| David Kirkham |
09-20-2009 10:40 AM |
The rear wheel well was the most difficult engineering problem on the car to solve. It almost stopped the project cold. Finally, we just decided to get a BIG billet of aluminum and start carving. I thought the quote from Hannibal was appropriate here, "We will either find a way--or make one." referencing his crossing of the Alps on the back of elephants. It is extremely difficult to stop someone who is determined to succeed.
http://www.clubcobra.com/photopost/d...ium/book60.jpg |
| David Kirkham |
09-20-2009 10:41 AM |
The problem lies here: The driver's head actually sits BEHIND the leading edge of the rear wheel. In most cars, the rear suspension "pushes" forward on the chassis through a straight bulkhead. This makes it very easy to design the chassis. You simply connect the rear suspension to the rockers at a 90 degree angle and that's it. The wheelbase is extremely short in an original car--only 90 inches. This leaves very little room for the chassis (and makes the driver actually lean OVER the rear tire). I bet you all didn't realize how close that tire really is!
http://www.clubcobra.com/photopost/d...ium/book61.jpg |
| David Kirkham |
09-20-2009 10:45 AM |
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| David Kirkham |
09-20-2009 10:48 AM |
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| David Kirkham |
09-20-2009 10:50 AM |
The part was a beast to make. We had to make it will all 4 axis of the machine moving at the same time to avoid the part hitting the mill. The shiny circles were left by a drill. Drilling is the fastest way to remove a lot of material.
http://www.clubcobra.com/photopost/d...ium/book64.jpg |
| David Kirkham |
09-20-2009 10:52 AM |
We started out with a block of aluminum that weighed 147 pounds. The final parts weighed 3.82 pounds each. About 95% of the aluminum was machined away to make the part. The parts were quite stiff and extremely light when we finished.
http://www.clubcobra.com/photopost/d...ium/book65.jpg |
| David Kirkham |
09-20-2009 10:58 AM |
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| David Kirkham |
09-20-2009 11:00 AM |
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| David Kirkham |
09-20-2009 11:02 AM |
I'll post more soon!
Happy to answer any more questions. Please don't be afraid of offending me! There are a lot of smart guys on this forum and I am sure there are things we could have done better! I'd love to hear any suggestions.
David
:):):)
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| acindrich |
09-20-2009 09:54 PM |
Quote:
Originally Posted by David Kirkham
(Post 985159)
I'll post more soon!
Happy to answer any more questions. Please don't be afraid of offending me! There are a lot of smart guys on this forum and I am sure there are things we could have done better! I'd love to hear any suggestions.
David
:):):)
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OK - you're ugly. And your machinist is ugly too! |
| Hexnut72 |
09-22-2009 07:53 AM |
Quote:
Originally Posted by acindrich
(Post 985340)
OK - you're ugly. And your machinist is ugly too!
|
At least they know better than to wear socks with sandals.
:D |
| acindrich |
09-23-2009 06:49 PM |
Quote:
Originally Posted by Hexnut72
(Post 985760)
At least they know better than to wear socks with sandals.
:D
|
C'mon, I'm sure socks with sandals is en vogue somewhere.
:o |
| MOTORHEAD |
09-23-2009 07:20 PM |
WoW !!!!!!!!!!!
All that shiny machined aluminum ! Looks more like pieces for a high-tech military fighter, like a MIG maybe !! David, you've come full circle !!!
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| Maurice Butler |
09-24-2009 01:05 AM |
Great thread - I have download your book and have been reading it - talk about setting the bar high for the quality builds
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| David Kirkham |
09-25-2009 04:21 PM |
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| David Kirkham |
09-25-2009 04:23 PM |
Quote:
Originally Posted by MOTORHEAD
(Post 986279)
WoW !!!!!!!!!!!
All that shiny machined aluminum ! Looks more like pieces for a high-tech military fighter, like a MIG maybe !! David, you've come full circle !!!
|
:LOL:
I never thought about it that way. I learned how to machine by standing by some incredible machinists and watching them transform blocks of metal into beautiful parts. Today, we do that with CNC machines.
David
:):):) |
| David Kirkham |
09-25-2009 04:25 PM |
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| David Kirkham |
09-25-2009 04:35 PM |
In the prototype car we tapped the holes by hand on many of the parts. For the final car, we wanted everything to be perfect, so we make more fixture plates to hold the parts at the right angles for drilling and tapping. Maybe one day we will get a 5 axis mill. :D
http://www.clubcobra.com/photopost/d...ium/book70.jpg |
| rodneym |
09-25-2009 04:35 PM |
I thought that was Kapton foil.
With all those angles it kind of looks like the LMs.
You've got some incredible materials in that thing...:MECOOL:
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| David Kirkham |
09-25-2009 04:40 PM |
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