Fabricated a rear toe-control link - piece of cake. With that done, one side of the rear suspension is complete, so a wheel was bolted on to check fit-up. Guess someone did something right; it fits great, with the designed amount of offset needed to keep the tire from rubbing on the chassis.
Realized the rear uprights were inadvertently swapped side-to-side when the first suspension arms were made. Turns out it was due to how much better they package - with one exception. It moves the top pivot nicely rearward, getting it away from where the shock wants to go, providing a good straight shot at the inboard pivots. The one bad thing is that the brake calipers also swap sides, such that the emergency brake cables point toward the rear of the car. However, after staring at it awhile, that's an allowable compromise compared to all the benefits. The caliper, specifically the e-brake bracket, sticks out behind the caliper by nearly 7", fouling where the shock needs to go. But, since the e-brake cables have to be custom anyway, it ends up routing rather nicely, curving inward and forward, under the drivetrain, up and over the tank, and forward to the lever.
Started building up the second set of suspension arms. Since the spherical bearing for the front rocker-arms or suspension aren't here, I'm working on the arms that use neither.
Upper rear arm is complete other than a few gussets. Next is the toe-control link which is a piece of cake.
Still haven't figured out why the O2 sensor reading is perpetually stuck at "14.70" all the time. Doesn't' matter if the engine's running or not, whether the sensor's plugged in, or whether I feed in a simulated signal. Nothing. That'll be dealt with later.
Merry Christmas everyone! I hope everyone has a great holiday.
Lower rear arm is done, including the upper and lower shock mount. Hopefully the upper arm will be completed tomorrow, which shouldn't take as long since there's no fussing about with shocks.
Spent the day building up the rear arm, referring to my drawings, but ignoring them at the same time when they didn't quite match what was needed... there's going to be a lot of redrawing needed... sigh. Anyhow, the lower arm's done other than lugs for the shock, then there's making the top suspension mount.
In other news, Christmas came a bit early in the form of what I consider a "total coolant solution" from K-tuned. With this, I'll be able to easily plumb the engine - it's a very versatile setup, exactly what I've been looking for.
In the last picture, Midi stopped in to see what was going on; for some reason I find this picture hysterical. Wonder what he's been up to!
Fabricated the spacer for the upper spherical bearing, drilled out the top tapered hole in the upright, pressed the bearing into the arm, and it looks pretty good, just have to find a couple high-accuracy bolts.
Also, the bottom arm has been corrected; stiffening plates are yet to be added at the outboard end. The lower arm is now basically non-adjustable, but it's not an issue since the upper arm's used to set both camber and castor.
Since the bearings for the rocker arm's haven't shown up, I'll probably build one upper and lower rear arms to see if there's any issues there. But before that, since the coated turbine housing is back, I'll probably fire up the engine just to hear how well the turbo and muffler work to quiet it down, and to hear, for the first time, the sound of the turbo whistling! :)
Alright, how's this? Answer: as good as it'll get. Note now-vertical rear pivot and clevis setup, requiring reworking a number of drawings - sigh. It finally sunk in to do the suspension the best I know how and let builders decide how they'll implement it.
The spherical bearing sits lower than the tie-rod, so a spacer is needed to bring it up to the same height, and the tapered hole in the upright has to be drilled out to accommodate a bolt - oh well. Would the old upper arm have worked? Yes, at least until a really big pothole is hit while under hard braking...
Making some changes in the front suspension. The rod-end at the top of the uprights are being replaced with spherical bearings and the arms are being changed to aim directly at the in-board pivots. The rear pivots are changing from horizontal to vertical bolts, allowing the rod-ends to aim directly at the upright. Pictures when the first unit is built.
Spent the day working out the push-rod geometry. It means applying loads to tubes in the middle of their span, but since the spans are short and made from 1.5" x 0.085" square tubing, it's not like they're going to move much, but gussets are an option.
My car buddy, Alan, stopped by. He's been a metal fabricator for decades, having helped to build, among many other things, the Nissan GTP cars. When he saw the mocked-up front A-arms, he said, "WTF is this?" That's what I like about Alan, giving straight opinions - unlike internet forums where you're not allowed to say something's wrong with someone's car. Anyhow, my defense is that I'd just built them the day before and that I wasn't real happy about the zig-zag upper arm, either, and said I can do better - he said, "That shouldn't be hard." I gave him the Smokey Yunick autobiography for Christmas, because I think he and Smokey were separated at birth!
Built one upper and lower front A-arm to test the design. Looks like it'll work as-is with the shock mounted outboard. Installation ratio is about 0.65, which translates into a 300 lb/inch spring to get 130 cpm wheel rate. That's not bad, and wheel rate rises slightly in compression.
With that out of the way, it brings up the issue of inboard suspension. What I prefer doesn't mean much if everyone else like something different... so, I'v decided to go inboard. The reasoning is that since it's more complicated, that's what needs the attention. The simplier outboard solution uses the same A-arms and is a no-brainer to install. If you're a potential builder, you can comment in the forum on the issue here.
Started on the front suspension, tacked-together per the plans to see what's going on, since a beta-builder reported trouble. If there's a problem, it's likely because the A-arms were modeled in CAD as point-to-point, while the real A-arms have threaded bungs at right angles to the chassis, so the tubes aren't where they are in Software Land. The solution of which way to go, outboard or push-rod, will be answered in the next couple of days.
Contest! To help increase interest and membership in the Midlana forum, I've created a "guess the horsepower contest." If you guess right you win one of three copies of the book. If you have not registered yet, go to the forum and do so - you can't see the contest without registering. After you're registered, go here to read the rules and how to enter. Good luck, and tell your friends!
Every once in a while house stuff intrudes into Car Time. You home owners know that solving a house problem by ignoring it doesn't work - it just gets worse. With the roof done, next up is fixing the siding. Siding Guy is nearly done (for a good price due to the crummy economy), and the next thing on the list is paint... but rainy season is starting early - like, tomorrow. So, paint will be put off for a bit, maybe until spring.
Ignoring the house and working on the car means I never got around to installed rain gutters - big mistake. Due to the bonehead architect of this housing tract, water dripping off the roof gets into the wooden chimney surround causing all sorts of damage. However, I can't blame the architect entirely because without gutters, the damage is made worse - time to suck it up and get them in before the rains. They'll have to be removed for paint, but so be it, at least the problem areas will be protected. Putting them up took all Saturday and most of today - TinkerToys for grownups. With much of the day gone I didn't feel like working on the car, so took Midi to visit my parents, where he gets along great with their dog.
Of course, both dogs are young, and like any "immortal" teenager, don't know what's safe and what isn't - Midi decides to jump off an 8-ft wall. No, he didn't break any bones, but I could tell he really felt it. I'm thinking he won't do that again; when we got home, he was real careful jumping out of the truck.
For people thinking, "Hey, what about the car?!"; the good news is that I have a big vacation coming up real soon :), so lots of car progress will happen.
Spent part of the day learning the ins and outs of the Hondata KPro tuning software. Since a few sensors are different, corresponding changes are needed in the ECU... which means learning how to use their application.
Then we took Midi with us shopping at an outdoor shopping mall :)
First start video! It started - the SOB actually started the first time! Notice how the left rear wheel starts turning... I couldn't see it from where I was, and could have been a lot more exciting had I "gassed it." Pretty darn happy about this! Hours later and I'm still muttering, "It started, it actually started..."
Getting close to first engine-start. Fuel system is in, at least enough for now, the hoses stuck in a plastic gas container. Spark plugs were removed and the engine cranked uptil oil pressure came up. (It's easy to tell when it does - cranking speed increases.) No leaks, that's good.
Just started bringing up the various relays and found another omitted wire, a rather important one connecting power to the ECU, explaining why the ECU isn't able to power-up any of the other relays... The Honda ECU comes up in stages, where one wire is driven to +12 V, then the ECU starts its power-up sequence, bringing up other circuits and relays, and that's not happening. Probably because of that missing wire - I hope.
Remote oil filter is plumbed but needs mounting. This position works well: it's out of the way, easy to get to, the hoses are short, it's helps balance weight, and spilled oil misses the tire. Plus, if and when an oil cooler is added, it'll go in the right-side air-inlet, so the plumbing's already mostly done. The filter housing is also a convenient source to drill and tap for turbo oil, oil temperature, and oil pressure sensors.
The big mess here is due to being in the middle of wiring and not taking time to clean up... hard to stop when I'm getting close. It's a good thing the harness was unwrapped; what I labeled a ground wire was a major +12V supply line. It wouldn't have burned anything up, but it sure wouldn't have started. Found that the fuel pump expects a 20 amp fuse... yikes! Fortunately that possibility was designed-in ahead of time... though I expected pump current to be less.
With the wiring needed for first-start is done, it'll be brought up slowly to avoid surprises. There's also some more fuel fittings and hose to pick up, wiring in the larger-capacity injectors - I think the electrical connectors are different. First-start will just use a plastic lawnmower gas container; no point using the real tank and smelling fumes for months. Intake manifold has to be bolted in, fuel rail, too, as does the exhaust. The turbine housing is out for coating, which is just as well; it means the turbo oil supply isn't needed just yet.
In case anyone thinks I did the entire electrical in just a couple days - only the wiring for starting the engine is in, which doesn't require anything from the dash (even skipping the starter key for now.) That's a whole 'nother kettle of fish which will be handled later, maybe next, maybe not. In addition to wiring the entire dash is running all the wires for the lights - that's actually the easiest part of the job.
Engine-start will be sooner than later (at least, trying to start it...), maybe within a week, and yes, the camcorder will be running.
