Saturdays, 19 and 26

8/19/17


Last-last Saturday (the one before last), the 19 of August, Tyson and Gabe C spent a couple hours working on the RX-7 (just for future reference, if any of us are working on the car, Mr. Garcia is automatically included in the equation since the Mazda is housed in his shop and the build is done under his supervision/instruction). During their time working, they prepped and painted the engine compartment the same gray as the interior of the cockpit (not sure what to call it; it’s the place where the driver sits and pilots the car. I guess it could also be called the cabin, but, “cabin” gives a sense of enclosure which, in our case, does not exist). They also touched up the dash with Bondo in anticipation of the electronics and vinyl (I believe it will be vinyl) that will be added to it.



8/26/17

Last Saturday, Tyson, Gabe C, and I all made it to the shop to continue progress on the RX-7. At the very beginning of the day, Mr. Garcia put Gabe C to touching-up the paint in the engine compartment. Once the paint dried, we began to secure the radiator to the supports and the supports to the chassis. After we leveled the radiator, we screwed the aluminum cover, which covers the top gap between the chassis and the radiator, to the supports.




Notice, the radiator hoses are in!


Next, I fixed the steering column which I had managed to pop-out of the steering-box a couple weeks ago. With the help of Gabe and Mr. Garcia, I loosened the steering-box from its mount on the chassis, realigned and reinserted the steering column, and then tightened the bolts on the steering-box again. Since this is the second time that this has happened, we realized that the steering column desperately needed a third point of constraint. We already constrained the steering column over the x-axis (side-to-side) and the y-axis (up-and-down) with a bushing mounted under the dash in the cabin. However, the column was still free to move over the z-axis (forward-and-backward, closer-and-farther). This could pose a threat to the driver in the middle of a race. Not only would the driver lose control of the vehicle’s direction, but, if the vehicle were to crash, a loose steering-column might cause an injury. This potentially catastrophic problem can be avoided with a simple bracket attached to an existing mount on the steering column and a solid face of the chassis. Here is the general idea of what we plan on fabricating.




While I finished up the steering-column issue, Gabe C began sorting out the gauges and accessories. Once it was sorted, Mr. Garcia picked out the center console set-up which was part of the original RX-7 and then mocked it up on the dash with clips.




Gabe also bolted in the ignition coils to the chassis.



Meanwhile most of the above took place, Tyson was helping Mr. Garcia with a brake job for a customer's car. Once he finished, he and I worked on the rear trunk lid, adding three pin-mounts (not sure exactly what they are called) to the chassis and drilling holes for the tips to go through the aluminum lid. Once the holes and pins were properly aligned, we riveted washers to the cover for additional support.



Finally, after everyone had left and I was in the office writing the post for last week, Mr. Garcia installed the distributor and spark-plug wires onto the engine. Every day we are one step closer the turning the key!

Saturday, July 22

Once again, it was an 8am-12pm work day, this time with Gabe C, Mr. Garcia, and I.  On this particular Saturday we continued working in the rear aluminum firewall (see post on 7/23/17 titled “Tuesday, July 18”).  We began by mocking up the firewall and tracing on the body where the panel should fit.  Then, I cut a piece of aluminum angle and bent it to make a mounting point on the sidewalls for the panel.  Meanwhile, Mr. Garcia and Gabe were putting the final touches on the panel and cutting it so that it could slide easily in and out of the car without rubbing.  Then, we anchored the aluminum mounts into the sides of the chassis with rivets and inserted threaded rivets into the mount and onto the chassis where the panel would sit.  Finally, we screwed it in.  Job complete!

I'll post a picture of the final product in the near future.  I forgot to take one right after we finished.

Tuesday, July 18

On Tuesday, the 18th, Mr. Garcia and I put in a couple hours into the RX-7.  We adjusted the transmission mount previously installed on the Saturday prior in order to gain proper alignment of the drive-shaft and differential.  We then heated up a point on the exhaust pipes and bent it upwards.  Previously, the muffler would have been scraping the road, but now it will properly expel exhaust fumes out the rear, hopefully aiding in the aerodynamics of the rear end (more on this in a later post when the muffler and ground-effect panel is installed).  After the exhaust pipe cooled, we proceeded to bend and shape the aluminum back panel/firewall (mentioned in my 6/20/2017 post “Excuses”) in the most DIY way possible.  We used a metal pipe handle for our bending point with the weight of the Mazda holding one end down and my body weight the other.  It actually worked pretty well, however, we did have to do a few minor tweakings to the curvature to get to the desired radius throughout and to the sides of the panel for it to fit properly.  Thus ended Tuesday, the 18th.

