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Learning how to build Lotus Seven replicas...together!
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PostPosted: August 27, 2010, 9:00 pm 
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I've been holding off starting a build log because I'm superstitious. I figure that if I began recording the process of building a new car in a place where others can follow along, discuss the details, and help correct the missteps, then I'm sure to flounder and never finish. So it is with my fingers crossed and a leap of faith in the karmic value of open source development that I begin this log.

I've been planning this build for a while now. Probably a year or two, on and off. I've rebuilt, restored, and modified a few cars over the years, but never built one like this from the ground up. I figure I've got the experience and skills to do it; I just need to remember to be patient and do it right. No cutting corners, measure twice cut once, think before hitting the welder button, and model before building. All the stuff our mentors reminded us to do but often gets forgotten in the rush to do something, anything.

I'm in no hurry to slam this car together. It can take a year, or two, or three if it needs to. I figure it probably will take that long because like many others, I do stuff like building things in my spare time as therapy. Real life and its responsibilities as a husband, father, and provider come first. Creative time in the garage happens when the schedule allows.

So, what am I building? Well, like the title suggests it's modern Lotus 7 variant powered by a Kawasaki ZX14 motor. While this engine is not among those typically considered low cost, I did pick it up for a steal (less then a grand) from a friend who totaled his bike and lived to tell about it. So in this instance, I hope the ladies and gentlemen of the jury will show leniency and allow me to continue to use the term Locost.

I'm planning on making the frame pretty close to book size, but with a few tweaks here and there. I really admire the shape and lines of the classic 7 car, but also feel there are some evolutionary changes of the chassis that can be incorporated while maintaining the soul and spirit of the original. Some of the modern designs like the Caterham CSR and MNR Vortex frames demonstrate how small changes can make a big difference. Their construction of the front end as a nearly separate box that's tied into the rest of the frame is a great example. Building the front end around a well-designed suspension instead of fitting the suspension into an existing structure just makes sense. It may not be original recipe, but I'm not to worried about impressing the judges at the British only car show.

The front will be inboard shocks, probably also bike based. I know that’s opening up a can of worms, but I kind of like worms (mmm, gummy worms).

The rear will be IRS, with probably a Ford diff in the middle. The Subi’s look nice as well, but the Fords have a wider gearing range and LSD versions appear to be widely available.

It may seem strange but I’m holding off on deciding on right or left hand drive for a while. Not till I see how the motor fits in the frame anyway. I’d prefer a left hand drive cause I live in the States, but right hand works better for bike engines turned sideways. Less clutter with the pedals and steering, and better weight distribution as well.

A cage is a requirement for me. The car probably won’t see much wheel-to-wheel action on the track, but survival on the road is a must. It could be a bolt on, it might be a weld on, either way it’s going to need to offer a modicum of security in a roll over or other off road adventure.

So where I’m at now is cleaning and sorting the garage, getting rid of old car stuff that’s in the way, and prepping the space to do some building. I have most of the tools I need except for a metal band saw (used a friends recently and I won’t go back to the messy evil chop saw again) and resurfacing the welding table.

I’ve also been doing the required research (web based and book based) and gleaning ideas from everywhere I can. This forum is a remarkable resource and I expect to be turning to the LocostUSA brain trust on a regular basis. I can promise you that many of your better ideas (and a few not so good as well) will find there way into this car. I will try to give credit where credit is due.

My Dad said we should keep reminders of our goals handy to keep us focused. Here are a couple pictures I keep close at hand. Now to construct something just like them in British racing green!
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PostPosted: August 27, 2010, 11:36 pm 
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Welcome. I think your off to a good start and have a great attitude. Are you sure you don't want a Saab two stroke in the car? :) I saw a nice one on the highway this summer.

The Subie diff is nice and light, but I think the consensus is you need some really low ratios to make the bike engine work well. Sounds like a good size, it's nice to be able to do some mileage with the motor in a comfortable rev range.

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PostPosted: August 28, 2010, 3:18 pm 
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The idea of a Saab 2 stroke 7 has crossed my mind, and I do so like the smell of 2 stroke oil in the morning, but even at their best they put out a whopping 47 hp and are finicky. Both my current vintage Saabs use the mighty Ford V4 motor. Not much more power (stock 84 hp) but way more reliable and dependable. I'll attach a pic of my modified '68 model 96 below. Lots of fun to drive and tough as nails.

