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 Post subject: Re: Body Designs
PostPosted: March 5, 2016, 7:38 am 
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phongshader wrote:
Miatav8,MstrASE,A&P,F wrote:
I like the idea of a 442 sized fury. It looks good, but the fenders appear too narrow for the wheels to move much. The wheels look to be about 2 inches too wide for the body ( an inch on each side).

I've revised the fenders a bit and modeled up some real world wheels. http://www.lightningbugcars.com/projectNevala.html The wheels are based on 6UL 15x8, 9, and 10 wheels. Both the 8" and 9" widths with a +36mm offset fit comfortably under the fenders and in the chassis/suspension model (fully mated and constrained) the tires clear the fenders with plenty of room.(-1.2 camber on suspension model) With the 15x10 (+25mm offset) wheels it's a tight fit in the rear but there is 3" of bump available before the tire hits the fender and no hope in the front. The 10" wide wheels are academic for the street as there are no street tires to fit a 15x10" wheel anyhow but for the track... :twisted:


Yeah, that looks much more doable. 15x10 has been a popular size for hot rods over the years. 295-50-15 is an excellent fit and available as the BFG TA, Hancook, and less common brands.

I like your self-control in limiting the overhang that gets crushed on curbs and culverts.

An issue with a bonnet that has the fenders built into it is that the sides get in the way. On the doors, try to push the front of the opening as far forward as practical. Build a 2x4 framed mock up of the side to get a feel for what it will be like to get into and out of the car. I tweaked the parting lines and left a cowl for the wiper stalks.


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Ford IFS viewtopic.php?f=5&t=13225&p=134742
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LxWxHt
360LA 442E: 134.5x46x15
Lotus7:115x39x7.25
Tiger Avon:114x40x13.3-12.6
Champion/Book:114x42x11
Gibbs/Haynes:122x42x14
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McSorley 442:122x46x14
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 Post subject: Re: Body Designs
PostPosted: March 5, 2016, 12:17 pm 
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JackMcCornack wrote:
Danger is my middle name, so I checked it out. Interesting car, and your other projects are interesting too. How's that CNC tube cutter coming along?

The tube cutter is on hold at the moment, working on finalizing the body design 1st then back to the tube cutter. There will be plenty of time to work on it while the cnc is cutting the foam bucks, the cutting time will be well over 40hrs.
Miatav8,MstrASE,A&P,F wrote:
Yeah, that looks much more doable. 15x10 has been a popular size for hot rods over the years. 295-50-15 is an excellent fit and available as the BFG TA, Hancook, and less common brands.

Those are some tall side walls, would give an American muscle car look for sure.
Miatav8,MstrASE,A&P,F wrote:
An issue with a bonnet that has the fenders built into it is that the sides get in the way. On the doors, try to push the front of the opening as far forward as practical. Build a 2x4 framed mock up of the side to get a feel for what it will be like to get into and out of the car. I tweaked the parting lines and left a cowl for the wiper stalks

I'm of a different opinion on the bonnet, you say in the way and I say more room with the bonnet up or off plus I think it looks better esthetically. TVRs of late 60's early 70's had that split in the bonnet and it always seemed bit awkward to me. I like what you did with the doors but I don't know if that will work with the current chassis design... how hard is it to move some tubes? :?

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 Post subject: Re: Body Designs
PostPosted: March 5, 2016, 6:28 pm 
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Here is a body that I sculpted, made molds and had some bodies pulled. It's very simple as its just 2 pieces. The front bonnet incorporates the fenders. It has a single, vertical part line. By doing this I was able to mold in the rear flange with the body. I ended up with 1/4 in gap between the bonnet and the cowl. This required the front pivot point to be carefully positioned so that the bonnet didn't hit the cowl when opening and closing. I thought that the part line worked out fine.

It's only 18 inches from the ground to the top of where the door would be. I obviously eliminated the door. There is a top horizontal frame rail at 16 inches that the body mounts to from the inside.

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 Post subject: Re: Body Designs
PostPosted: March 5, 2016, 8:24 pm 
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That looks great!! Hopefully we can get a fit and finish as good as yours. The doors in our model are, how do I say this, are functional but not easy to get in and out of no matter how big they are. the seat bottom is about 9" below the door sill so It will still be a chore to get in and out of the seat and the door. No swinging the legs out of the door and standing up.

