Mk1 Escort (Ratspeed) project build....

[madragon199]

Hi matt..thanks....it weighs 8kg...so not super light..but it is super strong...i can easly stand on it....that was my main aim..i looked at a lot of other spoilers and i could lean on them sideways and they just wobbled and moved...couldnt see the point if they had no strength....cheers mark

[Mondo H'n'S]

I am genuinely in awe of people who can take a totally rotten shell and rebuild it into something solid again, especially when they make the lion's share of it from scratch like you have!

Superb!

[madragon199]

I am genuinely in awe of people who can take a totally rotten shell and rebuild it into something solid again, especially when they make the lion's share of it from scratch like you have!

Superb!

Thanks ..this site inspires people to have a go... cheers mark

[davblue]

some project there
and talent
now this sure is worth a watch
keep up the good work m8

[madragon199]

some project there
and talent
now this sure is worth a watch
keep up the good work m8

Thanks...will post some updates when i get home tonight...cheers mark

[madragon199]

Fabbing the rear wing...i used 0.9mm ally for the the complete rear wing...i designed the wing so i could make 99% at home while watching the telly...using basic tooling...



piece of 10mm diameter rod bent to the shape required....this was clamped to the ally and used to form the edge radius..with the good old hammer..


The inner core poly block from the 99p store..


strip of 1.5 mm x 20 mm ally strip. i used this to create an inner structure..and to give me a uniform finished width..(20mm + 0.9mm + 0.9mm)


cut the side profiles (horse heads) with the tin snips 4 off the same..




put the top bends on 2off l/h and 2off r/h...bent on the table edge...


then using the rod as a forming template put a 5mm rad on the top and side edges with the good old hammer...






i was going to ally braise the two halfs together..but after testing i changed my mind and decided to use 16mm flat head pop rivits

i wanted to keep the surface flush so i needed to counter dimple the horse head sides for the rivits...

so used the tool i made on my other project (down draught head)



OB-round dimple tool (washer cut in half) this is for the adjuster slot to alter the angle of spoiler


rivit block joiner ..these hold the two halves together..

dimpled///with rivit blocks..




assembly of the two halves...

rivit the blocks to one side,,
cut the foam core to size and shape (bread knife worked best)
cut and fit the ally strips to the same side..

and you end up with this..



you can see the fixing bolts also installed...

placed the other side on and rivited the two halves together....

one side finished...and grain sanded tom create a 3d effect ..and the other side ready for dimples and assy


you can see the two halfs and the 5mm rads where they meet...and also where the adjuster slot dimple will go...



once the two halfs where assembled i used some black bumper(flexible filler) to fill the edges where the two halfs meet, to create a "factory joint"

finished no paint just a polish..



now on to the rear wing spoiler main..

i decided to use the N.A.C.A flat wing design (most down force with least drag) almost flat top edge with a tail...



i used a wing profile programme (plane....on the net) to size the actual wing and to get the correct shape..

and built it the same as a plane wing...

like this..


so ..cut the inner assembly with the tin snips...didnt need to be super exact..

the marked and drilled the fixing holes these all needed to be exact..as these would be my datum points..

made a template with ply wood and using the fixing holes to secure(datum) ..bent the shapes around the former..i now have all my "ribs" formed and they are all exactly the same...







i used thin wall ally tube to make the lateral strengtheners...all fixed with m8/6 ally bolts...

the main nose shape (curve ) is the largest diameter and the ribs need the ends cut to accept this..







First lay out of wing parts...before final fixing







Next job is to join all the parts ...and then wrap in a single piece of ally sheet...

later ...cheers mark

[rick deregus]

Hi I like your way of thinking, if you need any ally welding doing give me a call

[madragon199]

Hi I like your way of thinking, if you need any ally welding doing give me a call

Thanks rick...yes more ally to weld..will give you a call....and thanks for the floor pans...all fitted a treat(with a bit of hammering)...cheers mark

[Matt75]

Fucking awesome. Im building a Grp 2 Zakspeed Replica and may just steal your design if that's ok. Your workis amazing.

If you make a spare I'll buy it for sure

Keep it up

Matt

[madragon199]

[QUOTE=Matt75;2764306]Fucking awesome. Im building a Grp 2 Zakspeed Replica and may just steal your design if that's ok. Your workis amazing.

