New England winter is in full effect

You know what that means - ice climbing season!


Recollected the gear out of storage




Packed up and headed up north to Lincoln New Hampshire to meet up with the AMC




The week before I headed up was the kickoff of a great cold spell - more to the science, but essentially need a good freeze/thaw cycle with moisture in there to make good ice for climbing

That long cold spurt makes for plastic / brittle ice with fewer layers (where the freeze/thaw cycles add up the layers adding strength)

My drive up was 20* warmer than the weekly average. Massachusetts was naked (no snow / no ice), but I was excited to see some snow and good looking ice off the highway the further north I went into New Hampshire


Spent day one at Kinsman Notch








The area was packed, and every possible climb had a rope on it - looking down it felt like a night at the indoor rock gym

Great group of people though, and we all shared ropes which made for a lot of climbing


My favorite climb of the day was Pot o' Gold off to the right








Day two, we headed south out to Newfolund Lake




Cool spot right off the road







Unfortunately there were only two climbs in this early in the season, and two parties set up when we got there (early bird gets the worm!)

We were a party of about 10 so the prospect of getting on the routes was slim

The rest of the party headed to Rumney just down the road, and I chose to head home to make it in time for dinner and bedtime routines with my family






Heading back up north for some more ice climbing in February and March

 

Dude wow! That is so cool. Im getting cold just watching your video. I wonder it that POV is what a bug sees as it crawls around..lol. Be SAFE !!!!!!

 

probably - that POV doesn't translate but it's fun

Thanks Ben!




Salt and sand everywhere are making these paperweights for the next few months






Alright, everything for phase three of three parts collection came in, and I think I now have everything lined up







I will be back soon with some more technical notes for future me on install of every component, but here are the images for reference


SuperNow front Lower Arm Super Caster Pillow Ball Bearing Set with aluminum collars &
SuperNow front Lower Arm Super Camber Pillow Ball Bearing Set with aluminum collar




SuperNow Rear Lower Arm Pillow Ball Knuckle Side Set with aluminum collars
10mm & 12mm casings, 0.1mm bevel - only go in one way!




SuperNow Rear Upper Arm Pillow Ball Shock Side Set with aluminum collars
10mm & 12mm casings, 0.1mm bevel - only go in one way!




SuperNow Lower Arm Pillow Ball Body Side Set Straight Type with aluminum collars



​​​​​​​
Racing Beat sway bar bushings - Front 1.25" / Rear 0.75"
T-shirt & stickers because Jim Mederer was/is/will always be legendary and the rotary beat goes on!





Also grabbed a wider mirror to replace my loose OEM with Broadway wider clip



What can I say, I have a thing for carbon fiber

 

I am getting reacquainted with the factory service manual and am beginning a shopping list for some new tools


I have my work cut out for me















A little over three months before track season with some much needed break in and teething mile drives before then


Clock's ticking

 

Last night my daughter asked me what my spirit animal was:

"Lion because lionhearted?" (Richard -> Rick -> "lionhearted" -> nonsensical Rotary Amuse logo)
"No honey, I honestly think my spirit animal is a squirrel or a raccoon"


Exhibit A on squirrel and raccoon tendancies:



Getting the track day back up spares kit going as well


Grabbed a new spark plug ratchet and plug socket

Why not make it a Fujita Engineering (FEED) piece when you have the option?!



and some IRE01-34's (11) on stand by for the installed IRE01-31's (10) and break in miles R7420-10's

Cheaper importing these Denso's than grabbing them in the states - checkout impulse add on the SuperNow/KTS/Bride/Zoom pieces

left - NGK (GReddy?) R7420-10's
right - Denso IRE01-34's







The NMB Minebear bearings are universal throughout the SuperNow pillow ball pieces, so I will grab some of those over time

They'll be treated as an in season inspection, and hopefully every other season consumable replacement

PTFE lining is good, still looking into considerations on anti-seize grease
Waiting for the OEM dust covers / rubber seals and snap rings to come in from Mzada


