http://hobbystage.net/camaro/camaroracer/1107926478-005513.jpg

the passenger side SFC gusset tube.

Moving onto the door bars, an interesting part of the project no doubt, so far has been a very tough part to engineer, as i absolutely must keep the door handles, arm rest, stock seat, and mount the bar in a position that i can actually get into the car.

http://hobbystage.net/camaro/camaroracer/1107926280-005512.jpg

http://hobbystage.net/camaro/camaroracer/1107926106-005511.jpg

http://hobbystage.net/camaro/camaroracer/1107925849-005510.jpg

http://hobbystage.net/camaro/camaroracer/1107925662-005509.jpg

looks good, definately making some progress.
i know you've done your research on this, but there is one thing i noticed however. of course you can tell sitting there better than i can by looking at pictures, but if your door bars are at about the same point on the seat as it would be on mine (same seats), those would hit me way low, like at my elbow. and as i'm sure you know, they need to be at a midpoint between your shoulder and elbow. if so, those wouldn't fly at that height in my car with a guy my height (not tall, about 5'10), with most of the tough techs around here.
my buddy had door bars that hit closer to his elbows, to make it easier to get in/out and he was messed with everytime we went to the track at mission, BC, and occasionally locally as well. he got around it by sitting way low in his seat, but we both learned it was better to just make it exact, instead of dealing with the BS.
just pointing it out, something i noticed in the pics.

Looking good! Are those Detroit Speed Equip. frame connectors?

For padding, I took a section of tubing and a section of foam pipe insulation to my upholsterer and he made me two lengths, 4 foot I measured, black vinyl hook-and-latch covers with 6-8 inches of loose material on the ends. I would open up the covering, latch it together for the length, then tuck in the ends of the longer materisl between the foam and tubing.

I suppose one could have the ends sewn giving the appearance of a seam rather than tuck in the ends. I used 2 inch diameter black pipe insulation. Comes in 6 foot length from your local HVAC supplier. Insulation has to be cut to match circumference of tubing 2" vs. 1 5/8." Cuts with scissors easy. Single action tin snips work very well.

thanks for the compliments!
for me it passes through the middle of my shoulder and elbow. I'm just under 6'0. Maybe its the angle of the photo, but it passes through the right spot.

Even as is its extremely tough to get into the seat with my stock 16" diameter wheel. I might buy a different steering wheel and a quick release.

I've been looking at these:
http://www.grantproducts.com/images/prod/3021.jpg

http://www.grantproducts.com/images/prod/1130.jpg

my elbow is level with the bottom of the arm rest, and my shoulders with the portion of the seat thats where the sewn in section is.

everett, they're CE subframe connectors that i modified to fallow the contour of my floor pan.

the padding sounds nice, i'm up in the air on the padding, i might buy SFI stuff.

BTW, the plan is to recover the seats and new head rests as well. I cant stand looking at that tear in the seat.

Brian,
Why all the cross braces on the main hoop? Never seen that on any car, i think i may have seen the one diagonal bar on a road race car but never before on a Drag car. Also be careful i`ll check again but that side bar bight have to be between the elbow and shoulder when your hands are on the wheel. Looks real good other than that. How do you plan on painting it? Any performance mods over the winter also?

Yeah, get rid of that stock wheel Brian, mine was HUGE. LOL I have a much smaller Grant wheel with a lot more knee room.

The quick release really makes getting into and out of the car a lot easier. I used the exact same one you posted the picture of. They work real well. No slop like some of the pin type quick releases.

I know some states back there require a "safety" inspection. With the quick release you will lose your horn button. I don't know what you state rules are, just thought I would point that out. If they allow you to mount a horn button anywhere then it's not an issue.

cool, good to hear they are a nice peice. Might do that some time into the season, as i need slicks at the moment.

i like the big bus driver steering wheel, it will find a new home in the attic though as its pretty tight getting into the car.

Scott, checked it with my hands on the wheel in my "racing" possition. I know it looks low, but it works out for me.
I'm sure Duke will have something to say, but the guys at Etown wont.

