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Learning how to build Lotus Seven replicas...together!
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PostPosted: May 18, 2015, 4:49 pm 
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Location: san francisco bay area
JackMcCornack wrote:
Mind if I contact Mr. H about making a less dramatically compound curved windshield? Since...
> It has a pretty sever compound bend. We wouldn’t be interested in the job due to the difficulty.
...there's an implication that a less severe bend might be of interest.


Me? I don't mind at all, in fact you're in a better position to use the information than I am.
I had them in a contact list from to a construction bid a couple of years ago and somehow remembered they existed.

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PostPosted: May 18, 2015, 9:10 pm 
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I've been trying to remember the name of the glass company. I haven't been able to. It was in the early nineties. And, one of my issues is memory loss stemming from a bicycle accident. I started down a hill, I remember that. The next memory is 2 days later in the hospital. I've had problems remembering things since then.
I'm pretty sure I found the glass company through an article in a Kit Car Magazine. For my cars I have ended up adapting existing windshields for my use.

I have had a good number of people contact me to purchase the molds. Thank you for that. Someone that I have had contact through emails before has told me that he is buying them and sent payment today.


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PostPosted: May 20, 2015, 12:12 am 
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were the molds sold? Hoping that they went to someone who plans to produce and sell bodies....


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PostPosted: May 20, 2015, 12:34 pm 
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Yes, the molds have been sold. I believe the new owner will be offering bodies. I'm sure that he'll make a post when things are set.

I am forwarding the contact info from everyone that emailed me about getting a body to the new owner. I think the molds are in good hands.


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PostPosted: June 3, 2015, 8:07 am 
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I am interested in your molds, can you contact me at 319-389-5496/ My name is David ? My email is wendyanddavid@hotmail.com By the way what state are you in, I am in Iowa?


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PostPosted: June 24, 2015, 1:22 pm 
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Hi David and everyone. My name is Berkeley Choate. My partner, Justin Brown and I are the new owners of the molds. They need some TLC, but in general are very well made and professionally done. I am confident that they will put out some gorgeous panels. When we have the first complete set of panels in our hands, we will assemble them to a rudimentary chassis to test for fitment. Once we are satisfied with the overall quality, we expect to offer body sets for sale. We will start a new thread so that you guys can follow our progress, as there's no better way to get a sense of what the kit is comprised of and how it goes together than to watch others do it.

I'm just going to put it out there that this is no two-piece, slip-over-the-chasis-and-go deal. There are 20 pieces to the panel set, and they comprise a package that is more complete than many if not most panel sets on the market. There will be doors, a dashboard, fire walls, a seat pan and such. This will make for a more sophisticated final product than some kits, but probably more time spent making it all go together as well. Someone who buys a panel set should be a fairly experienced fabricator, not a newbie.

Our long range plan is to offer it with a chassis and miscellaneous bits so that anyone with a modicum of ability can make it go together, but that will take development time in addition to our day jobs, so don't hold your breath. There are a bunch of possible donor combinations, but it looks like our pilot build will feature a 2.3 Liter Duratech motor, a Porsche transmission, and Miata-based suspension, steering and brakes. 160 HP doesn't sound like a lot till you figure that the entire car will probably be around 1300 lbs. in this configuration, giving it a 8:1 power to weight ratio (Better than the new Mustang GT with 435 HP) to go with the slippery body and great weight distribution. Once we've got that build dialed in, we're looking at a plethora of other driveline combinations from motorcycle-based, to electric, to V6.

If you have questions prior to our build thread, feel free to PM me or contact us via Justin's website:

http://www.lightningbugcars.com/kits.html

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PostPosted: June 24, 2015, 7:37 pm 
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Location: Vacaville, California
Berkeley, where will the kits be made...Pacifica? Thanks, Stan

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PostPosted: June 24, 2015, 7:54 pm 
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Nah, we have contracted with Curtis Unlimited outside of Eureka CA. They've been making fiberglass bodies for European sports and race cars for 30 years, and I expect excellent results from them.


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PostPosted: June 24, 2015, 9:07 pm 
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Location: Vacaville, California
kreb wrote:
Nah, we have contracted with Curtis Unlimited outside of Eureka CA. They've been making fiberglass bodies for European sports and race cars for 30 years, and I expect excellent results from them.
Yes, and they're still using the same techniques and materials they were 30 years ago, too. :lol:

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PostPosted: June 24, 2015, 11:44 pm 
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Is there a problem? I know that they aren't vaccum-bagging or laying pre-preg, but the quality that I've seen in their work for Jack Mckormack has been first-rate.


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PostPosted: June 25, 2015, 2:39 pm 
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The primary shortcomings of their techniques and materials are excessive weight, low strength and low Tg (which allow parts to sag and deform when they get hot). If those factors are secondary to low cost, then it's not a problem.

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PostPosted: June 25, 2015, 3:02 pm 
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Stan, I greatly admire the Stohr sports racers that Dauntless builds and agree that modern materials and costs are well worth the money for such endeavors, but man, this is LocostUSA, where much is secondary to low cost, and 30 year old construction techniques* are par for the course. What these guys are doing isn't going to win them a DSR national championship (of which your car has 15, right?) but as far as a cool car a locoster can afford, I'm following their project with great interest.

BTW, Fay Curtis just makes the Haynes Roadster nose and scuttle for Kinetic, out other parts come from a conventional commercial fiberglass fab shop.

*Heck, we're still building steel space frame chassis, for one example.

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PostPosted: June 25, 2015, 3:35 pm 
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I bought my clamshells from Curtis Unlimited and was pleased with them. Back a few years on Locost NA there was some complaining about Curtis. Some didn't like the casual approach to business they have. Some thought the fiberglass quality was poor. Well, I did have to email Fay when I didn't hear from them after placing my order. They had lost my order. I also had to email Fay again after the parts arrived because there wasn't a bill. I didn't mind a bit. I knew that I was dealing with a small niche supplier that was in business to help out nuts not become Amazon.
As far as the quality goes, I realized that I would need to block sand and do some filling before paint. I think some were expecting parts that were ready to go and were disappointed. I guess it comes down to expectations. I got exactly what I expected so I was happy. Oh, the price was good too.

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PostPosted: June 25, 2015, 3:59 pm 
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I'm glad to hear that Fay is still making parts. I read on another forum that Burt had passed, so I had some doubts about Curtis still making the body parts.


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PostPosted: June 25, 2015, 4:15 pm 
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Jack makes a good point. I solicited a number of bids, and the companies that I dealt with primarily fell into three camps:

-High-end fabricators: Fantastic quality, options for carbon fiber, pre-preg, vaccum bagging, et cetera. They were quoting me prices in the 10 to 12 thousand dollar range for a standard layup. Let's say I mark their price up 20 percent to cover my cost in buying and refinishing the molds, and for my time. How many people here are going to pay 14 large for a set of panels? Crickets...

-Yahoos: Guys who do fiberglass repair and such. They've got a few undocumented immigrants out back, a brother-in-law that helps after hours, and hey, that'd be a good filler project when things get slow....

-Outfits that can provide quality at an affordable price point and who aren't too far away. It's a darn short list. I'm sure that there are a few out there, possibly in Los Angeles or Nevada (I'm in the San Francisco bay Area), but they're difficult to find. My finalists were Curtis and Superior Glassworks. Superior is a much more mainstream outfit than Curtis, their prices are comparable and their reputation good. But Superior is twice as far away, and I like and have confidence in Fay, so that's the way that we went. (Sometimes I forget to say we. All these decisions are made by Justin and I together as 50/50 partners).


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