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-2.jpg


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PostPosted: August 28, 2010, 4:11 pm 
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oddsaabs wrote:
Attachment:
-2.jpg

:shock: :shock: shades of vintage! there was one verrry similiar around 30 years ago on the bay area scca tracks.

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PostPosted: August 28, 2010, 6:43 pm 
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Your correct of course. Saab 96's and Sonett's have campaigned for years in various venues from short track to road courses to rally. They are well designed cars that can go fast with the right set up and a driver who knows how to coax them around the turns with their foot to the floor. This one has seen very little driving in anger. Mostly spirited trips in the hills and the occasional auto x.

I had some fun working in wood the past few days building a model of the front suspension. I wanted to see how things fitted together and play with ideas for a Hayabusa m/c shock. I'll attach some pics below and here is a link to a little video I shot of the machine working. I was so jacked to see things go up and down that I just couldn't resist shooting a home movie!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=On11aPBKVMQ

I'll admit right here to being rather old school when it comes to design and fabrication. Not much of a digital designer, I'd rather build stuff in real space and see how it works then take it apart and do it again. Not very efficient I'm sure, but it's how I work. So when it came time to think about how to build the front end, which I think will be the starting spot for the car, I'm playing with wood and first to see how it all fit together.

The Hayabusa shock has just under 3" of travel including the bump stop. Should be plenty if the suspension ration is around 2:1. As we all know however the spring strength will need to increase at the square of the travel ratio. Thankfully, the 'Busa shocks come stock with a 700 pound spring and there are aftermarket springs available up to 1100#. So I think if I can make it fit, I can make it work.

I spent some time measuring the travel of the push rod at the rocker arm through 5" (3 bump' 2 droop) then measured how much the output of the rocker moved through the same travel. As dumb luck would have it the ratio is almost perfect for the available shock travel. 5" of wheel travel created 2 3/8" of shock travel using the stock 'Busa rocker/bellcrank. I don't know that I could have designed one better from scratch! The bonus is the piece is already built for the job and has nice pivots and bearings in place for the job.

Then I added a few diagonals and a connector to tie the bottom to the top. I couldn't X brace the top cause the shock was in the way, so I created a Y instead. Just playing around at this point seeing what works and what doesn't.

I look forward to any comments and critiques from the gallery.


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PostPosted: September 12, 2010, 8:38 pm 
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Got the table built today. At it's core are some 2x4ish sized aluminum extrusions I scored from a local construction site. Their nice and sturdy and very straight. I screwed a sheet of 3/8 plywood to the bottom, a 1/2" sheet of OSB on top, then topped it off with a 1/8" sheet of hardboard so I have a friendly work surface. Should hold up fine for what it needs to do and only cost me $25.

I cut the width of the table top to 44" so it's easy to work on. 42" frame width plus an inch on each side for good measure. Narrower table means it won't be so hard to lean into the middle to work or clamp from the edge.

I built a couple metal tubed saw horses to hold it up from some old tubing I had laying around. They will also be able to hold the frame as well after I get it off the table.

I used some blue tape to lay out the bottom rails because I could and wanted to play. It was fun.

This week I'll head out and score some tubes, install the new blade in my recently acquired HF band saw (on sale this week) and cut some steel. Perhaps by next weekend I'll have some tubes tacked.
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PostPosted: September 12, 2010, 11:51 pm 
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You might even be able to put your car on those stands when it's done. They look about like the ones I put the race car on. Nice score on the extrusions. Makes you wonder what you could do if you could get any shape you want...

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PostPosted: September 14, 2010, 11:33 am 
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The saw horses are a little tall to use as a car stand as they are but will work to hold the frame once it's off the table. Later, once it's a roller, then I'll cut them down a bit and use them to hold the car as you suggest. Not as nice as the folding ones you can take to the track, but they'll be fine for home use.

The aluminum tubes were a good score for sure. I have a habit of rubber necking at construction sites like an old lady passing a garage sale. You never know what's lurking in the dumpster. When I was younger I'd usually get chased away by someone on the the site. I have noticed however that now that I have reached a certain age folks tend to assume I must be there for a reason. I get much less flak climbing up the ladder and peering over the edge of the rollback then I used to. Maybe they think I'm inspecting the site or something. Look official, speak nicely, shake hands, and it's amazing how helpful folks can be.

Visited my friends at Sherburne Steel today and came home with some tubing. Once the new saw blade arrives I can start making a mess!

