Mid-rise Scissors Lift in Action

The Atlas Scissors Lift comes in very handy for servicing lawnmowers and snow blowers. I built a 4’ x 8’ platform that sits on the lift and becomes an adjustable height work surface. This allows a snow blower oil change to take place at waist level.

1936 Cord Engine

At long last we are starting the process of getting my 1936 Cord 810 back on the road. For the last two years we have been busy organizing and selling off bits and pieces of my Dad’s vast collection of automobiles and parts. In the last couple of months we have finally organized things to the point where we are ready to dive into the engine and transmission we plan to fit to the “Brom” Cord. My Dad bought this engine from Al Hatch (in Detroit) almost 10 years ago. The engine came out of a Cabriolet Al purchased from an estate in the 1980’s and has only been driven 250 – 300 miles.

Eric Johnston removed the intake and exhaust manifolds from the top, and oil pan from the bottom to allow us to have a good look at the engine “innards”. Our friend Bob McNaughton stopped by to help us evaluate the condition of the engine. The crankshaft, connecting rods, pistons, camshaft, rocker arms, and valves all look fine. We found a few problems to fix related to the timing chain on the front and flywheel off the back but all things considered the engine looks good.

As of today the re-assembled engine is attached to our run-stand where Eric is preparing to “fire it up”.

Remackel Trailer... The Best Tool Ever!

Earlier on these pages I started a list of "must have" tools for a well equipped garage. Creating the list inevitably caused me to reflect upon which I regard to be the Best Tool Ever. Taking a few important attributes of a great tool into account…

• Number of times I use the tool
• Number of times others ask to borrow the tool
• Durability of the tool
• Usefulness of the tool

The utility trailer I purchased from Remakel Welding easily rises to the top of my list. I bought my trailer from Dennis Remakel almost 15 years ago. It has been a integral part of countless "big adventures" ever since. Dane Anderson says it best... "The Remakel trailer is a 1/2 ton pickup you can park in your yard that costs nothing to insure"

Intercomp Race Scales

To set the ride height and corner balance the Lotus (or any vehicle) you need a set of scales. I purchases a set of SW500 E-Z racing Scales from Intercomp-Racing in Medina Minnesota (Yeah… they're made here in Minnesota).

The scales are based on a bending beam load cell. The scale is constructed in a manner that minimizes the effects of loads applied perpendicular to the vertical axis. I produced the sketch below to help explain this feature to some of the Lotus Talk folks.

The scales slide right in under the guards I made for the wheel stands.

Lotus Exige (Wheel Alignment)

A wheel alignment is recommended after upgrading the suspension dampers in the Lotus. After spending some time searching through the resources available on the Lotus Talk internet forum I’ve decided to tackle this project in the “L” Shaped Garage. The Nitron shock absorbers have adjustable spring perches that allow the ride height and corner weights to be set independently. Of the various methods described in detail on the forums a couple of different approaches seem appropriate for a home alignment system.

First a few general thoughts on the topic of wheel alignment…

• The lotus suspension allows for independent adjustment of Caster, Camber, Toe, and Thrust Angle. The Nitron Dampers provide for ride height adjustment.
• A system for measuring the physical position of the wheels to a fraction of 1mm (.039”) is required.
• Any system used to align the Lotus has to facilitate measurement and adjustment of Ride height, Toe, and Thrust Angle all at the same time. That is… these three elements of the suspension are interdependent.
• An alignment system requires a reasonably level working surface and the facility to add the weight of the occupants to the vehicle.

Commercial alignment systems from manufactures like Hunter Engineering have advanced to amazing degrees. Their HawkEye Elite system is an engineering marvel I would love to own. Unfortunately their new alignment system costs $15,000 and at that does not include a drive on alignment rack with the necessary accessories like turntables.

Fortunately putting together a simple system to directly measure wheel alignment is not all that difficult. As a matter of fact some simple “old school” techniques and equipment provide precision and accuracy that easily equals the capabilities of these new systems. All that is required is a complete understanding of the task at hand and some simple tools. I've already spent some time in the garage setting up to perform a wheel alignment and plan to summarize those efforts in a few posting following this introduction.

So a few definitions and descriptions to start off with...

Caster...
Caster is the angle of the steering pivot, measured in degrees.

Camber...
Camber is the angle of the wheel, measured in degrees, if the top of the wheel is tilted out then the camber is positive, if it's tilted in, then the camber is negative.

Toe...
The toe angle identifies the direction of the tires compared to the centerline of the vehicle.

Thrust Angle...
Thrust angle is the direction that the rear wheels are pointing in relation to the centerline of the vehicle.

Steering Center...
Steering center is the steering wheel angle when the vehicle is traveling down a straight and level road.

Because all these elements work together as the car rolls down the road it is important to perform an alignment with the weight of the vehicle and its occupants loaded on the suspension. It is also important to provide a low friction connection (slip plates) where the rubber meets the road.

Finally a quick diagram that helps shed light on the subject of Caster in suspension systems. Most vehicles allow only very small (if any) adjustments to caster. It is usually a design feature of the suspension and dealt with only in the event of an accident. Changing caster on the Lotus is much more difficult than Toe or thrust angle.

Milling Machine

After thinking long and hard about machines in the garage I decided to “take the plunge” and purchase a milling machine. I decided the Grizzly model G0619 machine had the right combination of capabilities and small size. There are many nice small machines available and choosing one is surprisingly difficult. This machine is built in China by the Sieg Industrial Group. They have been producing machinery since 1988. The quality of their machines is remarkable for the price.

The machine arrived from Grizzly late last week. I am getting ready to bring it home from PICo as soon a spring arrives here in Minnesota. look for more postings about this new addition to the “L” Shaped Garage soon!

