Author Topic: Bockscar 2.0  (Read 464149 times)

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

Offline wobblywalrus

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 5503
Re: Bockscar 2.0
« Reply #630 on: February 28, 2020, 11:34:31 PM »
The brake on the Triumph has an aluminum housing.  Originally it had anodised aluminum pistons.  The pistons were replaced with stainless steel ones a few years ago.  There are more issues with corrosion and sticking pistons now than before.   

Offline salt27

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 1734
Re: Bockscar 2.0
« Reply #631 on: February 29, 2020, 03:24:27 AM »
Thanks Bo, good info to know.

  Don

Offline wobblywalrus

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 5503
Re: Bockscar 2.0
« Reply #632 on: February 29, 2020, 10:16:50 AM »
It might be 'cause they are dissimilar metals from a galvanic viewpoint.  All oxidation is in the aluminum housing with none on the stainless steel pistons.  The brake is taken apart annually and cleaned.  Any advice on how to prevent this is welcome. 

Offline Stainless1

  • Administrator
  • Hero Member
  • ***
  • Posts: 8948
  • Robert W. P. "Stainless" Steele
Re: Bockscar 2.0
« Reply #633 on: February 29, 2020, 11:06:36 AM »
Well I have not put a magnet on the old pistons yet, they could be stainless... but my guess is hard chrome, our caliper is also aluminum... painted black.  The opposed pistons have dust covers, but there was some salt under the rubber.... but not a lot of aluminum corrosion.  I'm sure over the last 30 years we must of had it apart, but I can't remember when.  It has been rarely used... mostly to hold the rear wheels to torque the rear wheel fasteners.  After the pistons were always pushed back to fully retracted position... where they generally remain. 
So as you mighta noticed in the pictures, the caliper paint was kinda dead... so I took them apart, blasted, primed and painted them... the rebuild kit arrives Monday.
They were the last parts painted in the booth... knocked it apart... stored all the pipe in the rafters... time to start assembly.
Stainless
Red Hat 228.039, 2001, 65ci, Bockscar Lakester #1000 with a little N2O

Offline Stainless1

  • Administrator
  • Hero Member
  • ***
  • Posts: 8948
  • Robert W. P. "Stainless" Steele
Re: Bockscar 2.0
« Reply #634 on: March 03, 2020, 12:08:51 AM »
Assembled the front axle... geese I wish I'd paid attention... put it together with the caster the wrong way...  :x took it apart and did it correctly.  In my defense the parts labeled left are now on the right because the arms come from the opposite direction.  I assembled it on the bench and then took it over to the car... If I can find the hardware for the rear swingarm, then the rear axle is next. 
Actually I need to visit the hardware store so I'll pick up the stuff I need.... OK, not really the hardware store... Wichita Fasteners... and the Yard
Stainless
Red Hat 228.039, 2001, 65ci, Bockscar Lakester #1000 with a little N2O

Offline Stainless1

  • Administrator
  • Hero Member
  • ***
  • Posts: 8948
  • Robert W. P. "Stainless" Steele
Re: Bockscar 2.0
« Reply #635 on: March 09, 2020, 12:21:54 AM »
Well I put the rear axle in, then noodled the chain (and eventually belt) tensioner.  I had several frame mount ideas... that I didn't like... back to playing with mounting it on the swing arm. 
So I pulled the rear axle back out... it will be on the bottom, so you see it flipped over.  It is currently eyeballed... measurements tomorrow maybe.... if I still like it, then tacked, so I can put it back on and really make sure this is how I want to do it. 
While typing, I've already thought about changes...  :?
The washers spread the mount brackets a little to give me a little adjustment for belt sprockets.  I am not as space constrained for a belt with this setup compared to the old one.  Not planning belt this year.... still plenty to do, I'll run the chain. 
Stainless
Red Hat 228.039, 2001, 65ci, Bockscar Lakester #1000 with a little N2O

Offline Stainless1

  • Administrator
  • Hero Member
  • ***
  • Posts: 8948
  • Robert W. P. "Stainless" Steele
Re: Bockscar 2.0
« Reply #636 on: March 14, 2020, 06:08:13 PM »
Well none of that worked... :x and the next 2 ideas were cut off as well... good thing I was only tacking.  The problem is how close the chain runs to the arm when tensioned.  So I am back to the frame mount... the closer to the engine the better it seems to be. 
Located where I want it, I think, close to the motor... so I grabbed the old tensioner drilled a new hole and it became a better thinking piece
 :cheers:
Stainless
Red Hat 228.039, 2001, 65ci, Bockscar Lakester #1000 with a little N2O

Offline Lemming Motors

  • Sr. Member
  • ****
  • Posts: 588
Re: Bockscar 2.0
« Reply #637 on: March 14, 2020, 06:17:32 PM »
In pic 3: I think those fibre board blocks might smoke a bit !   :-D
A Bonneville Lakester please barman.
Certainly sir; a lick of salt, a sip of gas and a twist of Lemming. More Lemming sir?
Just a squeeze.

A Squeeze of Lemming it is sir.

Offline Rex Schimmer

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 2625
  • Only time and money prevent completion!
Re: Bockscar 2.0
« Reply #638 on: March 15, 2020, 01:11:10 PM »
Might be a good idea to put some sort of rub block on the swing arm where the chain goes over it. We have all seen slo-mo videos of what a chain does when running under load and it can be pretty wild.

