S550 Honey Badger GT350 Build Build Thread Profile - S550 Mustangs

[dragoon]

There are several parameters that vary when taking sound measurements....103 at one track may be very different at another.
Something to keep in mind.

True. Whenever I’m at Road America, I have yet to see someone being sent home early because of sound limits.

 

[Vettel-ish]

Any thoughts on tires for this build

Food for thought - the dB meter at Road America is after turn 3 just past the cheese bridge on the left next to the flag station (turn 4). Their limit is usually 103 dB’s for us types.

Pretty sure I don't pass

 

[Tonymustang302]

1/2 throttle you would

 

[honeybadger]

Any thoughts on tires for this build

Pretty sure I don't pass

Right now I'm going with whatever I can get cheapest! ha Picked these up off a local gent that races GTD in IMSA for$100 a tire



I also have a pair of worn A7s from @flyhalf that came on a set of wheels I bought from @flyhalf.

 

[honeybadger]

True. Whenever I’m at Road America, I have yet to see someone being sent home early because of sound limits.

I didn't realize RA has sound limits. Should I bring an alternate muffler setup?

 

[Vettel-ish]

I didn't realize RA has sound limits. Should I bring an alternate muffler setup?

They dont. My car is next level loud and I been there 3 times with it.

 

[honeybadger]

Finished up the radiator ducting yesterday. Happy with how it came out! If this works, I'll make out of CF in the future.




Sealed up against the radiator with window sealing foam. I've used this the past with good success. don't worry, it doesn't melt



To secure, I added a couple bolts to my modified k member on the bottom and then a couple into the mount for the upper radiator. Nothing crazy. Just enough to hold it in place




So while this is definitely cobble-fab'd together, it only weights like 2 lbs and my previous experience with making ducting out of this thin AL shows that it works great. So traded a bit of "build" quality for some lightness. Hopefully a CF unit the future will be much higher quality

 

[honeybadger]

Any feedback available on any impact on power (positive or negative) after those Ti mufflers??

the Ti mufflers are straight through, so absolutely no impact on power unless you're using restrictive mufflers already. They're basically a light weight way to muffle sound. even the big mufflers won't impact power. They're truly amazing.

Only downside outside of how hard they are to weld is that they don't take the same quantity of heat cycles like stainless. so they can crack after a few years

 

[Fabman]

the Ti mufflers are straight through, so absolutely no impact on power unless you're using restrictive mufflers already. They're basically a light weight way to muffle sound. even the big mufflers won't impact power. They're truly amazing.

Only downside outside of how hard they are to weld is that they don't take the same quantity of heat cycles like stainless. so they can crack after a few years

This design has been around forever, what's new is the material. Much much lighter.

 

[Dave_W]

Ducting looks nice. If you're worried about the thin sheet "oil canning" you can do a poor-man's bead roll by laying it on a sand bag, putting a wooden dowel on top, and hammering the dowel to create a bead. A little bit of curvature from a bead puts a good deal of stiffness into a large sheet.

 

[dragoon]

I didn't realize RA has sound limits. Should I bring an alternate muffler setup?

They dont. My car is next level loud and I been there 3 times with it.

My bad, I misinterpreted a rule RA imposes on “their” track days that only allow street legal cars. I’m embarrassed to say something incorrectly as I value my credibility here. It’s rule #18 on attached photo.

 

[honeybadger]

been quietly making progress still. I buttoned up my exhaust project (well, except for the muffler supports that I am waiting on some stainless flat stock to finish).



I'm definitely no master tig welder and this was my first time welding (a shiznit ton) or stainless. We'll see if it holds together. Fortunately, I have mounts placed every 1-2 feet of the system, so there's tons of support in case a weld cracks.



Tire clearance came out pretty good. 1.5 in or more on each side depending on where the wheel is in its travel. Will add heat shield to help with temps. But I suspect at speed, it'll be fine. Might heat soak tho.



System is ARH long tubes, catless midpipes, ARH x pipe into TiCon industries titanium mufflers. Then back to stainless for the exits. V bands are used for mounting and transitioning between the different alloys



I also finished up the pedal box. This was a lot more work than I anticipated. So many lines in a tight space. But happy with how it came out. The footwell box really hides the mess well. HA



Also buttoned up the intake

Going to test the drivetrain tonight. If she rolls and no weirdness, we hit the dyno on Saturday

 

[Fabman]

been quietly making progress still. I buttoned up my exhaust project (well, except for the muffler supports that I am waiting on some stainless flat stock to finish).

View attachment 95584

I'm definitely no master tig welder and this was my first time welding (a shiznit ton) or stainless. We'll see if it holds together. Fortunately, I have mounts placed every 1-2 feet of the system, so there's tons of support in case a weld cracks.

View attachment 95590View attachment 95592View attachment 95593View attachment 95596View attachment 95595

Tire clearance came out pretty good. 1.5 in or more on each side depending on where the wheel is in its travel. Will add heat shield to help with temps. But I suspect at speed, it'll be fine. Might heat soak tho.

