JEFF JONES New RX-7 @ FORMULA D 2010

Jeff Jones · 02-27-2010, 02:09 AM

Formula D 2010 season is just around the corner and I have been given the opportunity to once again rejoin my fellow rotary enthusiasts. Not long ago I decided to leave my always-favored FC3S for a 240 SX to use in competition for Formula D. This was not an ordinary SR-powered S13 but one with a 1JZ transplant. The 2009 season was an exhilarating and a new experience for me but it was time to “Go Big”…

This year has already shows better promise as Rotary Works has offered to build my team, Jeff Jones Racing, a monster drift machine to compete in for the 2010 season. We have chosen the FD3S chassis to build up and make custom to our needs. It wasn’t enough to leave the factory 13BREW engine in it to build on so we opted for the maximum cool factor… a Turbo charged 20B engine that we expect will make over 500+ WHP and deliver when put to challenge. Only days into our build, Rene Franco, engineer and fabricator of Rotary Works and founder of RMS (Rene’s Motorsports), began designing a tube-chassis style front end from scratch nonetheless.

The purpose of this thread is to share my personal experience in building a car capable of competing against factory-backed cars in the world of pro drifting that is Formula D. This is all possible with the help of my sponsors which include Rotary Works, CX Racing, EBC brakes, Clutch Net, Comp Turbo, K&N, to name a few. With all that being said I have decided to share some pictures of progress and will continue to do so until Rd.1 in Long Beach where I hope to meet some of my supporters and fans.

I will be putting out a official press release soon of all my 2010 sponsors.

(It always begins with a car on a trailer making its way to a tuner garage)

(Pile O parts… Toyota transmission for high horsepower, 20B begging for a rebuild and front sub frame waiting to be hacked and customized)

Getting some ideas for the motor placement.

Pack it up and call it quits for the night.

The next day we got hard at work on removing the sound detaining.
With the help of a 20lb block of dry ice it took just one hour to get most of it off.

Now it was time to pull out the gas tank and sub frames.

This is after the tank and rear suspension was removed.

…..

Bebop · 02-27-2010, 03:36 AM

Wow!

Nice to see Jeff Jones getting back to his roots.

Slapshotnerd · 02-27-2010, 09:54 AM

Formula D is turning into Rotary Drift!!

Congrats, Jeff! can't wait to see the beast

Jeff Jones · 02-27-2010, 08:25 PM

So let the spot welding begin. This is Rene in his predator helmet getting down.

Now its time to play with some steering angle.

This is a jig I mad to keep the Ackerman the same after we cut and weld.

We got the new sub frame in from one of Rene’s old drag cars.
The old one was possibly bent so better start out fresh.

This is Ascension wire brushing the paint for more spot welds.
He has an Ls1 fc that Kelvin used in D1gp Anaheim.

His car in d1

Now back to the angle. Clean Chop Weld

….

Jeff Jones · 02-27-2010, 08:26 PM

You can see the simple jig helps keep the every thing lined up.

Rotary-Works is primarily a fabrication shop. With a lot of request to cut and weld spindles they will be making a few solid jigs soon. I will be testing them out on my personal cars.

This is one set up I will be testing. Others will be just shortening with out the step

Rene using the mig welder.

Fat bead, ready for install.

Other side.

Stupid angle. It’s hard to see but Rene also machines rack spacers.

Put some rims on for the pic.

OK still a hole lot more to do.

Justin Banner · 02-28-2010, 07:45 AM

Are those spindles cast iron or something else? If it's cast, I thought you had to heat it up, then weld and how are you welding them if not heating them first?

blu808 · 02-28-2010, 10:49 AM

Justin. I sent Jeff a PM about the welding process.

Justin Banner · 02-28-2010, 02:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by blu808

Justin. I sent Jeff a PM about the welding process.

If he can PM me, too, because I am very curious about it, too.

akuma S14 · 02-28-2010, 08:02 PM

Hey Jeff, best of luck in 2010 man, glad to see you out there holding it down!

Jeff Jones · 02-28-2010, 08:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by akuma S14

Hey Jeff, best of luck in 2010 man, glad to see you out there holding it down!

