New Guy wanting answers from experts

Agwagon · #1 (**permalink**) 08-31-2007, 06:21 PM

Looking at all the kits and wanting to build soon. Which glass body takes the least work to fininsh? I dont want to spend months prepping a body. I am used to fiberglass in the RC aircraft industry that is "flawless" and gelcoated. Is there any kits out there that do that? I see some building sites that describe a whole lot of work to get a body ready to paint. I can't believe this industry puts out that poor quality!

double ugly · #2 (**permalink**) 08-31-2007, 06:39 PM

Trust me, if you want a body that's perfect from the mfr. you are paying for it. To buy a kit for that reason alone doesn't make too much sense. Some are better than others for sure and I can't help you there. Do you intend to do the paint yourself?
John

mr bruce · #3 (**permalink**) 08-31-2007, 06:42 PM

Antique+Collectable ,out of Buffalo New York, ABSOLUTELY THE BEST BODY in the bissiness. No reason in this day that ANY Cobra company should sell you a body that has to be "repaired" before you use it.

Agwagon · #4 (**permalink**) 08-31-2007, 06:44 PM

Yep, Lots of body people in the family. I just looked at the "hurricane " website ( didn't know they existed ) looks like a nice body but the frame seems weak.

berzerko · #5 (**permalink**) 08-31-2007, 07:01 PM

I am currently building a hurricane and my thought was the same as yours from the pics the frame looks weak when i saw one in person it changed my mind
the body on my car is far from perfect but is much better out of the gate then a ffr body. to start with the mold seams are on more of the flats plus the shape of the body is alot nicer( I have not seen the new ffr bodys)

A&C makes the best out of the mold body in the bussiness

As for the strength of the hurricane frame what are you going to use it for you could find tons of threads on this site where people debate endlessly about mine is stonger then yours
IMHO JBL motors makes the tuffest frame in the bussiness but are you really going to push the car to that limit?

Bobby

Agwagon · #6 (**permalink**) 08-31-2007, 07:23 PM

No I want to make a luxury street car out of it. While I know the interior is supposed to be "spartan" I want to do a really nice interior as if it were a new BMW. I know thats not what it is supposed to be but oh well. I was looking to see if somone out there makes a body that is almost ready to prime and paint.

berzerko · #7 (**permalink**) 08-31-2007, 07:31 PM

for the biggest bang for your buck seriously look at the hurricane
FFR just came out with a all new package but it is still over $3000 more then hms

mr bruce · #8 (**permalink**) 08-31-2007, 07:37 PM

New Cobra

Agwagon · #9 (**permalink**) 08-31-2007, 08:07 PM

Thanks, that looks what I am talking about. Sweet!

mr bruce · #10 (**permalink**) 08-31-2007, 08:11 PM

http://www.imagestation.com/album/pi...95964314&idx=3, good 'glass work is possible

scott h · #11 (**permalink**) 08-31-2007, 08:44 PM

check out uniquemotorcars, my painter was very impressed with the fiberlgass and gel coat. remember that any fiberglass body will require prep. my car came with such a nice black gelcoat it almost didn't need painting. when i was shopping A&C said their cars don't need painting. if you want an average looking finish this may be true.

Dwight · #12 (**permalink**) 08-31-2007, 09:01 PM

I have seen several different Cobra bodies in the raw and Shell Valley is the best. It reguires the lest amount of time to prep for paint. I would say they are 80 to 85 % ready for paint.
Coach Mike has a stroked Keith Craft 428 in his Hurricane. The frame is not weak!!!! 601 flywheel HorsePower and 619 foot Pounds of Torque. You do not have to worry about their frame.

Dwight

Agwagon · #13 (**permalink**) 09-02-2007, 02:36 PM

Is there anyone out in Oregon who I can call? I would really like to ride in one to see if I fit ( I'm tall ) Most people I talk to say I don't want one, because they are noisy, hot, ride rough, etc. You're better of with a Mazda or a BMW

Whatcha Think?

Silverback51 · #14 (**permalink**) 09-02-2007, 07:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Agwagon

Is there anyone out in Oregon who I can call? I would really like to ride in one to see if I fit ( I'm tall ) Most people I talk to say I don't want one, because they are noisy, hot, ride rough, etc. You're better of with a Mazda or a BMW

Whatcha Think?

Just had mine a week now, and yes, it's noisy, hot, rides rough, scares people, and is faster than he11.

I love it.