The diagonal brace is an idea i found checking out Alf Wiebe's work, so i'll give it a try. The SFC gussets are in there by the advice of larry poppas. He mentioned to me that he originally had only a roll bar, then he had Andy put the gussets in as well and it was an improvement equal to the bar (in the rigidity of the car)

That seat has no side bolsters for protection, if you hit something sliding sideways or get T-boned, it looks like you will be hitting that door bar. Not to mention needing a head rest. I'd get a better seat.

building a head rest, will be coming up shortly.

why not just go with a lightweight racing bucket and drop 30 pounds off the car?

building the car as a stocker without a stock legal engine.
Stock seats are a requirement, as with the arm rests.
They're basically required to have a full stock interior with exception to the back seat, shifter, gauges and steering wheel.

got it. Just curious. :D

Brian, I'm not trying to be a jerk in any way, just curious, why build a stocker with a non-legal engine? Just like the look or?

There's a multitude of reasons.
first, and foremost, a stock eliminator ride is the best type of car to tailor a street/strip car after.
Second, if i ever have the money to race Stock i have a car already prepped for the job, and only need to put a stock legal engine in it.
Stockers hold alot of value, especially those that work well.

and it really only takes a few considerations to keep the car stock eliminator legal, with exception to the engine of course.

Nothing cooler (in my opinion) then small tire, stock suspension, full interior, stock eliminator cars.

fallow the buildup over the next season, and so on, and you'll see the evolution of a street/strip car that when i'm done will really "Work".

i dont mind the questions, i'm sure there are a few wondering why i'm taking this route while building the car.

No questions from me, I love a Stock/Super Stock car. It just takes money, patience, and a lot of thinking.

A Stocker is the way to go. Get the shipping weight, horsepower factor, and now you're classed for a specific ET. Read National Dragster on who has bettered the class and wonder how he/she did it.

Read & reread the rulebook between the lines for a better favor to your advantage, to improve your time.

You've got my vote.

thanks!

Nah Brian, im with you all the way on it. I think about the coolest thing in the world is a Full interior street car that goes like hell N/A and is driven everywhere. I have a little Grant steering wheel and it makes it alot easier to get in and out of the car. But im 6'2" 250 or so too.

cool! :D

maybe the steering wheel alone with solve the problem. I've spoken to the engineer who developed the quick release from grant, and he gave me a warning that it was un-streetable, and designed to be replaced every few seasons.

Royce, any comments about the durability of the peice. And does it eliminate the turning signals?

Brian....dont spend the $$$ on the quick release either. I got my grant wheel and the adapter at autozone. I believe its the black GT model and everything was 60 bucks total. If you dont have power steering its not a problem turning at a dead stop either, at least not for me...in fact i prefer not to have power steering in my Nova!!

Brian,
I used thet Grant quick release for over 6 years, it worked the same the day I sold the car as the day I bought it. I took my wheel off everytime I parked the car in public and took the wheel with me. I have never heard of any issue with them and I plan to use one again in my current car. My turn signals worked fine (self cancelling worked fine too).

Maybe they have a new design now or something, I don't know.

I have no complaints, it was very solid and had no slop. I am not sure what could "wear out" in the unit.

Sounds good, i think the "engineer" may have been BSing me, as i mentioned it was a street/strip car, and he was very against me using this peice on the street.

Now that i think about it, i get in and out of the car more times in a race day then i do the entire week fallowing, even if i were to drive it daily (i dont anymore).

thanks, i appreciate it!

http://hobbystage.net/camaro/camaroracer/1108318886-005527.jpg

http://hobbystage.net/camaro/camaroracer/1108319173-005528.jpg

http://hobbystage.net/camaro/camaroracer/1108319379-005529.jpg

here's another update.

http://hobbystage.net/camaro/camaroracer/1108351935-005531.jpg

thats one of my welds, was crusing along with the others so i figured i would weld that one up as well.

http://hobbystage.net/camaro/camaroracer/1108352215-005532.jpg

http://hobbystage.net/camaro/camaroracer/1108352396-005533.jpg

http://hobbystage.net/camaro/camaroracer/1108352617-005534.jpg

http://hobbystage.net/camaro/camaroracer/1108352727-005535.jpg

not too bad getting into the car i'll probably just replace the wheel, between shinking the diameter, and changing the dish i think i'll be able to get in and out pretty easy.

Lookin' good! It'll be pain in the butt to remove the rear seat.

A few more welds, then sand the tubes, and its paint time!

thanks Everett!
Looking forward to it. I may be doing a few of the finish welds, this 4130 welds nicely!

the rear seat is interesting to get into the car, hehe. And getting into the back seat is a contourtionist job, but i've managed to sneak back there.

BTW,
For anyone fallowing the Build up, the Y-type SFI harness dated after 12/04 will be illegal.

