Protrim
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| posted on 24/1/05 at 02:31 PM |
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Which nose cone?
I'll about to order a carbon fibre nose cone from Fluke Motorsport. They have never sold any nose cone to a Locost so they couldn't tell
me if I should go with the Caterham nose or the Westfield nose.
Anyone here know if the Caterham or Westifield nose will fit? I want to buy it before I start making the front suspension and so on because if there
are slightly differences I can adjust during the build process.
[Edited on 24/1/05 by Protrim]
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David Jenkins
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| posted on 24/1/05 at 02:35 PM |
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In my (v. limited) experience, the Caterham nose is too small for a Locost - the Westfield should be a near-perfect fit, due to the remarkable
similarity in the chassis (ahem...).
David
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Protrim
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| posted on 24/1/05 at 02:46 PM |
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So with the Westfield nose I will be able to use it with small mods? I don't want to buy it if it's not for sure that I can fit it.
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Mark Allanson
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| posted on 24/1/05 at 02:50 PM |
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I think the pre lit west front will fit without any problems, because the locost chassis is basically a pre lit as DJ has already almost said! )
The later nosecone is a bit more complicated....
 
Rescued attachment Westy Front2.jpg
If you can keep you head, whilst all others around you are losing theirs, you are not fully aware of the situation
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Mark Allanson
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| posted on 24/1/05 at 02:51 PM |
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I had to make secondary frames to carry the nose which also made the ally sides very interesting to make and fit
 
Rescued attachment WestyAdapt.jpg
If you can keep you head, whilst all others around you are losing theirs, you are not fully aware of the situation
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locogeoff
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| posted on 24/1/05 at 04:33 PM |
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If a pre lit fits then surely a cateringvan should fit as the pre lit is a pre lit because it was before the litigation that was brought about because
of the similarities.
A bit of a simplistic view but, just musing
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Ben_Copeland
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| posted on 24/1/05 at 04:41 PM |
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My 2nd hand caterham nosecone fitted my locost book chassis just fine! Nothing major needed doing to fit it.
Ben
Locost Map on Google Maps
Z20LET Astra Turbo, into a Haynes
Roadster
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Protrim
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| posted on 24/1/05 at 05:46 PM |
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Ah, now I'm worried. Someone says Caterham will not fit, someone says
Is there any way I can measure if either of the types will fit my Locost?
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Liam
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| posted on 25/1/05 at 12:26 AM |
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I might be missing the point, but here's what I think...
Get a fiberglass locost nosecone. It will definately fit and you save a few hundred quid at the cost of a few hundred grams. The body looks better
all painted anyway imho.
Liam
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Protrim
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| posted on 25/1/05 at 12:37 AM |
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I will have it in carbon fibre. I'm aiming at 480kg with XE engine and more than 250hp. This will not be any ordinary Locost. I won't quit
before the Caterham R500 must eat the dust. So therefore weight is important and carbon fibre is needed.
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Liam
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| posted on 25/1/05 at 12:37 AM |
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Sorry - forgot to actually be of any help.
I dont think a caterham nosecone will fit without a bit of fettling. The flange that would sit on the top chassis rails is curved on the caterham
nosecone. You might have to cut away some of the inwards facing flange on the nose to allow the sides of the nosecone to pass over the chassis rails.
Hope that makes sense.
The westy nose is also likely to have various bits of flange and holes/bulges where you might not want them. But both I think will be the correct
width and be able to be fitted with a little work. But do you want to take a jigsaw to your £350 nosecone!
Liam
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Protrim
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| posted on 25/1/05 at 12:39 AM |
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I guess I might get the Westfield nose cone without any holes. And yes, I'll use a jig saw in my £350 nose cone This is a high cost project
anyway The crank cost me £1250 alone...
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Liam
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| posted on 25/1/05 at 12:44 AM |
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quote:
Originally posted by Protrim
I will have it in carbon fibre. I'm aiming at 480kg with XE engine and more than 250hp. This will not be any ordinary Locost. I won't quit
before the Caterham R500 must eat the dust. So therefore weight is important and carbon fibre is needed.
Mmmm I see. But like i said that's a few hundred grams for a few hundred quid. If you have the money then that's fine I suppose, but if
you're on a budget there are much better targets for weight loss than the bodywork. You should be thinking about wheels, ally uprights, ally
brakes, yourself, etc etc. But maybe you've already got that covered.
Imho carbon fibre is often used to fleece money out of people who have to much of it with pointless products. So watch out and consider things
carefuly is all I'm saying!
Liam
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Liam
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| posted on 25/1/05 at 12:47 AM |
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quote:
Originally posted by Protrim
I guess I might get the Westfield nose cone without any holes. And yes, I'll use a jig saw in my £350 nose cone This is a high cost project
anyway The crank cost me £1250 alone...
Ah now i really see!
Go for the carbon then! Every gram helps and all that. Wish I had funding like that! Still, making my own engine intake will be... fun!!
Liam
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Protrim
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| posted on 25/1/05 at 12:48 AM |
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What does the fiberglass nose cone for Locost weigh?
I'm 65kg myself The crank will be 13kg when I'm finished. Rear axle has alloy housing, gearbox has alloy housing and dogbox kit, AP
Racing brakes where all components weight as low as possible, light weight battery, alloy radiator, light alternator and on and on. Yes, I've
thought weight almost every place you can think about weight.
