Rollcage - bolt in or weld in?

[mk1nova_rich]

I have a Safety Devices 6 point cage which I was planning to fit to my Nova sometime this century lol just waiting
til my seat rail kits arrive so I can get all the welding done at once (I won't be doing it)

This is the type with inverted L-shaped brackets on the front hoops to fit over the sills, and flat plates to fit the rear
arches and floorpan by the B-pillars.

Been thinking about it today and I reckon it would be easier to weld the rollcage in rather than bolting it, as it removes
the hassle of lining up all the bolt holes in the spreader plates with the holes in the cage feet...and there would be
quite a bit of work to do at the front drilling holes in the sills for captive nuts to fit in etc...

So surely this would just be a case of welding the spreader plates in then assembling the cage in place, tacking the feet
as I line the cage up and bolt it together then welding it in place?!?!

Am I likely to encounter any problems doing it this way? I'm aware it makes the cage a bit more 'permanent' but this
is not an issue - the shell will be used until its dead lol

[Iain]

Yeah I believe thats how mine was done (Safety Devices 6pt)

Weld in spreader plates using suitable thickness metal, then assemble the cage in the car and weld the feet to the spreader plates.

[mk1nova_rich]

Yep was going to get some 3/4mm steel and cut and bend the plates ready for fitting. Cheers for the quick reply :thumb:

[Iain]

Found a couple of pics here from when Tom Reid welded my cage in: http://www.pngclub.com/forum/showpost.php?p=904726&postcount=154

[mk1nova_rich]

Sound, although your front hoops are different to mine...mine comes through the dash and sit on top of the sills

[SR-Rally]

Make sure you weld a fair size flat plate striaght to the floor and then weld your L shaped plate for centre hoop feet.

[Steve0011]

i bolted mine, however mine is an SD 14 point and it would cost well over £800 to replace. You may use the shell until its dead but the cage would go into another shell.

edited to say that i was glad i had bolted it in as i would'nt have been able to get the dash out when i changed the loom, just a thought :)

[mk1nova_rich]

Cheers for the input lads.... Steve - mine is the type that goes through the dash, so the cage goes in first then the dash is cut along the rear edge until it bolts in place over the front hoops :)

[Steve0011]

nice :)

[mk1nova_rich]

And regarding re-using the cage if the shell is ready to scrap... I can simply cut round the spreader plates and take the cage out and weld it straight into another shell once the spreader plates have been cleaned up :thumb: