Front end 355/360 (under bumper) skid plates...

For my customers I fabricate 1/4" thick, black Delrin pads. I attach them with 4 countersunk 3/16" screws, and fill the voids caused by wear on the original pads with black RTV sealant. As the pad is a teflon like material it takes scuffing quite well and is black so the scuffs do not show. First set went on 7 years ago and is still in good shape.
Dave

 

Check out this thread - directly on point:

http://www.ferrarichat.com/discus/messages/251280/249256.html

vty,

--Dennis

 

Where can I purchase the skid plates discussed in that thread?

 

My suggestion for material is UHMW polyethylene, used throughout the racing industry for this application. Cheaper than Jabrock (which I like better).


From the archives here. Posted on Wednesday, January 15, 2003 - 8:47 am:

Make yourself for $40, save $100.

Skid plates. You can make them yourself. McMaster Carr industrial supply. Take a piece of cardboard to make a template of the surface that rubs the ground. You can also use thick material and install in recessed areas under the spoiler. Drill and countersink #10-32 allen head screws to attach to your spoiler. Use nylocks and fender washers on the back to spread the load. This stuff cuts easily with a sabre saw.

Copied and pasted from here: http://www.mcmaster.com/

Part Number 8752K215 $19.81 Each

Polyethylene Material
Ultra-High Molecular Weight Polyethylene (UHMW)

Form
Sheets

Length x Width
12" x 24"

Select to change value 12" x 12" 12" x 36" 24" x 24" 24" x 36" 24" x 48"

Thickness
.5"

Thickness Tolerance
±.063"

Length Tolerance
+.063"

Width Tolerance
+.063"

Opaque
White

Lowest Operating Temperature
Below +45° F

Highest Operating Temperature
Above +100° F

Operating Temperature Range
-22° to +180° F

Performance Characteristic
Wash-Down Applications

Tensile Strength
6300 psi

Impact Strength
Unbreakable by notched Izod test.

Specifications Met
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Compliant

Hardness
Shore D: 67


Best regards,

Rob Schermerhorn

 

I agree, I made UHMW skidpads for my 360--tough as nails, haven't cracked. The material is easy to work with--cuts well, drills well, etc. Should be an easy do it yourself install assuming you have a jig saw and drill.

 

There's a guy at 713 682-0370 that's making them in nylon, stainless, or titanium, I believe.

Look great, on the car!

 

I had aluminum skid plates put on my 360 Spider and have already seen it do it's work. I bought it from Pinnacle Motorsports and I know of at least six other folks who are very happy with them along with a few more 355 owners. They come in polished aluminum, carbon composite, and titanium. Not sure on availability. Give them a call. They are located in Houston, TX. I could post pictures if you like.

Pinnacle Motorsports can be reached at the number Speedy308 just posted.

Cheers

 

Are the 360 skidplates curved for an exact fit? The problem with the set I purchased was that they were flat, and didn't fit well. Ended up making partial molds of the front bumper using an epoxy based clay, then I clamped and screwed the plates to these molds and baked them in the oven (which my wife loved). Fortunately, UHMW material does OK with this. Still, the fit is not perfect, and I have a new 360 on order that I would like to have more perfect plates for. Any photos you could post would be great.

 

Do a search for the vendor named above. They have pics of installed plates.

 

They fit perfectly on my 360.

No need to do this do it yourself way. The machinist doing the work is AJ Foyt's cousin or something, who also did machine work for AJ's racing efforts. Excellent quality and money back guaranteed for life if I'm not mistaken. Do yourself a favor and call Pinnacle Motorsports.

My wife drives the 360 in hilly San Francisco so trust me when I tell you these things work and work well.

Cheers

 

If you're lazy (and very mechanically challenged) like me, and want the skidplates for the 355, they are $125 from Independent Ferrari Service (outside of Boston). 508 238-4224. John Tirrell runs the shop and is a good friend of mine. Tell him you heard about the plates here. These are the ones made out of the high-lubricity aircraft-grade nylon, with the beveled edge to prevent the plate from catching and grabbing and cracking the front bumper. Easy to install; just need a power screwdriver/drill and 3 minutes of your time.

vty,

--Dennis

 

OK-- I know I'm a moron, but I can't find any pictures on the Pinnacle Motorsports site, nor in a search of F-Chat.

Help?

 

A word of caution on the nylon. They don't look nearly as good. When they scrape they have this thread looking things rubbing off and/or hanging down. That's why Pinnacle decided to go with carbon composites. Even these, he couldn't sell. He is thinking of dumping it altogether and only selling what people want: aluminum and maybe titanium. Every nylon customer I asked had complaints.

A motorcycle buddy of mine compared the nylon to those scrape mushroom fairing savers on motorcycles. Once they get scratched they look like crap. So time for another pair. Either that or go gotta get down there and sand the things down. Cheaper is not always better.

I'll resize some pictures I took of the plates installed pre lower valance paint so you can see where the skid plates are in relation to the scrapes. They are set back a bit and beveled so that the edge won't catch and rip your spoiler off. They may seem like they are too far back but they are not. Just picture the driveway angle and you'll see why the skid plate will catch it. It has saved me from one scrape (mentioned it in the Texas section when a bunch of my friends and I went to Galveston on a drive) and has saved my wife from two already (into the driveway at work and into a gas station while she was still getting accustomed to the height of the car).

Oh, and I'm sure you've noticed but the 360 has scraped the front while at speed and hitting a dip on the road. Also remedies this sort of high speed scrape. Obviously nothing can save a spoiler if hitting a speed bump at speed, but you know what I mean.

Cheers

 

Thanks, and I will look forward to the photos. I did bevel mine, and place them relatively far back, and so far they are the only thing that has scraped. With the UHMW plastic, I haven't had an issue with "threads" but I know what you mean. I have no attachment to this material other than 1) it is black, so it blends in, 2) it was easy to machine and shaped myself, and 3) back when I did this I didn't know of Pinnacle--I would much rather have purchased a set do eveything I did.

Thanks--Scott

 

Hey Scott,

Attached you will see two pictures. 1 from an underside view and the second more eye level. If you were to see it standing up you would barely notice them. I know of a guy in town who painted his black (had to order a set of non polished ones) and whenever he scraped he'd gets under there and touch it up. Not worth it. One can barely see unless you see the car coming right at you from a bit of distance.

Cheers

P.S. Notice again I'm attaching pics pre spoiler paint so you see where the damage is and where the plates are relative to the scrapes.

 

Wish I had some better pics. I'll send you a PM.

Cheers

 

I know I should have posted this some time ago (I have only just updated the website) but we do the 355 & 360 skid plates in Titanium and Aluminium. The Titanium ones are usually made to order but sometimes have spare sets on the shelf. The 355 Skid plates we manufacture are flat and fit onto the area under the bumper. The 360 Skid plate is curved to fit the profile of the underneath of the 360 bumper.

The pictures show the renderings of the 355 & 360 Skid plates.

Hope this helps

Paul

www.hill-engineering.co.uk

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Teak,

please PM me with the 360 skid plate info also.

TIA,

N

 

Very nice! Will certainly keep in mind.

Regards.

 

please send PM ordering information for the 360 skip plates.


Thanks