Kurtis body

[Sean in CT]

Richard - i have a patient who is in the carbon fiber biz- he offered to pull a plug for $$$$ (CF isnt cheap) I like the aluminum, hand made feel tho.
I think an XK engine is way too tall, long and heavy. makes less HP too, than the little supercharged ecotec. Of course the"little" supercharged ecotec is just as wide as an LS and slightly taller.

[Sean in CT]

Using my social distancing time to work on nose. Im going to try to gas weld the aluminum rather than TIG. I have an old victor torch
which i have been practicing with, but just ordered a Meco Midget torch from http://www.tinmantech.com with the super-flexible hoses for better control.
Gas welding leaves a softer weld, less distortion and no need to weld the back (like TIG). Looks a lot like a 7 nose, but i was really just copying Kurtis's
original design (first pic) ca. 1953

[Sean in CT]

I tack welded the nose together. This was a milestone for me b/c the center of the nose was the first panel i ever made.
Did it while taking the metal fab class at Proshoper. Looks like a big 7 nose - the grill opening is 28" x 10"
Not sure what 7's typically are, but prob a lot narrower. I removed the wooden buck/hammerform since it is now
(almost) self supporting

[BostonWill]

Your work on the nose is stunning! That requires a lot of patience. I always admired the lines of the Kurtis. Like a Mercedes W196 with an American flair!

Mercedes W196.jpg

Thom

[Sean in CT]

Thanks! Since Kurtis built his cars in the LA area, post WW2 they were very aircraft influenced. I tried to make the nose opening look like a WW2 aircraft engine cowl.
The european cars tended to have a sharper radius on the inside of the nose opening whereas Kurtis used a much larger one.
In January, i went to the mercedes museum in Stuttgart. The last display was all race cars from the 50s - so cool. I think my friends thought id have a seizure.

FYI - me and 2 friends went snowboarding in St Anton Austria for 4 days, then 2 days in Stuttgart to see the mercedes and porsche museums.
The whole trip was spectacular and cost less than 4 days in Breckenridge! Highly recommended and a lot less $$ than one would expect!

[Sean in CT]

Working on my doors. I made a frame with 1 x 1x 1/6 steel. I made hinges that i copied from a 50s maserati 300S (see first pic.)
Used a generic Cobra style door latch (used in England as far back as 19th century on carriages)
Then i made an innerskin that fit the opening with 1/4" gap all around. I riveted flanges on the inside of it to bolt to steel door frame.
Then I made an outer skin with a slight crown, maybe 3/16". I flanged it on top and its getting welded on the other 3 sides (already did the rear edge)
Then ill grind to get the gaps nice. I might try to slip a piece of felt between the panels to minimize rattle.

[TooBusy]

That is exceptionally cool.
Nice work Sean

[Lonnie-S]

Nice. How did you handle the rivet heads on the street side of the door panels?

Cheers,

[Sean in CT]

Lonnie - the door has an inner and outer skin. The inner skin is pretty flat and the outer has a small crown. I used flush/countersink rivets. I never made a door before - I was trying to preserve as much elbow room as possible but i also wanted it sturdy. Feels pretty good and its only clamped in place.

[Sean in CT]

Making progress...right side hood top and side panels almost done. Top piece needs hinge, side needs louvers
Making the inner and supporting structures takes 5x a long as making the panels. Next car, i will def build all the inner structure before starting on panels
The door opens an closes. Modified the hinge so it does not hit my knee anymore

[Sean in CT]

Been working on the Kurtis. lots of progress, tho most of it is under the skin.

My so-called-friends talked me into leaving bare aluminum. The body work
is paint grade, but with a good polish and some bright sunlight, it should
look pretty cool

[seattletom]

Beautiful Work! It looks fantastic.

[Lonnie-S]

Wow, that is so impressive, Sean. It looks fabulous.

I've been following your build since the begining, so I know where you started in terms of metalshaping. I guess it's been quite a journey, huh?

Being able to do such work has been a dream of mine for a long time. I'm envious (in a nice way) of what you've accomplished. Bravo!

Cheers,

[JAMADOR]

Wow, that's pretty awesome. My first thought was early Mercedes GP cars, read older posts & see I'm not the only one.

[RTz]

Gorgeous work!