I started a more detailed build log on the Midlana forum, where the logs of the two beta-builders are well underway. Since it's so much easier to post over there I post a lot more often, blathering on about this or that, but it gives more insight into the build. Plus, comments over there are visible to everyone, instead of sending me e-mails and no one else knowing what's going on. Don't forget to register, else as a visitor all you can see is the FAQ, which is but a small portion of the site.
Electrical work continues. All the engine-ECU wiring is done, other than a couple power and ground wires to chase down. Without them it'll either not run at all or run "strange," and strange is bad. To make sure, the engine harness was unwrapped to see what goes where. Debugging power and ground wires can be tricky since continuity doesn't necessarily guarantee anything - current can go any number of paths, indicating "good," and still not be wired right. Battery cables and disconnect-switch is in, fuse box is mounted, and wiring has started on the circuits needed to start it.
Also removed the turbine housing to be coated - which might not be a bad thing to have off the car for first start. Even though the manifold's been cleaned, the shock of exhaust pulses and heat will no doubt dislodge stuff that shouldn't go through the turbine blades.
Working on electrical - there won't be many pictures since it all looks the same. I made it tough on myself by using a block from one car, the head from another, and a harness from yet another, so there was a few where-does-this-wire-go moments. However, since that was worked out ahead of time, things are moving along fairly smoothly. In fact, the toughest part, the engine-to-ECU connections, is nearly done. It gets easier from here on, running the necessary ECU wires forward to the dash, and after that is the really easy stuff, wiring the lights and such. Of course, the lights aren't needed to start the car - the immediate goal by the end of the year. Right now it's looking like it'll happen before then.
On a slightly different note, one big time-sink will be programming the flat dash. Most of the displayed variables are conveniently picked up in the CAN bus serial data - "just plug it in." However, the OEM drivetrain has neither an oil pressure sensor nor oil temperature sensor. Both are easy to add but a bit of a project to figure out the scaling and to create the curves. All part of the fun.
Added the flex tube to the exhaust. It's finishing other than muffler hangers which will happen later. Note the mocked-up rear wheel; due to the chassis sitting on the table, the wheels can't sit at ride height, but it gives an idea how big they are ;)
So now starts the long process of wiring the car. First up is placing the fusebox; placement is important for both weather weather reasons and being able to access it after the lights go out on a dark night! The first real wiring is the engine/ECU wiring, which goes behind the seat on the backside of the bulkhead. Shortening the harness was easy, though there's some wires left over - who knows what they are. A paperwork task is adding a connector so the dash can be completely removed. Also made a list of missing connectors and the needed lengths of battery cables.
All better now, don't know what I had.
Got the CNC-cut A-arm patterns. They'll help trim a ton of time off making the fixtures.
There a saying that we're all connected by no more than seven people. I was just listening to some Elvis music and thought of it. That is, you know anyone through at most seven people. Every once in a while I find a new link. My boss at work told me how his dad was a doctor who did house-calls. One day he gets a call that someone at a hotel had a cold and needed a visit. So he packs his bag, heads over, and is puzzled how he's "checked out" first. Then he meets his patient... Elvis. So between me and Elvis there's only two intermediaries.
Then I started thinking of how many others have only one intermediary: Clinton, Janice Joplin, John Wayne, Colin Chapman, Patton. Smokey Yunick was zero (talked to him on the phone.) Dan Gurney, saw him. Oh, then there's Hubert Humphery - who one time said to me and a buddy, "So these are the little assassins!" 'Course, I was only a kid at the time, but it still counts!
Ugh, runny nose, coughing, stingy eyes, headache, achy teeth, and my hair hurts... dang cold/flu. Perhaps that helps explain why, after a full day in the garage, only this silly turbo brace was fabricated. Of course, that time also included making it wrong twice...
The guys who bought the Kimini body mold are looking to sell it. Don't know if they changed plans or pulled some shells from it and are done with it, but if interested, contact them at: info-at-tcdesignfab.com.
Beta-builder Jim is doing his build in a slightly different order than I am since he doesn't have to mess with a turbo. He's about to start on the A-arms, flying without a net since - while I've written the A-arm fab chapter - I've not yet actually followed the directions! I'm coming down with something... hope it's not the H1N1 thing... it is flu-like.
The two beta-builders help keep me in line, pointing out issues and asking questions that, if left unanswered, will be amplified once the book is released. Part of the burden of keeping them busy is the occasional grenade they lobe in, asking some innocuous question or asking about a dimension of such magnitude that it gives me a good scare. The last one was a big deal, something about the rear wheels not fitting(!), but a fast mock-up appears to show all is okay. This could have been a big deal since axle lengths come into play if there's something major amiss in the rear axle track width. Whenever one of these problems gets lobbed in, it always makes me wonder what they think, after they've discovered I don't know as much as they thought... That's the deal with beta-builders, they see all the dirty laundry.
Both are apologetic about pointing things out, but that's exactly what I need, and the input is extremely valuable. Also helpful is the input from the third beta... guy. He's not a builder, but has been a big help on quickly getting the manuscript into Latex, and who has recently started an initial copy-edit. He's also reluctant to mention my many errors, but the truth is, the more the better. I won't get my feelings hurt - much - because I already know my skills are less than perfect! (Oh, and he says the manuscript has already caused him to buy a welder in anticipation of buiding his own...)
The exhaust is almost finished, and in hindsight it's overdone - again. Thing is, what's the point of doing something half-assed? It could have been a constant reminder of corners cut, so no corners were. How much better will it work than an ordinary turbo with a built-in wastegate? Who knows, but we'll have an idea during the first tuning session and first drives. The tube at upper-left isn't welded; it'll be replaced with a flex-joint. It, along with the oil supply and oil return lines were ordered.
Still have to figure out a support for both the turbo and muffler. On Kimini, all rubber muffler mounts did was melt and smoke, so Midlana will get stainless supports. After that's finished up, time for the electrical system!
Heard from my brother who said at the trackday weekend, by the end of the event he was laping faster than a Porsche GT3. That's very impressive - those GT3s are serious track cars.
Ordered fasteners for the turbo system... nuts, just realized I forgot to order bolts for the muffler flange... oh well. Will work on the rest of the exhaust next, and if there's time, figure out where the remote oil filter is going, which determines oil supply line length. The plan is to tap into the housing for oil pressure, temperature, and the turbo oil supply.
My brother is leaning on me to go with him this weekend when he takes his Super Stalker to Button Willow raceway - sprung it on me today since his other passenger had to back out. But, Midlana's getting built because I don't do other stuff. That's what it comes down to, doing family activities, or selfishly working on the car - the all-consuming time-sucking car, which I really enjoy working on. So now, if I don't go, I'm the bad guy; wonder if he regrets badgering me about how slow things are moving along, How many times I've heard, "Is it done yet?" Well, it's getting done becomes it's being worked on. Hmmm.
After a very long day, the turbo manifold is done. Still left is adding the muffler tubing, along with the wastegate exit pipes. The exhaust tube in the turbo is just stuck in there for effect; it'll be rerouted, but yeah, it's pretty big. Made a list of all the bits and pieces needed to finish it up, included the oil system. An oil pressure and oil temperature sensor are needed, and will be plumbed into the remote oil filter housing, after figuring out which brand to buy.
I got some grief on a forum after posting how expensive the exhaust is. I could have used 304 weld-els which would have lasted for a while, but went with 321 to ensure longevity. Ask anyone who knows about turbo track cars and they'll say to use cast-iron, 321, or Inconel to have it last, or risk it disintegrating or cracking. What’s it worth having a trackday terminated by a cracked header? The wasted entry fee, gas to get to the track and back, food, lodging, it adds up. Around here, having that happen twice would pay for the 321 header.
Also, having the car break is a poor way to instill confidence in potential builders; what's that worth? The goal is to built a high-powered example of what the car can be, proving the chassis can handle it, and if builders choose, they can do the same; it gives them options. For example, using a stock drivetrain means they may be able to use the OEM exhaust manifold - which no one wants - for practically free. Maybe I'm looking at this wrong, maybe I should put on my Marketing Weasel hat and mislead people how cheap it is to build a turbo engine - "Joe Smith built his for $50, you can too." I don't think so.
The book is moving right along, currently at 268 pages. It's worked on every evening, while the car's worked on each Sunday, and more when I can (three weeks off coming up at the end of the year.) The ratio works out about right; 6 evenings of typing keeps up with one day of fabricating.
I want to start the engine, so after the exhaust is done, the oil system will get sorted. Dual remote filters and an adaptor plate will get mounted, along with oil supply and return lines to the turbo (so the bearings won't fry during a brief startup.) Water lines can wait until later; I just want to run it for 30 seconds or so, not minutes. A complete fuel system isn't necessary either (A hose stuck in a gas works fine for test starting.) That's because I don't want the real fuel tank with gas and fumes in it stinking up the garage for months while everything else is finished. Anyhow, after the oil system's plumbed, electrical work will be tackled.
Sorry for the late update; yesterday was a long day. Pushed hard to get the entire manifold tacked up and got it done late in the evening; the pictures pretty much sum it up. A header is great fun to make - lots of room for creativity. The primaries are within about 1/4" of each other, and for a turbo manifold I'm not going to sweat getting closer than that. While not intentional, the manifold somehow looks like it belongs on a drag boat...
The big concern - like always - is heat distortion. The worry is that as it's finish-welded, the tube assemblies will move round enough to ruin the collector slip-joint alignment; all four tubes have to line up just right or the tubes will jam part-way on. Each tube assembly will be welded separately, polished, then welded to the cylinder head flange, giving one last chance to tweak alignment. Even then, as each tube is welded, the flange will distort (it's common that header flanges have to be ground flat after final welding. Small misalignments at the flange-end mean big misalignments at the collector. We'll see.