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PostPosted: September 14, 2010, 2:02 pm 
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oddsaabs wrote:
I've been holding off starting a build log because I'm superstitious. I figure that if I began recording the process of building a new car in a place where others can follow along, discuss the details, and help correct the missteps, then I'm sure to flounder and never finish. So it is with my fingers crossed and a leap of faith in the karmic value of open source development that I begin this log.


Welcome aboard! Don't be afraid the crowd is generally friendly and helpful. Your build log will turn into something you can look back on years down the road to remind yourself just how far you've come. - If you just realize one thing up front you'll appreciate the build-logging experience much more.

- You cannot control what is posted in 'your' build log.

This is an OPEN forum with OPEN write access to everyone. If you don't want a critique of what you plan to do, post about it AFTER you've done it, you get much less chatter that way. If you genuinely don't know which direction to go, just ask, you'll get a flood of responses, almost all of them helpful. There are many great folks on this forum with a wealth of knowledge. Tap into it, you'll save heartache, wasted time and $!

oddsaabs wrote:
A cage is a requirement for me.... It could be a bolt on, it might be a weld on, either way it’s going to need to offer a modicum of security in a roll over or other off road adventure.


Modicum. I love it. I like you already.
You and your vocabulary are a welcome additon to the forum!
Keep us posted. 1400 high reving cc's will make one heck of a locost!

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PostPosted: September 19, 2010, 10:16 pm 
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Got to spend most of the day in the garage. Came out with the skeleton all tacked up. Was going to start on the cross bracing when the dinner bell rang and it was time to bring everything back into my tiny garage that I had moved out in the morning so I could work. I only remembered to take a pic after the process, so no, my garage isn't that crowded when I'm working in there.
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PostPosted: September 23, 2010, 9:03 am 
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Scored a few hours in the garage and got some bracing done as well as getting the vertical tubes to hold the FCA brackets in the correct spot.

Next up, swing in the motor for rough placement so I can get and idea of what the tunnel will look like and get that roughed in.
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PostPosted: September 23, 2010, 12:46 pm 
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I hauled my motor out this morning and tested in a couple positions within the frame.

1. Shifted to the left. This creates a shallow driveshaft angle (3 degrees) but forces me into a RHD situation. Not a deal breaker for me, but being a Yank, LHD is easier all around. The left shifted motor also places more weight on that side and allows the driver to balance that weight. The foot areas are also pretty equal side to side.
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left placement front.JPG

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2. Center shifted motor. This allows for RHD, but creates a steeper drive angle (8 degrees) and makes the passenger foot area smaller.
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central placement.JPG

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center placement driveshaft.JPG


There are benefits and drawbacks to both options. Which do you like? I'm open for suggestion and comment.

Note: Sorry the pics are turned. I didn't intend that to happen, really.


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PostPosted: September 26, 2010, 5:35 pm 
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After much deliberation, and the input of some respected builders, I decided to go with a LHD set up. What finally nailed it for me was going back out to the driveway and shifting the motor to the right and fwd as far as it could reasonably go. This created a drive angle of 6 degrees and will still allow space for a steering shaft.

I mapped out various configurations of carrier bearing placements for the 2 piece drive shaft. Sorry but no pics of that as I often forget to shoot when I'm working. I'll contact a couple drive shaft makers after I have the motor in it's final spot and figure out diff placement. No rush for any of this as fitment for these items isn't even expected until springtime.

In the mean time I spent some time with the bracing in the engine space and getting the front shock mounts placed. It's all just tacked in right now, so if anyone sees something I missed please holler at me!

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I didn't have the other mounting tabs for the left bellcrank pivot, so that will have to wait till I get a couple more. I've used the folks at AA Mfg before for small parts. They haven't messed up an order on me yet

Next up is getting the frame welded up. I want to get this done so I can get some primer on it before it gets cold here in upstate NY. Once the snow arrives (next 2 months for sure) work in garage moves downstairs to the basement where I can hibernate doing things like modifying the steering rack, fixing up a differential and working out the electrics. The frame will get cold treated for a few moths so I don't want it to get rusty as well.

As an aside, I did figure out which rear end I will be using. I scored a Ford 7.5 LSD diff the other day for under $30! Now I need to find an inexpensive non-LSD diff in the case with the proper ratio and I'll be halfway home. I've never rebuilt a diff before, but Momma always told me to do something new every day.

Gotta stop by the welding supply this week to get some gas so I can make the switch back over from fluxcore for the frame welding. F-core is fine for the tacks, but way to messy for real welds.


