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PostPosted: January 16, 2019, 10:48 pm 
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Coming along nicely Tom. Marcus is right about the last 10%. Been working on my last 10% for about 8 . years now.

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PostPosted: January 17, 2019, 8:50 am 
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As to the Yeager-yachet,
Wellllllll.... You could do something folding, attached to the rear bulkhead... I'm thinking a short length of tubing, hinged to fold upward and maybe "click" into a br@cket for riding around, and then pull it downward to horizontal for pushing against when you're getting out. (Or back in, although gravity is on your side getting in!) Maybe even a U shape, attached at two points... Hmmm... Would that work? :?: :?: :?:

I secretly wish I had MV8's ability with Paint, so I could draw you one. Don't tell him I said that... :mrgreen:

I read Chuck Yeager's autobiography a few years ago. Helluva guy... Native of Hamlin WV... Truly one of the "Greatest Generation."

Peace, Love and "Got a stick of Beeman's?" -
JDK

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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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PostPosted: January 17, 2019, 6:26 pm 
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So my brother and I along with a friend visited Tom and his project yesterday. What a super well done project. And I was green with envy over his very shiny red Ultima Spyder. Tom really does some nice work. He has a pretty nice setup with plenty of room to work on the project in his 3 car garage. His attention to detail is awesome, you should see his tube joints close up in person! So Tom, back to the garage and keep working - we all want to see your progress on this project. Heck, it is suppose to rain 6 out the next 8 days in Seattle anyways!


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PostPosted: January 18, 2019, 12:13 am 
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Thanks all for the kind words and encouragement. Helps me generate some much needed momentummm…

Meanwhile back to the "exit strategy":
GonzoRacer wrote:
Wellllllll.... You could do something folding, attached to the rear bulkhead... I'm thinking a short length of tubing, hinged to fold upward and maybe "click" into a br@cket for riding around, and then pull it downward to horizontal for pushing against when you're getting out. (Or back in, although gravity is on your side getting in!) Maybe even a U shape, attached at two points... Hmmm... Would that work?
Clever idea, JD. However the tall, narrow tunnel does give me enough leverage to boast my a$$ out of the seat and get started with the exit plan, but then I keep reaching for the (non-existent) windshield frame for the next stage of ascension -- and that will be a no-no. Maybe the problem is these old bones aren't as limber as they used to be. I guess there's nothing wrong with just staying cocooned in the vroom-vroom position...

So I'm giving the tunnel a brief rest and working on the battery mount. More on that when I have something to take a picture of.

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My Car9 build: viewtopic.php?f=35&t=14613
"It's the construction of the car-the sheer lunacy and joy of making diverse parts come together and work as one-that counts."

Ultima Spyder, Northstar 4.0, Porsche G50/52


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PostPosted: January 22, 2019, 7:59 pm 
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I switched from working out tunnel details to making the battery mount. I’m planning to use an Odyssey PC680 battery. The skinny little fellow should provide plenty of starting power and my alternator should be able to keep the ECU, pumps and fan doing their thing while keeping the battery fully charged.

With the scuttle area committed to intake duct work, the ECU and the power distribution boxes there is no room for a battery in the scuttle, even a skinny one. So instead the PC680 will go into the passenger-side footwell behind the Terry hoop side-panel that forms part of the dash bulkhead. This puts the battery’s 15 lbs. low, near the car’s cg and offsetting the driver's weight a bit. The pink foam thing in the pictures is my placeholder “battery.” I’ll get a fresh, new PC680 when the time is right.
Attachment:
P1224888-1.jpg
Attachment:
P1224889-1.jpg
Attachment:
P1224895-1.jpg

An aftermarket aluminum br@cket holds the battery to the ½” square tube structure added to the chassis. No need to triangulate the light tubing framework, it’s overbuilt and the battery comes in its own metal can. The eight ¼” hold-down bolts are overkill but part of the aluminum br@cket’s design. I guess they help spread bolt-head load across the br@cket’s flanges.

The passenger’s legroom is not too badly impacted and occasional battery access will be ok, particularly with the removable body side-panel off. Cable runs will be short. The + side will feed straight up into the scuttle to the cut-off switch. The negative side will go to a nearby chassis ground lug. The + terminal will be protected from inadvertent contact by the passenger.

Ok, enough procrastinating, back to work on the tunnel.


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Cheers, Tom

My Car9 build: viewtopic.php?f=35&t=14613
"It's the construction of the car-the sheer lunacy and joy of making diverse parts come together and work as one-that counts."

Ultima Spyder, Northstar 4.0, Porsche G50/52


Last edited by seattletom on April 27, 2020, 1:53 am, edited 1 time in total.

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PostPosted: January 23, 2019, 8:16 am 
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Ok, enough procrastinating, back to work on the tunnel.
I was gonna procrastinate, but I decided to do it tomorrow... :mrgreen:

: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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PostPosted: January 24, 2019, 12:41 pm 
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Nice battery solution. Tidy work!

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PostPosted: February 16, 2019, 10:49 pm 
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Too cold to work in the garage (at least that’s my excuse for further procrastination on finishing the tunnel) so instead I started a do-over of my headers.

