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 Post subject: Re: JAMADOR's Geauxkart
PostPosted: April 27, 2021, 9:30 am 
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I want my roll bar to at least allow for an open casket funeral.

Attachment:
roll bar.jpg


I included a bash bar to protect the fuel cell and use the legs to mate to the rear frame.


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 Post subject: Re: JAMADOR's Geauxkart
PostPosted: April 27, 2021, 9:51 am 
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horchoha wrote:
Guess I must be old, I think a bit differently. Before I built my first 7, The Chevette one, 10 years ago, I built an airplane, and I took flying lessons. The most heart stopping event in my lifetime was taking that flight in my airplane for the first time and asking myself "you built it, would you trust your life in it?" And the simple answer to that was " I took no shortcuts, I've built it to the best of my ability, and it's built by the according to engineering specs." Well that was a few haircuts ago and I'm still here.

What I'm getting at is "you're building it, build it right so you can trust your life in it"


Just want to clarify my comment a little bit. I don't mean to imply that I wouldn't trust my own car or that I specifically made choices, like missed welds, using compromised steel, putting in a cardboard floor, etc., that I thought were unsafe. Moreso along the lines of:

-This should probably have a full cage, but if it ever comes to that I'm likely in serious trouble anyway;

-I should probably wear a helmet at all times while driving this, but if it ever comes to that I'm likely in serious trouble anyway;

-Seeing the gas tank is in the back, protected by a few relatively thin bars, when compared to a F350 going 30 mph, of 16 gauge tube, this should probably have a fuel cell, but if it ever comes to that I'm likely in serious trouble anyway; and,

-Yea, these aren't $3K a piece carbon fiber buckets, but if it comes to me worrying about them shattering and getting pierced with a shard, I'm likely in serious trouble anyway.

Stuff like that. Kind of along the lines of what MV8 said, "The safest car is never driven.", I have made compromises.

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 Post subject: Re: JAMADOR's Geauxkart
PostPosted: April 27, 2021, 10:16 am 
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TooBusy wrote:
I want my roll bar to at least allow for an open casket funeral.

I included a bash bar to protect the fuel cell and use the legs to mate to the rear frame.


I like your thinking on that, but I have two reservations:

1) What's the weak link? We know on a book type chassis it's the 3/4" tube around the back. On yours that's much stronger, so does the chassis/roll structure fold around you when something further forward fails instead? Worth giving some thought to.

2) Curious what the rear skin will look like folded around that large diameter tube.

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 Post subject: Re: JAMADOR's Geauxkart
PostPosted: April 27, 2021, 11:24 am 
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You do what you can, safety wise. Driving these cars is high risk compared to modern production vehicles, but there's no point in worrying too much. You're in or you're out. None of us will survive a side impact from a Chevy Suburban at 40MPH. I'd even speculate that a full cage might not be enough for that case. My town has plenty of Suburbans, lifted F150s, Cadillac Escalades, yada-yada, so I've thought about it.

But, as Alfred E. Neuman said, "What? Me worry?"

Attachment:
Alfred E Neuman.jpg


Cheers,


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 Post subject: Re: JAMADOR's Geauxkart
PostPosted: April 27, 2021, 11:25 am 
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horchoha wrote:
JAMADOR wrote:
I made, roughly, that comment to someone recently.
Something to the effect of: If you roll it, you've done a lot wrong already & are in for a world of hurt.



Guess I must be old, I think a bit differently. Before I built my first 7, The Chevette one, 10 years ago, I built an airplane, and I took flying lessons. The most heart stopping event in my lifetime was taking that flight in my airplane for the first time and asking myself "you built it, would you trust your life in it?" And the simple answer to that was " I took no shortcuts, I've built it to the best of my ability, and it's built by the according to engineering specs." Well that was a few haircuts ago and I'm still here.

What I'm getting at is "you're building it, build it right so you can trust your life in it"

I definitely agree, I'll be giving the legs a look & see if there's a way to strengthen/support that without having to cut & replace.
Being a safe, street drivable, car is plan #1, for sure. My wife will drive it occasionally & my kids are psyched to ride in it (and it's just a skeleton of a frame right now).

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 Post subject: Re: JAMADOR's Geauxkart
PostPosted: April 27, 2021, 1:26 pm 
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I always considered the safety relative to a motorcycle, not a modern car. I'd rather the gas tank behind me with or without extra bars to be about the same as a tank between my legs.

I think that if you are adding bars behind the tank, they should be similar in height to side impact bars. Somebody can check out those specs for certain, somewhere around 300-350mm up from the ground I think

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 Post subject: Re: JAMADOR's Geauxkart
PostPosted: April 27, 2021, 4:48 pm 
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Rennkafer wrote:
TooBusy wrote:
I want my roll bar to at least allow for an open casket funeral.

I included a bash bar to protect the fuel cell and use the legs to mate to the rear frame.


I like your thinking on that, but I have two reservations:

1) What's the weak link? We know on a book type chassis it's the 3/4" tube around the back. On yours that's much stronger, so does the chassis/roll structure fold around you when something further forward fails instead? Worth giving some thought to.

2) Curious what the rear skin will look like folded around that large diameter tube.


1) Weak link on this setup is likely the top rail at my elbow where several tubes converge. But after that pic I made some other chassis mods, so I need to rethink it. I built this setup to spread impact forces in multiple directions. Because of different length legs there is a little more upward bending moment than downward. I compensated for that to a degree with different angles on the legs.

2) The bash bar hides behind the small tube structure the skin rides on.

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 Post subject: Re: JAMADOR's Geauxkart
PostPosted: April 28, 2021, 9:23 am 
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TooBusy wrote:

1) Weak link on this setup is likely the top rail at my elbow where several tubes converge. But after that pic I made some other chassis mods, so I need to rethink it. I built this setup to spread impact forces in multiple directions. Because of different length legs there is a little more upward bending moment than downward. I compensated for that to a degree with different angles on the legs.

2) The bash bar hides behind the small tube structure the skin rides on.


1) That's where I was thinking the force concentration would end up. I'm not nor claim to be an engineer so just an semi-educated guess on my part.

2) Ok, that ought to look "normal" then... wasn't sure how I'd like the large top radius.

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 Post subject: Re: JAMADOR's Geauxkart
PostPosted: April 28, 2021, 1:22 pm 
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JAMADOR wrote:
[W]ow that 13B is heavy for being so small.


There's a reason the slang for one is "keg", they're deceptively dense and full of fun! :cheers:


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 Post subject: Re: JAMADOR's Geauxkart
PostPosted: April 28, 2021, 1:43 pm 
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300D50 wrote:
JAMADOR wrote:
[W]ow that 13B is heavy for being so small.


There's a reason the slang for one is "keg", they're deceptively dense and full of fun! :cheers:

Most definitely.
I've driven a handful of FC RX7s in the past & had an RX8 for a wedding 'getaway car'. Screamed that RX8 to redline all through Bakersfield, CA on the way to the hotel. :twisted:

Need to invest in an engine stand, or get my dad's down here so I can start tearing down this one & see how it looks inside. It spins freely, via the clutch, no noticeable drag that I can tell, very smooth.

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 Post subject: Re: JAMADOR's Geauxkart
PostPosted: April 29, 2021, 1:02 pm 
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Popped up a Dexter kill-room style tent in the garage to try to mitigate the rust dust to a secluded area.
Have worked back to almost the firewall area with a wire brush, lots of nooks & crannies in the engine area.
Image
Image

Also got a lot of the parts stored away & off the ground right next to the work area. Makes getting around the frame a lot easier.
Image
Image
Image
Image
Image

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 Post subject: Re: JAMADOR's Geauxkart
PostPosted: April 29, 2021, 1:45 pm 
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I am always amazed at how much room a car takes up when disassembled. A Locost is not any different.

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 Post subject: Re: JAMADOR's Geauxkart
PostPosted: April 29, 2021, 2:20 pm 
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Definitely.
I think I have 5 tubs of parts, a box with the rear fenders & seat covers, a shelf of suspension, a stack of wheels/tires, and the drivetrain on the ground.
Glad I have a 3-car garage, or it would be quite difficult.

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 Post subject: Re: JAMADOR's Geauxkart
PostPosted: May 3, 2021, 10:53 am 
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Minor progress this weekend.
Got the front half of the frame done & shot with Ospho. Definitely an impressive product. Left a nice matte gray metal.
Hoping to get some help & spin the frame around, so I can start working on the rear. Easier to work at the front of the garage than the back. Hope to get it to the point of being ready for Ospho by the weekend.

Then it'll be checking the fully finished welds with a dye penetrant kit, then she gets shot with primer.

Image

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 Post subject: Re: JAMADOR's Geauxkart
PostPosted: June 1, 2021, 9:51 am 
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Bit of progress over the weekend.
Tackled the back half of the car & got it shot with the Ospho. That wraps up almost all of the rustoration. Just need to get it flipped over & do a once-over on the underside.

Used a motorcycle jack as a frame dolly & carted it into the driveway so I caould get a couple dropcloths down, to keep the Ospho off the garage floor. Worked pretty well, luckily the frame is relatively light.
Popped it back up on jackstands & set to work.

Next up, after getting the underside done, is getting a coat of primer on the whole frame. Then the welding can commence.

Image

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