LocostUSA.com

People are going to mess their pants when they see that on the street. Very, very nice!

Bill

pook... what are the steps you take from foam to finished part? do you use chopped strand or mat... how many layers... what do you use to fill imperfections... what do you use for a final coat, ectr

I was thinking of doing flat carbon fiber panels riveted on, but your progress is started to sway me in another direction.

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2007 R1 Powered Mid Engine Street & Track Car
Build Log: viewtopic.php?t=4970

+1

I messed myself and that's only a pic!!

AWESOME work Pook!!

KS

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Check out Firearm Finishes & Coating for options to ceramic coat your Locost parts. Hundreds of stock or custom colors including Chrome and Clear Coating options now available! High Temp options for hot bits!! Plastics too!!

Never become a pessimist. A pessimist is correct oftener than an optimist, but an optimist has more fun, and neither can stop the march of events.-Robert A. Heinlein

HUGE +1... Please share how you went from foam sheet to something with that surface finish/quality.

STRONG WORK!! (read: supremely jealous!)

trial and error...lots of error!
I tried the boat builders for info on glass over foam and you can't really get much from those guy's (they argue about EVERYTHING!) and feel no one with less than 30 years experience shouldn't be allowed to order resin.
However the surfboard guy's are great! (if you can get past the Kewl...dude!) they start with a foam blank and glass over top.
Here is what I've learned/learning
The cheap foam blue/pink stuff from the hardware store sands well, the problem is almost EVERYTHING melts it! I cut my shapes and glue it with 5 min two part epoxy and hold it together with paneling nails while it dries (they have little ribs and won't pull out until your ready to remove them)
After 10 minutes or so I remove the nails and use an exacto knife to slice a v grove in the foam where the epoxy has squeezed out, if you don't then it won't sand like the foam and will leave high spots.
After you sand everything to shape, I use 60 grit paper to scuff the entire surface, this lets the resin bite into the foam.
I use epoxy resin, and lay two layers of 7 to 9oz glass at a time. The epoxy is good and bad, the good is it doesn't eat blue foam, it doesn't stink up the house and it's slow to set. the bad is it's slow to set...like 24 to 48 hours depending on the temp and hardener you use.
I paint the foam with a coat of resin then lay the first layer of glass and wet it out by rolling a foam trim roller brush (this is also putting down another coat of resin for the next layer)
After the second layer is on I use a bondo spreader to squeegee the surface, it pops any bubbles and pulls the excess resin off, then I wrap the edges (Wax paper, thumb tacks, what ever it takes)
I trim all the edges with an exacto blade after 24 hours (to much longer or to many layers and it will take a saw to cut it)
I sand down any high spots or puddles that may have formed and lay the 3rd and 4th layers of 7 or 9oz and do the same. After 48 hours I level and again and fill any low spots with more resin using the bondo spreader to build it up a little.
Grab a block sander and let her rip.
At this point a stray away from others do in that I use a light filler to build in any fillets or fill problem areas. after everything is sanded I layer two more layers OVER the filler and finish with a layer of 4oz cloth (this gives a smoother top layer and encapsulated the filler)
I apply 4 layers of 9oz cloth on the other side of the foam, and lay strips in corners high stress area's etc...
Normally this would not be enough glass, but because it's a foam core layup it's VERY ridged! and petty light just like a surfboard!!
Remember to subtract about an 1/8th inch from the edges of the foam because the top layer will be about and 1/8th thick and the bottom under an 1/8th.
Here is two or three other things to remember.
1. chop strand can not be used with epoxy resin.
2. unlike poly resin epoxy is also a glue so the entire layup doesn't need to be done in one session as long as you scuff and wipe down the previous surface with acetone first.
3. poly resin won't dry over epoxy resin but epoxy will dry over poly? however poly fillers don't care as long as the epoxy has cured.
After it's done you end up with a surface that you can feel the cloth patten, normally this is blocked out by the gel or tooling coat but since it's built up backward and gel coat won't bond well, I use slick sand, It's a high build primer and is ready for paint once it's block sanded.
PooK

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dpook317@att.net

Excellent post, Pook, and I hope it gets stickied somewhere. It will be a great resource for a number of jobs, like engine covers for middies and even whole car bodies.

And the trike is looking fantastic! Very high end.

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Dreaming the dream since 2003. Haynes chassis, Miata uprights, everything else from 1987 NA RX7 donor.

Nice job. You keep getting better and better!

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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

Pook... its been to long. I need an update!

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2007 R1 Powered Mid Engine Street & Track Car
Build Log: viewtopic.php?t=4970

uhm,.... I sold it..... I'm opening a small fab shop and needed the money for tools, projects, etc... The good news is I'm being paid to finish it after I'm done with this one.
PooK

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dpook317@att.net

Pook


j/k its good to see your opening up a shop! it may be a sacrifice now, but the possibilites are endless. You have a priceless talent so use it!

PS START A NEW BUILD THREAD SO WE CAN GOOGLE AT THIS ONE

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2007 R1 Powered Mid Engine Street & Track Car
Build Log: viewtopic.php?t=4970

I know, I know I'm going to keep the build log going though.
Thank you Blue Devil, I am excited about this, It's something I've always wanted to do, I don't plan to manufacture or sell anything, I build. The Exo car is Busa powered and being built for a fellow member in Colorado. It's his design, and thats what I want to do is build specialty cars, trikes, trucks, etc...on a one off basis. want a V-8 bar stool? I'll fab you one up!
I'm using/renting part of the shop I work at now so I get to keep the day job (for now) to pay the bills
I'll ask Steve if he minds a build log.
PooK
www.Pipedreamsfab.com Comings soon!

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dpook317@att.net

I bought Pook's trike project. He is going to work on it after he is done with the off roader, and the Busa powered mid engine car. I'm excited about it and hope to have it on the road in early summer.
We agreed on a 17x10.5 rear wheel with a 315/35-17 Nitto NT555 tire. Should be lots of fun!!! I don't really understand the "jack shaft" concept. I know it uses a secondary axle of sorts to allow the swingarm to rotate without altering the chain slack, but what keeps the secondary axle form bending when the drive chain from the engine sprocket 'pulls' on it? I was thinking adding a second sprocket on the jack shaft might be a good way to add reverse in the future (with a winch motor or something with a retracting gear).
GO Pook!!!

BT

Sorry, I just gotta say it... And if I don't, I bet Hempy will...

I'd chime in on this discussion, but I don't know "Jack Shaft" about it!

There, I feel better now.

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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

You don't have to understand it but whats important to know is unlike a motorcycle, is that the chain doesn't change tension as the wheel goes up and down.

I'm comfortable with my lack of understanding. When I feel sad I go eat a burrito, and everything seems better!

BT