Received the additional exhaust tubes. Cool, Sunday will be busy. Made the decision to sell what turned out to be an expensive intake manifold and am replacing it with a part that fits with less bother for less money. Right now everything necessary to make big progress is here; it's now up to me to make it happen.
The exhaust. Lots of time is spent placing the turbo while keeping space for two wastegates. Once located, the turbine flange is temporarily welded in place, and the turbo removed. With the flange fixed in space, the two rectangular secondary tubes are added, then the collectors. You can tell which welds I did and which were done by the experts... Fortunately there's enough Eastwood polishing materials left-over from Kimini's header to make this one shiny, too.
Once the collectors are in place, the fun starts, creating primary tubes connecting the cylinder head flange to the collectors. Romex house wiring serves as the mock-up material. The trick is to bend it with the same radius as the tubing - no cheating. At the end of the day, one primary is tacked-up, but as was re-learned, an exhaust takes more U-bends than expected. The thing with 321 is that it's really expensive so there's no rush to buy too many up-front. Hopefully they'll get here before next weekend. The book will have more pictures and details on assembly ;) Fun stuff.
Good news on the shifter; it turns out all the drag is being caused by the (very snug) end seals - nearly five pounds of drag. Remove them and it works great, the shifter centering itself as it should. However, the seals must remain in some form since they're the sole protection against dirt and water getting between the inner and outer sleeves. They were trimmed back to decrease the contact area but still retain a seal, and now all is well. Excellent, because it avoids a lot of extra work, and the exhaust manifold can be concentrated on.
I do not like SketchUp "Pro" - at all. Make a drawing, dimension it, save it, export it as a DXF. Turn around and import that DXF file, and the scale has changed. Huh? Okay, fix the scale of the DXF file, save it. Open it again, and the scale is once again off. If you want to use SketchUp, stick with the free version - that's all it's worth. Every single reason for why I bought the Pro version has proven to be unusable.
Doesn't look like ("turn your head and cough") $1100, does it? The great performance of 321 stainless comes at a very steep price, but it shouldn't fail, ever. Part of the reason it's so expensive is having two 2-1 collectors fabricated, with double-slip joints no less.
Been doing a lot of thinking about how to solve the cable drag problem with the shifter. After talking it through with some engineer buddies, it seems the best way is to remove the offender, the cable handling lateral shifter motion. But, doing so means admitting I messed up, so it becomes an issue of how to fix it and not let my ego get in the way.
With Kimini, and now Midlana, I've done pretty well getting things right the first time, so in the rare case it goes wrong, it doesn't sit well - at all. A sense of failure, along with the lost time and wasted money, is a bitter pill to swallow. Part of me wants to put blinders on and just say, "It'll be fine," moving on to other parts of the car - you know, ignore it and it'll go away. But for this particular problem it's enough of a concern it has to be dealt with. All it takes is one single mis-shift, going from second back into first instead of third, and it'll grenade the engine... what's prevention of that worth? More testing this weekend.
Didn't accomplish a lot; for some reason my mind is unsettled and wandering. Messed about with the shifter springs but don't yet have a good solution - push-pull cable drag isn't helping.
Did get the fuse block mounted - it's going at one end of the glove box. The various power relays are mounting to the opposite side of the same panel. With those in, wiring can commence.
Did a mock-up of the brake and clutch master cylinders... they'll work - just. The master cylinders are just high enough to properly feed fluid to the cylinders, but with nothing to spare. Better is to use the physically shorter pedal assembly to gain a valuable inch of vertical space, but I'm using a standard-height assembly - because I have it... and because I'm hard-headed.
Received the rest of the electrical "bits and bobs" (as the Brits say.) The list of stuff to buy is getting short: tires, seatbelts, front brake calipers, brake lines, body paneling, paint, and that's about it.
Received several sets of springs; the "winning couple" will serve as the shifter centering springs.
Made the big purchase today for what I hope is all the 321 stainless tubing necessary to make the turbo exhaust manifold. To save time, the supplier is making two two-into-one collectors to fit my divided T03 flange. They'll have double-slip joints to prevent cracking of the header assembly. Yes I could make them myself, and as much fun as it would be, it takes a long time to get all the angles right. I'll derive as much fun putting the rest of it together :)
Being a divided turbine means running two wastegates. Thinking it through I'm almost sure one big wastegate can work, running a divided tube right up to its valve face. However, big wastegates are very expensive, much more than two smaller units with a larger total valve area. Of course, had I included the additional tubing into the cost calculations, it might have been smarter just to use the large one...
Anyhow, running two wastegates means running a tube out each side of the turbo flange, with the forward one having to do an unfortunate U-turn to get it to the rear of the turbo, but oh well. If this isn't clear it will be once the build starts. Until the tubing shows up, there's a shifter to finish and virtually all of the electrical.
In other news, I saw several car trailers heading to San Diego for this weekend's Vintage Race weekend. I took Kimini to that several years ago, and several people asked if I'm going this year... nope. If I'm there it'll be bugging me that I'm not working on the car. Sunday is Build Time.
As another example of how everything is interconnected, the arbitrary goal is to start the engine, even if for just a few seconds. To do that requires all the engine wiring, which means shortening the harness and placing the ECU, but it would be good to have the fuse block in place, which is to go in the dash somewhere, dictated by where the instruments are not. That requires figuring out where the instruments go, since their placement is more important than the fuse box, and on and on.
Laying out the instruments consumed the entire day. It's pretty cool how little room the flat dash consumes. In addition are the usual switches: lights, turn signals, wipers, ignition, hazard, horn, fan, fuel pump, and a couple spares. The cross-hatching is area either blocked by the steering wheel or unavailable due to the support frame. It ensures everything is both visible and easy to reach. It's hard to see but most of the switches are in pencil to the right of the steering wheel. Not sure where to mount the big heavy duty battery switch. It may go just below the dash and ahead of the shifter.
The right side of the dash is left blank for a real, actual, working glove box. Inside it will be the fuse block, relays, and space for glasses, papers, etc.
My buddy Cecil dropped by and asked a question I don't really have an answer for: "How are you going to install the dash cover without risking cracking the paint?" I don't know. Worst case, the split in the dash, which currently allows slipping it around the tubes, can be extended all the way across, making the dash three pieces. That makes it trivial to install, but leave two odd-shaped end pieces that I'm not sure how well will integrate.
One solution is make the dash cover in steel and weld it in permanently, not sure why I didn't think of that. It avoids needing rivets at all, but also means the dash will be the same color as the tube-frame chassis and I'm not sure builders want that - I don't. Still, it would make things much easier, though there's always concern about paint coverage in the corners and overlaps.
Anyway, in other news, the A-arm patterns are being made - that'll save a bunch of time on setting up the fixtures.
Thank you for the generous offers of help regarding the CAD situation. One of the beta-builders is inputting them into AutoCad, in effect, redrawing them. Thankfully there's only four drawings and they're pretty simple. As for SketchUp, as long as it's quarantined to only providing pictures for the book, it's tolerable... just wish Google spent as much time debugging it as they do touting their self-proclaimed awesomeness...
The exhaust manifold design is progressing, mentally if not physically. The turbo has moved a bit further from the cylinder head and closer to the intercooler to provide a straight shot to the intercooler. Tipping the turbine inlet downward allows the primaries to sweep upward into the inlet while the wastegate feeds will sweep downward, as good design dictates.
The nature of the manifold has changed somewhat, with the primaries being longer to minimize lag. Haven't decided upon primary tube diameter yet; 1.625" appears to be the "right" size, yet because 1.75" 321 stainless is used in aircraft, some vendors offer it quite a bit cheaper, so we'll see. Unlike the Kimini manifold, this one will use double slip-joints from the primaries to the collector to fend off cracks. The time is getting near for ordering tubing.
The solution to the lateral centering for the shifter has been worked out; it's just a matter of ordering springs and making the mounts.
I've finally lost all respect for SketchUp, the "CAD" software from Google. Had I stuck with their free version I'd have written it off as a cute drawing program. However, since $12,000 for SolidWorks isn't happening, I bought the Pro version of SketchUp because it provides output converters to allow generating files in various formats, including PDF for the book and DXF files in case I ever choose to have parts CNC-generated.
This week, DXF files were created from the A-arm drawings. The idea was to create templates to make it much easier to build up the A-arm fixtures. So the drawings were made, dimensioned, and sent off. Get a call the next day saying they won't work, that the dimensions don't match the drawing. What? In SketchUp, you draw something, then use the dimensioning tool to do just that. The point is, the line being measured already exists. The dimensioning tool measures it and adds the length text with lines and arrows... only, the value it comes up with doesn't match the actual length of the line.
Example: draw a line that is 1.000" long. Now dimension it and it will say 1.000". Run it through their DXF converter and send it to a CNC shop, where the guys find that the actual line (which is what will be cut) is something like 0.987" or so. WTF? I don't know if the bug is in the core drawing package or the DXF converter, but either way it makes it useless for anything requiring precision. (Consider how a complex drawing will have these little errors accummulate...) For the book this doesn't matter. Builders go by the dimensions listed, but it's a complete no-go for CNC jobs.
Another very annoying bug: their PDF converter fails miserably, removing lines and adding lines as it sees fit. Completely unacceptable for book use which sucks eggs because the high-resolution looks really good. I recently read something about Google moving into products that they charge money for. One comment stuck in my head, something like "Google's good at creating free apps, but not so good at bug-free apps that people can count on." My advice is to stick with the free version which is fine for making pretty drawings, but that's about it.
