LocostUSA.com

Last of these for now.. I ran out of 1.5 x .095 steel, so I'll need to go back and add diagonals and the 3rd leg another time..

--ccrunner

_________________
Dean

1972 Honda N600 Restomod "ccrunner's N600 VFR800 repower"

1963 Volvo P1800 Restomod
http://locostusa.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=36&t=16309

1959 Berkeley SE492 Restomod...
viewtopic.php?f=36&t=19397

"ccrunner's 1960 MGA coupe Restomod" found on MGExp.com

A minor trimming of a generic trunk latch that I found on Amazon.. I'm pretty sure I'm going to end up using it as a hood latch in a few months.. had to test for fit..

Those goobers in the fetching overalls are my oldest daughter Sierra and I.. For Christmas my wife gave us a session at "iFLY Indoor Skydiving" in Roseville, CA (they have several locations).. What fun this ending up being! Our instructor was wonderful, and I learned quickly that I do not have nearly the body control that I thought I had! It was a good time

--ccrunner

_________________
Dean

1972 Honda N600 Restomod "ccrunner's N600 VFR800 repower"

1963 Volvo P1800 Restomod
http://locostusa.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=36&t=16309

1959 Berkeley SE492 Restomod...
viewtopic.php?f=36&t=19397

"ccrunner's 1960 MGA coupe Restomod" found on MGExp.com

She's cute, but what about that nose?

With the doors and rear clip mostly straight and in primer, my attention now shifts to the nose of the car. I thought it would be easier to sand/ remove the low-quality red paint while the nose is still on the car. It actually sanded off pretty easily, but then again, when you run 40 grit sandpaper over any paint, it's bound to come off sooner or later . Last shot just shows the dirty floor where all that red paint ended up.. I was surprise at the big 'pile' of paint that was produced when I swept the mess up.

--ccrunner

_________________
Dean

1972 Honda N600 Restomod "ccrunner's N600 VFR800 repower"

1963 Volvo P1800 Restomod
http://locostusa.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=36&t=16309

1959 Berkeley SE492 Restomod...
viewtopic.php?f=36&t=19397

"ccrunner's 1960 MGA coupe Restomod" found on MGExp.com

Silly, Silly car guy..

Christmas was just a few weeks ago, and I thought I'd share what my daughter got for me.. The pictures really speak for themselves, and I thought it was pretty cool the way my custom Berkeley caricature turned out.. I love how the artist captured the little details in the pic, like the door hinges, wheel spokes, and various small details that make this car unique. Here's the Etsy link in case you'd like this done with your car:

https://www.etsy.com/listing/1529187223 ... nique-gift

...and of course, here's the source picture, and the resulting caricature..

--ccrunner

_________________
Dean

1972 Honda N600 Restomod "ccrunner's N600 VFR800 repower"

1963 Volvo P1800 Restomod
http://locostusa.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=36&t=16309

1959 Berkeley SE492 Restomod...
viewtopic.php?f=36&t=19397

"ccrunner's 1960 MGA coupe Restomod" found on MGExp.com

Fiberglass Work: Trunk Lid Edition

It's tough to get too excited about making fiberglass molds. It's a tedious process (for me anyway), requiring several steps and a fair amount of patience. The reality is I'm not particularly good at fiberglass work, but it's forgiving in that you just cut out your mistakes and do it again.

These next many pictures show the effort to make a mold (or is it called a buck?) for my eventual trunk lid, such as the trunk on this car goes. These pics are all of making the mold/ buck/pattern that will serve to create the final trunk lid. Seems simple, doesn't it? It is, but this glass work just seems to take me forever.

So here are way too many pictures of what isn't even the finished product

--ccrunner

_________________
Dean

1972 Honda N600 Restomod "ccrunner's N600 VFR800 repower"

1963 Volvo P1800 Restomod
http://locostusa.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=36&t=16309

1959 Berkeley SE492 Restomod...
viewtopic.php?f=36&t=19397

"ccrunner's 1960 MGA coupe Restomod" found on MGExp.com

More Glass Fun

Last few pics of this.. Part of what took so long to make this part is I started with a very ragged trunk lid. I spent a lot of time shaping and fixing that 'bad' source part so that it may serve as my needed mold- the blue/grey coating you see is bondo.. The last pic is as far as I got over break, and it may be confusing, but it is the (negative) mold which has not yet been separated from my original flawed/repaired buck.. Fiberglass experts feel free to chime in as I'm sure I'm using the wrong verbiage to describe this process

At this point, I need to simply separate the parts hidden in the last pic, and move forward as I can now create the final product.. Let's all hope it separates easily

--ccrunner

*This build log is now back in real time (1-12-24)

_________________
Dean

1972 Honda N600 Restomod "ccrunner's N600 VFR800 repower"

1963 Volvo P1800 Restomod
http://locostusa.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=36&t=16309

1959 Berkeley SE492 Restomod...
viewtopic.php?f=36&t=19397

"ccrunner's 1960 MGA coupe Restomod" found on MGExp.com

Not sure I am an "Expert", but your mold looks flexible so may produce a warped part?
Before removing it from the buck I would add a couple of reinforcements.
Be sure to use a material that will not "Draw" the underlying mold, NOT untreated wood.
You can use wood (Easy to shape) but must first cover it in a layer of resin.
I use plastic tubing as used in modern plumbing, cheap and flexible.
The layers of 'glass cloth creating a hollow rib will be what provides rigidity.

_________________
If I must be a one-man PC free zone, so be it!

Thanks for chiming in Richard.. good tip on glassing in ribs/ supports before I split these bits and potentially lose my desired shape! I will do this

*If I go with the plumbing hose route, do I need to coat them with resin, or just glass over them as-is?

