C3 Roll Cage help?
Thread Starter
Pro
Joined: Sep 2008
Posts: 508
Likes: 1
From: Olive Branch MS
C3 Roll Cage help?
Can someone with a C3 and 10 point roll cage help me out? On the 2 bars that are in front of the driver, that go from halo bar above the driver to the floor by the drivers foot, how is yours attached to the floor/frame? Is it somehow welded directly to the frame rail there (doesn't seem possible by itself), or did you use a 6" plate welded to the floor, or can you weld a bracket off the frame and weld the bar to it?
Just wanted to see what has been done and what's legal for tech.
Thanks in advance!
Just wanted to see what has been done and what's legal for tech.
Thanks in advance!
Pro
Joined: Jun 2005
Posts: 543
Likes: 0
From: East Lyme CT
The front bars you describe are acceptable for certification if you weld a box or bracket of appropriate thickness to the interior side of the frame rail for the purposes of then mounting the bar to it. I can't recall the thickness of the plate but it should be at least 3/16" or thicker. I believe the NHRA rule book covers that thickness.
Besides peeling back the carpet and sound padding a cutout of the floor pan needs to be made in order to expose the frame rail. The dimensions of the box or bracket on mine are not large - maybe 2 1/2" square in order to support the bar. In essence you end up expanding the frame rail into the interior.
You cannot weld a plate to the floor pan itself.
Hope that helps. I can't get you a picture because I reinstalled my carpet over it and around the bar.
Besides peeling back the carpet and sound padding a cutout of the floor pan needs to be made in order to expose the frame rail. The dimensions of the box or bracket on mine are not large - maybe 2 1/2" square in order to support the bar. In essence you end up expanding the frame rail into the interior.
You cannot weld a plate to the floor pan itself.
Hope that helps. I can't get you a picture because I reinstalled my carpet over it and around the bar.
Thread Starter
Pro
Joined: Sep 2008
Posts: 508
Likes: 1
From: Olive Branch MS
Thank you very much for that information. That is exactly what I was looking for. I saw in the NHRA book somewhere where it talked about attaching to something other than the frame and it had minimum dimensions for a mounting surface I believe.
I already have the rest of the roll cage tacked in and a square cut over the frame by the drivers foot, but when I saw that the frame was actually angled there I had to stop and do some research.
I already have the rest of the roll cage tacked in and a square cut over the frame by the drivers foot, but when I saw that the frame was actually angled there I had to stop and do some research.
Instructor
Joined: Mar 2002
Posts: 165
Likes: 0
From: tx
Cage in C3
My door bars extend from the main hoop all the way up, through the floor and attach to the front frame. In place of the halo…the bar that runs from the main hoop and then along the top of the door window and down the “A” pillar attaches to the door bar. Then there is a short piece of tubing that intersects the door bar in line with this bar and connects to the side frame rail.
In the second to last picture you can see the passenger side door bar and the support that goes over to the frame. http://home.earthlink.net/~geaton/
In the second to last picture you can see the passenger side door bar and the support that goes over to the frame. http://home.earthlink.net/~geaton/
Thread Starter
Pro
Joined: Sep 2008
Posts: 508
Likes: 1
From: Olive Branch MS
That's a different approach. It looks like if fits pretty tight, too. Unfortunately, I'm using a kit so I'm stuck with my configuration. It's coming along pretty good and with some small tweaks it fits pretty good actually.
Those are really good times on a small block! Even your N/A times are incredible. Shoot, you are running faster than Hoche's car and he has a pretty large engine!
Thanks for the input on this guys. I just want to get this thing to pass tech so I can race some of the series they are having in our area next season.
Those are really good times on a small block! Even your N/A times are incredible. Shoot, you are running faster than Hoche's car and he has a pretty large engine!
Thanks for the input on this guys. I just want to get this thing to pass tech so I can race some of the series they are having in our area next season.
3rd Gear
Joined: Nov 2009
Posts: 3
Likes: 0
Can someone with a C3 and 10 point roll cage help me out? On the 2 bars that are in front of the driver, that go from halo bar above the driver to the floor by the drivers foot, how is yours attached to the floor/frame? Is it somehow welded directly to the frame rail there (doesn't seem possible by itself), or did you use a 6" plate welded to the floor, or can you weld a bracket off the frame and weld the bar to it?
Just wanted to see what has been done and what's legal for tech.
Thanks in advance!
Just wanted to see what has been done and what's legal for tech.
Thanks in advance!
[/IMG]
3rd Gear
Joined: Nov 2009
Posts: 3
Likes: 0
I welded a 6 inch X 3/8 inch plate to bottom of frame. I cut a hole in the floor big enough to be able to weld all sides. Also installed gussits or how ever you spell it. To the side of the frame to the plate welded to the frame. Welded the down bars first before the qussits. To make this easier, tack the cage together first then look at it to see what is the hardest to weld. Then cut the tack welds to move the cage around to final weld. Tack all of cage and look at it first and make a plan. If I can figure out how to send pictures I will.
Corvette Stories
The Best of Corvette for Corvette Enthusiasts
Top 10 Most Expensive Corvettes Ever Sold on Bring A Trailer
Brett Foote
10 Things Every Corvette Owner Needs (2026 Edition)
Michael S. Palmer
8 Most "Only Corvette Owners Understand" Quirks and Problems
Pouria Savadkouei
10 Reasons the C6 Z06 is Still A Performance Benchmark After 20 Years
Joe Kucinski
How Much Horsepower Every Corvette Engine "LOST" in 1972
Joe Kucinski
Top 10 DOs and DON'Ts for Protecting Your Convertible Top!
Michael S. Palmer
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