I know this comes across as yet another rant from a grumpy pissed-off guy, but is it so unreasonable to expect people and products to do as they promise? I didn't promise these things, they did. It's especially irritating to have given them hundreds or thousands of dollars. All the above aside, SketchUp's not a total loss. It serves its purpose of making drawings for the book, but that's about it. It's best considered a toy.
You may recall we were going to have our roof redone and it's finally underway. It's a sad reminder of the level of workmanship which can occur even from people you're giving money to. For example, today they delivered shingles in a truck with a conveyor belt that puts them on the roof. Of course they wanted to get as close as possible so they wouldn't have to carry them far on the roof.
What were they thinking? Are they thinking? Do they care? They'd probably laugh to learn they'll never be allowed to work on Midlana with their demonstrated lack of care and workmanship. Running over a plant and cracking the cement... I'd be embarrassed if I did that, but apparently with this line of work comes the attitude, "f*ck it - not my house." What a sad matra to live by. Is it a big deal? No, but it's just a bit depressing that the people who care seem to be the exception to the rule.
Finished the shifter. Works great, though it needs a spring (like in the OEM shifter that center's the shifter laterally, on centerline between 3rd - 4th gear. Need to figure how what type of spring to use and what strength.
With input from K20.org, turbo placement is settling down. I finally weighed it, expecting something like 25 lbs or so but was surprised it's only 14 lbs. I think the heavy weight expectation's due to holding it up for long periods of time during mockup... no complaints. Regarding the exhaust, received two 1.5" flex joints for the wastegates. I'm not sure whether to use heavy-but-cheap 304 stainless weld-els or light-but-expensive 321. If the turbo was to go right near the exhaust manifold I'd use weld-els, but the further away it gets, the more concern there is about the weight of the manifold. It's not trivial since the weld-el manifold will weigh 3X as much... but 321 costs about 5X as much.)
Other odds and ends: Regarding the big sheet of steel picked up last week, there is a potentially much easier way for fixturing the arms. Research is going on behind the scenes to see if it's doable and if so I'll describe in more detail later. Received the remote dual oil filter assembly but it's uncertain where that's going just yet.
Picked up a 24" x 24" sheet of 0.25" thick steel. It will serve as the base for all the suspension arm fixtures. At $50 it wasn't cheap but builders have the option of using wood; it just means having to add screw-down tabs to all the fixture bits. Since I'm pushing hard on getting things done I went this way, the steel being much faster since I can use TIG welds to "super-glue" the parts down ;).
Also picked up enough 1/8" material for all the suspension bits - I think. The nice thing about the steel place I use is that they have 12" sections of this material in about a dozen different widths. Yes it's more expensive that way, but how many people really need 20 feet, never mind having no way of getting it home.
Worked a bit on the shifter. Drilled out the rod-ends, fabricated threaded press-in plugs to reduce the rod-ends down to match the push-pull cables, pressed them in, and was able to at least test one axis of the shifter. Works great, though it showed the transmission-end mount for one push-pull cable sheath needs "adjustment." Oh well.
Received a remote oil filter adaptor, ordered a remote dual oil filter mount, two 1.5" stainless flex lines for the wastegates, and an ODB-II connector. The connector is because the engine will no doubt have its share of error codes while getting it running. Even though the Hondata KPro can clear the codes, it's nice to be able to read them without needing a laptop.
A busy couple of days spent working on the shifter. It's just short of done; just ordered a couple rod-ends for the transmission end. Learned some good tips which are going into the shifter chapter before I forget.
Midi is a real character. He seems to be part snake, bending into really crazy shapes. One thing he does all the time is sit at our feet facing away from us, then looks at us upside down. I'm only scratching his neck, not pulling him towards me. His flexibility is really demonstrated here with him asleep - I've never seen a dog do that. Then there's the standing on his hind legs, looking up into the fruit trees for rats. Haven't managed a picture yet but he'll do it for as long as five seconds. And finally, today I heard a great commotion outside and caught him running through what used to be a nice neat pile of leaves. Round and round he was going, a little crazy dog have a great time. I guess I should have yelled at him but he was having so much fun I just took a picture. Just like a child.
Here's an interesting Arial Atom review performed by Edmunds. Not that an Atom test is anything new, but because the Atom in question has an especially hot 375 hp engine. Reader Raphael sent me the link suggesting that because the car has similar weight and power as Midlana will have, the results might help validate or negate the times CarTest2000 produced. Turns out it's very close: 0-60 in 2.6 sec and the quarter in 10.6 sec, and that's on street tires.
That said, there are several big caveats that bear mention. #1: The power comes from a supercharged high-compression engine that demands 110 octane race gas (how much is that per gallon?) #2: It's loud as hell, the consequence of high rpm, high compression, and race muffler. #3: The cost of this particular car is plain stupid: $160k? (For that much I'd buy one of Dennis Palatov's 4WD creations.) #4 is the worst, from their summary: Something simply isn't right with this car's handling as it's difficult to detect its limits -- not what we expected from an Atom. Understeer is substantial and difficult to overcome on the skid pad. Balance is not good. And it's just plain scary through the slalom, where even slight throttle application in 5th gear made it want to spin. Let's hope I can do better.
Costco is selling a $35 OBD-II diagnostic tool; not the nice one that reads realtime data, but it does display the error code and allows clearing it. I figure if it avoids even one trip to the mechanic it's worth it. Trouble is it's not on Costco's website and some stores know nothing about it (and it doesn't show in their computer.) Yet, drive to another store and they have a pallet full of them. I picked one up today figuring Midlana might need it... Item #375265.
My brother gave me grief over my calculated numbers (no doubt due in part to them being faster than his car.) His does have a point though, that I'm being overly optimistic about what Midlana's going to weigh. As a data point, Kimini weighed 1595 lbs wet. Okay, so where's all the weight-savings going to come from on Midlana? No composite shell, that's about 100 lbs. No doors, there's another 65 lbs. The engine's 70 lbs less (very surprising.) BUT some things are heavier. There is some composite, let's say 25 lbs. There's a heavy turbo system, maybe 50 lbs, and the wheels and tires are quiet a bit heavier, perhaps another 50 lbs. Another 10 lbs saved by going to a flat dash. So I removed 120ish pounds, so Midlana will be around 1475. Interestingly, had I paid attention, the spreadsheet says it'll be 1460 lbs, which is pretty close!
So the car is heavier but not by much... Running the numbers again shows a 2.7 sec 0-60 and a 10.7 quarter. Still crazy, though I expect to only see numbers like that with drag racing slicks.
This number doesn't sit well with my brother since his Super Stalker weighs around 1680 lbs wet. He thinks I'm living in La La Land on my weight estimate - and maybe I am. His guess is Midlana will weigh in at around 1600 lbs or so. I know my drivetrain's 170 lbs less, not including his crazy-heavy rear axle, but I have more steel in the chassis. We'll see :)
The heat kept me out of the garage, which provided time to finish the electrical system. It's finally down on paper - not on CAD, but at least in hard form which is more than I did for Kimini. What's that saying, "familiarity breeds contempt?" As an electrical engineer I can "wing it", wiring it on-the-fly and not writing anything down. In fact, just today my coworkers were kidding me about being a wimp because I did write it down - you know, planning. I know they're messing with me, but I went ahead and explained that yes, I could have done the whole thing without documentation, but doing so sets a future landmine in the form of lots of wasted effort every time the electrical system has to be serviced. Eh, what do they know, ignorant amateurs!
Reorganizing the manuscript, placing chapters in order to make it sequential. That is, a builder starting at the front and working his way through ends up with a car with a minimum of flipping pages back and forth. At least that's the plan. Currently 236 pages...
Oh, and I ran Midlana through the shareware program CarTest2000, which proved to be oddly accurate for Kimini. If it's even close, Midlana's going to be scary-fast, with an estimated 2.6 second 0-60 and a 10.5 second quarter mile. The big unknown is what the test software's assuming for tire traction. That, and I'm probably overly optimistic on total vehicle weight - again. I'm going to be using boost-by-gear to keep tire spin at bay, that should help some, but regardless, it's going to be very very quick.
Another month gone... People keep asking, "when's it going to be done?" When it's finished. Or, "Much faster than the first car." Eh, you guys can see the progress, your guess is as good as mine.
There's s line in the movie "Biloxi Blues" that goes something like: "It's hot - damn hot - Tarzan couldn't stand this heat." That's pretty close. At over 100 in the garage nothing's going on until the oddly-and-accurately-predictable end-of-August heat passes.
However, good progress is being made on the electrical system, which can be worked on in the house where it's only 90 or so. The lighting drawing is done plus the fuse panel-to-ECU-to-engine interface. Remaining is the dash, wipers, and where to add various harness connectors. The dash "should" be straightforward since the flat-panel is a one-wire connection to the ECU, monitoring various system variables.
One annoyance is that the Race Technologies dash ECU interface provides a DB-9 and the Hondata ECU has a USB connector. Posting about this on the RT Support forum netted the response, "The [Hondata ECU] does work with our ECU adapter. We've done a number of installs with this type of ECU and it's working very well." What I needed to know is, do I buy (another) serial adaptor or, what wires do I need to cut and jump, instead of the Corporate Reply saying there's nothing wrong. I'd like to see a picture showing how they plugged a DB-9 into a USB socket... Nice try but come on guys.
Anyhow, until the heat lets up, work will continue on the wiring drawings. Oh, and I received a contribution of a Miata shift knob for the project, thanks Zach!
While waiting to be called during jury duty - but wasn't - work started on the electrical system and good progress was made. In other news the shift cables arrived but there wasn't time to play around with them. Due to the heat (right on schedule) I don't plan on doing any welding for a bit. There's boatloads of other tasks so no problem there.