   

Saturday, July 15

As of these past two Saturdays our hours have been cut down a bit from 9-4 to 8-12.  We’ve found (Correction Mr. Garcia found) we are more productive in the first few hours in the morning before lunch time.  After lunch we tend to slow down and progress is not considerable.  And so, on Saturday the 15th during our 4 hours, we were able to install the transmission mount, prime the interior, and Bondo (a product we are using to fill in the uneven surfaces of fiberglass) the dashboard.

   

The Rear Bumper

If you have been following our previous posts, you will have noticed that we have a hard time holding onto our bumpers.  First, we started off with a cardboard bumper mold.  Then, the cardboard was modified.  Next, we filled the mold with plaster of paris.  Then, we scrapped it.  The second bumper mold was made of styrofoam.  This was scrapped as well.  Finally, Mr. Garcia had the amazing idea to invert the rear bumper of a Toyota which he found in the junkyard.  So far, this bumper has remained and today Mr. Garcia and I had the pleasure of working on it.

Because the body of a Toyota is slightly wider than our Mazda, the rear bumper had to be shortened.  It was first cut in half, then laid one on top of the other on the car in order to visualize the proper length.  I then drilled holes through the plastic bumper and the car’s aluminum and installed riveted threads so that we could properly secure the bumper.  Next, we drew a guide line over the longer half of the bumper and cut it to size.  In order to connect the two halves (almost halves), we took a piece of aluminum and cut and bent it to match the curvature of the bumper.  We then riveted this plate to both sides of the bumper.

Half-way!

Aluminum Connecting Plate

Final Product

Hopefully this is the last of our bumpers!  Thus far, it’s pretty secure!  Looks good, too!

Excuses

Sorry for once again going for such a stretch of time with no posts.  Nearly the whole team, including myself, has been out of town since June 4 and I, quite frankly, neglected to write anything about the work completed May 30, June 2, and 3.  So, here is my short redemption:

On Tuesday, May 30, Mr. Garcia and I began making the rear firewall.  But before we started on the firewall, I quickly made a stencil for the intake manifold gasket.  Now, back to the firewall.  We began by cutting a cardboard template of the empty area behind the driver’s seat.  Then, we used the template as a stencil to cut out the actual aluminum firewall.  Since the fire wall is longer than a single sheet of aluminum, we used as much as we could, as efficiently as possible, and then riveted another piece to completed the structure.  Firewall complete!  Sometime after I left, Mr. Garcia installed the intake manifold and Weber Carburetor.

On Friday, June 2, Tyson progressed on the aluminum trunk lid.  He added little adjustable support surfaces on the inside of the lid and adjusted them so that the lid is level with the rest of the body.  All the trunk needs now is a latch and it’s good to go. Gabe C bolted in the 3rd link mount, thus completing the rear end suspension system.

On Saturday, June 3, Mr. Garcia, Gabe C, Tyson and I all worked at the shop.  We began the process of directing air to the Weber Carburetor.  Instead of just having the filter stick out of a hole in the hood, we decided to add a scoop.  The plan is to have your typical scoop on the top and then add the sides of an inverted bowl-like shape surrounding the filter and, finally, a plate underneath the filter which seals with the rim of the bowl.  As of right now, we have a template of the bottom plate and have channeled the hood to direct air to the whole filter.  I will post clarifying pictures once the scoop is complete.  While Tyson and I were working on the plate template, Gabe bolted in the 3rd link mount, thus completing the rear end suspension system.

This Past Week

This past week, both Tyson and Gabe C went to the shop on Wednesday and I went on Saturday.  The Wednesday crew installed the aluminum top cover for the right door, thus completing the final door and insuring its structural integrity.  With the help of Mr. Carvalho, they also began shaping the front bumper and fenders by sanding the crudely fiberglassed areas.  When I came to the shop of Saturday, Mr. Garcia and I continued right where they left off.  Mr. Carvalho's sanding had exposed some areas where the fiberglass was insufficient and weak.  When we were originally applying the fiberglass, we mainly did so to the outside of the fender.  And so, when it came time to shape the bumper and fender, most of the fiberglass was removed.  Having learned from our mistake, this time we applied fiberglass reinforcement to the inside.  However, before doing so, we fabricated two aluminum brackets, one for each fender, in order to more securely fasten the fender to the nose.  Here are some pictures of the bumper and fenders:

Before
     

Progress


After
     

Tuesday, May 23

Once again, this past Tuesday I went to work on the car.  For the longest time, the front bumper has been attached to the nose and fenders by two large zipties and four random screws.  However, this crude mockup has been replaced by a more enduring solution.  The nose now has an aluminum mount with riveted threads in order to easily attach and detach the bumper (and every subsequent bumper in the event of accidents).  Six more riveted threads were added to the fenders, three on each side, which adds up to a total of 15 matching aluminum screws used to secure the bumper.

