The Elephant In The Room: unloading the load from a B-body.

[fullmetaljacket]

Speaking on coins, a good rule of thumb is to empty your pockets of any loose coins before racing. They add to the weight of the vehicle. LOL.

 

[RemCharger]

Speaking on coins, a good rule of thumb is to empty your pockets of any loose coins before racing. They add to the weight of the vehicle. LOL.

Yikes I'm gonna hafta weigh a pack a Darts and a lighter

 

[Badvert65]

And short sleeved shirts are lighter than long sleeved shirts.
jus sayin.....

 

[fullmetaljacket]

No undies, no socks, shave, no jewelry, wedding rings included, cut logs and clear the tummy, fast from eating and then go fast. LOL.

 

[fullmetaljacket]

Objects of the mirror may seem lighter.
Here's a stock rearview mirror bracket. It has since been trimmed to a skeletal form of itself. The trimming removed a good amount of weight since the sun visors are long gone and no provisions for their muring was further needed.
In the future, plans are in the works to make an aluminum version either sculpted by hand or a 3D version in cast aluminum.
Stay tuned.

 

[fullmetaljacket]

Here's another part of the car that will get a new polished piece in its place.
Doors on the early B's aren't necessarily that heavy, it is all the gear and window panes that bring the pork.

Sometime this winter, I will fabricate this small wing window bracket in aluminum in the same gauge as its steel sibling. A session or two under the buffing wheel and it will glisten like chrome. It's an uncomplicated piece with just a small break bend or two at the ends. Along with that, there's a plan to make the window pane track out of aluminum. This whole wing window assembly is where a surprisingly amount of weight loiters.

 

[Badvert65]

I am working on a recipe for 15/16” and 7/8” bore aluminum wheel cylinders. I don’t currently have all the details yet. For now, here is the recipe for a 13/16” bore aluminum wheel cylinder.

13/16” bore Aluminum wheel cylinder.​

Overall, this will cost you about $45 and save you around 1.8 pounds total.
The great part is that this will be 100% bolt in with NO mods to the car itself.
You will need the following items:

• (2) Dorman W37696
• (2) Dorman W610152
• (4) 6mm-1.0 x 10mm screws *See NOTE 1

Step one, take the W37696 cast iron wheel cylinder and remove the guts. You will be keeping:

• (2) dust boots
• (2) metal pistons
• (2) piston seals
• (1) spring

Step two, take the W610152 aluminum wheel cylinder and remove all of the guts.
You will be keeping:

• (1) Aluminum cylinder housing
• (1) Bleeder screw.

*NOTE 1: Now is the perfect time to use a ¼-20 tap on the aluminum wheel cylinder mounting holes. This will allow you to use the original mounting screws from the cast iron cylinder. If you decide NOT to tap these holes, you will need (2) 6mm-1.0 x 10mm screws to mount the aluminum cylinder. Basically, tapping the holes is optional if you don’t want to use metric mounting hardware.

Step three, take the items saved in step one and install them into the parts saved from step two. Essentially, you will end up with the cast iron cylinder guts in the aluminum cylinder housing, it’s that simple. You are now ready to replace your current wheel cylinder with the aluminum one.
Now, all you will need to do is remove your factory cast iron wheel cylinder. Remove the two brake shoe pins from the factory cylinder and insert them into the aluminum wheel cylinder. The aluminum cylinder will simply bolt in where the cast iron cylinder was. Your original brake line fitting will screw right into the aluminum cylinder. The new cylinder’s bleeder screw will be a metric size, but that will be a small price to pay for the reduced weight.
After you have both aluminum cylinders installed, simply bleed the brakes as you would normally.
That is all there is to it. My cost estimate is based on current Rock Auto prices and if you already have 13/16” wheel cylinders, you can save about half the cost by reusing the guts from those.
I don't have any pictures to post just yet, but I will try to get some posted.

 

[fullmetaljacket]

I am working on a recipe for 15/16” and 7/8” bore aluminum wheel cylinders. I don’t currently have all the details yet. For now, here is the recipe for a 13/16” bore aluminum wheel cylinder.

13/16” bore Aluminum wheel cylinder.​

Overall, this will cost you about $45 and save you around 1.8 pounds total.
The great part is that this will be 100% bolt in with NO mods to the car itself.
You will need the following items:

• (2) Dorman W37696
• (2) Dorman W610152
• (4) 6mm-1.0 x 10mm screws *See NOTE 1

Step one, take the W37696 cast iron wheel cylinder and remove the guts. You will be keeping:

• (2) dust boots
• (2) metal pistons
• (2) piston seals
• (1) spring

Step two, take the W610152 aluminum wheel cylinder and remove all of the guts.
You will be keeping:

• (1) Aluminum cylinder housing
• (1) Bleeder screw.

*NOTE 1: Now is the perfect time to use a ¼-20 tap on the aluminum wheel cylinder mounting holes. This will allow you to use the original mounting screws from the cast iron cylinder. If you decide NOT to tap these holes, you will need (2) 6mm-1.0 x 10mm screws to mount the aluminum cylinder. Basically, tapping the holes is optional if you don’t want to use metric mounting hardware.

