roadtrip se
10-07-2002, 10:58 PM
The hardest part of upgrading a Classic for more power are all the modifications for hydraulic steering. 50% of the 300 plus hours I have in my re-rig for the 500 were probably spent trying to figure out how to make the latham steering work in such tight real estate.
The helm was one such head scratching exercise. I wanted to retain the original teleflex bezel look, strengthen the area for high performance stress, and make it all easy to check for loose nuts and bolts.
The pieces are all aircraft aluminum. There is no flex in the steering wheel. The Classic look is retained, which I really like. And it is easy to inspect and tighten all nuts. Mission accomplished and simple at that!
Reinforcement plate and mounting washer for new helm unit:
http://www.donzi.net/photos/tsomerville40.jpg
Reinforcement plate flush mounted to steering bezel:
http://www.donzi.net/photos/tsomerville41.jpg
Final product:
http://www.donzi.net/photos/tsomerville42.jpg
The helm was one such head scratching exercise. I wanted to retain the original teleflex bezel look, strengthen the area for high performance stress, and make it all easy to check for loose nuts and bolts.
The pieces are all aircraft aluminum. There is no flex in the steering wheel. The Classic look is retained, which I really like. And it is easy to inspect and tighten all nuts. Mission accomplished and simple at that!
Reinforcement plate and mounting washer for new helm unit:
http://www.donzi.net/photos/tsomerville40.jpg
Reinforcement plate flush mounted to steering bezel:
http://www.donzi.net/photos/tsomerville41.jpg
Final product:
http://www.donzi.net/photos/tsomerville42.jpg