179 replies to this topic

[eshorer]

More outloud... (hope it's not just "noise")  

 

Option #1: There's narrowing the tires to 3/8, and if it clears the body, just trying it out over here. Who knows, you may have invented a new competitive advantage!

 

Option #2: The "added wider flares" could work, but then it puts it into the Mid-Engine class, and that means minimum .950 rears and .850 fronts, and that sounds like:

Strike One: A total Rebuild (including me needing to get the flares done)

Strike Two: A car that doesn't really appeal to either of us.

Strike Three: A car that would have to compete against the bigger, faster GTP cars with no handicap.

Sounds like that option is OUT.

 

That's all I've got for now.  :-(

 

I appreciate hearing from the rest of the choir.

 

Eddie

[Martin]

Would it be legal to take a hot spoon or similar and push where the tire is making contact. Hold the spoon it the correct place and use a soldering iron to control the heat. You have to support the body safely. 

 

It may mess up your paint job, but that's what I would do, if legal?

 

Found this method which looks controllable if a little slow.

https://www.youtube....h?v=mvE6tTWxXZM

[eshorer]

Would it be legal to take a hot spoon or similar and push where the tire is making contact. Hold the spoon it the correct place and use a soldering iron to control the heat. You have to support the body safely. 

 

It may mess up your paint job, but that's what I would do, if legal?

No, for the class it is intended to run in, Foreign Production Sports, we confirmed that no altering of wheel wells is allowed, including any flaring. It's meant to be a class with unaltered production cars, at least in appearance. If I want to just have a cool looking car to run laps with, flaring like you mentioned would be an option. But I wouldn't be able to race it.

Eddie

[Martin]

Just to be clear I am not talking about changing the shape of the stock wheel arch. Just a little push where the tire hits.

 

But if it is not legal, never mind.

[slotbaker]

The body looks fairly low, so would it be feasible to jack the rear up a bit to clear?

[Pablo]

That sounds possible, Steve. Later today I'll look at that. But it sure will look dumb with the pans showing on the sides .....

[tonyp]

Cut pinion for the one side.
On the other brace can to axle tube and in front of the motor so can is part of chassis
And remove the part of endbell rail from motor can to tube
Carefully grind inside of body for more tire clearance.


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[Martin]

 

 

Carefully grind inside of body for more tire clearance.


 

Good plan,

I have done this plenty of times using a back light to guide you and let you know when it is getting thin.
 

[Dave Crevie]

If you are absolutely sure narrowing the tire a little will ruin the handling, file a little off the gear and wheel hubs where they meet. You might pick up enough

to clear the tire.   

[Pablo]

I appreciate the suggestions, thanks guys   

I think slotbaker may have nailed the best solution. But raising just the rear lessens the amount of room for the fronts.

So it will have to be raised the same front and rear.

 

I don't see any rule against having the pans show, as long as they don't extend beyond the skirts.

And they don't. Matter of fact, thank God I made the pan edges to actually sit inside the skirts a little.

 

My eyechrometer says the wheels will be liberated by raising the body to the top of the pans (.093).

I may actually be able to use the Pro-Tracks if it works.

 

Four new body holes .093 directly above the existing ones. Here we go ........ 

[James Wendel]

Would a 1968 Ford GT40 fit the class?  It has the same wheelbase and measures 3.15" across the rear.  It also has nice, big, round wheelwells.

 

 

[eshorer]

Would a 1968 Ford GT40 fit the class?  It has the same wheelbase and measures 3.15" across the rear.  It also has nice, big, round wheelwells.

 

 

Not bloody likely, since the class is called Foreign Production Sports. I believe the GT40 would go in the Mid-Engine class. In any case, I've always wanted a Lotus Europa, width be damned (TRULY, in this case!), and I'll just do my best with it. 

Eddie

[James Wendel]

I hear ya, Eddie.  I have loved the Europa since they were new.

[Pablo]

Again, thanks for all the ideas, folks    Steve King's idea is working 

eshorer owes slotbaker a cookie 

 

The JK rears "as is" now work fine and the fronts can come out a bit more.

I still need to fine tune it, but at this point we know it's going to work, Eddie    

[Pablo]

My goals today are:

 

1. Ever completed a chassis with tilting pans or rods and have it want to lift the pans when the pins go home?

It happens. And the root cause is always, pans slightly too wide for the body.

 

It wasn't happening to this car before I re-positioned the holes, but now it is. Why? Because of the curvature of the body sides.

So the mount gizmos need to be narrowed somehow to allow the pans to sit as designed.

 

It's tricky because, at this point, lowering the body isn't what I want LOL

 

 

2. The bodywork up front may need to be trimmed a little for flag movement, and should be no problemo

 

 

3. Once the body stance is finalized, the front wheels can be retained

 

Then I can relax and move on to some final cosmetic details concerning the pan sides showing.

I have two ideas on that:

 

1. Paint the sides of the .092 brass white

2. Install lexan skirt extensions just for cosmetics

3. Leave it "as-is" and enjoy the brassy-ness 

 

[Don Weaver]

 

 

1. Paint the sides of the .092 brass white

 

 

[Rotorranch]

I thought it was allowed to flatten the sides? But not beyond vertical.

 

Rotor

[slotbaker]

1. Paint the sides of the .092 brass white

2. Install lexan skirt extensions just for cosmetics

3. Leave it "as-is" and enjoy the brassy-ness

Or, maybe paint black?

White may make the car look a bit tall in profile.

 

[dc-65x]

I've used the thin Lexan extensions painted flat black when a factory trimmed body was cut wrong:

 

 

When the car is on the track (or tech block) they almost disappear:

 

 

And they can be attached with double sticky tape and removed if you don't like them.

[SpeedyNH]

that's beautiful! 

i've done the same thing with lexan bodies in the past, but never so well that they could be display models. 

Speed 

[Pablo]

All 3 goals accomplished today:

 

-Body mounts narrowed by simply bending the .025 strips inward a hair

-Front of body trimmed to allow flag rotation

-Front wheels positioned as wide as possible using spacers and secured

 

Braid installed. Final drivetrain test satisfactory. Eddie can perform any needed fine-tuning at the track.

 

 

Cosmetic engineering tomorrow 

[dc-65x]

Damn, that looks good Pablo. It looks super low to me now.

[eshorer]

Oh heck yeah. That's gonna work! 

Eddie

[Pablo]

As far as what color for a possible covering, I'm thinking since the trim stripe decals are gold, maybe leaving the pan edges brassy?

Or black plastic like Rick's F1. What do you like, Eddie?

 

The body skirts curve inward so much, you really can't see the pans unless you pick the car up. Or lay on the track LOL

[eshorer]

I say leave the brass as is. If it really doesn't match the decals a quick black permanent marker will fix that.

Eddie