Those dated prior to 12/04, such as mine are legal until their expiration.
So i'll be replacing my Y-type harness with a V-type harness in 11/06.

Brian,
dont take any of my comments the wrong way, i know in a way they could be. but just tryin to help ya out.

I was looking at the way your shoulder belts are mounted and that tab isnt right. I needs to be in a straight pull design, the way you have it is technecally not, it could bend the tab up. The best way would be to drill a hole in the bar and mount them with a straight bolt through the bar, all you have to do is drill the hole bigger and weld in a small piece inside it like a filler, dont know if you know what i mean.

Scott,
from the picture its sort of an optical illusion, as the tab has a bend in it, but its fit 90 degrees to the bar.

I put the bend in it so that its parallel with the "pull" force, as it goes over the top of the seat back.

Ed's seat belt tab is the same way.

The floor tab is done as illustrated in the instructions for the belts.

I like your idea though, had i not already done this i would have considered it.

What could be done, by those concerned about it (if someone is building something similar) would be triangulation gusset plates on the sides of the tab.

Hmm...I see that too. I guess it would be best to try and load that tab under one axis (tensile) instead of some combined loading. BUT, you could add some sort of gusset there to fix that right up...assuming it's a problem, and it may not be.

You know, if you think about it, that tab bending can lengthen the amount of time your body takes to come to a rest during an accident. If you can design the system to bend, but not fail, during a crash that could be adventageous. Ugh, I'm thinking too much.

Wow, we managed to think up the same idea (guesset) at the same time...

cool, lol.

this project has done that to me, i think it terms of gussets, triangulation, shear plates, ect. hehe.

The tab is a pretty strong peice (its chrome moly).

I feel i should point out, that this is no model, or how to, but rather just how I'm doing it. what i do may or may not be structurally sound enough for an impact.

My main concern is my safety, but i've done no testing.

Originally posted by NHRA1877:
Brian,
The best way would be to drill a hole in the bar and mount them with a straight bolt through the bar, all you have to do is drill the hole bigger and weld in a small piece inside it like a filler, dont know if you know what i mean. That's kinda what I did -- it was pretty easy too. I just welded a grade 8 7/16" nut to the top of the bar though and tapped threads into the top of the bar (below the nut) rather than going all the way through. No tabs or gussets on mine.

I'm not saying anyone has done it wrong . . .

Brian, not as quick or easy but you might consider the Grant steering wheel adapter that lets you take off the wheel for security. You have to use a key to take off the wheel. It doesn't take long. You can keep your horn and everything. I have it for security reasons, there is a red steel cap that goes over the gears so no one can mess with it. THey are about $100 and are supposed to last a long time.

They make a "sleeve" for mounting seat belts to the roll bar/cage. That is what I used on my last bar, you drill all the way through the bar and weld the sleeve on both sides (top and bottom). It is threaded and you bolt your belts directly into it. Just thought I would mention it since the topic came up.

Cody, i took a look at it, however after tacking up the bar its really not bad getting in and out of the car. I think a smaller wheel and a shallower wheel dish would free up enough room that i could get in and out easy.

thanks for the idea though.

Moving onto the head rest, i've began that portion of the project by completely dissambling a stock 69' Camaro headrest (donated by a friend).
I then sheared the attachment bar off the bottom of it.
Formed a steel plate for the rear section of it, welded it on, and then welded two 5/16" studs to the plate.

http://hobbystage.net/camaro/camaroracer/1108436976-005536.jpg
http://hobbystage.net/camaro/camaroracer/1108437154-005537.jpg

Next i'll have the headrest portion re-appolstered, and in the mean time i will build a round tube section for the roll bar, and a mounting tab.

overall it will be removable, and very slightly adjustable (up and down).

As Brian stated: My main concern is my safety, but I've done no testing. Couldn't have said it better myself. You want the one test to be the one saving your butt!

Gussetting the corners of the bar will definately strengthen the bar as a whole. You've transferred the vector from the corner to the bar(s) themselves.

The headrest looks great Brian -- I like the idea. Make sure you post a pic for us when its done.

thanks!

Originally posted by cody:
Brian, not as quick or easy but you might consider the Grant steering wheel adapter that lets you take off the wheel for security. You have to use a key to take off the wheel. It doesn't take long. You can keep your horn and everything. I have it for security reasons, there is a red steel cap that goes over the gears so no one can mess with it. THey are about $100 and are supposed to last a long time. This is what I have been using in my daily driver for about 4 years. I take it off every time I get out. It is quality and no slop.

