Introducing - Voodoo Auto Kits.

[Airhead]

I wanted to take this opportunity to introduce Voodoo Auto Kits to you fine people.

I have been developing an MX5 conversion for the Haynes Roadster over the last couple of years and have overcome a number of inherent conflicts between the Ford and Mazda designs. I worked closely with 3GE on the suspension design and am very happy with the results. When John decided to call it a day I started to think long and hard about the hole left in the market; the result is Voodoo Auto Kits. Our product is going by the name of the VR5 (Voodoo Roadster and MX5) and will in time become a complete package.

I see the VR5 as filling the gap in the market for affordable, good looking and effective components. All of our products are produced using modern CAD/CAM processes and have all been designed on computer before going into production. We are also going to be pushing the envelope with regards to body panel production employing new techniques to ensure consistent, high quality and darned good looks.

Voodoo is going to be managed by myself with a number of key players acting as consultants so as to keep the products fresh and safe! John of 3GE fame has been offering support and advice with regards to the technical elements of the design, he is also a constant source of innovative ideas all of which will be making their way onto the website soon. Mark Bean, better known as Fabbyglass has come out of retirement to offer a wealth of knowledge and is currently working with me on designing a new, fresh and very cool set of body panels which will fit the existing Roadster as well as the VR5. Acting as technical advisor, Mark Allanson has been integral in the discussions leading up to this point and will be acting as an ID to my ego in the days to come.

The website is slowly coming together www.voodooautokits.co.uk there’s not much there at the moment but feel free to sign up for the newsletter and find out about the exciting new innovations as they happen. If you have any questions etc I have registered a new user on here – Voodoo, feel free to PM me.

Thanks

Matt

[tkpm]

Good luck with your new venture.

Terry

[deezee]

When do you think you'll have your demonstrator complete for shows etc?

[voodoo]

Hopefully not too long, I am not going to rush just to get a show car built. I am concentrating on getting the product right and the production quality consistant, but in answer to your question a lot will depend on how happy Mark is with the bodywork. I aim to have something to show within a couple of months; it could be sooner but only if it is right.

Matt

[MarkB]

Hopefully not too long, I am not going to rush just to get a show car built. I am concentrating on getting the product right and the production quality consistant, but in answer to your question a lot will depend on how happy Mark is with the bodywork. I aim to have something to show within a couple of months; it could be sooner but only if it is right.

Matt

Good things come to those who wait or so they say;)

[bobbyh]

cant wate to see the new body work. a closed wheel option would be a nice change.

best of luck guys

[aerosam]

cant wate to see the new body work. a closed wheel option would be a nice change.

best of luck guys

Totally agree, something full-bodied like a Phoenix or an AGM WLR to fit on the Roadster chassis would be awesome. Something like that would really take a long time to develop though, can't wait to see what Fabbyglass comes up with.

[trick-kit]

As you say Matt, no point rushing something, that's when mistakes get made, get it right first time. With the combination of quality and innovation I am sure you're on to a winner ;)

I can't wait to see the bodywork finished, come on Bean, pull your finger out :D

TK

[MarkB]

As you say Matt, no point rushing something, that's when mistakes get made, get it right first time. With the combination of quality and innovation I am sure you're on to a winner ;)

I can't wait to see the bodywork finished, come on Bean, pull your finger out :D

TK

It's coming along nicely so I took time off today..:)

[CTWV50]

Look forward to seeing this!:)

[twinturbo]

Good Luck :)

TT

[les g]

now you know what he was doing at the show :rolleyes:
all those pictures him and Tj took were for inspiration not for his album
good luck guys
all the very best
Fabby is a master with grp be good to see him back in his Blue Suit
(bit gay though) :p
i,m sure it will be a hit
cheers les g
PS. Mark you left your jar of coffee in my van :eek: how wil you stay awake

[MarkB]

Panels will be resin infused which must be a first on a relatively low budget Kit Car but will just ooooooze with quality in the muchness stakes. Also means I don't have to get covered in resin..:)

[mark]

Panels will be resin infused which must be a first on a relatively low budget Kit Car but will just ooooooze with quality in the muchness stakes. Also means I don't have to get covered in resin..:)

So whats that mean then? i know nowt about fibreglass

Be nice to see a new set of bodywork

[MarkB]

Vacuum bagging and more or less the same way F1 folk make carbon fibre parts like the tub etc. Although CF F1 stuff is all prepreg then autoclaved.

