Dez
Club Retro Rides Member
And I won't sit down. And I won't shut up. And most of all I will not grow up.
Posts: 11,784
Club RR Member Number: 34
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Jul 16, 2012 22:23:18 GMT
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well, ile update properly now. as this is going to be my whip for the gathering, i decided it needs some lovin before then to get it looking fly. I'm not really a fan of the fuch-esque wheeltrims, i can see why theyve been used, but i fancy something a bit more. this morning i picked up some rims from another R-Rer in braintree. a set of 14" mk2 golf driver steels. id already got a few other sets of bandeds to make this week, so i decided to chuck a set in for myself. id already measured up and cut the bands when i did the others the other day, so in between making two other sets i got em cut and the bands dropped in, and them tacked together before trying for size. pics- nothing too crazy, they're 8.5s on the rear and the fronts will be 7.5s. thats based around what fits/don't poke too much and what tyres ive got to give them the tall-sidewall 'old school' stretch I'm aiming for. all buzzed up- another job i had a look at whilst i had it up in the air was removing what has jokingly become known as the mangnolia racing stripe as you can see, its not doing much of a job of hiding any of the rust its been put on over if anything, it makes it looks worse as the rust leaches out through the paint. thankfully, it rubs off quite easily without touching the paint underneath- its a tedious, messy job though. i got about halfway down this side before i packed in for today.
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pm me with what you want for the fuch trims and a few close up pics please. unless anyone has dibs on em
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craig1010cc
Club Retro Rides Member
Posts: 2,998
Club RR Member Number: 35
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Jul 17, 2012 11:24:42 GMT
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Looking good Dez
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Jul 17, 2012 12:19:53 GMT
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Hi Dez, I usually walk to Manningtree, so I will be the tall dark haired guy waving to you or in J reg bright red Escort Cabriolet (sunny days only) or a light blue 10 reg Mondeo. Hope to see you around! Julian
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Dez
Club Retro Rides Member
And I won't sit down. And I won't shut up. And most of all I will not grow up.
Posts: 11,784
Club RR Member Number: 34
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Jul 17, 2012 21:11:21 GMT
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slacker, you got Pm. craig, cheers! julian, no doubt ile see you around manningtree at some point a few more pics, got the front wheels done as well(7.5s), and all 4 flapwheeled up to smooth em out ready to go to the blasters tomorrow. fecking nackered now, done 3 sets of bandeds in 4 days! i really need to get the front coilovered next........
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I'm looking forward to seeing this progress, i'd done a deal over pm with Mike for this but time, skills and most importantly money prevented me seeing it through (sorry mike btw!!)
i'm glad its finally gone to someone with skills. i'm certain its destined for greatness
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Dez
Club Retro Rides Member
And I won't sit down. And I won't shut up. And most of all I will not grow up.
Posts: 11,784
Club RR Member Number: 34
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Jul 20, 2012 20:40:37 GMT
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time for a BIG one. ;D first, I realised, there werent a whole load of before pics going on in this thread. so have some, so you can see how it sits before- front arch gap- then, some investigation to the current front suspension 'setup' hmm, than looks good- theyll have been cut in situ then. cut 3/4 of the way through then the last bit fractured. notice nick in spring cup too. blown shocks, battered bumpstops- its been sitting on them- not good. neither is the 4" of dislocation, or the spring falling past the cup when its jacked up!
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Last Edit: Jul 20, 2012 20:42:29 GMT by Dez
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Dez
Club Retro Rides Member
And I won't sit down. And I won't shut up. And most of all I will not grow up.
