Stu's pictures

[Cita]

It could well be that i'm getting(am ;D) complete insane but i could swear that yesterday i saw some pictures of Stu's car with unfinished bodywork somewhere on this forum.
Are they gone or am i in the process of becoming a member of the Altzheimer club.

[Jawfish]

I was too quick on the insert button, the pictures were removed at Stu's request.

[Cita]

Ah! Sad to see the pictures gone-glad i'm not(yet)insane ;D

[stu]

Let me explain.

I am more than happy to help and offer advice re the pitfalls and the trials and tribulations that I went through building my car.
What annoys me is having my work picked to bits(eg the way i did my bulkheads) by so called "EXPERTS" who browse the internet, read all the books and know all the theories Yet have never picked up a hacksaw and cut a piece of metal.

SO

If you want to know more, ask me and i will tell all!
Building the body was a real challenge
Cheers
stu

[Terrapin]

I agree with Stu in this area.
We all have our views but we should show respect for those who have put considerable time and effort into building their cars and racing them.
Allan's original design incorporated curved side sections but many have dispensed with these by using alternative engineering and have had great success.
Without innovation how do we move forward.
I chose a particular route with my brakes to cover all eventualities (circuit, sprint etc.) at reasonable cost only to have a certain amount of criticism - remember the philosophy here - High Speed, Low Cost!!

Stu has been a wealth of support and inspiration to me

My message here is to focus on support & encouragement - lets forget the criticism and move to questioning & understanding.

preaching over ;D

[Cita]

I've gone through the posts about your bulkhead Stu,wich by the way looked perfect to me but who am i,but i cannot find any post that is cracking your design.
Some people are in the opinion that the original design is stronger but untill proven otherwise,this is a wild guess to say the least.
If it can be built simpler with the same strenght than there is no reason why it should'nt be built like that.
As i said before it's sad that the pictures are gone as for me a few pictures from someone who has been there are more worth than pages of written text to me.

Cheers Cita.

[Mr Locost]

I posted pictures of my IRS on the Locost on a certain forum, and recieved a message from a guy who said I had it all wrong. So I told him to go and say that to Ian Gray @ Stuart Taylor, as I had basically copied his design, and I got an appology back .

Anyway, back on subject.

The curved sides might have been the best/easiest way of doing it when the book/plans were first written, but ever improving technology means that new methods come about.

Adam

[Cita]

Could not have said it better Adam!
If you take a look at Doug's Minitici site and compare the Hawke frame with the Terrapin frame there is a world of difference.
Is the Hawke frame less stiff or less strong?I hardly doubt that aldo it's probably a bit heavier.
Guy's who stick their head out by doing things differently will allways be sabled down but there's a big difference between those who talk about modifications and those who have done it and proved that their idea's worked.
Stu modified the Terrapin frame to what he thought would be a simpler method of doing things.He build the car and drives it and as far as i know it has'nt fallen apart so what's wrong with saying that his modification is standing up to the things?

I hope he (Stu) will stay here with advize cause he's been there and done it and that is unreplacable.

Cheers Cita.

[MiNiTiCi]

Hi all,
I am of no doubt that the FF1600 Hawke frame is heavier and less stiff than the Terrapin chassis.
The Formula Ford was restricted somewhat by the regulations regarding minimum weights and not permitting stressed skin construction.
Formula Ford was not meant to be for cutting edge design - unlike Terrapin design & building ;D
I'm all for innovation - long live the Terrapin!
Doug

[Ian]

Hi, I would agree that the original design using curved stressed panels offers a good degree of torsional strength in what is a minimalist tube chassis! But if there where only one rule or one way of thinking we would all still be driving Model "T"s. There are a thousand ways of achieving the same level of stiffness. It depends if you want to remain faithful to the original design, there has always been a avenue when building a Terrapin for personal expression. The drawings provide you with a concept that works but certain areas may not offer you the builder your definitive answer or needs..Ian...

[Terrapin]

Well said Ian

[BigMark]

Could not agree more.
The more I am looking into things the more ideas I am having, I'm sure I will be building 3 or 4 models before I even start with the welding

[Cita]

Stu has told me a bit about his build and i think he has done a great job.I would feel perfectly safe in his car ;Dinspite what other people might think.
His explanation on how he made his bodywork shows that he is very inovative and knows exactly what he's doing.
So his advize is worth thinking over!

Cheers Cita

[stu]

I would never say that any body knows exactly what they are doing but i had fun building it and driving is just the icing on the cake.
I keep going back to it but lets not forget that the design is almost 40 years old! Based on BMC mini parts that were available at that time. Here in NZ, mine is classed as a retrospective special for motorsport purposes and fits into the early 70s time frame although finished in 1999.
In my build i just followed what i thought was right, Sifted Sorry I mean waded through the bulls**t and ended up with a fun car that cannot keep up with a formula ford but i have a good time trying.
cheers to all
stu

[Cita]

stu said:

I would never say that any body knows exactly what they are doing..... ;D ;D ;D