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 Post subject: Re: Body Designs
PostPosted: March 5, 2016, 8:59 pm 
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Thanks and I'm sure that yours will be great.

My seat bottom is 5 inches off the ground. I push myself up to a standing position and step in and out.

My foot boxes are long enough that I sit with my legs pretty much straight out.

This car is very comfortable to drive. I drove it cross country from NH to CA and back. Great fun.


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 Post subject: Re: Body Designs
PostPosted: March 5, 2016, 9:26 pm 
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Those who know me know I'm fussy and grumpy - but that's a very well-executed body design. Seriously.

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 Post subject: Re: Body Designs
PostPosted: March 6, 2016, 8:17 am 
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phongshader wrote:

I'm of a different opinion on the bonnet, you say in the way and I say more room with the bonnet up or off plus I think it looks better esthetically. TVRs of late 60's early 70's had that split in the bonnet and it always seemed bit awkward to me. I like what you did with the doors but I don't know if that will work with the current chassis design... how hard is it to move some tubes? :?


I'm not sure if you mean it was awkward for you to work on or it just looks awkward. Later corvettes have a similar line to the tvr, plus there is not much to work on behind the front tires unless you have low masters. I guess you also have the front over hang so short is for clearance to allow the bonnet to lift. If the front end slides forward a few inches then lifts, it should be easier to keep the long sides from hitting the cowl. I've seen this done on a few cars. I would align to the door sill but that would split the duct. I figure part of the appeal of your product is a little more practicality by getting in and out with a roof, assuming again a roof was a consideration. I could draw something up for a bigger door opening on an book chassis, but it wouldn't be pretty without a body. I assumed you were going to modify tubes for the existing doors, which don't seem to align with the opening on a book chassis.

That is lovely work Stinger. What windshield did you use?

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Miata UBJ: ES-2074R('70s maz pickup)
Ford IFS viewtopic.php?f=5&t=13225&p=134742
Simple Spring select viewtopic.php?f=5&t=11815
LxWxHt
360LA 442E: 134.5x46x15
Lotus7:115x39x7.25
Tiger Avon:114x40x13.3-12.6
Champion/Book:114x42x11
Gibbs/Haynes:122x42x14
VoDou:113x44x14
McSorley 442:122x46x14
Collins 241:127x46x12


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 Post subject: Re: Body Designs
PostPosted: March 6, 2016, 10:09 am 
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The windshield is Jaguar XJS. I thought the shape is good and the width fit well. But, in hindsight I think it's a little too tall. The top of it is a little too close to my head than I was hoping for.

I used C4 Corvette suspension for this car. That's what I'm using on my Hot Rod. For this car the engine was set extremely far back. The driveshaft is 8 inches long. This results in the cockpit being pretty wide. The width of the cockpit is 56 inches. And, the seat are in front of the trailing arm mounts.

For my Hot Rod frame the engine is farther forward. This allows the seats to be mounted farther back, inside the rear trailing arm mounts. My new cockpit is 43 inches wide. I'm making a new version of this body to fit the Hot Rod frame. It will use a 49 inch wide Porsche 550/356 windshield. I'm also changing the front bonnet to have a more traditional Lister Knobbly look.

My favorite cars are the late 50's and 60's sports racers. I've done a couple of bodies based on the swoopy look of the era.

Here is a picture of a version that I did with a chassis that I built using C5 Corvette parts. This car is wide! 80 inches at the rear wheels.

It took me, with help from a brother in law, months to sculpt the original body. I sculpted 1 side and then made templates at every 2 inches from the outside of the body to the center line. I rotated the templates to the opposite side and used bondo under the edge of the 1/4 inch wide template to set the shape. Then I filled in the body with different colored bondo and started sanding. It took me months of work. But, I had fun.
I've posted this before under a different user name. For some reason that name wouldn't work. This was at the same time I obtained Abarth SP 1000 molds. I changed my user name to Stinger at that time.

I"ve been in poor health. I've had a couple of major heart attacks that have damaged my heart. So, I sold the Abarth molds and now I work on my projects at a much slower pace.

