[77 Canamman]

Originally Posted by sdx455

I would join the list , it looks like my air filter base housing is the same . part # 1 in the diagram?

The air filter base interchanges with a '73-'74 F body. It sits lower than the A, B, G body air filter base. It is an expensive part, but necessary to work with the factory made Ram Air parts.

[fiedlerh]

forged steel stroker crank for a Pontiac V-8 for less than $500

I talked to the guys who made it and the tooling was close to $100,000. It's a part many will buy for many years. Similar tooling costs for maybe 100 pcs would end up making the kit closer to $2K.
The RA pan is a fairly large and complex steel stamping. The air cleaner cover appears to be a complex glass-filled nylon molding. The kits still need solenoids the flapper, and a bunch of other hardware.

[sdx455]

ebay lemans header panel hand formed ,fenders were stamped with epoxy molds/dies made off original steel feders . Ferguson Coachbuilding Robinson Illinois

[Brian Baker]

The toughest piece to be made is the lid. The original was injection molded and has many nooks, cranny, and complex angles. I say "toughest" because of all the pieces involved, it would be the most expensive to make.

OK, so we got what...4 commitals? 36 more and I'll start talking with my contacts I last talked with about reproducing it. Here we go again (LOL).

[pontiacjeff]

ya, here we go again! With the modern epoxy resins availabe today and how cheap it can be, I'm thinking the lid needs to be carbon fiber. That way you can paint it black if you want the stock look or leave it au naturale to be cool! hell, the pan coule be carbon fiber, too, for that matter... stronger than steel and doesn't rust!

[77 Canamman]

Really, there is no need for the solenoids and related hardware, since these RA kits would be installed on hobby vehicles that should see little to no inclement weather. The solenoids are available, since they interchange with Trans Am. The seals, pan, and lid are items that need to be manufactured.

[fiedlerh]

Yes, pan and the scoop assembly are the difficult parts. Everything else is fairly easy. Pan looks to be stamped out of 16 gauge sheet steel. Lid looks to be made of the same material as your radiator shroud. A Kirksite stamping die and an aluminum mold made in China would be appropriate for the volume.

BTW, I communicated with the Michigan company that made the original A-body manual trans rubber shifter boots and it appears they would rather starve than do anytihing in low volume.

[pontiacjeff]

Originally Posted by fiedlerh

Yes, pan and the scoop assembly are the difficult parts. Everything else is fairly easy. Pan looks to be stamped out of 16 gauge sheet steel. Lid looks to be made of the same material as your radiator shroud. A Kirksite stamping die and an aluminum mold made in China would be appropriate for the volume.

BTW, I communicated with the Michigan company that made the original A-body manual trans rubber shifter boots and it appears they would rather starve than do anytihing in low volume.

that's what Im talking about! we are brainstorming... i feel it this time!

it should not be hard to find people to repro stuff. one word-Michigan. that's why half that state is empty! I drove through Lansing on the way to/from Boyne Mt. on a ski trip with the fam over new years weekend. That place was a GHOST TOWN! Detroit, too. The South WILL rise again, so I will shop some of this stuff in Atlanta if needed.

[The Boss]

Originally Posted by fiedlerh

A Kirksite stamping die and an aluminum mold made in China would be appropriate for the volume.

Couldn't you just CNC the mold out of billet? Shouldn't be that hard to scan the original & then program it in. My GF's BIL has a metal fabrication company locally and builds all sorts of elaborate assemblies - also have powder coating facilities on site. I can check with him if you want.

[Brian Baker]

Originally Posted by The Boss

Couldn't you just CNC the mold out of billet? Shouldn't be that hard to scan the original & then program it in. My GF's BIL has a metal fabrication company locally and builds all sorts of elaborate assemblies - also have powder coating facilities on site. I can check with him if you want.

I don't think anyone here has as inexpensive an access to a CNC as I do, and let me tell you even then it is not so cheap. The crank snout support I have for sale elsewhere on the board has little profit in it after paying for set-up and cutting time on the machine. I like the idea...a lot...but it would certainly drive up the price of the finished product.

Keep all the ideas coming, but we still need 36 more commitals (LOL).

[fiedlerh]

The ram air pan would have to have a CAD drawing made, and a stamping expert would use it to design a stamping die plus additional tooling for the pierced holes and rolled over edges. It would be a multi-hit process which costs more. Not as easy as it looks, but probably routine for stamping house. Kirksite is an easily machined zinc alloy commonly used for low production run (<1000) dies. The stamping place can advise on what to make the die out of and how many parts you might get out of it.

For the lid, you start with a CAD drawing and then get it quoted. China is the cheapest place to get the mold made, but they may not be attuned to low volume parts.

Sure, shops in Michigan are hungry and some specialize in prototypes and low-volume production runs, but with high labor costs, it ain't gonna be cheap. Wonder if Tom Goad knows if GM originally did them, or if an outside vendor made them. It may even be possible to get the original blueprints out of GM with the right connections.

[gtopaul13]

at great expense i re popped the upper system but carb pan didn.t fit too tall would be interested in r/a system for my 73

[77 Canamman]

Originally Posted by gtopaul13

at great expense i re popped the upper system but carb pan didn.t fit too tall would be interested in r/a system for my 73

It would be too tall if you used the factory issue air cleaner base on the '73 GTO. If you would have used the air cleaner base from a 1973-74 Trans Am or 4 barrel Formula, it would have fit. Do you still have these pieces? Tell us more about who did it, and how much it really cost...

[fiedlerh]

74 GTO air cleaner base would work too.

[pontiacjeff]

Originally Posted by gtopaul13

at great expense i re popped the upper system but carb pan didn.t fit too tall would be interested in r/a system for my 73

YES! YES! Please tell us more about this.

[77 Canamman]

Originally Posted by fiedlerh

74 GTO air cleaner base would work too.

Thanks, Horst. Forgot about that one.

[UPC-WU2]

There was an article showing a '73 Grand Am with SD and Ram Air in Pontiac Enthusiast back in 1999.

http://www.gt-37.org/gallery/main.php?g2_itemId=3561

And NACA hood scoops.

[Brian Baker]

Originally Posted by UPC-WU2

There was an article showing a '73 Grand Am with SD and Ram Air in Pontiac Enthusiast back in 1999.

http://www.gt-37.org/gallery/main.php?g2_itemId=3561

And NACA hood scoops.

That's my buddy Phil Griffith's car. He purchased it from the original owner, Jack Hoffman, prior to that story being published.

[pontiacjeff]

No Grand Am had the NACA/NASA hood? I know mine was flat, but I swear I took one off a grand am...

[pontiacjeff]

No Grand Prixs ever had it either, but one does now!