I am looking for a good comfortable cage for my FD...it has a Kirk cage in it now, but I cannot use the dead pedal, and have to drive with my head cocked to the right, both of which are becoming very uncomfortable. I am only 5'8", so I kinda think that this cage sucks....I want something NASA and SCCA legal...I am looking at Autopower, but don't want to get it and still have the same problem. I would greatly appreciate any feedback I could get from someone with a cage installed in their FD....thanks.

 

Talk to some circle-track or other racers in your area and find the names of some reputable custom cage builders. You may well find that you can get a custom cage for the same or better price than a bolt-in that will fit you and the car better. That was my experience in NC.

 

that seems to be the consensus...thanks

 

Since you're in CA, don't talk to any oval racers at all. When it comes to oval cages, they're awesome, but they usually don't know two ***** about roadracing cages. Yes, there is a difference. Go to an open track, or better yet, an SCCA/NASA race and look at some cages. If you see some you like (pretty welds, stout tubing, etc.) ask the owner of the car who did the cage. If it's anything like here, you'll hear a few names multiple times... and those are the guys you want to contact.

FWIW, you won't find a "comfortable" cage in a box... it has to be custom. So, don't plan on spending $800 for this... IMHO you'll need to budget at least $1500, probably closer to $2000 for something roadrace legal. If you're just after a minimalist cage, you might be able to have it done by a reputable shop for as little as $1000.

 

Did you buy a Kirk bolt in cage, or did you take your car to his shop and have him build a custom weld in cage? Bolt in cages are really poor, because they are prefab bolt in units. They do not offer the protection nor stiffness of custom weld in cages.

Do you have a real race seat in your car? Have you thought about moving the seat over a little closer to the tunnel?

 

I can build you a cage, i did rotary powers drift car FD cage and tons of porsche road race car cages....my shop is in anaheim

www.techtrixmotorsports.com

 

Not sure if mine would be legal for road use or not....but it is a 6 point Kirk cage with removable door bars for daily use. The front legs are bolt in....so 5 bolts, and about 10 minutes later, you could remove the front legs and have a more comfortable daily if that's what you are going for.

Just figured I'd throw it out there in case anyone was shopping.....looking to get $550 plus shipping for it. It is painted Black and fits my FD perfectly.

 

What NASA and SCCA classes are you running / planning to run your FD in?

 

Here is a well built cage in a Subie:

http://www.914club.com/bbs2/index.ph...T&f=2&t=21817&

It is not 100% perfect, but it is pretty darn close

 

I put the wrong link above; please ignore it. Someone with moderator or adminstrator privileges please deglete my above post.

Here is the right link for a well built Subie cage: http://www.rally.subaru.com/rally/se...rt=1&imageId=0

 

I will add my .02 to this topic. Basic cage design is the same for Road Course and Circle track. There is a main hoop, rear supports, a-pillars, and some type of door bars. You will need to find a shop that does both and has a current GCR or NASA rule book. That will give a little piece of mind that they at least have the rules to follow for both. Ask to see pics of cages they have done and or see some customer cars they have done. Check it out like you would if you were buying a car. If the shop complains about you inquiries, go someplace else.

You can gain a little head room in the halo if you remove the head liner. It is an inherent problem of not enough head room in most cars with the long a pillars and narrow roofs. It is better for head to be touching the bar than being 2 inches away being whipped into it during a wreck, it hurst either way. Remember, roll cages are meant to be rolled, and the driver wearing appropriate safety gear, one reason why factories don't install in production cars.

Your best best is to remove the factory seat and sliders, remove some padding and mount the seat directly to the floor. You lose adjustability, but you gain precious head room.

 

Wow thats high to me. But I am a TIG Welder for Heli-tech. So it's just the cost of the Polished Stainless steel. SCCA Rules tell you where the braces should be and where the tech guy’s check the thickness of the tube hole to see if it is .90 thick. I made mine so you can bolt it in 5 sections and to the rear struts . I’m 6’ 3” and yes I have room with a helmet on with this roll cage. Coast $85 per 20’ Tube .90 thick, of Polished Stainless steel, and $45 of Argon gas and a tube bender. And the hole day making it right. bolt it in 5 sections so you can put it in your next car. I build everything that way.

 

The last I heard was Stainless is not legal for cages. 1020, 4130 is acceptable!

 

Basic cage design, sure it's all the same. But a basic cage is what you buy in a box, not what you walk into a store and buy. There are TONS of tricks up the circle track guys' sleeves, and TONS in roadracers, and they're not all the same, and very few of them are obvious. Ever wonder why a stock-frame car is up on a jack on one side when they put a cage in? Think about it for a while and get back to me.

Now you know why the guys that bring oval cars to the roadcourse with no modification always run slower than the one Opel GT in the region or the Fiat that has only finished 2 races in the last 5 years.

 

[I][FONT=Arial Narrow]"Ever wonder why a stock-frame car is up on a jack on one side when they put a cage in? Think about it for a while and get back to me."[/

What are you talking about? I think you are confusing me! Jack a car up on one side on jack stands while welding a cage in? That must be some Texas brand of cage building I did not learn while I was buidling NASCAR and Craftsman Truck series cages and frames. All of our stuff was done on chassis jigs to keep everything square and level.

Some people think you can pre load a chassis while building a cage to help with suspension loading, but the springs even everything out, so it is redundant.

Everytime I see a Circle track car come in to our local Road Courses, they kick *** if they do some minor suspension set up to work both ways. Let me see, 600 plus horse, 11" slicks, purpose built chassis. You do the math!

Cages are all based off the same priciple, support tubes are a little different to follow the guide lines set by the sanctioning body. Keep the chassis rigid, driver safe in an accident and the chassis square so the suspension can work. More tubes are not always better!

Cages must be thought out and planned, compression points must be figured out, support tubes must be well thought out and implemented. Door bars must work under loads and compression while still giving the driver room for protection under crush situations. Cages should flow and make sense when you look at them, not having tubes end somewhere on a bar with no support. They must work 360 degrees. The proper material must be used, Not using Polished Stainless for a cage, Stainless can be brittle, fracture during an impact.

Kits are usually over designed with heavier material for liability purposes. They always do not fit that well. A custom cage from a shop with experiance is well worth the money, even if they charge more than me. It can save your life, "how much is that worth?"

Everyone has an opinion, weigh what you here, and make your own decision about your cage.

 

Just for fun, check out http://www.cscracing.com
I'm a circle track guy and will be welding one of their kits in my 85 se.
I'd suggest checking the rules of the association you plan to race with. Some require seamless tubing, some don't. Most low cost cages (like the one I'm getting) are not seamless. Also, I believe that the suggested .90 thickness tubing I saw in this tread might be a bit thick for your needs. I'm quite sure "SCCA racing V8 RX7" didn't use tubing with walls that are nearly an inch thick... I believe that the standard roll cage tube thickness is .095".
Whatever you do, please have a blast... there's nothing better than racing cars!