kaBOOMn
Well-Known Member
Awww, more pictures of the puppy.
Why does everybody love 'lil Phoebe over my car?
Awww, more pictures of the puppy.
I do have one question about the gauge cluseter though. How hard was it to design and have printed. God willing now that i have a second job (if i don't spend all the money on books) i am getting the body of the GTX repaired (pesky rust) and one of the things i would like to do is integrate the boost guage into the existing cluster but i am not sure that is doable so a custom cluster would be pretty sweet but i am unsure on whats required and cost and such. Hell even if it is to complex to get done it would still be somthing i wanna learn about
Great project kaBOOMn. I wish i had the space/resources to try building my own car (hell even a locost) but i don't so i will live vicariously through you.
I'm still playing clusters atm, I've put that part of the project a little on the back burner, since I need to get the car rolling to free up some space in the workshop.
I'm doing the PCB design etc myself, use a program like ExpressPCB and get it printed locally.
As far as your boost gauge goes, it may be easier to intergrate a whole aftermarket one in there. A bit of cut and shutting and you may be on your way. Depends on how creative you want to be....its not really something I can instruct you on!
If you do it however, try to duplicate the original Mazda design style Don't go too aftermarket
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Saturday 15th November
In car atm, going out with my old man (he needs a bit for his VN Commo) to get another excel rear trailing arm. I'll then take it back to work and cut'n'shut it.
The commo had a buggered IAC valve, and Dad didn't put one of the plug leads on correctly.....but it works now! put the laptop up to the 'lil 808 in his car. Works fine, however Tuner pro won't read it correctly and WinALDL works, but gives me a speedo output that doesn't really match up with reality...haha!
I think I need to write a interface program for tuner pro to read a 808 correctly. Well it is a Aussie only ECU and the yanks that wrote this program never had access to it.
Thinking about it, there is no diff ratio option in the program, it just reads the sensor off the gearbox. Hrm.
I have one Hyundai excel arm, cut it, however I can't find a M12 bolt the correct lengh....ngggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggg!
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Monday 17th November
I did a quick tidy up the final submission. Should be O.K now, I place in a few happy snaps, speaking of which, I need to cut a few down to the correct resolution so the word document isn't a million megs....
O.K I did that.
Now I'm wondering, do I goto this funeral with mum, or do I go home and work on the car?
ooooo just saw a stocker (outside) VP Commo go past with gas stickers and a huuuuge BOV noise.....hrm, Buick V6 turbo or Nissan RB? Or a HEC 304 Turbo? The Asians watching it are twittering about it, does a skyline sound better or not they are asking? Well there is more than a fair chance that there is a Skyline (bloody datsun) motor in it, idiots!!!!! (for the record I couldn't hear the exhaust note, just the massive BOV)
Also the two chicks infront of me are fine as...however they ARE archetects, which means they have (nominally) more teeth than braincells...still if they where interior archatects they would have more boobs than braincells. The one with the big sunnies is hotter, she is drinking a pint. Fark yeah!
She just moved and is packing a great rack too....nice!
I think I should keep this as a like, little diary. Some of the stuff I write in here really shouldn't be for public (female?) consumption.
Well if my Girlfriend finds this I'm dead...lol
CONCENTRATE!!!!
oooo new maserati grandturismo....in silver just like my mood board pics.
Need another beer, brb
More Golden ale. Fuck yeah!.
Getting back to the car, I need to see Dion with $200, Get this satnav/stero thingo (if it looks O.K) NOt sure which brand, do I get the Generic one with satnav for $499 or the Pioneer one without satnav for $699?
Hrm.
uh.
yeah.
Just had a couple of ugly leso's (rug munchers) pash near me. Why are lesbians in real life ugly?!?!
Thinking back I need to do some work on the VL, paint, seat, carpet, turbo, gearbox and clutch.
Well I better go, I think I just made a decision. Go home, sorry about the funeral, karl was a good bloke, but major religous funerals are not for me.
Gotta go, no battery left to write on teh train.
