127 replies to this topic

[Pablo]

That's good advice, especially for somebody who builds fast, but it doesn't work for me. By the time a chassis is finished here at The Wolcott Ranch, it goes through so many "processes" to perfect it, the tinning would be gone 

 

I may try John's trick, wire wheel it, then Mothers Polish it and brush on a thin coat of lacquer up top. Just for aesthetics. The top would get rubbed off by the flag so I'd leave that alone.

[John Luongo]

i have covered top and bottom, exposed metal. once air (and moisture) are kept off the bare metal, it tends to slow the corrosive reaction quite a bit. teflon guide washers should allow the guide to move freely as designed. best regards

[Isaac S.]

If you can find Metal Polish by Satin Gloss it works great. Polish by hand or with wool Dremel wheel, then let dry a little and wipe off. It will leave a glossy protective layer. Works good on brass, aluminum, copper and even steel. 

[Pablo]

Yes I use Mothers metal polish as recommended by Bill 

 

Progress continues .... "BP Platform" is .032" thick, 1" long, width tapered for aesthetics. If I can figure a way to make it secure, yet removeable, it will be cool. That way it could be tested for lap times with and without, and tuned for different tracks

 

 

 

[Bill from NH]

You could use a set screw to make it removable or bend a custom spring from fine piano wire.

[Pablo]

Thanks Bill, good ideas. Let me "chew" on that   

 

My first car for BP flat track racing (Lola) I automatically included a rear platform. But I don't like to follow the herd. I'd like to find a better way to adjust it and/or remove it. Thanks again for your input  

[Pablo]

I chose to attach the rear chunk same way I did the hardbody Lola - it worked fine and a skilled owner can easily remove it if desired. Plenty of real estate here to experiment with lead weight. It will attach with .047 wires into the 3/32 tubes for some droop/lift/wiggle, governed by brass retainers

 

[Pablo]

The Cheerios Beastie continues to grow

 

[Pablo]

Time to install a motor. It won't be easy to change motors in this car unless you are experienced in soldering. So at this point I'm going to ask who wants it and which FK motor do you want in it?

 

If nobody wants to commit, I'll put a Hawk Retro in.

[Don Weaver]

Spoken for...

[Pablo]

Don Weaver is the new owner/driver and he wants the Hawk Retro. Good choices 

 

Back to work .....

[Martin]

Looking forward to seeing some back to back lap times, with and without the junk in the trunk.

 

If that extra weight hanging out back proves to net faster lap times, then I will rethink what I thought I knew about chassis dynamics.

 

Is the weight it takes off the guide something you have time or interest in measuring? It may be insignificant. But I am curious.

 

Love to hear the the explanation of why this set up of weight behind the rear axle is a good thing.  Hey Porsche made it work, I think?

 

Best not to mention the Corvair. But I get these are 1/1 cars and we are in slots etc.

[Pablo]

Hi Martin    Don can test it with the BP Platform first, remove 2 retainers, then re-test without it. Then re-attach the 2 retainers if desired. Or if not, slice off both .055 wires just aft of the cross brace.

 

A reminder, this rear weight gizmo is something that seems to work at the BP flat track. Nobody ever said or implied it is a good idea on other tracks. It may be, I don't know. When I installed the platform I wasn't sure what track(s) the car would be run on 

 

Time to put four acid tinned points on the motor attachment (stressed member) areas, install the pinion, and tin the wire tabs. After bathing it in Dial and baking soda, I let it air dry atop my Hakko holder. (note - I never spin my motors under power to dry them - I've had problems doing that the couple times I tried it)

 

Here you can (barely) see three of the tinned areas - bottom of left rails, vertically for the left upright, and forward right inner main rail upright. Not shown is the tin area where the upper rear can solders all the way across the back of the axle tube. From here on, everything will be Aeroflow paste flux

 

 

Like I said, swapping motors isn't going to be easy on this car, Don. If need be, just mail it back to The Ranch and I'll do it. Or Johnnie Benson can do it 

[John Luongo]

when racing hard bodies on an oval with a very stiff chassis, the only way i got it to handle was to add weight to the rear of the in-line motor set up with a chassis extension. even changing tire widths and composition didnt help. the car would understeer heavily. once the amount of rear weight and the distance of the weight from the rear axel were adjusted, the car was very neutral with slight tendency to over steer. best regards

[Pablo]

With that rear heft and weight swinging around in the curves, it could help with nerfing 

"Johnny, next lap Mr. Bennett says to put Ricky Bobby in the wall. Or you're fired, buddy".

[Don Weaver]

I've found when trying to de-solder something soldered up in multiple places, that a thin piece of aluminum slid in to separate the joint once the solder liquifies works well.

[Pablo]

Then I'm confident you can do a motor swap yourself if needed 

[Bill from NH]

Don, single edge razor blades will work well when unsoldering motors too.  Ask any wing car racer how they remove motors. 

[Pablo]

Why I've avoided using regular pin tubes and pins to attach hardbodies, I don't know. I drilled .025 pilot holes using my mini-twist drill bit set then hogged them out to about .038 with a tapered mini-file

 

 

Koford short big-head pins

 

[Don Weaver]

Don, single edge razor blades will work well when unsoldering motors too.  Ask any wing car racer how they remove motors. 

 That's right, Bill but I don't want to cut off one of my many thumbs using a razor blade. 

[Pablo]

Or you could send it to Beuf, he could do a Cheerios car motor swap in 20 seconds without even removing the body 

 

Total weight is looking about 150 grams-ish. The splitter is above the block a fair amount but I'll let the amount of scum at the first track test determine if further trimming is needed

 

[Pablo]

Motor wiggles right into the nest with a little bit of careful fiddling. Snug as a bug in a rug, perfect gear mesh. You'd have to wad the chassis up into a ball before this motor gets loose LOL

 

 

Except for body detailing, car is done. She passed the drivetrain test with flying colors 

 

 

[Pablo]

100% done, ready to test/tune. Final weight 156 grams; fore/aft balance point is at driver's head

 

 

 

 

Bill gave me some screen, thanks I like it. Secured it with filament tape and some CA

 

 

Noose interior fits like a glove

 

[Don Weaver]

WOW!!!      LOVE IT...

 

That is one fine looking NASCAR and I can't wait to get it on the track.  Testing to follow..

 

THANKS, PABLO!!!

[Pablo]

You are welcome, Sir. 

 

Plenty of real estate for lead experimentation