McBurnie Build


Guest C.T.

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I recently acquired what I believe is possibly the very last unbuilt McBurnie kit in the world and imported into the UK.

 

Here's some pics:

 

10dxgsm.jpg

2chb3mc.jpg

141uq36.jpg

121tmvt.jpg

e5r335.jpg

103djpu.jpg

14kunp4.jpg

fl8plh.jpg

e9jj9x.jpg

2n7jww6.jpg

23lgj68.jpg

2le0vtz.jpg

73dp9t.jpg

 

As far as I can I'm going for accuracy as much as I can. An idealised combination of Car 1 and Car 4. I'm having the car built by one of the UK's leading Corvette specialists but some of the issues I'm having are quite obscure and mainly center around things like components, built methods and stuff like the convertible roof, bumpers attachments etc. I wanted to pick the brains of the good folk here as Tom McBurnie is being pretty unhelpful , Carl Roberts (although a very nice guy) has also really done nothing much to help and Bob Jaramsek of Rowley is just being Bob and I'd be long dead and buried by the time he gets around to my email.

 

How did you guys end up building your's? The issues you encountered would prove invaluable to me. Thanks in advance!

Edited by C.T.
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Here are some pics of the McBurnie central console and dash, but I'm not going to install these as I'm going with stock C3.

 

xkpsup.jpg

fkwvg6.jpg

15q9izd.jpg

2lc2t6r.jpg

 

Btw, does anyone know what these components are and how they should be fitted?

 

1685q55.jpg

1045cf9.jpg

1zt0uo.jpg

23uotwn.jpg

1582uq9.jpg

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Congrats!

That is amazing. I hope you are able to find a good C3 doner car for this project.

Please keep us posted!!!

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My donor car has already arrived and is going to be dismantled and gently serviced and restored next week. It's a 1980 C3 with a brand new 350 V8, new trans, headers and Holley carb. Frame is rust free and interior is new. It's a decent runner with only minor upgrades needed to bring it up to par.

Edited by C.T.
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I have several questions regarding the build if you kind folk can help me out.

 

1) How are the bumpers attached? Reading between the lines it would appear that there are two steel tubes per bumper welded directly to the frame. There are then two smaller tube that are attached to the the bumper in a T configuration via a flat cross piece welded to the bumper side tubes which then slot into the frame side tubes and secured using a screw from underneath. Similar to the way it was done on a Dino or a Mondial or 308. Would this be correct? Also are the bumpers spring loaded meaning that there is a strong spring on the inside of the bumper tubes?

 

 

2) Where do people get their convertible tops? Every keeps telling me that the standard C3 tops don't fit which is counter intuitive as the C3 convertible top frame is what is used and the frame really dictates the shape of the convertible top, right? Or am I missing something? It just seems that some people want me to blow a ton of money on getting a 'custom' top made when a standard top will fit with a bit of minor adjustment.

 

fvg46v.jpg

 

3) What do the door cards of the screen used cars look like? I know at least one didn't have the Daytona stripes. Did the other at any point?

 

4) What was the colour of the interior? I am going for Connolly 7626 which is a biscuit tan with matching carpets and black Daytona stripes and piping with burl console veneer.

 

5) Where is the best place to get a filler cap to fit?

 

Thanks in advance for your help!

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it looks like one of the panels is numbered, I think that should be mentioned in a mcburnie manual somewhere on this site, the one marked number 9 and some of them look like they maybe part of the door, and what looks to be the wheel wells, check cooper and burnetts thread on it, it should be burried in there somewhere.

 

also if I remember correctly the bumpers are hooked through the grill itself, as its one of the reasons why people opt to go for a rowley unit or to leave it off all together, like they did on the volo car as you have to take the bumpers off to service it, so there must be a way to disconnect the bumpers to take them off without unwielding them from the frame.

 

 

and your gonna be the first to start from scratch honestly, what I can say is when your disassembling take photos of how it all came apart, their is a kit car magazine article on building one actually, which might help you, and I think its burried on this website somewhere, that along with the manual, as I remember seeing a parts breakdown somewhere but its not in my photo files.

 

 

as for the interior I'm not sure what you mean with the doors, the door panels were different on both cars, as one started with a 1981 as a base and the other one, was a 76 car with those doorhandles on it, no striping on either, just straight color matched leather

 

one with folds on it on the 76, and the other was kind of flat and had a build in handrest with a boom box speaker on it, that might have been from another exotic, as it looked similar to a lambo 400 speaker.

 

interior dash wise, the more I look into this the more I think the interior and seats from the pilot were made using a mixture of 1978 onwards corvette parts and the dash and seats of a latter Detomaso Pantera, as both were combo cars

 

designed to look italian with American Running Gear.

 

I think they used a specific kind of gas cap with carbed cars, it may not be entirely sealed/pressurized, as I know you have to switch the pumps over when going from carbs to fuel injection, and that might include the gas cap, so i would look into a vintage car club about that, 24:20

 

 

and the seats were switched to stock 1978's with daytona like piping.

 

and the interior coloring, I'm not entirely sure what it was, it could have been Connoloy or it could have been just the stock beige/light beige interior color, although I think the vette in that time period was using real leather, not Vinil like some muscle cars used

 

but a reason why they used Vinil over leather was that it was more water reisistant on convertibles, which is something to keep in mind, so just aim for what looks closest to you.

 

 

with the top, the stock C3 one should work, its just that the door it sits on has been deleted, and I think it was in part fastened with snaps to the sides, rather than sitting on the door, so it might require modification in that way.

 

although it seems to sit on a lip, like they put a lip in for it to sit on, and put snaps in to water seal it, as this is generally what it is normally like on a C2/C3 Convertible

 

 

 

note how generally it seems like the edge starts further in on this one, also a mcburnie, Sonny Burnetts namely.

 

4610639898_abdf10df99_b.jpg

 

 

gallery_471_5_43429.jpg

 

so it does look like they thought of that.

