Crayons
Crayons
In reply to Teh E36 M3 :
Not sure if serious, but will assume you are. On iPhone 11 (not techie, so don't know what other makes or models have similar tool), I save pic to my phone. Could also take screen shot. Then open in photos, edit, choose the "..." icon at top right, choose markup, and you have a few options for marker type, color, and width.
No was serious- also happen to have an iPhone 11 so thank you!!
Got a diff. Probably heavier than I want but '05 RX-8 LSD. Anyone know what type of LSD these are. Weight is 77lbs. 4.44 ratio. 
I believe (I'm not 100% sure) that it will be a Torsen if it's an LSD. The base level, automatic cars didn't have an LSD, just an open differential.
Interesting- did the torsen have the cross pin visible through the axle ports? I can see a pin through them and am slightly concerned that it isn't LSd, but a cross check of the VIN says it is. Maybe they are viscous?
I can just pull the rear cover I guess. Tomorrow after christmas trees.
Well it doesn't appear to be a torsen. Looks like an open diff to me.
I don't know what the sprung plate is in there. Other than that it looks like a normal open diff. The tag shows a vin that came with limited slip. Almost looks like what those "phantom grip" diffs tried to do by putting sprung friction plates against the spider gear faces. Which seems almost useless.
Oh well. I'll still build the suspension around it and if I peg leg too much I'll investigate other lsd solutions.
I haven't pulled the cover off my RX-8 diff but I don't think the 8 came with a Torsen. They did have a 'torque sensing' limited slip but from what I have read, it is a cone type where there are springs that put pressure on two 'cones'. I believe they do wear out over time.
Thanks- yeah, this is a confirmed "Limited Slip" according to the VIN of the car it came off. I'll get the car built (long row to hoe from here) and see if it's suitable. At least I got a good ratio at 4.44 and I'll see what it looks like when it's getting down the road. I know the diff is the same as the FD, and I know there are factory torsens available for those, so at worse case I'll spring for one of those.
Not sure if it helps you but I've heard the E92 rear end is a bolt in replacement for the rx8, but that is using the whole cradle. Not sure about just the centres
E92 as in BMW? That's intriguing!
That's the one, posted by Driftworks in their RX8 build the entire Bmw rear end cradle bolts directly into the RX8. Planning to use one in my own build but I'm a little way off yet to confirm
Some rust repair before I get too far into getting the motor in. Right rear lower fender opens into the trunk- any moisture and or dirt goes right down into the crack. Including weird E36 M3 you put there 100 years ago. Got the battery tray out yesterday. Lower sill is always rusty and drilled out spot welds to find that the lower is a sweet fiberglass repair. Next is passenger floor- not as much rust as I expected truthfully. We will see when I get this thing blasted after I "think" I've gotten all the rust out.
Request: Some overall shots of the car.
Good to see you jumping right in.
couple overall shots. I tried to get my Norton in there for some brotherly British love but didn't work. Mostly solid, bu this makes me want to look into the lower left fender and sill as well. Excuse the mess. I really am trying to turn over a new leaf and have a clean shop.
Watching with interest. First read the first entry and thought Ok, bigger engine than the 948 or 1098 that came in it. Will be interesting to see how you planned on handling the quarter-elliptic rear springs. Then I saw that you're going IRS. Thumbs up! Lots better than that 1/4 elliptic leaf spring. Also see the car already has some body mods. One-piece tilt front clip? <TU>
I have a 63 Midget waiting in the wings for me to get to. I have different plans for mine, plan on staying relatively stock with MG upgrades. Like swapping the 1098 for a slightly warmed over 1275 from a 72 Midget, maybe making it a 1340. I have a 72 Midget parts car, which is a shame it's rusted out so bad as it is a sought after round wheel arch. Although I have 2 4-speed trans, considering going to a 5-speed for drivability. If I can find one at a decent price. Don't imagine you have the chrome trim that came on early Midgets but not Sprites. Mine is missing those.
