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    sony1492

    @sony1492

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    Best posts made by sony1492

    • Efforts to Build the World's Heaviest Lotus 7 Continue to be a Smashing Success

      Previous episode.

      Seats mounts are finally finished, a project half started years ago at this point. With those in place the 5pt harness can be measured out and fitted. 350z Clutch masters reservoir is remote so it's fixed in place after the usual runaround, similarly my wiring mess is better sorted (bare-bones engine wiring 80% complete)
      20220409_200400.jpg 20220418_171321.jpg
      Door Hinges are ironed out, which was a real PITA considering how the panel gaps interact through the hinge arc. Basically trial and error of hinge spacing off the door skin, and fore/aft from the gaps until the panels "rest" reasonably close together but don't touch as they open.
      20220404_171940.gif
      20220404_164234.jpg 20220404_164319.jpg

      The Cage A-pillar mounts to 1/8" plates welded to the sills rather then the frame for...reasons, long story short this door hinge bulkhead will help tie the firewall down to those mount plates. In effect, building a unibody around a spaceframe for maximum heft.
      20220404_164255.jpg

      Thoughts about safety and weight led to remaking part of the sill exterior with these dimple die'd slabs. The idea here is to fix some mistakes making it look cleaner while providing better reinforcement of the rears unsupported section.
      20220424_151038.jpg 20220424_153851.jpg ( Also a dashbar for the cage would make for better steering column mounts so I redid that for the third time, dosent look much different in photos but the old design was not elegant)

      This forward panel has been built to distribute load across more of the frame in side impact along with even more tie ins to the Cage. No idea on how effective any of this will really be in an accident or to structural rigidity but I want to have tried.
      20220419_200748.jpg 20220418_171053.jpg 20220418_171031.jpg
      This is a similar locost spaceframe to give you an idea of the basic frame structure and why all the worry about side impacts ProE-01.jpg
      a228608-LocostAussieChassis.jpg

      The projects really gotten to the hard part of figuring out how things will mount efficiently, how to make a 300lb frame safe with 2500lbs of car, does this seating position actually feel good?, congratulations on making that part now do it exactly the same for the other side, is xyz actually square, and thanking 20 year old me for signing up to such a massive timesink project.
      20220409_182925.jpg More to come as always, Thanks for stopping by!

      posted in Best of Oppo
      sony1492
      sony1492
    • It's Alive!!!

      20211217_174704.jpg
      20211225_120851.jpg


      Everything's jimmied together juuuuust enough to make it happen; my wirings valid and the motors good enough to deal with at a later date. If the rad was hooked up and with a clutch line, it'd actually drive!

      Excellent way to end the Year!

      posted in Oppositelock
      sony1492
      sony1492
    • Making Parts, And Locost dump

      Today we are shaping the side Barrels
      Potentia Side&Top Profile (3-15-21).png
      CAD here will provide a profile to the wheelwell aswell as basic measurements on where to focus bends.
      20220129_103433.jpg
      Transfer20220129_110505.jpg
      Double check marks, this metals $5 per square foot! 20220129_110150.jpg
      Couple minutes on the English wheel then mark areas to clearance20220129_110921.jpg 20220129_110927.jpg
      Bend, clearance, check, repeat 4-5 times20220129_120409.jpg
      20220129_120033.jpg
      Making the opposing side:
      20220129_120443.jpg 20220129_123441.jpg 20220129_135440.jpg 20220129_134001.jpg
      These basic shapes will provide the skin for all the doors, rear portion of the fender, and mating surface of the hood. Making it in one sheet means all the panels will have matching curves instead of trying to copy various arcs along oblique angles.
      potentia 2.png

      Making panel edges/gaps, 18ga steel stips will be folded into a 1x1" 90° then matched to each surface with the shinker and stretcher, from there it can be welded to the panels. Doing it this way is more welding, cutting, and grinding but it provides good control over panel gaps. You can make the edges on a bench, easily verifying left to right symmetry.

