@Sacto Mitch posted:.It is.
Especially when they include a subscription to Panorama.
I'm not sure everybody got that, since it's a bit of inside ball. Panorama is the monthly PCA magazine - it's like Excellence, only more self-congratulatory (if that's possible).
@Stan Galat posted:I'm not sure everybody got that, since it's a bit of inside ball. Panorama is the monthly PCA magazine - it's like Excellence, only more self-congratulatory (if that's possible).
It is, and it's also one of the reasons I let my PCA subscription lapse. I'm really not one of those pinky-in-the-air, portfolio-waving, 2nd-house-in-the-Bahamas, I-pay-people-to-do-that kind of guys.
@Stan Galat posted:I'm not sure everybody got that, since it's a bit of inside ball. Panorama is the monthly PCA magazine - it's like Excellence, only more self-congratulatory (if that's possible).
No kidding! When I was deciding which car to buy I joined PCA as the temporary "looking to buy" type member so I could peruse the PCA classified ads. The magazine comes with it. If you read only Panorama you will come to the conclusions that:
It's a pity. BMW guys get the bad rap, but it's always been Porsche guys who think their bathrooms don't need a fan.
At the recent PCA-Sponsored Cars and Coffee at Treehouse Brewing, the only car to sneak into a parking lot full of Porsches (with a big sign at the entrance stating "Porsche Parking ⇒ "
Was...... A BMW.
I have had a very positive experience with the local PCA folks. They invited me to join and one provided a VIN I could use. They like my car.
I am a PCA member and get Panorama. (Our 2007 Cayman S drove me to join.)
It's a hoot to look at the photos of small sections of a Porsche that are treated as though they were original Rembrandts.
Once in a while there is an article I like. The interview and article about Bruce Meyers and his old coupe bouncing around SoCal comes to mind.
@LI-Rick posted:Putting a Subaru in a Porsche replica is like putting a Chevy in a Cobra replica, just wrong!
Like they say, it's a big tent !! You do you ............ I have a Subaru in my speedster and love it! I would not change it for the world cause it does everything I want in a car and more. This is not my first time building a car with a different brand of motor in a different car. My 1932 Ford roadster has a Edelbrock built GM crate motor in it. That motor has 170K miles on it and it still going strong. My 1941 Cadillac convertible has a Jim Meyer racing chassis with and LS3 Chevy motor in it. I make my decisions based on what I know and what works for me. I want as much of a trouble free experience as possible and the goal it to enjoy the ride no matter what people think.
Somewhere, I think I can hear Ron White working up a sketch about Porsche owners.
I love thread drifts here... I've had my GTS (904) and Spyders on the cover of Panorama more than once, some times referred to as originals and other times just not differentiated, like they may have known and didn't say. I host PCA at the shop once a year at least, usually more, and have enjoyed local drives/events with them. they don't care if I drive my 911 or a Beck. BUT I am much more of a POC guy overall anyway. Around here POC is generally referred to as the racer crowd and PCA is the wine and cheese crowd, BUT again I've had fun with both...
I've posted this before, but my Replica Outlaw (with shaved trim and GASP! flared fenders ), sitting next to an all-numbers-matching,100-point, Original '56 Speedster at, of all events, "PorscheFest" at the Museum of Transportation in Boston and on the Cover of the Northeast PCA Monthly Rag. Same thing around here @chines1 - The racers are the fun group (some own replicas, too) and the wine and cheese set pretty much hang in a different group, happy to do a couple of "Destination Parades" each season, often at great distances. But the Northeast 356 club has aging members and cars worth way too much to risk driving, so they had exactly one event, a weekend event in Maine, this year. But then it rained most of the Summer, too.
The Air & Auto Classic in VA Beach is a PCA event. Folks there have been very cool to us in the MG Replica crowd over the years and they put the "Best Replica" plaque on my Spyder last month. I've had universally good relations with/reactions from the local group as well.
@edsnova posted:The Air & Auto Classic in VA Beach is a PCA event. Folks there have been very cool to us in the MG Replica crowd over the years and they put the "Best Replica" plaque on my Spyder last month. I've had universally good relations with/reactions from the local group as well.
At our last PCA event Anand's Spyder was given special recognition at our monthly C&C.
As with all things, it depends on which PCA people you meet or which PCA event you go to. Some of them are real car people and some are just Richard Craniums.
How's that Spyder doing? Last I remember he was still fettling it.
I got People's Choice at my PCA club picnic one year(2008?). The 2nd place and 3rd place "real" Porsche owners were pissed.
One year I was asked to bring my Spyder into a shop where they were having an event and talk about it. That was pretty cool.
I'm glad others really enjoy their regions, and that they are welcoming to us interlopers. Don't get me wrong, there are a LOT of really nice folks in the PCA. I'm friends with some of them, whether I'm in the PCA or not. But I'm a fabricator and a wrench guy with dirty hands. I like to drive a lot harder than most of them. I don't have "things done", I do them. That is most of the difference right there.
