Thingie's: What were they all about?

Sorry to throw a spanner in the works, but I thought that it was only the motor tech that had to be >1970 but wheels, guide, and anything else was free.

Just to add to the above conversation, I agree with the last few points totally... You've got to be free to invent. Both body and chassis, isn't that what the thingie movement is about. Look at some of those wonderful crazy machines that Jairus has built, with wierd suspension arrangements etc. And Lowrider, and Howmet... Just fabulous.

OK, this proxy is for Balls Out speed, and people will be designing for that in mind, lets see what they come up with. Their solutions may all be similar, they may be wildly different. But they should all be scratchbuilt... The 'fun' is in the build as much as in the racing (actually, for me it is all in the build, I'm happy that someone else does the racing).

The rules I've been working on up to now are;

Choti style body
Max overall dims 3.25w x 2.0h x 8.0l
Scratch built inline chassis (brass and steel.. no exotic materials)
>1970 Motor tech (ceramic magnets, open rule arm)
1/16 ground clearance.

Am I still good to proceed?

Al

Spy shot from the Old Forge...



Its always interesting to see how something that has been held in the imagination turns out when realised in actuality...Getting there.

I hope you guys think this is in keeping with the spirit of the "negative lift" swoopy Choti bodies.

First pull later this week hopefully.

Al

Hey guys...

Slow progress here at The Old Forge, as work has been suprisingly hectic these last few weeks, but here are a few more spy shots.







I've had to hold off from a first pull of the body because of clearance issues, so when the chassis is complete I'll be able to work out if I need to rake the body slightly. Pics of the chassis are prior to any soldering being done. Hopefully I will start that tomorrow. Should have plenty of time on my hands now, so hoping to get a move on. All comments welcome.

ATB
Al.

Two shots of where I'm at as of this evening. (Hope all looks legal...At least its square now hehe).





Sorry for the poor lighting. We are experiencing a thunderstorm.
ATB
Al.

Hey Guys,

I thought you might like to see how my chassis design evolved for this proxy...

Initially I was wanting to build as light as possible and create as much downforce from the aero shape of the body, in keeping with the spirit of this proxy. So I took the Ugo chassis as my start point. However, I wanted to give the front axle a little more support and so added two more rails to form a strong triangular shaped chassis...



Next, I began to think of ways I could transfer the downforce created (hopefully) by the front spoiler directly to the front of the chassis in an attempt to keep the guide in the slot, and so I decided to do away with the bent wire axle of the Ugo and instead use an axle tube on which the front of the body could bear down. I also thought that to save weight, the outer rails could double as axle tube supports...



Next I began to consider how the body attached to the chassis. Here the pin tubes are soldered on top of a hinge tube that wraps around the main rails...



Having discussed my chassis design in post on Slotblog, I got a PM from my "Chassis Mentor" suggesting that the Ugo chassis would be light up front and I shouldn't rely on aero to keep the guide in the slot and instead should concentrate the weight just behind the guide and so taking his advice I decided to span the width of the chassis with a strip of brass centred on the front axle...



As I enjoy cutting brass, and curvy elegant shapes I decided to make more of the front brass work. Further refinements of the design also showed that I could use the centre rails to add support to the axle tube (previously I had imagined a length of square brass tubing running under the axle tube) and I was pleased with the economy of the design. Note, the pans design had changed at this point and was of the shaker/flexi type. I didn't realise that they were outlawed until later.



Finally I moved from pencil sketches to some 2D design software I have which allows me to correctly dimension everything and print off templates for cutting brass with my trusty piercing saw. At this stage I finallised the pans design with hinge tubes up front and alongside of the rear bracket. The pin tubes double as hinge wires and some piano wire reinforcing to the front hinge tubes doubles as an up-stop. Here is how the chassis looks as of today...



I haven't designed it to be 'Choti', 'Vintage', 'Retro', 'D3' or any other 'type', just to work well with my body and to stay on the track in the fast curves. As far as being period correct, well it has Kai wheels, Rehco rear bracket, Parma Crown (stained black) and 16D motor and if I had been a young lad walking out of that model shop in 1970 with a bag of goodies and worked through this same design process I believe I would have come up with the same answer.

BTW, I'm really pleased with the chassis, I've no idea how it'll run, It might turn out to be a real dog, but I love the economy of the design, and the pans make a very satisfying clunk when the hit the travel limit.

Hope you've enjoyed the read.

ATB

Al.

OK, here is my entry...finally.







Wheels by Kai, Alpha Piranah rears, O-ring fronts.
Motor 16D by Havlicek, #27 wind, Mura B endbell, Parma EPX magnets, Gold Dust brushes (cant remember what make of can).
Jet Flag,
28t Pink Parma Crown (dyed). 7t brass pinion.
Rehco bracket fitted with ball race bearings.
Body by yours truly.
Paint by yours truly (from rattle can)
Weight...Still to be determined.

Hope to have it in the mail tomorrow.

Oh, and as for a name, I think I am going with 'X-calibre'. Seems fitting.

ATB
Al.