Step three, take the items saved in step one and install them into the parts saved from step two. Essentially, you will end up with the cast iron cylinder guts in the aluminum cylinder housing, it’s that simple. You are now ready to replace your current wheel cylinder with the aluminum one.
Now, all you will need to do is remove your factory cast iron wheel cylinder. Remove the two brake shoe pins from the factory cylinder and insert them into the aluminum wheel cylinder. The aluminum cylinder will simply bolt in where the cast iron cylinder was. Your original brake line fitting will screw right into the aluminum cylinder. The new cylinder’s bleeder screw will be a metric size, but that will be a small price to pay for the reduced weight.
After you have both aluminum cylinders installed, simply bleed the brakes as you would normally.
That is all there is to it. My cost estimate is based on current Rock Auto prices and if you already have 13/16” wheel cylinders, you can save about half the cost by reusing the guts from those.
I don't have any pictures to post just yet, but I will try to get some posted.

Pretty interesting stuff here. I'm looking into this for sure. Thank you BadV for the 411 on this clever exchange.

 

[Badvert65]

First pic has the cast iron on the left and the Aluminum one on the right. This is the closest match I have run across so far. These are the 13/16" bore wheel cylinders. The left one is a Dorman W37696, out of the box weighs 18.54 ounces. The one on the right is an aluminum shell version of the cast iron one and ends up weighing 8.72 ounces. With two aluminum wheel cylinders you will end up saving 9.82 ounces each or 1.22 pounds total.
The second photo shows why the cast iron ones get to be so heavy. The far left is a 7/8" bore and the one on the far right is a 15/16" bore. They are all basically the same size on the outside, the walls of the 7/8" bore are 0.4" thick and the largest one has walls 0.27" thick. That is a LOT of heavy metal.
FYI, every bare cast iron housing I have weighed has been over a pound. Aluminum bare cylinders have been in the 5–7-ounce range.

 

[Dodge 330]

I know, I know. I have a few OLD $2.00 bills somewhere stashed. They are pretty bills indeed. The artwork is exceptional. Goose, are you a coin/bill collector?

I have a few that are postmarked July 4, 1976.

 

[fullmetaljacket]

Now that we (myself) are in the ounce counts chapter, I might have posted this brake switch bracket within this VERY SHORT thread on the subject matter of weight reduction before, but here goes.
Sometime this Winter it will be installed. Original piece weighed an ounce. The light alloy one weighed....... well, you can see. It is reinforced with a gusset on the back side so that it doesn't move or bend.

 

[Badvert65]

I have plans to remake that exact same bracket in aluminum. I need to look over my reference photos to see if there are other brackets I can make.
While not as cool as making your own brackets, I managed to save a little weight via substitution.
Steel brake bleeder screw, 1.28 oz.
Titanium bleeder, 0.12 oz.

 

[fullmetaljacket]

I have plans to remake that exact same bracket in aluminum. I need to look over my reference photos to see if there are other brackets I can make.
While not as cool as making your own brackets, I managed to save a little weight via substitution.
Steel brake bleeder screw, 1.28 oz.
Titanium bleeder, 0.12 oz.

In some cases, almost two tons can be trimmed down by a kilo pound. This leads to single pounds which lead to ounces which lead to grams. It's fascinating on how it all narrows down.

Are you talking about the steel bleeder screw in a brake cylinder?

 

[Badvert65]

Yes, I am speaking of Titanium brake bleeder screws. Most of the time, when I find an aluminum brake cylinder that I can use, even if the brake fluid inlet fitting is USA Standard, they will have a metric bleeder.

 

[fullmetaljacket]

With the exception of an occasional pound that will be discovered and removed here and there, from this point on, at least for me, it's looks like the grams and ounces will be front and center. Trust me, this will all add up over time and when the magical 16 ounces is reached, it will be posted.

 

[rmchrgr]

Feels like I just gained 10 lbs from dinner. My wife is a really good holiday cook and I always eat too much...

For those that have Instaglom and want to see some serious bordering on insane weight reduction, check out @ bostrum_racing_enterprise_ He's building a vintage Pro Stock Demon with a twin-plug hemi and all the old school trimmings. He's swiss-cheesed the unit body beyond recognition. He's on FABO too.

 

[fullmetaljacket]

Feels like I just gained 10 lbs from dinner. My wife is a really good holiday cook and I always eat too much...

For those that have Instaglom and want to see some serious bordering on insane weight reduction, check out @ bostrum_racing_enterprise_ He's building a vintage Pro Stock Demon with a twin-plug hemi and all the old school trimmings. He's swiss-cheesed the unit body beyond recognition. He's on FABO too.

Man, that guy Bostrum is taking swissing to a whole other level. With all that bracing and caging in and out of that car, no wonder why he's drilling out every square inch. It should weigh somewhere in the high 2600 or low 2700 LBS when done, but hopefully it doesn't distort or collapse under its own power. I guess the body will just be hung around the cage a go along for the ride.
If I were ever be constructing an A-body car, the early '70's Pro Stock program would be the doctrine that I would follow utilizing a Demon body as well for its slight slenderness and aerodynamics.

 

[fullmetaljacket]

If one were to see the difference between this battered and bothered lightweight fender and a virgin factory lightweight fender, one could/would understand why the owners of these rare and ex$pensive cars stand by their prides of joy while waiving a baton in hand. The top section should have a slight concave shape to it, not this collapsed half pipe reservoir. Apparently people didn't listen to the signage, though this may be via the elbows of the owners themselves. Lots of valve lashing I guess.

I get it, being that I myself have invested in "TENDER FENDER" callouts to keep elbows, beltlines and knuckles from starting the carnage.
Never mind sleepless nights, here's to sleepless outings.
At days end, you do have to enjoy the car for what it was meant to be.

 

[fullmetaljacket]

When I get a chance, I'll post up how this little tapped round stock bar will play a part in ridding an ounce or two from the car. Right now it's in rough form after being drilled and tapped. Stay tuned.