cameras ready prepare to flash

[s14brent]

that's an awesome setup man! great work!

Thanks man!
--------------

So I decided to try and box in the radiator support with some 22ga sheet metal. 5x m8 rivnuts are holding everything in place currently and seem to be more than enough to support it since it doesnt protrude past the bumper.



decided to paint it for rust prevention. I used up all the high temp paint i had laying around so that worked out well.




I got the valance on but wanted to take pics during the day because well...i got a bit distracted since UPS dropped off my new toy.
I finally bit the bullet on upgrading my old craftsman 1/2hp block grinder. I absolutely hate my harbor freight belt sander, and it just ate 2 brand new belts working with the sheet metal. Between that and the motor stalling all the time with the slightest applied pressure I decided to upgrade.
I did my research a while back and found out I needed 3" x 1-1/4" spacer to fit the multitool belt sander attachment. I have a buddy who had some spare 3" stainless exhaust piping on his shelf, so i cut off a little bit and ended up with this. I then cut down some random 1/4-20 bolts to sandwich the spacer on the assembly. I also took off the 7" grinding block on the left side of the tool to put an 8" wire wheel since my other grinder only fits like 6" wheels, and they don't last that long.



Remember when I said I used up all my high-temp paint......yeahhh....all i had left was some etching primer & flat grey primer.....whatever, it works. lol. and well...here's the final result:



I'm super stoked with the setup. turns out the miter table is sorta useless in its current config. There are videos of guys on YT jamming rebar into this setup and it won't stall out. Oh, and belt changes on this thing is super quick also, but I have to figure out some kind of wider base. at full speed it wants to walk a little, but i have it hooked up to a foot control pedal because i barely run these on full speed ever and well...safety!

--edit--

took it back all apart to make some modifications already.

this 1/2hp model didn't have the 8" blocks which I think used all 6 bolt holes, but mine only had 3 tapped from the factory. I also got some new mounting hardware and a can of cast-iron paint for the small section of piping/spacer (it was kind of close to a match).




and finally readjusted to the straight position.



super stoked on this new addition to the garage.

and of course i had to mod it more, I bench mounted it since it was "walking" on the stand, and i upgraded to a linear bearing handle for easier adjustment on the miter table

[jeenyus]

that's an awesome setup man! great work!

[s14brent]

Hey I know all about that "rough and tough" appearance, there's something to be said about enjoying a well sorted car and not having to worry about dings and dents.

Looking good!

Thanks! I'll eventually sort out the exterior eventually. There's just a never ending list of things I'd rather do first! Plus i'm not sold on my fender flares currently. I think they're decent, but I'd rather go wider at this point to fit a full slrspeed angle kit under there lol.
--------------------

I decided to wire up the aux fan to a relay and a bypass switch to constant 12v so I could help cool down temps between runs out here in the summer. This (supposedly) simple task opened up a can of worms as I decided to redo my oil cooler & PS cooler mounts since I had the valance off anyways. I ended up bypassing the aux fan resistor and bumped up fuse #3. I bent some bar stock on my vise to fit the oil cooler and 1/2" vibration damping mounts. I messed up though and had to order the mounts twice as the 50a durometer ones were wayyy too floppy. and ordered the 70a "extreme temperature" version which can withstand up to 300 degrees. Very happy with how it all turned out. clearance on the oil cooler is kind laughable, but it all fits.






Since i was already wiring up relays and pulling apart the interior, I decided to wire up another relay for 12v ignition for the aftermarket vdo gauges. I initially wanted to add a 8 circuit distribution block. but since I still have my heater core in place I didn't want to run a ton of wiring back and forth - essentially causing more clutter. I did however clean up the rats nest behind the dash and grouped the wires by function.




I've actually gotten pretty busy helping out the family so I probably won't be throwing back on the valance and front bumper for another week. I'm going to try to take some measurements and see what's the best way to direct airflow through the bumpers openings without it escaping back down and under. (thinking at least block in the bottom area, as the sides would be challenging with all the ac components in place.

[zwill23]

Hey I know all about that "rough and tough" appearance, there's something to be said about enjoying a well sorted car and not having to worry about dings and dents.

Looking good!

[s14brent]

So my clutch slave went out on my e39 touring, which means i've been driving around in the e30. It's also been in the high 90s in Las Vegas lately so i've been finding a bunch of small issues here and there. yeah she's looked better, but I do enjoy the hell out of this car. I know I usually avoid photographing the driver side, but whatever!



