I hope everyone enjoys their Fourth of July! We are spending it at home as we work on various projects. I’ve mostly been focusing on jeeps, while Ann has taken on painting the guest house a barn-red color.
I spent some time a couple days ago work on the racer’s frame (removing and grinding). Along the way I discovered a few interesting tidbits.
Here’s where I started, with the gas tank, battery, and cowl in place. Because I want to gain a few more inches for the cockpit, I want to move the gas tank and battery back farther, which means redoing the mounts for both.
Before removal:
After .. you can more easily see the custom crossmember that was added when the frame was widened. Not the prettiest installation work.
While looking at the rear of the frame, I noticed that the frame seems to widened further in back. It turns out the rear of the frame rails is about 1.5″ wider than the mid section and front section of the frame. I don’t believe that was intentional. Here are a couple pics looking down both frames rails. It’s easy to see the frame’s bows. However, I don’t want to redo the entire frame at this point; I’m more interested in functionality.
It’s hard not to want to toss the frame and do a full rebuild, but I don’t want to make that investment of time and money until I’m sure I still enjoy racing. It just has to be safe, comfy, and dependable. Looks can come later.
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