roll cage

[CFMopar]

I was thinking since I got my interior out now I might as well do a 4 pt or 6pt cage to help make the car even stiffer. What would it cost to get one built?

[firefighter3931]

Here are some pics of my custom 8pt rollbar installed in the 68. I had the door bars bent to make front seat access easier.   The added feature of the contoured front bars is that you can still retain the factory armrests/baseplates for the stock look while still increasing the chassis' structural integrity....it's a win-win situation.  

The 45* down bars go through the floors and are welded to the subframe connecters. The other six attaching points are double 6x6 steel plate bolted together through the floorpans/trunk. The rear bars are custom bent and fallow along the interior sail panels/roof line for a cleaner look.   This car will have the full interior re-installed. The bar is legal down to 10.0 flat....faster than that requires a full cage.

The car to this point has led a pretty pampered life. Originally a 383 2bbl car and later a mild 440 it is in fantastic shape, structurally, with only minor surface rust in a couple of areas. The sheet metal is all original and required a couple of small patches on the rear (lower) quarter panels. Seeing as this car is going to see some track time and heavy street action, the rollbar is an excellent addition. I've seen some twisted up b-bodies from track abuse over the years. Torn firewall sheetmetal, ripped door jams and wrinkled quarter panels. That's something i wanted to avoid with a car this nice.  

The custom bar cost $200.00 from S&W racing and installation was another $600.00 and this included welding in the subframe connecters and boxing in the lower control arms.

Ron

[firefighter3931]

More pics  

[firefighter3931]

The interior floorpans, roof and firewall were recently painted with Zero Rust. The entire underside/chassis was also coated with the same product. The exterior sheet metal is now in epoxy primer, awaiting a fresh coat of tx9 paint and new vinyl top and black interior.   The car will also be getting a red   stripe to accent the paint scheme.....triple black with a red stripe....  

Ron

[MoparYoungGun]

triple black with a red stripe....  

Ron

[mustanghater]

how much of a gape do you put between your mounts on the frame?

[CFMopar]

Where is this s&w racing?

I just got quoted 130 a point for the roll cage which isnt bad but your guy boxed in the lca and did the subframes.

[firefighter3931]

Where is this s&w racing?

I just got quoted 130 a point for the roll cage which isnt bad but your guy boxed in the lca and did the subframes.

That's actually a pretty descent price....does that include the steel tubing and fabrication ? Or, is that just the installation cost with you supplying the materials ? S&W Racing is a chassis shop that sells rollbar kits and other race car goodies. They are located in Pennsylvania. I had the 8pt bar, subframes and lca boxes welded in locally by a tube chassis fabricator/race car builder.

http://www.swracecars.com/

Ron

Ps. Bottom line....get it done now while you've got the interiior out of the car.

[firefighter3931]

how much of a gape do you put between your mounts on the frame?

Not sure what you're asking....could you be more specific ?

Ron

[CFMopar]

I think hes refering to the gap between the floorpan and the connectors. I dont think it matters. Some people put them through the floor, contoured to the floor etc.

[Ghoste]

That's a nice piece you're building there Ron.  I'm guessing by the boxed control arms you plan to drive this on the street?

[firefighter3931]

Thanks Ghoste. Yep it's going to be street driven....pump gas engine. I'm planning on a bigger engine for the car so the lca boxes, rollbar and connecters were installed while it's all apart for paint. I have a custom built Dana60 to drop in there as well to replace the 83/4.

Ron

[SuBLimE 69]

Whoa, that looks good, I need to get off my ass and get my subframe connectors welded up too !

[firefighter3931]

Whoa, that looks good, I need to get off my ass and get my subframe connectors welded up too !

Yep, get that done before you hit the track....torn sheetmetal sucks. The car will feel and handle much better with the SF connectors....promise !   Car's looking great Doug....looking forward to a track report. We can do an 1/8th to 1/4 mile conversion when you get some ET's.  

Ron

[CFMopar]

Is their really a big difference between doing a cage in chromemoly and mild steel?

[firefighter3931]

Is their really a big difference between doing a cage in chromemoly and mild steel?

Yep, the CM will cost a lot more than mild steel. It also has to be tig welded to meet certification....mig is fine for mild steel.   CM is lighter than mild steel.....but not by that much. For a street-strip or bracket car, mild steel is more than adequate, inmo. The other issue with CM is it tends to be more brittle and less flexible....thus making it crack prone.

Ron

[Runner]

ron,  is that door bar legal?.  looks kinda low?     my frame conectors look almost identical to yours.

[firefighter3931]

ron,   is that door bar legal?.   looks kinda low?        my frame conectors look almost identical to yours.

Mike, The chassis guy said it would be and he's been doing them for 30 years. The critical dimension is the upper attachment point where the rulebook says the doorbars must be between the drivers shoulder and elbow as well as providing side impact protection. These bars meet both criteria. He's done a bunch like this for street/strip guys and none have failed tech from what i've been told.

Ron

[Runner]

it is a nice set up, should make getting in and out of the car much more enjoyable than a straight bar.

[firefighter3931]

it is a nice set up, should make getting in and out of the car much more enjoyable than a straight bar.

That was my intention. This is a street car first and allthough we looked at a swingout door bar, the arm rests would have had to been deleted. The swingouts are supposedly weaker than a fully welded bar according to the chassis builder and he felt this was a good compromise. As previously stated, the full interior is going back into the car and i wanted to make access as easy as possible...at least into the front seats. I don't see myself going faster than 10.0 in this car so this should be sufficient. I'm amazed at how much stiffer the chassis is compared to before....looking forward to some hard launches when it goes back together.

Ron

[morepower]

what color was ur car og ron?

[firefighter3931]

what color was ur car og ron?

Triple black with a red tail stripe....is there any better color combo  

Ron

[MoparYoungGun]

is there any better color combo  

Ron

NOPE !

[mustanghater]

how much would a rool cage like this coast?

[Johnny SixPack]

how much would a rool cage like this coast?

Meh, not too far.

Slap some casters on it and I'll bet money it flys!


Ron, I like your layout, and especially the extra bends.

If I go the bar route, I'm gonna have to do that so I fit my fat @$$ in the car.