Re: 1973 Laguna, Project: Brutus

by 77mali Wed Mar 05, 2014 8:08 pm

That's a nice lookin' Guna, good luck.

by switchbiker Fri Mar 07, 2014 9:34 pm

After about 3 weeks, my front suspension came in from Detroit Speed, looks like I'm going to start some major work this coming week!

Contents:
Tubular front upper A-arms
Tubular front lower A-arms
Front Springs 2" drop 600#in
Tubular front sway bar 1 3/8"
Koni classic high performance shocks
1973 Laguna, Project: Brutus - Page 2 IMG_20140307_172444_489

1973 Laguna, Project: Brutus - Page 2 IMG_20140307_172444_489

by dynchel Fri Mar 07, 2014 9:41 pm

Nice. A dream load of parts.

by switchbiker Sat Mar 08, 2014 12:09 am

New blog update: http://lagunatour73.blogspot.com/2014/03/parts-parts-parts.html

by thatfnthing Sat Mar 08, 2014 10:53 am

I can say I am very happy with my DSE springs.

by 77mali Sat Mar 08, 2014 12:23 pm

Those control arms look nice. Bet they're not cheap either but
Leg Hump

by driveit Tue Mar 11, 2014 3:01 pm

Instead of replacing the control arm bushings on mine I plan to buy the same set of control arms.

by thatfnthing Tue Mar 11, 2014 3:22 pm

driveit wrote:Instead of replacing the control arm bushings on mine I plan to buy the same set of control arms.

$$$

by driveit Tue Mar 11, 2014 4:08 pm

Check this site out they seem to have really good deals.
https://www.performancesuspension.com/g-machine-performance-suspension-kit.html

They actually don't have a lot listed for 73-77, but if you call them they have it. It is just not listed on their site.

by thatfnthing Tue Mar 11, 2014 4:21 pm

While you have them on the phone, tell them their site's busted. The SSL certificate is invalid, and the shop-by-make/model doesn't work. Smile

At any rate, even at those prices it's still a lot more expensive than just getting new, quality bushings. The stock control arms and geometry are plenty good for all but the most serious competition. Yes, those would be nice, but there's a heck of a lot of other stuff to spend your cash on first that will give you more bang for the buck.

by driveit Tue Mar 11, 2014 4:38 pm

Yeah. I guess I am just dreaming. I kinda forgot how broke I am. Lol. I already have the ball joints and bushings. I just have to find someone to put them in for me. What do you call the rod or bolt that goes through the control arm?

by dynchel Tue Mar 11, 2014 6:26 pm

driveit wrote:Yeah. I guess I am just dreaming. I kinda forgot how broke I am. Lol. I already have the ball joints and bushings. I just have to find someone to put them in for me. What do you call the rod or bolt that goes through the control arm?

Upper control arm shaft

by Joe73 Tue Mar 11, 2014 6:38 pm

You can rent a ball joint press for FREE at auto zone or advance auto parts. Also check out some youtube videos onhw to press your bushings with the ball joint press.

by dynchel Tue Mar 11, 2014 6:40 pm

I've usually use a air hammer to remove them, And a combination bfh and large socket to install them.

by driveit Tue Mar 11, 2014 6:45 pm

I did not know you could rent those. I was picturing a large stationary machine or something.

by dynchel Tue Mar 11, 2014 6:46 pm

They are really inexpensive to buy a harbor freight.

by Joe73 Tue Mar 11, 2014 6:57 pm

I have the harbor freight one witb the extra.pieces. only 60 bucks. I have a 12 ton press as well for.the stubborn stuff. Lots of decent videos on youtube for ideas.

by switchbiker Thu Mar 13, 2014 12:40 am

They are right, you don't need the tubular arms for everyday driving, I wouldn't have bought them if I was building just a daily driver. I do plan on racing some solo autocross and maybe even some road course racing in the future and wanted parts I know will hold up tp the stresses of larger tires and aggressive driving. Theres quite a bit of adjustability in the stock suspension, some guys on a budget will box the factory lower arms to increase strength/decrease deflection (popular on mustangs). there are many budget options available to improve your stock suspension that are well below the price for aftermarket items. You can also box the rear control arms to make them similiar in strength to the aftermarket items.