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 Post subject: Re: Body Designs
PostPosted: March 6, 2016, 6:15 pm 
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stinger wrote:
now I work on my projects at a much slower pace.


This is not a race. Have a good time. :cheers:

The shape reminded me of an xke jag.

I like the devins and the racer "old yeller" especially, though more for what it represented than the specific styling.

_________________
Miata UBJ: ES-2074R('70s maz pickup)
Ford IFS viewtopic.php?f=5&t=13225&p=134742
Simple Spring select viewtopic.php?f=5&t=11815
LxWxHt
360LA 442E: 134.5x46x15
Lotus7:115x39x7.25
Tiger Avon:114x40x13.3-12.6
Champion/Book:114x42x11
Gibbs/Haynes:122x42x14
VoDou:113x44x14
McSorley 442:122x46x14
Collins 241:127x46x12


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 Post subject: Re: Body Designs
PostPosted: March 6, 2016, 7:59 pm 
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stinger wrote:
Here is a body that I sculpted, made molds and had some bodies pulled.
Wow! Take my money!
stinger wrote:
My favorite cars are the late 50's and 60's sports racers. I've done a couple of bodies based on the swoopy look of the era.
Great minds think alike. :D
stinger wrote:
It took me, with help from a brother in law, months to sculpt the original body.
Gosh. Whole, entire...months. You clearly have body shaping skills, talents, and techniques the rest of us lack. There's not much we can do about the skills and talents, but if you'd share techniques we be beholdin'. What materials did you shape your bodies from? How did you finish them to get them ready to make molds from them? Same as your '27 T project (urethane boards shaped to suit, covered with fiberglass, then sanding, skim coat of filler, sand some more, seal it, spray it with a few layers of 2 part primer, and finally buff it out)? And what goes between "finally buff it out" and "Then I'll pull a mold."?

But don't tell us yet. Use the time before the operation more wisely. It's only a week until the Knee Eve and then Monday is Knee Day; you can tell us how to build bodies after you've lightened up on your meds and before you're back in the dance halls.
[note: this is my way of saying I hope the surgery goes well]

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 Post subject: Re: Body Designs
PostPosted: March 6, 2016, 7:59 pm 
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stinger wrote:
Here is a body that I sculpted, made molds and had some bodies pulled.
Wow! Take my money!
stinger wrote:
My favorite cars are the late 50's and 60's sports racers. I've done a couple of bodies based on the swoopy look of the era.
Great minds think alike. :D
stinger wrote:
It took me, with help from a brother in law, months to sculpt the original body.
Gosh. Whole, entire...months. You clearly have body shaping skills, talents, and techniques the rest of us lack. There's not much we can do about the skills and talents, but if you'd share techniques we be beholdin'. What materials did you shape your bodies from? How did you finish them to get them ready to make molds from them? Same as your '27 T project (urethane boards shaped to suit, covered with fiberglass, then sanding, skim coat of filler, sand some more, seal it, spray it with a few layers of 2 part primer, and finally buff it out)? And what goes between "finally buff it out" and "Then I'll pull a mold."?

But don't tell us yet. Use the time before the operation more wisely. It's only a week until the Knee Eve and then Monday is Knee Day; you can tell us how to build bodies after you've lightened up on your meds and before you're back in the dance halls.
[note: this is my way of saying I hope the surgery goes well]

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 Post subject: Re: Body Designs
PostPosted: April 14, 2016, 3:55 pm 
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I finished the 1/4 scale model, learned a lot about fixturing and offsets while cutting the foam for this. Spent a lot more time filling mis-aligned cuts in the foam than I wanted to...but I have a better strategy for the next iteration. It's all a learning process...right?


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 Post subject: Re: Body Designs
PostPosted: April 14, 2016, 6:22 pm 
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I like it! Good job!


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 Post subject: Re: Body Designs
PostPosted: April 14, 2016, 7:39 pm 
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Congratulations! That's quite an accomplishment. I think many of us have had the dream of doing what you've done, but very few of us actually get the task completed. Is this just a study model or will it serve additional purposes too?

Cheers,

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 Post subject: Re: Body Designs
PostPosted: April 14, 2016, 8:52 pm 
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Thanks, this is a study for a full size full body. I'm trying to work out the design kinks in a 1/4 scale model instead of full scale body.

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