 

141uq36.jpg

 

 

https://www.flickr.com/photos/londonitalian/4948840104/sizes/l

Edited by Kavinsky
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Thanks for the comprehensive reply Kavinsky. I'm crazy to attempt this and every single mechanic I approached to do this has told me I'm mad and most refused to do it even when I offered them obscene amounts of money before I found one who knew the C3 Corvette inside out and said the project didn't faze him. I'm going to order a Hartz cloth hood tonight.

 

The interior is a strange one. I'm going to go with a hybrid of Car 1 and Car 4 with the dash pad sculpted in Plastizote and then covered in Connolly and the console and dash too. The door cards are somewhat more problematic as the screen used door cards I've seen do not feature the daytona striped inserts yet my door card does not lend itself to being turned into something like this:

 

car14.jpg

 

(I assume this was car 4? and does anyone have any pics of car 1's door card?)

 

Will the existing door card in the 1980 C3 donor car fit the McBurnie door skins?

 

The other question is about the mirrors. I am using Vitaloni Baby Tornados that are black matte grained plastic. Do they need to be painted or were the screen used mirrors used 'as is'?

 

I've been told by JurassicNarc that the doors skins on the McBurnie are a bit of a nightmare. Can anyone elaborate on this?

 

In regards to the plexi, does an OEM Daytona plexi actually fit? Or are the dimensions off? Also, how does everyone fit the plexi? I have a problem with mine as I suspect that the recesses were designed for the pop up headlights and as such the front edge is missing, as it were. I'll explain more in a future post. 

 

Anyone who has a McBurnie, would you mind if I picked your brains and also see if I can pictures or explanations about how certain parts are assembled? As I stated before, McBurnie has gone very quiet on me and Roberts, nice guy as he is, talks a good talk but ultimately has been very little help. Bob Jaremsek...well, I don't think the guy really gives a fuck about anything which is his right.

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I recently acquired what I believe is possibly the very last unbuilt McBurnie kit in the world and imported into the UK.

 

Here's some pics:

 

10dxgsm.jpg

2chb3mc.jpg

141uq36.jpg

121tmvt.jpg

e5r335.jpg

103djpu.jpg

14kunp4.jpg

fl8plh.jpg

e9jj9x.jpg

2n7jww6.jpg

23lgj68.jpg

2le0vtz.jpg

73dp9t.jpg

 

As far as I can I'm going for accuracy as much as I can. An idealised combination of Car 1 and Car 4. I'm having the car built by one of the UK's leading Corvette specialists but some of the issues I'm having are quite obscure and mainly center around things like components, built methods and stuff like the convertible roof, bumpers attachments etc. I wanted to pick the brains of the good folk here as Tom McBurnie is being pretty unhelpful , Carl Roberts (although a very nice guy) has also really done nothing much to help and Bob Jaramsek of Rowley is just being Bob and I'd be long dead and buried by the time he gets around to my email.

 

How did you guys end up building your's? The issues you encountered would prove invaluable to me. Thanks in advance!

 

You have Crockett's outfit to go with the car. Nice!  :cool:  :thumbsup:

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Thanks for the comprehensive reply Kavinsky. I'm crazy to attempt this and every single mechanic I approached to do this has told me I'm mad and most refused to do it even when I offered them obscene amounts of money before I found one who knew the C3 Corvette inside out and said the project didn't faze him. I'm going to order a Hartz cloth hood tonight.

 

The interior is a strange one. I'm going to go with a hybrid of Car 1 and Car 4 with the dash pad sculpted in Plastizote and then covered in Connolly and the console and dash too. The door cards are somewhat more problematic as the screen used door cards I've seen do not feature the daytona striped inserts yet my door card does not lend itself to being turned into something like this:

 

car14.jpg

 

(I assume this was car 4? and does anyone have any pics of car 1's door card?)

 

Will the existing door card in the 1980 C3 donor car fit the McBurnie door skins?

 

The other question is about the mirrors. I am using Vitaloni Baby Tornados that are black matte grained plastic. Do they need to be painted or were the screen used mirrors used 'as is'?

 

I've been told by JurassicNarc that the doors skins on the McBurnie are a bit of a nightmare. Can anyone elaborate on this?

 

In regards to the plexi, does an OEM Daytona plexi actually fit? Or are the dimensions off? Also, how does everyone fit the plexi? I have a problem with mine as I suspect that the recesses were designed for the pop up headlights and as such the front edge is missing, as it were. I'll explain more in a future post. 

 

Anyone who has a McBurnie, would you mind if I picked your brains and also see if I can pictures or explanations about how certain parts are assembled? As I stated before, McBurnie has gone very quiet on me and Roberts, nice guy as he is, talks a good talk but ultimately has been very little help. Bob Jaremsek...well, I don't think the guy really gives a fuck about anything which is his right.

 

yeah that's car 4's door pannel, is it typically called a door card where your from? as I'm abit confused about that. and its been replaced since then with a Carl Roberts Unit, which honestly looks much better but I dont know if he can even make them anymore, there was also some fiero seat guy that apparently was offering to do the interior of the daytona replicas

 

but that page from his website has since disapeared.

