mrvette
Phantom of the Opera
I happened in to DC to spot this very old thread, from before our times there yet, like '05.......well Steve/Merlin showed up today of all days....
seems he has moved to Tampa....
I had talked back channel to him way back when this was being built....
If anyone cares to, I"d like to see him join here....
Pat don't like my poly ticks, so I"m on permanband there.....and can't get in touch with Steve....
#40
Merlin522
DC Crew
Posts: 1
Member #90383
Joined: Aug 2009
Location: Tampa, FL
MY CORVETTE PHOTOS
MY CORVETTE VIDEOS
Boy, it is HILARIOUS to read some of these posts - like I sold the car because I couldn't fit in it. Or that it only made 500HP and had a 5 speed and stock rear end. HELLO! LOL...
Seriously - do people REALLY believe everything they read? For this reason I decided to join here and start rebuilding a site dedicated to my way out of control project and start putting together all the pictures and videos for others to enjoy. The REAL story of the project, not what people think or heard or surmised.
Merlin was my first real car project. There were as many failures as there were successes but like any project - software or otherwise, it takes persistence and technology always marches on. It’s hard to believe I started the project over 10 years ago now but at the time, there were no Chip Fooses. I was lambasted by many for even considering putting fancy big rims on an older car. Like many things with this car, it was as much out of necessity as it was styling. Big brakes won’t fit on an old corvette with 15” rims – and neither will big tires. There were no options but to go big. I also wanted a car that could handle and the geometry and tread designs in 1974 were caveman compared to what we have now.
For those that don’t think Merlin had the ability to turn in huge numbers and be drivable, go look at what is out there now. My puny Mustang 281 3V is producing close to 700HP on a bone stock block. It idles in blazing Florida summer heat and never fails to run perfectly. I’m even considering upgrading to this madness:
Compound boost! Hellion recorded over 1,000 RWHP on a bone stock Cobra block. How is this possible on the street? The same things I was trying to do 10 years ago. Boost and computers. Now with methanol injection kits you can run unreal numbers on the street – more than I could have done back then.
So why was it so hard to believe Merlin was capable of well over 1,000HP? Everything in the engine was forged (despite what you might read). If a puny 281 ci Mustang engine can produce 1,200 crank HP – do people REALLY believe that a completely built 522 with 2 superchargers capable of 50 psi would not be able to surpass that? Much of what you read is based on the first and only dyno run we did – and the car wasn’t even tuned yet. Yes, it ran 500HP – at idle! LOL.
It is for this reason I have decided to go on a quest to feel proud of the project again – and possibly try to buy the car back one day to show what this thing can really do. At the time after 9/11 and after spending absurd amounts of money that could have gone to better uses, I was tired of the project and getting ripped off by the shops I trusted to do the work so I came to my senses and moved on. I also was really shocked to see how Corvette people treated me. After all, I had numerous other far more expensive foreign cars at the time. I was doing this to show what an American car could really do. My original budget was $70,000 for the car – as much as a Viper I was considering buying at the time. I chose a Corvette because I’ve always thought it was the coolest, sexiest car around. Then all the ricers started talking smack about Skylines and Supras – it really shocked me that when I put the smack back down – most of the grief I got was from American Corvette C3 owners!
Look, I know this isn’t for everyone. People look at it and say it’s a wide body – when in fact it is a bone stock 74 body with some lowers and an 80’ front spoiler kit. We had no choice but to glass on some fender extensions on the back to be legal. 345’s at the time were the largest street tire you could buy (that handle worth a darn) and you simply can’t drive a car on the street that has tires sticking out 5 inches. Yes it has a wing but it is about the most subtle wing you could buy back then. It certainly isn’t one of those gaudy boy racer jobs you see on Mitsubishi’s running around town. My plan was to take it to the salt flats and the lessons I learned from my 360 are – aerodynamics under the car are WAY more critical than what you put on top.
I tried VERY hard to keep the car as stock as possible. With as much money as I spent, don’t you think I could have built a pro-street 8 second car? That’s been done and doesn’t interest me. I wanted to do something new and different – and keep it as original as possible. Given the power there were mods that simply had to be made but even as radical as the car looks, it’s a long way from being legal at any track. Take a close look at the pictures when I get them up there and you’ll see detail like a 250 HP speedo silkscreened to the stock 85 MPH unit. The purist fail to see detail like that and understand my true intention with the car – which was not to offend but bring the incredibly sexy shark look into the next century and make a car that didn’t look like every other green piece of junk on the road these days. This was my black barchetta – and I’m still really proud of it. You have to remember, I started building that car years before the new Mustang, Camaro and Roadrunner retro-racers were on showroom floors. As bad as the new ZR1 is, I still like the looks of the old stingray better and wish GM would build a retro Vette too.
Now years later, I’m eager to revisit it and take it to the next level possibly. Granted money isn’t free any more as it was in the go go late 90’s but we all do what we can to survive and try to have some fun on the side. I doubt I would ever do such crazy project again but never say never. If money becomes free again one day, who knows.
I was referred to DigitalCorvettes by someone over at another forum that will remain unnamed because he said everyone over here was cool and there was generally no flaming of those who like to break the envelope. So far, I’ve really enjoyed the things I’ve read. Even the detractors made their points in a civil way here so I’m happy to be a member of your community. Thanks for having me and feel free to ask any questions you may have – I’ll do my best to give you the inside scoop! I should have videos and pics posted sometime this weekend. If anyone has content, please send it to me – I’ll be happy to post. I’ve set up a big bandwidth server for this endeavor.
