☆☆☆ '97M- Warbird ☆☆☆

[Greasemonkey2000]

10-03-16:Got around to the soft top latches but unfortunately the ones I had bought to use were not nearly as good of shape as mine. Also I was going to get them 'soda' blasted but my friend's dad that was going to do it was afraid it would damage the moving parts. So I guess it will be the 'old fashioned' way for me!

Here are the Warbird's oem latches after 19 years of use they are still in great shape and the locking mechanism is still in good shape, which apparently is a common wear point.


I am going to a separate 'how to' on disassembling and the 'process' but the short of it is you remove the latch and locking mechanism in my case since I bought a custom stainless steel lock to prevent premature failure. Then you sand them down(I used a 5'' orbital sander w/ 220 and a dremel tool with wire wheel for tight spots).

Depending on what finish you want will determine what grit(s) you use. Obviously the more of a polish finish you want the finer the grit and some sort of polishing compound will be needed. I just used a red scotch brite after the 220 to obtain the desired 'brushed' finish.

Here are some comparison pics of the OEM soft top lock, mine is still in good shape and locks fine, and the new custom stainless steel lock.





You can see the wear on the OEM lock but you will also notice that the custom ss lock has a catch that goes all the way across the lock instead of just a raised portion in the center like the OEM lock.

Here are the soft top latches after being sanded, etc and ready to be assembled...


....and after being assembled(used Honda Shin Etsu grease for all pivot points)...


...and a before and after of the soft top latches....






From start to finish it took a little over 2.5hrs and the only cost, technically, was the custom ss locks! A big shot out to smy003 for the inspiration for this project! Here is a link to the 'how to':
http://mazdaroadster.net/showthread....665#post200665

[Demon I Am]

I need a set or 2 of those latch clasps!

[smy0003]

Hey! Nice work!
I'm a little honoured to have inspired a detail on such an epic car!

Sent from my LG-H815 using Tapatalk

[Greasemonkey2000]

@Demon I Am: They are really neat but unless yours are wore they are just 'bling'. I did it to prevent the issue....and 'bling'.

@smy003: You are too kind sir! Again thank you! I didn't realize the soft top latches were aluminum but had thought about doing this and getting them powder coated clear, which I may still do. Will be doing the striker plates next and replacing the hardware for them both with stainless steel or aluminum hardware.



Also if your soft top latches stick and or don't operate smoothly then try cleaning them and using a silicone based grease, like shin etsu, Warbird's operates 'smooth as butter' now.

[Greasemonkey2000]

10-14-16: I Have been working on Warbird the past few days, not much though, due to a issue the exhaust developed a month or two back. When cold, half to full throttle and between 3-4k rpm's the exhaust had a nasty 'farty four cylinder sound' that I was almost positive was an exhaust leak.

Well I suspected it was the exhaust tips as they are just held on with stepped lap band clamps. I ordered a new set and the noise persisted. I then emailed Abe w/ ARTech Fabrication that made the exhaust and he said it was probably the tips because he highly doubted a odd resonance developing. Abe suggested trying some high temperature rtv silicone in between the clamp were it meets. I did but the noise persisted.

Then the other day(10-12-16) I got the 'bright idea' to just remove the exhaust tips and see if the sound was still there. I did that and while it sounded cool with all that bass and echo, the 'farty sound' persisted but could hardly be heard now due to all that bass/echo effect. In all honesty it gave me a headache after just 15 minutes of driving around.

That was when I decided to just go ahead and remove the three vband clamps to inspect and realign if necessary. Of course this sounds easy enough but due to the rear Warhorse diffuser and Flyin Miata butterfly brace adds time to the process. Once I got Warbird on jack stands and removed the vbands, I quickly noticed that the rear vband for the midpipe to muffler connection had much more soot on the inside, soot on the bottom of the bolt and it looked like the vband flanges were not flush.

I went ahead and cleaned the inside of the vband clamps to make identifying any possible future exhaust leaks easier. I also removed the ARTech 2.5'' catalytic converter(w/ 200 cell Magnaflow core) to measure the overall length(ended up being about 16.5'') for Abe as I decided to give a resonated test pipe(Abe will use a 2.5" 4''x14'' Magnaflow muffler/resonator) a try for more burble, pops and the occasional fire ball.

Getting the large 5''x11''x22'' Magnaflow muffler and midpipe lined up to where the flanges were flush was a little try but this is due to issues that Abe didn't have to deal with when he built it, such as the 949 Racing rear subframe brace and diffuser. Of course at this point the Warhorse diffuser was remove but I had to put if back up to verify clearances.

In the midst of this process I realized that the 949 Racing rear subframe brace wasn't tight against the rear subframe and found the driver side bolt had stripped once again after already rethreading the bolt once. Also with the muffler and midpipe having their proper flange alignment it was now causing the vband to be closer to the 949 Racing rear subframe brace, so more grinding on it will be necessary for clearance.

That brings us up to today when I decided to work some more on Warbird. First I went and picked up some hardware for the soft top latches and striker plates. I also picked up new M8x15mm(1.25 thread pitch) bolts and tap for the 949 Racing rear subframe brace.

I figured I could buy a deep socket and grind it down to fit into the hole of the 949 Racing rear subframe brace so went to Harbor Freight and picker a set of metric deep sockets, 3'' 5/8'' arbor wire wheel cup and their drill master 4.5" angle grinders were on sale again for $10 so picked up a new one to replace my current one when it goes out.

The gentleman at the hardware store also pointed out that the bolts on the rear subframe brace were bent so hopefully the new 10.9 grade bolts won't do the same. I spent at least 30 minutes grinding down the 13mm deep socket to get it to fit into the hole, only to barely go thru the socket. Went ahead and tried to use it and sure enough it twisted and broke.