First issue was the fuel pump. The internal check valve checked out, so I put my walboro 255 back in (which was sitting on a shelf for quite some time). I had a new fuel sock, and installed a new o-ring up top. I'm dumb and didn't even realize all I needed was an external check valve for the 255 and I'd be okay. Essentially I had the same issues with both pumps of low fuel pressure on start up when the vehicle was hot, but the walboro doesn't have a check valve built in like OEM unit and out of my options I'd rather have the walboro in there vs whatever lifetime guarantee pump I bought at oreilly's when I was in a jam. I went with a quantum check valve with viton seals. I figured it was the best one in this form-factor and I also preferred it over OEM because it's not made out of plastic.



I decided this was a good place to throw the check valve in-line. I was going to put it near the fuel filter, but it actually looks really clean here so I don't mind.

I also noticed the a/c was blowing different temps on low vs high. which led me to find out my aux fan wasn't kicking on when it was supposed too and this was due to a shitty connection. I kept the spal fan connector but put some decent spades on the body side. I just have to make sure the aux fan is kicking on when the radiator fan switch tells it too or I'll be wiring in a relay and bypass switch for that while the bumper & valence are off.

Lately I've been thinking of ditching the mishimoto radiator and going with just a behr z3m, but I think if I spent any money on cooling right now I'd get a Stewart pump. I'm going to wait and see how this summer goes before I go replacing these low mileage parts already on my car, but I'm guessing the pump might be a better purchase overall, since surprisingly I'm not having any issues with my current mishimoto .*knocks on wood*

I think at this point I got my first FTE slave cylinder for the wagon and it blew the seal/piston out into the transmission. I ended up getting the parts out thankfully, and got a warranty replacement thank god. (it really paid off buying this part locally). What a gigantic pain in the ass this whole thing was.



And fast forward to today I picked up a cup holder for the e30 locally. I'm pretty excited, this was the one I wanted initially but didn't want to spend $80+ or whatever it was new. I cleaned up the console and cupholders and threw some of that 3M industrial double sided tape on there and couldn't be more pleased.



I have the front bumper/valance removed from the e30 right now and will be doing a few things while it's off. I ordered up some vibration dampening mounts for the oil & ps coolers. I'm going to be remounting both coolers. a little more to my liking. I'm also going to be swapping out the TMS underdrive water pump pulley and replacing it with the ecs aluminum pully (which is slightly larger than stock - ecs claims 8% overdrive on s52's which will be paired with the current TMS under drive PS pulley and I'll be going back to stock sized accessory belt). I think I've grown to like the underdrive pully on the PS pump especially at the local drift events. There are a few other small things I'm going to try an do, but I'll post about it if it actually gets done.

-- I figure there will be more updates soon, I was just excited to show some progress.

[moatilliatta]

Love it, I wish the E30 could hold a bike it the trunk somewhat assembled. I just got a Fit 22''. My last bike got yanked 3/4 years ago, Exciting to be back on.

[s14brent]

I really like those mounts, how does it effect the door seals? I wanted to run a roof rack on mine but got concerned the rack was causing the seals to distort too much.

EDIT: I was running one, but took it off after a week- It was a different style

I'll take a photo tomorrow, it probably would bug you tbh. most rails will clamp down on that seal unfortunately. I had the older style yakima rack a few years ago, i just prefer this design better, and it helped me make some room in my storage.

[Slybeanx]

it was definitely a rubber undercoat, I had to wire wheel it all away before welding. agreed it wasn't black, but I had a can of 3m on-hand, I wasn't going to special order the tan colored can. And i'm definitely not going to leave it exposed to rust all over again.

------------------------------------------------------

small e30 update:

custom roll bar on hold for at least another 2-4 weeks due to covid-19.

meanwhile, I was cleaning out my storage and found an old pair of 48" yakima cross bars. I already had a set of q30 pads, so I ordered a set of brand new q-towers (i've been wanting to try out the q-towers vs the older style mounts for a while so i had most of the parts on hand). I also found my old bike rails, ended up putting one on the wagon and the e30.



The rails are mounted close to each other so i can strap 2 spare tires on track days. bmx would go too since bathrooms at the track are way too far from the paddock. Can you tell i'm bored yet?

I really like those mounts, how does it effect the door seals? I wanted to run a roof rack on mine but got concerned the rack was causing the seals to distort too much.

EDIT: I was running one, but took it off after a week- It was a different style

[s14brent]

BMW's never had the black rubbery undercoating. It was more of a rocker panel spray, Maybe rocker Schultz.

it was definitely a rubber undercoat, I had to wire wheel it all away before welding. agreed it wasn't black, but I had a can of 3m on-hand, I wasn't going to special order the tan colored can. And i'm definitely not going to leave it exposed to rust all over again.

