Just had a read of your update , glad to hear you didn,t give up your build, but I know where you are coming from
at times during my build I,ve ran into a brick wall on working things out
but the help & support of the forum has always helped solve any build problems I had .
Just a thought..... RD sell 2 lengths of rack extensions for the MKII Escort rack, make sure you order the correct ones , the extensions from Saturn are the correct length for the Roadster, thats not a "plug" for Saturn, its just that RD sell for various car / dimensions etc, I can check the length later this morning if that helps to confirm the ones you,ll need
The Tig sounds interesting
keep at it, as someone once said to me .." If it was easy, everyone would build one ", just keep the thought of the day you drive it when completed, a great achievement indeed.
all the best
Andy