      Tacoma Hood after initial trimming, then tack welded to the wireframe and further whittled down.
      20220129_143344.jpg 20220129_170840.jpg
      Didn't like the hoodscoop on first pass but after moving it lower its the ideal ram air for the intake.
      20220123_165339.jpg Charge pipe is made However I cannot stress enough that this is for testing. Actual plan is a small water to air intercooler for each turbo and much more graceful 2-1 union, That's all a little put of budget for the time being.
      20220121_191301.jpg
      20220123_174014.jpg
      Exhaust is made, there's some more welding to do along with hangers. It's 2.5" out of the turbos immediately up to 3" stainless, and a small Flowmaster FX. It's probably absurdly loud!
      20220122_175145.jpg 20220122_152828.jpg 20220122_152152.jpg 20220123_173541.jpg

      Ecu is repaired and back in my possession though I don't want to test start it again until the wiring and fuel system are sorted enough for a test drive.

      Up next is fitting an E brake, maybe electrical then more body panels.

      posted in Oppositelock
      sony1492
      sony1492
    • Locost Update

      (This turned into a long ramble that I refuse to edit down into anything compelling)
      20210905_111630.jpg 20210906_154646.jpg 20210911_192903.jpg
      Where we last left off the motor mounts had been rebuilt on the engine side but lacked the mounting plates on the chassis, sill panels were being formed and tacked into place, and a section of LH fender had been formed using a Chevy bedside.
      20210929_194205.jpg Motor mounts are finished, just need to locate the transmission then they can be welded down. The part was simple to produce but I had a hard time getting the materials needed, eventually liberating some scraps from work.20211009_095554.jpg Left and Right hand sills are welded in, still more work to do making a third cell that'll extend down the weakest section of frame (between passenger compartment and front suspension). Also haven't welded the top surface and door jamb together, as I want more details ironed out before committing.
      20210918_141213.jpg
      Met with @Rusty-Vandura a few weeks ago and bought a LSD equipped 8.8 axle destined for his Crown Vic, that was sadly stolen. We both traveled a ways to meet up, had a good conversation, and made the exchange.
      20210930_175033.jpg 20210930_175218.jpg As a direct result of that conversation I picked up a custom shift knob from @CobraJoe . Driven with it on the F250 for a week and love it, really nice fit and finish.
      20210930_200545.jpg 20210929_194241.jpg
      Formed the RH fender slab using a Tundra bedside, it was a good test of how easy will it be to maintain symmetry. So far so good.
      20210930_200557.jpg 20211009_100521.jpg
      Got to work on the top section of fender, normally you'd try and form the largest section possible but in this case it's a patchwork because I have to work around the metal I can find. In the long run the whole cars getting skim Coated in filler because I feel the car won't get done if I try and make everything perfect in metal.
      20211009_101016.jpg
      Started extending the dash out to the steering wheel, to do that I've got a strip off the Sprinter window and made the necessary cutouts for the defrost. The challenge here is keeping everything straight so when I weld the two together the dash isn't cocked over weird. It's nearly ready to go just havnt decided if I'll save a bunch of time and overlap one over the other or try and trim them straight for a butt weld.(probably dosent matter since it'll be wrapped in leather)
      20211009_080347.jpg 20211009_082808.jpg 20211009_100314.jpg
      This morning was pulling the Locosts axle out in the hopes of swapping the 7.5" s197 mustang brakes onto the Vic 8.8 Axle. No joy, and surprisingly the internet was wrong and the Vic axle is actually wider then my current one (wanted a thinner rear track with the 8.8 upgrade). Either way today I'll finish stripping the Axle off its flanges, chip off some rust and get it ready to weld on my own. Should drop back in with no problems but I'm seeing the driveshaft is slightly offset, havnt measured it yet as I don't really want to know.

      That's about up to speed, work continues though I now do this exact kind or thing at work for 9-10 hour a day and it's harder to keep at it.

