Why NO More Strangers Allowed in My Shop!!

...We All love to See the Projects, Club Members, and Others are Working On! Here is an Example of what can be Achieved when a Machinist Challenges HIMSELF to 'Pull it Off'!

First, a 'short' story...The title of this thread pertains to an incident that happened a few years back, when Marlin was at the Point of Construction, seen in the following pictures.
'One day while the shop door was opened; a school friend of My Son, happened to come in and see the Frame You are now looking at. The young boy was impressed and asked if he could bring his uncle over that afternoon to see the Project for himself. Fine, I said, Bring him over. Late that afternoon the boy and his uncle show up at My front door, and we are introduced, and I lead them into the '2-Car Garage' Machine Shop. He admires the work that went into the spaceframe and is impressed by the Accuracy and Precision, But! He insists in a 'demanding tone', "NO, You DID NOT Cut the Tubes Yourself!! 'It' was a Kit!!", I tried, pointlessly to convince him, "Yes! I did Cut each and every tube, Myself! They started from 20 Foot lengths, the Most tubes I cut and welded into the Frame, in One Day, was 14!" "Your looking at over 3 Years of 'Intermittent' Work!" "NO, he replied! It was a 'Kit'!". Well folks, I threw those two 'Clowns' out of My Shop, So Fast onto their Asses; their heads are still dizzy!! UNinvited Guests, Never Again!!

Here are the 'perameters' I set up for Myself before I cut the very first Part. The only tools I used were:
1. Variable Speed Sawsall 'Millwalkie' The Best there is!
2. Hole Saws, 2.0", 1.75", 1.5", 1.0" To match the Tubing Diameters.
3. A 4" Vise to hold the Tubing while I 'Hole Sawed' through the Side using a 4. 1/2" Drillmotor, Hand-Held and the Vise wasn't even Bolted down to a Bench!! I would hold the vise with tube, in my left hand while I ran the drillmotor and Holesaw in My Right! Eventually I did Mount that Vise Down!
5. A 120 Volt Mig Welder, Barely Capable but I was able to Produce a Fine Bead with Good Penetration (TWSS).
6. Various Precision Measuring Instrumants.
7. Over a Dozen Models of the 'Lamborghini Countach' in Scales from 1:24, 1:18, with the Largest a RC Model in 1:12 Scale. This proved to be the most accurate and therefore, was used as the 'Master Gage'. Along with Hundreds of Drawings, Scetches, Diagrams, Blueprints found in Books(But NO Dimentions); I had a Dozen Books on the Countach, Dozens of Magazine Articles, Now Unobtainable! 100's of Photos(most taken by Me, up 'close and personal', whenever I had a chance to find a Countach, in the 'Real'. From ALL of this information; I drew-up My own 'Blueprints'! How did I know the 'Dimentions' that were never revealed? There were two ways. One was to just take a measurement on the 1/12 scale model and Multiply that by 12 to get the Dimention! That was Checked with other Models. Second, Is A technique known as 'Deductive Resoning'(Measuring)! For example; In any Photogragh, Drawing, Scetch etc. We Know the Countach Wheels are 15.0" in Diameter!(with respect to the 'Bead seat'), So anyother part compared and equal to the Wheel must be 15 Inches. Ofcorse', All is Triple Checked with the Models.
8. 24" 'Trammel Points' These Resemble Twin 'Divider' Points, Adjustable on a Long Straight Bar. I personally Chose to use them to Compare/Check Exacting Measurements from One Side of the Frame, to the Other. Where, if One were to use a 'Numbered' Measureing Device; there is a Huge Chance for Error.

