The SN65 project car

[MustangMatt1966]

bob, i just watched the amusing bits. the cobra test drive (http://sn65.com/images/Large%20Images/testdrive.wmv) was so funny, i cant believe that i have never seen that one. thats what everyone will want to do to your car when its done. better be careful!!!

the car is coming alomg great, but it is just too straight. the hard work has really paid off.

that sales man is a dumb A$$...20 bucks says he lost his job after people saw this video on the internet

 

[65-347]

Hi Bob
I have to say thanks again to you and Wayne for taking the time to show me the car last week. I can't believe how great it looks. A thing I just noticed was the trunk seal is on the body not on the trunk lid. Is there a reason for this?

 

[Coupe Devil]

THIS project is my exception to the idea that I hate yellow cars.. Simply amazing..

 

[68rustang]

THIS project is my exception to the idea that I hate yellow cars.. Simply amazing..

I have always said that there are only two cars that wear yellow well, Ferraris and Corvettes. Ever since seeing this car I have added SN65 to make it three.

 

[SN65]

Hi All,

Sorry I haven't been posting a lot lately. I have been so busy with the car, business, x-mass parties, etc... that it is tough to find time to sleep never the less anything else.

Anyway... We have been making steady progress on SN65. Right now it is the doors that are consuming all our time. As I have stated before, it's the little things that bring me the greatest satisfaction. For example....

We wanted to use the door cylinder from the 03 Cobra. We wanted all the locks to function with the ignition key. Wayne went and modified the door to accept the 03 cylinder and I went about installing all the internal mechanisms. All was going well until we ran into a little snag. Unfortunately for us, the 03 cylinder does not function the same way as the 65. The 65 lock has only two positions. All the way down for lock and all the way up for unlock. The 03 lock has three positions. All the way down for lock and all the way up for unlock, but the lock always comes to rest in the center. The 03 cylinder is designed to function with a electrical relay while the 65 is designed to work mechanically. We stood around and scratched our heads for a while. We went home and slept on it. We came in and gave it some more thought, when we finally hit on a workable solution. Here is a photo of the installed linkage.

What we did was linked together two rods that would slide over each other until they hit a stop. This allows the 03 cylinder to function mechanically. What happens is you turn the key to lock the door and it pushes the lower stop down to lock the door. When you rotate the lock back to the center position to remove the key, the rods slide over each other leaving the door locked. When you rotate the key to unlock the door, it lifts the upper stop up to unlock the door and then the rods slide over each other leaving the door unlocked.

It is a rather simple mechanism, but I have to say that I am thrilled at the way it functions. Yes the guy's in the shop make fun of me. It is nothing that anyone will see or even notice for that matter. But every time that I use the key (which will be rarely if ever, seeing as the car has a remote lock and unlock function) it will bring a smile to my face.

Catch ya'll l8r

 

[SN65]

that sales man is a dumb A$$...20 bucks says he lost his job after people saw this video on the internet

Hi Matt,

I do believe that the video was a set up. If it were "for real" there would not have been different camera angles.

 

[SN65]

Hi Bob
I have to say thanks again to you and Wayne for taking the time to show me the car last week. I can't believe how great it looks. A thing I just noticed was the trunk seal is on the body not on the trunk lid. Is there a reason for this?

Hi 347,

Don't mention it. It was great to meet you.

The trunk seal is the one out of the 03 Cobra. It is a much better seal and it fits in with the 03/65 theme. Interesting that it fit right in with only a slight modification of the 03 seal.

 

[SN65]

Hi All,

We were just standing around the shop chatting. I had a tape measure in my hands and thought I would take a few quick measurements off my driver and the SN65.

The rear wheel opening on the SN65 is only 1/4" lower than stock. The measurement to the top of the SN65 quarter panel is 1 3/4" lower. So if I have my math correct, we have shifted the wheel opening up and reduced the height of the quarter panel by 1 1/2".

I may be a bit biased, but I think it gives the car a much different (I want to say better, but that is a matter of opinion) appearance than just lowering the car 1 3/4". If we just lowered the car, we would have ended up with the wheel opening covering up the top of the wheels and the car would look just like every other slammed 65. Also, it would be obvious to everyone looking at the car that it was lowered. Now, even though the car will sit pretty low, it does not have the typical look of a lowered car. When I look at the car I get the feeling that the SN65 is not a "modified" or "custom" Mustang, but in fact a Mustang as designed.

Every day, I am happier and happier with the results, and I am thankful to have a brother like Wayne who is capable of turning this dream into reality. Without him, this project would only be a “what might have been” instead of what it is today.

With that said, I wish you all a merry Christmas and a happy new year. I wish you all heath and happiness in the coming year.

 

[SN65]

Hi All,

When we started this project, many of you thought we were whacked, loony, psycho, off our nut, certifiable, ready for the rubber room, etc…

Well, for those naysayer’s out there, take a look at this.

http://sn65.com/SN65 chronological order 05-12.htm

Read the 12-24-05 update.

 

[Jarred Darque]

Wow nice. Cant wait to see the car finished soon. You have a Merry Christmas. same with Wayne. Y'all take care and have a good one

 

[SN65]

Hi All,

New update at the site.

Also, did anyone see the new Hot Rod mag. There is an article about the Ring bro's new car (the one that made it to the final five in the Good Guy's streat machine of the year comp).

Anyway....