 

 

with the photos of the cars, well I did alot of corespondence and photo posting of it here

 

http://miamiviceonline.com/index.php/topic/1010-the-ferrari-daytonas-of-miami-vice/page-104

 

note how the top of the 76's cars door pannel looks almost exactly like the 76 unit right on the top on post 2074

 

so car 1 might be the easiest to emulate door wise, as it looks like its just a recovered 76 unit, on car 4 it looks like someone made a housing that either was to serve as a pocket, or a place to rest your arms with the arm rest worked through

 

although the handle for the arm rest is either not there, broke off or was removed on car 4, vs what it was like on car three here

 

http://miamiviceonline.com/index.php/gallery/image/3570-bought-and-paid-for-5/

http://miamiviceonline.com/uploads/gallery/album_5/gallery_471_5_8354.jpg

 

also there seemed to be some sort of light mounted on the lower half of the door here, that did light up when the door was opened

 

http://miamiviceonline.com/index.php/gallery/image/3559-vlcsnap-2015-05-12-15h59m57s8/

 

vs how it is now on the Carl Roberts unit, which removes the light, and the speaker, probably because the thing had a newstereo system put in after it left the show, CD player, and the speakers are behind the seats now

 

http://miamiviceonline.com/uploads/gallery/album_5/gallery_471_5_14267.jpg

 

and well I dont know how well that worked with those in the door, plus how reliable the light was, which is visible breifly in tales of the goat and it seemed abit delayed, plus the burlwood has been removed from the center console, yet the accent remains on the lower half of the dash, around where your legs would be, and the stripe from S2 was removed for whatever reason

 

 

 

also I gotta ask since your starting from scatch with this thing, have you thought about maybe modifying the windshield on the base car to be a litlte lower and sleaked back, like I did here with this test photo

 

http://miamiviceonline.com/uploads/gallery/album_5/gallery_471_5_468122.jpg

 

not my car FYI

 

as I keep thinking that it would really help the profile of the car, given that the new body lowers the general hood profile by about an inch, like an inbetween of a C3 and a C4, as the C4's seem to drop it abit too low

 

http://corvette.canney.net/webvettes/customized/c0049/index.html

 

66 degree angle I think

 

but I'm not sure if it would work, and since your starting from scratch it might be something worth asking your guy about, like drop an inch lower and change the angle to be more inline with the angle of the hood, and drop the seats to match.

 

similar to what this guy did on his keizer at 9:53

 

 

 

as I keep thinking alright if someone did that, you'd probably have to mod the glass in the doors abit but the runners should still work, and you'd probably have to cut or modify the top, like on this jag at 3:42

 

 

 

but it should be possible, and I just keep thinking about that one detail on it.

Edited by Kavinsky
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by the way I forgot to ask something, in the photos of the body, this one namely

 

2chb3mc.jpg

 

what's the story with the 911 Targa in the background, the silver one, as it looks like someone is using ducktape to keep the door shut on it, also what is the red one next to the body on the left, as it kinda looks like the 250 replica they used for Forrest Bullers day off from this angle.

 

which was also made by mcburnie for an MGB.

 

also with this photo, what is the story with the grill here? as I dont recall seeing that gap on the upper half of the grill on the early mcburnies, maybe they started cutting that top bit on the latter ones?

 

as I think sonny burnetts car has that same style to it, and his was also one of the last ones made with the 2X2 headlight cluster of the vice cars, just at the factory. before they switched to a 1x1 single block, which looks terrible, and one must wonder if it was done to try and cover their ass with ferrari on their case.

 

gallery_471_5_71771.jpg

 

Car 4 in these two shots FYI

 

gallery_471_5_135627.jpg

 

gallery_471_5_100799.jpg

 

note the upper corners on the grill.

 

hmm maybe they changed the mounting procedure from the first cars to the production ones...

 

actually just looking at it, it looks like on the early ones, of the markian run that they were mounted further down, wonder what the story is there, more support and a better angle for them?

 

 

also if your not in the know here, the Vice car used plexyglass over its headlight cluster, originally smoked during the pilot and then switched to clear for the rest of S1, then switched back to smoked in S2, and then back again post vice.

 

and theres a light amplifyer on the front end infront of them for that reason, although for the headlights to work well you needed to have the highs on with the smoked

 

but that's why you had this solid white glow in S1

 

 

 

and is also why with this one, the owner opted to go for this headlight set up, and the owner is on the forums here as well FYI

 

http://corvette.canney.net/webvettes/customized/c0014/index.html

 

16_3.jpg

 

not him in the photos though, and my own personal feelings on it is to remove the spacing gap of the 2x2 and mount them at an angle, like they were in the vice city games here on the red one

 

gallery_471_5_248053.jpg

 

of which is in, of all places, aulstralia, figure that one out.

Edited by Kavinsky
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No idea about the Porsche Targa. That one isn't mine. I own the Boxster.  :)

 

The red car is an Innocenti.  They all came from the same place as my McBurnie and are barn finds mostly.

 

The grill is stock and is an example of a late McBurnie grill. My car even has 'McBurnie' moulded into the driver side rocker panel.

 

I'm not going to dick around with the windshield rake as I didn't even think it was possible and it will just add cost and unnecessary complications to an already challenging build as the windows will need to be changed and the roof will need to be changed.

 

I am aware of the plexi issues. I don't want to go down the rough and ready route of just bolting a 1mm thick piece of lexan over the front as there are issues with fit and also making the thing watertight as I will need to in British weather. The other thing I need to do is is to figure out fixing points as there are no natural places to screw the plexi on within the headlight recesses. I'm going to fabricate a 8mm frame and install that into the headlight recess, setting it back about 2-3mm (the thickness of the plexi) so the I can get some sealnt strip under the plexi and allow the screws somewhere to be screwed into. This frame will also fill in the missing lower portion of the recess and restore a clean line back to the nose. I'll be laser cutting my own plexi and then etching lines into it myself.

 

One thing I was concerned about was overheating and the hood vents.

 

I'm fabricating my own nomex underhood quilt but is it really necessary? I have heard that C3's are notorious for overheating unless they are driven at speed. Does anyone have a problem with overheating? To be safe, I'm replacing the existing cooling system with a 4 core, two fan racing rad.

 

The other related point was cutting out the hood vents. Does anyone do it? And if so, wouldn't water get into the engine bay and cause problems with the electrics? Spark plugs, distributer, etc? Is there any way of channelling excess water out of the engine bay and bypassing anything important?

 

And the mirror issue...does anyone paint their Vitaloni's?

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No idea about the Porsche Targa. That one isn't mine. I own the Boxster.  :)

 

The red car is an Innocenti.  They all came from the same place as my McBurnie and are barn finds mostly.

