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chassis poll
macspeedy - 28/6/02 at 06:31 PM

WHO ARE THE BEST TO GO WITH for a chassis as i don't have the skills or tools to make one, my short list is; the men in green tights, a spanish named company, a sharped toothed creature mixed with a boat and ** indy any others, also a smart suit from? any others I'm at a loss !!!

bob - 28/6/02 at 06:37 PM

I'd have to say MK,but i would wouldnt i.

Have a chat with merlin (the laser man)
as he is up for making chassis too.

Fatboy Dave - 28/6/02 at 07:05 PM

I'd have to agree, I still miss my Indy

interestedparty - 29/6/02 at 01:48 AM

MK

John

Sparky - 29/6/02 at 07:58 AM

Registered a few days ago and was about to post a similar question!

I have to admit, I like the look of the Tiger Avon, my only reservation being the width asociated with using the unmodified Sierra rear end. The Luego looks pretty good too.

I hadn't considered the MK. What are the benefits of this one then?

I'd be interested to know others thoughts.

stephen_gusterson - 30/6/02 at 07:44 PM

quote:
Registered a few days ago and was about to post a similar question!

I have to admit, I like the look of the Tiger Avon, my only reservation being the width asociated with using the unmodified Sierra rear end. The Luego looks pretty good too.

I hadn't considered the MK. What are the benefits of this one then?

I'd be interested to know others thoughts.



Te benefits of MArtin Keenans chasis are as follows :

1. good guy who wants the business
2. helpful
3.brilliant quality - just look at the oval wishbones
4. low cost.
5, uses a sierra donor
6. has irs rear.


atb

steve

Fatboy Dave - 30/6/02 at 08:17 PM

I was very impressed when I went to see the Avon Sprint (in its original guise). I'm going to build one of these myself, but the bodywork_really_needs to go back to its original state...

Colin AH - 30/6/02 at 09:08 PM

If MK wants the business he has a funny way of showing it, I have emailed him twice in the last month (onfirmed as read on both emails)asking if he could build me a chassis and he hasn't responded to either. He can't need the business that much.

locodude - 30/6/02 at 10:04 PM

Excuse me fellas
I may be wrong but isn't this the LOCOST BUILDERS list. Not the MK, Stuart Taylor, Lolocost etc.. etc.. You build a Locost from a book using your own inadequate skills, theft, bribery and nouse. There are those of us on this forum who call Caterhams and Westfields cheque book sevens. I just don't like hipocrisy. An MK Indy is a Kit Car, not a Locost. Ask Martin Keenan, he's trying to distance himself from the whole Locost thing and going up market (apart from those poo plastic tanks). So what's it to be. The Locost Builders or are we widening our net to include other sevens, I mean where's it going to end? Formula 27's, Quantum Extreme's, Sylva (now Raw) Strikers, Tigers etc..?
Now here's a debate worth getting into! Where does a Locost start and the Kit car end. Does it really matter? Come on air your views.
Chris (plastic tank man)

Sparky - 30/6/02 at 10:56 PM

Mr Tankman (May I call you Plastic? )

It has always been my intention to take a pre-built chassis and source the rest locally. I like the Tiger Avon chassis a lot. I had a good crawl over it at Newark, but I really can't stand the one-piece fibreglass body. I wanna be able to remove my (steel) scuttle and fiddle wiv me bits to my hearts content (oo-er!)
I've looked into the MK Indy a lot this weekend, and I reckon it's a bloody good looking piece of kit too. I do like the wishbones, now you come to mention it Mr Gusterson. I also like the idea of using one donor, so I can use modified Sierra uprights; not dragging myself through one scrapyard after another trying to trace the last pair of Cortina uprights in captivity. And I'll make my own fuel tank, thank you very much!

I think that there is a very fine line between Locost and kit. Tiger Avon - yes. Tiger Super Six - no.
Even though Mr Keenan is distancing himself from the Locost concept, there will always be guys like me looking to buy just a chassis and wishbones, then frantically scurrying around finishing the old thing off by digging up suitable parts in their back garden. (so to speak!)

MK's starter kit would get me started very nicely thank you. But then so would an Avon chassis...

Decisions...!

