Latest News
19Feb
Steering wheel and HANS
I've been trying to buy an OMP 27/C steering wheel, several companies claim to have them in stock, but when I ordered they came back with 'Long delays' and then 'No longer manufactured'. So I've gone for a Sparco F-10A from Demon Tweeks, which is a D shaped wheel (and is legal for Motorsport use) and I'm looking at changing from the Dash4Pro to a Plex SDM-330, which I'm hoping will fit on the wheel. I've modelled the wheel and dash in Fusion and a quick render shows it will look like this. Dave Gemzoe of Gemzoe Motorsport is going to supply the dash, which is on back order, and Dave will provide tech support if I have any issues with the CAN programmingI've just replaced the Hybrid Simpson FHR with a more common HANS FHR, at 30° and medium, which was supplied by Nicky Grist Motorsport. It fits me well, and the helmet already has HANS posts fitted, which the clips on the HANS FHR fit perfectly. The Simpson hybrid is far more comfortable to wear, but in the crash at Mallory was seen to rotate on my shoulders and although I suffered no neck strain, it didnt really look like it did what it was meant to do, so I'm going to sell it.
18Feb
Sustainable fuels
Exciting news from Sunoco, they are working on a range of Sustainable fuels for 2026, and they will include more oxygen than the current blends, which will mean even more power for the EcoBoost from next year. Read about it in their latest Crude News :D
10Feb
Beccy lives
The XR2 is now road legal and track ready. And owner Simon Smail took it to Knockhill on Saturday for its first drive in ten years! Would you believe it's 10 years since I sold her? She looks and sounds brilliant. Running a 1600 EcoBoost with 240bhp (1bar) she easily spins the wheels in fifth gear on the greasy circuit, but Simon said he used 50 litres of fuel with no issues all day.
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
29Dec
FF200 model located!!!
For a very long time, I've wanted to obtain the CAD model of the car from Mygale. Or Ford, but neither party were able (or willing) to help. And then 10 years ago, Forza Motorsport featured the car, in glorious detail, and I knew there was going to be a possibility somehow of finding that model, and seeing if there was a way of using it in Fusion. To cut a long story short, I managed to obtain the FOR_FormulaFord_13.carbin file from Forza Motorsport 7, and using 3DsimED, I have opened the file, and exported the FF200 model in to FBX format (as a single file and as all the individual components that make the model). This allows me to import the components that the car is made up from, into Fusion, where, I can convert the Mesh bodies to Solid, and use them in my models.The next step was to try and produce some renders of the bodywork, so I downloaded Blender, and tried to import the FBX files, but Blender said it couldnt open the files as they were in 6100 format. No problem. Opening the .FBX files in Windows 10, using 3D Paint, allows the files to be saved in GLTF Binary format, which Blender then imports.
The results are amazing. I just wish I had the models for Henry's Dissertation that he completed this year, his CFD results would have been even more accurate had we got the CAD model of the car.
The Forza model open in 3DsimED
The FBX export from 3DSimED, imported in to Fusion.
My Fusion 360 aero model with the FF200 body work.
25Dec
Happy Christmas
It's that time of year again, wishing all my friends and followers a very happy Christmas
22Dec
Front wing drop plate support brackets have arrived
Weighing in at just 121g each, these save almost 400grammes over the plate that was bolted to the underside of the crash box. Here's a video showing the design, prototype and production of them both.19Dec
Sierra diff-housing wheel speed sensor kits now listed
The new batch of printed sensor rings for the sierra push-fit output cup have just arrived so the listing for the complete sensor kits is now live on ebay. https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/156590510729I collected the painted nosecone and bonnet at the weekend from Faircharm Restorations, and they look fantastic in the gloss black. Thanks Shane for another excellent job.
9Dec
Sierra diff-housing wheel speed sensor kits
Just waiting for a batch of sensor rings to arrive, and then these wheel speed sensor kits will be on ebay for purchase. Supplied with all the parts you need to add wheel speed sensors to a kit/space framed car running the Sierra diff-housing (eg Westfield/Caterham/MK Indy etc).
5Dec
Printed Fiesta rings
The pair of 91mm sensor rings for a Ford Fiesta arrived this morning. These are SLS printed, with 24 dowels.
They are built up with the steel dowels and are now in the post to another new customer.
4Dec
Printed Sierra rings and sensor brackets
I've just had another set of Sierra 78mm sensor rings delivered, with a set of M8x1.0mm sensor brackets. The brackets are printed with the 1.0mm thread to allow the sensor to be screwed in, using just one of the pair of M8x1.0 nuts to lock it in place. The other version of the bracket allows the sensor to be inserted and held in position with two M8x1.0 nuts. Both designs are available for £10 for a pair. The sensor rings remain at £25 each. The SLS printing service I use remains to be expensive, but the quality and details achieved with SLS are far greater than anything that can be printed at home.
Offset M8 sensor bracket for the Ford Sierra diff housing
M8 sensor bracket for the Ford Sierra diff housing
2Dec
Trip over to TripleM for a seat fitting
It was good to get back behind the wheel of the van with the trailer in tow again, for a trip to TripleM Motorsport near RAF Scampton in Lincolnshire. The A46 and A15 were busy, but the trip only took 1.25 hours and I was there for the 9:30 start.
With the car unloaded and pushed into the garage, Alan and Nick set about making cardboard templates, to block in the space frame at the sides. This is essential to provide the seat with anchors to prevent it from moving.
We then tried the Medium seat kit, but the bag didnt have a great enough volume of beads to provide me with the protection we were looking for. A swap to the more expensive large kit, (which is the same bag but with 50% more beads) provided a much greater volume, and once we were happy with the distribution, the bag is removed and the 1.5 litres of chemical resin are added, and after 15 minutes of break making, the beads were all evenly coated with the resin. Alan and Nick then added the requisite amount of cold water, which starts the chemical reaction to harden the resin. This is quickly spread around the beads, with some more needing, and then we had 20 minutes to put the bag back in to the car, push the beads where they were required, and I sat in the car, wiggled my bum around to get comfortable, and then the bag is pushed in to shape by hand, and a vacuum applied to the bag to prevent anything from moving.
I then remained in the car for a further 35 minutes, which kept the bag from changing shape while the resin cured and hardened. Once that time had passed I hopped out, and Alan and Nick removed the seat, and started trimming it to shape.
The thickness of the sides were reduced, to allow it to be removed from the car more easily, whilst retaining the shape of the space frame, which helps keep the seat locked in to position.
Belt holes were then cut, and after another hour or so of trimming, the seat was refitted with the belts pulled through, and I sat in it, did the belts up to prove everything was OK, and hopped out again. The seat was then removed and will be covered in Nomex flame retardent material, which will keep all the beads in situ, and strengthen the core of the seat.
From start to finish the job took around 7.5 hours to complete. The seat fits me perfectly, and should keep me in situ should I hit anything substantial again. I will be changing from the Hybrid HANS to conventional HANS as I am very aware how much the HANS moved in the crash. It just rolled off my shoulders as I slid forwards, and I'm not prepared to risk that happening again.
I also collected the new Pirelli Ultrasofts from Alan, and these will be fitted to a new pair of rims, and kept for the cold weather events.
Here is a short to the seat fitting process, filmed yesterday at the workshop.
https://youtube.com/shorts/pD1gl-ocZC0?feature=share
