Had to put off finishing up the CV axles for a later date to work on Stevie’s R3
When we purchased it we knew we were going to need a rear wheel bearing.
So this weekend there was enough free time in the morning to get on it.

Stevie was all about it and did about 75% of the work while I supervised with my favorite adult drink 🍺

We only did the passenger rear due to having just the morning to work we’ll take care of the other side soon.
Proud dad moment…. He’s taken ownership of his car and is not scared to get his hands dirty.

Once all back together, we went for a test drive and it’s fixed… no more howl from pass rear 👍



Random pics of working…. sorry… pics are not in order

 

Go Stevie!

Getting off topic, but front wheel bearings are a common failure on the RX-8, especially if you drive it like it should be driven. Fortunately they are SUPER easy, they are literally bolt in. Available for not much on Rock Auto as well.

Dale

 

So back to the Ronin Explorer 8.8 Diff swap.

I dropped and stripped the FD rear subframe in prep to weld in the 8.8 X-Support Bridge.



Removal, I tried to drop it as one unit as much as I could.





Silky brace at the bottom has been sold


Dirty!!! Years of grime





All apart, ready for cleaning and test fit of the X-Brace then off to my welder bud






More to come….

 

Explorer 8.8 Diff continues….




Mounted the diff and X-brace so I could mark the areas that needed to be sanded in prep for welding.














Last 4 pics above are of the 4 weld-in supports.

Not my pics they’re from Ronin’s site… forgot to take pics of mine for reference.

Subframe is ready for welding gonna drop it off at my buddy’s.


Steve

 

Subframe is back from my buddy… he welds for Blue Origin, he’s always done great work for me 👍


X-bridge mount and reinforcement brackets all welded in.
Really happy how it turned out.


Next up is good cleaning and prep for POR15 coating



X-Bridge



X-Bridge


X-Bridge


Outside brace


Outside brace


Outside brace... different angle


Inside brace




Steve

 

Welds look real nice. Quick turnaround.

 

Yeah man thx
I’ma be using his services for my turbo manifold and down pipe too.

Steve

 

Looking GOOOOD!

I would probably think about either powder coating it or spraying it with full automotive paint (reducer/paint/hardener with an HVLP gun) that will help insure you have paint in ALL the nooks and crannies. That's a lot of raw steel, even a little bit of that exposed can start the rust process. Also I think the bare metal will need to be primed properly first to seal it.

Dale

 

^Good points here, rust never sleeps! For structural under body stuff like this, I'd give it the full POR15 coating treatment - and then if you want it to look prettier, you can paint it with a topcoat of automotive paint after the POR15 cures. The black POR15 actually looks fine as-is IMHO, but it will lose its sheen and dull over time. I did the POR15 treatment a bunch of under body parts on my FC that were just starting to surface rust like 15 years ago, and they are still rust free. I also used the POR15 to coat my pinch welds, areas of the cross members and unibody frame rails that you'll typically jack the car up or use when you set it on stands - that stuff is TOUGH! Barely a scratch on it after 15 years of jacks & jack stand love our cars typically see.

 

^I stand corrected . I think that may be the best way to go there!

Dale

 

@DaleClark @Pete_89T2 I went the POR 15 route and love the results for $33 off eBay.
This stuff is awesome... very much like power coat when fully cured.
So it looks great, stops rust and very durable... what more could you want!


Cleaned then used POR 15 Degreaser/Metal prep




Sun was setting but wanted to snap a pic.... all done and coated
I also coated the CV ends with POR 15 and assembled.




Next day.. more light




Coating the CV ends, and this is the kit I used from eBay $33 Shipped





Again, next day with more light... looks great very similar the power coating.





Couple of tips.
POR 15 is like water you only need a little on you brush, it goes a long way. My kit came with 4oz and I still have about 1/2 can left.
Get a good brush the one in the kit is junk. Wear gloves,,, it doesn't come off easy.
Finally check out YouTube videos plenty other tips about POR 15 there.

Steve

 

Wow, I'm really impressed with how good that looks!

Did you just brush it on?

Dale

 

Thanks Dale!
Yes, you brush it on and it'll lay flat.... a great product!
Alot of restoration guys have been using it for years!

Steve

 

Doing anything for the inside? I've seen some products with pull through sprayers to coat cavities. Looks awesome.

 

Looking great Steve! POR15 is awesome sauce. One other tip to add - don't ever get the stuff inside any threaded holes or on studs, because once it cures you'll need to re-tap the threads to use those fasteners. And that POR15 stuff can be tougher than steel to tap in once it cures!

 

Wow, that look really good! Loving the progress

 

REW status?

still kicking myself for not having bought your RX8.
.

 

I covered the exterior and use the brush to get into the cavities the best I could, subframe is in great condition just needed protection on the bare metal areas

Now you tell me...lol but I was trying to be careful and not get in threaded holes... well see how well in did

Thanks man!

Yes, brushed on... Thx Dale!

Yeah man, she was a sweet ride! Tons of great memories.
I miss at times, but the FD has always been my first love.
Who knows what the future holds, my son has a 2010 R3 and I have a spare REW, EFR 8374 and other goodies


Thanks again all !!
Steve

 

POR15 is awesome but it looks like the insides are still raw steel. I'd get some spray paint or something in there.

 

Good eye.. I check it out closer. 👍

 

I built a new toy that I’ve been playing with for cleaning.



So here’s the results of that new toy









I built a Vapor Honing/Blasting cabinet. The parts above are not painted they were blasted with glass bead.
They are spotless and have a really nice semi gloss look…. Probably shining more because of the sun light.

Gonna be fun bringing parts back to life.
Also looking to start doing this on the side for others.







Steve

.

 

That's very cool Steve! What's all is involved in building yourself a vapor honing rig?

 

Thx Pete! If you look up Motorcycles and Art on YouTube.
He's got a DIY on a super basic Vapor Blasting cabinet that he built using a harbor freight blast cabinet for $339 but with today's prices it's a little more.
The real issue is having a big enough air compressor... you need to push a lot of air (SCFM's).
Standard 110 plug in air compressor is not going to cut it and only frustrate you in the process.
A proper sized air compressor is the biggest investment you'll have to hurdle. I'm using an Ingersoll Rand SS5.


Steve

 

Man that is awesome!

Yeah I imagine that pushes a LOT of air. I had an old HF blast cabinet a million years ago that was super cheap and janky and it would make my small air compressor kick on like every 30 seconds.

BTW, that one heater pipe is steel and will need to be coated in something to prevent it rusting, it would have been plated from the factory. POR-15 may do the trick .

Dale

 

Thanks man!
My compressor is 5hp and kicks out 18 SCFM@90 psi. It's a work horse
I'm using a rust inhibiter in the water to prevent flash rusting but yes, steel parts will be coated or painted before installing.

Steve