NMB Minebea references:
- MBWT14 bearings throughout
- HRT16E NMB NOE200 rod ends - two trailing arm, two toe link
- HRTL16E NMB N4E150 rod ends - two toe link




Will keep adding to the kit over winter

Being stranded and losing expensive track day seat time over a simple "should have had" replacement piece is no fun

 

Some minor updates while I still get ready (procrastinate? at least the delay is my own fault!) for the big stuff


Zoom Engineering TS carbon fiber mirror







Previous Broadway clip on wasn't terrible










Went a little rogue to what Zoom intended

 

Moving off the AutoExe frankenstein idea

Found a shop with a bar that should finally fit the bill (actually Peter found it for me!) from Fahad


Looked into some measurements for a potential tower to tower bracing solve

Used my old Cusco as a template



















Looks like it just needed to be moved forward 2.25" before accounting for height




I need to do some more work to see about the height / underhood clearance issues, a problem I previously had with my Cusco bar where the solve was pinching the middle a little


May just grab the off the shelf tower to firewall option and keep this template in the drawer for a while, coming back to it and welding up a front portion

 

I had a friend over the other day that gave me a good reminder from a question when we were looking over the FD

"What does this button do?" he asked as he reached for it

"Oh sh*t! Don't touch that!"




Great reminder to learn how the fire suppression arming process goes




Flip a switch (duh!) I knew it had the function, just hadn't taken the chance to test it out yet







Now we know!

 

Glad I went back on the JRZ RSPro3 reservoir line grommet and more importantly chassis hole measurements - initially grabbed the larger portion, forgetting the disconnect means I'll only need to feed through the smaller male side







Like a glove!




Measure thrice, cut once - now leaves the scary part of that latter portion




and played around with the new RS Pro reservoir mounts







And harness collar bracket - I will throw this in after I get some new Schroth 2x2's

 

Met up with Simon down in Tarrytown (Sleepy Hollow?) yesterday, dropped off some harnesses and picked up some carbon fiber door cards, and grabbed some lunch

That was a great time my friend - I could have talked shop all day had I not had a 3-hour return trip home to be in time to grab dinner and bedtime routine with the kiddos


Pre-shipped panels while in Czechia from Michal




Going to keep them wrapped up until it's go time




Which brings me up to date with my non-caloric, procrastination filler


It is time to start holding myself accountable - clock's ticking

Next update will be a to do list - time to check some boxes off my punch list

 

Man, I would love to see this car in person.

 

The JRZ RS suspension looks amazing

 

Hey Rick. It was great hanging out with you. I'll definitely let you know the next time I'm up in your neck of the woods!
Definitely let us know how those door cards end up working for you. Had I known that Michal offered them, I probably would have gone with those.

 

I'm curious why you're going with flat door cards at this point. Just need more space? What are you doing regarding hardware?

I ended up just lopping off all the parts that my were impinging on my seat and elbow. Haha.

 

I can't promise it will match your expectations

You are always welcome over anytime you are in the Northeast Ben


Thanks - it was Bryan Hise of 057 Motorsports (when he was with Olsen Motorsport, big thanks to Tim for the help as well) great input on the JRZ and specifically the three-way RS Pro3's that led me to this direction




I quickly moved off GenPop perfect Öhlins, and scoped out JRZ's, MCS, and Penske's around 2018 with Anze. It was ultimately Anze's move to FLA that opened up more possibilities in mail ordering whatever I wanted, versus when Anze was on Long Island for an in person consult and install and setup initiative initially scoped that led me to Olsen

The adjustability is above my experience and knowledge now, but I have room to grow into them and around my aspirational setup


Absolutely - need to get them squared away for the seat



I have never had room with my EVO on the OEM door card (you are right, a fabric removal, fiberglass material trim/shave down would have done it!):






My new Bride Xero RS super aramid carbon fiber



has been shown to work with OEM door cards,



but a flat panel will remove all doubt

I am considering keeping my red passenger door card and just replacing my driver side with the carbobn fiber, since I won't have a passenger seat for clearance issues. The weight difference between OEM and CF would be negligible versus retaining what I think is a beautiful stock card at least on one side. Will it be a wonky asymmetry? Sure, but it matches the rest of my not enough race car not nearly enough street car motif anyway



