RAM AIR Trans Am Conversion

[hesster]

Finally worked on something more fun than chasing Body Panel Fits.

The Intake System - it is a "Signature" piece of the T/A Conversion, and unique. It is a whole lot of fun to watch the Flapper Door 'a Flappin when you mash the Throttle!

Installed the Shaker Scoop to the Engine Cover, mounted it to the Engine, closed the Hood and checked for clearances. It all looked good, and I will add the Weatherstrip to the Shaker after Paint.

Then took a good look at the Bandit Intake Mods as a guide to cobbling up the Intake Pipe, and modifying the CAI.

The first thing to do was bend down the Positive Battery Cable Post for clearance. Then cut the hole in the side of the CAI For the Silicone Intake Coupling . Took some careful measurements to determine how much to cut off the 4" Aluminum Pipe.

I will add a small Weatherstrip Gasket to the Pipe where it enters the Scoop to assure it seals up.

And tested the LED Strip to make sure I did not damage it. The LED's are a nice touch, and seriously - they are good for another ~5 HP or so

Next is to rough reinstall the Wheel Liner, and determine where to seal up all of the open Frontal area of the CAI. It must be air tight as possible. So I have on hand a sheet of Aluminum and some Thermal Insulation that I will use to cover everything.

I learned anything in the CAI Box must absolutely be secured down, or it will get pulled off and sucked right onto the Intake Filter. That happened to me on my Supercharged 2 SS when I added some extra Insulation inside the Box - it sucked it off, wrapped around the Air Filter and flattened it, and the Car fell on its face starving for Air. Freaked me out to say the least.

Next I will maybe attack that crude Dove Tail Spoiler to shape it better. Or maybe build some Paint Fixture Stands for the Fascia's (boring).

Anything that does not require shims.

[acutron42]

Beautiful! Do you know if Trans Am Worldwide can certify your work.

[hesster]

Originally Posted by acutron42

Beautiful! Do you know if Trans Am Worldwide can certify your work.

Thanks! Not sure what that means "certify your work"? I know there is some concern of Trademark potential issues on using the Trans Am logos and Decals, and some outfits will not make them. But I imagine Woodward Speed Shop, Da Vinci Wraps, TA Worldwide, TA Depot, and the countless EBay suppliers can address that, since they sell the cars, kits, and stuff.

I find it amazing that the Trans AM Depot's Outlaw Bandit Edition has a BASE PRICE starting at $129,000!
I strive to achieve a level of detail comparable to those cars, with a few of my own unique embellishments.
https://transamdepot.com/wp-content/...d-11-23-19.pdf

[acutron42]

In certify I was wondering if your builds could be recognized & given the providence they deserve. It probabally is not a standard as they only bought the rights, but it would be cool to see your work honored by the SCCA. Your work & level of detail are 2nd to none.

[SlowLS1]

Excellent work as always! Thanks for keeping the updates rolling.

[hesster]

Tackled one "easy item", and working on one that I was not looking forward to.

The easy item was trying out the Stripes that DaVinci Wrap Masters made for me, and figured I would start by putting some on the Shifter Knob. I am going with Blue Carbon Addons CF Overlays on the Interior Parts. Maybe the Blue is a little Bold but it is growing on me and will go well with the Lucerne Blue Painted Interior Parts. The Shifter Knob Overlay is nice, but is prone to separate at the Seam cause it just wont stick in place. So I learned you dab a little bead of Epoxy on the seam and shave it flush as best as possible. Then I added a center white stripe to cover it. It's OK, as good as I can get it.

Then I dove into reshaping the Duraflex Spoiler. To put it simply, it is a POS. As I said I knew that, but it is the closest approximation to a GM OEM Dove Tail Spoiler. So the Center Section did have a few mounting holes that aligned with the holes in the Deck Lid, but I wound up opening up all of them so I could shift it around. That was the easy part.

The Contour at the Ends is terrible, and when you approximate the Winglets into position, it is just comical. The LH Driver Side is OK and only requires some minimal shaping, and I shifted the Center Section on the Deck Lid over to the left to establish that Gap and Alignment.