Roll bar looks great Brian.

[ 02-15-2005, 07:25 AM: Message edited by: Lonnie67 ]

Looks nice Brian.

Just a quick idea. I know a fellow here locally who had a factory low back seat and had to have a headrest made up. His design was pretty trick in that the headrest was bolted in, not welded to the main hoop or seat cross bar. He had his mounted where it was clamped in place using the band straps that they use to bolt engine plate mounts in a dragster. The clamps you loosen which allow you to slide the engine/trans forward and back on the frame rails. The clamps went around a piece of curved steel which followed the contour of the roll bar tubing. The head rest was then welded to this curved metal piece which was then clamped to the roll bar...hope that made sense. The clamps not only allowed the headrest to be removed, but also allowed it to be adjusted to fit the driver easier. Once a headrest is welded in, your kinda stuck with the final position.

His car is a 67/68 Camaro which also kept the back seat. The removable/adjustable headrest design also made it easier to get into the back seat, not to mention allowing more room to squeeze the back seat itself through the opening.

Just a neat idea worth considering working into your roll bar design.

amazingly enough i can still get the back seat bottom into the car as is (diagonal bar in). My seat position wont change though.

I appreciate the suggestion, i'll consider it. I know what clamps your talking about.

thanks!

Thanks Lonnie!

here's an update.
The driver side door bar is nearly finished being welded in.

These are my welds. the 4130 tubing is extremely nice to weld, especially after welding the plates to the rocker panels.

my dad will be stepping in for the upside down welds.

http://hobbystage.net/camaro/camaroracer/1108698857-005603.jpg

http://hobbystage.net/camaro/camaroracer/1108699030-005604.jpg

this is after trimming the wire gutter.

http://hobbystage.net/camaro/camaroracer/1108699762-005605.jpg

this is one of my tubing joint welds

http://hobbystage.net/camaro/camaroracer/1108699997-005606.jpg

Nice job! Its good to see you welded in segmented arcs about the circumference of the tubing. You don't want to pull in the tubing by welding a continuous bead about the circumference.

4130 does weld nice. Good penetration on the welds as shown by the length of discolor.

You could take some scrap metal, make joint, suspend it upside down and practice welding. How do you think your father learned?

thanks Everett!

i will give that a try (welding upside down).

Looks like you know how to weld pretty good, nice job graemlins/thumbsup.gif

thanks Red!

Be proud! Those welds are purty! :D

thanks John!

welcome! I still need to get some more practice myself!

your car looks great, your new interior was very nicely done. The gauge panel in particular!

need any help, email me.

Thanks! I may have to take you up on it... but not for the Camaro!

I think I'm going to leave the Camaro as-is for awhile and drive it. So, I've been contemplating a second project car...

I'm thinking about building an all-out Datsun Z car. When I say "all-out" I mean that I'm going to try making my own complete space frame chassis and design my own suspension. I've been playing with a few modeling programs and designing the chassis already... now, I need to find the right car to buy! :D

sounds intriguing, double A-arm coil over front suspension or a strut front?
Drag car? or do you have something else in mind?

I was planning on making the car an all around performer... most in line with the pro-touring crowd.

I'm planning on a double A-arm front with coil-overs and out back I'm planning on a Satchell link. It is like a 4-bar but the lower bars are angled in towards center. Big brakes on all four corners.

I'm also planning on going with a gen III all aluminum small block, backed by a 5 or 6 speed trans. Of course, we'll have to see what the finances allow... if I can swing it I may try to hang a couple of turbos on the engine while I'm at it! :D

Basically, it will be a ton of fabrication!

sounds like a cool project. The fabrication aspect is what i like the most in the custom cars.
Do you have access to a TIG welder?

Boodlefoof, I love that grey interior..one of the nicest I have seen. A nice departure from the standard black. Some same color seats would complete it. Great job!

Thanks Tokyo Torquer!

Brian,

I figure it will be a fun project and a good learning experience. No, don't have a TIG, just a 220v MIG.

The spaceframe will be made of mild steel.

Brian, i have to install my 5 point harnesses in a few weeks, what gauge steel did you use for the bolt bracket under your seat? Thanks....

Nick,
the tabs are 1/8" 4130, and the mount to the floor is 1/8" thick mild.

if the tabs were mild, i believe they must be 1/4" thick, and the floor plate for the seat belt could stand to be a little larger, but 1/8" is fine.