For hardware, I am planning to retain the factory door handle ideally exactly where it is, and have 964 RS America door pull trims (have 4 release trims, not sure if I'll do a bar or tongue pull yet) and basic red pull, and remove window motor with as much simple retention for down the road reversibility as I can








I am throwing in Benny's lexan windows with sliders when I do the carbon fiber door card both sides as well








Goal of the weekend is a little less conversation a little more action please!
All this procrastination aint satisfactioning me!

• Line up the car in the garage for some four corner working space
• Corner measure beginning height referentials
• Jack up the car
• Remove the wheels
• Remove the seat
• Remove the door cards

 

Ah, so you just had a shoulder bolster clearance issue, and not an elbow clearance issue.
In that case, trimming the seat would make more sense than cutting up the door card, though it might effect rigidity.

I can't believe someone would use that seat on a street car, lol.
Modified FDs are already hard enough to drive around as it is.

I considered door cards, but the cheap way doesn't look good, and the clean way was too expensive. Haha.
I also didn't want to create a gap between the dash the door, as much as I appreciate racecar chic...

 

Kind of a better angle for you Ben - looks close but nothing I am too worried about

 

Made some progress over the weekend

• Line up the car in the garage for some four corner working space
• Corner measure beginning height referentials
• Jack up the car
• Remove the wheels

Absolutely ball parking ride height on my imperfect garage floor - a proper alignment afterwards will square this away

Seeing some anomalies in the rear setup, and the last corner balance I had incorporated an assumed a passenger seat, 200lb passenger and a much heavier yellowtop battery - will throw in another cornerbalance on the JRZ's once the time comes






All jacked up

Can't say taking apart a perfectly sorted, autocross / track day ready setup was ideal after a three year wait, but I don't sit idling very well




Some scope creep on what I initially intended




My friend Andy...

...this Andy


came over this past weekend with my sister and nieces, and I picqued his interest out in the garage enough to start tinkering

"Let's jack it up and at least do a corner"
Sounds good to me!


Kind of a fun old man nostalgia story, Andy and my then girlfriend (now my wife! she was / is obviously a real keeper!) bought me a Ground Control coilover set for my '98 Integra GS-R as a birthday present that he surprise installed for me back around 2000 to 2001

It was fun working with him out in my garage this past weekend, thinking to myself "we were around 16 and 18 then, how hard can this be for us old men now?" He has been an ASE Mechanic for decades now, so what we had in mind was well in his wheel house

It was working on the floor (versus his everyday lifts and air tools, everything easy off and on) with my lack of proper tools that got the best of us




Wasn't planning to do the upper control arm, but it made sense to while we were in there

I was hoping to reel myself in a little bit with a get in get out quick smaller updates this round, but am seeing with a full alignment needed I might as well do all the things this go round




Running one of those tricks "the best shops" do on myself, where they explode your car and you have no option but to work your way through it




Had to order some new tools and suspension hardware (8871-34-222 Upper Control Arm Nut, FD01-28-116 Upper Control Arm Bolt, 9YA1-51-001 Bolt), so in a holding pattern for now

In a great spot to pick it back up in a few days

 

• Remove the seat
• ❌ Remove the door cards

Will it be driven on the street, yup, but as long as I remain the same mature, defensive driver engaged in and paying attention to what I am doing behind the wheel (like we all should be doing regardless of modified FD or not) I am not too worried about running this new haloed seat versus the evo

Ultimately, I bought a haloed seat for the additional track day safety to eventually be coupled with a window and center nets

And the new DCE Motorsport rear view camera will assist with blind spots on the streets as well and with limited side to side visibility motion with a HANS on the track too




Took my old Sparco EVO out and brought the Bride Xero RS up










The FIA type FX seat mount was made for an RX-7, but I have no idea how Bride intended any of there seats to actually work with it...