      Bonus digression?
      20210929_121521.jpg 20211006_150702.jpg 20211007_122846.jpg 20210929_121457.jpg 20210929_122032.jpg
      Work project is a making a completely bare 60's f100 fit a custom frame designed for a car, then make it run and drive within a few months. It's also an 800hp edelbrock lt4. So far I've cut and relocated the frame front and rear, plated those areas, located and mounted the body to the chassis making all the mounts from scratch, extended the rear rails, shortened the front bumper, built a removable core support, made an LS radiator fit, removable crossmember, smoothed firew blah blah blah...
      As an Apprentice every step is a new challenge and it takes alot out of you trying to design and built things on a professional level within a reasonable time.
      20210915_184330.jpg Everything I know about fabrication is from the Locost and starting this project a couple years ago I knew nothing, its pretty much fastracked my way into a career that's so far been satisfying if not stressful, time consuming, and Apprentice wages.
      20210915_184342.jpg

      I don't necessarily enjoy working on the car, though I often look forward to it. It's more along the lines of showing up for class and putting your time into the course work.
      20210915_184322.jpg 20210915_184349.jpg

      posted in Best of Oppo
      sony1492
      sony1492
    • First decent Compound curve

      The compound curve has eluded me for a while, most of the stretching has been done with hammers with the wheel only being used for gentle curves and smoothing.
      20211211_193930.jpg
      Got a few more youtube certifications and spent 2-3 hours reforming a Dodge 2500 fender into this bit.
      20211212_094332.jpg 20211212_094345.jpg
      After trimming the excess bits and a little cleanup of the paint.

      Bonus: More Shelby Cobras
      20211209_122528.jpg 20211209_122519.jpg 20211209_122210.jpg 20211209_122148.jpg

      20211209_122157.jpg

      posted in Oppositelock
      sony1492
      sony1492
    • A Little More Fettling

      20220306_115132.jpg 20220306_115146.jpg 20220306_123539.jpg 20220306_123547.jpg The usual process after initial wheeling and trimming.
      20220306_143154.jpg 20220306_151050.jpg 20220306_150949.jpg The project marches on.
      20220306_153735.jpg

      posted in Oppositelock
      sony1492
      sony1492
    • Regularly Scheduled Ramble

      20220115_102840.jpg Front ends come together a little more with panels up to the hood seam. (Need to rework both fenders above the headlights and confirm symmetry before going much further up front)
      20220115_100713.jpg 20220115_094953.jpg
      Rear quarters taking shape! This part has me hesitant because the rear end looks fine skinned but ungainly as a bare wireframe. (Which is why I usually take photos from the front)
      20220115_103504.jpg
      Door jamb mocked up, really need to finish the forward jamb to set in the door frame and complete the "barrel" between front fender and rear quarter.
      20220115_103854.jpg Into the madness: Weight distribution is looking good, 2061lbs total with 4gal of fuel and no intake or exhaust plumbing.(as pictured above)

      • Front 52% Rear 48%

      • Only 2% Difference side to side

      Outside of an intake and a few details the front ends as heavy as its going to get, the rear end however still has a trunk interior, body panels, and trunk lid. With a full 18 gallon fuel tank and 180lb driver a rear weight bias of 52-55% is within reason.(the car as it sits with a full tank is already 52% rear)

      Weighed using 2 bathroom scales, measuring twice per wheel then the results were put together for a "calculation". Which is to say, this is all highly accurate.
      20210329_181314.jpg Previous weight was 1734lbs 50/50 distribution as pictured with no wireframe buck, body, cage, sill panels, fuel, battery, radiator, or floor.

      20220115_102455.jpg
      Taking it easy this weekend as I've been committing every free second quite alot of time lately.

      posted in Best of Oppo
      sony1492
      sony1492
    • Locost!!!

      Where we left off last month the RH rear fender was largely shaped in place and a few panels were formed but not secured in any way.
      20220307_200809.jpg
      At this stage the body is a house of cards, everything is being held in place by the wireframe which in turn is directly welded to the chassis, nothing can easily be removed or put back into place after removal.
      20220314_194554.jpg
      Long story short the front end had to come off so the cherry picker can reach the engine. Cutting the wireframe off means its no longer square it'll be largely impossible to relocate to the chassis as the hood structures shifted.