View attachment 95589

System is ARH long tubes, catless midpipes, ARH x pipe into TiCon industries titanium mufflers. Then back to stainless for the exits. V bands are used for mounting and transitioning between the different alloys

View attachment 95591

I also finished up the pedal box. This was a lot more work than I anticipated. So many lines in a tight space. But happy with how it came out. The footwell box really hides the mess well. HA

View attachment 95588View attachment 95587

Also buttoned up the intake
View attachment 95586View attachment 95585
Going to test the drivetrain tonight. If she rolls and no weirdness, we hit the dyno on Saturday

View attachment 95594

Good progress.
You are overheating the stainless, you only need enough heat to do the job. Turn your machine down and increase the deposition rate (travel speed).
Your welds should be silver to gold to light blue. When you get to dark blue you start cooking the nickel out of the stainless. When you get to grey, its not stainless anymore, its carbon steel now.
If you find yourself welding at half pedal, the heat is too high and that makes it hard to control. You should be near the bottom of the pedal, but not flat out.
Think of a 1000 hp car with skinny tires and 1" of throttle pedal from 0 to 100%...damn hard to control. Now think of a 500 hp car with 5" of throttle pedal....way easier to control.
Smaller rod would help too. I'd use .045 for this project. Keep your tungsten clean and sharp, the second you dip, stop and clean it or it all goes downhill from there.
Also, take the time to get a perfect fit....90% of the battle is getting a good fit up with no gaps. If you are using a collet body consider going to a gas lens, you'll get way better gas coverage.
Make sure you have around 15-18 CFH Argon.

Keep after it you're doing great!

 

[Fabman]

Here, I just made this for you:

Hold the cup over the weld as it cools so the oxides don't form over the tail of the weld.
Also don't snap off the pedal when you are done, just taper off and let the gas flow till it stops.
Hope this helps somehow.

 

[Fabman]

Curious what this extra little parachute on top is for...what goes in there?

 

[honeybadger]

Good progress.
You are overheating the stainless, you only need enough heat to do the job. Turn your machine down and increase the deposition rate (travel speed).
Your welds should be silver to gold to light blue. When you get to dark blue you start cooking the nickel out of the stainless. When you get to grey, its not stainless anymore, its carbon steel now.
If you find yourself welding at half pedal, the heat is too high and that makes it hard to control. You should be near the bottom of the pedal, but not flat out.
Think of a 1000 hp car with skinny tires and 1" of throttle pedal from 0 to 100%...damn hard to control. Now think of a 500 hp car with 5" of throttle pedal....way easier to control.
Smaller rod would help too. I'd use .045 for this project. Keep your tungsten clean and sharp, the second you dip, stop and clean it or it all goes downhill from there.
Also, take the time to get a perfect fit....90% of the battle is getting a good fit up with no gaps. If you are using a collet body consider going to a gas lens, you'll get way better gas coverage.
Make sure you have around 15-18 CFH Argon.

Keep after it you're doing great!

One of the biggest learnings for me with tig has been backing down the heat. This is great feedback. Thanks! I was surprised that your welding example video didn't have any of the blue/purple coloration that seems so common on stainless. Is that evidence it's still overcooked?

Also - this exhaust project really taught me the value of tight fitment. The first side I welded I didn't do a very good job with tight joints and it was exponentially harder. the other side I through pieces away that didn't fit well and it went MUCH smoother.

Like so many other things, most of it is in the prep work and I'm learning that's a big difference between a good fabricator and a n00b like me

 

[honeybadger]

Curious what this extra little parachute on top is for...what goes in there?

View attachment 95597

Air cleaners for the intake. Will be hidden behind a blocked out grill. It'll make more sense once I post what I'm doing with the bumper

 

[Fabman]

One of the biggest learnings for me with tig has been backing down the heat. This is great feedback. Thanks! I was surprised that your welding example video didn't have any of the blue/purple coloration that seems so common on stainless. Is that evidence it's still overcooked?

Also - this exhaust project really taught me the value of tight fitment. The first side I welded I didn't do a very good job with tight joints and it was exponentially harder. the other side I through pieces away that didn't fit well and it went MUCH smoother.

Like so many other things, most of it is in the prep work and I'm learning that's a big difference between a good fabricator and a n00b like me

Yes, there is a color band that starts with silver and gets darker with heat ending up with grey.
You are doing so much stuff and learning a ton its fun for me to watch as you go.
Don't get discouraged you are killing it.

 

[Fabman]

Air cleaners for the intake. Will be hidden behind a blocked out grill. It'll make more sense once I post what I'm doing with the bumper

View attachment 95599

Yeah yeah yeah yeah....THATS what goes in there.....I was thinking:
"Its not for an oil cooler.....he has EPAS so no power steering cooler either...what could possible go in there?
AIR CLEANERS!

 

[Tonymustang302]

You’re so extra Kevin. Cant wait til 2025 RA