If you make a spare I'll buy it for sure

Keep it up

Thanks mate.. any pics of your project....

heres some " diags" i used to work size and shape....no problem if you copy...if you need any advice just ask





gives an idea of size...


cheers mark

[rwd2ltrfiesta]

Erm, wow hardly discribes it, such a complex idea simplified to a diy process, I'm in awe that for dam sure,

[madragon199]

Once all the ribs ect were made...it was time to assy ...brought some ally m8 bolts..and cut them to length(cheapest available were 50mm long and anodised pink)..




Then bolted all the parts together using yhread lock to secure..



once was all assembled it was time to cover in a sheet of 0.9mm aluminium ..to make life easy and to get a square sheet..i ordered it cut to size...

i then bent it in a sequence of bends using a piece of kitchen workto as the former....



once bent i used a series of ratchet straps to hold the formed sheet tight to the inner structure while i drilled and rivited the hidden edges ..to form a ridged wing..(i used panel adesive on the tops and base of the ribs to make sure i had a good contact all round...)



Check fitting the end supports...



Thats as far as i can go ..untill the car is widened and a can make the base support and decide how high to set the wing...

Back on to the car steel work next

cheers mark

[Matt75]

This is awesome. I'll def look into making this too.

I've only just started my Zakspeed project but I'm taking inspiration from you.

Can't wait to see ehat else you come up with.

Cheers

Matt

[Warrior]

The work you have put in the is awesome and the craftsmanship is 2nd to none

[madragon199]

Thanks guys...

Back to the shells metal work..

Finished the two halves for the cross brace..ready to be welded together..





Welded the new tunnel floor in place... i had to pull the shell into square across the corners...used a ratched strap...worked a treat...welded in place and released ratche strap...and stayed dimensionally good....



the next jobs are...4 link boxes weld in...cross brace weld in...firewall lower brace weld in...and remove the old chassis rails....of course everything has to happen at once....its all tied together....

trial fit of parts....



I already had these 4 link boxes came in the boot of another car...so used them...i went as high as posible to get the car as low as posibble (if you no what i mean) i will make the axle bkts offset to fine tune the finished height.



bits of string g clamps and a big hammer to check fit....

happy with fit so removed and cut out the old chassis rails...









I will get to these later

4 link boxes jigged ready to weld..



cheers mark

[gorilla1q]

Cracking build so far with some excellent work, I love it

[madragon199]

Welding begins...







next is the fire wall lower brace....i am replacing the inner wheel tubs with some mk2 escort purchased from here....so its a temp weld untill the chassis rails are replaced...





The diff tunnel has no ribs across the top because the next brace will address this..
This piece ties the cross brace to the diff tunnell and reinforces the cross rail(hides the join) and will give the tunnell some cross strength...









All the parts welded...(top side only at moment...when i get some strength in the shell i will spin her over)



Made a gusset to tie the cross brace and the door jam together...

Before...(this is where the new(old) floor was welded to the old(old) shell..



After... Hides and reinforces the join



Next job is to make some chassis rails....i got the centre sections of e bay 15 each...so just the rest to make..

i ordered some 1.6mm m/s sheet..

but before i start to cut i need to see where the wheel and axle sits....

so a quick mock up with the wheel.....im using a 15" x 10" wheel ..



This is where i want the wheel to sit....

cheers mark

[evans2822]

Impressive work mate well done

[Bloomers]

Amazing work, buddy. look forward to seeing updates

[madragon199]

Next step was to fit a tyre and set the ride height....

Tyre is p7 285x40x15....when fitted measures 295mm x 595mm...



i had to remove some metal to make room...

The end result ..i need to make 75mm clearance on the chassis rails....i cant notch them as they are only about 55mm deep...

so the plan Make some new ones....my old chassis rails were toast...so i was always going to make new ones..

old chassis rails...





The plan see pic below......



So i invested in a sheet of 1.6mm tin and started cutting and bending....i made the chassis rail in two parts

and even though im not using springs i built the spring hangers/skids...which needed to look factory and keep the datum hole in the correct position..but because my new chassis rail is altered..they are a complete new design

pics as it happened..













































One side finished one to go....

