Hodgson's Newbies!

[Hodgson's]

Hi all, Firstly would like to say some of your cars look fantastic! We are all
New to the car building world.

There are 4 of us at work who have decided to make one each!, so far we have cut all the chassis steel made a couple of jigs and tacked the first chassis base together,

We all work at an engineering firm who's boss has kindly allowed us to use the workshop to build the cars in our spare time, we are all welder/fabricators so have some knowledge of the fabricating side of things but limited on the engine, wiring etc... Any help or tips would be really appreciated,

Hopefully get some pictures on here soon,
Hope to hear from some of you guys
The hodgson's lads!!!

[twinturbo]

Welcome :)

4 Builds in one place, that should help you all get along nicely.

TT

[tkpm]

Welcome to the forum, we love pictures :rolleyes:

Terry

[ayjay]

what fun---a foursome--welcome to your new adiction
http://s1189.photobucket.com/albums/z429/ayjay50/

[K4KEV]

Wow guys.....a boss who is letting you build 1 EACH....jeeez thats a helluver boss....so we will be seeing in quadruple:eek: you will be ok on here, I don't think I have seen any problems that cannot be solved within the walls of this forum so welcome and good luck guys....where you based?.

[Twin]

Welcome Aboard! :)

[HandyAndy]

A warm welcome to the forum :)

Thats a great sounding boss you have :cool: hope he realises that 4 Roadsters will soon start to take up alot of space once they are all rolling :eek: :D

Best wishes for all the builds .

cheers
andy

[skov]

A warm welcome to the forum :)

hope he realises that 4 Roadsters will soon start to take up alot of space once they are all rolling :eek: :D



And don't forget 4 donors too :eek:

Welcome to the forum, and best of luck with your builds!

[vmax1974]

Welcome boys get your names down for the powder coating system group buy

[Bonzo]

Welcome to the new crew :)

Going to be megga fun having 4 builds on the go & great idea it is too.

Only 1 build table to mark out & 1 set of jigs to make :cool:

I am sure that by the time the fist chassis is complete the other 3 will come together very quickly.

Good oportunity to haggle a good discount when it come to buying 4 lots of build components ;)

Looking forward to following your progress.

[Hodgson's]

We are based in kings Lynn, we had an hour on it tonight,
Getting on quite well with the first chassis,
1 of us has bought a 1.6 mx5 for the donor car. Any thoughts!!!

Time just seems to fly by when working on it!!
How much do you save on powder coating doing a group buy

[monsterob]

FOUR !

Ace big welcome has there been a wager whos will be fastest :D

[skov]

1 of us has bought a 1.6 mx5 for the donor car. Any thoughts!!!

Time just seems to fly by when working on it!!


Good choice of donor :cool:
Have a look at Saturn's (http://www.saturnsportscars.co.uk/mx5.php) MX5 plans.

It's not just my garage that manages to bend time then? If I pop in there for 10 minutes, 2 hours seems to fly by in the outside world :D

[vmax1974]

How much do you save on powder coating doing a group buy

The group buy is for a diy powder coating system just add air and powder see my post and add your name on the list saving about 40 quid on each you lads could get one each so you can do parts at home

[robo]

Hodgsons lads are doing four we are doing three who is striking the donor cars off the available cars list?????????

Bob:)

[Johno]

Hi all,
Well at last I found a hobby and a group of freinds to share it with. It all started a week ago with just two of us considering a build, now a week later and there are four of us and a chassis well under way.......cool:)
Really looking forward to building something I... we can be proud of.
We have all split up into different roles so build will be much quicker but unfortuneately I am the old man of the group (well apart from TONY) so I get the tedious jobs "Jigs etc... but they will tell you otherwise. So far I've built two jigs and they have built nearly a complete front chassis.
Well I'm sure everybody will introduce themselves in due course except Tony possibly as we are still trying to get him to use a PC....:D

We will keep you posted of our progress with photos ( Hint....Hint.... Simon.) and would listen to any advice/help you can give us...

Thanks again Johno

[james3004]

It Doesn't sound like you 4 are a million miles away from myself and Skov, we're in the Ely/St Ives area

[MarkB]

Welcome to the insane world of kit cars and skinned knuckles and cold nights spent in drafty garages/sheds..:)

Vodou have just the thing for a quadruple build, fresh new panels with some serious attention to detail that enables an easier build and very neat finished look to the car.
The Vodou plans also dial out the short comings in geometry with a lighter stiffer chassis again with some neat detailing to allow an easy to build car.

