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 Post subject: Mounting Nose?
PostPosted: April 20, 2013, 11:44 pm 
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Joined: January 1, 2012, 3:29 pm
Posts: 366
Location: Coos Bay, Oregon
Ok, so I consider myself a competent mechanic, fabricator, and even body/repairman, but not at alignment/adjustments. I just can't seem to see where the nose should mount, aka where to weld my mounting tabs. Do most of you just wait until your radiator/a-arms/ect are there, and scoot it back to it? I guess I need some suggestions, and or photos. Those always help!

I am more the opposite, as I've never built anything from scratch, and always just alter stuff to "make work" I kinda need a problem, to overcome it.....if that makes sense? For instance, if I mount my nose now, I can mount it to where it is aesthetically pleasing, and if anything interferes, I'll notch the nose/tube/ect or find a radiator to suit. If that makes sense?

Any photos of your mounts, inside also preferably? would help immensely. I'm kinda in a research mode this weekend, as my plans went out the window when I caught a cut off disc particle in the eye last night at work, (with safety glasses on), and my peripheral and depth perception is crap right now, I don't see me making good measurements!


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 Post subject: Re: Mounting Nose?
PostPosted: April 21, 2013, 2:00 am 
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Joined: January 1, 2012, 3:29 pm
Posts: 366
Location: Coos Bay, Oregon
this also confuses me. this part that sticks out. should that be the headlight mount?


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2013-04-20 22.53.26.jpg


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 Post subject: Re: Mounting Nose?
PostPosted: April 21, 2013, 9:10 am 
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Joined: September 22, 2005, 8:12 am
Posts: 1880
Location: 4AGE in S.E. Michigan
You can use that area to mount your headlights, but the mounting bracket will have to extend more outboard, Vs upward. I welded a nut inside the top horizontal tube, for mounting a "L" shaped bracket for the headlight mounting. I would mock up a headlite and see if you like the lower forward location look, before welding things up. For the nose cone you really only need 4 mounting tabs two on the top rail and a couple on the bottom. Just make sure that the nose cone is easy to remove. Dave W


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 Post subject: Re: Mounting Nose?
PostPosted: April 21, 2013, 1:05 pm 
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Joined: July 29, 2006, 9:10 pm
Posts: 3163
Location: Oregon, usually
Many folks (Yours Truly included) hinge the nose at the bottom front, but if you do, headlight clearance can get tricky, 'cause when you tilt the nose forward, the rear of the nose sweeps by the headlights and the nose gets wider toward the back. Next time I build a Locost, I'll mount the nose as described by davew (indeed that's one reason Kinetic's dzus kit has four sets of tabs/springs/buttons) so on those relatively rare cases when you need to remove the nose, you just release it and lift up.

As to headlight mounts on a standard Locost ("standard Locost"...pause for laughter), I push (okay, hammer) a short section of 7/8" square tubing into the-part-that-sticks-out and mount the headlight and turn signal on that. Actually, I have a pretty cool bracket for that job, Dave has a set on his car, I'll ask him to take a photo.

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 Post subject: Re: Mounting Nose?
PostPosted: April 22, 2013, 10:02 pm 
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Joined: January 2, 2009, 1:45 pm
Posts: 1320
Location: Halifax, Nova Scotia
Rod's V-8 Locost also has a rather nice nose mounting arrangement using Dzu fasteners - I think about page 7 or 8 of his build log.

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Build Log: viewtopic.php?f=35&t=11601


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 Post subject: Re: Mounting Nose?
PostPosted: April 22, 2013, 11:27 pm 
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Joined: May 25, 2006, 9:39 pm
Posts: 346
I used three Dzuz fasteners to attach my Curtis nose and it seems pretty solid. Two on the side at the back and one in the middle at the bottom, I hope the pic explains. The lower fastener isn't in place in the picture but it is on the middle plate on the bars in front of the rad.


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 Post subject: Re: Mounting Nose?
PostPosted: April 23, 2013, 8:57 am 
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Joined: October 6, 2009, 9:29 am
Posts: 7651
Location: Tallahassee, FL (The Center of the Known Universe)
Yo, Toyotus-
I don't know as to whether my example will help you all that much, since the Slotus doesn't use a standard Locost (pause for laughter, like the man said) frame or nose cone. However, just as an "out of the box" solution, and in case somebody can benefit, here's how I did it:

First, the nose cone and splitter are attached to their own aluminum frame. Iffen I remember right, it's 3/4 aluminum square tube. There are four nubbins of this tubing that stick out rearward from the corners of the frame. ("Nose Pins") You can see a couple of 'em in the picture.
Attachment:
4 5 13 Revised Splitter and Nose2.jpg


Then, on the frame there are four bits of 1 inch steel tubing ("Receivers") aligned with the four ally bits. You can see two of 'em in this shot, one in the corner cutout of the bodywork and one down low, next to the LCA mount.
Attachment:
2 18 13 Arts New Look.jpg

There are holes drilled through the steel and the aluminum which line up when the nose is in place. There are "Push Pins" that go through and attach the nose. In that same picture, you can see one of the push pins I use to hold the whole thing together. It's the brassy colored bit that's hanging in the frame gusset for the UCA mount near the top corner. You align the nose pins with the four receivers, slide the whole business together and put the push pins through the holes in the tubing. Taking the nose off is about two minutes. Putting in back on might take three.

And dat's how we rollz at Team Slotus... :mrgreen:
H-T-H
:cheers:
JD


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JD, father of Quinn, Son of a... Build Log
Quinn the Slotus:Ford 302 Powered, Mallock-Inspired, Tube Frame, Hillclimb Special
"Gonzo and friends: Last night must have been quite a night. Camelot moments, mechanical marvels, Rustoleum launches, flying squirrels, fru-fru tea cuppers, V8 envy, Ensure catch cans -- and it wasn't even a full moon." -- SeattleTom


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 Post subject: Re: Mounting Nose?
PostPosted: April 23, 2013, 10:21 am 
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Joined: January 1, 2012, 3:29 pm
Posts: 366
Location: Coos Bay, Oregon
well thank you all for clearing up some of that. and JD, thats a pretty slick setup there! Reminds me of a "quick change" setup i came up with on one of our log trucks. This one perticular driver wiped out his fenders so frequently i decided he needed a quicker way of attatching them!


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