Started cutting the arches out ....inner and outer are going as the inner tubs are just rust...i strengthened the shell again...



then started cutting (after a lot of measuring)







Im going to use mk2 escort inner tubs..these are staying standard..and are being kept for the turrets to mount on.....the actual wheel and axle combination takes the wheel past the tubs...

The body will be stretched 8" ...4" on each side and then the arches will be fitted.

cheers mark

[evans2822]

Looks great well done

[QuIcKrAcK]

Be the good feck lad, that is a project and a half.
Love it man!

[rwd2ltrfiesta]

How are you gunna stretch the body 4 inches each side

[CrazyPolak]

Massive project and goes to show what can be done

[madragon199]

How are you gunna stretch the body 4 inches each side

This is the plan...



Cheers mark

[GMB77N]

Why are you doing that rather than just binning the old tubs and putting new ones in? I would have thought that with the raised chassis rails the old tubs would be obsolete - but I've never done anything like this, so I'm probably missing something fundamental.

Superb project, really well done.

[madragon199]

Ok..so the chassis rail is ready to weld..and the mk2 escort inner well is ready to weld...but before i can do any of that i need to make the new moosive inner tubbs ...these will tie the inner well. the existing body shell...the new body shell...and the provide attachment for the bubble archs..

the diameter of the tubbs are 1200mm...

because the rolled edge is so long about 1650mm i made this part in two halves...and welded them together..

[madragon199]

Why are you doing that rather than just binning the old tubs and putting new ones in? I would have thought that with the raised chassis rails the old tubs would be obsolete - but I've never done anything like this, so I'm probably missing something fundamental.

Superb project, really well done.

Yes i could of....but i want to keep the inside looking factory...and it gives me my coilovers turret mount position...cheers mark

[GMB77N]

Yes i could of....but i want to keep the inside looking factory...and it gives me my coilovers turret mount position...cheers mark

Cool. Look forward to seeing it come together.

[madragon199]

So onward and upward....

pics of the making of the new tubs...

The metal for the rolled edge its 850 x 300mmm and theres 2 off



Using an oil drum and a ratchet strap to form my radius edge...it doesnt matter that the oil drum is to small..when the radius is formed its easy to flatten out the curve to the 600mm rad....







when both halves were made a welded them together....



then trial fitted it to match the cut i made earlier in the shell...



while its in position i will use it as a template to cut the inner piece...



marked with sharpie



cut and seam welded on the inner face..to create a folded edge..i will lay some tacks down later on the front edge..



1000mm diameter...



need to rough trim the inner edge then re fit and mark the m2 escort well position and remove cut and weld...ect



all for now cheers mark

[Cort500]

This is fantastic!! Great fab work mate, this is going to look mint!

[madragon199]

This is fantastic!! Great fab work mate, this is going to look mint!

Thanks ...

[rwd2ltrfiesta]

This is the plan...



Cheers mark

Simples then

[madragon199]

Simples then

LOL...seemed a good idea at the time...

[bodger rogers]

great work mate love the fab

[madragon199]

small update...dry fit/cut...no welding yet...

dry fitted the chassis rail....i had left the leaf spring attached to the shackles so i could get an easy fitting reference







then fitted the new outer tub in position



then trimmed the mk2 inner arch to fit between the chassis rail and outer arch



then marked the cut line for the new outer arch...



that took a whole day

to keep busy while watching the tele at home i started prepping the sh#t rear fiberglass arches that were on the car...

because they are single layer and been abused...my plan is to make them in carbon fibre...

i am going to use these as the meat in a carbon fibre sandwich...so fill, sand,prime,sand,paint,sand,fill ect









cheers mark

[Matt75]

Loving the flares.

Matt

[madragon199]

Loving the flares.

Matt

Thanks matt....hope it inspires you to finish your build...cheers mark

[Matt75]

Cheers Mate,

I've just stripped the carso work can begin soon.

I'll post some pics as it develops more.

Cheers

Matt

[escortinadriver]

This is simply awesome.

Loved the downdraught head and great to see such an equally unique engineering masterpiece for it to go into.

You sure do have some fabrication skills and a way solving problems.

Keep up the write up.

Shaun