Point of restoration order: Do you get the body stripped before you do rust repair or after you are done welding on the chassis? I was leaning toward the latter, but it's beginning to seem reasonable to get it blasted first. Opinions?
wlkelley3 said:Watching with interest. First read the first entry and thought Ok, bigger engine than the 948 or 1098 that came in it. Will be interesting to see how you planned on handling the quarter-elliptic rear springs. Then I saw that you're going IRS. Thumbs up! Lots better than that 1/4 elliptic leaf spring. Also see the car already has some body mods. One-piece tilt front clip? <TU>
I have a 63 Midget waiting in the wings for me to get to. I have different plans for mine, plan on staying relatively stock with MG upgrades. Like swapping the 1098 for a slightly warmed over 1275 from a 72 Midget, maybe making it a 1340. I have a 72 Midget parts car, which is a shame it's rusted out so bad as it is a sought after round wheel arch. Although I have 2 4-speed trans, considering going to a 5-speed for drivability. If I can find one at a decent price. Don't imagine you have the chrome trim that came on early Midgets but not Sprites. Mine is missing those.
I have that trim but fully plan on using it! I did a bunch on my first Midget- came around to liking the square arches better than round from a looks perspective. I liked the 1275- and would recommend that heartily over the 1098, but mine only lasted 25k before another rebuild was required and it never made the power I wanted. Definitely go 5 speed if you can- those four speeds are really terrible and unreliable. I went through two before going with the datsun conversion, which was absolutely fantastic. Also consider a rear axle strengthening- either hardened axle shafts, or narrowed rx-7. I broke two axle shafts before changing mine out.
Couple of thoughts and comments. First of all, awesome project! That MRZ is a great engine and will really make this Midget fly as I was really surprised how well it moved my NC. Second, the blasting before or after rust repair really depends on the strength of the unit body. If it is intact enough to get it blasted and then you can fix the holes, then go for it, but if the shell is suspect, you will want to strengthen it before you fix it. On Triumphs that have a frame, you have to be very careful when you pull the body shell, typically requiring you weld across the door gaps with a brace before pulling the body off the frame. I would keep digging for a while to find all the bad spots before deciding how to proceed.
I highly recommend the dustless blasting, really clean and fast way to see what you are dealing with and they may be able to do it in your driveway.
Thanks for the overall shots. Bears quite the resemblance to your last one. Again, great build.
Interior door pulls and clip on side screens rule.
My opinion on blasting is that it doesn't really matter the order, just prime it immediately. I guess the only thing is repairs may be easier after blasting.
+1 on soda blasting if you can. I had the floors in a project sand blasted, then put it on a rotisserie. The sand was coming out forever. Soda, you can at least wash away.
The correct answer is to have the shell blasted before and after the work.
But lets face it few of us want to do that due to $$$ and PITA factor.
Blasting the shell first gives you a cleaner work experience with less rust in your face. And you should also have it eopoxy primed at that point. Big morale booster.
You want to blast at the end because it will clean up all the corrosion that builds up along the way. Especially in the weld beads and seams. If you can stand to work on a messy rusty gritty shell, the leave it until the end. You may or may not find a few surprises when done blasting.
Thanks for the thoughts on the blasting- my thought was that if I got it done now, I'd find ALL the rust before I got excited about paint etc, but I really don't want to do it twice. I'll do the search in the usual places, get the motor mocked up and mounted etc, and get all the welding I need before having it blasted.
I found this place that does mobile blasting - allegedly in your driveway, which I like. https://www.vsrdustless.com/services/automotive-sandblasting/
Anyway, still digging into rusty spots- before I close them in, I need to wait for my rust converter- the gap in that rear fender I'm certain holds some surprises. I could do some more cutting back there, and may yet. It is such a pleasure working on a car that you don't have to have on the road for work on monday. Even rust repair isn't that bad. 
Mobile blasting is really cool and will strip it to bare metal, the water in the blast mix has a rust inhibitor in it to prevent flash rusting. You will expose areas that are hidden, so I do agree with your plan to strip it, fix everything and then blast it before doing the bodywork. I blasted the areas that needed work, but thought my rockers were okay, but should have blasted all of it with hindsight, but was trying to keep the original paint for the "patina". There were so many pin holes exposed in my floors, that I ended up cutting them out and welding in a good used set.
That rotisserie is dreamy. I got rid of my engine stand about a year ago and am loathe to buy two more just to get rid of them as well- considering something to bolt to the wheel lugs so I can at least get it on its side. I don't know.... just more stuff.
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