The creature has a face! The headlight mounts took way longer than expected. It's what happens when I go into something with no clue about how to do it, figuring, "how hard could it be?" Yeah well, even the simplest thing can take a while - doing it over and over as I figured out during "prime time" how to do it the simple way. Good thing builders won't have to do the same. They turned out great, as well they should for having consumed half a day. I like how they block very little of the driver's view. They're fairly low (21") but builders can raise them if needed. The suspension bracket and chassis tube is a good sturdy base off which to mount them.
Regarding the side panels, not sure how to fasten adjoining riveted panels. I think overlapped panels would look bad, so maybe drilled strips welded to the tubes might work. Doing that deals with some people's concern about drilling holes in the chassis. We'll see.
Still no shifter cables. Off to jury duty tomorrow! I hear the way to speed things along is to tell the court, "I can spot a guilty person like that (finger snap.)"
Shifter cables didn't arrive so the paneling behind the radiator was worked on. Tomorrow that'll continue, though it might be fun to mount the headlights.
Ordered the push-pull shifter cables. If they show up by Friday, great, otherwise there are lots of other odds and ends: headlight mounts, steering rack spacers, mounting brackets for the front swirl tank, tons to do. Or maybe start in on the front paneling. For now I don't feel like dealing with anything major, like electrical. It doesn't matter what's being worked on as long as it is being worked on.
The Midlana forum has been pretty quiet though membership continues to grow slowly. I feel like I'm sitting on a stage, the auditorium slowly filling with an audience. Once it's full and the book done, it's going to get quite, time for the show to begin. I hope I don't let anyone done.
Measured the lengths needed for the push-pull shifter cables to get them on order this week. Also edging forward on the exhaust, at least planning where to get the bends, how much tubing will be required, etc. And then there's the book, which is slowly taking on a life of its own - again. Than again I can't bring myself to leaving stuff out and get pummeled with questions about why some topics are glossed over. Nope, it's going to be a beast - but a very complete beast.
The shifter's more or less complete; it needs a few more bits and a more robust pivot bearing but I'm very happy with it. I have to give credit to Locost builder Alan for how he did his shifter, and to Honda for the OEM shifter I dissected. Dang if there isn't any other obvious way to control a transmission using two push-pull cables - it's just geometry - so they can't help but work similarly.
It won't be until the push-pull cables arrive can shifter effort be evaluated and the linkages altered to suit. Final shifter placement will also have to wait for the cables since with nothing connected there's no shifting effort - no fair fixing its position only to find it's uncomfortable once connected. Guess that means I need to get them on order... Kimini's shifter fabrication took weeks so it's good to see this one moving along much faster. I'm not a fan of the shift knob; it was just sitting around. A leather one that doesn't heat-soak to 160 degrees in the sun would be better but may not weather as well. A knob better suited for sitting in the weather is probably one off a convertible like a Miata.
Oh, I frequently get e-mails asking something along the lines of, "I've been looking to build a car like Midlana, do you sell plans?" Sigh... I guess I need to put in large font on the front page that the book's not done yet. It's a dead giveaway that they aren't reading past the first page. Speaking of the book, the manuscript's currently at 221 pages.
Ordered parts for the shifter assembly though there's still a few bits to pick up locally. The goal is to have enough parts on-hand to keep busy this weekend.
Working on the shifter design, which will be short-throw right near the steering wheel :)
The cowl is the first sheet metal component to be fabricated. Clico fasteners are awesome and I don't know how something like this could be made without them. These misleading pictures make it look like in a few hours it went from cardboard template to "done." Hah, there's at least 20 hours in it and it's not yet completely done. Endless adjustments, measuring, and trimming, over and over again. I made it tougher by having it smoothly transition around the down-tubes but think it looks pretty cool.
It turned out okay though a little rough but I'm not doing it over again. A sheet metal roller would have been really nice to smooth out the curves but oh well. I've seen Locost builders complaining how much work cowl fabrication is and have to agree. Not as bad as doors or electrical, but still a lot of work. There's probably easier ways of making it but don't know what it would be.
Anyhow, back to work tomorrow...
The way I get so much done in these "work sessions" is by taking vacations timed to coincide with the wife being on a business trip - and by doing nothing else which includes ignoring the house and yard. The bill always becomes due the day before the wife gets back, so everything comes to a stop as I frantically catch up on all the chores I was supposed to be doing. It's just as well - still real warm. Good thing she doesn't read this diary...
Started today with no idea what to work on, and chose the cowl. The dash frame took all day to get just right but it has to be since several other aspects of the design count on it. I worked exclusively off the manuscript's Cowl Chapter... which now needs work based on what was learned today - which is good for you future builders. The hot humid weather didn't help - I'm beat.
With input from K20A.org, the turbo will be side-mounting as was shown yesterday. The overriding goal is to minimize plumbing bends from the compressor to the throttle-body.
Steering's done other than welding or pinning the wheel adaptor to the shaft. For now it's being left loose until the final placement's chosen. I like the steering, it's a lot tighter than Kimini due to tighter tolerances on the support bearings and the U-joints aren't moving around like aftermarket ones did.
Played around with turbo placement - that was kinda fun - but haven't picked a spot yet.
Worked out the basic shifter geometry so now it's a matter of building the thing in CAD.
I'm beat, it's hot and time for a beer, but all the suspension brackets are done.
Not sure what to work on next. There's the steering, to finalize steering wheel placement. This so the center tunnel can be finalized in order to tackle the real task: the shifter. I've decided to go custom because the OEM assembly is huge (and ugly.)
Or, there's always the suspension arms. However, I'm tired of dealing with brackets for the moment, and the suspension arms - and fixtures - are a whole project in themselves.
'Course something fun would be the turbo exhaust manifold; doing the header on Kimini was a lot of fun. That's the beauty of building a car; get sick of something and there's always something else to do.
Then there's electrical. Everything is here but as I haven't drawn up schematics yet that'll have to wait. So many choices...
With the engine back in the chassis I returned the engine hoist to my brother then took Midi to Dog Beach!
Being the first time for Midi I was a bit nervous. There's a million distractions so there was some question how well he'd listen. Then, some of the dogs get up to about 100 mph and there can be some pretty severe collisions with other dogs or people. And finally there's the issue that he (I assume) hasn't learned to swim yet.
There were probably 30 dogs there running all over the place, puppies, little dogs, medium dogs, and some huge ones, and they all got along great. So... with some trepidation I let Midi go and he joined in with all the craziness. A dog had just headed out into the surf to retrieve a ball so Midi took off after him first. Unbeknownst to us there was a sinkhole in the shallow water and Midi, whose head was just about water-level, suddenly sank below the surface! In about the time it takes to think, "Oh sh...", his instincts kicked in and he popped to the surface swimming - I'm glad my wife wasn't there. Anyhow, after that brief panic he's now waterproof for life, running this way and that and having a great time - and not listening too well. Couldn't tell if it was the distractions, he couldn't hear me, or didn't want to. It all worked out fine since all the dogs he was playing with stayed in one area, but still...
After that we headed over to my parent's house where they have a young Lab/Shepherd mix, Dora. She's absolutely in love with Midi, wanting nothing more than to be right next to him. As he was tired out from the beach he was trying to rest and as you can see, Dora would have none of that, pawing at him for attention.
Back home, with a now sleeping dog, work began on the rear suspension brackets. I'll churn through them just to get them out of the way because frankly, they're no fun. At the rear, a wood fixture seems to work better than a steel one. It'll be disassembled and reversed to be used on the other side of the chassis. I think of doing brackets like eating yucky food you know is good for you. Get it out of the way early and everything else looks like desert.
Finally some progress; finished all the inboard front suspension brackets - they were a lot of work. The upper-forward mount sticks out because the location of virtually everything up-front is more-or-less fixed by the nose and steering rack. The headlight mount will be just about that bracket which should help minimize its visual impact.
Managed to get the engine back in. Not using the engine hoist leveling thingy freed up enough vertical space to get it over the rear cross-tube. That gets it off the floor and allows rigging the shifter without trying to guess where the transmission levers are!
I think part of the reason for the lack of motivation is that work is now shifting from the fun big stuff to all the small fiddly stuff. I had a flashback of fabing the suspension brackets on Kimini - they took forever and were a real mental drag - real familiar... I now remember being told by a chassis fabricator that brackets take a disproportionate amount of time. He said there's two parts to building a chassis: tubes, and brackets. Tubes are fun, like building a house; big pieces going up which give a great since of progress. Brackets? Ugh, they take longer than the chassis and after a full day of work there's often little to show for all the work.
Anyway, turns out there's a bit more to the intake manifold I picked up; apparently the seller knew about as much as I did. Turns out it's a high-performance part that's hard to find so instead of selling or swapping it I'll modify it to work.
First day of my working vacation's not off to a good start. Spent all morning getting the engine connected to the tranny, bolts, starter, blah, blah, blah. While working on it I realized that since the head I'm using isn't the head that everyone commonly uses in these swaps, the modifications I made to the intake manifold render it unusable! So that'll have to get sold or swapped for another manifold.. grrrr.
After the drivetrain was ready to go, hooked it up to the engine hoist, and realized the drivetrain can't be lifted high enough to clear the rear chassis cross tube. That's nice, so now the drivetrain will take up valuable garage floor space until the chassis is more complete. Actually, I can still make it work... slide the chassis forward, set the drivetrain on the table, then lift the chassis up and set it down over the drivetrain. I'll need help to do that though.
So right now I"m not happy about the lack of progress. At least the wire harness, switches, and electrical troubleshooting manual showed up.