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Liam
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| posted on 25/1/05 at 01:02 AM |
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Hmm good question...
2.3 kg give or take a little bit according to my kitchen scales. That's for a Luego locost nosecone. 500g heavier than a fluke motorsport
carbon cone at 1.8 kg according to their website.
You could machine that off your key or something But then you could do that AND have a carbon nosecone! They do look nice it has to be said. Go
for it if it's worth it to you!
Just out of curiosity, if you're targetting an R500, what made you choose to put loads of work/money into an iron block engine? Oh well. Good
luck anyway.
Liam
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Protrim
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| posted on 25/1/05 at 01:09 AM |
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Because I will use the best engine suited which are a Vauxhall XE. I can get alloy block, but for £2500 I choose to use that money on other weight
saving parts. Even with an XE I'll try my best to go below 500kg.
Huh, .5kg was little for £200 extra
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David Jenkins
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| posted on 25/1/05 at 08:17 AM |
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In my car one of the heaviest items is the nut holding the wheel...
David
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Mr G
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| posted on 14/2/05 at 07:30 PM |
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I don't know if others get the same feeling reading this thread but your contradicting yourself!
quote:
Originally posted by ProtrimI won't quit before the Caterham R500 must eat the dust. So therefore weight is important
quote:
Originally posted by Protrim
This is a high cost project anyway The crank cost me £1250 alone...
quote:
Originally posted by Protrim
I can get alloy block, but for £2500 I choose to use that money on other weight saving parts
Money IS an issue then as you would shell out for an alloy block @ £2500 AND spend £2500 on other weight saving parts if the Xe floats your boat that
much 
All the best in building your R500 beater but i'm sure that there might of been some engine options better suited from the start to get your bhp
per tonne figure if your keen on weight saving!
Cheers
G
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Protrim
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| posted on 14/2/05 at 08:58 PM |
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quote:
All the best in building your R500 beater but i'm sure that there might of been some engine options better suited from the start to get
your bhp per tonne figure if your keen on weight saving!
Thank you I'm not a dreamer, the car is being built just so I make that thing clear. There was a time I was 15 years old and dreamt
about everything, but now I'm older and the car will see daylight within a year or so.
Anyway, about the engine option, yes, maybe there is engines better suited, but when you are an Vauxhall fan you build XE. And there isn't a lot
of engines better suited other than motorcycle engines.
Since I've a forged crank with high quaility steel it allows me to offset grind it. That means that with custom made rods and pistons (that I
would custom make anyway) I can raise it to 2238ccm and therefore achieve more than 300hp in the XE, which I by the way never has seen before.
I've also been thinking about alloy bloc instead of all the carbon fibre because the price will be about the same. And it's maybe just as
easy to change some panels later than a complete bloc.
So, with a weight below 500kg and a horpsepower over 300 there won't be many cars that will go faster than my Locost with the correct nut behind
the steering wheel.
The R500 can not compete with the power to weight ratio I will achieve with my Locost. And with sequential tranny and AP Racing brakes I belive I
should have the theoretical victory and hopefully also prove it in practice.
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Ben_Copeland
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| posted on 14/2/05 at 09:02 PM |
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A friend of mine was running an XE just above 250bhp in a calibra, then into an Astra mk2.
The collets gave way in the end, apparently the cams put too much stress on them, and them gave up.
Just something to think about when getting this sort of power out of them. Dont leave anything standard lol
Ben
Locost Map on Google Maps
Z20LET Astra Turbo, into a Haynes
Roadster
Enter Your Details Here
http://www.facebook.com/EquinoxProducts for all your bodywork needs!
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Protrim
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| posted on 14/2/05 at 09:12 PM |
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The head will be totally renweed with solid cam followers, solid cams, bigger valves with smaller stem diameter, bronze valve steerings and on and
on.It won't be many standard parts left in the engine
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Ben_Copeland
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| posted on 14/2/05 at 09:15 PM |
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Yep, thats what he was running... SBD didn't think there would be a problem with the collets. SO it was never brought to anyones attention that
they would weaken... Can you actually get upgraded collets ?? Make them out of titanium
They ripped out of the valve grooves 
Ben
Locost Map on Google Maps
Z20LET Astra Turbo, into a Haynes
Roadster
Enter Your Details Here
http://www.facebook.com/EquinoxProducts for all your bodywork needs!
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Volvorsport
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| posted on 14/2/05 at 10:34 PM |
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hmmm , crank cost £1250 - did you got to QED ? for a price .
Ill say this again for £1600 , i can have internals for 2.5 and capability for 500 + bhp in my engine .
as long as your happy with what youre doing .
Re: bodywork , if all you interetsted in is getting the weight down , use one layer of gel coat , 1oz CSM / 1 oz woven roving , you will not detect
the difference between carbon and GRP .
And dont put any creature comforts in either !!
www.dbsmotorsport.co.uk
getting dirty under a bus
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Protrim
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| posted on 14/2/05 at 10:51 PM |
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The crank is a Swindon crank from an ex-rally car. Since I run a tuning shop in Norway I have good prices on most of the things I buy.
Comfort will be zero to none I guess
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