Page turn recap:
It was pointed out to me today that on Friday the winner of last years Challenge left my driveway actually sitting on my trailer. Today the last place car according to the official magazine results took it's place. Riggamort told me that it wants a rematch and as I walked away I swear I heard it say something under it's breath about someone not having cojones in the drags.
Oh, bless your sweet heart!
In reply to Stampie :
Glad to see you got that car. It with your favorite Aluminum LS and 4 good bump stops should give you a great chance to win the next Challenge.
If you have budget room you can take a splash mold off the front end and take some serious weight off the front of it.
If you don't already know how I'll be taking pictures step by step and posting them on my progress report.
In reply to frenchyd :
I'll do a plans for Riggamort later but no LS. As far as the front end, no front end is lighter than a fiberglass one.
When we first talked about me buying Riggamort before the Challenge I said that I needed to sit in it and make sure I fit. I realized yesterday in Georgia that I never made sure.
First order of business was get all the spare parts out of the interior. That filled two large totes and there was still bigger stuff like the extra roll bars, steering rack, and four steel Pontiac wheels.
Then I got to see if I fit.
Getting both feet in took a little work but it's doable. After that I made voom voom noises until I felt rain drops.
So what's the plan for Riggamort? I want to keep Riggamort as Riggamort. The biggest change I was thinking about was manual trans but I'm not sure three pedals will fit in there. Everyone says to keep the patina but do you keep that and in the process let the car deteriorate? The bonnet is missing most of it's back edge. The patches for the cut out bugeyes leave a lot to be desired. Lots of thinking to do.
First I need to get the motor running. Next after that is redo the trans cross member and check out what was hitting on the driveshaft. After that who knows.
I might part with this.
But of course I am still in Nevada.
Cable clutch, activate by a chunk of motorcycle hardware. Get that grip strength up.
Alternatively, solenoid activated clutch. Just dump that bastard every time.
In reply to RichardSIA :
I was thinking earlier today that I needed to contact you. PM sent.
In reply to Mr_Asa :
I kinda of like the idea of dumping it every time.
In reply to Stampie :
Another one! hook it up to a thigh master! Squeeze them quads together to shift!
Ok, that one may have been silly.
With the right transmission you could just go bangshifting all over the place.
In reply to Stampie :
Do you have enough budget room left to buy an aluminum LS? You can spend a lot of money just getting a small block to where the LS already is. If the small block is any good at all trade it for the LS
I don't think a 4-5-6 speed manual will make it as fast as an automatic for the drag race and autocross. With the Sprite's light weight. Plus the power of that LS and automatic if just performing normal should put you at the front of the challenge.
The handling should be dealt with by 4 good bump stops. That suspension approach has already been successfully used. You could spend a lot of money trying to beating those.
Fixing the hood is not going to hurt your budget since the old one is the pattern ( which doesn't count) material to fix it won't count. The mold won't count and all that will count is the actual material spent making the part.
That would probably cost less than shipping. ( or fuel to go get it ).
I'm sure young me could have that whole front end looking great in a Weekend. There are some body working tricks and tools* to do that. Just buy gallons of bondo.
* a straight edge about 3 feet long and an air file. One person to mix and spread the second to pull it straight.
In reply to frenchyd :
Riggamort will not have an LS. Thank you for your input.
In reply to Mr_Asa :
You are starting to sound like me after a few whiskeys.
In reply to Stampie :
Sorry, I thought you liked them. Fair enough.
In reply to frenchyd :
I like them and they serve their purposes. My truck has one. Nader has one. There's a history on Riggamort that I want to preserve. Doug bought it from an estate sale and tried to find out more information about who and why it was built. Unfortunately the builder is/was put in a nursing home. Doug tried to get the family to give him some history but they didn't seem interested. I want to keep Riggamort the way the original builder intended and maybe hopefully better than he intended but I'm not going to change what was done. I think Doug did a great job in saving this car from whatever faith it was heading towards. I think Doug was exceptional in trying to preserve it and get it to the Challenge in a very tight timeframe. Looking at it and talking to him I think my job will be easy. But I hope that some old guy in a nursing home in Michigan is happy that his car is kicking some shiny somewhere.
Glad to see this project continues; I'm excited to follow along!
As I said in the earlier thread on riggamort, much can be assisted via a Kart-like seating position, canted back and knees bent. it woud give you overhead clearance, but also might be able to move the pedals back and give more room for a clutch pedal
Stampie said:In reply to frenchyd :
I like them and they serve their purposes. My truck has one. Nader has one. There's a history on Riggamort that I want to preserve. Doug bought it from an estate sale and tried to find out more information about who and why it was built. Unfortunately the builder is/was put in a nursing home. Doug tried to get the family to give him some history but they didn't seem interested. I want to keep Riggamort the way the original builder intended and maybe hopefully better than he intended but I'm not going to change what was done. I think Doug did a great job in saving this car from whatever faith it was heading towards. I think Doug was exceptional in trying to preserve it and get it to the Challenge in a very tight timeframe. Looking at it and talking to him I think my job will be easy. But I hope that some old guy in a nursing home in Michigan is happy that his car is kicking some shiny somewhere.
There are more important things than winning a race.
In reply to Mr_Asa :
Stampie is playing the infinite game
life is more than a series of goals/deadlines/races/competitions. Playing for the love of the game is the path to enlightenment and happiness
Stampie said:In reply to frenchyd :
I like them and they serve their purposes. My truck has one. Nader has one. There's a history on Riggamort that I want to preserve. Doug bought it from an estate sale and tried to find out more information about who and why it was built. Unfortunately the builder is/was put in a nursing home. Doug tried to get the family to give him some history but they didn't seem interested. I want to keep Riggamort the way the original builder intended and maybe hopefully better than he intended but I'm not going to change what was done. I think Doug did a great job in saving this car from whatever faith it was heading towards. I think Doug was exceptional in trying to preserve it and get it to the Challenge in a very tight timeframe. Looking at it and talking to him I think my job will be easy. But I hope that some old guy in a nursing home in Michigan is happy that his car is kicking some shiny somewhere.
I completely understand. I saved the Black Jack from a worse shape. When I restored it Instead of the Holman & Moody 427 that was last used in it. I put a original Jaguar. Jack Baker the guy who built it Mentioned the Ford when he drove it at the race track after I restored it.
Because I don't want to forget stuff I like to keep a rolling budget in the thread.
We've busted out of half budget now:
Riggamort $1000
13x7 steel wheels $20
Total $1020
In reply to Stampie :
Recoupe available ?
In reply to Indy - Guy :
Oh yeah. I foresee it being half budget eligible. Other than maybe a head gasket I think most of what I'll do is budget exempt.
Stampie, you still have this one? Not that I want it back but been thinking about it lately!
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