John, whose going to be doing your welding on that project?
Buy Herb Adams' Book, it gets into how to build a structurally sound chassis and gets into the basics of a good design. Good book to have!

I plan on practicing up on my welding before actually building the space frame. I'm sure I'll be learning more along the way as well.

As for design, I've been looking at lots of various race car designs and using some design software to come up with something that will give me maximum rigidity with as little weight as possible.

There is a guy over at pro-touring.com who built a space frame for an old Mustang and he pointed me towards some info... Herb Adams' book is on the list of reading. :D

thats what i like to see, the most structural integrity with the least amount of weight!

I have a chassis design in the works for a friend's Race Car, 69' camaro. Will be a bolt on peice, and the project is starting next month. Been doing suspension design on the computer alot. As well i have one frame started for a future project with the camaro.

Finished the rails, but the current projects have taken over.

it helps emensly to work it out on the PC as well as on the bench to have a very clear idea of exactly what you want the final product to end up as.

It certainly does help to map it out first! After I have my design, I plan to make a scale model of it before actually diving in on the real one.

I remember awhile back in the brakes and suspension section that you were designing a subframe. How's the design coming?

the design is pretty much finished on the Race Car frame, i'll be starting the actual chassis build next month.
we have a few things left to move around, but thats about it.

make sure to post some pics when you're done with it! graemlins/thumbsup.gif

will do!

Here's a Progress update on the bar.

the trunk is finished, bars welded into the trunk side of the car are done:

still my welding, my dad will be doing the tubes near the headliner, as i will be holding a sheild on the headliner (two man job). Everything else so far is my work.
The head rest is at an apolstry shop getting recovered and refoamed.

Successfully completed a few upside down welds, very interesting, but not as tough as i had originally thought it would be.

http://hobbystage.net/camaro/camaroracer/1109344200-005748.jpg
http://hobbystage.net/camaro/camaroracer/1109344359-005749.jpg
http://hobbystage.net/camaro/camaroracer/1109344536-005750.jpg
http://hobbystage.net/camaro/camaroracer/1109344645-005751.jpg
http://hobbystage.net/camaro/camaroracer/1109452848-005787.jpg
http://hobbystage.net/camaro/camaroracer/1109453050-005788.jpg

the head rest mount is coming up soon, stay tuned!

http://hobbystage.net/camaro/camaroracer/1109567895-005826.jpg

Looking good! Stayed up late, eh? You'll be draggin butt today..........

Drag Fabricator,
Man, I have to hand it to you. That is one VERY nice cage you made.
Seeing yours, made me want to re-do mine.
It is similar but not quite as nice as yours.
http://community.webshots.com/user/smits67

Chris

thanks Everett! Stayed up a little late, lol, i find myself working on this project until 11:00 some days.

thanks Chris! Your work looks pretty nice from the pictures, I appreciate the compliment!

Looks like that seat is gonna be real fun to get back in. You gonna be at E-Town next weekend? Heard a rummor that they havent finished their starting line yet? Hopefully we will somehow be able to race next weekend, weather it be island, e-town, or atco, Was talking to Bob Bucler and he went down to MIR yesterday to test. Cant wait to get in the car and smell that smoky burn out again.....

How much do ya think the bar will slow ya down? 12.0`s?

i went 11.60s last season, the bar only weighs 57lbs total so far, and will probably be 62-63lbs total when finished, my perspective is that in total the car will be quicker as it will work much better!

plus i took 20lbs of the real heavy padding out from under the carpet, so, total i'm looking at 45lbs more weight.

Next weeks job is to finish another driveshaft loop i've been working on, and overall i expect that to be a little lighter then last seasons (which wasnt spec)

the rear seat isnt bad to get in an out, but its a two person job with all the tube in the way.

i hear ya! I cant wait to get racing again as well, as long as its not rained out or snowed out i will be racing the first points day on the 13th

i'll be done with the bar soon, the headrest will be done soon, and the interior will be going back together soon.

Tires are on their way shortly as well.

What did you ever end up with, i asked melisa last week after i got your call, and she said that the QTP`s were much more consistant but forgot how much in et, sent ya an email but wasnt sure if it went through as i have been haveing problems with it

I will also be at E-town ro the first week of points, i`ll be running Heavy at E-town and Street at Island

didnt get the email, thanks for checking though. I went with the QTP's since you're using them successfully.

good to hear you'll be racing at etown, because i dont think i will be making too many island trips this season. Since i'll be legal in street, i'll stick to street points at etown, and probably a few races at atco.