      This is a blessing and a curse, sure its all wobbly now and you can't really reinstall the front end but, you can easily measure it out and ensure symmetry. That process was about deciding on a few known good points and welding support rods off of that (rods welded in place to ensure given distance diagonally and vertically)
      20220321_151413.jpg 20220321_151220.jpg

      From there a hood structure was Cobbled together to work with a pair of random hinges and boom, the front ends reinstalled an secured in a permanent manner. The square tube support structure is known symetrical so you can now reliably line up the measured points of the hood and weld the two together, anything not measuring out properly can be identified both with hood symmetry and location to the chassis.
      20220321_174619.jpg 20220321_174544.jpg

      The entire wireframe buck underlying the body was eyeballed, the left and right sides were built in unison and measured to the best of my abilities however it's still tolerance stacking hundreds of points. Variances so far have been 1/8" per side with outliers being as bad as 1.5" (the wheelwells in particular as those beams bend on all 3 axis and could not be reliably copied or located side to side) Overall I'm happy with the accuracy of the process given how much time and money it can save over a wood buck, plus the ability to iterate the design.
      20210718_195809_compress88.jpg

      The side Barrels have been trimmed, in this case using a paper template to make sure Left and RH doors are cut to a similar shape.
      20220402_173943.jpg 20220402_175236.jpg 20220402_200303.jpg

      An Aside: The body has been streamlined towards ease of production instead of uncompromising art, basically how simple can it be made and not look like something hacked together in a garage. The simple slab sides, beetle roof, clamshell hood, and abrupt seams are all part of that decision. My pipe dream is to build something like this for a customer where time invested isn't the main concern, with full time effort and better materials you could bring a design from your imagination directly into production instead of shaving every possible corner. (I don't want to be 30 and bankrupt when this thing finally moves) Having learned from this chassis I could make a much stronger example and would know what to design around instead of on the spot problem solving for every detail. Ahh to dream

      Bonus @Just-Jeepin bait:
      20220329_100733.jpg 20220329_100726.jpg Fancy chassis for an unpictured Bronco and a Reproduction Cobra motor for the Orange unit.

      posted in Best of Oppo
      sony1492
      sony1492
    • Weekend Hackery

      20211016_100433.jpg 20211016_103351.jpg 20211016_103830.jpg 20211016_123905.jpg 20211016_151342.jpg 20211016_151411.jpg 20211016_174021.jpg 20211016_174030.jpg 20211016_174139.jpg 20211016_174204.jpg
      Ole scrappy compared to the arts and crafts mockup from earlier20210718_200637.jpg 20211016_174426.jpg

      posted in Oppositelock
      sony1492
      sony1492
    • Metalshaping Rundown

      @JunkleMKVII Asked how the metalshaping is being done, here's a overview with slides.

