Author Topic: Australian Belly Tank  (Read 3165305 times)

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Offline Dr Goggles

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Re: Australian Belly Tank
« Reply #4875 on: January 07, 2016, 10:34:35 PM »
Use a blimp for a body instead of a tank.  There will not be all of these pesky issues with packaging. 

Way safer too, no chance of anything like that getting to any sort of dangerous speed.
Few understand what I'm trying to do but they vastly outnumber those who understand why...................

http://thespiritofsunshine.blogspot.com/

Current Australian E/GL record holder at 215.041mph

THE LUCKIEST MAN IN SLOW BUSINESS.

Offline salt27

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Re: Australian Belly Tank
« Reply #4876 on: January 07, 2016, 10:39:56 PM »
Use a blimp for a body instead of a tank.  There will not be all of these pesky issues with packaging. 

And all the fun to be had with the helium.    :lol:

Offline Elmo Rodge

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Re: Australian Belly Tank
« Reply #4877 on: January 07, 2016, 11:13:10 PM »
Not to mention the distressing side effects of heliosis.  :-P    :cheers: Wayno

Offline Seldom Seen Slim

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Re: Australian Belly Tank
« Reply #4878 on: January 08, 2016, 08:02:39 AM »
Don, get with the program.  Helium would be so "last century" for a belly tank.  Use hydrogen - and fuel cells using said H2 to propel it.  It's fun -- and it's fun to watch Lee Kennedy chasing the vehicle down the salt. :roll:
Jon E. Wennerberg
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Offline salt27

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Re: Australian Belly Tank
« Reply #4879 on: January 08, 2016, 08:32:59 PM »
Jon,
    They could call it the Heildelberg because the Hindenburg has already been used and it's also the name of a beer (although not a good one but I don't think James would care just as long as it's beer)   :evil:

Offline manta22

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Re: Australian Belly Tank
« Reply #4880 on: January 08, 2016, 09:32:22 PM »
Heidelberg?  Hey- I spent my sophomore year of high school there!  :cheers:

Regards, Neil  Tucson, AZ
Regards, Neil  Tucson, AZ

Offline grumm441

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Re: Australian Belly Tank
« Reply #4881 on: January 09, 2016, 10:15:44 PM »
Jon,
    They could call it the Heildelberg because the Hindenburg has already been used and it's also the name of a beer (although not a good one but I don't think James would care just as long as it's beer)   :evil:

And it's the suburb next to Preston. Running a close second on car theft stats in Australia

G
Chief Motorcycle Steward Dry Lakes Racers Australia Inc
Spirit of Sunshine Bellytank Lakester
https://www.dlra.org.au/rulebook.htm

Offline Dr Goggles

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Re: Australian Belly Tank
« Reply #4882 on: January 11, 2016, 07:18:43 PM »
Don, get with the program.  Helium would be so "last century" for a belly tank.  Use hydrogen - and fuel cells using said H2 to propel it.  It's fun -- and it's fun to watch Lee Kennedy chasing the vehicle down the salt. :roll:

Didn't they make the last hydrogen powered vehicle at Bonneville pit some way away from the main action? That may not necessarily be a good idea for the SOS team as we generally do better with adult supervision :wink:
Few understand what I'm trying to do but they vastly outnumber those who understand why...................

http://thespiritofsunshine.blogspot.com/

Current Australian E/GL record holder at 215.041mph

THE LUCKIEST MAN IN SLOW BUSINESS.

Offline Dr Goggles

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Re: Australian Belly Tank
« Reply #4883 on: January 11, 2016, 07:24:29 PM »
Heidelberg?  Hey- I spent my sophomore year of high school there!  :cheers:

Regards, Neil  Tucson, AZ

Being an inveterate Spooner-iser, deliberate mis-pronouncer and general fool with language my dad couldn't let Heidelberg go past without saying "Hei-bel-derg"....... I drove down Aberdeen street in Geelong the other day chuckling, he once said
" just as well they called it Aberdeen"
I cocked an eyebrow at him
"'Cause if it ad-er-been anything else it wouldnabeen Aberdeen"
Few understand what I'm trying to do but they vastly outnumber those who understand why...................

http://thespiritofsunshine.blogspot.com/

Current Australian E/GL record holder at 215.041mph

THE LUCKIEST MAN IN SLOW BUSINESS.

