Mid- Engine Modified Sports

[salt27]

Neil,
What a good idea [fire detector].
Thats what makes Landracing.com so useful, all of these ideas coming togeather to help everyone be safer and go faster.

Thanks,
           Don

[Glen]

Many of the streamliner bikes and cars as well as others have automatic fire control as well as manual. Both of the Vesco liners have warning lights for the driver. They have been around for a long time and several types are available. It's always a good idea to have an early warning system. Sam Wheeler has a spring loaded air cylinder with a poly flo hose that melts and if the system loses air pressure it deploys the chute and fires the on board fire system. Check out the cars and bikes at SW.

[manta22]

A little more progress-- I'm still waiting for a 2 9/16" hole saw that I ordered so I haven't installed my oil pressure, water & oil temperature gauges in the instrument panel yet but I did get a few more indicators in. In the meantime I made a little aluminum panel for all my Panel- mounted switches and circuit breakers. The circuit breakers that I'm using are made by Airpax and look like toggle switches. In fact, they are made to be used as switches with a built- in circuit breaker action. More neat aerospace surplus stuff.

The round buttor is a pushbutton switch for the starter, next is the main power switch with a switchguard so I can simply bat at it with my gloved hand to shut off all electrical power, the other toggle switch is for the ignition.

I have two 80 amp auto- reset breakers that I'll mount elsewhere. One big breaker will be in series with each relay- switched 12V power buss.

Regards, Neil  Tucson, AZ

[javajoe79]

I've been making a bit of progress on my BG/MS buildup. The R & P is mounted and the steering column is now in place. Here is some detail of how I've cross- bolted my Borgeson and Apex u- joints in the steering (the bolts fit into reamed holes but they're not fully tightened yet). I'll have a steering wheel quick- release on the end of the column tubing.

 

Are the bolts on the apex joint titanium? Looks like some that I bought a bag of on ebay. Do the rules require cross bolting? If so I missed that. From what I am used to in road racing, those eventually egg out, so welding is preferred. I'm not questioning your method, I have also seen that elsewhere on this site.

[javajoe79]

I read on and saw in another post that they are TI. Gotta love that surplus. Ebay is full of that stuff.

[manta22]

JavaJoe;

Yes, they are titanium. I don't think there's any rule requiring cross- bolting but it is just good practice. Cross- bolting spreads the shear load over twice the area, reducing the stress and making a redundant connection (if one fails you still have another one). Welding opens another can of worms; the heat kills the needle bearings in this type of u- joint.

Regards, Neil  Tucson, AZ

[manta22]

I'll post a few photos of how I riveted my aluminum instrument panel to two u- channel stiffeners. These are 1/8" AVEX rivets (see http://www.crawfordproducts.com/avex.htm) used in a non- structural application. AVEX rivets are much better than hardware- store POP rivets since they retain most of their steel mandrel within the body of the rivet. This increases their shear strength and since this rivet design causes the end of the aluminum body to fold over the end of the mandrel, it helps retain the mandrel under vibration. They are no substitute for CherryMAX rivets by any means but they are good and far cheaper than CherryMAX rivets. Another advantage is their wide grip range.

The instrument panel has a random finish obtained with an orbital sander. Then after cleaning the panel I gave it a thin coat of zinc chromate primer.

Regards, Neil  Tucson, AZ

[javajoe79]

 Yeah I take them apart when I weld them, or use a heat blocking goop. I like your fab work and use of trick fasteners. Just my style.

[manta22]

List;

Here are a couple of pictures of my finished instrument panel. It’s not wired yet, of course and the body is still removed. The panel is mounted on three vibration mounts to protect the instruments. The front view is the driver's- eye view and the rear shows how it is mounted.

Regards, Neil   Tucson, AZ

[Roadsters.com]

My B/GMS is still under construction...based on a Manta Mirage but modified to increase the chassis strength and stiffness...front & rear suspension are new fabrications...stressed panels on the chassis...full roll cage...Donovan 383 driving a Porsche G50 transaxle...

Guess I wasn't paying attention because I missed this thread until now. This is a very neat project. And would I ever like to drive it!

Humpy Wheeler owns a Mirage, or at least he used to. His uses the usual Corvair transaxle, so it has to be shifted gently. One nice touch on his car was brushed aluminum sheets covering the rocker panels beneath the doors, making it look that much more like the McLaren it was inspired by.

Here's the Wikipedia entry for the Mirage:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manta_Mirage

There are a few videos of them on YouTube, but most are poorly done. This one provides a decent look at a mild street version:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KkpjOkuTbnA&feature=related

Don't ever grow up. From what I've witnessed, it's no fun.

Dave Mann
(602) 233-8400
http://www.roadsters.com/

[Rex Schimmer]

Neil,
I bet living in Tuscon aircraft surplus is pretty easy to find!! Thanks for the link to the Avex rivitts, I have always prefered these on Dzus applications and small brackets.

Love your build.

Rex

[manta22]

Rex;

Ahhh... the olden days when Tucson was ringed by aircraft salvage yards and you could buy almost anything- cheap too. Thanks to the EPA & DOD regulations they are virtually gone-- eBay is a better source for surplus these days!

In the very early '70s here in Tucson I could have bought a complete A26 twin- engine attack bomber in fly-away condition for only $19k. Shoulda done it.

Regards, Neil  Tucson, AZ

[Roadsters.com]

In the very early '70s here in Tucson I could have bought a complete A26 twin-engine attack bomber in fly-away condition for only $19k. Shoulda done it.

Bet your ex-wives are thankful you didn't. 

[manta22]

Actually, my first (late) wife was OK with the idea of buying one. The practacalities of flying ($$$) an A-26 was what torpedoed the idea. They're all sold long ago so my present wife (a sweetheart, too) has no opinion.

Regards, Neil  Tucson, AZ

[manta22]

Here is a photo of my finished instrument panel and switch/circuit breaker panel. This is a "driver's- eye" view. I'm missing a switch guard for the ignition switch (next to the master power switch) but I have one on order. The panels are aluminum with a zinc chromate finish.

Regards, Neil  Tucson, AZ