                   

                                    

It's amazing what just a couple screws can do for the structural integrity of a vehicle.  That bumper is solid!

Pictures

Here are some of the pictures from our meeting with Mr. Barrington which I spoke of in a previous post:

Factory Five GTM Supercar


The man who introduced Irving to aviation


Mr. Irving with his team's latest aircraft build
     

Group picture with Mr. Irving


The airship which took Mr. Irving around the world



Once again, please check out Mr. Irving's non-profit Experience Aviation at http://www.experienceaviation.org.  We look forward to learning from him and his team.  We'll keep you posted on what we learn as we learn it.

In the meantime, Gabe will be posting an update tomorrow about what we accomplished today.

Since summer has begun, we all have a bit more time on our hands to put towards the RX-7.  Our summer plan is to have one person at a time working at the shop with Mr. Garcia during the work week, then, on Saturday, we all will work together like usual.  This will allow us to get the car in working racing order well before the date of the $2017 Challenge (October 20-21).

So, with that said, this past Tuesday I went to work on the Mazda with Mr. Garcia.  For awhile now, the front bumper and front quarter panels have been mocked up on the vehicle.  The bumper was cut short and didn't make it to the wheel well, and the quarter panels lacked a curvature in the front.  However, on Tuesday this situation was changed.  We began by cutting a piece of plastic to elongate the bumper and properly form the wheel well (This piece of plastic came from the bumper which was originally too long.).  These plastic pieces were then riveted to the bumper and the seam was covered and smoothed out by fiberglass paste.  We then moved onto the quarter panels.  Mr. Garcia had previously made a fiberglass piece which fit into the missing crevice.  After grinding and roughening the area on the metal panel where the fiberglass will attach, we aligned the pre-made piece and connected it to the panel with fiberglass paste.  Here are a couple images of what we did:

                       

                           

It's kind of hard to see the final product in the last picture, but in person, the car is finally starting to look like an actual race car.  I'll post a better picture the next time I get the chance.

I would just like to say thank you to all who read this blog and support our efforts.  Also, we still are trying to raise money for this project.  So, if you are able and would like to financially support our endeavors we have a GoFundMe page set up for just that: https://www.gofundme.com/teenmade-2017-racecar.  We would also appreciate it of you would share our blog and what we are doing with your friends.  Again, thank you for your support!  See you in the next post!

Alignment/Door Day

Yesterday was a major alignment day.  We began by putting the vehicle on the lift and removing the rear dampeners.  With the rear-end vertically disengaged we were able to remove the springs and install the spring height adjuster.  After completing the rear adjustment we moved to the front.  We started by setting the camber as positive as possible in order to properly set the toe.  Then, under the guidance of Mr. Garcia, Tyson and I began meticulously adjusting the toe, one turn at a time.  While we were aligning the toe, Gabe cut out of aluminum the right interior door panel and riveted it to the door frame.  In the subsequent weeks we will continue adjusting the caster and camber, as well as, designing and fabricating the left door panel.

                                            

Though this Saturday's task list was short, these were two very time consuming and meticulously precise exercises.  That's all for now; with school over we'll have more time to work on the car and keep you all posted.

Hey, my name is Tyson. I haven't had much time to blog because I've been working while the other team members have been blogging. Here are the things we got done over the past 2 week. First, we start the day off by my making a list of what we need to accomplish.

We found a bumper from the junk yard that we can fit to our car. Also there is a piece of aluminum in the picture below that we cut out for a trunk cover.

In this next picture we started out by making a cardboard template for our door lining. Then we used that template to make a piece of aluminum to fit our door. We are not completely done with the door lining so we still have to use rivets to attach the aluminum to the door.

We got a lot done and we are one step closer to our goal of  getting this car ready to race!!!

Long Time No Update

First, sorry for the long period of no updates.  The high school life of school, school, and more school has been keeping all of us from sharing with you all.  However, progress on the Mazda has not ceased.  Before we get into discussing the progress, I would like to introduce two people we look forward to working with and learning from: Barrington Irving and Rajeev Brown of Experience Aviation.

