Springfield Flyer.

[tauruck]

Thank you all.

[tauruck]

Still fighting the flu.

Slowing down progress but still managed to get some work done.

Time to build the seat but I won't be going with the old two part foam.
It worked before and I had three big crashes two of which were at 150 plus and went in backward.
No ill effects but the experts say the new expanded bead/Epoxy seats are better.

I have the bag material, the tacky sealing tape and the vacuum pump but I'm waiting on the Polystyrene beads to be made by BASF and need to collect the fast cure resin.

The beads are cheap but buying them is a difficult one. They are sold in 25Kg packs.
I had a similar experience a long time ago when buying fumed Silica (used as a thickening agent in resin). You need the stuff so you pay up and wait for delivery.
A big truck arrived with 20 large garbage bag type containers. The product weighed so little 20 bags constituted 20Kg.

I wasn't about to fall in again on the expanded beads so the supplier is sending enough to do the job.

The process is pretty simple and I don't foresee any problems.

The tub is rectangular but narrows at the top in the shoulder area. Getting the poured seat out for trimming would be difficult so I've fitted some thin Styrofoam panels to the tub for wiggle room.
The space that's left will be taken up by some thin high density neoprene and the fireproof cover to be fitted later.

Some images of the prep.

[tauruck]

I've also put in sections of foam around the roll hoop area to help keep the new paint on the helmet intact.

Once the seat is made and working I'll get to making the side and rear padding in that area.

[tauruck]

The only thing bothering me is sitting in there for an hour and listening to the vacuum pump.
The thing is not a mini dental unit. It can literally suck an elephant through a garden hose.
If the bag seals well I won't need to pull constant vacuum but sometimes you mess up.

[Peter Jack]

Mike, rather than putting in a filler panel you should look at how they do the Indy cars. The seat is often split down the middle so it can be removed in two parts. The split is a line with a zig zag so the seat doesn't just separate when it's put under load like a straight line would and often off center.

The seat should perform much better without a filler panel between it and the tub.

Pete

[manta22]

That is an interesting seat idea, Mike.

Regards, Neil  Tucson, AZ

[tauruck]

Thanks Peter, It looks like it will be a one piece the more I study it.
My seat in the March 832 was a two piece but that was because my backside was on the floor of the tub.
It was also a tighter space and when we poured it there was no meat in that area. It fell apart when we removed the seat.

On the liner I think/hope I'll get it out.

Neil, there are a few videos on Youtube covering expanded bead seats but I know Bald Spot Motorsports has a video on their site
with lots of info.

[tauruck]

You have to be able to turn a long car around and tow it back to the pit and the only visual aid I have is how the crew
on the Speed Demon do it.

From photos I saw I built my own system. Probably similar but not exact.
This component cost me time and welding gas. Everything else got here by chance.

I built this front towing dolly from other peoples junk, discarded stuff and one or two bits I had lying around.

Riaan, my team manager gave me two wheels and tyres a few months ago. He went to a larger diameter setup so didn't need the old ones.
Perfect condition.

My mentor on the composites and friend of 27 years, Kate had a problem on her Toyota RunX and asked me to change the rear wheel hubs
because the bearing were getting noisy. One was bad, the other still good but I changed out both.

I took a chance seeing if the Toyota hubs and trailer wheels were compatible, Bingo, same Pcd.

I had a piece of 6" tubing left over along with a bunch of 10mm bolts and nuts.
There was a nice Harley hub with new bearings in it and I have more new axles than I can use.

Ashley wanted a system to use to tow his project VW Beetles around and the one he had was rubbish but the neck was good.

I cut one I had from a camper to suit his needs and scored the old one for the neck and some square tubing.


I spent the better part of the day fabricating the tow dolly but I think it came out OK.

[tauruck]

I used a few plates I had from my bobber bike stock and some offcut 38mm tubing from the car.
Two collars from a Springer bike frontend and clamped and welded.

[tauruck]

The bike hub will go on the lathe Monday to remove the spoke hole sections and I'll cut and drill a top mounting plate
to go onto the chassis.

I came out good. We'll figure the pivot once we know where everything fits.
One less piece in the puzzle.

[wobblywalrus]

How does it attach to the car?

[tauruck]

Easier to post pics when I get all the brackets done.
This week sometime.

[lsrjunkie]

That's cool Mikey! Just goes to show what a fella with a bit of ingenuity can come up with.

[Finallygotit]

Nice job Mike.  I think I know how that's going to attach.  Let's see if your vision coincides with mine.

 

[tauruck]

He he He. Stuff you might have thrown out.
Crazy how some things pan out.
Some guys will be upset over here that I'm cutting up a perfectly good Harley hub but it fit the requirement.

Other good news is that I managed to build a new die grinder from bits lying around. Two into one does go.
I never realized how much I relied on it until it broke.

Big update coming in the next two days.
Today was spent cleaning up, still not done. I generate a lot of waste for a one man operation.

I'll be doing my seat soon. The same materials and technology used in Indy car and F1 without the huge cost.
The stuff is available separately over the counter if you know where to go and what to ask for.

I haven't made a seat this way before but it will work, that I know.
I'm excited to say the least.

My steering wheel is done, needs clear coat and some suede grips sewn on. I have a piece of tan/beige hide here and it might look good against the Carbon instead of black.
Building this car is just like fishing and they're biting right now.