Build A Better Locost Part Two on cooling systems is at http://www.racingexposure.com/blog/category/750mc/locost/. All comments welcome.
Maurice

All common sense but useful all the same. Some diagrams and/or pictures would've been a good addition but I don' know whether this is feasible on that site.

Hi Richard. It may all seem quite obvious but a lot of us still get it wrong. I will add a diagram of a simple system when time allows. Maurice.

[Edited on 12/8/10 by modee]

That's exactly why I said it was useful all the same.
Every time I go out I think "I need to put some more vents in the sides". Every time I get back I think "I'll do it next time"

Hi

Morris that's coming along nicely. Is that novice pack for the locost racers still around. As this could be added to it. Although must admit i cant think what was in the novice pack.

Race reports are good also. But for some reason don't tally up with the excuses the drivers give after the races. for instance i settled for 3rd in the heat due to being unable to see out my visor with Nic's engine oil plastered all over my helmet and car.

cheers Matt

Hi Matt.
I hope your heels are mending nicely. The old man was telling me it's going to be a long slow process.
I'll check out the novice pack. I think it was on the yahoo site but I've been getting so much spam there that i've stopped using it.
I stopped listening to drivers excuses and opinions years ago so they don't feature much in the reports.
Any suggestions for the next article? I'm thinking about doing seating, controls and instruments.
Are you coming to Silverstone at the end of the month?
Maurice

id be intested in reading the seating and controls article.

Im curious why you dont use the bypass hose through the head in the cooling, thought that would cause probs or have i missed something?

Hi

I am hoping to be at Silverstone as we have now got a pit scooter. So i will have some sort of mobility.

I think that seating and driver positioning would make a welcome edition. It is perhaps one of the most over looked aspects when building the race car and even road cars. don't get me started on seats though .
Instrumentation again there's so many people wasting money it is also a good idea to give some insight into the subject.

cheers Matt

Hi Mike R.
It's been standard practice for decades to seal off the hot water supply through the inlet manifold on racing crossflows to keep the inlet charge as cool as possible.
Maurice

Hi Mike.

I plumb the cars up as per the article but with a few extra mods also. On some cars we do use the inlet manifold connection and return it to the water pump fitting. But this is more dependent on what sort of ambient temps we are running in and the effect it has on the fueling. As in the colder conditions you want to keep the manifold and carb warm to prevent icing at high speed. where as in the hot summer ( there's a joke ) it pays to keep them cooler. But blanking the manifold off and working with the thermostat or replacement restrictor ring is usually enough to have control of the general engine temps.
The biggest issue is having a rad that actually has sufficient scope to work in the use of hard racing including being stuck out of the air flow when drafting the cars in front for a few laps.

Cheers Matt

Matt.
I think the winter series at Donington will throw up a few challenges in that respect.
We're looking in the shed for a manifold which we haven't araldited a bolt into.
Maurice

Hi

Yep i can kinda see the same sort of problems that presented themselves at Lyden last year. -2 ambient with snow on the track and god knows what the temps where when doing 100 mph. Half the field fell foul of iced up carburetors.

Of course they let the Locosts out to play then cancelled the meeting so people could still get up the hill and out the circuit. What a fun weekend that was.

Cheers Matt