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PostPosted: October 3, 2010, 6:55 pm 
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What a beautiful weekend. Fall has arrived in the northeast with all it's glory. Clear blue skies, crisp temps, and the leaves are just about at peak colors. They haven't all fallen yet, so raking can wait for one more week. That means one more weekend where I can grab some time in the garage before it gets colder and I need to work indoors.

I carried the frame outside to weld it up but quickly found the refreshing breeze too much for the mig shielding gas and took it back inside to finish up. I still had a heck of a time making consistant welds. I switched to .023 wire, experimented with various settings and speed, I even changed the ground clamp. I still found my usually reliable welder quite finiky and the welds inconsistent. They will all work fine, I just like them looking good as well. I had my eye on one of those little 115v tig machines, but at 2K I figured I could tinker with my old mig for many years still to come.

After the frame was welded all around (it takes a few time before you find all the joints) I tacked on some suspension brackets I got from AA Mfg this week. I decided to give these a try even though they don't have the 20 degree bend like Jack's do. I figured that if I liked them I could always bend them in the vise.

Well after getting them in place and tweeking with my front suspension mock-up, I was more convinced then ever that Kinetic's 2 piece pick-ups are the way to go. These where just too heavy and didn't look right. I'll find a use for them somewhere, just not to keep the front end together.
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This AM I carried the frame back outside and washed it down to get the grease and stuff off. Then a treatment with Metal Prep, and finally a coat of self etching primer. Probably overkill with the phosphate treatment AND self etching primer, but rust never sleeps. This way the frame can stay coated through the long cold winter without getting that depressing coat of surface rust everyone hates to see.

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Then I took the frame table apart and put the pieces away for future use. I might need it again in the spring when I build the rear end, but if I do then it's easy enough to put back together. Till then the frame can rest on the saw horses and I save a bunch of space in my tiny crowded garage. It also eliminates that big flat surface so many of us have found just attracts stuff. I'm trying to fight my cluttered nature and keep a tidy work space this time. I hope removing the junk magnate will help.

It was an expensive week. I got a great deal on a Ford 7.5" LSD for under $50. That was rewarding as it looks nearly new. My big buy was a low profile oil pan for the zx14 motor. I got a good deal on it but it was still $600! It's very nice and all, and required for using a non-dry sump motor in a car, but still it was an expensive part. Sort of balances out the great deal I got on the motor in the first place.

I bought the pan from Two Wheel Werkz, a small machine shop in Indiana. Great guy who makes lots of go fast parts for drag bikes and such. His pan is new so he has an introductory price running. A similar pan from Adams Engineering runs $850! While I won't need the pan until next spring when I actually mount the motor in the car I figured I'd spend the $ now to save some later.

The pan is also needed to reduce the height of the motor. The zx14 is pretty tall and much of that comes from a rather deep oil pan that is cut to allow clearance for the exhaust. The aftermarket pans improve oiling issues with cornering by use of baffles and swinging doors. It is also 4" shallower then the stock pan which will help a lot with installation.

So I have an order in with Jack at Kinetic for parts to make the front control arms as well as pick-ups. Once those are made and mounted then my list of stuff to get done before it gets cold will be much shorter. Then I can move inside and tinker with the growing list of ancillary projects all winter.

As always, questions and comments are welcome.


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PostPosted: October 10, 2010, 7:28 pm 
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Not much exciting happened with the car this week. Good week to get stuff done around the house and get those leaves raked. Some of them anyway. The trees are still 1/2 full, so theres still more fun to come.

A was having trouble getting the springs off the Hayabusa shocks. Most M/C shocks have springs that are short enough that when you screw the perch all the way down they are loose enough to get the cap off. The #700 Busa springs however are still under tension with the perch at the bottom, so some compression is needed. I stopped by a local motorcycle shop but their lever type compressor kept sliding off. The screw type compressors I already had were too big, so I spent $30 and picked up a pair of smaller screw types for motorcycles off ebay. They worked just fine.

With the springs finally off the shocks I could mess with the front shock and bellcrank positioning a bit more. I'll need to wait till the control arms are fabbed up and a push rod installed to confirm how they work, but so far so good.

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I did slip out for a while on Saturday AM to take a spin in my old Saab. I went up to my friends garage where I've got a few old parts cars out back in the hospice (bone yard). It was such a beauty day I stopped by a boat ramp on Onieda lake to snap a pic. I couldn't get an angle with both the sun at my back and the lake in front. That will teach me to drive the north shore.

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My Kinetic order should be here by next weekend so I'll have plenty to do between leaf raking sessions. Maybe it's time to get the kid raking leaves while I supervise from the garage.


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