Brake booster solution I may have to mess around with different master cylinder boxes to get it dialed in. Its called a "super small booster", tuner people use them as a way to make room for turbos and ITBs. I haven't been able to find much info on properly setting it up on a miata yet, but I know its been done.
Years ago I was not impressed with the small diameter boosters, they didn't seem to help much. It was almost easier to modify the brake pedal ratio and go manual, but then again, its been a 'few' years, things have probably changed. You are progressing well. I'm betting that is going to be a fun ride.
Lesson learned: do not use aluminum for a shift linkage. I can not keep the jam nuts on the rod ends tight. Gonna have to get some steel round and try again. The muffler and exhaust tubing came in today. Looks like it's gonna work perfect. Waiting on V bands to come in, then I'll try my hand at mig welding stainless.
I called my welding salesman today. He says I could use the normal co2/argon mix but it wouldn't be that great. He said to use "tri gas" which i believe is argon helium and co2. Told him no way im buying a full bottle of the stuff just for a few small welds. He thinks he has a partially filled bottle he'll loan me.
Nobody should have this much fun with a rotten Datsun Tires may have been wider even if the width was the same. When it comes to width tire manufactures are a bit loose on what width is. Sometimes its actual tread width other times its sidewall width. Sometimes a tire manufacture will make cheater tires for a popular race cl***. That '245' tire might be closer to 255. If tread was worn down enough it may just be the illusion of a wider tire due to sidewall vs tread width.
Just a bit of heat if it needs to curve someplace, and threads on the end for the shift knob, and it looks line your all set. The shifter custom curved to clear the seat and the shift knob in my Plymouth coupe (the knob is a wheel bearing cap of a 22 Dodge Brothers car).
Haha thats my 2nd shifter. I bent the other one so badly I had to start over. It hits both the seat and the dash. I need to find the happy spot
I can't shorten it otherwise i'd have to bend down to shift. Need to make some sort of S shape Bucket seats would've avoided all these shifter problems, but benches are just bad***. Don't forget bench seats are gonna be a blast throwing this thing sideways
Experience tells me that you bolt in the seat you plan to use in the farthest forward position it will ever go, bolt up the shifter to the trans, and put it in the gear so the handle is the closest to the seat. Never bend the handle when it is cold, it will bend in ways and directions you didn't notice before, and a cold bend will effect all the bends every time its cold bent. The bend at the seat: With a magic marker, put a line on the handle 2" below the point the first bend needs to be (that 2" area usually provides the clearance needed for the seat). The mark is only 1/2 way around the handle, only on the side it needs to bend towards. Mark it in such a way you know which direction you want to bend the handle. If the mark is in an incorrect position, sand (or wire brush) off the mark and do it again. Once you are sure the mark is correct, you will need to estimate how much of an angle the bend the handle has to have to clear the seat, in the correct direction. Put the handle in a vice (or clamp it to a bench) so that the marked line where the bend will be made is 3/4" away from the clamp or vice, with the mark visible. Then heat the handle at the mark (only hot enough to bend the handle without a lot of force, but not excessive heat), and bend it where the mark would have been, to the estimated angle it needs to bend, in the correct direction (I often use a piece of pipe that fits over the top of the handle about 3/4" away from the heated handle to make the bend), bend slowly. Be aware that once the handle is heated up, the mark will no longer be visible. Once the estimated bend has been made, let the handle air cool until it can be handled with bare hands. Then reinstall the handle on the transmission and test putting the trans in and out of the gears closest to the seat several times to be sure it functions correctly and misses the seat. If adjustments need to be made, mark the position the new bend needs to be (you may have to sand/wire brush the handle smooth to remark it). That 2nd bend can be made above or below, or at the same position as the first heat cycle bend was made, it can also be simply changing the direction slightly, or increasing or decreasing the bend angle. You are 'fine tuning' the same bend area to properly clear the seat. If an adjustment needs to be made, use the same process as listed before for that 1st bend near the seat, be sure to allow the handle to completely air cool and test the bend after each adjustment (there have been times I have had to reheat the handle 3-4 times before it was correct). Once the bend is correct, its time to move to the second bend. The dash clearance bend. The next bend is for the dash clearance. Position the shifter handle to the position the handle is the closest to the dash while bolted to the trans, with the shift knob in position. If the handle is pretty long, often this bend is pretty much a guess as to its position, close enough is a good starting point. Again, using the marker, mark the handle 2" below the point the handler needs to bend, about 1/2 way around the diameter, with the mark in the direction the handle needs to bend. You will need to remove the shift knob, clamp the handle into the vice 3/4" below the bend line, with the bend line in the correct position and visible. Heat the handle hot enough to bend the handle in the correct direction (with a pipe slid over the end of the handle), and to the estimated angle needed. Allow the handle to air cool completely. Bolt the handle to the trans, mount the shift knob, and test fit. You are going to want at least 3/4" to 1" clearance between the shift knob and the dash (maybe more, your fingers will be there). Test the shifter movement between both the seat clearance bend, and the dash clearance bend several times. Adjustments can be made by reheating, rebending, and cooling, until you get the correct bends. I have bent many shift handles, I have never gotten this dash clearance bend correct on the first heating cycle, ever. It is extremely important that you do not allow the handle to remain hot after a bend, before you test, especially with a 2nd (or more) heating cycles at either bend, or before you make the 1st heating cycle bend at the dash clearance bend. If you can't hold the handle in your bare hand before any testing, its too hot! When ever I tried to hurry the process, it screwed up the seat clearance bend, and that messed up everything. The process is not something that is done quickly.
