. It's a work of art!!! Amazing, nothing less

[REVOofRustler]

I think it involves sitting in your car while listening to Drake. Could be wrong.

Good stuff so far Mike!

Well we wouldn't want that! I think Rusty's been through enough fire already...

Sorry, that was bad

[theseeker411]

What's a track day

I think it involves sitting in your car while listening to Drake. Could be wrong.

Good stuff so far Mike!

[Design]

Welcome back Rusty. Greetings from Paraguay!

[K-Line]

all hail the king

[GTOguy]

I'm seriously impressed by what the car was and what it became! I'm really looking forward to more updates!

[JPizzle]

Let's hear that s38 purr!!

Seriously Can't wait to read/see more!

[georgeMK1]

Its funny how shitty things happen, but then better things come out of the situation! Keen for more dude

[LCG]

What's a track day

Pissing on h.a.t.e.r.s since day X