 

The grill is stock and is an example of a late McBurnie grill. My car even has 'McBurnie' moulded into the driver side rocker panel.

 

I'm not going to dick around with the windshield rake as I didn't even think it was possible and it will just add cost and unnecessary complications to an already challenging build as the windows will need to be changed and the roof will need to be changed.

 

I am aware of the plexi issues. I don't want to go down the rough and ready route of just bolting a 1mm thick piece of lexan over the front as there are issues with fit and also making the thing watertight as I will need to in British weather. The other thing I need to do is is to figure out fixing points as there are no natural places to screw the plexi on within the headlight recesses. I'm going to fabricate a 8mm frame and install that into the headlight recess, setting it back about 2-3mm (the thickness of the plexi) so the I can get some sealnt strip under the plexi and allow the screws somewhere to be screwed into. This frame will also fill in the missing lower portion of the recess and restore a clean line back to the nose. I'll be laser cutting my own plexi and then etching lines into it myself.

 

One thing I was concerned about was overheating and the hood vents.

 

I'm fabricating my own nomex underhood quilt but is it really necessary? I have heard that C3's are notorious for overheating unless they are driven at speed. Does anyone have a problem with overheating? To be safe, I'm replacing the existing cooling system with a 4 core, two fan racing rad.

 

The other related point was cutting out the hood vents. Does anyone do it? And if so, wouldn't water get into the engine bay and cause problems with the electrics? Spark plugs, distributer, etc? Is there any way of channelling excess water out of the engine bay and bypassing anything important?

 

And the mirror issue...does anyone paint their Vitaloni's?

 

 

 

fair enough with the windshield, I just figured since your starting from scratch it was worth bringing up the idea. given that the C4 is just a rebodied C3 with some modernizations and a new interior, so I figure an interm in that regard should be possible.

 

The overheating thing is probably from an old design choice the engineers chose to do back then, as on cars from the 1960's the fans run off of the clutch, via the kind of thing you'd see on a fighter plane to run the guns, like on the Vickers Machine Gun, so they only run when the car is moving

 

 

 

and everybody did this, and very few did not, hence why its a common upgrade to switch to electric fans, also this is why insulation is important, dynamat, all the way, as my home, zero insulation, Hot in the sumertime, cold in the winter with the heat on, no air con either, so my home is about as good as that superbee.

 

as the electronics on these cars back then was primative and costly, so mechanical operation was prefered over electronic fans, and the mcburnies generally upgraded to electrical fans when they were built in the 1980's, and the only mcburnie we had that overheated was Sonny Burnetts, and that was because the fan was put on backwards by the corvette mechanic he had working on it.

 

who wanted to cut into the nose to pull more air below, as that's where the car breathes from, once it was switched around that put an end to it

 

the other option is a modern radiator like a be cool unit

 

and the hood vents on the car are functional, although I know there was a part rowley was selling to prevent vapor lock on his, basicaly where the seal between the motor and the windshield wipers were he had cut two boxes there to let the air blow out through the hood

 

gallery_471_5_341707.jpg

 

none of the owners here have had to use them however, atleast not to my knowledge, mind you he has a fuel injected motor in the photo, and none of us save for the guy who bought brians car run a fuel injected motor. a car I regret not going down to just get a loan with and to say hell with it over it

 

but no proper garage, salt, bad weather, living under tree's and birds, and bad roads, and the thing was near mint too, I just couldnt do that until I atleast had a damn garage for it. and I dont even have that for my mains.

 

and he didnt mention any vapor lock problems on it either and brightening the photos of the engine show no such piece in action

 

gallery_471_5_54439.jpg

 

 

With the plexy I'm not sure what you can really do, as its abit of a complex issue, one or two have actually just redone the headlights of the daytona with it, using the factory operated Vacume system and headlights to work it, of which the wiper system on the early vettes used that, as they had a door for them that had to be accutated with it, not sure if its possible to switch that to a far more reliable hydraulic system

 

 

also of note without that amplifier this is what a 2x2 system looks like without it

 

https://www.flickr.com/photos/jpl3k/2207924045/in/album-72157603129910101/

 

 

I must wonder, in my work researching and trying to figure out things with the sunglasses if a photochromic thing could work for this, although it would have to be sensitive to outside light, and not inside.

 

like I would wonder if LED's could pass through that no problem without setting it off.  or possibly something just with a gradient, black ontop clear on the bottom. although I've never heard of such a thing being used in this manner.

 

 

also for the mcburnies that have headlight doors with the headlights fixed like Sonny's does, it uses the stock system to keep them closed.

 

with the hood vents, my general understanding is that with the vents on cars like the ferrari and the like they generally have the spark plugs protected and under the center stack covered area, and my father back in the day with his WW2 jeep used some sort of accrylic spray to water proof the spark plugs, including the caps, and that worked fine in alaska, as otherwise the elctricty is going to go into the block

 

and Sonny did drive the car in the rain once, didnt seem to not work there, twice actually, the one with the countach chase after ariving to Ginas place after the chase and Little Miss Dangerious run to the house at the end.

 

plus looking at the photo on this mcburnie, it looks like it comes out at the front of the motor, not above it, right between the radiator and the engine

 

5c89_3.jpg

 

so it maybe a non issue, not like on this 1968 KR at 3:22

 

 

the quilt thing I'm not sure if its needed, might be to dissipate heat and keep it from vapor locking in of itself, although that is purely guess work on my end. and I dont know who you could get to cut open the vents, all I can say is better to cut them small rather than big, the whole venturi effect thing, plus if someone screws up, all you have to do is take some of the extra excess to balance it out rather than add and redo the whole thing.

 

and the big thing that causes cars to rust is pluged drain holes, sometimes done by the factory, so as long as it has somewhere to go and not pool it should be fine to have those I reckon, so I would make sure the bottom of the vents is well cut and cut proper

 

at 3:45

 

 

also given that your basecar is bodyless for this conversion, it might be a good idea to check to see how the drain holes on it are actually.