Problem: shift linkage swivels when going side to side. Can not get Jam nuts to lock the rod end solid. Originally thought this was flex in the rod, so I bridged it. Trying this simple solid bar stock now. Will not flex. Will not swivel.
You loose the ability to adjust the length with the solid arm, but the swivel is gone. I was going to suggest you make the curved end solid, but leave the straight end adjustable. That was how Mopar made the shift linkage back in the 70s for the reverse rod on the 4 speeds, the reverse rod had a bend like your rod has.
Trying to make progress on this firewall so I can move on with the rest. There is that cam angle sensor sticking out just far enough to ruin my day. I need to make a bubble. I went to dig out my bead roller, to find out its somehow the only thing holding up what's left of my old shop. I didn't feel like having the whole thing come down on my head so abandoned the mission. Theres more than one way to skin a cat though Looks like I got it 1st try Now to piece together the rest
Just picked up this compact sawzall amd it has been great for tight spaces like this. The pneumatic one may have worked better, but then I'd have to deal with listening to a compressor and i wouldn't be able to use it outside. Making the last piece now.
Metal work in the cab finished up. Need to clean it up a bit with a grinder, then waiting on proper hardware to bolt it all together. I ordered 1/4-20 fender nuts.
So are you going to put Imperial nuts and bolts in a Metric car. My pet hate is that, as when I come to work on it later I have the wrong tools with me. I throw out every Imperial nut or bolt I find. Imperial washers I will re-use.
Haha my brain wasn't wired for the metric system. All the miata parts will stay metric. Any new fabrication is US standard. I use to get real conscientious about stuff like that when I was hard core into the traditional period correct HAMB friendly stuff. I absolutely HATE slotted screws, but always used them and square nuts.
Back to my rant about the metric system. Clutch push rod. M9 threads. Need to add more thread to the rod so I can shorten it. Why are there 3 different thread pitches for M9?! Ofcourse i only have a M9x1.25 die...
OK, so this is going to sound crude, ****... If that rod is hardened (like some are), cutting new threads won't be fun. If the threads cut cleanly, you will be OK. But my luck doesn't usually work that way. I would cut the rod off, then remove how ever much material to make the rod to the correct length you need, then bevel both edges and weld it back together. Another option would be to cut the rod off, then get the needed length and diameter grade 8 bolt that matches up (metric or not), cut the bolt head end off, then bevel both edges and weld it back together to the length you need.
Thats exactly what I ended up doing Gene. As it turns out the threads and the rest of the shaft aren't the same thickness. I learned this after I ground that 10mm "nut" down to run the die down the rod. I cut about an inch out of the center and stick it back together. Drilled out new holes and mounted the master cylinder. Push rod lined right up with plenty of adjustment both ways. Clutch is done, just need to plumb the hose and bleed it out once the engine goes back in.
Booster Fits perfectly, however I do have some issues Impossible to get nuts on this side. Also I won't be able to shorten this pushrod like I did with the clutch. So I made this spacer, it will be welded to the firewall. I will still need to make a pocket for those 2 studs after, so the nuts will be on the inside of the cab rather than in the engine bay.
Got some holes to fill. Then onto cleanup and paint. Can't believe how this is falling together. Most likely because its been living rent free in my head for months now. I swear I've built the whole truck in my head multiples times already...
Enjoy the process! When I built my 48 Plymouth coupe (avatar), everything just fell into place and the car has worked out great! We have driven it over 88,000 miles, through 27 different states, since 2011.
The Jalopy Journal
