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The Blackbird Fabworx Time Attack Build - Creampuff

267K views 1K replies 209 participants last post by  hotrod59 
#1 · (Edited)
Guess it's time for me to start a build log for the new Blackbird Fabworx NB project.

Purpose of the build -
Creating a fun track day car that showcases some of the capabilities of Blackbird Fabworx.
Weapon of choice is a 2002 NB with the VVT, 6 speed, 3.9 Torsen, sport brakes etc..
This car is not intended to be used in competition but may be legal for some series like NASA super touring, instead, it will be remain a two seater to allow fun rides, instructing and possibly test drives for potential BFW customers.

Build plan -
The construction of the car will be broken into a few major phases and constant development on things that don't keep the car from heading out to the track.
Power level will be kept decidedly low, with the potential to have other drivers on board there's no need to increase the level of difficulty of driving the car.

Phase 1 - The initial diet of removing unnecessary stuff from the car includes gutting the interior, ditching the AC, PS, stock exahust from the downpipe back, chopping of select body panels and eliminating all glass from the car.
Then the tub will be partly seam welded.
Major fabrication items for this phase are a full cage, seat mounts, new exhaust system, custom coolant reroute, front panel / wind deflectorand a very minimal interior.
The car will be getting a bit of mechanical refresh - fluids, brake pads, hoses, lightweight flywheel and some more.
New suspension and wheels are of course in the order as well, more about it later.

Phase 1 is scheduled to be concluded in roughly two months and the plan is to hit the track on the beginning of december.

Phase 2 - The secondary diet is about to shed a lot more weight from the car, this will involve cutting good amounts of sheet metal off the car and replacing it with lighter items such as Carbon doors.
Removal of dead weight from wiring, tubular subframes and more.
This is also where aero development will come into play, the car will be getting a full makeover though the details will remain in the dark until there's a car to show, but trust me that this car will not be the standard splitter and wing affair ;)...

Phase 3 - Finally the motor will get some love to increase power levels by many additional ponies, not the kind that eats hay in the field, we're talking about ones that like their steak medium-rare.
Expect insanity at it's finest.

Here are some before shots, taken two days ago -






And here she is as of yesterday -



Stay tuned, this page is about to get exciting :twisted:

Moti @ Blackbird Fabworx
 
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#101 ·
Charlie, I can build it, but I can also build something better :cool:
Just a function of more experience and knowledge as well as better tooling.

Started working on the driver seat mount today since it's much easier now before the door bars go in.
Didn't bother weighing the cutout piece and the new insert, I figured out by the time I'm done with it it'll be a wash, the tunnel insert weighs a bit more but the front mounting bridge weighs a bit less...
The insert was made out of a single piece of sheet metal folded into shape and then fully welded.



Moti
 
#111 ·
quoted for truth. Helped Broketuner remove that black junk on the floor pan with this... peeled off an 8x8 piece easy! should've used it to try to remove a small dent in fender while I was at it ... ah well.
 
#115 ·
Moti, i tried searching and stalking your threads but i couldnt find anything. Do you have a build log of the NA mentioned above? i would like to read more on the wing and diffuser setup. thanks.

love what youre doing to the NB btw. these updates are great!
 
#117 ·
Moti, i tried searching and stalking your threads but i couldnt find anything. Do you have a build log of the NA mentioned above? i would like to read more on the wing and diffuser setup. thanks.

love what youre doing to the NB btw. these updates are great!
The NA that Charlie linked a pic of isn't my car.
It was Terry Pham's car (I think) that had the rear bumper and sections of the diffuser from my Blackbird.
Terry bought them from me when I parted the Blackbird out.

My NA never had a build log or anything, heh, CR.net didn't even exist at the time.
You'll need to do some digging in old posts on M.net to find info..

So today started with dry ice.
The tar patches needed to go so I can get the seat mounts done the way I want them.
Snapped this one when most of the tar was out -



By the time I got it all and most of the seam sealer, I weighed the shop vac (before and after) and it turned out that all this crap is worth 5 Lbs.
So that's 598 Lbs. down.
Holy crap, that's a lot of weight.

I also started stitching the tub.
My main focus is on finishing every bit of hard fabrication (cutting, welding etc.. that needs to be done inside the car before the cage going in because it'll make life way more difficult once it's in.

Moti
 
#129 ·
Seam welding of the inside of the tub is done.
I still need to seam weld key areas in the engine bay and around the rear suspension, But I'll get those done only when I'll be working in the area.

Did much of the final measuring for the cage today, I'll probably finish the driver seat mount tomorrow and get on the mounting plates for the cage.





Moti
 
#132 · (Edited by Moderator)
Seam welding of the inside of the tub is done.
I still need to seam weld key areas in the engine bay and around the rear suspension, But I'll get those done only when I'll be working in the area.

Did much of the final measuring for the cage today, I'll probably finish the driver seat mount tomorrow and get on the mounting plates for the cage.

you should fill in the holes with great stuff. pipe foam
 
#133 ·
whats your seam sealer removal technique?
screw driver + wire wheel?
Wide strips come out beautifully with a sharp wood chisel, the rest is a combination of the above three different kinds of wire wheels, one of which was made for this purpose by having the speed reduced so the silicone doesn't melt, it simply grinds away.

Moti
 
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