Both the bodywork and chassis have come from years of being involved with these type of cars and by grouping ideas and technical resources Vodou have created a cracker.

[TSM Locost]

It Doesn't sound like you 4 are a million miles away from myself and Skov, we're in the Ely/St Ives area


Even closer to me just outside Long Sutton. Good luck Guy's :)

[poshguy]

Welcome aboard guys I myself am only in peterborough so we are getting a little collection of builders around the area.

[auto7]

That should make life easier building 4 cars because you have an advantage when it comes to buying the major components like shock absorbers.
We as a club do things like that and it really does help.

[spud69]

That should make life easier building 4 cars because you have an advantage when it comes to buying the major components like shock absorbers.
We as a club do things like that and it really does help.

Which club are you from Auto, have you got a website.

It may be worth considering the Haynes Roadster club again.

Best Regards.....AndyH

[auto7]

Swindon kit club and no website as nobody really wanted to waste garage time.
There are 23 of us in the club and have quite a few run outs to shows throughout the year mainly around the midlands though as someone always manages to break down.
We are building a car between us but there is bound to be issues when it comes to who wants to drive it and when, but for now the build is creating quite a stir within the club. We are building to voodoo plans as the vote was in favour of the design being fresh as to what grp parts we have yet to decide.

[spud69]

Thats good Auto - more roadsters the better........;)

I tried googling for some pics but couldn't find any references, you'll have to put up some pics with the cars together. They're always good to see.

Cheers....AndyH

[Bonzo]

Hi Auto

It would be great if you could get some club pictures posted up :cool:

You can never have too many images, they certainly help fellow builders when it comes to deciding how they would like their build to look :)

Sounds like the MX5 build is well in progress, be nice to see the progress in action.

Don't know what your timescale is but as far as I know, the Voodoo bodywork is all imaginary at this moment of time.

Lots & lots of idle talk & bragging how brilliant it is going to be, just a pitty it does not seem to exhist as a physical product. :confused: :confused:

Good luck with the build.

[auto7]

We were toying with a single seat racing car style but at a recent track day our club attended we were informed that single seat open wheel cars are not welcome, in fact not allowed at track days or for the kit car racing series. such a shame as it wouldn't be much use as a road car as not very safe.

I think you should reserve judgement on something until it has been revealed but you clearly have underlying issues bonzo that concern me and others.

[Bonzo]

We were toying with a single seat racing car style but at a recent track day our club attended we were informed that single seat open wheel cars are not welcome, in fact not allowed at track days or for the kit car racing series. such a shame as it wouldn't be much use as a road car as not very safe.

I think you should reserve judgement on something until it has been revealed but you clearly have underlying issues bonzo that concern me and others.


Well that just about sums it up for me :)

Hello Mark B .... This must be something like user ID 5 or 6 :rolleyes:

Nope, not got any underlying issues.

Just not got a lot of time for dolly day dreamers, BS merchants or folk that are happy to con a 16 year old lad out of his hard earned build funds.

Quite a simple man me, say it as I see it :)

[MarkB]

Oh deary me not this again......I don't hide behind daft names I log in when I can be bothered as myself MarkB it's saved so when
I click on the haynes link it signs me in so I don't have to remember passwords.

I think I will leave this forum once and for all.

[Bonzo]

Oh deary me not this again......I don't hide behind daft names I log in when I can be bothered as myself MarkB it's saved so when
I click on the haynes link it signs me in so I don't have to remember passwords.

I think I will leave this forum once and for all.

No need to leave the fourum Mark

I have reported Auto7's post to Haynes admin as the comments are potentialy dammaging to the Haynes brand & to that of the forthcoming Single Seater book !!??

Have also made a formal request for an ISP address search on suspect user ID's.
A simple ISP search will prove me right or wrong ;)

If I am wrong ( Very much doubt it though ), I had better loosen my belt to eat a huge pile of Humble Pie :D :D

That's the kind of guy I am, man enough to admit a cock up :)

I will of course consult the forum moderators shortly, If I have said anything inappropiate I am sure that the mods will soon let me know.

[Johno]

Hi guys,
Well its one week since we considered building a car and we have "NUMBER 2 in the jig"...
The first build was a bit of a learning curve (pays to check what size box to cut for transmission tunnel SIMON....):eek: Didn't take too long to get over it though (just gotta find use for offcuts now). It seems very easy to get carried away with the build and make silly mistakes when you are working on the vehicle in work breaks and evenings.
Lukes donor Mazda MX5 arrived today so hopefully we can start stripping and sorting brackets for engine and gearbox fitting soon.