Edited by Kavinsky
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I have several questions regarding the build if you kind folk can help me out.

 

1) How are the bumpers attached? Reading between the lines it would appear that there are two steel tubes per bumper welded directly to the frame. There are then two smaller tube that are attached to the the bumper in a T configuration via a flat cross piece welded to the bumper side tubes which then slot into the frame side tubes and secured using a screw from underneath. Similar to the way it was done on a Dino or a Mondial or 308. Would this be correct? Also are the bumpers spring loaded meaning that there is a strong spring on the inside of the bumper tubes?

The bumpers are attached directly to the frame rails via those tubes you are talking about. You will have to mark the holes and drill carefully as you don't want big gaping holes in the valance panels. These bumpers are "DIRECT" fit and have no energy absorption at all as they are bolted to the frame rails directly. (at least all the ones I looked at)

 

 

2) Where do people get their convertible tops? Every keeps telling me that the standard C3 tops don't fit which is counter intuitive as the C3 convertible top frame is what is used and the frame really dictates the shape of the convertible top, right? Or am I missing something? It just seems that some people want me to blow a ton of money on getting a 'custom' top made when a standard top will fit with a bit of minor adjustment.

If it's a true McB then the top should fit. I have seen very poor copies that yes the tops don't fit because of either the rear area deck is incorrect or the top does not fit the header properly. If it's a factory original top it should fit good! Some other models I looked at didn't have space behind the seat as the fuel tank was there (wrong) "That's where the top goes when it's down.

 

 

3) What do the door cards of the screen used cars look like? I know at least one didn't have the Daytona stripes. Did the other at any point?

 

4) What was the colour of the interior? I am going for Connolly 7626 which is a biscuit tan with matching carpets and black Daytona stripes and piping with burl console veneer.

 

5) Where is the best place to get a filler cap to fit?

Try the speed shops as a flip type lid is available that they used on the Daytona track for Mustangs, Shelby's etc. They are very common in North America. If you get stuck get a hold of me and I can check Gratiot or SpeedPro for you.

 

Thanks in advance for your help!

Edited by Stinger390X
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By the way...if you need advice for paint I have over 40years of expertise in that field. There are many new types of paint on the market which are low VOC (water borne) but I do custom paint on speedboats and still use good old fashion solvent based paints and primers. Can't beat them for quality but now getting harder to find..........

Many of the acrylic based urethanes are my best choice still so if you have a jobber in your district that sells that kind of product you are in business.

The high solids primers such as Sikkens have incredible fill quality and are easy to sand so when you blocksand that body out it will come out straight as a pin if you know how to do it correctly!

Geeeeez I'm all exited to see the finished product. Keep posting pictures.

Edited by Stinger390X
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Late to the show, but I will try to give you sage advise.  The kits used fuel tanks from a 72 Vette with the outlet and gauge on the bottom.  You will need to fabricate the spout and use parts that don't cause the petrol to spew back out.  Use a 311 NAPA filler neck and 311 tank neck.  Combine with a 322 filler hose and weld on a standard Corvette filler.

 

The bumpers should be as you described earlier, with tubes welded to the frame ends.  The bumpers will fit onto the ends.  In think there is some information on this in the McBurnie construction book.  

 

The plexiglass from a Ferrari may not fit.  The one that Rowley sells will, and is very well done.  You can purchase it by calling and getting your order in.  I doubt that he responds to emails anymore.  I had to call for the last couple of items I ordered.

 

I did open up my hood vents, but really had no issue with overheating once the radiator issues were tracked down.  I do use an under hood insulator in silver, and the same sort of material on the top of the trunk in black to give a finished look.

 

The carpet on the show car was all black, not tan.  All the leather was a light buttery tan color.  The carpet on the dash was a red/gold color.

 

The gauges were standard Corvette all around.  The seat frames and the starting point for the dash are from a 1978-1982 interior.  The transmission was a three speed auto (GM350 I think).

 

You will need to get the correct Ferrari light bulb housings for all the electronics, and then connect them into the Corvette wiring (1976 to 1978 is the best year for the wiring harness).

 

I am excited to see your project grow, but am glad it is you and not me.  There is a great deal of work to be done to get the drivetrain into place and running up to par.  The interior parts should come together rather quickly.

 

The top frame is a pre-1975 Corvette version.  The top should be cut from Harttz Hepatic Canvas, and then slightly adjusted to fit the minor differences in the body.

 

Any tips I missed I will try to fill in later in the week.

 

JN

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The mirrors are the remote control Vitalonis which are slightly larger than the Baby Tornados, and have a metallic back to the mirror.  THe floor of the trunk will have to be fabricated once the fuel tank is in place.  I lined my trunk with the Wilton wool carpet that is on the floor inside.

 

JN

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yeah with the mirrors on the show they were the full on Tornado Mirrors, as noted by the control knobs located in the center console in this shot

 
 
post-592-13892965712703.jpg

 

gallery_471_5_75920.jpg

 

and then it was switched over to the non electric and smaller baby tornado's post show, along with some other changes

 

gallery_471_5_58674.jpg

 

gallery_471_5_135627.jpg

 

post show here down below.

 

gallery_471_5_735794.jpg

 

 

its mounting spot is much like they did on a porsche 930/jaguar of the time period, where its all about maxiumn visibility, less stylage

 

 

 

at 0:15

 

 

also with the jaguar example, it maybe worth noting that the center console was covered in burlwood in much the same way as they did on jags of the time period.

 

 

which can actually be done by a cabnet maker, as they vacume form the wood to the plastic center console unit, like they showed them do to a jaguar XJS center console on Wheller dealers if you can find the episode on youtube before discovery takes it down again.

 

 

I personally thought it, the mirrors, might look better mounted lower down, at about the same level as the door handle but that might mean if someone bumps into it it might slam into the paintwork.

