Roll Cage - step 1
Thread Starter
Team Owner
Joined: Apr 1999
Posts: 21,953
Likes: 1,445
From: Reno Nevada
2024 C3 of the Year Finalist- Modified
Roll Cage - step 1
Just in case you’re interested in making your car legal For NHRA Super gas 9.90 secs or SCCA Pro Solo II or feel the need to exceed 200 mph at The Bonneville Salt flats. This is my new 6-point. It will be an 8-point soon. I wanted to try it out and see what mods need to be made. That's why the passenger seat is still stock. C-3's are small inside and when you add bars it's worse. I had to leave room to operate the lights wipers and hood release. My seat mounts have to be modified so I can move the seat 1 1/2 inches back flush with the body and tilted 10 - 15 degrees. The Sparco racing seats are made to sit nearly straight up and down. These are fiberglass seats that only weight 12.6 pounds. I still have to have the rear sound material and upholstery done. I also have to have a fire system installed. It's a twin system for under the hood and drivers compartment.
The best part is it's still my Daily driver!
[Modified by gkull, 9:42 AM 12/28/2001]
The best part is it's still my Daily driver!
[Modified by gkull, 9:42 AM 12/28/2001]
Safety Car
Joined: Dec 1999
Posts: 4,148
Likes: 5
From: Roxbury NJ
Re: Roll Cage - step 1 (gkull)
Daily driver? Very cool! I bet you'll turn a few heads at stoplights when they notice the bar :crazy:
How hard is it to get in and out? (or do you do a "Dukes of Hazzard" exit :))
How hard is it to get in and out? (or do you do a "Dukes of Hazzard" exit :))
Thread Starter
Team Owner
Joined: Apr 1999
Posts: 21,953
Likes: 1,445
From: Reno Nevada
2024 C3 of the Year Finalist- Modified
Re: Roll Cage - step 1 (jimduchek)
Flareside - It's a pain to get in and out of. I'm thinking about swingouts on the 45 degree door bar. At least on the passenger side.
Jim - The race fab shop here only does Porsches and off road pickups. They also do sprint cars and various circle track repairs. So I have a test model C-3. With other input, they really want to see how others were done. I'm already thinking of a few changes. The price kind of got out of hand like everything.
Sparco seats, mounts, and cam lock 5 point belts $1300
The agreed upon price for the bars with my mods and finish with 8 points was $1200. I have to redo the rear so I don't know how much that will cost. It might be $3000 by the time I'm done.
If you look you can see my trouble light behind the seat. So I have to modify the seat brackets to allow adjustment back and I want more tilt.
Jim - The race fab shop here only does Porsches and off road pickups. They also do sprint cars and various circle track repairs. So I have a test model C-3. With other input, they really want to see how others were done. I'm already thinking of a few changes. The price kind of got out of hand like everything.
Sparco seats, mounts, and cam lock 5 point belts $1300
The agreed upon price for the bars with my mods and finish with 8 points was $1200. I have to redo the rear so I don't know how much that will cost. It might be $3000 by the time I'm done.
If you look you can see my trouble light behind the seat. So I have to modify the seat brackets to allow adjustment back and I want more tilt.
Safety Car
Joined: Apr 2001
Posts: 4,795
Likes: 1
From: Regina Saskatchewan, Canada.
Re: Roll Cage - step 1 (gkull)
Looking good so far! What size is the wall thickness of the tubing, and are you going to paint it after all is said and done? Looks as if you might have to do a "Dukes of Hazzard" type entrance to get in your car :lol:
Corvette Stories
The Best of Corvette for Corvette Enthusiasts
Top 10 Most Explosive Corvettes Ever Made: Power-to-Weight Ratio Ranked!
Joe Kucinski
150 hp to 1,250 hp: Every Corvette Generation Compared by the Specs That Matter
Joe Kucinski
8 Coolest Corvette Pace Cars (and Replicas) of All Time
Verdad Gallardo
Top 10 Corvette Engines RANKED by Peak Torque (70+ Years of Muscle!)
Joe Kucinski
Corvette ZR1X Will Be Pacing the Indy 500, And Could Probably Race, Too!
Verdad Gallardo
Top 10 Corvettes Coming to Mecum Indy 2026!
Brett Foote
Top 10 C9 Corvette MUST-HAVES to Fix These C8 Generation Flaws!