If any of you guys have done a MX5 build any help would be most greatfull as we are using the "Saturn build guide" and have noticed there are bracings and some measurements missing in the photos and drawings.;)

Well we will keep you informed of our builds and would like to thank everybody for posting useful information on this forum...


ps....keep up the good work guys.

[skov]

Blimey, you guys don't mess about do you :eek:
Don't get people started on the missing dimensions in the Saturn plans :p
I'm sure Spud at Saturn will be more than happy to advise if you give him a shout.
I've just finished building a Saturn MX5 chassis, thought I'd done well to do it in 7 months, but I'm sure you lot will put me to shame, lol

[vmax1974]

I seem to remember spud saying that the missing dimensions are book spec dont quote me on that but if you have any doubts give him a shout he is a top bloke and will bend over backwards to help/advise builders

Hope this helps

Dave

[Bonzo]

Number 2 chassis in the jig already :eek:

The 4 of you are definatey cracking on with the job in hand :)

As said, If unsure of any measurements just ask on here or contact Saturn ( Spud69 on here )
He is very helpfull & will be only too pleased to assist in any way he can.

The way the crew are working you should be able to strip that MX5 donor during a lunch break :D

Seriously, well done chaps, I look forward to following your progress.

[Hodgson's]

Johno! Who marked the jig out with 25mm lines for TT!!!! :D

[Bonzo]

Johno! Who marked the jig out with 25mm lines for TT!!!! :D

Ooops :D :D

Put " Must try harder " on his build report card :)

[spud69]

Hi Johno,

The guide is supposed to be read in conjunction with the haynes roadster book - just to make sure people still buy the manual.....;) i was asked to keep them as brief as possible for now.

There is bound to be some bits i have missed though so just give me shout. I will update the guide as time goes on, keeping a list now. Have to concentrate on the single seater for the moment though so the speed you 4 are going i'll be back to you for advice on certain things.

Go the engine going finally in the single seater and it sounds awesome, had to fully strip and clean out the carbs and reset the pilot screws but thanks to help from Noel and Nathan we got the heart beating and can crack on now.

Cheers.......AndyH

[ayjay]

Dont make them rush !
They'll start making more mistakes:o

[robo]

Glad to see some professionals with the right kit making the most of it,what have you used to cut the over 45' and compound angles with? Mine are done with a mill and a 3/4 ripper.
I'll set you a challenge if your up for it, by myself I can make turn lengths of material in to a fully welded chassis in 18 hours. As there are 4 of you it should only take you 4.5-5 hours start to finish....off you go then!


Thats great phil can I pay you by the hour for our three chassis ?????????:D :D :D :D

Bob

[Hodgson's]

Glad to see some professionals with the right kit making the most of it,what have you used to cut the over 45' and compound angles with? Mine are done with a mill and a 3/4 ripper.
I'll set you a challenge if your up for it, by myself I can make turn lengths of material in to a fully welded chassis in 18 hours. As there are 4 of you it should only take you 4.5-5 hours start to finish....off you go then!

were not really cutting the compound angles! just using a horizontal ban saw that can cut to 60' and then shaping them with a sander!

not sure how long it would take to build a chassis for 1 person but i cut all the steel for chassis 2 in about 2 hours!

[Johno]

Whats a compound angle....LOL:rolleyes:
It's easier to build more than one for us as we can double up in the saw on material. Progress will slow down soon I guess as we start the suspension and wishbones seeing none of us know what we are doing...
Now drawing the parts for laser cutting and machining (no rest for the aged).
Can't wait to get these baby's on the road but for most of us our deadlines are next summer.
The biggest problem we have got at the moment is we are so busy at work we only get 1/2 an hour at dinner and an hour or so at night to work on the cars but we did have a whole day Saturday.

You Guys are are the support we need to push on so can you post photos of your build to spur us on even further......

Thanks guys for all your support hopefully Simon will put photos of our progress on the forum tomorrow (if wifey will let him....LOL) sorry Katie.:D

Keep up the good work....Johno

[Johno]

Too late for that Ayjay Simons already on the case...LOL:D

[Johno]

Simon,
Lets get it straight. I didn't mark the jig 25mm for the transmission tunnel as you implied it was just a thick pen.....:p

[HandyAndy]

but i cut all the steel for chassis 2 in about 2 hours!