 

with the thing about painting them, I would think about doing the reverse actually, paint the windshield trim to match them, such as a satin like color, much like the treatment done to the alfa romeo 8C spider

 

14542057067_d55d35337b_b.jpg

 

12259643704_43f5d684d8_b.jpg

 

vs the coupe

 

18906210969_69268d74f3_b.jpg

 

this same technique was used to differenciate the coupe and the Ferrari 308 GTS FYI, although in that case it was a Satin black, and the magnum team just took it a step further by painting the grills

 

 

so that techinque is time period correct

 

and also it could help to paint the chrome top strip, like what was done here, probably powder coated the thing

 

gallery_471_5_352053.jpg

 

 

also I did find an alternative to the mirrors that might look better to you if you fancy the smaller baby tornados, their the Cipa 12000 Flag Mirrors used on this 308, non electric to my knowledge, but they seem to be a mixture of the California and tornado mirrors, seen above as the calis on the red one

 

gallery_471_5_311125.jpg

 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/CIPA-12000-Black-Universal-/321598353234?hash=item4ae0c16f52&vxp=mtr

 

of note the only car on this website to have both the electric tornados and the center console done up like on the show is jurrasics car, with the mcburnie label thing on the quarters, do you plan to have those sanded off?

Edited by Kavinsky
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Firstly, thank you all for taking the time to reply to me. I am amazed by the expertise and knowledge on display here.

 

Quick update on this. My donor car arrived this week and has been inspected and the work that is needed is being assessed. The good news is that my mechanic has said I've got a fantastic donor car. The best possible donor you can get apart from a factory fresh or fully restored C3. Here she is:

 

2nl8v2h.jpg

zkg2mw.jpg

5fjh45.jpg

 

55o7cz.jpg

 

Frame is solid with zero rust, brand new high output crate 350 small block V8 and Edelbrock manifold upgrade pumping out 300+ bhp (probably a lot more as the car goes like shit off a shovel), new Turbo trans, new Flowtech high power headers, new stainless steel brakes and a new Holley carb. The basics are solid. All that's needed really is a new composite monospring, a twin fan racing rad and some minor upgrades here and there such as full HIDs interior LED gauge lighting, electric fuel pump and custom racing fuel cell. Interior is going to be ripped out and reskinned in tan Connolly by a top UK coachtrimmer and probably Car 1 will be replicated internally.

 

If I may, I'd like to respond to some of your questions and ask a few of my own:

 

 

 

yeah with the mirrors on the show they were the full on Tornado Mirrors, as noted by the control knobs located in the center console in this shot

 
 
post-592-13892965712703.jpg

 

gallery_471_5_75920.jpg

 

and then it was switched over to the non electric and smaller baby tornado's post show, along with some other changes

 

gallery_471_5_58674.jpg

 

gallery_471_5_135627.jpg

 

post show here down below.

 

gallery_471_5_735794.jpg

 

 

its mounting spot is much like they did on a porsche 930/jaguar of the time period, where its all about maxiumn visibility, less stylage

 

 

 

at 0:15

 

 

also with the jaguar example, it maybe worth noting that the center console was covered in burlwood in much the same way as they did on jags of the time period.

 

 

which can actually be done by a cabnet maker, as they vacume form the wood to the plastic center console unit, like they showed them do to a jaguar XJS center console on Wheller dealers if you can find the episode on youtube before discovery takes it down again.

 

 

I personally thought it, the mirrors, might look better mounted lower down, at about the same level as the door handle but that might mean if someone bumps into it it might slam into the paintwork.

 

with the thing about painting them, I would think about doing the reverse actually, paint the windshield trim to match them, such as a satin like color, much like the treatment done to the alfa romeo 8C spider

 

14542057067_d55d35337b_b.jpg

 

12259643704_43f5d684d8_b.jpg

 

vs the coupe

 

18906210969_69268d74f3_b.jpg

 

this same technique was used to differenciate the coupe and the Ferrari 308 GTS FYI, although in that case it was a Satin black, and the magnum team just took it a step further by painting the grills

 

 

so that techinque is time period correct

 

and also it could help to paint the chrome top strip, like what was done here, probably powder coated the thing

 

gallery_471_5_352053.jpg

 

 

also I did find an alternative to the mirrors that might look better to you if you fancy the smaller baby tornados, their the Cipa 12000 Flag Mirrors used on this 308, non electric to my knowledge, but they seem to be a mixture of the California and tornado mirrors, seen above as the calis on the red one

 

gallery_471_5_311125.jpg

 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/CIPA-12000-Black-Universal-/321598353234?hash=item4ae0c16f52&vxp=mtr

 

of note the only car on this website to have both the electric tornados and the center console done up like on the show is jurrasics car, with the mcburnie label thing on the quarters, do you plan to have those sanded off?

 

 

I tried to locate some full sized electric Tornado's but the only decent set were the NOS ones on Ebay that have been pimped around for months now at stupid money and even they did not have the correct switches. So I went with the smaller manual baby tornadoes which cost next nothing. 

 

2lks00m.jpg

 

I'm going to disagree with you that the baby tornadoes were not used on screen as this pic clearly shows they were:

 

25gcwex.jpg

 

I'm actually one of the top prop replicators in the business and have a savant like ability to visually scale and measure objects from pictures to within stupidly small error margins and there is no way those are full size Tornadoes. I'll bet my reputation on it.

 

They also don't look painted at all which is peculiar.

 

 

 

 

 

The mirrors are the remote control Vitalonis which are slightly larger than the Baby Tornados, and have a metallic back to the mirror.  THe floor of the trunk will have to be fabricated once the fuel tank is in place.  I lined my trunk with the Wilton wool carpet that is on the floor inside.

 

JN

 

Awesome. Did you use sheet metal or fibreglass? And how was this floor panel attached to the rest of the car?

