35 replies to this topic

[woodman]

Pics of my sprints from 20 years ago. All steel wire added to a brass Sprint Plus chassis.

[woodman]

So with an oval track being resurrected at our local track Raytown International Raceway...

It looks like I have to start scratchbuilding some 1/32 sprint car frames, after I brought these in to show around, the word got out... Only the aluminum "beer can" wings will be plastic instead...



A little different wire cage this time..
.
Anticipating 10-15 frames, so I built a bending jig, also a soldering assembly jig...
I had a piece of 4'' aluminum angle, just the right length... So...



Just start at one end, clamping holddown blocks as you go...

[woodman]

The assembly jig lets you solder the wire cage to the frame nice and square, add some bracing and then remove from the jig and solder in cross bars... Probably some more jigs to make yet...



There isn't a whole lot of pictures on the net of sprints-plus chassis build ups... To be really durable yet easily serviceable, and keep the body fully intact... Building a frame to be able to slip the body in and out of all the wire cage is a challenge...

[woodman]

I drilled a couple more holes in the bending jig to make nerf bars...

[woodman]

Another jig to mount the wing brackets and a nose bumper to protect the guide..

[woodman]

Any way still need to do the rear push bar-bumper...
Been working on a body profile...used another beer can..can't seem to get away from the sheet metal idea of the wear and tear peel it off and form another for the next race battle...Good ol sheet metal battle scars,... looks so less"plastic"

[Matt Sheldon]

Cool!

[Bill from NH]

Steve, I know your older sprints had beer can bodies, but couldn't they be built using other sheet materials too? Such as brass, aluminum, lexan, or styrene?

 

What material are today's beer cans made from? Since I don't drink, I don't know.

[CoastalAngler1]

Way Kool!  Someone should start a beer can wing car proxy...

[Samiam]

Lots of guys printing Modified and Late Model Dirt bodies on paper. Reality Mods are one line. A whole bunch safer for marshals,spectators,and the track.

[woodman]

The Aluminum cans are so thin that creasing the edges stiffens them up and gets rid of the sharp edge....I guess they could be laminated instead?

[woodman]

The tail section....
The templates.....

[Bill from NH]

Steve, your completed body with tail section looks great!  

 

Are your cages & nerf bars all .063" (1/16') piano wire?

[SlotStox#53]

Looking good neat bending & soldering jigs .

Are there any specific build rules/templates for sprint cars & their frames based on the sprints plus base?

Seen a lot built & for sale but they all look different!

[Bill from NH]

Paul, here's a link to the SCORE (Scale Open-wheel Racing Enthusiasts) rules that run or ran in the mid-Atlantic region of the US. There has been several other sets of rules on the net over the years too, but I don't know if they still exist.

 

http://scoreslotcar....cars.com/rules/

[woodman]

Bill I have been using .055 steel on everything........The frames on the old ones were .047...

And that link on specs I did't even know existed.....one key dimension given Quote:
ROLL CAGE
The rear loop of the cage must be 1 3/4″ high measured from the top side of the frame.

I just measured mine overall from the bottom of the frame to the top of the cage is 1 3/4''WOW what a coincidence..But my nerf bars stick out 1/4'' too much I was allowing for 3 1/4'' wide wheel base and the rules call for a 3'' .....
It says wings not allowed..It would be nice to have wing dimensions and height off the track etc...

Overall mine look proportionate anyway...

[woodman]

Looking for paper laminated bodies and came across this on the net...Simracingdesign........
http://www.simracing...ender-requests/

Then I did a serch on (sprint car Finished Render Requests)
https://www.google.c...J4&ved=0CB0QsAQ

One sheet looks like this and I found 16 different ones and they print off to scale...

[Alchemist]

Excellent fabrication Steve!  Now that is one very creative way of recycling beer cans - I like it!

 

By the way Steve please, how do you adhere the body panels onto the frame?  Would you have any pix of that please?

 

Thank you.

 

Ernie

[woodman]

Ernie....I am thinking pins....and detachable wings to race without them....still in progress....Got a new printer today and was able to resize the prints to fit better....Next laminate a body, finish the tail bumper, and body mounts -detachible wing mounts.....

[Bill from NH]

Steve, the cars are progressing beautifullly. Have you considered mounting body panels using velcro? The hard body club I occasionally race with uses a lot of it. I don't think sprint car racing ever had one universal set of rules. The one rule set I could still find (SCORE) hasn't been updated since 2012, neither has their website, so I question whether they still exist. I say, build to your own specs & make them the local sprint car rules. That appears what's been happening.

 

As an aside, I've only driven Sprints Plus cars a couple times on commercial tracks, They seem to handle much better with wings.

[woodman]

Bill, I think of Velcro also it's a good idea....
SCORE is still at it....https://scontent-a-o...129517894_o.jpg

They post on this facebook group all the time...Speedway Slot Cars: Midgets & Sprintcars...........
https://www.facebook...08300632573385/

[woodman]

Latest....http://rs147.pbsrc.c...414.jpg~320x480

[MSwiss]

Does not work.

[Bill from NH]

Steve, I get a Photobucket error with that link too.

[slotpup]

Same here.