:eek: I,m impressed , & i thought I was quick :o :D

cheers
andy

[Bonzo]

Simon,
Lets get it straight. I didn't mark the jig 25mm for the transmission tunnel as you implied it was just a thick pen.....:p

:D :D

That's the excuse I make " Picked up the wrong marker Honest " :o

[HandyAndy]

You Guys are are the support we need to push on so can you post photos of your build to spur us on even further......

Johno

Here,s a thread showing a few Roadsters together ( there,s not many photos of a group of Roadsters together ), its a thread from last year so you may not have seen it.

http://www.haynes.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=4857

cheers
andy

[Hodgson's]

well guys another week has passed and theres ANOTHER build to do!! we are building 5 yes 5 roadsters now!! are we breaking any records here......lol

we have achieved a bit this week although been hard because its been a busy week with work again. we now have 3 chassis tacked and 1 cut ready to go in the jig.
johno has made all the back ends off the job and all the front frames are ready on the parts table,
johno and tony have been sorting the material for the wishbones which is on order.
and johno is also making the jigs for the wishbones, he is not looking forward to tacking up 40 of them though!!!!!!!!!!!

we also have 2 donor cars between us! tony got hims self one yesterday,
just me and you now johno!!

anyway heres a couple more pics
http://s1125.photobucket.com/albums/l587/hodgson10/

would love to hear any pointers/advice any of you have for us newbies
regards simon,

[robo]

Same happened here, thought I was going to sneak a one off build out of the workshop and now there are three being built. I dont doubt that we will end up x4 or more.

Bob:)

[Johno]

Hi all,
Here is a quick run down for the week.
Well I got a couple of hours on the car/s today with some help (Ethan my son...future Roadster passenger) on the rear damper/roll bar brackets. Seemed to go OK, now learning to use the book and Saturn plans in conjuction with each other and a bit of common sense....:D (sorry Spud69 for being a pain).
Luke and his dad today were stripping his MX5 today (poor thing) and found a 4 1/2" grinder very useful underneath the beast, most bolts refused to undo. Before they went home they managed to get all the hubs/discs off and the diff with a bit of persuasion. Monday I'm going to try to remove some of the rust from the brake callipers using the "electroysis" method as described on the web...(any of you guys used this?)
Simon and Luke managed to tack up another chassis as well as cut the parts for the next one.
I got all four rear ends tacked up as well the front end for the fifth for Martin Hodgsons car. He's going to start his build this week if he can spare the time.:rolleyes:
Tony has spent time this week bending the brackets for the shocks on our brake press which did not want to cooperate in the slightest (poor sod), but both him and his son have gone to the "Goodwood revival" today for a break.:cool:
I have started to make the jigs this week for the wishbones and are just waiting for Spud 69 to confirm the dimensions for all the wishbones assemblies. Andy has been busy this week with his colleage breaking his collar bone and Andy concetrating on the single seater version for Haynes.
If anybody elses has built wishbones for the Saturn car and can help out I would be most greatful.;)

Keep up the good work....Johno

ps.. check out Simons link to Photobucket for the latest photos...

[Hodgson's]

hey guys,

a bit of progress made this week another chassis in the jig ready to come out thats 4, one more to do,

Johno has been busy making the jigs for the wishbones with some help from saturn sports cars (thanks guys)
He also couldnt wait to try his electrolysis experiment that he saw on the net, it works amazing, would really recomend it. it cleans rotten, rusted pieces of car back to clean nice steel, with no effort or money.

luke borrowed a sand blaster from a friend which also works extremely well, although the workshop looked like a beach after!

martins hodgson has started cutting his chassis up, but needs to put more hours in!!!!!!!!!!:D

me and johno still looking for dream mx5's, hoping to stumble on one thats had:
1 lady owner,
1.8 import
20,000miles,
FSH,
mint 15inch split rim alloys,
body work rotten hence £250

were still looking!!!!!!!!!!!!


theres a couple more pics on here now for anyone who's interested
http://s1125.photobucket.com/albums/l587/hodgson10/

[Johno]

Hi all,
At last I found a donor, sadly it's not to Simons wish list:p
Build going well, have had a lot of help from "Saturn Sports Cars" (can't thank Andy enough);)
Built front upper wishbone jig Saturday morning and tacked up 5 sets of front upper wishbones by tea time (about 8pm), but boy has it been hot in the workshop.
Would like to say thanks to everybody been reading dozens of posts which help loads.

Sounds like your pretty close "TSM LOCOST" any chance of some photos of car?

ps... Have a good few days off Andy you deserve it.:)

Johno

[TSM Locost]

Johno, you have pm.

[Johno]

Hi, have replied to pm....Looking forward to it.