About a month ago, Gabe C reached out to Mr. Irving and Mr. Brown about possibly connecting with them and learning from their experience and knowledge in the aviation and automotive industry.  After the Gabe's initial email, Mr. Brown responded and a few of us, along with Mr. Carvalho (Gabe's dad.  He actually originally saw Barrington Irving at a Carnival Cruise Lines' event and brought up the idea of contacting Mr. Irving.), spoke over the phone to Mr. Brown about our project, goals, and how Experience Aviation could help in achieving them.  During this brief meeting, we were invited to celebrate the tenth anniversary of Mr. Irving's 97 day solo trip around the world.  On March 23, the day of the event, we had the pleasure and honor of meeting in person both Mr. Irving and Mr. Brown.

Just to give a little background, Barrington Irving is the first black man, and at the time of his flight the youngest man, to fly around the world solo.  He didn't take on this feat for the recognition and esteem it would bring himself, but he did it to inspire the next generation and especially those who consider themselves not fortunate or unable to do something great.  Barrington himself did not start at the top.  He had no money.  However, he did have the determination to do what his mind was set on - flight.  As his story goes, he approached dozens upon dozens of manufacturers and airplane companies for sponsorships and received nearly just as many denials except for a select few who eventually donated individual parts.  From those parts he assembled his plane and proceeded to soar around the world.  He has inspired kids since, as well as, helped them build multiple airplanes and a supercar.  For more information on this humble, remarkable man, please visit his website: http://www.experienceaviation.org.  Our team looks forward to learning from Mr. Irving and Mr. Brown's experience with fund-raising, team-building, and race car/airplane assemblies.

Now, for the progress.  Quite a bit has happened since the last update in March, so here is the quick rundown.  The car is on the floor with the suspension, springs, differential, steering links, tie-rods, and sway-bar in place (nothing has been meticulously aligned yet though).  Brakes and clutch are working and functional.  Our engine and transmission have finally reconnected with the rear-end after many years via the wonderful drive shaft.  A positive of the future bumper has been completed out of styrofoam and the rear cover/fuel cell access has been crudely welded onto the frame.  The interior covers for the door panels are in the process of being fabricated from sheets of aluminum.  Also in progress are the seat mount and steering-column mount.

It has been awhile since we have looked back at the development of our project and we probably unintentionally left something out, but if any of us remembers another bit of progress we will post it in the next update (it won't be a month before that happens... We promise).

New Teammate! Hood, Doors, and more!!!

February 25, was the first official work day for our newest teammate, Tyson Russell. He is a peer from our Automotive class, taught by Mr. Garcia, and an excellent artist. Along with helping in the construction of the Mazda, he will take the job of formulating a few renderings of paint schemes and designs.

Having introduced our latest member, here is an update on our progress:
1. Our original cardboard bumper has been scrapped and replaced with new one which has been made more aerodynamic for our rear wing.
2. The doors are mounted onto their permanent location.  We will remove them to add some reinforcements at a later date.
3. The hood pins and supports have been installed.  This means that the fiberglass hood won't warp, deform, or fly off and decapitate someone during high-speed runs.  That would be bad...
4. Possible paint schemes and designs have been discussed.

We cannot wait to see what our in-house artist comes up with; we will post a couple renderings as they are made.

Rotary Update

As of January 28, 2017, we have had a change of plans.  We are no longer working on the Volvo.  In its place we have a 1981 Mazda RX-7.  We found the frame parked in the back our Automotive instructor's shop and all the pieces stored in various locations.  In a previous life, the Mazda was one of Mr. Garcia's race-cars.  A couple of years ago, a crash rendered the banana shaped chassis uses-less.  All the salvable parts were put into storage around the shop.  Another RX-7 chassis was purchased, but, due to rust, the roof was chopped off.  Other than the purchase of the chassis and a few modifications to the body, nothing has been done to repair the car since the crash.  Our goal is to restore the once competitive race-car to its former glory (minus its roof!).

Over the past few Saturdays we have:
1. Moved the RX-7 into the shop
2. Removed paint and rust from the body panels and primed the vehicle
3. Located all the parts and components and cleaned most of them
4. Cut out the area for the gas-tank
5. Mocked-up front bumper and nose
6. Mocked-up rear firewall
7. Mocked-up trunk hood/cover
8. Mocked-up rear-end bumper