Chassis stiffening - which parts are good?
10-03-2009, 08:49 PM
#161
Did you do frame rails then butterfly, or at the same time. Please tell me it was at the same time so that I can convince myself that the gain adding just butterfly brace won't be worth the cost.
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10-04-2009, 02:02 AM
#162
Damn you, My driveway is a very steep hill. I had no plans on getting a butterfly brace. Until......
Did you do frame rails then butterfly, or at the same time. Please tell me it was at the same time so that I can convince myself that the gain adding just butterfly brace won't be worth the cost.
Did you do frame rails then butterfly, or at the same time. Please tell me it was at the same time so that I can convince myself that the gain adding just butterfly brace won't be worth the cost.
Last edited by Sam Amporful; 10-04-2009 at 03:44 PM.
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10-05-2009, 05:44 PM
#164
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I kinda' like my Racing Beat crossbrace that mounts just behind the engine. No more door buzzer going off when I round and uneven corner. Unfortunately, I have to keep it very tight or it shifts and makes a clunking noise.
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10-06-2009, 12:14 AM
#168
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Stitch welding? **** YEAH do it
It makes a HUGE difference in stiffening the chassis. 2/3'rdsCobra did his when he stripped the car about 5 years ago. I drove his car and have ridden in it quite a few times and I am always amazed how stiff it is. The only other mods he added since was the FM frame raills +bfly brace, and a rollbar. Prior to the FM braces the car was stiff as hell, in fact it was way stiffer than my '93 is/was, with the following braces/mods:
Flyin' Miata : Tech: Seam welding
Anyhow, if you have a welder, GO for it dude. I had TCdesigns stitch weld up the ying yang on my track beast and I also had him tie the rollcage into the firewall, the A pillars, and the doorsills. It is indeed a stiffy
In reference to the Okuyama triangular rear subframe brace, I'm with Matt. It may be mainly to help reduce vibration(ie, for comfort), but there are likely other reasons.
There is a reason the ladder brace added on the '94 models does NOT tie into the PPF. Note, this ladder brace can be added on 90-'93 models and it is only
$165 from MazdaSpeedMotorsports(god damn I love the racer discount), list is $276!
After talking to several SM racers I added one on my '91 track beast, all it required were to add two threaded tabs to be welded to the rear-most ctrl arms for the rear bolts and two recessed bolt plates for the front bolts. The rear tabs were actually added on all 1993 models, but they never installed the ladder brace until '94, go figure...
In fact, I just ordered another one for my LE and it will be here tomorrow
- HD DD sport rollbar
- Okuyama triangular STB, tied into firewall(STIFF AS HELL)
- FM front subframe brace
- Canon rear subframe brace
- Okuyama rear stb(doesn't do much IMO)
- FM frame rails + bfly brace
Flyin' Miata : Tech: Seam welding
Anyhow, if you have a welder, GO for it dude. I had TCdesigns stitch weld up the ying yang on my track beast and I also had him tie the rollcage into the firewall, the A pillars, and the doorsills. It is indeed a stiffy
There is a reason the ladder brace added on the '94 models does NOT tie into the PPF. Note, this ladder brace can be added on 90-'93 models and it is only
$165 from MazdaSpeedMotorsports(god damn I love the racer discount), list is $276!
After talking to several SM racers I added one on my '91 track beast, all it required were to add two threaded tabs to be welded to the rear-most ctrl arms for the rear bolts and two recessed bolt plates for the front bolts. The rear tabs were actually added on all 1993 models, but they never installed the ladder brace until '94, go figure...
In fact, I just ordered another one for my LE and it will be here tomorrow
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10-06-2009, 09:40 AM
#169
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In reference to the Okuyama triangular rear subframe brace, I'm with Matt. It may be mainly to help reduce vibration(ie, for comfort), but there are likely other reasons.
There is a reason the ladder brace added on the '94 models does NOT tie into the PPF. Note, this ladder brace can be added on 90-'93 models and it is only
$165 from MazdaSpeedMotorsports(god damn I love the racer discount), list is $276!
After talking to several SM racers I added one on my '91 track beast, all it required were to add two threaded tabs to be welded to the rear-most ctrl arms for the rear bolts and two recessed bolt plates for the front bolts. The rear tabs were actually added on all 1993 models, but they never installed the ladder brace until '94, go figure...
In fact, I just ordered another one for my LE and it will be here tomorrow
There is a reason the ladder brace added on the '94 models does NOT tie into the PPF. Note, this ladder brace can be added on 90-'93 models and it is only
$165 from MazdaSpeedMotorsports(god damn I love the racer discount), list is $276!
After talking to several SM racers I added one on my '91 track beast, all it required were to add two threaded tabs to be welded to the rear-most ctrl arms for the rear bolts and two recessed bolt plates for the front bolts. The rear tabs were actually added on all 1993 models, but they never installed the ladder brace until '94, go figure...
In fact, I just ordered another one for my LE and it will be here tomorrow
But it needs bushings on the order of size of the stock diff wings, not those little tiny 22mm socket sized ones.
In reality, it's no different than the triangulation from the diff mounts to the PPF that the diff is. I'm just not sure what movement it's preventing (direction or rotation or whatever).
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10-06-2009, 04:10 PM
#172
It honestly seems like the easiest solution of them all if it really works...
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10-06-2009, 04:34 PM
#175
My frame rails took about an hour, maybe an hour and a half to install. Add to pulling seats and carpet for frame rails...
removing interior trim, seals, wheels, sanding, refinishing, buying a welder, taking classes or doing lots of practice, etc. If I had the skills and equipment it would have been a no brainer. Without them, bolt ons like I've done make more sense.
removing interior trim, seals, wheels, sanding, refinishing, buying a welder, taking classes or doing lots of practice, etc. If I had the skills and equipment it would have been a no brainer. Without them, bolt ons like I've done make more sense.
Last edited by cueball1; 10-06-2009 at 05:34 PM.
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10-06-2009, 04:49 PM
#176
holy hell, only an hour!? Thats impressive. I'd expect it'd take me about an hour to do the seam welding as well.
As far as welding practice, I had a friend show me how to weld over the weekend when we added a diagonal to my rollbar. I've laid down 6 or 7 beads total in my welding experience including one pipe that I joined together for practice. If you can write your name in the snow, you can weld like a pro
As far as welding practice, I had a friend show me how to weld over the weekend when we added a diagonal to my rollbar. I've laid down 6 or 7 beads total in my welding experience including one pipe that I joined together for practice. If you can write your name in the snow, you can weld like a pro
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10-06-2009, 05:38 PM
#179
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any light gauge welder. and a wire brush. and some primer and paint. leave it as-welded and you might as well have just disassembled the seams completely after about 6 months.
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