They made a comment about wanting the car to look as if it were built in the factory....

Well, maybe that is what they wanted, but to me the car looks, pretty much, like your typical pro touring car. Don't get me wrong. The car is a killer car. I love some of the small details and the article is one of my favorites (I find myself picking up the mag just to re-read the article). I also have to give them props for dialing down the "bling" factor. I really like the look and feel of this car far better than their two previous attempts, but they are still following the basic "pro street" template.

Maybe someone should turn them on to this thread just to show them what a real "factory" custom looks like.

 

[MustangMatt1966]

<img src="http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y132/mustangmatt1966/05-12-2720051.jpg" alt="Image hosted by Photobucket.com">

Bob, just wanted to let you know the car is looking great and I am really looking foreward to seeing the finished product. To me, this project is better than all of those high priced chopped up cars. This car is special 1. because it just is and 2. because it shows determination and heart to accomplish something of this magnitude on a low budget and less time..

congrats again (counting the days till its done)

~Matt~

 

[Svtpilot]

Hi All,
...It is a rather simple mechanism, but I have to say that I am thrilled at the way it functions. Yes the guy's in the shop make fun of me. It is nothing that anyone will see or even notice for that matter. But every time that I use the key (which will be rarely if ever, seeing as the car has a remote lock and unlock function) it will bring a smile to my face.

Catch ya'll l8r

True but of the few people who would attempt such a project 99% of them would not have taken the time to figure out a way to make it work. I bet if Boyd Coddington was building this car it would use 2 keys. It's the details that make the difference.

 

[rufusbooth]

Front Valance Question

Hi Bob,

First off… Incredible car! No other words.



Second, I apologize if you covered this previously and I missed it in the 29 previous pages of this post but I have some questions on your modifications to the front valance.

Mainly I am curious what you used for the new base material on the two new air inlets. Did you hand form them from sheet metal? It almost looks like you used a piece of pipe that was mandrel bent and then cut on a bias to fit the openings. If you could describe the process you used for the new material I would appreciate it.

Thanks for your time!

Cheers,

Rufus

 

[bigcat]

Hi All,

When we started this project, many of you thought we were whacked, loony, psycho, off our nut, certifiable, ready for the rubber room, etc…

Well, for those naysayer’s out there, take a look at this.

http://sn65.com/SN65 chronological order 05-12.htm

Read the 12-24-05 update.

it will be interesting to see if it actually gets finished.....

 

[SN65]

Hi Bob,

First off… Incredible car! No other words.

Second, I apologize if you covered this previously and I missed it in the 29 previous pages of this post but I have some questions on your modifications to the front valance.

Mainly I am curious what you used for the new base material on the two new air inlets. Did you hand form them from sheet metal? It almost looks like you used a piece of pipe that was mandrel bent and then cut on a bias to fit the openings. If you could describe the process you used for the new material I would appreciate it.

Thanks for your time!

Cheers,

Rufus

Hi Rufus,

You nailed it on the head.

We used a 4" dia thin wall short radius tube from McMaster Carr. We cut the tube into two 45 degree sections. We then trimmed off excess material from the outside edge of one opening to the inside edge of the other (see photo below), leaving a teardrop shaped opening. We then opened up and flattened the edges of the tube leaving us with a shape reminisent of the Sidney opera house. The pieces were then trimmed to mate up to the front valance and welded in place. The back side was trimmed to clear the heat exchanger.

This photo (as well as a few others) are from the 9-19-05 update on our website.

I hope this helps.

 

[rufusbooth]

Thanks for your time. That is exactly what I was looking for. My apologies, I can not believe I missed those images on your site. I have been studying those images for weeks.

Have a great day and keep up the good work.


Cheers,

Rufus

 

[strange65]

Outstanding!

This was one long amazing read, really hated it to end. You guy's just
outdid George Barris the king of the customizers and Carroll Shelby in my book.
That it happen to my favorite car in the world made it just that much neater!
That is one amazing feat you pulled off!
I was looking for this to happen back in 85.
When can I take it for a spin?????

 

[68rustang]

...did anyone see the new Hot Rod mag. There is an article about the Ring bro's new car.

They made a comment about wanting the car to look as if it were built in the factory....

Well, maybe that is what they wanted, but to me the car looks, pretty much, like your typical pro touring car. Don't get me wrong. The car is a killer car. I love some of the small details and the article is one of my favorites (I find myself picking up the mag just to re-read the article). I also have to give them props for dialing down the "bling" factor. I really like the look and feel of this car far better than their two previous attempts, but they are still following the basic "pro street" template.

I finally got the latest Hot Rod with Ring Brothers' 67 fastback in it. While it looks a lot better than their last fastback (which was gross), it is still overdone. I have no doubts they do quality work the overall design choices are bad. To me the whole car reminds me of an 84 Supra (HOT!). The taillight panel doesn't go well with a late 60's Pony car. The same thing goes for the hard angles on the ground effects. The "R" badges, tucked stance, and exhaust tips make me want to puke. I love the interior save for the red stripes in the door panels.

Two examples of my idea of a badass classic car with updated tech are your SN65, and Brent Jarvis's 66 'vette on page 40 of the same issue. The 'vette is a little too pretty to believe all the hype in the magazine but it is a fine looking car none the less.

 

[Edbert]

I just got my "Mustangs and Fords" magazine and there's a 1/2 page article about SN65 in it, two photos.

WOOOT!