LocostUSA.com

Current status:

TIG welder is in the workshop. That's what I call progress!

Tom...

Original First Post, for posterity...

Hi all,

I apologise in advance for this long drivelly post.

I'm new to this forum, I only joined a month ago as I only discovered the site then. There is oh-so much fantastic info on here. I don't really know if this should be in the build forum as I have not really started a build yet, but it's in the "twinkle in my eye" stages so does that count?

Right now, i'm just coming up to the point where I have to start deciding exactly what I want and how to go about it. I'm feeling a little lost and don't know where to post this as I don't yet have firm plans in order and I want to do a little about me first so I can get my "where-i'm-at" mentality across.

When I was younger I used to race Minis in the UK. I did all the work on the car myself, except bodywork as my dad is a panel beater. I did always have a niggling thing in my head that I wanted to design and build my own car one day. I always thought I could do a pretty good job of it. Nothing ever happened with that and I continued mechanich-ing on the Mini until I left the country and have been away from 'cars' for about 10 years now. And now I want something good and I want it cheap. I figured the best way to do this could include my old-time desire of designing & building a car.

Over recent months I have been on & off the idea. A friend of mine I used to race with in the UK has a Locost he's working on and we always joke about how good it'd be if I was still there and we could tinker on his car on the weekends. Recently I saw an eposode of Top Gear where The Stig took out a Caterham R500.

Do I need to say any more? From this point on, this is what I want. I looked a few times at Caterhams over here and was scared off by the price. I did not find any info on Locost availability over here at the time (I have now, but it's too late, i'm building!) so I thought about designing something myself but using a North American donor. I pondered this for a few weeks and decided that I was probably going in over my depth, thinking i'd need to build big jigs before doing any frame fab work and despite giving myself a 15 year timeframe (I have a 1.5yr old boy and figured it'd be a good project to work on together), I had decided I was being unrealistic and quietly gave up on the idea for now.

Then about 2 months ago, I was at the grocery store and a guy in a Mini Cooper S replica turned up, so being a mini-nut, I got talking, gave him some advice and said to pop round some time. He did pop round a few weeks later, and loved the new KAD quickshift he ordered from the UK (This was my stranger-at-the-shopping-plaza advice) and looved it. We got talking and it turned out that before the Mini, he worked at a school and basically got them building a Locost. It was at this point that I realised a Locost was something from a book, and that you could easily build it yourself. Why I didn't realise this from my friend in the UK I do not know. Maybe I was too jealous to pay proper attention.

So the tides have turned since then. I looked things up and found the forum straight away and have been reading ever since.

Now I know the possibilities are endless, as are the choices I have to make. I'ts going to be a tough decision but I think I know that the answer has to be to build a book frame with a miata donor.. At least for my first car

Having no real time-frame in mind, all I can do is wistfully say 'i'll start next year some time'. One of the first things i need to do is get a welder and learn to weld. I want to be comfortable welding before I start on a frame. I was looking at MIG vs TIG and have to say I love the idea of TIG, but then I saw the price. Ouch, never mind. MIG it is then. So I was thinking pick up a MIG welder in the spring of 2011 and go from there.

Well we were just out for a walk with my boy and I see a neighbour is selling some stuff so we go to chat to him. He's moving, which is a shame. They are downsizing. He was selling odds & sods. I tell him about my plans to build a 7 and ask if he's selling anything else for 'that kind of thing'.

So I am now to be the owner of a Canox C-SW250 which I understand to be a rebadged Miller Syncwave 250. It's about 25 years old but i'm gathering that these things just go on and on. It's been recently checked over by a service technician and I got it for $800. I can't afford this so i'll be taking ownership of it when he moves out at the end of Nov and he's going to let me give him $100/month to pay for it.

So I guess i'll be learning to TIG weld after all This moment has pretty much marked the beginning of "yes this is going to happen".

Now once I get it, I can start practicing. He is also going to teach me how to use it properly. I got friendly with a guy who owns a steel shop too so he has offered me any scraps I need for practicing and I will probably end up getting any steel I need from him. I may even get some limited use of machine tools in his workshop.

Only 2 days ago I posted in MattRogers build diary saying how I have some design 'ideals' and also that I can forget ever using TIG. How times can change so quickly...