Offline Elmo Rodge

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Re: Australian Belly Tank
« Reply #4884 on: January 11, 2016, 08:12:49 PM »
Oh, no. It's genetic.  :roll: Wayno

Offline Dr Goggles

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Re: Australian Belly Tank
« Reply #4885 on: January 11, 2016, 08:34:23 PM »
Oh, no. It's genetic.  :roll: Wayno

Hey you, all that idle chit-chat about going to Lake Gairdner? Start saving, and bring Gustav, we have salt and vinegar chips and hammocks.....
Few understand what I'm trying to do but they vastly outnumber those who understand why...................

http://thespiritofsunshine.blogspot.com/

Current Australian E/GL record holder at 215.041mph

THE LUCKIEST MAN IN SLOW BUSINESS.

Offline Speed Limit 1000

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Re: Australian Belly Tank
« Reply #4886 on: January 11, 2016, 08:40:35 PM »
Oh, no. It's genetic.  :roll: Wayno

Hey you, all that idle chit-chat about going to Lake Gairdner? Start saving, and bring Gustav, we have salt and vinegar chips and hammocks.....

What no beer :?
John Gowetski, red hat @ 221.183 MPH MSA Lakester, Bockscar #1000 60 ci normally aspirated w/N20

Offline Dr Goggles

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Re: Australian Belly Tank
« Reply #4887 on: January 11, 2016, 08:46:05 PM »
Hey Johnboy,

I was listing extraordinary items pertinent to my backwoods Utah friends.

You're welcome to come, you can leave that bus thing behind though the Gairdner road would kill that.
Few understand what I'm trying to do but they vastly outnumber those who understand why...................

http://thespiritofsunshine.blogspot.com/

Current Australian E/GL record holder at 215.041mph

THE LUCKIEST MAN IN SLOW BUSINESS.

Offline Dr Goggles

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This, this is big.
« Reply #4888 on: January 12, 2016, 04:39:09 AM »
OK. This will take some tellin'

When we started building the Spirit of Sunshine we really had no idea what we were in for,  there's 350 or so pages before this one though that amply tell the story of the ups and downs, the naivete and the triumphs. We might have glossed over some of the less than spectacular moments and we may have neglected to mention some of the complete Fiat-ups, not many of them were to do with the car specifically but when something becomes so intertwined with your life it is hard to complete isolate cause and effect. Two guys, that quickly became three started to build a car for a sport that they knew little about, they learned fast, and threw absolutely everything into it.

It took six years from conception to make the salt for the first time after a few years were rained out. The first years results were better than expected. We'd already made a lot of friends, principally by telling our story. To me personally it was an integral part, we weren't doing this to beat other people we were doing it to meet other people, like minded people, to have fun, so there was no point being secretive about it, I told everyone I knew and it quickly became apparent I was telling a whole bunch of people I didn't know too.

Landracing.com and it's forum fell in our laps after we'd been researching and designing for a couple of years, the build of the car was only six or so months old.

We made some very valuable friends on Landracing.com, Jack Dolan rest his soul was very helpful, Sumner, Bill Smith, Stainless and Wayno, Rex were all great counsel.

We raced the car 2009, 2010 and 2013 going 160, 193 and 215mph, in 2014 we ran 205mph and reality sunk in, we'd broken a fair bit of stuff, spent( for us) a lot of money but if we were going to get close to Kelly and Hall's 2003 Bonneville class record in E gas lakester of 236.xxxmph we needed a bigger bullet, although we, I, hadn't broken this motor it wasn't going to magically make another 20 odd mph. We decided to regroup. The car was simple and good and it went faster than lots of other things with more power, it was worth pushing on with.