@DannyP posted:I don't have "things done", I do them. That is most of the difference right there.
That, exactly.
It is endlessly irksome, to those few of us who both do physical tasks and care about the meanings of words, to hear people say they "built" this office building or that vehicle when what they mean is "I checked some boxes, hired people and wrote some checks."
Real estate developers and salesmen have done this for decades. That car companies are now doing it drives me to the brink of violence.
@edsnova posted:That, exactly.
It is endlessly irksome, to those few of us who both do physical tasks and care about the meanings of words, to hear people say they "built" this office building or that vehicle when what they mean is "I checked some boxes, hired people and wrote some checks."
Real estate developers and salesmen have done this for decades. That car companies are now doing it drives me to the brink of violence.
Thanks, @edsnova. I really didn't "build" my Spyder. Body, frame, and paint by Vintage Motorcars(back in 2016 when they were known as Vintage Spyders and called Stanton home). Yes, I did the rest, but the main work wasn't me. I checked boxes and wrote a check.
I have my own electronic spin balancer, mainly because every shop that I hire is incapable. Soon, I'll be purchasing a tire machine as it's hard to find good people for even that menial task(yes, really). I'll need it for flipping tires inside to outside for racing.
I need to just buy a Tig welder, and a set of torches.
I may even be getting a Bridgeport milling/CNC machine soon(more later when I know for sure). The old Clausing metal lathe I got a couple years ago sees a LOT of use.
The only thing I won't be able to do is a NY state safety inspection, as I don't have my license any more or work for a shop.
The motor was built by Jake Raby. Yeah, I installed a dry sump pump and rebuilt the top end. But the initial(and MOST EXCELLENT) build and specs weren't mine.
I'm not quite an Ed, Danny or Alan, but I took my car on as a total rebuild, retirement project. Body off repairs, painting, chassis setup, rustproofing, engine rebuild (twice!), wiring, gauges rebuild, all shiny parts replacement, interior, fuel injection & spark, ECU tuning, AC, and a deluxe $25 radio.
The nice thing is when something is going funny, I can diagnose and fix it the "right way." The downside is when I tell people that I built it, they say, "Oh, it's a kit car." :-)
I'd take YOUR build over any other pan-based home-built kit car, Mike.
@DannyP posted:I'd take YOUR build over any other pan-based home-built kit car, Mike.
Certainly a high-level of skill in that build….
I have seen a number of Homebuilts that are well not so good or baaaaaad. I guess that’s why some of us who bought a custom built replica are sometimes offended by the mention of kit from the uninformed.
as if building, these cars only takes 40 hours
So the combo of the TRW steering box, Konis and adding sway bars (stock front, 3/4 rear) has totally changed the character of the car. I like it so much better!
It’s confident, sure footed. The word “mushy” is not a good description of the stock VMC, but I can’t think of a better word. With the changes, it feels like a Porsche. It’s stiff but not harsh at all. It goes exactly where you point it and gives exact feedback. It is muuuuuch faster through corners and flat over rough pavement.
I’m very happy with the outcome!
@Teammccalla posted:So the combo of the TRW steering box, Konis and adding sway bars (stock front, 3/4 rear) has totally changed the character of the car. I like it so much better!
Stock Bug front sway bar is like 12 or 13 millimeters; or a half an inch. If your front sway bar is really smaller than the rear you might want to do more testing before calling it done. According to every race car driver and builder I've ever encountered, that combination promotes oversteer. It can bite you.
A front bar promotes understeer. A rear bar promotes oversteer.
I've got a 19 mm (3/4") bar on both ends and it's just too much on the front, even for somebody who wants to hoon their car. The big bar makes the car harsh and makes the front push more than I'd like. I need to soften it up - I'm not sure how much, but more than it is. I've pulled some small leaves from the front beam, with no noticeable difference in ride quality, but less spring means that less bar is needed as well. The stock VW beetle bar is 12 mm (.47"), so that's quite a bit softer. There is a middle ground here - the 181 "Thing" had a 15 mm (.59") swaybar, which is available new from CSP/Kerscher. To be clear, I'm not advocating for anything - I've done nothing here. I'm still running the 19 mm (3/4") bar on the front and I still don't care for the ride or the handling.
I've got no issues in the back with the 19 mm (3/4") bar- no tendency to kick out or become "tail happy". I do wonder (a lot) how the rear will behave if the front is softer.
There is an orthodoxy regarding what we think works with beam suspension cars that doesn't really work very well. I applaud Randy for coloring outside the lines. What he's done may work out, or it may have some flaw he hasn't seen yet. At least he's doing something to make his car better.
He does like the changes he's made so far, and that can't be discounted.
Update/clarification: This guy races a bug with a larger rear bar than front and recommends it. Yes, oversteer but "controllable."
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I always laugh when reviewers who know only automatics discover 'single pedal braking' on EV's with regen braking.
In a properly set up manual (if you're in the right gear going into a corner), you've got single pedal braking and steering.
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@edsnova I will test it some more this week when the roads dry and report back. I wold consider trying a 5/8’ if I can find one that isn’t $200. It occurs to me that I may prefer oversteer.
BTW I also hate the Cip1 clamps. Very difficult to work with.
@Teammccalla posted:@edsnova I will test it some more this week when the roads dry and report back. I wold consider trying a 5/8’ if I can find one that isn’t $200. It occurs to me that I may prefer oversteer.
BTW I also hate the Cip1 clamps. Very difficult to work with.
Are they the SS band clamps or the ones with the stupid little wedges(OE style)? The wedge ones I use a couple pair of HUGE water pump pliers to squeeze it all together, then it's VERY helpful to have a helper slide and tap the wedges on.
@edsnova posted:Update/clarification: This guy races a bug with a larger rear bar than front and recommends it. Yes, oversteer but "controllable."
I followed Greg Ward and his journey with great interest, and found that a lot of what I had learned in parking lot slalom (you guys call it autocross) was in line with what he was doing. For a Speedster, although those settings will work great for roaring around town, out on the highway or canyon carving through the hills you (for your own safety) should aim for more neutral/predictable handling, dialing down the oversteer as much as you can. After fully getting to know your Speedster's capabilities and limits when it's handling is fairly neutral you could (if you're very adventurous) try tweaking it with a little bit more oversteer, but keep in mind that at the higher speeds it's a much finer line and mistakes can be way more 'final'.
@DannyP- before the ss clamps the water pump pliers trick was how it was done!
It took 2 sets of hands (one guy squeezing the band, one guy getting the wedge started and hammered down) to install a heavier front bar, and there was no way around it.
@DannyP posted:Are they the SS band clamps or the ones with the stupid little wedges(OE style)? The wedge ones I use a couple pair of HUGE water pump pliers to squeeze it all together, then it's VERY helpful to have a helper slide and tap the wedges on.
The SS bands. The rear ones were easier. I’d make a tool if it was something I had to do often.
@ALB posted:I followed Greg Ward and his journey with great interest, and found that a lot of what I had learned in parking lot slalom (you guys call it autocross)
AKA gymkhana. Location is EVERYTHING.
@Teammccalla posted:The SS bands. The rear ones were easier. I’d make a tool if it was something I had to do often.
SS bands are not easy, but better than that moronic OE arrangement.
@Teammccalla posted:@edsnova I will test it some more this week when the roads dry and report back. I wold consider trying a 5/8’ if I can find one that isn’t $200. It occurs to me that I may prefer oversteer.
BTW I also hate the Cip1 clamps. Very difficult to work with.
FWIW, after a bit of digging around, I found out that a Type 181/182 "Thing" had a 15 mm (.59") swaybar. There are a couple of places online that have them (used) for under $100, and I ordered one this week.
I've been corresponding with Randy out of the public eye regarding his quest for better handling, and was intrigued enough with the smaller front/larger rear bar to give it a try.
It's worth noting that the engine and transaxle in an IM is moved up a couple of inches toward the center of the car, so there is less weight in the back to start with - but with a 3/4"-3/4" front-rear setup, my car took 30 psi in the rear tires to get the back end to rotate on a dry road. Additionally, the front end had a slight push at the limit.
The front end is light in these cars, and without removing leaves in the beam - oversprung for the weight. Adding a big bar just added to the harshness and has to be responsible (at least in part) for the front end understeer. Handling is jinky enough with the antiquated beam without making it skip across the tarmac with an unyielding sway bar.
Will a lighter bar work? I'll know more next spring.
Stan, I had a horrible push on the Vee. The solution was to increase front tire pressure(and change to a touch of toe-out).
So what I'm saying, is usually if you want more movement from the rear, LOWER the pressure in the rear and/or raise pressure in the front.
I'm thinking the only reason the rear end started to move is the rear tires are over-inflated now.
I have a handling corrections chart, I'll either post it or send it to you direct.
@DannyP, please post it. People in addition to Stan may be interested and might benefit.
Post it, Danny!
Working on it, it's a stupid Microsoft Edge-embedded non-editable PDF.
I'll just type it and format it manually. Hopefully tonight, after the Mrs. and I make some food.
@DannyP posted:Working on it, it's a stupid Microsoft Edge-embedded non-editable PDF.
I'll just type it and format it manually. Hopefully tonight, after the Mrs. and I make some food.
You can't post it as an image?
@DannyP posted:Working on it, it's a stupid Microsoft Edge-embedded non-editable PDF.
I'll just type it and format it manually. Hopefully tonight, after the Mrs. and I make some food.
Sometimes the Windows Snipping Tool (screen capture) can save you from re-entry madness. It might take a few images to get it all captured.
