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Author: Subject: started bodywork!
suparuss

posted on 13/2/07 at 09:03 PM Reply With Quote
started bodywork!

here we are at the easy bit finally! what you see here is the result of about 4-5 hours a day for the last 6 days and is coming along nicely. unfortunately the photos dont do it a lot of justice but i cant get decent angles since it is only a single garage and the walls tend to get in the way. it looks a lot better in person and im very happy with it so far.
here is the good stuff-


the first thing i did was cover the chassis in dust sheets and also industrial packing film to protect everything from dust/resin/foam etc. i did the same for the windscreen and lights too.


covering chassis
covering chassis


next i fitted the windscreen and headlights. the windscreen is fitted with expanding foam which helps form the screen surround without having to adjust things a million times like youd have to with wood-

fitted screen and lights
fitted screen and lights


the headlights were originally going to be hayabusa headlights but since the beams are all wrong and the sva man wouldnt be happy ive used these VW Polo headlights and im glad for it too.

polo lights
polo lights


suprise! more foam! the whole car will be built in this way- using sheets of rigid foam for the ribs and then back filling with offcuts then filling the top with expanding foam then trimming to suit. this means the surface material is atleast 2 inches thick so if i want to make changes there is plenty to work with.
also doing it this way is very strong since it ends up as one big block of foam attatched to the chassis in places by bits of wood tied on with tie wraps, i can grab the front end and move the car on its dolly's with the foam! so when i put a layer of fibreglass on eventually it will be plenty strong enough.

added ribs and foam
added ribs and foam


and here is a pic of the front end as it is now. as said the pic doesnt do it justice as the curves are quite subtle but im very happy with the shape of it.

front end just about done
front end just about done


now i just need to work my way back along the sides and rear!

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Project7

posted on 13/2/07 at 09:07 PM Reply With Quote
WOW.... that is gonna be awesome!

Nice work

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Tralfaz

posted on 13/2/07 at 09:09 PM Reply With Quote
Brilliant start. Well done.

What windscreen are you using?

Brian

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Mansfield

posted on 13/2/07 at 09:10 PM Reply With Quote
I was just in your photo archive drooling over your chassis and now this!

Keep feeding us the pictures, I cant get enough.

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Howlor

posted on 13/2/07 at 09:28 PM Reply With Quote
The shape looks superb. Forgive my ignorance in the bodywork department but how will you go about finishing it?

Glass over the foam then how do you get a good finish on that?

Just interested really.

Thanks

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DIY Si

posted on 13/2/07 at 09:29 PM Reply With Quote

Very nice! Although I do wish people would stop making sooo many nice cars that i want to copy!





“Let your plans be dark and as impenetratable as night, and when you move, fall like a thunderbolt.”
Sun Tzu, The Art of War

My new blog: http://spritecave.blogspot.co.uk/

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gottabedone

posted on 13/2/07 at 09:46 PM Reply With Quote
Wicked

Should be nice and warm with all of that insulation

That front is wicked!
I especially like the subtle curves and the way that the headlights look made for the car, well done

Steve

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suparuss

posted on 13/2/07 at 10:23 PM Reply With Quote
wow, im glad im not the only one that likes it!
to answer the quetion on finishing- the next step will be to do rough fill to get rif of the bigger holes in the foam and then a layer of glass fiber, ill have to use epoxy resin because the rigid foam is kingspan insulation (i got the phenolic stuff instead of the urethane, but hey it was free!) once it is sealed it wont be problem so then ill put on a coat or two of gelcoat and polish.

oh and the windscreen is a lancia stratos one. all of £500 worth so i tiptoe around it!

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DIY Si

posted on 13/2/07 at 10:28 PM Reply With Quote
Are you making moulds or just a one off?





“Let your plans be dark and as impenetratable as night, and when you move, fall like a thunderbolt.”
Sun Tzu, The Art of War

My new blog: http://spritecave.blogspot.co.uk/

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stevec

posted on 13/2/07 at 10:47 PM Reply With Quote
That looks the dogs danglers. Great work.
Steve.

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suparuss

posted on 13/2/07 at 11:13 PM Reply With Quote
quote:
Originally posted by DIY Si
Are you making moulds or just a one off?


ill make full moulds for 5 piece body work. plus an adjustable under tray at the front which will hopefully give some down force. and the doors will probably have and inner and outer skin. so lots and lots of work to do!
ill take the mould for the doors and front and rear first and cast the final pieces then use these to shape cockpit part so that everything fits together nicley with proper seals etc.
it will take longer but wil be lot better in the long run.

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Alan B

posted on 14/2/07 at 12:08 AM Reply With Quote
Very nice job mate...I'm loving the shape..

Making moulds is the way go IMO....more work, but well worth it..

Alan

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violentblue

posted on 14/2/07 at 02:02 AM Reply With Quote
is this a one off or are you going into production?





a few pics of my other projects


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Fred W B

posted on 14/2/07 at 05:53 AM Reply With Quote
Awesome progress - what tools/grit paper did you use to cut and shape the foam?

Cheers

Fred W B

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graememk

posted on 14/2/07 at 08:33 AM Reply With Quote
ooooooo very nice






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RazMan

posted on 14/2/07 at 08:38 AM Reply With Quote
Very impressed with your technique of using rigid foam for the ribs. How did you arrive at your shape? Did you get the ribs cnc'd for consistency or are you sculpting as you go?

It should be fairly light to lift off when the time comes but fairly fragile I would have thought, so a lot of care will be required. I suppose the glass fibre skin will hold it all together.

The doors will be the most labour intensive part of the build (trust me on this) and planning the hinges and catches is probably the most overlooked part imo.

I also love the lights - there are a lot of well designed light units which ought to be 'liberated' (I used BMW Mini ones) and they really can make a good job much more professional looking.

Carry on the good work - I will be watching with interest

[Edited on 14-2-07 by RazMan]





Cheers,
Raz

When thinking outside the box doesn't work any more, it's time to build a new box

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02GF74

posted on 14/2/07 at 08:48 AM Reply With Quote
looking good!

what tools did ypu use to carve/shape the foam?

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suparuss

posted on 14/2/07 at 09:21 AM Reply With Quote
cnc ribs? nah! im just sticking sheets in place and cutting them down until they look good! ive got a laser setup so i can make sure everything is symetrical. cutting and shaping is done with a breadknife, hand saw and surform (sort of a plane designed for plasterboard)
the plug will be staying on the chassis while i take moulds. for on thing i dont have room to put it if i take the plug off. in fact i still dont know what im going to do when it comes to casting the main center of the body.

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JonBowden

posted on 14/2/07 at 09:46 AM Reply With Quote
quote:

ive got a laser setup so i can make sure everything is symetrical.


How do you do this?





Jon

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nick205

posted on 14/2/07 at 09:48 AM Reply With Quote
Awesome stuff - I never cease to be impressed with people's dedication. Look forward to seeing it develop - keep the photos coming
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suparuss

posted on 14/2/07 at 09:58 AM Reply With Quote
simple really, the car is level and the laser emits a level laser across the car (its wide beam so you get a big red line across whatever you are leveling) so you just use that as a datum measuring from body work to laser beam. its best to setup a grid so you can be sure you get the same place on both sides. so you just measure one side, say it is 100mm on one side to a particular spot and the same spot on the other side 90mm you just remove material until it is the same.
if you do this to get a rough shape, then you can blend everything in if it doesnt look right.

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awinter

posted on 14/2/07 at 01:31 PM Reply With Quote
WOW

Just had a gander through your photies.

WOW

Hope it all works out, look forward to seeing the finished product.

Food for thought with the foam.

Allan

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sgraber

posted on 14/2/07 at 10:25 PM Reply With Quote
Top notch! TOP NOTCH! Flat sides are the way forward. Will save you years of work.







Steve Graber
http://www.grabercars.com/

"Quickness through lightness"

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gttman

posted on 15/2/07 at 10:03 AM Reply With Quote
Very nice, I really do like the shape and your progress is an inspiration.......

I'll be interested in you technique to get the sides symetrical as I think this is going to be the hardest part.





Andygtt

Please redefine your limits

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Ringius

posted on 18/2/07 at 08:11 AM Reply With Quote
Hi!

Impressive work!

Read in "fiberglass and composites" that one way of sealing the foam so that you can use ordinary resin is to spray latex-based paint on the foam. After spraying, it should be possible to use filler for touching up and finishing the body work. Might save some time and money...

I am happy to give you more details if you should be interested in this approach instead of using epoxy resin directly on the body, but as I mentioned, I have only read about this, no practical experience...

BR,
Jan

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