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Actually there is
Neat.
O.K on the train, called mum, I'm not going to the funeral.
Need to go home, get the Calais out, and go up to Tea Tree plaza to get this Stezza. Make a final decision up there.
Also need to get this car ad maria keeps talking about VW EOS is it? Half sex, half car all cool by her (artistic) standards. Good stuff
Also download the two topgears
Fark me they dug a big hole where the old rail yard (container terminal) used to be...actually saw a old diesel in real AN livery. WTF?!?! Oh and the Ghan just went past...
On other topics (presentation) I need to install windows XP on that old Harddisk. Ask Stuart for a disk. I just need to play with the new media player. Actually win 2K would do the trick there. Use that then.
Go home and render up some cars too. Where did my old folder go with me pics on it?
Have 7% battery left at the moment so it may cut out at any moment. Bugger. need to graft a old solar pannel into my laptop. That would be kinda cool, only as a trickle charge charge tho. Speaking of which do I graft a trickle charger into my new car? I have to have a normal built in 240V system. Ask stuart if he wants that in his car.
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At home, well I purchased the stezza, JVC jobbie at motorquip: $650. Ouch. The poineer one was $850, too much and the satnav one was actually $1050. Double ouch.
But anyway I have a stezza and I can make my dash brACKET.
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Tuesday 18th November
Today I have a meeting with Dave Gordon, about my project, by (lack of) ability and his idea for dealing with Sandy Walker. He should be here in 5 mins. Hopefully this should go O.K.
List of stuff to talk to Gordo about:
- General Uni Work
- 4th Year project, process, should I honestly pass? My future intentions.
- Process?
- Dealing with the University, will peoples noses get out of joint? Will my project clash with the SAE project?
- Dealing with the banks
- What do you think of my submission?
In other news I need to bend up those rear firewall plates. They are in the car, after this meeting goto the workshop and use the bender
The other issue was that I forgot to take that alloy in last night. Nggggggggggggggggggggggggg. I'll take it in on thursday night and store it in the foam room, cut it up on friday and store it in the foam room over the weekend so I can pick it up.
What do I need to cut up?
ERm rear side skins, and a new rear lower firewall.
Also I need to make up some new front lower control arm mount plates. *sigh* Why did I get it soooo wrong?!?! I also need to put the rear LCA's rear mounts back in. I had this misguided notion of rounding out the hole and having a steped bolt to give me some better toe
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Wednsday 19th November
well I put the frame on the ground today with the wheels on. Looks.....very small.
I'm wondering if I can move the front wheel back 50mm. The major visual issue here is that it effects my windscreen rake angle, however it does solve a number of problems in the vehicles front end princibly the radiator mounts. The new track is then 2500 (ratio to 1420). Yikes. Its closer to the 1:6.18 ratio I want, but not by much.
But anyway I took a heap of photots, the dog cut herself open on my power window mount and generally made a mess!
I also just finished my steering spacer. Looks and works a treat!!!!
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Thursday 20th November
I spent tonight working on my stereo mount and preparing all my notes, so tomorrow I can cut up some sheet metal. Sadly I cound't design the inner front guard, I mean I'm still not sure where the upper shocker mount goes and what shape its going to be. FFS!
Its going to be much easier from a fabrication point of view to assemble it as 1 folding. Much easier. The current dilema (on the train) is this: Do I cut it up as designed, or wait till I design the strut mount top?
I also took that 1200x2400 sheet of material in and saw Ahmed.....he wonders what to get Dave for his pressie??? I'm honestly not sure :S
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Friday 21st November
On train waiting to get into uni...
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O.K at uni, the workshop hasn't opened yet....are the idiots on strike? FFS!
Well it gives me some time to do some CAD work.....actualy I can make a prototype center console to mount my stezza. The problem is I can't remember what the dimensions where. The console is what 200mm wide, stereo is what 200mm high? Nah
OOOOOOooooo workshop lights are on
Also flogg'd some nichrome wire from the foam room, now what was the PSU output? Damn, no listing and no multimeter handy
I'll have to google it, might be a better idea.