Received the headlights. Ordered wire harness, switches, and wiper assembly :)
In other news, I let Midi out last night to do his business before going to sleep. When I let him in he came running in all happy and excited, jumping around the room like a deer... then he dropped what was in his mouth. It had been either a rat or gopher, but from the smell it was pretty clear it wasn't fresh... Ewwwww. Put Midi out, picked up the mess and cleaned the carpet, then let Midi back in, who was immediately sure that his trophy had run off. He was looking all over for it.
A reader suggested I cool the garage in the morning by opening the door to the house and let the air-conditioner cool the garage... what air-conditioner? We pay too much as it is for electricity so I'll just sweat - and complain.
Ordered the headlights and buckets. Why now? I'm working my way through the electrical design and these combo units are perfect. Just hope they don't block my field of view because the rest of the car is pretty low! Other electrical goodies will also be ordered this week.
Other stuff came up so another Sunday and no car progress. It's still warm, forecast the same through Tuesday which works out okay since my vacation starts Wednesday. In the meantime, work is still progressing on the book. Right now the Electrical chapter is being expanded: working out the power budget, choosing a fuse-block, and planning the schematics. This is a very different process for me, not "winging it" like I normally do, with just notes on scraps of paper that barely pass for documentation. No, this is going to be very well planned out and there will be real, actual schematics to work from when the time comes. Huh, that's be a refreshing change.
Well, I'm officially a publisher. Went and got a fictitious business name from the County, a business bank account, domain name, and tried to get a business license but the City offices were closed - thanks to California being on the edge of bankruptcy, but I digress. This lays the groundwork for handling my own books... huh, who'd a thunk it.
Why bother? To have better control over the books, plus they'll be available through more channels, both on Amazon and brick-and-morter stores in the U.S. and Europe. The Kimini book is a slow seller but like a turtle, keeps minues to march along; better that than a flash-in-the-pan that only lasts a few months. After both the Midlana car and book are done I'll move the Kimini book over, and after that have a few ideas for some shorter books, but that's a ways off just yet ;) I've found that I enjoy writing...
While standing in line at the County office I thought, "What the hell am I doing here?" and realized this is where hopes and dreams begin; others in line were probably thinking the same thing, starting businesses that might become a dream - or a nightmare... but we all hope for the best.
Picked up the engine hoist from my brother and hope to have the drivetrain back in the chassis this weekend.
So I'm sitting at the computer when suddenly this dog appears next to me. "How did you get in?", I thought. This pretty much says it all... a dog-sized hole in the screen door.
Engine arrived safely and on-schedule! A big thanks to Jeremy of Drag Cartel for delivering as promised, something that these days is more the exception than the rule. I'll probably put it back in the chassis simply to get it off the floor but it'll be a while before it's started. Only then will I know how well put-together it is... no, I have a lot of faith in Jeremy's work; he has a well-deserved reputation as a top builder. The heat's still on around here, 97 degrees in the garage and just moving the engine pallet from one side of the garage to the other was enough to start sweating. Or maybe I'm just getting old...
Before starting the engine I'd like to have a full schematic on-hand for the car, something Kimini never really had (other than hand-drawn sketches and connector spreadsheets.) To do that means finding a wire harness kit but what brand to use is undecided - not a big deal but another item on the to-do list. The schematic will be in the book though I wonder how useful it'll be. I mean, people are going to be using all sorts of drivetrains, different lights, and different dash instruments, so there may not be a lot of commonality. However, if it helps even a little bit it's a plus, and some people will be using the Honda K-series - beta-builder Jim is. Drawing the schematic will be a time-intensive sub-project... just like all the other parts of this project, lol.
As said before, just because welding isn't happening doesn't mean the project isn't moving forward. I think of it as a big pile of soil, with boulders, rocks, sand and dirt in it. The entire pile has to be moved so it doesn't really matter what's moved, just that I keep working at it. Like the saying goes, "How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time." In a week I'll have some solid work time so thing's will move along.
On the dog front, Midi has this odd habit of bending his head over backwards so far he can almost rest it on his back. When he sleeps it's often with his four feet up, and in that position he snores - loud. Amazingly loud actually, loud enough that we can't hear about 1/3 of the movie we're watching. It add character.
Well, one thing does great in the heat - this is about how many we collect each day, and no worms - yet. This reminds me of a story...
I went on a tour through our county sewage treatment plant (there are many similarities to a fish pond filter.) Anyhow, I asked the guy how the tomato plant got there that was growing next to one of the million gallon tanks... suspecting the answer. Sure enough they'd cleaned out a transfer hose and some tomato seeds ended up there. What to guess where the seeds come from? You, me, everyone... tomato seeds are unaffected by human's digestion so they show up in the darndest places. In fact Cooper liked tomatos and plants were always popping up where we hadn't planted them...
Oh, and the engine is done and on the way :)
Too hot - again. Got to play grandpa and took the family to Sea World which even on the bay was darn hot - a lot of sunburned and cooked people there. This guy didn't put these penguins around him or sit down in the middle of them, they recognized him and came waddling over. The one on his lap had jumped up without help and seemed to really like him - he said he had helped raise her. Several others squabbled over who else got to sit in his lap. I was about to ask why the water gear when one took a dump in his lap - ah.
Work continues on the book during the week. I will be taking some time off again so things will happen... at least during the mornings!
Here's Jeremy's latest picture from Drag Cartel of my engine due to be done in a week or so. There's something very pretty - even elegant - about newly-coated pistons in a fresh block.
Even though I don't work on the car everyday, the thinking about it never stops. Here are some recent notes that give a glimpse into the many parallel threads currently running through the project:
... change rear cowl frame to ½” to be easier to bend and to cover the edge of the dash. Or, use ¾” angle material instead of square tubing… probably easier. Front may have to stay at 1” wide though due to attached flange. Split 1” sq tubing then trim? Assumes bandsaw or saber saw. Do I make cowl – and front cover - very slightly crowned so center front cover doesn't vibrate or lift at speed? Inner framework for front cover? Hinge the cover? If so, have to lean front cowl frame back slightly to clear lower edge as it rises... + latches, gas pistons. Option? Probably should lean front cowl frame back regardless... just in case, but same angle as side tubes? Probably can’t due to outer surface of flange needing to be parallel with front cover. In fact, are side flanges on cowl even needed... hmmm, not really structural, but will leaving it out make cowl flimsy?...
On the dog front, we may have a bit more of a water dog than hoped for. Caught him running up and down the fish pond stream having the time of his life. I didn't have the heart to yell at him and just let him be a kid. Last night he was dreaming and wagging his tail, that was nice to see because it means he's at peace.
Yesterday he got to meet about eight dogs and wanted to play with all of them, and met a bunch of kids, wanting nothing more than have his belly rubbed. One of the little girls was fascinated by his, um, boy parts and asked lots of questions. She was concerned that something was wrong with him - the purity of children's thoughts - and I said no, it's just that he's a boy dog. After asking more questions I suggested she ask her mom who was nearby. I don't think having your 6-yr old daughter hear about sex from a creepy old guy in the park (me) is how it's supposed to work... I can just imagine her telling her mom something and mom asking, "who told you that?!", to which she'd point at me. I don't want to get on the 6-o'clock news that way...
Lastly, regarding the Kimini book and issues with the printing company, it's still unresolved but my book sales has been incrementing, "implying" that things are working. That's in quotes because the company isn't answering my requests for Support so who knows what's going on. If you order a book and have issues please let me know.
Received an e-mail from reader Glen:
"... When do you anticipate the book ready to publish, (for those of us who don't have a lot of patience)? I know you have the two beta builders, and don't have time to tutor any more. Are you going to wait to publish until the car is complete? Or can we get some bits and pieces in advance?"
My reply:
Have you read through the forum? There is - or was - a few people who were itching to start a build so I listed all the things they could do in the meantime - which can take a while. I've yet to hear back that anyone (beside the two beta-builders) has done these things - I suspect not. If you're serious about wanting to get started, great! Start by cleaning out the garage and reviewing the Midlana forum about what parts to start accumulating. This can take a while, like locating a powertrain. If it's in sad shape, have it rebuilt now, which takes a while on its own. Cleaning up, building a table, gathering all the Miata parts, sourcing seats, it'll takes time, never mind building a sufficient budget to get most of the parts up-front - something most builders don't expect to have to do.
I am having the engine professionally built to save time and right after the car's moving under its own power (whether it's painted or not) it'll be put on a chassis dyno to be fully tuned. These two actions save literally months of floundering around with building the engine myself and fiddling with tuning. So, while some have pointed out - correctly - that rebuilding an engine at the same time as the car is asking for trouble, by having the pros handle that it should go far to avert additional delays.
Best case, the book will come out next Spring. It's moving along in parallel with the car pretty well, staying just ahead of construction so it's being used by me and the beta-builders to validate it as we go, corrections being made as required. After the car is done it will go through shakedown testing, street driving, and at least one trackday event to validate the suspension and overall design. Throughout the build and during testing, pictures will be added to the manuscript to aid construction (and motivation), up to the day when the last picture is inserted, probably of the car on-track. On that day the book will enter the finish phase of editing and copyediting. Then there's dealing with formatting for the printers, ISBN numbers, etc, etc. That in itself could be a couple months.
Given that it took 10 years to build Kimini, expecting this to be done in one year may be optimistic. However, we're seven months into the year and it's probably 60% done - so far so good. Of course, electrical can take a long time, then there's the shifter, paneling, turbo manifold, plumbing, etc, etc, so who knows.
Ugh, too hot, mid-90s and a persistent headache means book work instead of car work. Since the first week of September is traditionally the hottest around here, hope this isn't a sign of a long hot summer.