So...
Workshop: CHECK (I'll get a pic maybe but it's nothing yet)
Welder: CHECK

And then the big question is what *exactly* to build, where to start. I'm stuck between so many differing design concepts. I think I really want to build a few cars
On the one hand, I need to cut my teeth, get started and just build something to learn on (i'm a beginner at this, but only so far as fabrication goes. I used to build my race cars & engines in the UK) - This is what I keep telling myself I need to do first. Build a book chassis to suit a Miata donor.
Then on another hand, I have to say my 'engineery' head has a lot of problems with the book chassis. Safety being a huge one, so I want to design in an extensive rollcage. But then i'd be starting down the path of removing lightness which counteracts the whole idea of what a sevenesque car is all about. Not to mention, to me, they look so much nicer without. But then again, I always tell myself I am not bothered about looks of a car so much as what it does.
Then on another hand, I really like the middy idea and it really opens up a variety of donor options.
Then on another hand, i'm not keen on the square tubing idea. I get that it is far better to work with for the beginner, but it just 'feels' wrong to my 'engineery' head as you can get lighter & stronger with tube... (right??)
Then on another hand, I want a 3 seater (I have an 18month boy), McLaren F1 style, for which I REALLY need to go middy (and I assume paddle shift?), but then i'm realllllly going out of my depth, for now.
Then on another hand, I want a track car. I used to race Mini 7's in the UK and so so so miss the track. But who am I kidding. I only recently got out of racing debt. I know I won't be able to take it up again, esp not with a mortgage and a kid.
Then on the other hand I want a nice country road car, except i'm in Ontario where it's all straight roads. So I guess it will be country cruising in straight lines and then the occasional AutoX or sprint.

As you can see, i'm really struggling with wanting to do everything at once and I haven't even started yet!

One thing I do know is that as the years go by, no matter what path I travel, i'm going to have a lot of fun learning & building it and i'm sure Finn will join in when he's a little older (He was helping me build a little car-stool-on-wheels jobbie the other day and actually got the screwdriver into the screws and turned it. He loves my tools and loves to 'help' )

Sorry that was a long drivelly post, but there you go. That's where i'm at

If this thread shouldn't be in the builders log page then i'm happy for it to be moved. I just don't know where to!

Tom...

Tom,
Good Luck whatever you decide to build. You already have a head start on many of the folks on this site with your background. I too am an expat English Mechanic, but I've been here since the mid 60s, and old enough to have watched the history of the Locost unfold.

I'm not sure of the ratio, but I think about 1/2 of the folks on the site are building from a book and the rest are doing their own thing (someone correct me please). As you browse through the builds, you'll be amazed at the ingenuity of some of the builders here. I'm an experienced builder of Sevens from a past life and I'm constantly impressed by the new approaches and quality of build found here.

If you're in the general GTA you certainly should be attending the Bronte show tomorrow. It's a must see for anyone interested in Sevens and Minis, plus every other British make that ever arrived on these shores (and maybe some that didn't too). I'll be there and I know of at least 4 other owners/builders that will be there to see what's on show. There'll be plenty of Sevens and Minis there.

Geoff

Gey Geoff,

Yeah I heard about that show earlier today, but unfortunately i'm on-call which means I need to stay close to home (Whitby). Maybe next year, it sounds better than I expected if there are Minis and Locost builders there

Tom...

Let's see... on this site we have builds based on the "Book" by Ron Champion (the one that started the movement), the book from Haynes, plans from McSorley and roll your own Lotus replica designs. We have kit builds from the USA and from the UK. Then we have mid-engine builds, trike builds. We can't say A_tom replica or tribute builds, Rat Rod builds and who knows what else....... Whatever you choose, you will get much help here, both wanted and unwanted.

Figure out what you want to build based in your intended use. If you are planning on racing, look closely at the popular class requirements in your local club. Figure out which class your car will fit and go from there. Then start a build log and start posting.

_________________
Chuck.

“Any suspension will work if you don’t let it.” - Colin Chapman

Visit my ongoing MGB Rustoration log: over HERE

Or my Wankel powered Locost log : over HERE

And don't forget my Cushman Truckster resto Locostusa.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=36&t=17766

So I put in the order for my welding helmet. Quite a big part of this project for me is going to be learning to TIG weld. It's something I want to do, just cos, well, why not .

So thinking more on the format side of things, I definitely want to do a book build, or variation thereof, using a Miata or Rotary donor. As for the usage, i'm thinking more and more about Autocross. I would need to get approval from the boss to do this, so I may drag her along to some events next year to see what she thinks . Anyways, I will bear the AutoX Sprint & Solo rules in mind when designing...

You might want to learn how to weld before you start your frame.

That is absolutely what I plan to do, yes

Here is a great site with vids hope it helps. http://www.weldingtipsandtricks.com/

I've also been trawling WeldingWeb soaking up welding knowledge where I can.

The guy i'm buying the welder from is going to get me started with the basics. I am also investigating lessons at the local college.

Don't worry, there is noooo way I am striking an arc on a car frame until I am proficient at welding

Hi Tom,
I know what you mean with the little guy, I have a 6mth old and you don't want to leave him out. My goal is to have a build completed so that my son can drive it to his prom... that is if he wants to! There's quite a few people in Ontario that either want to build or have, so there's lots of support around!

Hey Dilbert. Where in Ontario are you?

I'm starting to think this is more of an intro thread than a build log lol. I'm thinking it shouldn't be a build log until I at least buy a part

Well, you'll have a welder soon! Not really car parts but kind of related!

I'm in St.Thomas, just south of London.

I agree with you and take it even a step further -
It really isn't build log until you're building something, which buying parts doesn't cover either.
Moving it to auto talk.

Moti

_________________
Moti

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Thanks for moving it to its correct home Moti. Oh and sorry for putting it in the wrong place. I'll wait until I strike that first car related arc before starting my build log

Thanks,

Tom...