I am excited to say I can finally start a build log. Like many I have been lurking on Locostusa for quite some time, over 3 years at least when I first heard of Locosts and Sevenesque type cars. I was in Houston Texas at the time working at a boring job that gave me lots of opportunity to browse the internet. After reading page after page after page on the forum, I bought my first book, Build Your Own Sports Car: on a Budget by Chris Gibbs. Just like the forums, I read this multiple times and was completely hooked. I didn’t have the tools or space to build yet so I spent as much time as I could putting together a plan. Like many that plan changed more times than I can remember. I looked at doing a piecemeal car with each piece coming from a different car. I spent some time with VQ Locost, who is also in Houston, looking at using a VQ35 engine out of a Nissan 350Z. I also looked at using the 2.8 V6 that I pulled out of my Fiero when I swapped in a 3.4 DOHC engine back in college.
In mid-2010, I took a new job in Blue Rapids KS. The plan was to find a nice house with a shop there an begin the build. I never felt settled there and never bought a house. I did finally buy my first welder while there, a Hobart 140. This wasn’t the first time I welded, but was the first time I did anything more than exhaust tubing.
In January 2012, I took a new position in my company and back to Cuba Missouri. I grew up close to here, Jefferson City Missouri and went to college at University of Missouri Rolla, so I knew the area and was close to family. Since I had been talking about building a car for so long I was able to convince my wife that any house we bought had to come with a shop for me to build in. We found a wonderful house that came with a 30x48 shop, 5 acres, and in the country just like we wanted. Since getting it I have been moving closer and closer to starting the build. I acquired some tools, upgraded to a Miller 211 welder, acquired a Delta drill press, acquired a Rage III miter saw, bought an additional angle grinder, and got a decent bench grinder from my father in law. As shown in this thread, I acquired two steel tables from work and one of them became my build table (
link). The other is storing other steel I got from work. I knew a guy in the metal business who was able to save steel for me so I got a hell of a deal on all my steel for the build. He does not deal in aluminum so I will need to still get that when the time comes.
A donor fell in my lap in April 2013. I found a local kid who wanted to trade his running Miata
(link) for a sport bike. Well, in the true Locost fashion, I had a GSXF 750 that I no longer rode and wanted to get rid of. So we met up and traded straight up. I have been driving the car since then to iron out any issues with it. The registration on the Miata is due in March so I will continue to drive it until then.
I am not sure how quickly I will be able to complete this build. As everyone knows, life gets in the way. Work, school and family will all come into play. I have a 1 year old daughter and I can’t bear to spend time in the shop when I can be playing with her. I plan to head back to school to get a Masters in Engineering Management at Missouri S&T, formerly University of Missouri Rolla, in the fall of 2014 after I obtain my PMP certification in the spring of 2014. I am committed to this project and will finish it. I have told everyone that it will be done and driving within 5 years of the first cut and that was on October 19 2013. Like many I want to be done within 2 years, but want to allow for the curveballs life throws at you.
My car is going to be a +221 based on the Haynes book, but modified as per the Vodou and Saturn plans. The car will incorporate a bolt on cage and many of the stiffening changes as listed in the Aussie Mods. I will have a welded 18ga floor. The goal for the car is cruiser with some autoX. There isn’t a road course near me otherwise I would do some of that also.
I look forward to any feedback, challenges or ideas any of you have with my build. If you see something odd, please say something. It may save me a headache in the future.