Three Peaks · #15 (**permalink**) 09-02-2007, 09:04 PM

Lots of us in the Portland area belong to the Cascade Cobras club. We have meetings once a month and you can come down and see what is available. If the weather is good, you'll get so see several different makes and talk to the owners, probably sit in them too.
The next meeting is Sep 8, at 9:00 AM at Grand Prix Imports in Wilsonville. Come on down. No A&C Cobras that I am aware of.

If you want a body that doesn't need prep (or paint, for that matter) have you considered a Kirkham?

Bob

olddog · #16 (**permalink**) 09-02-2007, 09:57 PM

A&C will sell you a gel coat with color in it, so you do not need to paint it. As mentioned, it will not be a show car quality finish, but a decent finish that is very good at taking a stone chip, with color deep down.

My A&C the previous owner had painted black. I do not know for sure how much work was put into the body before painting. I suspect just enough to get the paint to stick. The paint is sharp looking, but not show car perfect quality. When the light is right an certain angles you can see some places where the body looks like it has a small dent. Another color an you might not see it, as the light has to be right. So although A&C may be the best, it is not flawless, if you are looking for that level of perfection.

GlynMeek · #17 (**permalink**) 09-02-2007, 10:16 PM

"Most people I talk to say I don't want one, because they are noisy, hot, ride rough, etc. You're better of with a Mazda or a BMW"

Most people are a) VERY conservative b) VERY stupid c) VERY boring and d) have absolutely NO SOUL. A Mazda or BMW...dear god, please say it isn't so!!!!!!

My only words of advice are...

IGNORE COMPLETELY WHAT 'MOST PEOPLE' SAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Glyn

Lowell W · #18 (**permalink**) 09-03-2007, 06:59 AM

Quote:

Most people I talk to say I don't want one, because they are noisy, hot, ride rough, etc. You're better off with a Mazda or a BMW

MOST people ARE better off with a Mazda or a BMW. You could have a Mazda or a Beemer for your only car, but except for Hal Copple, nobody has a Cobra for a daily driver. As has mentioned above, a Cobra is rough, noisy, smelly, dangerous, cramped and hot. You can't turn it over to a valet to park, and you probably wouldn't want to drive it to "The Club". If you live in a neighborhood (I don't), you probably can't go out early and come home late without annoying your neighbors. But... for many of us, it's the ultimate automobile. A lot of guys build or buy a Cobra and then decide it's just too much to deal with: too extreme. So they drive it a few thousand miles over a couple of years and then put it up for sale. Others of us have been absolutely in love with this car ever since we were kids and accept the the primitive nature and lack of amenities (and poor gas mileage and high insurance premiums) as part of owning a Cobra. I drive my car about 5,000 miles each year between April and December and I love it. When I can't drive it, I sometimes go out and sit in it and enjoy a drink and a cigar.

Ride in a few Cobras, hang around some of the club meetings, hitch a ride to some of the Cobra events and see what you think. You may decide a ride in a Cobra now and then is all you need-or want.

BTW, I'm 6'6" tall and about 220# and I can drive my Cobra for a couple of hours in relative comfort.

Lowell

fsstnotch · #19 (**permalink**) 09-03-2007, 07:40 AM

I was choosing between shell valley and hurricane before I chose hurricane. I was told that shell valley bodies are great! In some cases the painter actually quoted less because it WAS a shell valley body.

Josh

vettestr · #20 (**permalink**) 09-03-2007, 09:28 AM

The intended use of your car color your choices in terms of suspension and final ride quality. Our cars are based on the Corvette chassis and can like all cars be set up as soft and cushy (sp?) as you want. The belief (" a Cobra is rough, noisy, smelly, dangerous, cramped and hot.") is only because of the set up.
Most folks choose spring rates, shock valving with sway bar diameters that would be happy in a off chamber sweeping turn for an exit speed of a zillion and 3 MPH. In truth many first time car owners or cars less than a couple years old never see a track.
You all know any car can be set up to rival your favorite recliner in terms of soft too even a sloppy ride. It is the anti Cobra image of what history has created. With a full under car exhaust (add dummy side pipes to keep the look) and you would have to check the tach. to confirm she was running. We use seats with adjustable lumbar and tilt already so and the bigger cockpit with an auto tranny so even the 3rd peddle goes away. Add air conditioning, remote start feature, door poppers with a tilt steering column you have the Anti-Cobra or a rolling sofa.