Re-Conversion of a '70 914, Patching that Big V8 radiator cutout pt. 1 Options

[76-914]

The engine is sold. I'll soon have a very fresh 901 w/ an "H" gear for sale as well as some other goodies soon for those planning an SBC conversion. I couldn't do much with this sitting in my garage as it already is stuffed to the max. Therefor I felt it somewhat necessary to sell this before commencing with the re-conversion. I've been silently (yeh, I know; me silent) working in the background for a few months fabricating some items that will be needed. I'll do my best to document things a bit more accurately than the previous conversion. Once again I'll be using the Subaru 6 and Subaru transmission. I've had tremendous success with this platform so I might as well repeat myself. So sit back, bear with me and watch as I stumble along and occasionally embarrass myself. Mistakes are an integral part of my journey. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/beerchug.gif)

[76-914]

Go ahead and remove your old hardware from the front and rear attach points. Save the 5/16" & 1/2" nuts and bolts. Attach the 2- 3"x5" pieces to the former transmission mounts and the 2- 2"x1.5" angle pieces to the former engine mounts.







If you work by yourself you'll need to hang the runners in place. This can be trying to say the least. Several times my wife came out to the garage to see who I was yelling at. If you have a helper then this will be simple. The car will need to be level front to rear and left to right. I got lucky here because my lift is square to the floor. In the pic below you can get an idea of how I hung the runners with bailing wire. However you hang it is good. The objective is to center up length wise with the bolt hole of the front hanger and the center of the 3"x5" rear plate.







Once it's is secure be sure the section past or to the rear of the arc is perpendicular or 90 deg to the floor and that the long end is level or parallel to the floor. Ultimately the top of the tube should be 1" below the bottom of the angle iron bracket or 1.5" to the center of the tube. This is somewhat important. You may find you need to cut that angle piece twice in order to raise the back end enough to get it level while maintaining the 1" gap mentioned above and keeping the length level. Now is the time to mark the compound angle that will be trimmed off the top end. The 1st cradle I used a marks-a-lot but found the hacksaw blade to be much more accurate in transferring the mark because the blade could be held flush against both sides of the tape roll. Hold the roll flush against the plate. I needed to stretch the roll into an oval to work around the protruding bolts.







Once you've got a good mark it's time to cut it. I used an angle grinder with a thin blade to cut. I tried with my bandsaw but alas I couldn't hold it square with the compound angle. You will end up with a cutoff piece that looks something like this. I dressed the ends with a 12" sanding wheel but a file will work too.





Edit: Don't know how this pic ended up here. I noticed this on my last build. Somehow the file gets corrupted when loading them. I've even gone back and deleted all of the pics yet one remained in the post although it doesn't show up as an attachment on the list of pics selected. Oh well. just ignore that one. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/headbang.gif)

[808 WRX]

Once it's is secure be sure the section past or to the rear of the arc is perpendicular or 90 deg to the floor and that the long end is level or parallel to the floor. Ultimately the top of the tube should be 1" below the bottom of the angle iron bracket. This IS important. You may find you need to cut that angle piece twice in order to raise the back end enough to get it level while maintaining the 1" gap mentioned above and keeping the length level. Now is the time to mark the compound angle that will be trimmed off the top end. The 1st cradle I used a marks-a-lot but found the hacksaw blade to be much more accurate in transferring the mark because the blade could be held flush against both sides of the tape roll. Hold the roll flush against the plate. I needed to stretch the roll into an over same to work around the protruding bolts.

I am probably a month or two from building myself a cradle. So your timing is perfect and I am looking forward to this thread!

Quick question, why is the 1" gap important?