Sorry Doc, maybe i should (attempt) to explain unsprung weight...here ya go (btw i cribbed it from the net! ;-):

 

An important concept is "unsprung weight." This is weight that is not supported by the suspension of the car. This usually includes the the weight of the wheels and tires as well as a percentage of the weight of the suspension itself, including control arms, anti-roll bars, shocks, and struts. Reducing unsprung weight is the key to improving handling. The lower the unsprung weight, the less work the shocks and springs have to do to keep the tires in contact with the road over bumpy surfaces. An easy way to reduce unsprung weight and improve traction is to replace stock wheels and tires with special lightweight wheels. Note that as the wheel diameter or width increases, the weight of the overall wheel and tire package increases, thereby increasing unsprung weight

It's on here somewhere... someone asked them at one of the shows where they came from. I believe it was Raceleda http://www.raceleda.co.uk/kits.htm but I could be wrong.

 

Westfield do some, prob not the cheapest.

 

http://www.westfield-sportscars.co.uk/shop...chFor=&PT_ID=70

 

As do Stuart Taylor: http://www.stuart-taylor.co.uk/products.html

 

Dan

Hey Dan, thanks for the info...and thanks for the export help offer. Those NF Auto uprights are nice. But, yes, a bit too expensive.

 

In terms of the RH build, i actually really like the L/W for numerous reasons...and one of them is the fact that i have to work a bit to make it come out the way i want it. And part of that working to make it come out the way i want is customizing it to have the performance parts i want. It would be no fun to simply buy a MNR, for example. I might as well buy a ferrari. Nothing special there. I want this car to have my stamp on it.

 

In fact, the more i get into to it, the more i like the fact the RH's are what you, as the builder, put into them. So what if my goals happen to be a bit more performance/race oriented than the rest of the builders....

 

Cheers, -sm

It appears that fluke has some prices on the raceleda stuff:

 

https://www.fluke-motorsport.co.uk/catalog/...php?cPath=39_61

 

515GBP's for the uprights and hubs. Not that bad. But i bet i can get cheaper and lighter ones. I like those stuart taylor ones, but haven't got a price on them yet.

Here we go...alloy uprights and hubs for 175GBP's/pair:

 

http://locostbuilders.co.uk/viewthread.php?tid=34565

A real hoodie would simply modify the Sierra ones by cutting off the top mount and welding it into a more agreeable position, then cut and weld the wishbones to suite. Reduce the unspring weight by drilling it full of holes (so it looks like a Swiss cheese) and increase the aerodynamics by covering it with masking tape and painting over it. Total cost is about £10 and that includes a couple of beers at the end.

 

This is the hoodie way of doing things

Sounds great Guy. So, what diameter drill bit should i use? And can i substitute duct tape for the masking tape???

7mm, duct tape is waterproof so would be the long lasting choice, be sure to choose a fast colour for your paint

In board shocks are a great idea in principle. However they don't reduce unsprung mass that much (shocks count as semi-sprung mass), aerodynamic improvements would be neglible in this case, and overall mass would be increased (as a result of mounting plates, pull/push rods, bellcranks etc). Also its easy to end up with some degree of compliance in the system, and any additional play in the system would likely degrade handling far more than the redution of unsprung mass had improved it.

I agree they're a pretty neat solution. For neatness, I reckon pull rods from the top of the upright are the best, you can use thin diameter rod (since it's loaded in tension not compression) for better aero and even lower weight, and the shocks can then be mounted lower in the car, lowering the CG.

In the end it comes down to personal preference, I just think the extra effort of inboard shocks and getting them right outweighs the performance gains.

BTW: Another advantage of inboard shocks is that if you get the belcrank geometry right you can get rising rate suspension, which may make it worth while. Are you replacing the bushes with spherical bearings, I think that's very worth while for an out and out track car.

Those uprights & hubs for £175 are steel not alloy if you read all the posts...

Right...lightweight, but steel, uprights, and alloy hubs. Still, a great deal.

Here is what i believe (hope) is a picture of what those 175GBP uprights will look like:

 

http://www.7builder.com/Gallery/FrontSuspe...ysUprights.html

 

Yes, i will go w/ spherical bearing. i have multiple sources of them, and they don't appear to be THAT expensive. tho i have yet to work out the details of how to make the switch, i don't think it will be that hard (hope). Any insights would be greatly appreciated...along w/ any insights into how to make the switch to the above uprights, w/ the lw/2b/ss wishbones.

 

BTW, the guy that designed those uprights (rorty) has a great discussion on suspension on his site :

 

http://rorty-design.com/content/tech.htm

Here's my twopenny'orth.....

 

If it's still a KPI thing why not cut the tube sections off the top wishbones and replace them with slightly longer ones?

 

You can keep the shock mount in the same place & at the same angle, just move the top swivel joint out a little.

 

If it's become an unsprung weight thing, does anyone know where you can get thinner tyres (tires) or drilled aluminium (alooominum ) wheel nuts (lug nuts )

 

If i was building in the states i wouldn't worry about all that malarky, i'd just go with the sierra running gear, whatever the weight, then shove in a hooning great Chevvy Big Block in afterwards.

 

7.2 litre? That'd shift anything!

If you lengthen the upper wishbone then the camber angle would go out, you would also need to alter the hub.

 

I'd just like to point out that the Sierra, Cortina etc.. doesn't have a King Pin, it uses ball joints

Thanks alot for all the responses. Still don't know what direction i am going to go.