Next I cut off most of the old bolts and used drill bits to drill them out but once I drilled the old bolt out the head still remained and no amount of pounding made a difference. I reluctantly decided to use JB weld and longer bolts(since the head of the old bolt remained) for the brace. I REALLY don't like this route as I was going to drill the old ones out, re-tap the brace and thread the new bolts it but that just didn't work out. I used the nuts and spacer to ensure the bolt was centered and as flush as possible against the brace, while the JB weld cures.

The new hardware for the soft top latches and striker plates were shiny, so I took a red scotch brite pad to the heads for more of a brushed/machined finish that I love so much. Here are some of the bolts as purchased vs the refinished ones:


The recently refinished oem soft top latches w/ oem hardware....


....and with the new refinished hardware....

...not a huge difference visually but the details matter.


The next thing was the striker plates, here they are in all their oem 'glory'....

....after working 'my magic' with the 4.5" angle grinder w/ 3'' wire wheel cup and then the red scotch brite pad....

.....you might notice small amounts of remaining paint in the corners and I will take care of them tomorrow once I get some more wire wheel attatchments for the dremel tool.

Of course some before and after comparison pics.....










Last but not least, I had to take the 3'' wire wheel cup to the 949 Racing rear subframe brace and windshield wiper(s) since I guess my clear coat didn't hold up to well, so they will go get powder coated clear Monday.


Will only re-install the one windshield wiper again but no reason not to do them both now.

[oldgrayleather]

Dang Chad - this is truly inspired. Such fantastic details!! I know it's been asked by let us know if they get unbearably hot. Imagine the only real issue would be putting the top back up after driving around top down in the blazing sun.

[HarryB]

Wow. Just wow. You know my thing on details, and I kept looking your photos on IG again and again! Simply amazing!

[Greasemonkey2000]

Dang Chad - this is truly inspired. Such fantastic details!! I know it's been asked by let us know if they get unbearably hot. Imagine the only real issue would be putting the top back up after driving around top down in the blazing sun.

Thanks Pete! I have already noticed they do get hotter, which is no surprise but no third degree burns yet.

Wow. Just wow. You know my thing on details, and I kept looking your photos on IG again and again! Simply amazing!

Really appreciate it Harry! I didn't think I'd like IG but using mostly for Warbird is nice since obviously others may appreciate what is done. Thanks again!


I had someone inquire about doing a set of windshield wipers for them, so I am thinking about doing that for others if they are interested...maybe even soft top latches/strikers. I enjoy doing it, doubt many will be interested.

To any moderator's reading this not trying to advertise but if some rule clarification or information on becoming a forum sponsor can be passed my way that would be appreciated!

[OnePaintedMan]

Sooooooooooo much inspiration in this thread! Loving those roof latches in particular!

[Greasemonkey2000]

@OnePaintedMan: Thank you so much, Drew! I keep waiting for my 'original idea/modification', like that amazing dash of yours, but still just borrowing/expanding on inspiration from others. I have said it before but I really feel like Warbird is a 'community build' because so much inspiration has been drawn from others.

I truly appreciate the support, ideas and inspiration the miata community has provided and can only hope I can give something back!

[MLambert19]

Brush silver ALL the THINGS!

all-the-things-blank-clean-template-cropped.jpg

In all seriousness, I really like the uniformity and cohesiveness (redundant compliment?). Keep up the good work!

[Greasemonkey2000]

@MLambert19: Thanks Matt! I truly appreciate the kind words!

[Greasemonkey2000]

10-20-16: Went and picked up the 949 Racing rear subframe brace and wiper arms from the powder coater.


Unfortunately something the powder coated failed to mention that certain metals will discolor when powder coated clear depending on how it was prepped.

So the wiper arms have a slight tan/yellow tint but it is hard to see in a pic, here is a close up comparison of the 949 Racing rear subframe brace(no discoloration) vs. a wiper arm....

....honestly even in person it is barely noticeable.

Put everything back together and unfortunately my exhaust leak persisted but it is DEFINATELY the rear vband as on start up, a droplet of moisture gathered on the bottom on the vband clamp. I'm no pretty sure the vband metal o-ring is bad.

[Greasemonkey2000]

10-24-16: Decided to 'upgrade' the Zoom Engineering center console with my previously used Audi TT shift boot, I think it looks better....







....I tried to use the Audi TT shift ring as well but to no surprise the bolt holes on the console didn't line up with the shift ring. No going to lie the fitment of the Zoom Engineering center console is disappointing and has me thinking about doing my own custom one. It sure it gorgeous though.

I also took another look at my exhaust and sure enough the rear vband(midpipe to muffler connection) metal o-ring was messed up and am sure the source of the leak. I also decided to notch the power plant frame since I noticed that Abe's Miata that he built the exhaust on had the PPF notched.

If my memory serves me right, Abe said the midpipe cleared the PPF brace because I asked about clearance after initially seeing the pics but I didn't notice his PPF was notched until last night when looking at the pictures. I guess I thought it was a shadow or lighting but it is pretty clear that the PPF was notched.

So I went ahead and notched further, as I had already done so previously to prevent possible contact. I'm not 100% this was necessary but I thought maybe the exhaust was misaligned. Will have to get another metal o-ring for the rear vband to fix the exhaust leak but seeing if my resonated test pipe will come in this week so Warbird is still on jack stands till I hear from Abe.

[NCGreasemonkey]

Nice.

And once you go black shift boot...

Hey, my beloved is Noir!