Installed pics

Any questions feel free to ask away.
Thanks
Jonnie

S14 piece in the future?

-Dan

Did it help to stiffen the front end of your 'vert mestizo?

At the moment they are just painted, but I believe that powder coating may be offered later. That just depends on getting a good powder coating place and deal on the price. As for an S14 brace, Jon has made some prototypes but the people he has sent them to for test fitment have yet to install them. So until they install the braces we will not know for sure.

Quote, originally posted by repo man »

Did it help to stiffen the front end of your 'vert mestizo?

I don't have a vert, mine is a coupe. But to answer your question it stiffened the front end of my car considerably. I had to relearn my car after I put it on. Funny thing is the whole car feels more stable and even got quieter while driving or going over bumps/railroad tracks.

-Dan

PS, your NSX is bbbbbbbeautiful

Oh hell, I guess it would help if I looked a little closer to your pic. With the darkness and my blindness it looked like a 'vert with the top up. I may have to order two when the ol' checking account gets reloaded.

Yes as soon as we get word that fitment is good then I am sure Jon will start selling them. Thanks for the compliment on my NSX, not many people understand what look I was going for, basically I wanted it to look like a JGTC NSX rolling on the streets.

Quote, originally posted by repo man »

Oh hell, I guess it would help if I looked a little closer to your pic. With the darkness and my blindness it looked like a 'vert with the top up. I may have to order two when the ol' checking account gets reloaded.

LOL no problem, and when you get some spare cash just give Jon an email he will be more than happy to get back to you. Great thing is Jon is like most of us are, and that is hard working people who want to pay decent prices on good quality parts. Hence why these bars are priced the way they are. Not to mention they are awesome quality.

Thanks all
Take care
Jonnie

Jon is out of town this weekend. He is sending one brace to Greg and the other I am not sure of.

Evan

When someone takes the time to do a good job on something that's never going to be seen, and is gonna spend its life UNDER the front of a car, it tells me they've done their homework.

I think this is gonna be a nice alternative to the (overpriced) NISMO power brace.

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Quote, originally posted by a_ahmed »

i wonder if there are any further ways to improve chassis/front end rigidity... Awesome work, looks really nice

Check out the other item here ni the Fabricators' Marketplace!

Between Jason and Jonnie, you can really stiffen up the front of an S13!!!

That thing is STOUT, and it looks kickass.... Once you get it in there, you can see how floppy and flexible the front braces are without this piece.

Add a set of Suspension Techniques tension rod bushings (or some SPL tension rods) and you're SET!

Have you had a chance to drive on it yet Greg? I know the first time I backed out of my driveway i could feel a difference. Turn in is way better and there is a lot less chassis flex/wieght transfer now.

I got to see Greg's bar this week unistalled and the quality is great, I can't wait to get one of my own! Looking forward to an S14 piece!

-Dan

it's a 1 piece rigid design, more to my liking but I guess this is a nice economical alternative as well. Good job.

it's these kind of unreliable claims that makes me wary

like I said, it is better than stock and cheaper than a nismo powerbrace but you can't make these irresponsible claims

Thank you DJ, that is what I was trying to convey.

Irresponsible ehh? LOL! You can believe or think what you want about Jon's brace, I have personal experince with it. As well as several others who also can vouch for the quality and the fact that it does exactly what it was designed for. In my "opinion" it is stiffer than a Nismo and as a matter of "fact" it is cheaper. So I am sorry but in my world stiffer and cheaper is the winner.

You could do the same for the crossbar mounting plate on the inner sides of the tension rod mount. Hell you could take the bolts out after that....

Still cheaper than the nismo brace.

My only concern is the weight difference between the nismo brace and stock mounts with this brace kit installed. And is that difference worth the extra 60 to 80 bucks if the nismo brace is lighter?

I can go on this all day but it's not fair to Johnny Fratz so I'll stop here. I won't be reading your response because I will be lured to respond.

Exactly! Just weld it and your good. As for the weight of the bolt on version I can get some specs for you on Jon's brace as well as the Nismo since Jon has a Nismo brace.

Quote, originally posted by Loveless »

Your opinions of it being stiffer has no solid evident behind it. If you at least measure the diameter between the two than you can probably begin to say something. Right now. You're conveying a biased opinion which is why I said it was an irresponsible claim. I can go on this all day but it's not fair to Johnny Fratz so I'll stop here. I won't be reading your response because I will be lured to respond.

Ok Im not trying to argue, but you seemed to start things off on a bad note with me.

If you want to go tit for tat we can. Your claims of Jon's brace not being more solid or "stiffer" are also "irresponsible" as you put it. That is if we go by your "biased" opinion. Considering you have no factual evidence of the Nismo bar being sitffer or more rigid than Jon's.

I am glad you can go all day like this... however I cannot. I was stating my opinion, which to me is a fact. Jon does great work and his brace's are top quality. I am here to vouch for him and not argue about which one is better as it is a moot point. Whatever is best for you is what you should buy.

Thanks
Jonnie

Even if it DID matter, which it doesn't, your paint weighs more than either one of them.

Lots of people CLAIM to care about weight reduction, but they're the same people with heavy wheels, audio components, extra wiring, electric windows (or windows at all), sunroof, full interior.

Regardless, even if it is 10 lbs heavier (which it isn't, it's actually within a pound), it's still below the centerline of the axles, which means it's fairly irrelevant.

Guys, remember to look at this for what it is: An inexpensive fix for a terribly weak part of your suspension.

Quote, originally posted by AZhitman »

Regardless, even if it is 10 lbs heavier (which it isn't, it's actually within a pound), it's still below the centerline of the axles, which means it's fairly irrelevant. Guys, remember to look at this for what it is: An inexpensive fix for a terribly weak part of your suspension.

Hell, if it's within a pound of the nismo brace I'd say it's an inexpensive fix for a terribly weak part of your suspension that meets or exceeds my expectations...

And by weak, I mean you can flex the factory tension arms BY HAND.

HAHA Greg, I know that feeling all too well, This looks like a quality part and it is deffinatly something I will be picking up for my street car, when I'm not pissing away money on the race car...

-Dan

Quote, originally posted by Dano »

Send me an S14 piece when they're done and i'll be happy to write up a full review on it! -Dan

Dan,

I would love to...The problem is that the S14 brace is a PITA to install. The right way to do it would be to take off the existing brackets and drill one hole in each for the bolt on.

Here is a pic of the prototype bolted into my jig.

The thing is crazy stiff, but even a little more work to install than the Nismo.