Earlier in the build I acquired a set of LS7 headers. They were the tightest block huggers available to fit the LS3, made of stainless steel and available at a decent price.

The LS7’s oval shaped exhaust pipe flanges (2 ¼ lb. each) were cut off and out-turning 90* bends made out of split 3” tubing were tacked on. To get the chassis placement right, the bends had to be tacked while the headers were on the car. Although the exhaust now exited in the right place, I was never satisfied with the 90* collector/transitions. They were too full in the hips.

Does this make my collector look too fat?
Attachment:
IMG_3185-1.jpg

I wasn’t worried about optimizing power and torque, but the transitions just didn’t look right. So a jig was made to capture the 14.5* head flange angle and the desired chassis exit point.
Attachment:
IMG_3190-1.jpg
Attachment:
IMG_3189-1.jpg

Mounted in the jig, the split bends were removed and massaged into the desired shape on the work bench instead of the car.

So here’s the chubby collector before:
Attachment:
IMG_3184-1.jpg

And the revised, svelte collector after:
Attachment:
IMG_0003-1.jpg

And on the car:
Attachment:
P2164916-1.jpg

I still have filler strips to make and tack into place and the Marman flanges to tack onto the output ends. Then the headers will go out for a proper welding with an argon back-purge setup.

Lesson learned about TIG welding Stainless. #1: Always make sure the argon is turned on before striking an arc on the work (don’t ask me how I know.) #2, Solar Flux works well shielding the back of a weld when you don’t have a proper back-purge setup, even if you are just tacking pieces in place.

Ok, now maybe I’ll get back to the tunnel… Maybe...


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Cheers, Tom

My Car9 build: viewtopic.php?f=35&t=14613
"It's the construction of the car-the sheer lunacy and joy of making diverse parts come together and work as one-that counts."

Ultima Spyder, Northstar 4.0, Porsche G50/52


Last edited by seattletom on April 27, 2020, 1:59 am, edited 1 time in total.

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PostPosted: February 17, 2019, 7:28 am 
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Hi Tom-
Subtle change, but the difference is quite noticeable in the end. Good work!
:cheers:
JDK

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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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PostPosted: February 20, 2019, 8:26 pm 
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GonzoRacer wrote:
Hi Tom-
Subtle change, but the difference is quite noticeable in the end. Good work!
:cheers:
JDK
Thanks, JD. Yes, the change is a bit subtle, but in this case I think function follows form. The more gradual taper to the collector/transition should flow better than the bowl-shape that was there before. Not that more power is needed. :roll:


Anyway, I'm now shaping filler panels for the transitions. Much fettling going on. Tunnel completion is further deferred... :?

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Cheers, Tom

My Car9 build: viewtopic.php?f=35&t=14613
"It's the construction of the car-the sheer lunacy and joy of making diverse parts come together and work as one-that counts."

Ultima Spyder, Northstar 4.0, Porsche G50/52


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PostPosted: February 20, 2019, 9:04 pm 
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Keep plugging away Tom. Pretty soon you won't have anything else but the tunnel to work on ;<)

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PostPosted: February 21, 2019, 8:08 am 
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benny_toe wrote:
Keep plugging away Tom. Pretty soon you won't have anything else but the tunnel to work on ;<)
I was gonna procrastinate, but I decided to put it off until tomorrow... ;)

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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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PostPosted: February 27, 2019, 12:47 pm 
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Tom, it looks really nice. The output seems rather large along with those flanges, it looks like just a 4 cylinder engine in those pics... :rofl:

Is stuff that big the easiest way to do this? I can ask some people that might know, and would like to show the pictures actually. If you have the parts and want to use them, go right ahead though - it looks really nice.

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PostPosted: February 27, 2019, 9:26 pm 
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benny_toe wrote:
Keep plugging away Tom. Pretty soon you won't have anything else but the tunnel to work on ;<)
Hi Larry, and on Car9 tunnels are sort of optional, so I must be getting close to being finished, right? :D
GonzoRacer wrote:
I was gonna procrastinate, but I decided to put it off until tomorrow...
Hey JD, is it procrastination if you spend time on the Locost Forum looking at other people making progress instead of working on your own build...? :roll:
Horizonjob wrote:
Tom, it looks really nice. The output seems rather large along with those flanges, it looks like just a 4 cylinder engine in those pics...
Hi Marcus, yeah the 3" pipe is larger than need be, but that's what fit up best where the manifold flange was cut off and should visually tie-in to the muffler system. And I'm not looking for more low-end torque here... :chev:

I'm still cutting and fitting collector side panels on the headers. Pictures when they're tacked up.

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Cheers, Tom

My Car9 build: viewtopic.php?f=35&t=14613
"It's the construction of the car-the sheer lunacy and joy of making diverse parts come together and work as one-that counts."

Ultima Spyder, Northstar 4.0, Porsche G50/52


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PostPosted: February 28, 2019, 8:15 am 
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Hey JD, is it procrastination if you spend time on the Locost Forum looking at other people making progress instead of working on your own build...?
Guilty as charged, Your Honor! I'll go to the garage now... :mrgreen:

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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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