LocostUSA.com

You need scrap for welding practice, gussets and brackets and a few other things! So you're making progress on multiple fronts now.

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Marcus Barrow - Car9 an open design community supported sports car for home builders!
SketchUp collection for LocostUSA: "Dream it, Build it, Drive it!"
Car9 Roadster information - models, drawings, resources etc.

sorry, I tried to post from my iPad and attach the pictures and failed. I finally got the front hoop done. Hope to get the majority of the TT tubes done this week.

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Gavin

My build: http://www.locostusa.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=35&t=16005

right on man, looks good! as something of an automotive deutchophile, glad to see another bimmer-based ride. good luck stay focussed, don't let the enormity of the task ahead get you down. looking fwd to more updates n pics!

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The B-3 build log: http://www.locostusa.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=36&t=13941 unfortunately, all the pictures were lost in the massive server crash

The beginnings of the Jag Special,
https://www.locostusa.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=36&t=19012
Again, all pictures were lost.

Funny, the other day I was driving my E36 M3 and a "young lady" ran through a light and nearly hit my car. Yes, she was texting. Went through various scenarios of what I would have done if she hit car. It was REALLY close. My last thought was calming. Could tun it into a long nose Locost.

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Volvo 240/P1800 Based Locost
2004 Aprilia Mille Factory
1988 Volvo 240 5 Speed ( For Sale)
2002 Toyota Tacoma
1999 BMW M3

Ahhhh....memories... my favourite of my previous cars....E34

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gblawson (Gordon)
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http://gblandco.com/gb/cent/cent.html

an S52 Locost would be a handful but tons of fun. i considered an M20 like what I had in my E30 coupe because it had 324k on it and ran like a top but i think the marginal power increase over the M42 isn't worth the dimension changes and weight. But an S52 or S54 would be for sure!

I am glad the E36 lives another day. I love that car. An E36 M3 was the second BMW I ever drove. The first was an E30 M3. I have been hooked ever since.

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Gavin

My build: http://www.locostusa.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=35&t=16005

so, its back to the drawing board, sort of.... as I continued to cut more tubes and clamp them in place, I became aware that my front hoop isn't correct. it has a 60ish mm set back instead of 75 as shown in the pics below. rather than 'cuss at it the rest of the weekend, i cut more "simple" tubes. I cut the SB tubes in addition to the ones seen here.

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Gavin

My build: http://www.locostusa.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=35&t=16005

i remeasured everything and my front hoop set back is about 2mm off (73 instead of 75) when it is clamped to the table.

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Gavin

My build: http://www.locostusa.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=35&t=16005

Hmmm.... Second time today: Time for a Big F'n Hammer!!!

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JD, father of Quinn, Son of a... Build Log
Quinn the Slotus:Ford 302 Powered, Mallock-Inspired, Tube Frame, Hillclimb Special
"Gonzo and friends: Last night must have been quite a night. Camelot moments, mechanical marvels, Rustoleum launches, flying squirrels, fru-fru tea cuppers, V8 envy, Ensure catch cans -- and it wasn't even a full moon." -- SeattleTom

Any reason you cannot cut some tack welds and tweak everything to make it fit? Building space frames isn't really an exact science - it just has to be close enough to get the suspension mounts in the right place.

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-Andrew
Build Log
Youtube

What he said. 2 mm is well within home-builder tolerance. if its not tacked yet, just massage the bottom tubesto angle the mating surface back a bit until the top mates.

there is a whole lot of file-to-fit that goes on in any of these builds.

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The B-3 build log: http://www.locostusa.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=36&t=13941 unfortunately, all the pictures were lost in the massive server crash

The beginnings of the Jag Special,
https://www.locostusa.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=36&t=19012
Again, all pictures were lost.

If you have extra tubing, I would just move the top horiz tube to the correct location in the front. Then cut the old tube on the center line of the first vert tube. Then tack a new tube on to the end to get you back to the correct length. Tweaking the other tubes to fit as suggest will work, but you have to be very careful when laying out the rest of the frame, and other parts, that you do not start to stack-up additional errors in the frame building process. Not all is lost, if you do run into dimenisonal problems, as long as you can make a jig to hold the suspension brackets, you can always location the holes with an offset in the brackets or make control arm brackets with a different offset that will correct the problem. [We all have done that, I keep cutting the tube, but it does not get any longer. Just wait until you get to the diagonal tubes] Dave W

This week i decided to remake the front hoop. I did it differently than suggested by Gibbs but it worked really well and the two sides are mirror images of one another. so if it is off by a small margin, it is off equally on the other side it does seem to set back about 78mm instead of 75 but i am going claim victory anyway because it looks really good and i am pleased with it.

My process: i cut the bottom compound angles first by placing the tube into the clamp on the bandsaw (horizontal/vertical saw from HF) at 14* vertical and put the clamp at 26* on the horizontal plane. the rest i did the same as Gibbs. The tubes were very uniform which i liked and it was less cutting which means few chances to screw things up. I would also suggest making the bottom board of the jig extend up to or past the outside of the bottom tube (FF2?) as it would make clamping things together much easier.

i will post some pics tonight if i can.

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Gavin

My build: http://www.locostusa.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=35&t=16005

The pic from the front makes the uprights look like they bend inward slightly but they don't, they are totally vertical. I have made more progress and will post more when i can. I am really enjoying how this is going together. I will admit, the welding stresses me out a little but i will get better.

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Gavin

My build: http://www.locostusa.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=35&t=16005

You will for sure. Also, if you get into a welding situation you're not confident in, you can cut up some small pieces (coupons as the welders say) that recreate the joint or configuration in question, and weld those until you feel confident that your settings and techniques are correct.



I have many such pieces in my scrap bin. It often allows you to see "inside" the joined pieces to check for penetration too. They are good confidence builders and the only down side is the time it takes to cut and tack them plus the loss of a little steel. I felt the time and materials was worth it.

Cheers,

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Damn! That front slip angle is way too large and the Ackerman is just a muddle.

Build Log: viewtopic.php?f=35&t=5886