Okay...
Been a while since I posted. Firewall is basically pieced together, just need to fine tune and weld.
I got to the point of mocking up the gas pedal mount because since I cut the firewall out to make room for the "tiny" engine, the location for the pedal etc. is now gone and I want it to be located again for comfort and correct position. I plan to drive this car a lot, and it is not just a strip car, so it will have a full interior and comfort is important.
So..... I dug the driver's seat back out, put it in the car... and after struggling with where to put the gas pedal, realized the only way I can properly find a starting point for mounting the gas pedal is to mount the clutch and brake pedal assembly first.
Because the location of the pedal mount is unaltered from original, I can base my gas pedal location on this.
Makes sense so far.
I then realized when I bolted it up, that the clutch and brake pedals were not lined up. One pedal (brake) was about an inch lower than the clutch pedal.
Now.... I think back...and I digress... to when I bought those pedals on eBay. I remember the seller had the set listed for $250, which I thought was expensive at the time, but didn't have any other options, and I needed the part since it is integral to my build. He had a "make an offer" so i offered $100 which I thought was probably what they are worth. He replied with a counter of $200 and he scolded me that "he wasn't going any lower because he knows these parts" and he can (and I quote) "sell them all day long for $250"
I bucked up and paid the robbery price of $200.
Back to recently.. when I get to the point of installing the pedals, and I dig out my handy dandy shop manual for insight. After many different combinations, (whew) I realized the "expert" on eBay sold me a cobbled up set of pedals. The clutch pedal is a V6 pedal, and the brake pedal is a 4 cylinder or V8. Also the brake pedal is for power brakes, but I guess since most of these cars had power brakes that makes sense somewhat. So I bought a hodge lodge of misc parts for a premium price.
Well I guess I make lemonade out of lemons now. Wheres my blender....
So, with that epiphany, I hunker down to begin the modifications. First to correct the pedal alignment, or lack thereof, I drilled a new hole in the upper sheet metal frame to lower the brake pedal 1.25". This aligns the brake pedal with the clutch now.
Next, I drill a new hole for the brake pushrod 2" below the pivot point for the pedal through the pedal arm for my new pushrod attachment point. This gives the required preferred ratio (for manual brakes) of between 6 to 1 and 7 to 1 with the pedal length of approximately 13.25". (I am running manual brakes, owing to lack of room on account of that "little" engine.)
Next, I drill a new hole BELOW the pivot point for my clutch pushrod. This calculates out at 1 and 15/16 lower than the pivot, which puts me at 6 to 1 ratio on that pedal.
The normal location for attaching the cable is ABOVE the pivot as it needs to PULL the cable instead of PUSH the push rod as I will require for a hydraulic clutch.
(By the way, for those who want to get rid of the clutch cable and go to hydraulic, this works on any II, The area where it mounts needs relatively minor modification as well as the pedal mods I have described above, to make such a thing work.)
So now the pedals are aligned and the pushrod holes created and...wasn't I building the firewall? or was I mounting the gas pedal? ....Wait, what?... this is my conundrum... Every step forward is like 3 steps back lol.
Next, the firewall side sheet metal adjustment to fit the master cylinders in place. ....One day I will get back to the gas pedal install..or was it firewall...