by switchbiker Thu Mar 13, 2014 2:40 am

I bought this media blast cabinet from Harbor Freight the other day at a 25% discount. ($156 with discount)
1973 Laguna, Project: Brutus - Page 2 IMG_20140312_232331_311

1973 Laguna, Project: Brutus - Page 2 IMG_20140312_232331_311

I had these old tall stamped steel valve covers off my old 406 race motor. I decided to bead blast, tap out some dings and repaint. Shot them with some Dupli-color semi-gloss black. I think they look pretty darn nice.
1973 Laguna, Project: Brutus - Page 2 IMG_20140312_232445_327

1973 Laguna, Project: Brutus - Page 2 IMG_20140312_232445_327

That got me thinking about rebuilding the 406 as a street engine to put into the Laguna. It has one cylinder thats scratched and would need to be bored to probably .040 to get past the scratched area. ( if the cylinders prove to be too thin, I may scrap the whole idea. with the SBC 400 its luck of the draw for cyl. thickness.)
1973 Laguna, Project: Brutus - Page 2 IMG_20140312_232836_964

1973 Laguna, Project: Brutus - Page 2 IMG_20140312_232836_964

Cylinger #8 got some foreign object inside at some point.
1973 Laguna, Project: Brutus - Page 2 IMG_20140312_232808_416

Piston took the most damage. (I think it may have been a peice of spark plug porcelain)
1973 Laguna, Project: Brutus - Page 2 IMG_20140312_232826_931

I think with some decent aluminum street heads and different pistons around 10:1 compression (instead of the current 13.5:1 popups) it could still easily put out over 400 HP with a good streetable roller cam staying fairly tame and driveable. (I still want my LSX, but this is cheaper for now while $$ is going into the chassis).
So now with the .040 over SBC idea rolling around in my head @409 CID, I started thinking I would want the engine built to be in the factory style with my own flair. Being too cold out in the garage to do anything this time of night I sat down and fired up Photoshop to design some valve cover and air cleaner decals. I think I'm onto something here because I really like them. Theres a printing and sign company near me, I think I'll pay them a visit with my design.
1973 Laguna, Project: Brutus - Page 2 Engine-Decal-design

1973 Laguna, Project: Brutus - Page 2 Engine-Decal-design

by dynchel Thu Mar 13, 2014 6:40 am

That's cool, I say go for it. Thumbs up

by thatfnthing Thu Mar 13, 2014 9:06 am

Ditto. The "other" W motor. Smile

by switchbiker Thu Apr 03, 2014 3:59 pm

Once again I changed my mind about tire size, I decided that since this car will be a driver I wanted a tire with more sidewall to help absorb road roughness. I also didnt want a tire with a small diameter because I feel it leaves too much gap between the tire and the wheel well. One more personal requirement is I wanted all 4 tires the same size since it's a driver I'd like to be able to rotate them regularly, can't do that with staggered sizes. With these thoughts in mind I decided on a 295-45-18, Nitto NT05. At 28.4 inches tall they will tuck well and with the 18" wheel they will accomodate big brake rotors. Heres some mockup pics on the rear. actual fitment will have to wait until I get the front suspension together since that will determine my wheel offset for all 4 wheels. At some point I'll be welding up a tire placement fixture I can bolt to the hubs and get everything exactly where it needs to be.
1973 Laguna, Project: Brutus - Page 2 295-45-18tirefitment4

1973 Laguna, Project: Brutus - Page 2 295-45-18tirefitment4

1973 Laguna, Project: Brutus - Page 2 295-45-18tirefitment3

1973 Laguna, Project: Brutus - Page 2 295-45-18tirefitment2

1973 Laguna, Project: Brutus - Page 2 295-45-18tirefitment1

by driveit Thu Apr 03, 2014 4:04 pm

I was looking at those exact tires yesterday online and was thinking the same thing. I would like staggered sized for looks, but it would just not be practical for me. Tires are expensive and I want to be able to rotate mine as well. I can't wait to see how it all looks back together!

by switchbiker Fri May 30, 2014 7:28 pm

Been a while since I updated anything here, life you know. Anyways, I've had a few days to get down to it. I posted a couple videos on YouTube, starting the teardown and wheel/tire fitment. I have a long way to go, and my video documenting skills will undoubtedly get better along the way as well.

by driveit Tue Jun 10, 2014 7:07 pm

Any updates on this one?

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