 

 

Late to the show, but I will try to give you sage advise.  The kits used fuel tanks from a 72 Vette with the outlet and gauge on the bottom.  You will need to fabricate the spout and use parts that don't cause the petrol to spew back out.  Use a 311 NAPA filler neck and 311 tank neck.  Combine with a 322 filler hose and weld on a standard Corvette filler.

 

The bumpers should be as you described earlier, with tubes welded to the frame ends.  The bumpers will fit onto the ends.  In think there is some information on this in the McBurnie construction book.  

 

The plexiglass from a Ferrari may not fit.  The one that Rowley sells will, and is very well done.  You can purchase it by calling and getting your order in.  I doubt that he responds to emails anymore.  I had to call for the last couple of items I ordered.

 

I did open up my hood vents, but really had no issue with overheating once the radiator issues were tracked down.  I do use an under hood insulator in silver, and the same sort of material on the top of the trunk in black to give a finished look.

 

The carpet on the show car was all black, not tan.  All the leather was a light buttery tan color.  The carpet on the dash was a red/gold color.

 

The gauges were standard Corvette all around.  The seat frames and the starting point for the dash are from a 1978-1982 interior.  The transmission was a three speed auto (GM350 I think).

 

You will need to get the correct Ferrari light bulb housings for all the electronics, and then connect them into the Corvette wiring (1976 to 1978 is the best year for the wiring harness).

 

I am excited to see your project grow, but am glad it is you and not me.  There is a great deal of work to be done to get the drivetrain into place and running up to par.  The interior parts should come together rather quickly.

 

The top frame is a pre-1975 Corvette version.  The top should be cut from Harttz Hepatic Canvas, and then slightly adjusted to fit the minor differences in the body.

 

Any tips I missed I will try to fill in later in the week.

 

JN

 

Can you elaborate on this?; "The kits used fuel tanks from a 72 Vette with the outlet and gauge on the bottom.  You will need to fabricate the spout and use parts that don't cause the petrol to spew back out.  Use a 311 NAPA filler neck and 311 tank neck.  Combine with a 322 filler hose and weld on a standard Corvette filler."  Is there a specific reason why this was done? I'm having a custom fuel cell made. Is there a preferred location for the fuel tank other than the trunk? I want to ideally have a functional trunk but the idea of sitting with a tank of fuel behind my ass concerns me.

 

I'm going to laser cut my own plexi out of 2mm slightly smoked Lexan using the equipment at work and fix it with Metal L section at the nose and metal U section strip at the top.

 

The hood vents will be opened up 2/3rd's of the way leaving a small dam at the bottom where a hole will be drilled and a rubber drainage pipe will be attached to drain any water away from the alternator, distributor and other electric components. Simple but elegant solution to potentially non-problem but it will give me peace of mind during a British downpour.

 

I got some honey burl dash trim from American Dash Trim in Brooklyn. It's all laser cut to fit and is self adhesive so that's all sorted.

 

I sourced a roll of fire proof grey nomex quilting filled with kevlar which I'll be using to make my own under hood quilts.

 

I'm not sure what you mean by this: "You will need to get the correct Ferrari light bulb housings for all the electronics, and then connect them into the Corvette wiring (1976 to 1978 is the best year for the wiring harness)."  Which bulb housings are you referring to?

 

 

 

By the way...if you need advice for paint I have over 40years of expertise in that field. There are many new types of paint on the market which are low VOC (water borne) but I do custom paint on speedboats and still use good old fashion solvent based paints and primers. Can't beat them for quality but now getting harder to find..........
Many of the acrylic based urethanes are my best choice still so if you have a jobber in your district that sells that kind of product you are in business.
The high solids primers such as Sikkens have incredible fill quality and are easy to sand so when you blocksand that body out it will come out straight as a pin if you know how to do it correctly!

Geeeeez I'm all exited to see the finished product. Keep posting pictures.

 

I have a paint shop lined up to do the job and I've told them to use Glasurit Daytona Nero which is the de facto Ferrari Daytona black. Unless anyone actually knows what was the exact paint code on the screen used cars?

 

 

I have several questions regarding the build if you kind folk can help me out.
 
1) How are the bumpers attached? Reading between the lines it would appear that there are two steel tubes per bumper welded directly to the frame. There are then two smaller tube that are attached to the the bumper in a T configuration via a flat cross piece welded to the bumper side tubes which then slot into the frame side tubes and secured using a screw from underneath. Similar to the way it was done on a Dino or a Mondial or 308. Would this be correct? Also are the bumpers spring loaded meaning that there is a strong spring on the inside of the bumper tubes?

The bumpers are attached directly to the frame rails via those tubes you are talking about. You will have to mark the holes and drill carefully as you don't want big gaping holes in the valance panels. These bumpers are "DIRECT" fit and have no energy absorption at all as they are bolted to the frame rails directly. (at least all the ones I looked at)

 

Thanks for that! I was actually thinking about sticking very strong springs into my tubes. They might save damage to the frame if I have a bump. 
 
 
2) Where do people get their convertible tops? Every keeps telling me that the standard C3 tops don't fit which is counter intuitive as the C3 convertible top frame is what is used and the frame really dictates the shape of the convertible top, right? Or am I missing something? It just seems that some people want me to blow a ton of money on getting a 'custom' top made when a standard top will fit with a bit of minor adjustment.

If it's a true McB then the top should fit. I have seen very poor copies that yes the tops don't fit because of either the rear area deck is incorrect or the top does not fit the header properly. If it's a factory original top it should fit good! Some other models I looked at didn't have space behind the seat as the fuel tank was there (wrong) "That's where the top goes when it's down.

 
That's great news. On the advice of everyone here I've picked up a Haartz stayfast top from Diamond Mall.

 
3) What do the door cards of the screen used cars look like? I know at least one didn't have the Daytona stripes. Did the other at any point?
 
4) What was the colour of the interior? I am going for Connolly 7626 which is a biscuit tan with matching carpets and black Daytona stripes and piping with burl console veneer.
 