Steve
seems he has moved to Tampa....
I had talked back channel to him way back when this was being built....
If anyone cares to, I"d like to see him join here....
Pat don't like my poly ticks, so I"m on permanband there.....and can't get in touch with Steve....
#40
Merlin522
DC Crew
Posts: 1
Member #90383
Joined: Aug 2009
Location: Tampa, FL
MY CORVETTE PHOTOS
MY CORVETTE VIDEOS
Boy, it is HILARIOUS to read some of these posts - like I sold the car because I couldn't fit in it. Or that it only made 500HP and had a 5 speed and stock rear end. HELLO! LOL...
Seriously - do people REALLY believe everything they read? For this reason I decided to join here and start rebuilding a site dedicated to my way out of control project and start putting together all the pictures and videos for others to enjoy. The REAL story of the project, not what people think or heard or surmised.
Merlin was my first real car project. There were as many failures as there were successes but like any project - software or otherwise, it takes persistence and technology always marches on. It’s hard to believe I started the project over 10 years ago now but at the time, there were no Chip Fooses. I was lambasted by many for even considering putting fancy big rims on an older car. Like many things with this car, it was as much out of necessity as it was styling. Big brakes won’t fit on an old corvette with 15” rims – and neither will big tires. There were no options but to go big. I also wanted a car that could handle and the geometry and tread designs in 1974 were caveman compared to what we have now.
For those that don’t think Merlin had the ability to turn in huge numbers and be drivable, go look at what is out there now. My puny Mustang 281 3V is producing close to 700HP on a bone stock block. It idles in blazing Florida summer heat and never fails to run perfectly. I’m even considering upgrading to this madness:
Compound boost! Hellion recorded over 1,000 RWHP on a bone stock Cobra block. How is this possible on the street? The same things I was trying to do 10 years ago. Boost and computers. Now with methanol injection kits you can run unreal numbers on the street – more than I could have done back then.
So why was it so hard to believe Merlin was capable of well over 1,000HP? Everything in the engine was forged (despite what you might read). If a puny 281 ci Mustang engine can produce 1,200 crank HP – do people REALLY believe that a completely built 522 with 2 superchargers capable of 50 psi would not be able to surpass that? Much of what you read is based on the first and only dyno run we did – and the car wasn’t even tuned yet. Yes, it ran 500HP – at idle! LOL.
It is for this reason I have decided to go on a quest to feel proud of the project again – and possibly try to buy the car back one day to show what this thing can really do. At the time after 9/11 and after spending absurd amounts of money that could have gone to better uses, I was tired of the project and getting ripped off by the shops I trusted to do the work so I came to my senses and moved on. I also was really shocked to see how Corvette people treated me. After all, I had numerous other far more expensive foreign cars at the time. I was doing this to show what an American car could really do. My original budget was $70,000 for the car – as much as a Viper I was considering buying at the time. I chose a Corvette because I’ve always thought it was the coolest, sexiest car around. Then all the ricers started talking smack about Skylines and Supras – it really shocked me that when I put the smack back down – most of the grief I got was from American Corvette C3 owners!
Look, I know this isn’t for everyone. People look at it and say it’s a wide body – when in fact it is a bone stock 74 body with some lowers and an 80’ front spoiler kit. We had no choice but to glass on some fender extensions on the back to be legal. 345’s at the time were the largest street tire you could buy (that handle worth a darn) and you simply can’t drive a car on the street that has tires sticking out 5 inches. Yes it has a wing but it is about the most subtle wing you could buy back then. It certainly isn’t one of those gaudy boy racer jobs you see on Mitsubishi’s running around town. My plan was to take it to the salt flats and the lessons I learned from my 360 are – aerodynamics under the car are WAY more critical than what you put on top.
I tried VERY hard to keep the car as stock as possible. With as much money as I spent, don’t you think I could have built a pro-street 8 second car? That’s been done and doesn’t interest me. I wanted to do something new and different – and keep it as original as possible. Given the power there were mods that simply had to be made but even as radical as the car looks, it’s a long way from being legal at any track. Take a close look at the pictures when I get them up there and you’ll see detail like a 250 HP speedo silkscreened to the stock 85 MPH unit. The purist fail to see detail like that and understand my true intention with the car – which was not to offend but bring the incredibly sexy shark look into the next century and make a car that didn’t look like every other green piece of junk on the road these days. This was my black barchetta – and I’m still really proud of it. You have to remember, I started building that car years before the new Mustang, Camaro and Roadrunner retro-racers were on showroom floors. As bad as the new ZR1 is, I still like the looks of the old stingray better and wish GM would build a retro Vette too.
Now years later, I’m eager to revisit it and take it to the next level possibly. Granted money isn’t free any more as it was in the go go late 90’s but we all do what we can to survive and try to have some fun on the side. I doubt I would ever do such crazy project again but never say never. If money becomes free again one day, who knows.
I was referred to DigitalCorvettes by someone over at another forum that will remain unnamed because he said everyone over here was cool and there was generally no flaming of those who like to break the envelope. So far, I’ve really enjoyed the things I’ve read. Even the detractors made their points in a civil way here so I’m happy to be a member of your community. Thanks for having me and feel free to ask any questions you may have – I’ll do my best to give you the inside scoop! I should have videos and pics posted sometime this weekend. If anyone has content, please send it to me – I’ll be happy to post. I’ve set up a big bandwidth server for this endeavor.
Steve
