The Mite
Part: 23
Misc. Doodads: Intercooler mount, Dzus Tabs...
The month of December was wasted on work. I've always claimed that I don't have a busy season, but this year proved me wrong. I'm a jeweler - click HERE to see what I do for a living. I was able to take Thanksgiving weekend off and go to Glamis for a couple of days; but my next day off was Christmas. Things have slowed down again and now I'm eager to get back to work on the Mite. I've got a list of unfinished items that need to be completed before I get serious about bodywork and paint, and I hope to complete these things before the weather turns hot here.
 |
I've decided to
start at the front of the car and work my way to the back. First on the
list is mounting the intercooler . Yep, I'm going to turbocharge the Miata
engine and use an aftermarket engine management system. |
 |
Here's the intercooler mounted in front of the radiator directly behind the grille opening that I cut out earlier in the day. Cutting fiberglass sucks. I put the bonnet in the driveway and had a large fan behind me blowing as much of the dust away from me as I could get. I was also wearing a respirator. Silicosis is nasty. If you look closely at the grille opening, you can see that I have fiberglassed a bunch of bolts onto the inside edge of the grille. This will locate and secure the wire mesh I plan on using for the grille. Check a new Bently for the mesh I'm going to use. |
 |
A different view of the intercooler mount. |
 |
I also 'glassed in a prop-rod holder behind the driver's side light bucket to hold the hood in the "upright and open" position. I'll configure the final prop-rod later |
 |
Here's what the grille opening looks like after it was cut and rough sanded. I put a piece of perforated steel behind it to get an idea of what the grille will look like. |
 |
The front view |
 |
I also Dzus tabbed the box that will cover the fuse panel. I won't attach the tabs until after this is painted |
 |
The Dzus spring holders were welded onto the frame |
 |
Here's the Dzus tabs that hold the bonnet to the chassis. Note that the rivet holes are parallel to the sill of the car. |
 |
In order to rivet the Dzus tabs in place and not have the rivets push the sides of the hood outward, I drilled clearance holes to accomodate the rivets in the panels that hold the Dzus springs. |
 |
A pic of what we were doing on Thanksgiving. More? See here: Pics |