The height is comically so far off compared to my Griffith Performance Engineering seat mount








Going to try to swap the Bride over to the Griffith mount - waiting on some extended hardware and spacers now

but it looks the business if I can get it to work - and if not, the new 12lb carbon fiber Evo won't be a bad conciliatory prize







Chipping away - I feel like that was progress

I will come up with a new list after some new tools and hardware come in and keep at it

 

Bride products are designed around 130-pound and 5'7" Japanese men. Even the XL models have the shoulder belt holes too low, if I remember correctly.
I honestly don't get why they would bother designing a fixed mount that high, when they might as well have used a rail.

I've had to modify every Japanese-made seat mounting solution I've ever used.
I bought a set of the lowest rails for the FD on the market, but it turns out the actual mounting holes are set so far forward that they're completely useless for a tall person. The rails simply don't slide back far enough.
Why make such low rails if not for tall people?

 

Happy Saint Patrick's Day! ☘️


I am happy to say I am a 6'0" / 165-pound / 33" waist (Irish) American man that can still fit in a Bride seat

☘️and here I thought my 787b shirts were only good for Halloween



Equally just as important as fitting my dad-bod into the seat, I can get a Xero RS seat to fit into a tight FD chassis

Seat spacers (Braum 1" spacer and bolt set + 3/8" spacer set) came in






Tried a few settings on the AFGMoto (Adam Griffith) seat mount, and found one dropped in the back and pushed as far forward as possible was the way to go

Hail Mary touchdown






and in an "ain't that some sh*t" turn of events on the carbon fiber door cards, the inward position towards the trans tunnel opened up enough clearance to fully shut the door with the OEM door card

Now the carbon fiber door card(s) will be an eventual project versus the need to do now piece I had thought






Last test was the seating position test and head clearance with the big a*s ST5

The seat opening is more than accommodating for my harness to HANS to sit comfortably on my shoulders, straight from my rollbar




Evo comparison - pretty much exact clearance Sparco to Bride, as well as seating position




The seat's coming back out for some much needed interior refinishing

As we all should know by now, I am not a role model - but if you take anything from this one, don't forget your respirator!



Victory lap selfie




Right - I know, I know - where's the corn beef to this cabbage update?!


Suspension project is still going - lessons learned, inch by inch one step forward two steps back - but making progress

Follow ups on that shortly

 

Trying to stoke my own fire


An update to close out one almost three years in the making

Finally have the big brake kit front and rear fully sourced and good to go, (yea yea I know :read: for me to take my sweet time on install with)


Kit for the front was easy off the shelf bought back in November of '22



Rear kit was what took me the long time to source, held up on hopes of a matching 5000R with potential eBrake


The matching AP Racing kit may still be getting off the ground (or just DIY if you're Mr. Hahn!), but I had to pull the trigger on the back pocket option Endless kit. Weird how Endless was the runner up option, but the 5000R is a tough option to beat

Ended up going with the Endless Racing Mono4 Rear kit, with the 4-piston calipers (AP9450 equivalent 27mm x2 and 32mm x2 pistons) with 332x30 2-piece ESlit rotors and ME20 competition sprint pads (front RCP173 and rear RCP147)













Thanks Team Endless USA (and for the free challenge to the future schwag!) for getting it over the line and Heath and Team SBG for the consideration on the 5000R rear kit


BAU hoarding while I keep chipping away at the suspension around Dad life


Need to light a fire under my a*s to get it wrapped up

 

Cheering you on in this build, love the updates and the parts!!!

Hurry up and finish it or your going to redo everything due to getting older like me.. hahahahaha.

Ben

 

woah! Rear kit looks super nice and 330x30 is awesome. What's the weight on the rear caliper? And let us know how the Endless pads work out. I'm changing my rear brake setup and have been cross shopping for a new pad (considering Dixcel Z). Also don't know if it's been mentioned but the Brembo GT-R 6-piston comes in at 5 lb 13.2 oz.

Almost there! Can't wait to see some action shots!

 

Love the update! Those brakes look so good!!

Steve