The cowl/dash, front cover, and diffuser chapters are done, minus photographs of course. I guess it shouldn't be surprising that pushing forward on the book means dealing with all the "how-am-I-going-to-do-this" issues now rather than dealing with them in the garage. I guess this is a partial excuse for not working on the car, that when I do, things will move more quickly since it's already mapped out.
Working on the cowl/dash, front cover, and diffuser chapters. The decision on whether to split up the manuscript will wait until the manuscript's done, then the final page count will decide. Another way is to have everything in one book, but offer an optional laminated "garage book" containing only the dimensioned figures. We'll see.
I've about had it with Lulu, the Print On Demand (POD) business that prints my Kimini books. While they haven't yet screwed up my color version I've taken the black/white version off-line until I get the situation sorted out. Either they get their sorry house of cards in order or I find another printer. Having seen what goes on behind the smoke and mirrors, along with their incredibly poor "Support" system, I've had my fill of their amateurish operation. As I told them, when you make paying customers have to start managing things you know you're in trouble - they're in trouble.
I may end up having the books printed and I handle sales and shipping. After what I've been through that'll actually be a relief - at least then I'll know things are being handled correctly. Unfortunately it does make it a pain to handle international orders. Suffice it to say I'll also be considering my options for the upcoming Midlana book.
Speaking of that, I'm considering splitting the Midlana book into two, one containing all the text and photographs (the "reading book") and a spiral-bound(maybe even laminated?) "garage book" that'll contain only the dimensioned figures. While there's a small concern that people will try buying only the "garage book" to save money, they'll be written such that one's not much good without the other.
Why? The book's currently at nearly 190 pages and there's a long way to go. It may easily surpass 300 pages and I rather not make builders have their one and only book (that won't lie flat) in the garage, subjecting it to dirt, sparks, and being ripped or torn, etc. Figure references would cross over between the two, so that's not a problem. Builders would read through the "reading book" to decide what they're going to work on next weekend, then take only the "garage book" in with them while doing the actual fabrication (I think the "laying flat" thing is a big deal.)
A secondary benefit is the drawings can larger to make reading the dimensions easier. Anyhow, I haven't decided either way but it's being considered, even though it's more work. Plus, not all printers do spiral bindings, let alone laminating, but feedback so far has been fairly positive. Eh, we'll see.
So about the car... finally ;)
Fixed the steering rack mounts which of course took a while. Puzzled out the first suspension bracket (the first one always takes the longest.) Also, the rear brackets on the front suspension are tricky because they'll extend through the bodywork. I'm trying to make it so there's no gaping holes when it's all done, letting in dirt, water splashed up by the tires, or pissed-off bees. However, suspension pivot points are critical so the bodywork will have to deal with it if necessary. Anyhow, the boxed-in brackets will make them about a million times more reliable than the fine craftsmanship in the 24 June diary entry below.
So at night we put Midi outside in his dog run to keep him from doing mischief in the house. At about midnight he starts barking, and barking, and barking. It’s driving me nuts; it’s driving the neighbors nuts… I have to do something, so I let him out of his dog run to give him access to the yard. I go back to sleep and about 20 minutes later am awakened by someone pounding on the back door. It’s Midi on his hind legs, pawing at the door which sounds like someone pounding on it. I try to ignore it and, sensing this, he starts barking, and barking, and barking. During the week this will be totally unacceptable.
So he finally broke my will and I let him in and, once he’s near us, he’s the best behaved boy in the world, but I’m not sure I trust him to wander around the house at night looking for something to chew on (and we don't know if he's housebroken.) So I lie down on the sofa and try to go to sleep with him on the floor next to me. He wakes me up every time he changes position because I’m concerned he might get into trouble - nope, never happened, apparently he is already housebroken, or really smart. I woke up wondered how exactly this little hairy kid has already manipulated me into doing exactly what he wants - crafty he is.
Happy Fourth!
We're beginning to suspect that Midi-Dog may have been mistreated by a man. He has no problem with my wife but with me he's a bit unsure. One time I raised my arm to point at something and he acted as if I was going to hit him. Later when I was near his face he was really concentrating on my breathing - it reminds him of something unpleasant I think. He's a bit skittish, too, more so around me than my wife so who knows what life he's led.
Cooper was really easy to read, his facial expression, breathing, and tail always gave away his thoughts. This little guy, well, I wouldn't want to play cards with him - he's tough to read; his face doesn't say anything and he doesn't wag his tail much. My brother adapted a dog with (we suspect) a similar past and it took several months for the little guy to come out of his shell. Anyhow, he's here on the floor, snoring (Midi, not my brother...)
Here he is, Midi,as in "mid-engine" (and yeah, a buddy already said, "that is so gay." Whatever.) The shelter claims he's a Pit "mix", a catch-all phrase I think they use when they see some Pit and anything else. To me I see a lot of Labrador, though with his really strange bark/howl/squeaky gargled sounds he makes (along with free-standing on his back legs(!), I wonder if he's part Basenji, too. The wrinkled forehead could be a product of Pit, Basenji, or Chow. His head's slightly wider than a Labrador but not wide enough for a Pit, and his body is much more slender. He's already longer and taller than Cooper but 2/3 the weight, but who knows how big he'll get. While there are dog DNA places that report the whole mix - for a price - it doesn't matter enough to find out.
I get things done by focusing on one task at a time. As you know I've recently fixated on Cooper's departure and as a result, concentration on Midlana has suffered and today was no different. Yesterday we visited several animal shelters, finding - not unexpectedly - that impressions gleaned from a website are often quite different than when meeting a dog in person.
Today we visited another county shelter, arriving with a short list of dogs we were interested in based solely upon their web picture. The ones I really liked (the appearance of) turned out to be a real handful - kind of like dating a beautiful Hollywood starlet who's a head-case, I'd imagine. Many of the young Terriers were (reminding us of Cooper as a puppy) something like miniature Arnold Schwarzenegger piranhas, or maybe like playing with a thorn-covered medicine ball. My wife said, "you don't need another chainsaw." As beautiful as the young dogs are we realized we just don't want to deal with the whole puppy thing at this time - maybe it's because I'm a decade older. It works out well for everyone since puppies are adopted fastest, followed by young dogs, and lastly, seniors.
Older dogs especially, are of course far more calm. This shows my own hangup, that after going through what we did, we just can't bring ourselves to get a senior dog that... how do I say it... may not have many days. I hate writing off a dog (or anyone for that matter) based upon age, but I also can't ignore the impact losing my best buddy made on me - I'm just not ready to have it happen again anytime soon. (I realize nothing's guaranteed; health issues can cut a young dog's life short, too, but you get the idea.)
Another variable is color; regardless of breed, dark colored dogs aren't adopted nearly as fast as lighter ones and it's just how people are. We were guilty of this, too, and only looked at lighter-colored dogs.
Anyhow, after looking at them we didn't find any compatible kids and headed back to the truck. We were just getting in when the girl who let us spend time with the dogs came by walking another dog. She asked what we thought of Piranha Boy (having probably guessed since we were leaving empty-handed.) I thanked her for her time and said that while he'll make some family very happy he was just a bit much for us. Then she said, "Oh by the way, there's another dog that's really calm yet not too old, did you meet him?" No... so back we went.
So she gets him out and we meet him, a nearly all black one-year old Terrier mix that was surprisingly calm, acting more like a four-year old than a puppy. We'd walked right by his cage earlier because... well... because he didn't fit our myopic view of what's attractive. However, instead of jumping all around, ignoring us, or trying to figure out how to dig out of the concrete enclosure like the other ones, he was happy for the company, quietly chew on his squeeky-toy while laying next to us. Uh oh, he's getting under my skin.
The saying is right, you go to the pound to adopt a dog, but the reality is that it's not up to you, the dog adopts you. He'll come home tomorrow, right after being relieved of his manhood... By the way, yesterday, one of the dogs decided - several times - that I'd make a wonderful mother to his children. "Let... go, get... off... of my leg!" Anyhow, so now there's the question: what do we name him? "Turbo?"... eh, no. "Pinion?"... no. "Midi?", as in "mid-engine", maybe. Regardless, you'll be seeing a lot more car updates now that the dog trauma is passing.
One consequence of the physical build getting ahead of the book is the inherit flying-without-a-net that goes with it, not having a drawing to follow. Last night the steering chapter was finished up so the CAD drawings were compared to the actual chassis to make sure everything's in the same place... nope. A careless mistake of measuring off the edge of a tube instead of the centerline means the steering rack mounts are offset. It's good to catch errors like this... but a whole lot better to catch it before holes are drilled and tubes welded! It's not so much the effort to correct it, but the time wasted.
The engine continues to move along; the sleeved block is on the way back to Jeremy of Drag Cartel to be built up. Meanwhile the head's getting ported, a valve job, plus a new valvetrain with Inconel exhaust valves. Good stuff.
One dog I was pretty interested in disappeared off the website this morning which means it's been adapted. There was a brief instance of, "hey, I wanted that one!", but that was quickly replaced with being happy that that the little guy found a home. I read an interested quote about adapting a dog: "You may think you're choosing a dog, but the dog is actually choosing you." Who know what furry kid we'll end up with.
Here's a good example of how not to design an inboard suspension pivot bracket: a wide bracket welded to a narrow tube (as many Locosts have.) In the first picture, this passenger-side bracket has nearly failed - note the crack. How was this noticed? Because the same thing happened on the driver's side, but wasn't caught until the suspension broke off (second picture); the grinding marks are from it dragging on the asphalt. In both failures, note the angle of the A-arm tube, how a line drawn along its axis intersects the crack? All the bending force is aimed right at an unsupported portion of the bracket, so it's guaranteed to flex the bracket and therefore is a guaranteed eventual failure... These brackets will be fixed by adding top and bottom plates to box-in the structure, though the right way is to make the bracket and tube the same width to start with.