The RH Passenger Side is another story. It is like 1/2" short and the wrong angle, no matter how you shift the Winglet around. The only way to make this thing look good is to glob on Stranded Fiberglass Bondo and shape it, and reconstruct a Gap. Lots of on and off the car checking gaps and alignment. I use a Oscillating Multi-Tool with 80 Grit Sandpaper to shape it - a little at a time. I made Templates to match the End Contours of the Center Section.

I'm about 1/2 way done, and will keep at it until I am satisfied with reconstruction of the Gaps and proper shape of the Parts. I will not locate and drill the Mounting holes in the Quarter Panels for the Winglets using the Templates until I get the Gaps and alignment correct.

I could have went with a quality "Bolt On" piece in Carbon Fiber, but I wanted something I could Paint Lucerne Blue as part of the Paint scheme.

So more to come on this journey.

[hesster]

Round two on the Spoiler.

Got the Center Section Dialed in, and had to add a little more FG Bondo in areas. Then went at the "Winglets", which also needed shaping. Thankfully there is a lot of material you can sand off to shape these parts. I think they knew that.

Use a few templates to reconstruct profiles but most of it was done by eye, removing material with the Oscillating Tool. That is a great tool for use to use for shaping the parts. So what is left is finesse work - filling in pock marks, and creating the correct radiuses, mounting the Winglets and aligning them, and final tweaks to get it ready for Paint.

Can't say any of this is fun. But necessary.

[acutron42]

How many hours are in you day lol. I don't have words to explain your craftmanship.

[hesster]

Been busy working around the House and Yard - resealing the Patio, planting the Garden and Flowers, and misc "Honey Do's" - so have not been working on the Project much, if at all.

But got some time in on it yesterday after thoroughly cleaning and organizing the Barn. First on order was to crank up the Emotiva 7.1.6 Atmos Home Theatre, put on and crank my favorite Amazon Music, and got to work.
At some point when your tools and stuff is everywhere you spend too much time looking for what you need.

Got the Spoiler "Wings" mounted to the Rear Quarters and of course they, and the Center Section, needed more work. And the Wings don't follow the Rear Quarter's surface very well. Not surprised by that. No amount of adjusting the Wings would work, as the profiles were slightly different as shown in in the 2nd and 3rd Pics (traced with black Magic Marker), and the Gaps still were not right.

So on went more Fiberglass Bondo to perfect the profile, and then I CUT the Gaps with a Paint Stirring Stick and 150 Grit.
At this point I won't settle for just "Good" - it has to meet my standards or I would forever look at it and shake my head and regret not making it near perfect.

I kept going over to the Bandit T/A Conversion and looking at the OEM Dove Tail Spoiler that SSE 4 2SS donated to me as a reference. God bless him again. I don't know why Phastek or some Vendor doesn't offer a quality rendition - probably because GM has the "Rights" to the design?

So this crude "X-Wing" Spoiler is pretty much there after a ton of work and after some Spot Putty and a wet sand, it will be ready for Primer and Lucerne Blue Paint.

I am glad to put that adventure behind me.

[hesster]

Preparing for Paint.

Set up the Vevor Paint Booth to assess it. I like it. It has Dual Fans - one that inflates the Structure, and one to provide positive Air Pressure and flow. I purchased one sized basically for Painting Panels, and not a whole Vehicle. The Hood might be a little tight in it, but we will see.

My research is that it filter's overspray well, but would still stink up your garage with the solvent smell which get's through the filters.
So the plan is to be painting on a low wind day outside, and set it up on a Tarp in the Driveway

And carefully securing the Tent to the Ground as part of set-up.
It has the provisions to secure the Unit to the Ground, and I will place weights on the inside in the corners - Landscaping Bricks and my used Truck Rotors. Should be good if it is not real windy. It all fits nicely into a box when deflated.

Then I built Paint Holding Fixtures for the Fascia's. Had plenty of scrap wood from my Basement refurb.

PIA and inglorious work, but necessary.

Next is Paint Fixtures for the Rear Spoiler, Hood Scoop, and whatever else needs one.

[1JEWLDSSRS]

Very cool sir! Coming right along.. Love the paint booth!

[hesster]

Got some more work in on the Project.

Slapped on the Tires and lowered the car to the ground, and installed the Drake Billet Shock Tower Covers. They are a nice dress up item and look way better than the Black Stock Caps.