Great progress, really looking forward to seeing you guys at the salt!!

Rex
Rex

Not much matters and the rest doesn't matter at all.

Offline mc2032

  • Full Member
  • ***
  • Posts: 158
  • Reliability and performance are highly overrated.
Re: Bockscar 2.0
« Reply #639 on: March 15, 2020, 02:10:30 PM »
Bob should be in the air headed down under about now, might even be there.  Anyway we talked about some sort of slider material top and bottom of the swing arm.  I got to observe the chain run, motor functions and fuel pressure from the side of the car during dyno pulls and yes the chain does have a certain amount of whip at speed.  The sprockets shown are about as little as will be ran so clearance just gets better with bigger gears.  Going to belt drive will change this a bit but hopefully it can be made interchangeable.
#1032 1350 A, APS-PBG & F, #1000 I/BFL.  My number is 241.273.

Offline Stainless1

  • Administrator
  • Hero Member
  • ***
  • Posts: 8948
  • Robert W. P. "Stainless" Steele
Re: Bockscar 2.0
« Reply #640 on: April 07, 2020, 12:30:35 AM »
Well I'm back from my adventure down under... we self isolated on the Great Ocean Road... wow what a great way to spend a couple of weeks when you can't race. 
So version 5, 6, or 7 of the chain/belt tensioner have come and gone... but I think I have one started that might work.... it is tacked in place and I will see if it is going to stay. 
To take my mind off of that, I have been aligning the axles and think I finally have that.  I fought repeatability for a couple of days till this morning, then I figured out my issue, the Laser was not sitting flat every time..... so I switched lasers. 
So I am taking comments on my procedure... First I measured to get everything to what I thought was close to in line.  I use a C channel to average the sides of the car... and shoot the laser from the axle, perpendicular down the side of the car.  Then make it the same on both sides and the rear axle should be straight. Of course this required me to first make a .030 shim, and then remake it to a .020 shim.  The thread on the adjusters was to course to get it measuring closer than an 1/8.   Then I remeasured the front to rear, it was within a line width on the tape.  Used that info to be sure the front axle was then centered in the car.  Moved the laser to the front and shot back to the rear.  The left was outside, right was 5/8 inside... making them the same was about a flat n a half shortening the 2 left 4 bar links.  Yep I remeasured the lengths between the axles... still looked the same. 
pic 1... set up to measure lengths and rough square
pic 2... bad laser
pic 3... good laser aligning back
pic 4 aligning front
Stainless
Red Hat 228.039, 2001, 65ci, Bockscar Lakester #1000 with a little N2O

Offline floydjer

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 4242
  • "There is no duck side of the moon..."
Re: Bockscar 2.0
« Reply #641 on: April 07, 2020, 04:37:35 PM »
Good to see you made it back . Carry on.
I`d never advocate drugs,alcohol,violence or insanity to anyone...But they work for me.

Offline Rex Schimmer

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 2625
  • Only time and money prevent completion!
Re: Bockscar 2.0
« Reply #642 on: April 07, 2020, 07:34:10 PM »
Stainless,
Great to see you back from what sounds like a great trip, even without racing.

My alignment "dance" is to lay a centerline on the floor using a piece of tight string, black heavy fishing string is my preference.  We have a point at the front of the car and one at the rear that we know are on the centerline so we plumb bob to the floor so that we can stretch the center line string. As the car is pretty long and the points are about 160 inches apart the string comes out damn close to the centerline. (Plan to use a laser next time) I then get the axles square to a reference spot on the chassis, and make the wheel base on both sides the same. I then drop a plumb bob from each axle center line to the floor, measure from that point to the center line and adjust until axles are centered. I remark the axles ends position using a plumb bob and then measure the diagonal between the front right and left rear and right rear and left front. I adjust to the wheel base to get the diagonal dimensions within 1/16 and the wheel base side to side the same. At that point I am happy. Not a real "high tech" method but I figure if the diagonals and the side to side wheel bases are withint 1/16 it's square and it'll go straight.

Rex

Rex

Not much matters and the rest doesn't matter at all.

Offline ggl205

  • Sr. Member
  • ****
  • Posts: 956
  • G/FL 218.282 since 1995. G/FL record since 1993.
Re: Bockscar 2.0
« Reply #643 on: April 07, 2020, 08:21:54 PM »
Rex, that?s how I have always done it. Cheap, easy and very accurate.

John

Offline Stainless1

  • Administrator
  • Hero Member
  • ***
  • Posts: 8948
  • Robert W. P. "Stainless" Steele
Re: Bockscar 2.0
« Reply #644 on: April 07, 2020, 10:14:40 PM »
We used the string for years... til lasers were cheap and available.  Years ago, I set it up with string, then checked it with the laser.  The laser said we were close... the problem with the square car is the sides are not perfectly straight... the long extrusion does a great job of straightening the side of the car... much like the bodywork.  So my thought was the rear axles should be the same distance from the sides of the front of the car... as most know, our front track is considerably wider than our rear.  The same idea for the front axle, shoot perpendicular back to the rear... that should make both axles square in the car... Front wheel alignment is fixed.... except for toe... need it on the ground with wheels and tires for that...
Diversion over... back to chain/belt tension.... sometimes the simplest idea works the best...
All I need to do is come up with that idea  :cheers:
Stainless
Red Hat 228.039, 2001, 65ci, Bockscar Lakester #1000 with a little N2O