Michael S. Palmer
10 Revolutionary 'Corvette Firsts' Most People Don't Know
Joe Kucinski
5 Reasons to Upgrade to an LS6-Powered Corvette; 5 Reasons to Stay LT2
Michael S. Palmer
Le Mans Master
Joined: Feb 1999
Posts: 5,877
Likes: 1
From: Park Ridge IL
Re: Roll Cage - step 1 (gkull)
Looks great, nice clean welds. $1300 ain't bad at all for all of that. Alot of people don't realize how expensive custom stuff can get - all the time required to measure, test fit, refit, etc. It really adds up. I am finding that out myself. Is that mild or moly?
How are you going to finish/paint the bars?
How are you going to finish/paint the bars?
Thread Starter
Team Owner
Joined: Apr 1999
Posts: 21,953
Likes: 1,445
From: Reno Nevada
2024 C3 of the Year Finalist- Modified
Re: Roll Cage - step 1 (Monty)
Monty - My buddy at the body shop will paint them if I do all the prep. and taping. I guess the color will be black unless I do metal flake blue like my motor. What do you think about a color? You can't easily do chromemoly in a car because you have to heat it to 400 degrees at all thepipe weld joints to aneal them. So it a crash they bend and don't break.
45ACP - Nhra requires .118 wall 1 3/4 mild steel. This is done with seemless .125 wall so it's way above specs. Overkill for safety.
Gordonm - My girl friend likes hot cars, I think that she looks good climbing in and out. Untill I get the sound absorbing and carpet all in I'm not giving rides. The stock rear interior does a great job of keeping the interior quiet.
[Modified by gkull, 1:02 PM 12/28/2001]
[Modified by gkull, 1:23 PM 12/28/2001]
45ACP - Nhra requires .118 wall 1 3/4 mild steel. This is done with seemless .125 wall so it's way above specs. Overkill for safety.
Gordonm - My girl friend likes hot cars, I think that she looks good climbing in and out. Untill I get the sound absorbing and carpet all in I'm not giving rides. The stock rear interior does a great job of keeping the interior quiet.
[Modified by gkull, 1:02 PM 12/28/2001]
[Modified by gkull, 1:23 PM 12/28/2001]
Thread Starter
Team Owner
Joined: Apr 1999
Posts: 21,953
Likes: 1,445
From: Reno Nevada
2024 C3 of the Year Finalist- Modified
Re: Roll Cage - step 1 (Injected)
Injected - That's what happen on mine also. They told me that my car would be ready the next day and then they called back cussing about that they couldn't put the TTops ons. So they had to cut the top hoop out. I even pointed that out when I took my car in. I went over everything that I needed to have working.
Race Director
Joined: Nov 2000
Posts: 16,416
Likes: 1
From: NC,USA
Re: Roll Cage - step 1 (gkull)
looks great... i never would have thout blue and green would go together, but dang that looks sweet...
Thanks for talking about the gear ratios, i think i have almost figured it out, the best part being i dont hope to go over 130 ever in this car, so i geuss i get out easy
ZD
Thanks for talking about the gear ratios, i think i have almost figured it out, the best part being i dont hope to go over 130 ever in this car, so i geuss i get out easy
ZD
Le Mans Master
Joined: Feb 1999
Posts: 5,877
Likes: 1
From: Park Ridge IL
Re: Roll Cage - step 1 (gkull)
I think balck would look, fine, that's typically what you see. Color matchiing would definitely give it a custom look, but I like a little contrast myself. What about a silver, or aluminum color, something like the aluminum color of Jet Hot coating. I know you can't Jet Hot it, but somehting that color.
Also, how did they secure it to the frame? Is is welded directly to the frame, thru the body, or did the weld stubs to the frame, sticking up through the body,and then bolt the cage to those stubs - so that you can still remove the body from the frame if you ever needed to? I don't know if that would be legal, probably not, but that's what has always been a cosndieration to me. Not that I ever lift my body off the frame, just something I wondered about.
By the way George, what's Step 2?
[Modified by Monty, 3:37 PM 12/28/2001]
Also, how did they secure it to the frame? Is is welded directly to the frame, thru the body, or did the weld stubs to the frame, sticking up through the body,and then bolt the cage to those stubs - so that you can still remove the body from the frame if you ever needed to? I don't know if that would be legal, probably not, but that's what has always been a cosndieration to me. Not that I ever lift my body off the frame, just something I wondered about.
By the way George, what's Step 2?
[Modified by Monty, 3:37 PM 12/28/2001]
Le Mans Master
Joined: Apr 2000
Posts: 5,202
Likes: 10
From: cincinnati ohio
St. Jude Donor '09
Re: Roll Cage - step 1 (Gordonm)
I'd like to see a girl in a tight mini skirt try to get in and out of it. :eek:
That looks like a real nice job. Cool daily driver :cool:
That looks like a real nice job. Cool daily driver :cool:
For the cage color I think I would consider matching the body color...