January 2025
30Jan
Milling
The front wing drop plates are now being milled, so I should have them back in a few weeks time. I've now entered both the Javelin Sprints at Blyton in April and May and the Cadwell sprint in June, so thats something to look forwards to. I'm still waiting for the seat to be covered, by Triple M, and I hear they're very busy so I'm just going to have to be patient.27Jan
Blender progress
The results from Blender are improving. So much so, I've replaced the masthead on the website with a new picture.Click on the picture below to see the full size version.
22Jan
Front wing fitted and load tested
Over the weekend I fitted the front crash box and wing, using the new drop plates and drop plate supports, which are designed to be safer in the event of another frontal impact. The Playskool support plate prevented the crash box from crushing, so the new design will collapse more easily and the crash box should then absorb the energy, rather than the driver. Believe me, a dead stop at 30mph hurts! A lot.I measured the wing angle of the front wing on the Playskool bracket, at 2.5 degrees. This isnt the true angle, as the phone was just resting on the wing, and my garage floor isnt level, nor is the car sat on the Pirelli or Avon tyres it usually runs. But it was a good reference angle to work from. I then placed a 22kg load on the end of the wing, and measured the displacement.
22Kg placed on the end of the wing.
Swapping over to the replacement brackets, which allow for adjustment of the main wing angle, using the phone I measured a 3 degree sweep, which means I can go from 0 to 3 degrees compared to the previous bracket, which was fixed and non adjustable. I then set the angle at 2 degrees, to increase the AOA of the main element, to increase the downforce it creates (lowering the leading edge increases the AOA). I then repeated the load test with the same 22kg load, and the wing deflects approx 2mm further with the adjustable brackets. Which I can understand, as I have taken 400 grammes of material out, and there are now two brackets in place of one large one. I think thats acceptable.
I designed a pair of shorter front wing drop plates, which will bring the front wing back by 40mm, and have a thicker centre section (up from 3mm to 4mm). These will put the stiffness back in to the front wing mounts, and I'm expecting them back in 4 to 5 weeks time. I will then repeat the load test to measure the deflection.
By reducing the distance of the front wing to the front axle, I will be losing a small amount of downforce, since the leverage will be reduced. But I can counteract that with the adjustable main wing angle, so I'm not concerned about the change.
The adjustable support plates I designed.
The Playskool plate
I am now designing a pair of deflectors to sit ahead and inboard of the front wheels, to reduce tyre squirt. These will be 3D printed, and attached to the front wing end plates. Tyre squirt plays havoc with the air flow through the floor and the diffuser, so by removing the turbulent air, I am expecting to see further gains in the downforce produced by the floor.
My Fusion CAD model showing the shorter drop plates fitted.
The Digital Twin model of the car is now pretty much complete. I took measurements at the weekend of the position of the floor to the bodywork and wings, and edited the positions of the parts in the model, so for CFD this is about as close to the actual car as I can get it.
The digital twin of the Mygale EcoBoost.
8Jan
Javelin sprint entered
I've entered the Blyton April 13th round of the Javelin sprint series, which will be the first outing this year. Its great value for money, with at least six runs, free photography, and class awards. I'm in T1 for single seaters over 600bhp/tonne.6Jan
Extraction video
This video explains how I managed to extract the cad data from Forza Motorsport 7 re-pack, and import it into Fusion.
This is the chassis built up with the diffuser, floor, and the DJ Aero, and the wheels I've designed in Fusion. Looks great in Papaya orange :D
