High tech firewall beading, the IC way!

Been put on a monthly budget on the A sedan we are building. So once a month we push forward and this month is firewall month.

I really tried to figure a way to modify the stock firewall to fit around the Olds motor but nothing really inspired me. So all things being what they are I pulled the big city move to build a new one from scratch. So a day with cardboard design studies we pushed on with a '32 style 'wall.

Keeping with that theme I wanted beading on the firewall that kind of reminded you of the '32 bit but sized and proportioned for the 30-31 cowl.

Follow along:

The initial pattern for the new firewall.



And after a few hours of ****ering, drawing and cutting on the CNC we came up with some plates cut from 3/16" HRPO steel.



Dies laid on the new firewall shape.



Bob setting the gaps and preparing the dies.



Dies ready for pressing.



Die plates in our makeshift press brake tooling.



And our first trial run piece to check for interference.



Good thing we did this first, there was a minor bit of work needed on the small radius tips but the final result is killer!

 

WOW! Hell yes!! Nice work man!

 

I'm dumbstruck. Awesome work.

 

The firewall is pressed and a flange is being welded on the edge as I type. I just shot a few pic and will load them up once the flange is welded on and a test fit in the car is done.

 

awesome, as usual... thanks for making us all look bad... lol

 

CNC Plasma, there are five pieces in total. Two 10"X28" plates, one makes the bottom foundation of the bottom, the bottom die and the center pentagon shape. The top is the second 10"X28" plate and the punch.

Someone with a lot of ambition and a standard shop press could pull this off.

 

AGREED! I see the possibilities for all sorts of things!! Thanks for the inspiration!!

 

You could make tons of fire walls with that pattern, cool.

 

I would be glad to stamp out a few blanks if you guys want them. I would even take custom design requests. PM me for details if you're interested.

 

Got a 28-9 cowl you can hold it up against?

 

I don't have one here, but the whole design is just under 10" tall and tip to tip is 26.5"

 

good job, i have made 100's of tooling setups this way, i worked as the tooling guy at a woodstove and gas appliance plant, i did the design and ACAD drawings and the guys would punch the parts out on a CNC turret punch, every part had two 1/8" alignment holes and all parts were plug welded from behind, then the tooling would be installed in a punch press, i used the same system your using to make the tooling to emboss the side shields for our woodstoves, we built 10,000+ wood stoves a year, every stove had two embossed side shields, i recall one tooling set running for over 5 years, that alot of hits, like i say i builts 100's of these setups, some with 20 or 30 parts.

 

awesome job. that is incredible!

 

Very nice work indeed.

 

Thanks Steve.

 

Awesome Steve!

 

Not only is it dynamite tech as is, the method can be elaborated as much as the human mind and the CNC mind can follow...this should be able to do at least shallow curved/ crowned/ dished stuff with CNC elaboration...this is getting real close to real body die tech and the ability to make damn anything here! And the dies are steel, not the mystery metals used in some kinds of low production stamping!

 

Exactly

Like Budd mentioned, low production quan***ies are very possible with this type of technique. I made all my Dakota based suspension crossmembers with this sort of tooling.

 

WOW!! You should market them......or do a short run and let guys finish them to order......just a thought.......see you at the drags.

Chris

 

i also have made tooling by laminating cut outs together, say you wanted to do a belt line for a door panel or 32 ford bumper, you take the profile place it on top of a 4" x 4" block, add a tang to hold it into your press brake, three 3/8" holes through each piece to bolt say 15, 1/4" plates together, now you have to make a top and bottom, offset for materal thickness, make a guess on spring back and bobs your uncle, cut a strip of metal and feed it through maybe a couple of times before you give it the big squeeze.

 

We were eyeballing some die rubber yesterday and a four post 100 ton press!

Amazing things you can do with single sided dies and a good chunk of rubber.

When the books stop bleeding red, the tools are going to increase in numbers around here.

 

the largest machine we used was a brown boggs 100 ton punch press with an air cushion, the bed was 30" x 42" as i recall, a mechanical punch press is a lower price option but not so much fun when they are set to tight and jam at the bottom of there stroke, out come the cutting torches, you learn to build your tooling so it bolts to stands and they are what get cut up, heres my company logo i made tooling for.

 

You should work on hotrods for a living...


Red ink is more tolerable if you have a day when you can have so much fun making a new part like that.

 

I talked with Tman about these, convinced me to make a run of them. I will bring some to the HAMB Drags if anyone is interested.

 

Glad I could help! Too excited to wait for my brother to help get teh body back on my frame in the frame table, working on hoisting it into place tonight!

Pictures when Steve gets mine stamped. 28/9 Ford install.

 

Now that is good stuff to see, thanks.

 

WOW! I'm astounded.

 

You are simply amazing Brother Steve .....

 

BTW Steve, Klingspor abrasives rock!

 

Stop by there on my way home from work and looked at the stamping plates and the detail that metal has is way more sharper than a bead roller. ElP you should run out of these at HAMB drags