Posts: 11,784
Club RR Member Number: 34
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Jul 20, 2012 20:56:01 GMT
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thankfully, my workshop contains this- the big magical box of coiloverness. in there was this lot. a pair of FKs for a polo/lupo with disintigrated collars, and a pair of TX technix bodies only, but with good collars. annoyingly, they're a differnt thread, but I can use the bodies and collars off the TAs and the rest (inserts/springs/helpers/topcaps) off the FKs, to make a full set. so, we have a plan, best get on with it! first, remove some bracketry and clean up- then, I machined some thread off the lower section of the bodies. youll see why in a sec. this is why. the TAs were threaded further down, but I needed them to have less thread to allow the steering arms to fit. so I skimmed the thread off in the lathe to the same length as the FKs. heres the new strut body against the original audi one. its 2" shorter overall, which is nice I'm going to have to drop the steering arm down the body a bit, but it needs that anyway to help sort out the bumpsteer. this was a quick reference pic for me to note where the steering arms sat to get the ackermann angle right. with the large square bit of the bottom of the hub clamped vertical in the vice, a level sat on the top of the strut body sat right on the lower edge of the TRE hole. very scabby. best start chopping! (after id emptied the non-sealed damper assemblies and all the old oil out of course). I chopped straight through the strut then flapwheeled the weld down to break through it, then a lot of hammering/chiseling later, I have this- quick test for the the hub carrier on the strut body- I needed to do the same with the steering arm, and fit that first though before I weld the bottom bit on. like so-
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Last Edit: Jul 20, 2012 20:58:49 GMT by Dez
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Dez
Club Retro Rides Member
And I won't sit down. And I won't shut up. And most of all I will not grow up.
Posts: 11,784
Club RR Member Number: 34
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Jul 20, 2012 21:08:55 GMT
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next i test fitted one of the banded steels id made, as i know the steering arms were now going to be very close to the back of the wheels, as the steering arms are about 2" lower- i deemed that to be the best compromise to get it sitting right. i should just be able to squeeze a 15" on if i need to. so, happy with that, i laid some beads- a quick lick of paint, and reassemble- the top caps went on without issue, as the audi ones are very similar to golf ones. all ready to go back on! i decided the backplates were probably past it- you can see where its been rubbing on the disc at the bottom too. all reassembled, i new i needed to fit smaller tyres on the front for arch/steering arm clearance. the 185/60s were pretty horrible on there though, on a car with no PAS that originally had 155s on it, the steering was bloody heavy! i went down to 165/60- they were still very close to the steering arms though, only about 2mm clearance- so i chucked on some 3mm spacers, which i was happier with. the wheels still sit hubcenntric too cos the spigot is so long- moment of truth-
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Dez
Club Retro Rides Member
And I won't sit down. And I won't shut up. And most of all I will not grow up.
Posts: 11,784
Club RR Member Number: 34
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Jul 20, 2012 21:20:07 GMT
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striaght off the jack- then, adjusted down another 1/2", hubcaps back on, driven around a bit- it may not look a whole load lower, but i think it sits pretty much bang on its actually about 3.5" 'lower', only ive kept 2" of that as suspension travel. which is 2" more than it had before! it then took me an hour and a half to remove and free off the siezed-totally-solid adjustable trackrod to do the tracking- i guess it wasnt done when the springs were chopped which may also explain the handling! but overall, its totally transformed the way its drives too. the mixture of having suspension travel, smaller tyres, reduction on bumpsteer from the trackrods sitting level again, and the front now sitting lower than the rear as opposed to vice-versa, and doing the tracking has meant its a joy to drive compared to before. it goes in a straight line unlike before, doesnt tramline, corners well, and can be driven and steered one handed. I'm very happy with it! wheels on next i think
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GavinJ
Club Retro Rides Member
MGB 3.9 v8 Sebring
Posts: 927
Club RR Member Number: 209
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Jul 20, 2012 21:21:51 GMT
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Nice work! i think i'm one of many that had several nights of thinking about buying this - glad its gone to a good home!!
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Such a great work, congratulation
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looking great so far, can't wait to see it with the wheels on
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mirafioriman
Posted a lot
My next project.......
Posts: 1,361
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Jul 21, 2012 10:14:51 GMT
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Great fabrication work. If ever there was an advert for lowering 'properly' and not just cutting coils this is it
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Jul 21, 2012 10:33:08 GMT
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Great stuff, it's a real pleasure to see fabrication and modification like this. Inspiring ;D
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Sierra - here we go again! He has an illness, it's not his fault.