Dik, the Reverend had moved overseas, I'd managed to mess up the personal side of my life and we were broke. Graham and I went to Gairdner in 2015 as spectators and officials.......and started to think. The V6 could make the 450 or so hp we needed if we put a stratospheric amount of money into it, but it would be bespoke parts and what if we broke something? There were more than a few E class V8's making near 500hp and the parts could be bought but we'd have to stretch the car to fit two more cylinders in. We'd need a few years to build it....and pay for it.

I moved to the country with Cassie my partner, an old house and a big shed and spent the first ten months working to knock the house into shape.....

A few weeks ago I sent a group email, just turning things over, it included Chris Conrad in Milwaukee, Mark Balinski in Cheeseland and Jon Benett in Queensland..... Then I posted our ideas here, we were finally going to get started on a rebuild, stretch and re-motor chasing that record of 236mph.

A few days later I got a message from someone on Landracing I didn't know, Robin Dripps.

Dr. Goggles,
I have followed your build since the beginning and always enjoy the attitude you bring. I noticed this morning that you are considering a new engine. I am familiar with the E engine having set records at Bonneville with a V6 and qualified for records with a v8. I no longer am using my V6 and would be willing to donate this to a great cause.Some explanation: The engine is a GM Bowtie iron racing block.  Better casting, set up for dry sump, etc. The heads are the Bowtie aluminum splayed valve heads set up by HRD to give amazing flow with custom Jesel valve train actually machined in Jesel's shop.  Other specs include Moldex crank, oliver rods, bullet cam.  Stu Hilborn made a special electronic fuel injection system for the engine, probably a one off affair. I can give complete specs if there is any interest.  The engine has one week of Bonneville on a complete rebuild. On a chassis dyno it put out around 480 hp on the rear wheels. I can get dyno sheets. This was a competitive engine in the ESTR class until the near million dollar Mariani roadster arrived. A long set of conversations with Kenny Duttweiler suggested that the best approach was to switch to a v8.  I worked with Kenny for three years to finally get a 256 CID engine to make 650 HP.  This was not inexpensive.
Kenny evaluated my v6 before we made the decision to go with a v8 and the engine is currently in his shop.
Kenny first thought he could sell it to some racers in Dubai but that fell through and I have no time to deal with all the things needed to put the engine on the market. Having followed your thread for years and feeling a certain set of shared interests in the various members (I am an architect, play electric guitar, among other things) I thought this might be a way to have a very interesting engine find a good home.
You would have to pay for crating and shipping and that would be all.
So, if you have any interest let me know and I can give complete specs.  You also can talk with Kenny and get his opinion on the engine, but l probably would need to let him know this is okay.
I know there is much discussion on the forum and you are certainly welcome to bring this up for discussion.
At any rate give this a thought and make of it what you think best,
Robin Dripps ESTR 1986


I was stunned, I pasted it into an email to Gray and sent him an SMS

"READ YOUR EMAIL!, READ YOUR EMAIL!"

I got a reply in his usual understated way,

"That should do it"

I was completely gobsmacked, it made 480hp, it was built for 9000+rpm, it was in the Duttweiler workshop.

For those unfamiliar with Robin's roadster the story is here....

http://www.automobilemag.com/features/columns/0711_vile_gossip_salt_speed_dreams/

In short, we won't regard this as our property, we would hope to send it back in time. The Dripps Gibby team have raised money for various charities and I feel that we may also be obliged by the great scheme of things to turn our hand, whether it be for the homeless sector I have worked in or something else, we'll see.

Right now I am still in a state of shock, we've got some work ahead of us, but it's going to be fun and trust me, you'll hear all about it.

Cheers, and thanks for listening.

Few understand what I'm trying to do but they vastly outnumber those who understand why...................

http://thespiritofsunshine.blogspot.com/

Current Australian E/GL record holder at 215.041mph

THE LUCKIEST MAN IN SLOW BUSINESS.

Offline tauruck

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Re: Australian Belly Tank
« Reply #4889 on: January 12, 2016, 06:27:52 AM »
Awesome news guys. This made my day and restored my faith in humanity which has been flagging of late. :cheers: :cheers: :cheers:

Way to go Robin. That is the gesture of the century. God Bless you. :cheers: