72 replies to this topic

[Prof. Fate]

Hi

I should dyno them, I have the technology. I THINK the standard wind on the 706 is ca 17,000 rpm, and I would guess that the Ram XL 500 at the same voltage would be about 20. Not 150 by any streach.

My 500 is under a 57 Maserati 450S which seemed fitting. You know the one I mean, the one that was all horsepower and no brakes at Argentina?

Fate

[Duffy]

An update, mostly to keep my own momentum up--trying desperately to get some real building time in between Real Life stuff.

But, scattering bits & pieces across my desk like runestones, I divine the Super Cucumber build will indeed be around the big Stombecker Hemi, inline; likely with a scratch pan frame. Tyres are drying on their wheels now, to be spun down after the dryer stops and skivvies're folded.

Jeez, this Vanwall is one dinkum-capacious shell! Hold it to your ear, you can hear Acton.

Duffy

[Duffy]

It's my sentiment that proper Lost Cause models need proper ground clearance; persuant to that, the real bottleneck on this project is getting some large-enough wheels. After divers false starts I've managed to put together a functional tyre-grinder. Here it is on the happy occasion of its first successful test, on a nice German rubber donut.




Chucking in the handpiece of my old Foredom flex-shaft set keeps the work far away from the motor's cooling rotor--works much better than Dad's hand drill, which blew rubber dust all over Mom's kitchen and incidentally ruined her Stew Of Ultimate Doom (False Start #4, as I recall). Sharp-eyed shooters (are there any other kind? If Stirling Moss liked guns, he'd have said there're three things no man will ever admit to being bad at!) will recognize the scrap aluminum base to be an extrusion for one of the Piccatinny Rail accessory racks. The clamp channel was handy to fix the handpiece to, at about the right height and place.

With the addition of an indicator boom, I could save my precision handpiece and use the chucker; it runs pretty good already, and tweaks to perfect in no time.




It's all scrap bits up front, too; the brass carriage slides along the core-pin way with just the right resistance after one application of rubber dust gumming things up!

Tomorrow I'll destroy a layout scriber to make a sidewall cutter that fits in the same hole as the Dremel drum, with repeat Z measurements by means of spacers between core-pin head and carriage. Shoes for the Vanwall in a couple days, and then I got some ideas for the chassis...

Duffy

[Duffy]

A little slow progress in a very busy couple weeks: started working up inserts for the wheels of this model. We had intended to cast knockoffs onto the inserts to keep flyaway bits to a minimum, and this was the first try at that. Worked out passably I think. I'll cast a few and then make multi moulds of each.. Unfortunately, I gotta wait for more RTV before I can really get going.

Duffy

[Pablo]

bump ??

[Duffy]

Not a chance, Torch Boy. Not in my present Retro State Of Mind.

[dc-65x]

The pull of the Dark Side is strong Pablo

Just kidding Duffy! I know you're doing what you enjoy and that's what matters

[endbelldrive]

It's cool to read the late Prof Fate's wit and wisdom too.

[Duffy]

Yah. Hearing Fate's voice again as I scrolled through these old threads was a real delight for me.

[Duffy]

It's cool to read the late Prof Fate's wit and wisdom too.

 

By the way, the Jaildoor thread titled "Slithery Jungle Tails" is a direct shout-out to Fate. I've told the story somewhere, but I'll repeat.

 

One of Rocky's many hats was "writer" in real places. He was buds with a ton of sf writers - Roger Zelazny, Jerry Pournelle, Gordy Dickson blah blah blah. In the mid -'90s he & several of these guys were in a nonlist together, playing at sharing little story snips written in the styles of various Pulps authors - Haggard, Smith, Farmer or Lovecraft or - just for grins & giggles. At one point Rocky observed, "I'm having a ball with all these 'Slithery Jungle Tales' - "

- And Zelazny freeked. "Oh wow, 'Slithery Jungle Tales,' that's great, we gotta put these out under that title - " and he set out haranguing his publisher to do the collection, allegedly promising his next two titles for free if they'd go for this. Turns out, there wasn't time.

Anyway.

Rocky told me this story at some point, and later as I did the snaky snaky bendy stuff in a couple Jaildoor chassis, I suddenly flashed to the "Tails" idea and ran with it.

The great thing was, Rocky was seriously dyslexic, from childhood, back before we diagnosed & treated those things.. He'd trained himself in an elaborate work-around, though, that resulted in his seeing word forms & groups as raw data that then went right into processing - and he literally did not "hear" words on the page. Wordplay like puns was totally wasted on him.

So I put the "Slithery Jungle TAILS" up, and he never, never hipped to it.

& that was Fate.

 

duf

[stumbley]

Still miss him. Always will.

[Duffy]

Yah.

 

I erased the rest. It's never enough. Just, Yah.

[Duffy]

...and now, a friend is giving me a 704 - style motor to drop into a Vanwall. Jeez, with friends like these, huh?

 

Stay tuned. Or go get a cuppacoffee, you'll see when there's something.

duf

[Duffy]

Hey Pablissimo, "Bump" back atchya!

Paul Jurczyszyn just PM'd me about starting a Vanwall, and here's hoping somebody gets 'round to doing one...I'm digging in my old boxes for those wheel inserts I showed above, for a set he can use. He should be chiming in soon.

 

Duf

[SlotStox#53]

Does this mean there's a resurrection of the Duffy Vanwall build aswell ?  

[Duffy]

...no.

[SlotStox#53]

...no

short ,sweet & to the point... thanks

[Paul Jurczyszyn]

Ya I'm in got the body and put under pillow for osmosis .lol
Ok dreams came to me about this massive body. Input from duff and some Mcd's napkins and came up with a game plan.....
Build to start tomorrow will keep posting but photos still not working right for form. I'll tell you this, it will have a parma motor in it, lol
Just call me Parma Paul.....
Know to get with the drag boys and grab some of the so called used rear tires....... If any one out there has some used H&R drag rears that you replaced I can use the old ones for this project.
Paul J

[Duffy]

I think I got a line on some fronts for you, Paul. Gimme a day or so to figure it all out.

[Paul Jurczyszyn]

Cool your contact emailed me and were set.
Now incerts?
Start bending wire tomorrow.

[Paul Jurczyszyn]

Ok will post pic tomorrow will need help correcting them.
The chassie is my design hope it works but looks great so far....
Paul

[TSR]

My only Vanwall model is this 1/43 scale Solido diecast from 1957, but it is signed by several of its former drivers, so I guess I will keep it...

And yes, both Dan Gurney AND Phil Hill drove one.

 

 

 

 

This little toy was one that Rocky really wanted out of my collection when he visited me.

[Pablo]

RIP Rocky

[Paul Jurczyszyn]

Ok photos yes yell now can't correct no mater what I do they don't come out.
Almost completed few more days she will be on the track for testing.
Paul J

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[Pablo]

The first time you totally gave up and said they are wrong no matter what, now they are perfect.

Whatever you are doing, keep doing it. Up is down, down is up, yes is no, and no is yes. Whatever works, Paul

I really love the engineering on that fat lil chassis, I'm very impressed ! You are The Man now