Thanks man. There is so much work to do and we got started so late. I hope to get a few practice days in before Long Beach.

CelicaDRIFTER · 02-28-2010, 08:51 PM

good to see ya back in a rotary! ha

MILANO AUTO · 03-01-2010, 09:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CelicaDRIFTER

good to see ya back in a rotary! ha

jeff call me 818 8977445

brainfood · 03-01-2010, 11:11 AM

Yes this makes me happy. <333 Your front wheels will hit your lower control arm depending on width and offset so try to space them out as much as possible. Our FD at the shop has pretty good angle after a little work.

SilverGhost · 03-02-2010, 12:41 AM

Fd3s ftmfw!

Jeff Jones · 03-02-2010, 01:19 AM

Rotary-works bought a new 1.5 Kaas lsd for the car. (sweet) No more rockin the welded diff.

Old one out!!!

Just realized it needs new bearings

. So more on that later.

Stock junk.

New coil overs. Time to slam this suck-a

This one made me smile.

When this hits the ground, it’ll be tucking for sure.

Jeff Jones · 03-02-2010, 01:20 AM

I finally went to pick up the cage supplies.

I thought my truck would be too small so went with my buds Cressida roof rack.

Just when we thought we had a load we saw this.

I found the dash bar. Wish I had a dash

I tacked in a plat for the main hoop.

Got distracted by more spot welds to do.

Wish I didn’t shake so much when I take pictures.

Jeff Jones · 03-02-2010, 01:21 AM

Welder at work

More plates

Ok done for the day.

Justin Banner · 03-02-2010, 07:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jeff Jones

Wish I didn’t shake so much when I take pictures.

Walmart sells a great tri-pod for around $25. It's made by Targus, the thing is awesome!

Example:

pete_07 · 03-02-2010, 07:57 PM

lol.. or just make one since u guys got some welding stuff

Jeff Jones · 03-03-2010, 12:56 AM

Finished up the back half of the cage.

I like how tight it fits to the car.

And that’s the old Sparco ^^^^ seat I use to mock up seat brackets.

It was a B&@%$ to get the side skirts’ off.

They where molded on.

Hammer Chisel and fiberglass, nasty.

I made a plate for the tube front end.

This is the aluminum bolt on plate.

Now that Rotary-Works is ready to design the front end its
time to get some body parts.
This is a bent fender off of one Rene’s old drag cars.

I borrowed this finder from another car.

I picked this hood up from a cool guy on RX7 Club. $75 bucks
I think it was a good deal.

Jeff Jones · 03-03-2010, 12:57 AM

Stock front bumper.

The tape is for ground clearance.

Main support bar in place.

Rene’s at work with the tig.

I wish my welds were this clean.

Main crash bar tucked behind the bumper.

I put my rims on the car to check the clearance.

I didn’t realize how much of the front was missing till
I saw this big gap. It leaves plenty of room for the
V mount setup.

ajcdrift · 03-03-2010, 12:56 PM

Looking awesome, and that's some crazy steering angle!

Andrew Coomes
ajcdrift.com

RX7Turbodrift · 03-05-2010, 12:41 AM

im in awe.

deadpirate · 03-05-2010, 02:08 AM

im in awe of the photobucket bandwidth exceeded marks everywhere

Jeff Jones · 03-05-2010, 02:40 AM

This is for the strut brace. It's time to play with the plasma cutter.

My cuts weren’t perfect so Rene cleaned them up on the lathe.

Now to drill the hole’s on the mill. This thing is cool. You can make a lot of stuff on here.

This is a secret. You’ll see what it’s for soon.

Setting up the A pillar bars of the cage.

Awkward positions in the car are common for roll cage installs.

The hole notcher. Another fun tool.

Both A pillar bars in place.

Floor plate.

Here you can see just how close the A pillar bar is to the frame.