O.K I cut those skins out. Fkn Peter, very short he is.
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On train going home
Cut and folded both of the rear side skins, and a new rear firewall section up. Did a quick assembly seems to go together O.K-ish. I need to assemble the whole thing in the car and get some basic list of the contact points. Then a few rivit holes and we should be laughing.
I didn't get to cut up my new center console box. What where the dimensions again? 230mm long and 100mm deep from the upper tunnel tube.I decided to make it out of steel rather than alloy, make it a stressed member....actually how the hell am I going to pivot it?
Last time I pivoted it forward of the rear merge point, but since I've moved the handbrake back (and changed the angle) I've lost that extra space. Hrm. Actually I couldn't make the console box go all the way to the end of the tunnel since I need to put the light in the end of the bloody thing.
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Monday 24th November
O.K I finished the rear trailing arms off. We should be totally good to go now. I also spent some time finishing off the plates for the front suspension pickups.
I need to get my arse into gear regarding the SOR. *sigh*
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Tuesday 25th November
Nothing today, I'm busy trying to earn money instead!
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Thursday 27th November
Spent a few hours playing with the stezza support bracket. The design really is a pain here. The main problem is to
get a aderquate amount of clearance behind the stereo for the wiring harness and the intergrated cooling fan. There
is a factory notch in the VL Commodore heater box, but alas it really isn't big enough.
I got a few new (old) speakers from a Falcon. Good testers. Remember to talk to karl about getting some 6" JVC speakers.
The other problem I'm dealing with is fuel tank capactiy. I have a vision of around 40L of fuel, sadly this figure keeps dropping faster than petrol prices are atm (99c!!!!). Too many technical parts and not enough space!
As far as senders and pumps go, I'll ditch the Magna unit (with a exteral pump) and use a internal pump and sender from a VN. Electrically this shouldn't be a big deal.
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Friday 28th November
I went to the Subaru wreckers, had a look at some old rear shocks. They look O.K-ish. I'll try to fit them on the rear end of my car. I asked about my motor, but they said the head bloke is on holidays for the next two weeks. Nggggggggg
After I finish writing this, I need to clean up the shed at home so I can take the car to work tomorrow....
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Saturday 29th November
Today I cut the front suspension brakets off completly. Yay. Not.
I then welded the new ones on, but the welder decided to go AWOL with the shielding gas. The welds suck.
Oh before I forget I moved the front wheels *BACK 15MM* put that into CAD when you get home. From the front firewall to the central axis of the wheels is now 535mm NOT 550mm
The steering mount pickups look like they warped, but they are in the correct plane and axis. I'll trim them up with the grinder to make it look a little better
Tomorrow I'll try the top arm of stewarts clubbie and then weld the mounts in.
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Sunday 30th November
OH F**K!
That does have a familiar ring to it....
Well now I'm paying the price for expanding the front upper subframe to fit a spare wheel and the steering shaft. Why? Well the stock sports 7 top suspension arm is simply too big. I end up with positive camber. Also if I dial in a adequate amount of castor the upper arm hits the coil over spring. Grrrrr
So while haveing a sook, I made the front battery shelf up. Remember to put that into CAD sunshine...
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Car is now at home. Playing around with the idea of using a VN commo cooling fan and radiator. Cheap and effective.
Tomorrow at work I'll have to get the upper arm jig down and set to work designing another arm. I reckon if I offset the pickups I can create a arm that gives me my camber adjustment, castor and misses the spring.
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Monday 1st December
I finished off the trimming of the tube for the bottom control arms today. Tony will weld them tomorrow.
I borrowed and tried a VN commodore radiator and thermofan. No go. The outlets will hit the lower control arms when I angle the radiator to clear the thermofan ala Miura.
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Tuesday 2nd December
Tony welded most of the arms today. All thats needed now is the top plate to be welded on.
Looked around at a heap of radiators. What I need is a radiator with the bottom tank inlet in the MIDDLE. U12 Pinny might do the trick. I think.