Boxhead's new race car for 2013

[boxhead]

Here is the crack in my bodywork.


Here is the damage to the red car, the guy in the blue race suit is the driver.




And this is the blue one that barel rolled.

[Aussie Mike]

They look pretty sturdy. Looks like you would just need to keep a spare set of nerf bars and maybe some body panels.

Even after that multiple endo the red one only seems to have one bar seriously bent on the rear frame.

You should be able to glass your cracked body up from underneath and be good as new.

Cheers

[Gav]

That will buff out I reckon Dave.
They look like huge fun!!!

[Legless]

Gawd!!!! That end over end would have to hurt good to see he's still standing, ...
At this rate Dave the new paint job wont be far off.

[Gav]

Originally Posted by Legless

Gawd!!!! That end over end would have to hurt good to see he's still standing, ...
At this rate Dave the new paint job wont be far off.

In matte finish I would hope Dave

[boxhead]

Some more videos.
Loveday 4x4 Park Trophy Kart Celebrity Race 2013 - YouTube

Trophy kart race Loveday - YouTube

[Philm]

Bloody Hell Dave, that looks like serious racing.

Yes I want one too.

Phil

[Donunder]

Now see what you've started Dave!

I have to say I couldn't see the crack in your front guard. All I saw was that huge bloody gash that went half way across your bonnet!!! I see that Mike in his fuss-free way has suggested an "easy" fix--well, for him I suppose, not the rest of us mere mortals. I've often wondered, in sports like speedway and yours where body panels seem to be considered consumables, do you buy in a supply of spare panels from the manufacturer and paint them up ready for replacement after one becomes unrepairable? Or will you take a mould from what you have and make up your own? I take it they are superthin fibreglass are they?

By the way did you stay at the motel on Lake Bonney in Barmera? Got a few stories to tell you about that place when we meet up again.

[Aussie Mike]

Having messed around helping out friends with racebikes and those patch repairs are pretty straightforward.

I would tape the pieces together as best as possible, sometimes bracing things into the right shape with wooden struts etc. Grind out a strip about 4" wide along the back of the break, thinning it right down near the center where the crack is. Then lay it up with either strips of woven rovings or chop strand mat for more complex shapes. Once it's gone off a quick lick of paint on the inside and then a bit of body filler along the crack on the outside followed up by some touch up paint.

They are race fairings and only need to look good from 10 feet away. We would keep patching them as best we could to keep going untill you had to shell out for a new fairing (Or the bloke stopped falling off).

Cheers

[Dimis]

Originally Posted by Aussie Mike

They are race fairings and only need to look good from 10 feet away. We would keep patching them as best we could to keep going untill you had to shell out for a new fairing (Or the bloke stopped falling off).

Haha.... that's too funny. You brought me back to my youth.

We (brother & I) used to race motocross as little tackers... Never really had the money or the skills or a clue on how to compete with the quick guys, but we always passed the 20:20 test. From 20meters away at 20km/h we looked the goods (Hmmm, come to think of it, things haven't changed much, with me and my cobra).

As for the blokes who fell off - Mike - Are you talkin' to me!?!
Sadly I was king! Lots of bravado.... but lacking most elsewhere

Great fun though, thanks for jotting the memories

[Aussie Mike]

I loved riding but have a colossal lack of tallent. Never really had a dedicated race bike either which limits how fast you push it. I had to be able to ride the bike to work on Monday. I seem to be better at tinkering with them and let the other guys go fast.

Cheers

[boxhead]

It really is great fun Phil, I am sure you would enjoy it.

Here is another video, watch for the passing move at the 1 minute mark.

Snake Racing Australia - YouTube

[boxhead]

Sorry if I am boring you all with videos.

This one has incar footage from the big roll over.
TROPHY KART AUSTRALIA'S CELEBRITY CHALLENGE 2013 - YouTube

[Aussie Mike]

Great footage.

Dave slides on through at 7:01

Cheers

[boxhead]

Thats me, started from 14th in last race.
Most footage is from teh celebrity races, the one with me was when the Adults joined the end of the cue with celebrity racers.

Finished in 8th.

[boxhead]

Pulled the car apart to clean up before Sundays car show.
Here is what they look like with no clothes on.


And up on the hoist (The kart hoist is not in its final position till 540 goes on Wednesday)
So up on the car one while I swapped the rear wheels for beadlocks.

[Aussie Mike]

Why the swap to bead locks Dave? Do the tyres have a tendency to roll off the rims or just turn on the rim.

Cheers

[boxhead]

A common issue with heavier drivers is the tyres rolling off the rim.

Now I know I ain't a featherweight, so until the daily walking I now do gets the weight off, beadlocks will have to suffice.

And with beadlocks I can also run a lower rear tyre pressure. Which is better in the sandy conditions of Alice Springs.

[Modena]

makes sense, so why "wouldn't" you run beadlocks?

[boxhead]

Just a little update.
I will be racing over the long weekend, so did some work on the little car to have it ready.
After a really thorough clean up it was time to adjust the rear upper control arms, The aim here being to minimise the amount of change in chain tension, to do so, I dropped the shocks out, removed springs and refitted shocks so I could run suspension through its full travel.
Here is is with suspension at full compression.


In the end I needed to lengthen the top arms approx 1.5 inches.
So with any luck that will have eliminated any concerns of dropping a chain off.

Rear end all back together, after a look at the track I will take an educated guess if I need to stiffen up the sway bar.
Going out for a look at lunch time today.


Here it is by Sunday night, all done and awaiting the bonnets return after being painted.


I picked up the bonnet this morning, took it home and threw it on the car.