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Jul 21, 2012 11:06:41 GMT
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This is just what the doctor ordered - I'll have to do the same on my Passat. Great job! Just one question about the steering arm clearance - I noticed that they "arch" a bit toward the tire - visible in this pic: Would it be any better if you swapped the L and R steering arms? I realise this would probably involve shortening the track rods. Another thing - What are the dimensions of the wheels on there now - I'm most interested about the mounting pad to back edge distance, which I could know if you gave me the offset and width of the wheel. Cheers!
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Dez
Club Retro Rides Member
And I won't sit down. And I won't shut up. And most of all I will not grow up.
Posts: 11,784
Club RR Member Number: 34
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Jul 21, 2012 12:12:17 GMT
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cheers everyone. yeah, the difference between making it lower and doing it right are huge, as this shows really.
wheeler- the reason they're so close to the back of the wheel is ackermann angle. its a front-steer rack, which means the TREs have to be outboard of the kingpin centreline, which more or less runs straight through the centreline of the strut on these. (if you don't know what ackermann angle is, google it, its a relatively simple principle)
you could move them inboard, but it would handle strangely and shred tyres in the corners, so isnt to be recommended.
the current wheels are stock mk2 golf- 14x6j ET38, but with a 3mm spacer as mentioned. ive banded a set out to 7.5j, and whith the mild stretch this will induce with the same size tyres, i wont need the spacer.
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Dez
Club Retro Rides Member
And I won't sit down. And I won't shut up. And most of all I will not grow up.
Posts: 11,784
Club RR Member Number: 34
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Jul 26, 2012 20:46:16 GMT
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so, wheels. yesterday, i laoded the boot up with lots of them- then took them to the sandblaster, and got them back a few hours later looking like this- so, i then took em from looking like this- to like this- nothing flash, jsut a brushed on coat of gloss black POR15, cos its tough and self levels well. i did all 4 weds eve- then this morning i sealed them, with sealant. for seams. known a seam sealer ;D - it was so hot today where i started had tacked off by the time id gone all the way round the wheel! so within a hour it was all dry. so i then fitted some tyres- hairsprayed em and put some air in- then washed the excess tyre soap off- the wheels were banded to widths based on tyre choices, ive gone for 165/60R14 on a 7.5" front, with 175/65R14 on an 8.5" rear. this gives em a kind of 'big n littles' look, but with even stretch. it also means I'm not using an obscure sized, expensive tyres- I'm using ones ive already got in stock! ready to try- id already folded under the arch lips in anticipation of rolling the arches. man that was hard work! this audi arches are so tough! (and absolutely perfect too, not surprising considering the amount of sealant on the insides of em. off the jack- yeah, thats a tight fit- these have already been rolled! it then too me about two hours of absolute abuse to get them to not rub. problem was the arches were just too stiff to flare when rolled, even with a couple of people in the back of the car. a bodywork hammer wouldnt touch em, so i had to resort to the ghetto method of a big adjustable spanner to lever them out, then judicous application of a big ball pein hammer. it was equivelent to bending 4mm plate by similar methods! so, absolutely knackered after that, i took it for a drive to get some tea to check i was rubbage-free before tidying up the smacked about arches. looks alright i think- i now need to knock the rear arches around a bit more to tidy them up before some filler work, then add 10mm or so spacers on the front (which i need some longer bolts to do so) before folding in and flaring out the front arch lips to match the shape of the rears. its coming together nicely though
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ChasR
RR Helper
motivation
Posts: 10,256
Club RR Member Number: 170
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Jul 26, 2012 21:21:15 GMT
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I preferred the Fuchs caps on the wheels myself, but I must say that I do like how you have gone about getting working suspension and not simply 'slammed' suspension in addition to getting that stance spot on . It certainly sounds as if the Audi is in the right hands .
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Mike
East Midlands
Posts: 3,387
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Jul 26, 2012 21:21:25 GMT
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I'd say that's pretty much spot on!
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