BUT - I remembered that on the Bandit Build one of the Caps was rubbing on the underside of the Hood, which I noticed at a early Car Show - the Paint was worn through to the Fiberglass.
To fix that I used a small piece of clear XPEL that I had left over where I used it on the Rocker Panel's. That worked.

So I used some Plumbers Putty on top of the Caps to check clearance, and yep, there is interference on the Passenger Side. I will wait until I mount the Weatherstrip Seal to the Shaker after Paint and then recheck, as that adds a little "Cushion" and raises the Hood slightly. Then I will grind and polish for clearance, or if it is minor I will use the XPEL again.

Then got a few more Paint Fixtures completed - Spoiler and Wings, and one for the Hood Scoop and one for the Engine Cover.

Dusted off my Paint Air Filter, Regulator, and Desiccant Stand and sorted out the Plumbing necessary for painting outside in the new Vevor Paint Booth Tent. For the Smaller Panels, I will run the Compressor Inside the Barn and feed the main Air Hose outside with the Paint FRD Stand in the Tent.

When I get to Painting the Large Panels, I will use the DIY Copper Pipe Water Separator Grid, as that extracts moisture from compressed air before it reaches the spray gun. My Trusty Compressor can keep up, but it does get HOT, so the Grid works by cooling the hot, vapor-heavy air, and condenses it into liquid, which is then drained before and in between Painting sessions.

Ready to throw some Paint!

[hesster]

A stellar windless 80 deg day so I threw some Paint. I figured it would be good to iron out the Equipment and get in the routine.

So I started real simple - Painted the Fender and Quarter Panel Extractor Inserts, and the Shaker Flapper Door.

Since the Parent Parts (the Extractor Body Parts and Hood Shaker Scoop) that these Insets are assembled to will be Painted with Lucerne Blue with Blue Crystal Pearl, I felt Silver would be a good color choice for these parts. With plenty of Pearl and Micro Sequin Flakes. Talk about Bling....But that draws the Eye to these Key Parts.

o First order is to get all of your material ready - don't hunt for any of it in the middle of painting. I use my trusty Mini Gun for small parts.
o Then I purchased some Triangular Paint Stand-Offs to support the Parts.
o I have 9 or so Paint Samples that Tamco sent me gratis for buying so much Paint previously, and I chose Purple Elegance since it is almost Silver and has a ton of Metallic in it. They sell for $45 each so what a deal with them being free. All the Flake in the Clear will make any Purple Color on the Part almost totally Silver. It did. Oh - like my Paint Shaker (a massage gun)?
o Then prepped the Compressor by cracking the drains, and put Desiccant in the Paint Stand chambers (small and Jumbo). When it turns Pink, it is time to change it.
o I Set up the Parts, and shot (2) Coats Adhesion Promotor, (3) Base Color Coats, and (4) Clear Coats with a ton of Pearl and Flake in it.
o I found keeping a Leger and documenting steps and Flash Times helps eliminate screw ups.

The Pictures I took don't do the Parts justice those taken in the Sun), but trust me they really sparkle like a million Diamonds.

Next is to Paint some Black on the Engine Cover Wings and the Front Fascia Grills where necessary.
Oh Boy - more Black Paint, but at least they are small Parts.

[hesster]

More Painting - the weather has been good.

Scrubbed the crap out of the Engine Cover as nothing sticks to it as is, not tape or certainly any Paint. Applied Adhesion promotor, (3) coats of Black BC, and (5) coats of Clear. That will get wet sanded and given a final CC Flow Coat after Painting the Taped up part Blue. Lot's of Paint on it to work with.

Then shot the Fascia Grills in Black, and (3) coats CC. The Lowers will stay as is in Black, and the Uppers will be taped off for Lucerne Blue with Blue Crystal Pearl on the surround area. They look great given I shot them in direct outside Sunlight. Final Blue Painting will be in the Vevor Paint Tent.

Finally - the Rear Spoiler. It still needed lots of work to get ready for Primer. At least 8 iterations of sanding, Spot Putty, sanding, Spot putty, and repeat. A total PIA, but I kept at it until I felt it was ready to get buried in Primer. Lot's of waviness, pits, profile issues, etc.
It WAS NOT GOING ON THE CAR until I was satisfied it was worthy. For all the hours on the these Spoiler parts, I could have made my own mold and started from scratch.

But that is done, and I am excited to start throwing some serious Paint.