suparuss
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| posted on 13/2/07 at 09:03 PM |
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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
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
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
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
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
now i just need to work my way back along the sides and rear!
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Project7
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| posted on 13/2/07 at 09:07 PM |
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WOW.... that is gonna be awesome!
Nice work 
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Tralfaz
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| posted on 13/2/07 at 09:09 PM |
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Brilliant start. Well done.
What windscreen are you using?
Brian
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Mansfield
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| posted on 13/2/07 at 09:10 PM |
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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
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| posted on 13/2/07 at 09:28 PM |
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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
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| posted on 13/2/07 at 09:29 PM |
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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
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| posted on 13/2/07 at 09:46 PM |
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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
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| posted on 13/2/07 at 10:23 PM |
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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
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| posted on 13/2/07 at 10:28 PM |
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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
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| posted on 13/2/07 at 10:47 PM |
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That looks the dogs danglers. Great work.
Steve.
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suparuss
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| posted on 13/2/07 at 11:13 PM |
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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
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| posted on 14/2/07 at 12:08 AM |
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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
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| posted on 14/2/07 at 02:02 AM |
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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
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| posted on 14/2/07 at 05:53 AM |
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Awesome progress - what tools/grit paper did you use to cut and shape the foam?
Cheers
Fred W B
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graememk
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| posted on 14/2/07 at 08:33 AM |
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ooooooo very nice
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RazMan
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| posted on 14/2/07 at 08:38 AM |
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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
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| posted on 14/2/07 at 08:48 AM |
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looking good!
what tools did ypu use to carve/shape the foam?
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suparuss
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| posted on 14/2/07 at 09:21 AM |
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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
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| posted on 14/2/07 at 09:46 AM |
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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
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| posted on 14/2/07 at 09:48 AM |
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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
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| posted on 14/2/07 at 09:58 AM |
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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
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 posted on 14/2/07 at 01:31 PM |
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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
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| posted on 14/2/07 at 10:25 PM |
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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
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| posted on 15/2/07 at 10:03 AM |
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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
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| posted on 18/2/07 at 08:11 AM |
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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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