02-27-2010, 02:09 AM	#1
Jeff Jones Registered User Join Date: Aug 2008 Posts: 59	JEFF JONES New RX-7 @ FORMULA D 2010 Formula D 2010 season is just around the corner and I have been given the opportunity to once again rejoin my fellow rotary enthusiasts. Not long ago I decided to leave my always-favored FC3S for a 240 SX to use in competition for Formula D. This was not an ordinary SR-powered S13 but one with a 1JZ transplant. The 2009 season was an exhilarating and a new experience for me but it was time to “Go Big”… This year has already shows better promise as Rotary Works has offered to build my team, Jeff Jones Racing, a monster drift machine to compete in for the 2010 season. We have chosen the FD3S chassis to build up and make custom to our needs. It wasn’t enough to leave the factory 13BREW engine in it to build on so we opted for the maximum cool factor… a Turbo charged 20B engine that we expect will make over 500+ WHP and deliver when put to challenge. Only days into our build, Rene Franco, engineer and fabricator of Rotary Works and founder of RMS (Rene’s Motorsports), began designing a tube-chassis style front end from scratch nonetheless. The purpose of this thread is to share my personal experience in building a car capable of competing against factory-backed cars in the world of pro drifting that is Formula D. This is all possible with the help of my sponsors which include Rotary Works, CX Racing, EBC brakes, Clutch Net, Comp Turbo, K&N, to name a few. With all that being said I have decided to share some pictures of progress and will continue to do so until Rd.1 in Long Beach where I hope to meet some of my supporters and fans. I will be putting out a official press release soon of all my 2010 sponsors. (It always begins with a car on a trailer making its way to a tuner garage) (Pile O parts… Toyota transmission for high horsepower, 20B begging for a rebuild and front sub frame waiting to be hacked and customized) Getting some ideas for the motor placement. Pack it up and call it quits for the night. The next day we got hard at work on removing the sound detaining. With the help of a 20lb block of dry ice it took just one hour to get most of it off. Now it was time to pull out the gas tank and sub frames. This is after the tank and rear suspension was removed. ….. Last edited by Jeff Jones; 02-27-2010 at 02:15 AM.

03-02-2010, 01:19 AM	#15
Jeff Jones Registered User Join Date: Aug 2008 Posts: 59	Rotary-works bought a new 1.5 Kaas lsd for the car. (sweet) No more rockin the welded diff. Old one out!!! Just realized it needs new bearings. So more on that later. Stock junk. New coil overs. Time to slam this suck-a This one made me smile. When this hits the ground, it’ll be tucking for sure.

03-02-2010, 07:57 PM	#19
pete_07 Registered User Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: 818 Posts: 8	lol.. or just make one since u guys got some welding stuff Last edited by pete_07; 03-02-2010 at 07:59 PM.

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02-27-2010, 03:36 AM	#2
Bebop Registered User Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: 951 Posts: 2,599	Wow! Nice to see Jeff Jones getting back to his roots.

02-27-2010, 09:54 AM	#3
Slapshotnerd Registered User Join Date: Jan 2005 Posts: 1,971	Formula D is turning into Rotary Drift!! Congrats, Jeff! can't wait to see the beast

02-27-2010, 08:25 PM	#4
Jeff Jones Registered User Join Date: Aug 2008 Posts: 59	So let the spot welding begin. This is Rene in his predator helmet getting down. Now its time to play with some steering angle. This is a jig I mad to keep the Ackerman the same after we cut and weld. We got the new sub frame in from one of Rene’s old drag cars. The old one was possibly bent so better start out fresh. This is Ascension wire brushing the paint for more spot welds. He has an Ls1 fc that Kelvin used in D1gp Anaheim. His car in d1 Now back to the angle. Clean Chop Weld ….

02-27-2010, 08:26 PM	#5
Jeff Jones Registered User Join Date: Aug 2008 Posts: 59	You can see the simple jig helps keep the every thing lined up. Rotary-Works is primarily a fabrication shop. With a lot of request to cut and weld spindles they will be making a few solid jigs soon. I will be testing them out on my personal cars. This is one set up I will be testing. Others will be just shortening with out the step Rene using the mig welder. Fat bead, ready for install. Other side. Stupid angle. It’s hard to see but Rene also machines rack spacers. Put some rims on for the pic. OK still a hole lot more to do.