5) Where is the best place to get a filler cap to fit?



Try the speed shops as a flip type lid is available that they used on the Daytona track for Mustangs, Shelby's etc. They are very common in North America. If you get stuck get a hold of me and I can check Gratiot or SpeedPro for you.


 Can you send me a link to one? 

 

Thanks in advance for your help!

 

 

 

fair enough with the windshield, I just figured since your starting from scratch it was worth bringing up the idea. given that the C4 is just a rebodied C3 with some modernizations and a new interior, so I figure an interm in that regard should be possible.

 

The overheating thing is probably from an old design choice the engineers chose to do back then, as on cars from the 1960's the fans run off of the clutch, via the kind of thing you'd see on a fighter plane to run the guns, like on the Vickers Machine Gun, so they only run when the car is moving

 

 

 

and everybody did this, and very few did not, hence why its a common upgrade to switch to electric fans, also this is why insulation is important, dynamat, all the way, as my home, zero insulation, Hot in the sumertime, cold in the winter with the heat on, no air con either, so my home is about as good as that superbee.

 

as the electronics on these cars back then was primative and costly, so mechanical operation was prefered over electronic fans, and the mcburnies generally upgraded to electrical fans when they were built in the 1980's, and the only mcburnie we had that overheated was Sonny Burnetts, and that was because the fan was put on backwards by the corvette mechanic he had working on it.

 

who wanted to cut into the nose to pull more air below, as that's where the car breathes from, once it was switched around that put an end to it

 

the other option is a modern radiator like a be cool unit

 

and the hood vents on the car are functional, although I know there was a part rowley was selling to prevent vapor lock on his, basicaly where the seal between the motor and the windshield wipers were he had cut two boxes there to let the air blow out through the hood

 

gallery_471_5_341707.jpg

 

none of the owners here have had to use them however, atleast not to my knowledge, mind you he has a fuel injected motor in the photo, and none of us save for the guy who bought brians car run a fuel injected motor. a car I regret not going down to just get a loan with and to say hell with it over it

 

but no proper garage, salt, bad weather, living under tree's and birds, and bad roads, and the thing was near mint too, I just couldnt do that until I atleast had a damn garage for it. and I dont even have that for my mains.

 

and he didnt mention any vapor lock problems on it either and brightening the photos of the engine show no such piece in action

 

gallery_471_5_54439.jpg

 

 

With the plexy I'm not sure what you can really do, as its abit of a complex issue, one or two have actually just redone the headlights of the daytona with it, using the factory operated Vacume system and headlights to work it, of which the wiper system on the early vettes used that, as they had a door for them that had to be accutated with it, not sure if its possible to switch that to a far more reliable hydraulic system

 

 

also of note without that amplifier this is what a 2x2 system looks like without it

 

https://www.flickr.com/photos/jpl3k/2207924045/in/album-72157603129910101/

 

 

I must wonder, in my work researching and trying to figure out things with the sunglasses if a photochromic thing could work for this, although it would have to be sensitive to outside light, and not inside.

 

like I would wonder if LED's could pass through that no problem without setting it off.  or possibly something just with a gradient, black ontop clear on the bottom. although I've never heard of such a thing being used in this manner.

 

 

also for the mcburnies that have headlight doors with the headlights fixed like Sonny's does, it uses the stock system to keep them closed.

 

with the hood vents, my general understanding is that with the vents on cars like the ferrari and the like they generally have the spark plugs protected and under the center stack covered area, and my father back in the day with his WW2 jeep used some sort of accrylic spray to water proof the spark plugs, including the caps, and that worked fine in alaska, as otherwise the elctricty is going to go into the block

 

and Sonny did drive the car in the rain once, didnt seem to not work there, twice actually, the one with the countach chase after ariving to Ginas place after the chase and Little Miss Dangerious run to the house at the end.

 

plus looking at the photo on this mcburnie, it looks like it comes out at the front of the motor, not above it, right between the radiator and the engine

 

5c89_3.jpg

 

so it maybe a non issue, not like on this 1968 KR at 3:22

 

 

the quilt thing I'm not sure if its needed, might be to dissipate heat and keep it from vapor locking in of itself, although that is purely guess work on my end. and I dont know who you could get to cut open the vents, all I can say is better to cut them small rather than big, the whole venturi effect thing, plus if someone screws up, all you have to do is take some of the extra excess to balance it out rather than add and redo the whole thing.

 

and the big thing that causes cars to rust is pluged drain holes, sometimes done by the factory, so as long as it has somewhere to go and not pool it should be fine to have those I reckon, so I would make sure the bottom of the vents is well cut and cut proper

 

at 3:45

 

 

also given that your basecar is bodyless for this conversion, it might be a good idea to check to see how the drain holes on it are actually.

 

Great advice. Thanks Kavinsky!

Edited by C.T.
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I had one a few years ago ..but it was rhd built in England . The problem I had was the wheels!!... Trying to get wire wheels that lookalike the borani wires was impossible ... If I new how to I would post a picture of the one I had

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I had one a few years ago ..but it was rhd built in England . The problem I had was the wheels!!... Trying to get wire wheels that lookalike the borani wires was impossible ... If I new how to I would post a picture of the one I had

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I had one a few years ago ..but it was rhd built in England . The problem I had was the wheels!!... Trying to get wire wheels that lookalike the borani wires was impossible ... If I new how to I would post a picture of the one I had

The chances are it wasn't a McBurnie. Probably a Robin Hood or Southern Roadcraft one.

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My vents are open and, as Kavinsky speculated, they appear to be draining between the radiator and the engine. I have never had an issue with it, including when washing the car (no steam when washing the hood). I did open mine up (Roberts cars come with them closed), but the engine does not run hot enough to worry about it. I also looked at the fix mentioned a few posts back which opens up the rear of the engine compartment, but with the crate 350 there is so much room around the engine for it to circulate air, I never felt it was worth the effort.

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