Visited several animal shelters to check out the doggies... so many of them. What's really odd - and bothers me - is that it seems like Cooper's been gone a long time. I don't understand, expecting more of a "seems like he was here just yesterday" feeling. I feel bad, guilty really, that his sense of presence is fading so quickly. Of course he'll never really be gone from my memories, but with only nine days gone by it feels like a year already, with just a dull uncomfortable emptiness in the house. We gave his bedding, pull rope, and leash to the local animal shelter. As we stood in line I noticed that the lady ahead of us also had a bed and leash. Sure enough, she'd gone through the same thing and slowly broke into tears; I gave her a hug and did the same. Life goes on...
Working on the cowl and front cover chapters. The manuscript is now all caught up so it's time to start making progress in the garage again. Some people asked if I miss Cooper's company in the garage. Actually he doesn't... crap, see, I did it again, present tense... sigh... anyhow, he didn't like being in there due to the noise, and I was fine with that because I was concerned about him stepping on sharp metal or getting eye damage from the welder.
Today is my traditional garage day, but between Fathers Day (dropping off Cooper's left-over food and treats,) and thinking about Cooper I'm sort of... what, listless, my thoughts adrift. I'm working on the cowl and cowl frame in CAD but my mind keeps wondering. It's been six days and I haven't yet made it through an entire day without tearing up at least once. (Fortunately no one at work has walked in during one of my "episodes.") I'm doing okay today... but than again, today's not over yet. (Nope, didn't make it today either...)
I had forgotten about the video I had posted of Cooper on the Kimini site. This was recorded one year to the day after his big operation, after he had learned how to walk again, making it five years ago now. When I played it this week I expected it to make me really sad, but it had a surprising impact instead. I saw a very happy and active dog having the time of his life, and how much it contrasted with how he had become in the last few months. Now, with this sudden five years of hindsight, I think he was in some pain, but Terriers don't show it. (When the vet gave him shots he didn't yelp, cry, jump, or even look around.) Toward the end he didn't want to lay down, and once he did he didn't want to get up, but he never complained.
Rant: Technically, Cooper is... was, an American Staffordshire Terrier, though many people thought he was a Pit Bull (the breeds are related.) Yet I've never known a more friendly happy dog who never bit a dog or person, just watch the video and decide for yourself; never was there a dog happier to say hello and play with another dog. Interestingly, a recent "Sports Illustrated" had an article on what happened to all the dogs involved in the Michael Vick mess (Pit Bull fighting.) The article was notable for the tone running through it, that SI appears to feel somewhat responsible for perpetuating at least some of the media fiasco regarding this breed.
That's because back in the late 1980's, SI ran a somewhat alarmist article about Pit Bulls that fed the fire of panic about the breed. I've been around lots of dogs and been bitten exactly twice, by little yappy dogs. And before anyone says, "well, they don't rip your arm off," that's not the point. I've never seen an unfriendly Pit Bull and feel the media are nothing but sensationalistic story chasers who use creative license to embellish stories, publishing only select stories to further their agenda. With our TV having been disconnected eight years now I don't miss all the sensationalized "news." Yes, I know there are dangerous - trained - dogs out there, but to me that says a lot more about the owners than the breed. Of course it's alot easier to put dogs to sleep than people. Anyhow, we might get a similar breed next time, and maybe not, but it won't be due to their damaged reputation.
My block at ERL ready for sleeving.
In a sad sort of irony, with Cooper gone I have more time to work on this site, the book, and the car. Since taking Cooper for walks is (I really did type "is")... was my primary source of exercise, the situation will have to be corrected eventually.
Thank you very much for the dozens of condolences for Cooper; it's clear there are many dog owners who've gone through this same thing (and others who are about to.) I knew I signed up for this yet it doesn't make it any easier; who thinks of the sad parts when getting a pet? Sharing a pet in our lives is to live life and share ours with another - companionship. The notes I received contain many heartfelt words that could have only come those who've experienced this. I sincerely thank everyone.
As rough as this is I very much plan to get another dog (though my wife's is not, having lost three herself.) I even stopped by the pound on the way home, walked in, looked at the first dog, and whoa, too soon, losing my composure right there. It was the way they were looking at me, like they could see something. Regardless, no more dogs from breaders. Once I realized how many hundreds of animals there are in local pounds made me vow to never again pay a breeder - there are way, way too many unloved dogs in our pounds that need a home. Then there's the health issues with purebreds and in fact one time my Vet once said somewhat sympathetically about Cooper, "Poor little guy seems like he got a bad set of genes."
Anyhow, life moves on, Jeremy of Drag Cartel sent a few pictures of my block in-work at ERL. It's being align-bored, sleeved, and even runs through a vibration process called Meta-Lax to relieve stresses inside the block. Once it's shipped back to Jeremy he'll get to work assembling it so I have to press onward.
This is the hardest thing I've ever had to do, knowing that I'm making Cooper's last meal, knowing that he's walking around the yard (oddly stopping often, like he was wanting to remember it,) carrying him out to the truck, made all the worse by him being happy to go - he always loves... loved, truck rides. Walking into the vet's office and Cooper being unafraid as always, knowing that I'm there for him, it just killed me. Then, when I was leaving I saw a lady in the waiting room with her dog and said, "Enjoy every day with him..." but being unable to finish my sentence. There's something very raw, a feeling of being stripped of all the facades we hide behind, suddenly breaking down and crying in front of complete strangers.
I'm left with a terrible mix of emotions, having been eternally hopeful that he'd somehow magically get better yet knowing he would not. Having his trust in me that I'd always be there for him, yet walking him to the gallows, and now being filled with a great sense of loneliness mixed with a feeling of deceit, like I tricked him into this, like I could have waited a few more days or weeks, yet watching him continue to wither away. Mix all this with a feeling of a huge empty void, a presence now absent - it just kills me. He was always here, through the Kimini build, the first book, the Midlana design and much of the writing of that, always happy to be with me no matter what I was doing, most often napping at my feet next to the computer. I feel like a big part of me has been ripped out.
To those who've never loved an animal like a family member you may wonder what all the fuss is about. I don't know whether to feel sorry for you, or happy you've never had to go through this.
Farewell my friend, rest in peace. I thank you for choosing us and making our lives better through your presence. You were a strong dog who never complained, always happy for a walk, attention, or simply to be with us not matter what we were doing. You knew everything we were saying and were like our own child. I hope that wherever you are that you're loved, and know that I'll never forget you. I miss you terribly already.
Built up the inboard suspension pivot fixtures, starting with the rear. Setting it in place (with great trepidation) showed that the forward lower pivot point was off 1/2"... huh? Had to go back through the CAD drawings, suspension design software, and measuring the chassis to figure out where the error was introduced. It appears I used suspension number from one of the endless iterations for the chassis and a different iteration for the fixture. No harm done as neither the A-arms nor pivots are in place yet. The new location was run through the suspension software to make sure it's okay, and it is. Just have to fix the one A-arm fixture.
Anyhow, so that was the rear fixture. The front one went together fine and setting it in place doesn't show any problems so that's good to go.
Saving the actual suspension bracket fabrication to next week, I wanted to do something different. The Honda RBB intake manifold was modified to work with the RSX-S throttlebody and Hondata gasket. The nice thing about this manifold is that I don't have to make one (for now), it flows pretty well, and it's a lot lighter than the OEM CRV intake setup. Got a note from Jeremy at Drag Cartel saying he'll be visiting ERL back east and will try to get some pictures of my block going through the sleeving process. (I requested that I get my block back instead of an exchange because I know the VIN is clean. I don't want some other block that could possibly be stolen.)
Here's a shot of the Koi pond from last week after we put the babies in; they're just visible in the foreground at far left. The big fish have just noticed me and are heading over to ask for food.
We've been spending time with Cooper - this is going to be a very difficult week. He's at my feet now, running in his sleep, even though his rear legs don't work well anymore... it breaks my heart.
Sorry for the late update. Didn't get much done on the car but did get to see our granddaughter, Lana, who's now two years old. Her dad says when she's being pushed in the stroller in a mall, if a "large person" walks in front of them she shouts out, "Buns!" Pretty funny I thought, but as grandfather I can enjoy it without any of the consequences. Also moved about a dozen baby Koi (fish) from our filter to the main pond where they seem pretty happy. Along with nurturing life comes the responsibility to also be destroyer-of-worlds, taking some large but sick Koi out of the pond and putting them out of their misery. I hate killing living beings be they on feet or fins.
Picked up some threaded rod along with hardware, everything needed to at least get the front suspension brackets mounted this weekend. The rear suspension fixture is a job in itself so we'll see how far I get on that.
The old diary is still accessible through the "Old Diaries" link at the top of this page.
My publisher handling the Kimini book says they're making my book available on amazon.com. At first they said Amazon would tack on a 30% price increase to make it worth their while - to which I muttered, "Good luck with that." Then today they changed their minds and say the Amazon price will be the same as the direct price - have to wonder what went on behind the scenes with that drastic change. Anyhow, Kimini is now officially on Amazon! Just go there and type in "Kimini" and there it is, both the black/white and color versions.
In other news, the block is currently being sleeved so things are moving along. Work continues on the manuscript, but with long days at work not much gets done after dinner during the week. Picked up some steel strip which will be used for fabing inboard suspension fixtures. Wood ones were done up in CAD but (like I tend to do) they ended up too involved so I started over.