Parameters that I set for Myself, that Had to Be followed 'to the Letter'!:
1. Build the Frame BETTER than Ferrucial Lamborghinis' Entire Team!
I only have to build ONE! I was the Only person that ever worked on this Project. I built it as a 'Model' only this Model was to be in the Scale of 1:1; so I could get in it and Drive!!
2. Add the Tubes that Lamborghini LEFT OUT! Mostly in Very Critical Positions such as the 'Roll-Bar' Rear Support tubes. And Many Many Others. And add a Complete, INTIGRATED 'Roll-Cage'; capable of Supporting the Machine, On it's Roof, in a 200 MPH Skid!
So that after a Severe Crash the Driver and Passenger could 'Unstrap', kick the Windshield Out, Craw Out Unscathed, Point and Laugh!!
3. All tubing NO Thinner than .095" with the 'Main Twin Spars' and outer 'Rocker Tubes' at .120".
4. Add 'Special' Designed Modificatons, such as the Overhead Console and the Triangular Shaped 'Twin' Reserve Fuel Tanks (3 Gallons Each), that Slipped into the Side Pods, under the Doors. The were to be in Addition to the Two Main Tanks. Only One Reserve Tank was ever welded up, in Steel.
5. Modifications in Design to allow for the use of a Fuel Injected Jaguar V-12 Engine adapted to a ZF -2 Transaxle. Yes, the rear axle centerline had to be moved rearward 4.0". The Plan was to Install Twin Turbos to Produce 1000+ HP.
6. 'Still' keep the entire assembly lightweight! Feruchio was once quoted, "Weight Is the Enemy!". What You see in the Photos weighs Only 750 Lbs. Believe it Or Not!! The Steel is 1018 Mild Steel DOM (Drawn Over Mandrel) Because it is Easy to Weld, Relatively Inexpensive, and will Bend Before It Breaks. Where 'Chrome-Moly' is None of the Above and will 'Snap', not Bend. Last I heard, 'it' was not allowed by Most Racing Sanctioning Bodies, just for that Unsafe reason.

Now to the 'Present Day'...
The Photos You are looking at were taken 20 Years Ago as My Son Tristan, seen in One, was Two Years Old at the time. Now Tristan is 22. The project, that I had Named 'Massive OverKill' was worked upon, Intermittenly, for some 4 Years. I had a Family I wished to spend More Time with and 'MO' took All the Focus and Concentration I could Muster at the time. I missed, or was late to a Lot of Dinners!
I was at the point where All of the Suspension Pivit Points Were welded-In OR Bored through the Tube and Sleeves Welded in, For the Upper/Lower 'Lateral-Links' Front and Rear; Trailing Links F/R, and All Shock Mounts, Two Shocks in Front, 4 Shocks in the Rear. As well as Mounts for the Huge Sway Bars; Engine Plate Mounts and Front Engine Mounts, All Completed! All Link Tubes used 3/4" Heim Joints with the Smallest, 5/8".
I was working on the Body Mounting System; and preparing to Carve the Wooden 'Hammer-Forms'(A Huge Project in Itself), to 'Slap-Hammer' the Profiles of the Dead-Soft Aluminum Body,...When I purchased the Pantera!! A Machine I could Drive Right Now!!

'Massive Overkill' was Abandoned and Sold to a Gentleman Member of the 'Lamborghini Club of San Francisco', In 2002. Don't ask the Price! It would Break Your Heart, It Broke Mine! I 'Gave it Away' and figure I made Less Than $4.00 an Hour Building the thing!

Now, as far as Precision!!?
I Measured and Cut, and Hole Sawed, with the Finist of Discipline! Each and every tube was Measured Three times, Cut and then 'Ground to Fit', No lESS than Two Tubes were ever created at any one time! One For each side of the Car! This Gauranteed that Both Sides WILL BE EQUAL! If the Tube was done Wrong, It was done again! Most tubes were Lightly Hammered into posistion with a Pleasing 'Snap', and then Welded. I worked to a Tolerance of No Greater than Plus or Minus .030"; the Smallest Discernible by the Naked Eye. OR, NO Greater than the Width of a 'PencilPoint'(Used for Marking the Measurements) OR, the Thickness of the Sawsall Blade!

When the Buyer came to inspect the Frame...He had been trying to build his own Countach and had already aquired some Genuine Lamborghini Parts; The Complete Steering Column, and The Trapazoidal Shaped HatchCover to the Front Nose Compartment, The Bonnet. He Brought them with him and he tried the Bonnet on the Nose where I had Framed in that Section, to see just how well it Fit. We were Both 'Shock-Awed'!!, The Fit was Absolutely Perfect! The Length, Width, Most Importantly, the Angle of the Sides and the Angle at the Lip of the Nose; All exact!

Enjoy the Pictures and see what can be Attained when 'You want It Bad Enough'!...