New cage for the Dawg... Options

[Mugs914]

You guys may or may not remember the Junk Yard Dawg, the race car tub we got from a buddy and put on the track with bits scrounged up from around the shop (Pics were posted a while back in the track car pics thread).



Well, the intention has always been to get rid of the sewer pipe cage and build something much more appropriate. The cage that was in the car was made of 1.75" x .125" tubing and had so many tubes in so many places there was almost no place to put your feet! Besides that it was horribly heavy (140 pounds, as it turns out (IMG:style_emoticons/default/blink.gif) ).

We've been toiling away at the new version and this is what we came up with.

It's built from 1.5 x .095 mild steel and is a low front hoop style. Not quite finished yet, there are a few things to add like a front hoop that goes over the steering column and attaches at the long and the center tunnel (Like a formula car). The main hoop will be faired in to the targa bar so it will look like just a wider targa bar.

To get the seat mounted closer to the center of the car we clearanced the center tunnel by about two inches and then reinforced it with .090" sheet metal along the top.

The design is a bit unconventional, but does conform to the regs for anyone we are likely to run with and the inspectors that have seen it so far are happy with it. The guy sitting under the broomstick is a little over six feet and, as you see, fits under the stick rather easily. I'm 5'8", so I may need a phone book in the seat. We'll see where we end up weight wise, but right now the estimate is somewhere between 40 to 60 pounds lighter than the sewer pipes.

Pics below...