[AshG]

how you going to cure it? have you managed to get your hands on an autoclave? if you have im your new new best friend :D

prepreg is the future, we do it at work but they wont let me near the ovens as they have to be kept super clean as they are making medical gear in them

on the plus side i can get hold of roughing and turbo pumps easily that can pull down to 10-7 which is mega overkill for cf work.

[MikeB]

its less labour as Mark says, I'm no expert but with a traditional mould you have to apply the resin by hand then layer the FG then layer etc, very messy.

Where as with bagging it you lay the FG in the mold seal it in a big vacuum bag and use a pump to suck all the air out. The difference in pressure between the atomosphere and zero pressure vacuum is used to pull resin through the FG. If you get it right it can save time and up quality.

[AshG]

its less labour as Mark says, I'm no expert but with a traditional mould you have to apply the resin by hand then layer the FG then layer etc, very messy.

Where as with bagging it you lay the FG in the mold seal it in a big vacuum bag and use a pump to suck all the air out. The difference in pressure between the atomosphere and zero pressure vacuum is used to pull resin through the FG. If you get it right it can save time and up quality.

yep thats all well and good but you need a significant amount of heat to set of the curing process on prepreg, the nature of its design is that you warm it up to make it flexible to shape into the mould then you bag it, stick it in the oven which starts the curing reaction. the epoxy is already in the matting the vacuum have very little effect on pulling the resin through as its already in the matting, the true reason for vacuum bagging is that it pulls the matting right into the mould and eliminates all the micro air bubbles in the resin. (epoxys are very prone to bubbling). if you don't need the ultimate strength in the part you are much better off using a polyurethane resin as its a lot less prone to problems.

[MarkB]

yep thats all well and good but you need a significant amount of heat to set of the curing process on prepreg, the nature of its design is that you warm it up to make it flexible to shape into the mould then you bag it, stick it in the oven which starts the curing reaction. the epoxy is already in the matting the vacuum have very little effect on pulling the resin through as its already in the matting, the true reason for vacuum bagging is that it pulls the matting right into the mould and eliminates all the micro air bubbles in the resin. (epoxys are very prone to bubbling). if you don't need the ultimate strength in the part you are much better off using a polyurethane resin as its a lot less prone to problems.


It's not going to be prepreg as nobody will pay the price for what is essentially a budget Kit Car. I used that as an example of how the resin infusion process works.....it's bagged then a pump draws the resin through the mould creating an even spread of resin.

Never was any good at explaining myself....:o

[MarkB]

The other beast may well be prepreg though as that's not a budget car and unlike anything else so nowt to compare it to...;)

All in all there are 4 on the go so hope they don't get mixed up with each other......:eek:

[jmh]

Hi,

If you are going down the route of resin infusion, have you looked into carbon fibre rolls (not the pre-preg stuff)?

I had a look into this about 6 to 8 months ago as I fancied doing the bodywork out of CF, but the time it was going to take to do the moulds really put me off. However, it would be more than possible to make very good products with just CF weave on a roll - if you all ready have the moulds and resin infusion kit.

Just a thought, because I think that would be really really cool.

There is a company near me that sells all of the gear to do it too (vacuum pump etc. etc.) and no need to be able to heat it up either.

Good luck with the venture ..... sounds awesome

Another benefit to resin infusion is that you can use much less resin and make the parts lighter as a result compared to wet lay.

[MarkB]

Hi,

If you are going down the route of resin infusion, have you looked into carbon fibre rolls (not the pre-preg stuff)?

I had a look into this about 6 to 8 months ago as I fancied doing the bodywork out of CF, but the time it was going to take to do the moulds really put me off. However, it would be more than possible to make very good products with just CF weave on a roll - if you all ready have the moulds and resin infusion kit.

Just a thought, because I think that would be really really cool.

There is a company near me that sells all of the gear to do it too (vacuum pump etc. etc.) and no need to be able to heat it up either.

Good luck with the venture ..... sounds awesome

Another benefit to resin infusion is that you can use much less resin and make the parts lighter as a result compared to wet lay.

There is a down side to using carbon fibre.....it costs a damn fortune and unless down right it looks awful.