------------------------------------------------------

small e30 update:

custom roll bar on hold for at least another 2-4 weeks due to covid-19.

meanwhile, I was cleaning out my storage and found an old pair of 48" yakima cross bars. I already had a set of q30 pads, so I ordered a set of brand new q-towers (i've been wanting to try out the q-towers vs the older style mounts for a while so i had most of the parts on hand). I also found my old bike rails, ended up putting one on the wagon and the e30.



The rails are mounted close to each other so i can strap 2 spare tires on track days. bmx would go too since bathrooms at the track are way too far from the paddock. Can you tell i'm bored yet?

[ForcedFirebird]

BMW's never had the black rubbery undercoating. It was more of a rocker panel spray, Maybe rocker Schultz.

Definitely rubber under coating of some sort. I've built cages in a bunch of BMW's, and they all have nice little melted areas under the pads/plinths.

[ForcedFirebird]

BMW's never had the black rubbery undercoating. It was more of a rocker panel spray, Maybe rocker Schultz.

Definitely rubber under coating of some sort. I've built cages in a bunch of BMW's, and they all have nice little melted areas under the pads/plinths.

[moatilliatta]

BMW's never had the black rubbery undercoating. It was more of a rocker panel spray, Maybe rocker Schultz.

[s14brent]

3m seam sealer showed up this morning, here's after with first coat of 3m undercoat spray applied.



The SRS gas pedal bracket was installed with loctite and clear silicone under each plate.



The white paint is just for now. I'll end up getting a rattle can of bronzit beige metallic later down the road when things aren't so crazy out, I don't think I want to do a color change. It's such a bitch to do! Future roll bar will probably just get painted black.

Just super happy that rust spot is gone finally.

[zwill23]

Thanks guys! I have plans to build a weld-in roll bar later this month at a friends' shop that ties into the rear strut towers. I really don't know what i want to do interior wise for paint yet. I kind of don't care, but i do at the same time. The struggle.



actually wire speed had to be surprisingly fast for 16 gauge thickness+.024, heat was set pretty low. Finding the balance was rough for sure. .030 just seems brainless in comparison. I want to practice more on this 110v machine because I want to be able to bring it out remotely to help a few friends with some small jobs. I really wish i bought a welder a long time before I did. It's been so helpful with all the projects.



i'm using gas - i strongly believe it makes your life easier indeed. side note: seems like gas is more expensive during quarantine, which sucks, i was looking for a 55-60cu tank to use for the 110 unit that i could take on small jobs, going to try to find a 2nd hand bottle on offerup but it might take a while. The 211 is a great machine, a buddy of mine has that model. Another friend has a hobart 140 and it's super reliable as well. I was looking into the 140 for a while until i was given this craftsman machine and i'm stubborn and trying to get it dialed in.

Awesome, I appreciate the feedback. A new hobart 140 just popped up on market place for a solid discount so looks like my fate has been sold.

Good luck with the roll bar!

[s14brent]

Thanks guys! I have plans to build a weld-in roll bar later this month at a friends' shop that ties into the rear strut towers. I really don't know what i want to do interior wise for paint yet. I kind of don't care, but i do at the same time. The struggle.

I use .030" on everything. In fact the MIG setting rarely even change much beyond one notch in the heat and two on wire speed. .020" is a pain as you seen. The heat needs to be really low and slow wire, even then it tends to bubble easily. I find using too much heat/wire and using technique to avoid burning through has better results than being too cold.

actually wire speed had to be surprisingly fast for 16 gauge thickness+.024, heat was set pretty low. Finding the balance was rough for sure. .030 just seems brainless in comparison. I want to practice more on this 110v machine because I want to be able to bring it out remotely to help a few friends with some small jobs. I really wish i bought a welder a long time before I did. It's been so helpful with all the projects.

Are you guys using gas or fluxcore? I'm getting ready to purchase a welder and have come to terms that using gas makes life much easier.

i'm using gas - i strongly believe it makes your life easier indeed. side note: seems like gas is more expensive during quarantine, which sucks, i was looking for a 55-60cu tank to use for the 110 unit that i could take on small jobs, going to try to find a 2nd hand bottle on offerup but it might take a while. The 211 is a great machine, a buddy of mine has that model. Another friend has a hobart 140 and it's super reliable as well. I was looking into the 140 for a while until i was given this craftsman machine and i'm stubborn and trying to get it dialed in.