      20211017_112558.jpg 20211017_113252.jpg
      Get some Cardboard conformed, trace it out, then cut it to shape, and test fit. The last thing you want to do is eyeball how much material you need and come up short.
      20211017_113552.jpg
      Trace the cardboard onto your metal, I usually give myself a little extra on a couple sides. 20211017_114326.jpg There are many ways to use the wheel, what gets larger bends in quickly is using the side of the Anvil as the fulcrum rather then the center. You press on the panel as pictured and roll it through, instead of working front to back. However rolling it traditionally is useful for gentle adjustments and taking out small dents, whereas pressing on the side is fairly aggressive.
      20211017_115458.jpg 20211017_115503.jpg
      Great you've spent the last couple hours wheeling, hammering, and test fitting. It fits snug to the wheelwell but won't shrink down enough at the front to conform with the grille.
      20211017_132256.jpg
      20211017_144930.jpg Plan B: Don't have the skill to shrink and stretch a panel that large? Neither do I, so work with smaller panels that are easier to fiddle with. (Also allows you trim out material)
      20211017_145409.jpg 20211017_145415.jpg 20211017_150358.jpg
      Mockup a panel, trace out where to cut (you can see on the trace, as the panels formed their edges "grew"; the straight cuts became curved) It's not quite fitting to the wireframe buck on its edges.
      20211017_151754.jpg Trying to impart a curve forward towards the grille while maintaining the upward bend of the wheelwell means shrinking one end and stretching the center. Holding the panel at an angle to the workbench, then hammering down into it folds the surface that's still touching the table and stretches wherever the hammers hitting.20211017_151348.jpg 20211017_153906.jpg Place the center that you want to curve over a corner and hammer around it, as the metal stretches it will start forcing the leading edge to curl up, continue to hammer that flat as the metal collects. Having shrunk one end, and stretched the center its now curved. Run it through the wheel to remove witness marks, fine tune it with your hands, and keep going through the steps until you like it.
      20211017_173239.jpg 20211017_162151.jpg 20211017_162219.jpg 20211017_162203.jpg That panel took 6 hours of weekend effort. What's already on the car is the extent of my metalworking experience, so take anything here with a grain of salt. On the other hand its clearly doable without a boatload of experience.

      posted in Best of Oppo
      sony1492
      sony1492

    Latest posts made by sony1492

    • RE: On Old Friends and Older Trucks

      @RallyWrench Everything about bringing a classic back into service feels so right. Nothing beats that smell of sunbaked interior and a light(heavy) film of oil.

      Some time ago I bought the world's rustiest manual k20, drove around for several months to get some life into it and sold it to my father who regularly hauls firewood/gravel/soil through muddy trails. Every time I see it there's a new dent or gash, It's living its best life probably stuck with the hubs locked
      le4vov8fvemcht1vqbxk.jpg

      posted in Oppositelock
      sony1492
      sony1492
    • RE: I used to be young and broke ...

      @415s30 Man that restoration been going for what, 5 years now?

      posted in Oppositelock
      sony1492
      sony1492
    • RE: How do you say the following?

      @Wolox42122 Beemer

      posted in Oppositelock
      sony1492
      sony1492
    • RE: At least *somebody* gets it about boring colours

      @pyroholtz Grocery life means downstacking pallets at ungodly hours

      posted in Oppositelock
      sony1492
      sony1492
    • RE: Boiler? I Hardly Know 'Er (Second Opinions Wanted)

      @Taylor-Martin Boil the old tank, pressure washing won't be get results you trust.

      Once you have a clean tank and the cars driving, the fuel inside will keep the rust from becoming a bigger problem (assuming you get most off or sealed the tank though various means). Which is to say cleaning the tank is a permanent solution given its well done.

      posted in Oppositelock
      sony1492
      sony1492
    • RE: Food prices changing consumer behaviour?

      @MM54 That's a good point, canned goods have certainly gone up, Cambells condensed soups are well over $2 when they were just over a dollar prepandemic. Frozen veggies are still cheap but various other frozen foods are way up (ravioli, meatballs, burritos, pizzas)

      posted in Oppositelock
      sony1492
      sony1492
    • RE: So apparently this isn’t supposed to look like this.

      @Taylor-Martin If you decide to keep the tank Electrolytic rust removal would be the way to go.

      posted in Oppositelock
      sony1492
      sony1492
    • RE: Food prices changing consumer behaviour?

      @MidEngine Can comfirm it's cheaper to buy a few Tacobell dollar breakfast burritos or spend $3 on their breakfast crunchwrap then to waste your own cheese, eggs, and tortillas. McDonald's prices are out of wack

      posted in Oppositelock
      sony1492
      sony1492
    • RE: Done

      @Qaaaaa Manual swapped

      posted in Oppositelock
      sony1492
      sony1492
    • RE: Done

      @jminer See also:20200711_114127_1.gif 20200711_111031_2.gif

      posted in Oppositelock
      sony1492
      sony1492