02-28-2010, 07:45 AM	#6
Justin Banner Registered User Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: El Monte, CA Posts: 826	Are those spindles cast iron or something else? If it's cast, I thought you had to heat it up, then weld and how are you welding them if not heating them first?

02-28-2010, 10:49 AM	#7
blu808 Registered User Join Date: Sep 2009 Posts: 95	Justin. I sent Jeff a PM about the welding process.

02-28-2010, 08:02 PM	#9
akuma S14 Registered User Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: Shanghai, China Posts: 731	Hey Jeff, best of luck in 2010 man, glad to see you out there holding it down!

02-28-2010, 08:51 PM	#11
CelicaDRIFTER Registered User Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: downey, ca Posts: 181	good to see ya back in a rotary! ha

03-01-2010, 11:11 AM	#13
brainfood Registered User Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: Orange County, CA Posts: 668	Yes this makes me happy. <333 Your front wheels will hit your lower control arm depending on width and offset so try to space them out as much as possible. Our FD at the shop has pretty good angle after a little work.

03-02-2010, 12:41 AM	#14
SilverGhost touge sleepy-eye 180sx Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: CO Posts: 964	Fd3s ftmfw!

03-02-2010, 01:20 AM	#16
Jeff Jones Registered User Join Date: Aug 2008 Posts: 59	I finally went to pick up the cage supplies. I thought my truck would be too small so went with my buds Cressida roof rack. Just when we thought we had a load we saw this. I found the dash bar. Wish I had a dash I tacked in a plat for the main hoop. Got distracted by more spot welds to do. Wish I didn’t shake so much when I take pictures.

03-02-2010, 01:21 AM	#17
Jeff Jones Registered User Join Date: Aug 2008 Posts: 59	Welder at work More plates Ok done for the day.

03-03-2010, 12:56 AM	#20
Jeff Jones Registered User Join Date: Aug 2008 Posts: 59	Finished up the back half of the cage. I like how tight it fits to the car. And that’s the old Sparco ^^^^ seat I use to mock up seat brackets. It was a B&@%$ to get the side skirts’ off. They where molded on. Hammer Chisel and fiberglass, nasty. I made a plate for the tube front end. This is the aluminum bolt on plate. Now that Rotary-Works is ready to design the front end its time to get some body parts. This is a bent fender off of one Rene’s old drag cars. I borrowed this finder from another car. I picked this hood up from a cool guy on RX7 Club. $75 bucks I think it was a good deal.

03-03-2010, 12:57 AM	#21
Jeff Jones Registered User Join Date: Aug 2008 Posts: 59	Stock front bumper. The tape is for ground clearance. Main support bar in place. Rene’s at work with the tig. I wish my welds were this clean. Main crash bar tucked behind the bumper. I put my rims on the car to check the clearance. I didn’t realize how much of the front was missing till I saw this big gap. It leaves plenty of room for the V mount setup.

03-03-2010, 12:56 PM	#22
ajcdrift Registered User Join Date: Mar 2010 Posts: 2	Looking awesome, and that's some crazy steering angle! Andrew Coomes ajcdrift.com

03-05-2010, 12:41 AM	#23
RX7Turbodrift Registered User Join Date: May 2009 Posts: 25	im in awe.

03-05-2010, 02:08 AM	#24
deadpirate Registered User Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: riverfail :( Posts: 274	im in awe of the photobucket bandwidth exceeded marks everywhere

03-05-2010, 02:40 AM	#25
Jeff Jones Registered User Join Date: Aug 2008 Posts: 59	This is for the strut brace. It's time to play with the plasma cutter. My cuts weren’t perfect so Rene cleaned them up on the lathe. Now to drill the hole’s on the mill. This thing is cool. You can make a lot of stuff on here. This is a secret. You’ll see what it’s for soon. Setting up the A pillar bars of the cage. Awkward positions in the car are common for roll cage installs. The hole notcher. Another fun tool. Both A pillar bars in place. Floor plate. Here you can see just how close the A pillar bar is to the frame.