Work Bench

The workbench and toolbox in the “L” Shaped Garage pretty much speak for themselves. the only item I might call out here is the metal pegboard from Wall Control. Their products are very nicely built and well worth the expense.

Garage Tools

A list of important tools to include in any well equipped home garage.

Vehicle Lifts… The “L” Shaped Garage includes a both a four post lift and a portable Scissors lift. Both were purchased from Greg Smith Equipment.

Crane… The “L” Shaped Garage has a Jib Crane installed on a steel post separating the 3rd and 4th stalls of the garage. We designed this feature into the space from the beginning. A special footing was poured in the garage floor to support it and the steel post includes custom plates for mounting not only the Jib Crane but also other accessories.

Chain Hoist… The Jib crane is equipped with a 1000 lb Ingersoll chain hoist and I have recently started using a Warn Pullzall portable winch as well. The Pullzall is a really nice tool for lifting from the crane. It has a variable speed “trigger” that works perfectly for this purpose.

Drill Press… I have a bench top drill press purchased from Harbor Freight many years ago in the garage. Despite the fact that it is poorly built and too small it is actually fairly adequate. look for an improved version here soon!

Magnetic Drill… The Bora Magnetic Drilling System from Evolution Power Tools makes drilling holes up to 1 1/8” diameter a breeze.

Metal Saws… I have four metal saws in the “L” Shaped Garage. First is a 14” Delta band saw. Unfortunately it looks like Delta has quit making this tool but there are other manufactures build comparable versions. I also have a Porter Cable Portable band saw that is a very useful tool (it is also no longer built).

Next… I (somewhat reluctantly) purchased a Rockwell Blade Runner. Rockwell describes this as “The Ultimate Cutting machine”. While I might pull back from that description a bit this is an extremely capable and useful tool that I highly recommend.

Finally… A Rage 2 Cut Off saw from Evolution Power Tools. The saw uses a carbide tipped blade that cuts everything from wood to steel.

 

Air Compressor… I installed an Ingersoll rand Garage Mate air compressor under the stairs and plumbed a set of simple permanent air lines to the wall behind the workbench. I also ran compressed air lines to two cord reels; one on the ceiling and one on the back wall of the garage.

Welding and Cutting… We have a small Hobart wire feed welder (Handler140) and a Colossal Cut 50D Plasma Cutter. Both are 120 volt systems and work well for steel under 1/4” thick.

In addition we have a Strong Hand Nomad welding table and assorted clamps, magnetic squares, and tools.

Arbor Press… A Torin 20 ton Shop Press

Sanding, Sharpening, and Deburring… The Ridgid Oscillating Belt Sander is a fabulous tool for a garage shop. It can take the place of a regular belt /disk sander and give you the added advantage of radius sanding with the drums. It works well for any materials.

The Work Sharp 2000 Metal Workers Tool Sharpener is another tool you should seriously consider for any garage shop. Stick on abrasive pads are available for almost any material and you can achieve remarkable finishes with the smooth running system. Finally no shop is complete without one of the easy to use drill sharpeners from Drill Doctor. I chose to get the model 750 because I want the 3/4” capacity.

Wheel Stand MOD

Although the wheel stands include a set of “wings” that prevent a vehicle from rolling off the front or back of the stands there is nothing to stop the car from moving side to side. Since I plan to use “slip plates” under the wheels for some tasks I decided to fabricate a set of guards to “capture” the wheels on top of the stands.

First a simple layout of the bits and pieces necessary…

Then on to drilling holes in the straps…

Drilling and tapping the wheel stands…

And finally the finished guards…

Atlas Wheel Stands

Working in the “L” Shaped Garage on few projects made it clear that the ability to set a vehicle down on its wheels providing clear access to the underside is highly desirable. The four post lift in the fourth stall provides this sort of access but is very difficult to work around in a space the size of a garage stall. After considering more than a few options I decided to purchase a set of Atlas Wheel Stands from Greg Smith Equipment.

The wheel stands are 34” tall and support 1500 lbs each. They include a 3/8" steel top, heavy duty legs, and adjustable feet. The stands were kind of a PIA to assemble because the holes only barely line up (nothing a couple of pipe clamps couldn't handle). As you can see in the image below the Lotus sits nicely on top of the stands.

Adjustable feet on the legs of the stands provide the ability to set the tops in the same plane. A 78” carpenters level makes it easy to get the stands aligned.

A laser line level makes it easy to fine tune the alignment of the stands even further. The image below shows the Atlas Jack Stands I purchased along with the wheel stands. The “short” tripod stands support up to two tons and include an acme screw that allows you to lift as well as support a load. The 30” minimum height makes them a perfect addition to the wheel stands.

Lotus Exige (First MOD)

So with the Lotus safely tucked away in the garage for the winter I’m off to start making a few modifications (MODs). First up is adding a Monkey Wrench Racing (MWR) Lift Point Kit. The kit adds a new set of lifting points to the Lotus that extend below the aero panels under the car. Without these lifting points you have to first raise the back end of the car and remove the panels to expose the rear lifting points on the frame.

The kit consists of a pair of plates (for each side) that “sandwich” the aluminum frame stubs providing a robust mounting surface for an aluminum stand-off.

The installation exposed a couple of minor problems with the car. Someone had raised )or supported} the car on the frame stubs causing them to bend. Fortunately the damage was limited to a few scrapes and a minor bend to a stub frame. The foam blocks seen engaging the original lifting points at the rear of the aluminum chassis are visible in the image below.

The stub was easily bent back into shape and the “sandwiched” frame stub is probably now better than new!

The image below shows the Lotus supported on the MWR lift Points on top of my Atlas Scissors Lift. The Lift Points make raising the car on a lift very easy and are a nice, easy first MOD.