I'm going to build a mechanical throttle stop this weekend or next week.

Awsome, Make sure to take some pictures of that as i might be using one this year also. If it does what most say it will, were looking at the 12 inch 1500 stall convertor and a cam swap to keep in in the 12.0`s but hopefully we`ll find out this weekend.

Welding the connectors in tonight, i put 2 bolts in each because i couldnt fit 4 but they sure make the car solid, when i jack the front up the back jacks just as high as the front, where as before it would have to come up like a foot and a half before the back came up with it

exactly, just image how stiff a roll bar makes it after that, especially one that ties into the SFC's!!

Hehe, i go out to the garage and push on the main hoop just to watch the nose of the car rise with the force put on the main hoop.

good luck with the job, and welding them in should stiffen it up quite a bit more!

that car should be flying this season, for the time being, it might be worth while putting a mechanical throttle stop on it.

here's yesterdays progress, after i finished this floor cap/SFC guesset floor plate my dad helped out with some of the welding and we accomplished quite a bit.

http://hobbystage.net/camaro/camaroracer/1109734099-005863.jpg

http://hobbystage.net/camaro/camaroracer/1109734452-005865.jpg

one of my dad's nice welds:

http://hobbystage.net/camaro/camaroracer/1109734327-005864.jpg

Man i might be givin you a call when i go to do my bar, might tack it all up and pay a few entry fees and let you go to town welding lol

Brian,

Looks good. What kind of TIG machine do you have.

Scott, let me know if need me to install one. I wouldnt mind working on that nice car! Do you have new floor pans?

Jason
Lindie 300amp, its older then me :D With a Big HW-18 Torch on it, that we'll be replacing to finishing off the rear bar/main hoop joints near the headliner.

here's some of my welding from today:

http://hobbystage.net/camaro/camaroracer/1109826330-005873.jpg

http://hobbystage.net/camaro/camaroracer/1109826018-005872.jpg

http://hobbystage.net/camaro/camaroracer/1109826453-005874.jpg
http://hobbystage.net/camaro/camaroracer/1109826644-005875.jpg

Simply beautiful, Brian.

I agree. Now, I know what he's gonna do for retirement...........Need to be certified!

Try some stainless steel. Then you can build exhaust systems for those high-end cars others drive and want more power. They buy a Porsche, then add a turbocharger to it. The exhaust kits are non-existent, must be custom made.

i definetly love working with stainless, my exhaust is stainless and welding that stuff is fun! I'd like to get involved with high end custom fabrication.

thanks for the compliments Everett and Rick!

Brian what do you plan on useing to paint it? We used spray can for my dads but its a pain to not get it all over everything and hard to do a good job, i was thinking maybe air brushing one, have heard of it being done and that way you can use good enamel paint.

I use Krylon Semi-gloss black, it always comes out nice.

I find it easy to use, and i like the semi-gloss since it Matches the overall theme of the car.

Nice work Brian.

I usually use POR15 chassis black and brush it on. It flows out well and doesn't show brush marks and is very durable. It doesn't scratch off like poof can stuff does. Especially on door bars that you are crawling over a lot. I'll try to remember to take some pictures this weekend.

thanks! For this i like the semi-gloss as its a light paint, touches up nice and shows the welds well :D

http://hobbystage.net/camaro/camaroracer/1110062607-005885.jpg

A start to the head rest mount design
http://hobbystage.net/camaro/camaroracer/1110062481-005884.jpg

Seat Belt tabs, i wanted to use these becuase the nylock nuts and grade 8 bolts let the blet swivel on the mount (just snug) rather then being bolted solid.
http://hobbystage.net/camaro/camaroracer/1110062387-005883.jpg

this sides Done completely with exception to the headrest and finishing up the weld on the top of the main hoop to rear bar, most of its done but we're waiting on another torch to finish it up.
http://hobbystage.net/camaro/camaroracer/1110062285-005882.jpg

What ever you use dont make it the industrial gloss crap....i just painted my bar and had to sand it all back down because it wouldnt coat right, and there were tons of runs.....satin/ semi gloss is where its at. I just recoated with that and it went flawlessly.

all the paint so far is semi-gloss, looks nice i think.
You're right, spray-can gloss paint is tough to get perfect.