_________________
Dean

1972 Honda N600 Restomod "ccrunner's N600 VFR800 repower"

1963 Volvo P1800 Restomod
http://locostusa.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=36&t=16309

1959 Berkeley SE492 Restomod...
viewtopic.php?f=36&t=19397

"ccrunner's 1960 MGA coupe Restomod" found on MGExp.com

You need to avoid using a material that will wick resin and pull the part, called "Draw".
The plastic tube is not porous.
I think that adding reinforcement near the corners would be pretty effective and minimize the chance of creating a "Shadow" in the flat areas.
I see that one edge has a fairly wide return, not sure about the others.
Showing my age, in the old days the paper tubes from coat hangers were commonly used and the waxed ones were best.

One more trick for you.
Synthetic Veil as your first layer after the gel-coat.
It is fantastic for eliminating pinholes.
You need to apply resin to it with a plastic squeegee, not a brush for best results.

_________________
If I must be a one-man PC free zone, so be it!

The roll bar doesn't look as outrageous with the rest of the body affixed.
Looking forward to hearing more on the MGA, mentioned in my Midget thread that I'm looking at adding a MGB to the garage.
iFly, we have one about 1/2 miles from our house, but we've never been. Or, we tried to go once & they were booked up for the evening.

Keep at it, Dean!

_________________
1975 MG Midget
http://www.locostusa.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=36&t=24382
13B Powered Rotus Geauxkart
http://www.locostusa.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=35&t=20899

Fickle Much?

Over time and several builds, I've learned that I get restless if my project takes more than 5 years... I've been on the Berk now for almost 6 years, and my mind has started to wander and imagine "what's next?"

I bring this up because the next thing has just arrived in my garage; a 1960 MGA Coupe! I seem to have developed a thing for LBCs, so this seemed an appropriate move. I imagine the Berkeley will take another 6 to 12 months to complete, so then it will be onto restomodding this little hardtop.

I'm not 100% sure where I'll go with the 'A'... maybe a Miata drivetrain? Maybe a 60* GM 3.4 V6 / 5 speed? Not sure. For the short term I plan to just getting running reliably in stock form, and see where the muse takes me. Since dragging it home, I've had a chance to go over it and see what it is or is not, and the #1 issue to tackle is to cheat the interior to allow myself more room. Once I get it to where I can comfortably drive it, then I plan to just use it as-is until I get the Berk done.

So with this new British cousin as a stable mate, what about the Berkeley? Well, I'll definitely finish it, but it will take more time as I now have 2 cars that need work (I normally just do one of these at a time).. I'm envisioning a 70/30 Berk-MGA split in time and effort. In the short term I'd like to get the MGA at least to the point where I can hop in and drive it in/out of the garage.

Side note, my wife has never liked the Berkeley, but she really likes this little MG.. it will be nice to have her blessing as this newest little project gets going

--ccrunner

_________________
Dean

1972 Honda N600 Restomod "ccrunner's N600 VFR800 repower"

1963 Volvo P1800 Restomod
http://locostusa.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=36&t=16309

1959 Berkeley SE492 Restomod...
viewtopic.php?f=36&t=19397

"ccrunner's 1960 MGA coupe Restomod" found on MGExp.com

Looks great, love that color for a classic MGA.
Instead of the 3.4 V6, you could try to shoehorn a LFX into it, with a 6MT from a later V6 Camaro or Cadillac ATS. 315hp on tap in a light little car, what could go wrong.

From those couple photos it looks in decent shape on the exterior, and look gigantic next to the Berk.

_________________
1975 MG Midget
http://www.locostusa.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=36&t=24382
13B Powered Rotus Geauxkart
http://www.locostusa.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=35&t=20899

Funny you mentioned that LFX JAMADOR.. I looked long and hard at that little V6 while researching the MGA platform.. The tape measure says it's nearly 4" too tall, even if I notch the crossmember and/ or oil pan, BUT, I haven't given up on that one yet.. Now that I have the actual car, I'll soon be able to get a better idea of what's what when trying to shoehorn that LFX 300 normally-aspirated ponies and torques into this little MGA.. I'd be the first one to arrive at the scene of the accident

This car is a little rough, but complete- good bones I think.. I haven't found any rust yet, but I'm sure there's some hiding somewhere.. Ideally in this case, the exception, not the rule.

It's weird to say that the tiny MGA dwarfs the Berkeley, but it's true. It's somewhat ironic that I have such a hard time fitting in the MGA as it's big in comparison.

Almost forgot- I've started a build log on the MGA here: https://www.mgexp.com/forum/mga-forum.2 ... d.4748126/

--ccrunner

_________________
Dean

1972 Honda N600 Restomod "ccrunner's N600 VFR800 repower"

1963 Volvo P1800 Restomod
http://locostusa.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=36&t=16309

1959 Berkeley SE492 Restomod...
viewtopic.php?f=36&t=19397

"ccrunner's 1960 MGA coupe Restomod" found on MGExp.com

I'd be curious if you could shave some height going to a dry sump & a super slim oil pan. Surely so.eone makes a dry sump kit for the LFX.

I'll be sure to check out your mgexp thread too!

Hopefully I'll be starting a new one soon too.

_________________
1975 MG Midget
http://www.locostusa.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=36&t=24382
13B Powered Rotus Geauxkart
http://www.locostusa.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=35&t=20899

Dean,
They look pretty good sitting next to one another, but the MGA sure dwarfs the Berkeley.

I’m really looking forward to what drivetrain you pick. While I’m partial to the Miata update, the others mentioned so far sound intriguing. Several guys have done the GM 3.4 V-6. All the V-8 mods require butchering the frame too much in my opinion. I will be following both builds closely.

Cheers,
Eric

_________________
MGiata current build here: https://www.mgexp.com/forum/mga-forum.2 ... n.3898051/