1962 Ferrari 156 replica

making the flange and windscreen form for my Ferrari 156 sharknose project.
I started with lots of old photos, measuring, and basically just “what looked right”. I used the wire to give me a “top line” of the windscreen then transferred that shape and measurements into a wood buck i wrapped with 2 layers of 5mm “rubber ply”. then I scribed the form to the profile of the body work, covered the body with tape, sprayed things with PVA to protects the form, used chopped strand mat to create the flange, sanded and smoothed it, did some layout before removing it, then popped it all off. After some cutting and shaping it’s ready to get the next step of having an intricate scoop formed to the front area of it. i haven’t figured out how I’ll shape that yet but I’m sure it will come to me.
the windscreen form will get cleaned up a bit, get covered with a thin layer of felt, and eventually get a sheet of 5mm acrylic therm-formed around it as the windscreen for the perfect fitted shape.

I can’t stop looking at this!! I’m in love with how this is turning out!
Ferrari 156 sharknose replica

Finished my other bubble/scoop flanges for the Ferrari 156 replica. And sprayed some primer on the back half of the body checking for last small imperfections in the carbon.

made some flanges for my bubbles today. i wasn’t sure how they would turn out but they came out awesome.
i scribed the bubbles to the profile of the body so they rested properly, i then sprayed them on both sides with PVA to protect them from getting scratched or destroyed from the resin and fiberglass. then i set them in place sealing the joint with a white silicone so i could glass around them.
laid the glass, popped them off and removed the bubbles, lots of sanding, and bang… they fit the profile of the body and the bubbles perfectly.
then i peeled the PVA layer from the plexi bubbles and they were still as good as new.

for those asking about the engine… please take a moment to enjoy the sound of my people… ?
its a Hayabusa 1300cc. a bit of strengthening work done to it, but no performance mods. sounds incredibly like the real Ferrari 1.5 v6 if you look it up.

Some fuel map tuning today for the Ferrari 156 replica on my friends dyno. 11,000rpm, 305kmh wheel speed on Chinese tires, and almost 130db behind your head…. SO intimidating!!! but the fueling is real happy now and its much scarier to drive than before!!!! ? …..its perfect!

I also put some bathroom scales under it tonight. The complete and final body weighing 50lbs, will put the car at the exact dry weight of the real ones in 61/62… 960lbs
with driver, it should be about 1,125lbs with 175hp

Yesterday and today I made a mold and molded the side scoops, then grafted them all into the body and finished them this evening.
the entire body is hand laid carbon fiber and so far weighs 52lbs.
the next step will be to lay out each ‘panel’ and cut it into sections/panels

I cut the nostrils in my Ferrari 156 replica today and made a grill screen.
ignore my center line. it was a bit off.

Some of todays detail work on my carbon Ferrari 156 replica

My 1961 Ferrari 156 replica build…. The main carbon portion of the body is OUT OF THE MOLD!
Here are some satisfying popping and releasing sounds for your enjoyment. then it was off to the car wash to clean the PVA from the body. There are lots of small finish imperfections due to being laid up by hand of course, but nothing some sanding and light touch-up filler wont take care of before paint as would be required anyways.
I went heavy on my PVA to be sure i didn’t have any issues. The carbon is a 12oz bi-axial laid in strips The resin is vinylester.
After touch-ups and sanding it will be ready for marking out and cutting into panels, fitting around the chassis, then make flanges for the panels, and all the body detail work. MANY hours still left to go.

and here we are!! molds off the foam plug, and the EPS remnants set to go to another friend who may have good use for them. i have no room to hold on to the EPS otherwise id save it. oh well… it did what i needed it to do.

getting close to pulling the molds from the plug for my 1961 156 body.

New seat Finished and installed

I thought id share the mold and seat I made over the last few days.
The original mold was formed with spray foam from a Tillett kart seat, then the shape was modified taller and wider as well as in a few other directions and areas.
I then made an initial carbon seat from it that was okay but not perfectly what i wanted the more I looked at it. I then modified this seat and used it to create a final fiberglass mold seen here. Then today I popped this blue carbon-kevlar/chopped strand carbon seat from it using a basic wet lay-up. I’m very pleased with how it turned out and how well the mold works. the flange is large enough to attempt vacuum form some day if I wish.
I will do more for my future cars I’m sure.
This seat will be going in my streetable Ferrari 156 ‘sharknose’ replica.

