LocostUSA.com

I drove the existing roller bearings out of the bellcrank and took a measurement. Just about 1 1/6" (1.0625), or 27mm. Called our good friends at Rod End Supply and their sending out a couple lined spherical bearing with an OD of 1.0937". Close enough that I can make it work with a little sand paper and elbow grease.

Next job is to make a threaded clevis that fits around the aluminum bellcrank. I have a couple parts hanging around that I can make work, but someone suggested that a lawnmower repair shop might have the part I need.

I'll update with pics as I go.

_________________
Jonathan
Building a ZX14 powered Locost.

"Go out hard, when it hurts, speed up." Matt Carpenter

0.8mm is going to take more than elbow grease, you may need to get it reamed. For the clevis maybe you can use cutoffs from some standard size steel channel, that's what I do for my rear shock mounts..

I believe he is talking about a light press fit so it won't require that much material removal.
I'd use a flap sander chucked in a drill.

I suggest 1.5" instead of 1" strip for better gussets that will still clear the rocker.

_________________
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

Question for the guru's (you know who you are), Just how well will a loose-press-fit, flap-wheel-honed spherical bearing resist walking without the use of internal retainer rings? I guess it might depend on how far the rod angle is away from 90 deg. Just thinking......

_________________
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

I was wondering the same thing. Maybe a "put the bearing in the freezer and blowtorch the arm" type fit would be enough?

Excellent point!

I didn't say flap the full length id. A few seconds with a flap is like an hour with sandpaper and no aching hands. It isn't as though the assembly is spinning. A flap provides a uniform load across the area if it is parallel to the tube and produce a small step where a finger tip will not. He could add a few knurls on the aft side too or braze a stop ring.

I would just make a new rocker with offset arms.

_________________
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

What kind of bearings does that rocker arm use on it's pivot? It may not be designed to take an offset load.

_________________
Marcus Barrow - Car9 an open design community supported sports car for home builders!
SketchUp collection for LocostUSA: "Dream it, Build it, Drive it!"
Car9 Roadster information - models, drawings, resources etc.

Is it possible to move the rocker and shocks mounting point to make everything run square, or is it too late to make such a major change?

If the rocker and shock are in line with the center of the LCA then the shock interferes with the steering rack. So the rocker and shock are moved rearward a couple inches and everything fits pretty well.

I'm planning on using a hone to make the pivot hole and new spherical bearing fit properly. That and a torch to the rocker and the leaving bearing in the freezer for the night should do the job nicely. I've got access to a press, so hopefully it all squeezes together without much drama.

There shouldn't be much side loading on the bearing as the offset is only a few degrees, so I'm not that worried about it slipping. But now that the concern has been raised I'll be sure to keep my eye on it for signs of movement.

Thanks for the cool drawing. I've got to learn how to do that some day. Perhaps when life slows down over the winter. That looks pretty much like what I had in mind except the clevis will be pivoting on the spherical bearing so the pushrod connection will be square to the clevis not set at an angle.

I'll update you all when the bearing gets here and I have a chance to play with it. Probably sometime next week.

_________________
Jonathan
Building a ZX14 powered Locost.

"Go out hard, when it hurts, speed up." Matt Carpenter

If you want a nice round parallel hole through that rocker, a wheel cylinder hone may be the best thing for taking out the very last little bit of metal. It will be very slow going, but it makes a nice hole.

Sorry for the delay in getting back.. I was stuck in DC for a cooking competition.

Those shocks are from a Yamaha R1 (07 I believe). If you search on eBaste, you can find them as complete assemblies, with center pivot and bearings. They are very versatile, as you supply the out board pivots (I shimed my Rod Ends into it!), so they can be anything you need, rather than trying to make what you have fit.

Take a look at some of the other motorcycle mfg options, maybe you can mix and match. The pivots are very similar through out the different mfg's, so you might find something that'll work!

Cheers!

KS

_________________
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

I'm curious what kind of travel those have?

_________________
-Keith

Hey Acer! 1.89" from stop to stop. That is with the external bumper removed. It may seem small, but I designed for this in two different ways.

I wanted 6" of wheel travel and for the front, their stock pivot gave me a 2:1(edit:sorry.. 1st design.. later changed to 3:1) ratio without any geometry changes. I made my own reducer for the rears and was within .50" of designed travel if I added the bumper to take the shock load out of the "up" travel.

The second reason is that the shock rates are insane, anywhere from 550-700lbs depending on whom you talk to. I believe they are more the 500lb flavors. The 700lb versions appear to have been a special order and only one year. So with a 2:1(edit:sorry.. 1st design.. later changed to 3:1) ratio you start working in the realm of "normal" auto spring rates. They are very progressive in nature, with a large preset range, so if they don't work as-is, I'm sure I can find something that will be exactly what I want given all the different bikes that use the same basic design of shock.

Cheers!

KS

_________________
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

Thanks for the info! I thought that those coils looked pretty beefy!

_________________
-Keith

A 2:1 spring ratio means you end up with a 4:1 wheel rate. I guess I'm a little concerned that you've taken an existing shock and decided that you'll end up with 6" total travel, AND will end up with the right wheel rate. That is very unlikely to happen.

_________________
Midlana book: Build this mid-engine Locost!, http://midlana.com/stuff/book/
Kimini book: Designing mid-engine cars using FWD drivetrains
Both available from https://www.lulu.com/