If I was you, I would sell the Mickey Thompson's now and you should have more than enough money to buy the Shorty's. You will get more for them now than you will after they get dented & scraped up.
Hey Mike, While you are 100% right, they are already pretty banged up. Several tubes have been repaired in the past. They also have a lot of sentimental value. George has taken care of me over the years, including a free Edelbrock performer intake and these headers for a cheap price. If I don’t use them on this car, they will find there way on another project. Maybe it’s time to spring for the shorties and down pipes
Mostly successful day. Like the RideTech kit, the Baer kit was a breeze to install. Bolt on and go. My only issue was with the hardware that bolted the caliper to the spindle. 2 bolts were 1/8” too long and didn’t have enough thread to tighten flush. I used two shorter bolts from the spindle hardware. I’m thinking my steering arms are incorrect. I tried re-using the set from the drum brakes. Not only is the turning radius garbage (like @pbulski suggested), but the tie rod’s won’t align correctly with the arms. I did grind down the bump stops, but it didn’t seem to make much of a difference. My thought is to find a set from a factory disc brake car or buy an aftermarket set. @cray1801 , it looks like you went with an aftermarket set reading through your build thread, any insight here? Everything is mocked up. I’m waiting for my new brake lines to come in before plumbing the front setup. I repainted my booster using the old silver/gold adodnized paint trick to replicate the cadium painting. I was drinking a few beers in between coats, and think I went a little heavy on the gold. Good thing this isn’t a concours build!
Louie, the sad part.... it's tuff to find a steering arm that is ideal. I'm using the AFX arms and I machined them so they can go on the left or right sides. This way the angle could be towards the outside (best) or inside if they interfered with the rotor. Unfortunately they interfered with the rotor when turned out. This did not help my Ackerman, but with a bump steer kit at least, I could get the angle right to minimize bump steer. View from the front, right front tire View from the rear, right front tire
I'm running the same Baer kit (T4 front calipers) with factory drum spindles/arms and hadn't noticed anything off on my turning radius. Next time I have the car out I'll pay closer attention and see if it is wider than it should be.
Thanks Andy! They are the standard issue pads Baer provides for a 98-02 Camaro. As I get more into it, I’ll upgrade to a competition pad. Thanks! I think you should be fine because you are using the factory spindle/arm combination. Not yet, I’m still deciding on if I’m going to paint another hood or cut a hole in this one. I think there is a thread or 2 dedicated to cars that run a stage 2 hood.
Thanks! The pics really help. I think I mixed up my arms when I painted them. I’m pretty sure I installed the drivers side arm on the passenger side. Hopefully, that will fix the geometry on the tie rod.
Consider something from Hawk or EBC. The pads from Baer are not very good for anything beyond spirited street driving. Even Bear doesn't recommend them for an autocross application.
The Yellowstuff pad from EBC is awesome on the autocross and for short track use. If you don't mind the stereotypical squeal from "race brakes", you could step up to their Bluestuff pad for more bite.
If your steering wheel is straight, you will need a shorter outer tie-rod and maybe sleeve. Make note of tie-rod diameter and thread direction prior to ordering. If you have not checked your Ackerman yet, I suggest you do it. Bump steer would be next. Where will the sway bar connect?
Good choice with the Ridetech suspension. I had a chance to hang out with some of the guys from Ridetech after the Ft. Worth GoodGuys autocross last weekend. They are some smart people. My pro touring GS has 315 tires all around, but it took a massive amount of work to the fenders and fenderwells to make them fit on the front. By the way, I am selling the wheel and tire setup I was running. Black Forgestar F14 wheels 18x9 w/ 275 BFG Rivals for the front, and Black Forgestar F14 wheels 18x11 w/ 315 BFG Rivals on the rear. I can post pics if you are interested.
I got my wheels from @Jeff Peoples last week and mocked them up. Jeff was fantastic to work with and sold me an awesome set of wheels! Thanks again! The wheels will need some modification/spacers to fit perfectly as Jeff warned. I initially wanted to build this type of car because of the wheels/stance. This put it into perspective. I can’t wait to get it back on the ground.
looking good Louie! Jeff we missed you in BG this year. I want to see your new wheels, post some pics.
Still going here. Since last update, I’ve been focused on getting a 2.56 posi out of a ‘71 GS I sourced locally. This will be a temporary rear until I save enough to do the drivetrain. This was one of the crustiest rears I’ve seen, but it will get the job done. The axles are getting new bearings and longer wheel studs pressed in. Once I get them back, I’ll reassemble the rear and throw it in. Before then, I plan on getting the following done: Pull old rear Plumb new brake lines Fix one sway bar bolt that’s stripped out, and finish installation
Rear is together an ready for installation. I couldn’t be more impressed with the Ridetech and Baer components. Installation is so easy. I had new bearings pressed in the axles and longer wheel studs installed. The only issue I had was breaking free the old lower shock mount studs. I used the 350 to anchor the rear down... Rear goes back in Thursday.