a bit of progress update on my streetable ferrari 156 replica. the chassis has been “done” for awhile and currently im working on making the moulds from the plug for its eventual carbon body. (ignore the ugliness of the mould on the tail portion. it was looking fine until i just packed on a ton of chopped strand/resin slurry just to build bulk on those tight curves).
the cards make for a great flange. i lightly wax the area, then use painters calking to build the cards into a flange i want with bracing, then after everything is waxed, sprayed with PVA, and glass is laid up, the cards and calking pop/peel off like they were never there. the flanges will get trimmed nicely before the next portions begin.
some areas (like the center of the tail) ive built up to drill and thread in an air chuck in case i need to use a blast of air or some moisture to release complex spots.
ill be doing the length of the body next in 3 parts (top and 2 sides)

a little Ferrari 156 replica update.
the plug is finished and sealed. just about ready to pull some moulds from it, then the real work begins. the final body will be made of carbon.
i sealed it in red… because ya know… why not.
i post progress on instagram if people care for updates as things happen.
@howisthatstreetlegal

careful, the cops are out!
stopped me for having no license plate and because i smashed it through 2 pretty hard corners right in front of them while they had their lights on before i noticed they were there.
he says “does it handle?” i leaned in and said “hell ya it does!” and we all laughed. hahahaha
super cool guys!
im driving it on a temporary ‘in-transit’ permit for ‘testing and tuning purposes’. so all is technically legal for road use under that banner while its under construction.
for those who will ask, its a 1961 Ferrari 156 replica

Not crazy fancy or complicated, but thought id share how im making my cars side scoops using more brains than just time and money.

So messy!!

some more home made tools for the job, and some from china

Cut my initial shape by hand tonight with my hot wire bow and the help of a steady handed friend. Im happy with it this far, but still a ton to do.
Building a 1961 ferrari 156

Diving into the area where i have very limited personal experience. Luckily i have a few friends who are masters with sculpting, foam and mold making.
Ill be carving a body plug for the Ferrari 156 all by hand

New uprights. Im much happier with these over my first fabbed aluminum ones. These will be much safer and still lighter as a complete brake package

a photo and a video from today. over the last 2 months i changed from my initial seat design to a nicer profile closer to the original Ferrari’s shape, and changed my fuel tank location so its more protected inside the chassis. nice to hear it running again.
the new seat is also much more comfy ?

Finished my carbon seat finally!
6 layers of carbon and 1 layer of kevlar.
Its my first large carbon project so its not 100% flawless, but id say its 98% and im real happy with.

its DONE!!!! there are A LOT of layers under that shiny skin!!!! now to order up the carbon.
here is a start to finish through photos of the mold for my Ferrari 156 seat starting with a tillet go-kart seat as a beginning base shape. i hope its as comfy as i expect because otherwise i wasted many evenings. haha

i figure some might enjoy this…
i decided to make a new seat for my Ferrari 156 project. i could do aluminum like it should be, but wanted to get a bit more experience with carbon before i do the body, so im making a mold using this tillett kart seat. ill make a few changes to its size once i pop the foam out of the seat. the plan is to make it a slightly higher back, a touch wider in the ribs, and profile it a bit better for my leg position, but keep that sexy kart seat style.
either that, or just throw the seat and all in the garbage and be mad for a few days if my petroleum jelly “release agent” doesn’t work. haha

another sound clip as promised. new proper exhaust packing. sounds a bit quieter yet over the steel wool. actually makes me a bit sad. i really like the bark. the neighbors and cops do not. haha
i wrapped the last 6″ or so of the baffles and this is the sound i got. should be just right and may get some bark back as the packing compresses a bit more after getting some RPM run time on it.
now to take it out for a scream!
lots of people ask for more info on building this and building that. i dont have any build threads or links, but everything is documented on instagram if you use instagram. you can find all my pictures right from the beginning planning on there @howisthatstreetlegal

finished my airbox last night. im quite happy with it. should be on track to start the ferrari up in a few weeks.

Making headers for the Sharknose F1. Im very happy with them and will hopefully get to hear how crazy loud they are by the end of next month. ?

got my cluster all mounted up and im real happy with it. i had to do a bit of re-fabbing to get it how i needed it. one of the finer points you dont consider when pulling a chassis design right from your butt at the beginning. haha. thats why the chassis is painted and not powder coated. ?