Colin AH - 1/7/02 at 01:43 AM

When I decided to build a Locost I also decided that I would buy one of the many ready-made “based on the book” chassis available. Time constraints preclude me from welding up my own chassis, I work away from home and only have a few hours each Saturday for the build, I will however complete the rest of the build including the GRP. If I or someone else choose to build their car this way, are we not still Locost builders? What makes a Locost a Locost? If I obtained the chassis plans for a W***field and then built one would it be a W***field or a Locost? What happens when the Tiger book becomes available, if someone builds a chassis from that book is it no longer in the spirit of Locost? Surely the point of the “book” is to build yourself a Lotus 7 type car as cheaply as possible. If this is the point of the book, then what about builders who put extras on their cars? Alloy wheels, Cobra style roll bars, new instruments or even just paint them are they not still Locost builders? I agree that a car that comes in a kit is not a Locost but where do you draw the line? I don’t think that you were advocating the exclusion from the site of anyone that doesn’t build their own chassis, conversely I don’t consider my self to be a hypocrite because I can’t build my own chassis nor would I think does anyone else that deviates from Ron’s master plan.

stephen_gusterson - 1/7/02 at 08:16 AM

If you look on here and on TOL you will find its very common knowledge that MK do not answer emails.

They are too busy. you need to call by phone.

They ought to put something on the site to tell you not to email them.

atb

steve




quote:
If MK wants the business he has a funny way of showing it, I have emailed him twice in the last month (onfirmed as read on both emails)asking if he could build me a chassis and he hasn't responded to either. He can't need the business that much.

stephen_gusterson - 1/7/02 at 08:24 AM

quote:
When I decided to build a Locost I also decided that I would buy one of the many ready-made “based on the book” chassis available. Time constraints preclude me from welding up my own chassis, I work away from home and only have a few hours each Saturday for the build, I will however complete the rest of the build including the GRP.


snip snip snip.


As a builder who's over two years into hsi build and putting in about 20 - 30 hrs a month, i have some advice.

You wont believe how slowly the build comes a long at times. even those jobs that seem small will take up a whole weekend. im building a morgan look alike base don the locost, and it took 6 hours this weekend just maing up a flanged boot opening - as wooden frames need making as well as annealing the alu.

You need to go for something thats about as kit based as you can get. A locost is the longest way by far to make a car. If you dont have the time you will really wish you had those mudguards and rear wings that took a month each to make with the kit.

Building a locost type car from scratch is the ultimate build experience, but if you dont have the time you will just get frustrated.

Even the robin hood 2b, which is supposed to be a kit, seems more like a locost if you look at the 2b list on yahoo. still losts of cutting and whacking and swearing even thou you have most of the bits pre made. I suspect something like an MK also needs a lot of work.


atb

Steve

cymtriks - 5/7/02 at 09:29 PM

I've posted this before but it may be time to repeat it.

It is possible to vastly improve the basic locost chassis. I'm talking about roughly a 10 percent reduction in weight and about 100 percent increase in torsional stiffness with less tubes. Here's how.

Add a V brace from the bottom of tubes LA and LB to the centre of tube LC. Be carefull to check for clearance with radiator pipes, mounts and fans.

Add a welded in panel between tubes LD and E. The book states riveted alloy or welded in steel. Do not rivet in an alloy panel as the weight saving is minimal and the strength reduction considerable.

Add diagonals on each side of the chassis from the bottom of tube FU1 to the top of tube LB and from the bottom of tube FU2 to the top of tube LA. Be careful to check that your steering rack will still fit.

If you can fit it in duplicate tube R on the other side of the chassis.

Delete tubes i, j, k, d, c, h and g. Don't worry, check a Caterham if you don't belive me, it has a very light structure indeed in this region.

Replace the transmission tunnel with a welded in steel sheet that follows the outline of the the tubes mentioned but is welded in to the base tubes and across the top of the tunnel. The welded in top of the tunnel runs from tube O3 to tube P.

Use 18 gauge or 1.2mm steel in place of 16 gauge throughout.

As none of the chassis makers is making a fully optimised design (the vast majority of kit car makers just copy each other) the potential to improve comes from a home build. If you can't weld get someone to show you how or get on a course.

In case anyone is wondering I'm using the same computer design tools as the big car makers use. You all just got the results for free.