This is something a friend and I came up with a few nights ago
Step 1:
Order yourself some hub centric rings designed for a J with an outter bore of roughly 3 inches. Not hard, plenty of places to get them. Mine came from ebay
Step 2:
Head over to walmart and pick up some Loctite plastic epoxy putty, 1 pack of plastic caster cups(those things you put under table legs to not scratch wood floors), 1 pack of rubber gloves, 1 pack of razor blades, and some snacky treats which in our case was mountain dew and taco bell.
Step 3:
Set out 1 hub centric ring, 1 caster cup and cut off a 1 inch piece roughly of the Loctite epoxy. Sand the inside of the hub centric ring and the outside of the caster cup with some 180 grit sandpaper just enough to create a rough surface
Step 4:
Thoroughly mix the Loctite putty you cut off in step 3. roll it into a rope like strand and wrap it around the caster cup. Work fast because this stuff sets pretty quickly. Note: you should really be wearing those rubber gloves while working with this stuff. Prolonged unprotected exposure will burn your hands pretty well.
Step 5:
Press the caster cup firmly into the hub centric ring. Use a razor blade and trim the excess away. It doesn't have to be perfect at this step but the better you trim, the less work you will have later on. Let set for about 45 mins to an hour. This is where those snacky treats come into play
Step 6:
Now that the epoxy is dry and your 2 pieces are bonded and your stomach is full of snacky treats grab some more of that 180 grit sandpaper and a sanding block. The Loctite when it's dry sands just like bondo. This is where if you trimmed off excess really well in step 5 your work will be very easy. Sand the top level.
Step 7:
Now that it's level, wipe clean with some rubbing alcohol. At this point it's your choice what to do. Wrap it in your favorite vinyl or paint it to match the scheme of your engine bay. In our case, we used some carbon fiber vinyl from advance auto parts. Snap them into place on your strut tower and voila! You're finished.
total cost: about $20(not including snacky treats) produces 4 caps.
It was a fun little experiment that worked really well.
Especially being half asleep at 2AM. Give it a try for yourself, especially if you don't want to drop $65 or more on the billet ones from MRZ
"Is that your exhaust or is that the sound of someone deflating a cat?"
I'd like to see it on the car.
I think using some glazing putty to smooth out the top of the cap would look better, looks like the CF stuff is showing the seem or something?
i raised the center slightly on purpose. needed just a hair of extra clearance for the strut mount bolt
"Is that your exhaust or is that the sound of someone deflating a cat?"
I agree with u josh some putty would smooth it out a bit. This was a quick throw together piece just to show how easy it is to do with little cash and some insomnia. I plan on fine tuning the caps a bit to make them seamless. As for the clearence issue with the strut bolt, well rob might not like the idea but oh well, im gonna hit them with a grinder and shave it down a bit. Not much, bout a 1/4 inch if that. Buy the time its all said and done it will look pretty good, and like rob said u can wrap em or paint to match, shure they might not look as good as the billet covers but not everyone wants to fork out 70 bucks for em, plus theres the satisfaction of knowing when someone asks where u bought them u can say i made them. I should have the caps finished and ready for some install shots on thursday if not friday.
it didnt even need that. 1/16th i think we measured right? either way it was just a hair. either way it was a fun project. I actually liked the center ring showing. gives it a hint of depth and looks close to the original concept from the week before with that form fitted plastic
"Is that your exhaust or is that the sound of someone deflating a cat?"
hmmmm, pretty cool honestly.
in for finished product on car pics.
I choose the technology built for land speed records... not the technology built to save on emissions and gas mileage.
http://i251.photobucket.com/albums/gg290/stealthrt88/11081h21332-1.jpg finished product on car
"Is that your exhaust or is that the sound of someone deflating a cat?"
"Is that your exhaust or is that the sound of someone deflating a cat?"
oh incase anyone was wondering those caps on the strut bolts are actually the caps for the wiper arm nuts. they snap right on. found that out by accident. adds a clean little detail
"Is that your exhaust or is that the sound of someone deflating a cat?"
i like the carbon but you can tell its kinda cheesy, no offense. i think a nice paint job would look better to be honest. weather black or maybe silver to match the strut bar.
I choose the technology built for land speed records... not the technology built to save on emissions and gas mileage.
it can be done either way. it's all down to personal preferences at that point. try it. see what you come up with. its still a concept really. Im open to ideas on fine tuning. but concidering it was a random late night experiment, i dont think it turned out half bad
"Is that your exhaust or is that the sound of someone deflating a cat?"
I like the OEM (GM ones), that came on second gen's. Black plastic. I have had these for years.
FU Tuning
thought of that too. in my area trying to find one in the junk yard that still has them in decent enough condition is pretty hard. most of that gen has already been turned into paperclips around these parts
"Is that your exhaust or is that the sound of someone deflating a cat?"
i got a set or 2 of them cheapo black plastic ones. anyone want a pair, just hit me up . $12 bucks shipped here in the US
i just discovered the wiper nut cap thing the other day too, i was soooo happy lol
