The Contraption 2.0

[karine]

I hate this place.
I love this place.
I am never coming back.
What are we doing next year?!

[bigbluedoggy]

LCN and Karine... was so nice to see you two again this year! Thanks for your friendship and warmth! See you again soon!!!

[BitterDan]

I hate this place.
I love this place.
I am never coming back.
What are we doing next year?!

LOL I've been there all week.

[unjonharley]

Sence I have gotten home.. The house and shop have this odder of "spoiled cat"..

We have family friends in from Japan..
Rus-t-fur has had enough lap time for a life time.. Yet he complains if I'm out of his sight for 10 min.

He has helped a little with camp gear clean up.. Also piches in with nap times..

Other from that he has not begain to work on a single 09 project..

Gootta go.. He want his pottie box cleaned

[Mad Maxine]

Oh my GOD! The Contraption was, by far, the COOLEST thing I saw on the playa this year. I tried to find you a couple more times so that I could see how all the linkages hooked up, but to no avail.

Thanks so much for stopping by the Bomb Bay Tea Company and gracing us with your presence. I presume you have a bunch of photos posted somewhere of the work in progress, but I have yet to go look through the thread for all that. I would love if you could direct me to any photo streams you have posted.

Cheers!

Maxine.

[Captain Goddammit]

I got home to find my house absolutely infested with fleas! I mean crawlin' with 'em in unbelievable numbers. Had to get out for a day and bomb the hell outta' this place. Nothing lives here that isn't paying me rent!
The cats work theirs off... I got 'em cause I couldn't get rid of the mice that were shitting everywhere. Two little grey tiger-stripedy puddies = no mice!

[Captain Goddammit]

I would love if you could direct me to any photo streams you have posted.

Cheers!

Maxine.

You have to look way back, but this very thread, and the original "Hey LeChat, what are you working on" thread contain what you seek!

[LeChatNoir]

Maxine,

I’m glad you enjoyed the old rust bucket. It wasn’t until the end of the week when she got to running pretty reliably that I began to really have fun. And there were a couple of times when she acted up just enough to be absolutely perfect. Just temperamental enough to be enduring. It appears that she like occasional attention.

Here’s the link to the first thread (in the 2007 Performance section) detailing the build from start to the 2007 Burn:

Hey LeChat, What Are You Working On?


And here is a link to the photobucket account where I store the pics for the two threads:

Contraption Photos

There a handful of pics in that account that are not posted on the threads. One that comes to mind is a cyanotype collage that Karine made, showing different pics of the day we visited a local private boneyard to salvage the axle and wheels that would become the rear end.

An unjon, the first thing I did was turn on the fan in the shop to get some fresh air moving. I think the worst part was the smell of brandy and cigars that the cats had been loading up on while I was gone. They always swear they been “workingâ€

[LeChatNoir]

I would love if you could direct me to any photo streams you have posted.

Cheers!

Maxine.

You have to look way back, but this very thread, and the original "Hey LeChat, what are you working on" thread contain what you seek!

And the Captain is right... go to the beginning of this very thread to see this year's progress from the steam attempt to the current gas engine. It's all there.

[Elliot]

Where to begin?....

Maxine: Are you the lovely lady I tried so blatantly and rudely/crudely to seduce in broad daylight in front of God and Your Husband and everybody? I was riding a tricycle with uncommonly fat tires. If that was you, I shall immediately add you to the long list of people I need to appologize to after my "lost week" in the desert.

Now, about The Contraption and photos and so forth. I, for one, shall be digging deep in those archives -- besides collaborating with Le Chat Noir directly. We are putting The Contraption in AMCAR Magazine. AMCAR is a glossy full color automobile magazine in my native country of Norway. This will be at least a two page spread.

Jon: You were out, probably molesting Maxine, when I came by, but Tiahaar and I inspected your pedal-hot-rod project. Pretty cool! Gives me a twinge of regret that I am scrapping my old (real) T-bucket. We were all supposed to brain-storm your design, and I have one lightning-bolt to suggest: Frame. Build a frame for it. Sure, the wooden lath rail gives it the old sling-shot rail-dragster whipping effect, but as you suggested yourself earlier, I agree this works poorly for your purpose. So go for triangulation. Build a railroad bridge truss and be done with it. You may be concerned about weight, but in my experience, weight is not much of an issue on the Playa, since the Playa is flat. Weight is more of a concern climbing hills in Kinetic Sculpture Races.

[Mad Maxine]

LOL! Yep, Elliot, that was me indeed. No need to apologize. you asked before you manhandled me, and I said okay. So all is fair.

I will have to look for AMCAR magazine.

Toodles!
M

[Elliot]

LOL! ...

Thank God. All is well. So... at least I'm good for a laugh!

AMCAR Magazine is not sold in the US, as it is a Norwegian Magazine, printed in the Norwegian language. And it is primarily an in-house club publication. But it is all glossy full color, so Matt and Karine will have something neat to hang on the wall.

[Zulegoona]

I still think it is all an elaborate hoax, Oh I’ve heard various testimony of the contraption going here or there and people talking about it being the highlight of their Burn, there was even a photoshoped picture of it out on the playa. But every time I went by it was sitting in exactly the same place facing exactly the same way the blue lights glowing . I don’t think it moved an inch the entire event the least they could have done would have pushed it around so it faced the other way every couple of days or so..........




Ok yeah I’m just bummed I didn’t get to see it run.

[Elliot]

Jon:
Or.... We could graft the beginnings of your T roadster with the remains of mine, and race that drugged-out doofus in the ratty sedan thru Walk-In Camping!

[unjonharley]

:D
Jon:
Or.... We could graft the beginnings of your T roadster with the remains of mine, and race that drugged-out doofus in the ratty sedan thru Walk-In Camping!

I'm thinkng of lawn tractor power.. You can buy those thing n the winter.. Guys need Xmas money.. But I do like your front axel and frame tie in..

[Elliot]

Thank you. I did put some time into that front crossmember and the spring hanger layout. That said, there is one serious thing wrong with this front suspension. And I mean SERIOUS, as in it WILL break eventually. I accepted it as a temporary arrangement, and it is one of those things that would have needed redoing to make the car safe for more driving than the 6000 miles I put on it. Anybody see it?

[Captain Goddammit]

OK I've been studying that picture... and I'm a hot rodder who knows that I'm looking at a '58 - '68 small-block and a split-wishbone rear-steer front end... I don't know if I'm crazy about how the axle is attached to the wishbones ahead of the spring rather than directly to the spring... ?

[Dusza Beben]

I still think it is all an elaborate hoax, Oh I’ve heard various testimony of the contraption going here or there and people talking about it being the highlight of their Burn, there was even a photoshoped picture of it out on the playa. But every time I went by it was sitting in exactly the same place facing exactly the same way the blue lights glowing . I don’t think it moved an inch the entire event the least they could have done would have pushed it around so it faced the other way every couple of days or so..........




Ok yeah I’m just bummed I didn’t get to see it run.

Tis not a hoax! I myself was fortunate enough to ride the finest vehicle on the playa 'round the block and it was indeed the highlight of my burn.
I'm honestly not trying to rub it in but the contraption is pure poetry in motion.
It was an absolute pleasure to finally meet many of you on the playa and at the Black Sabkha. I even ran into Captain G at the pyramid burn.
Le Chat and Karine are awesome human beings to be sure and I must say I've been eyeing some old farm implements hereabouts with renewed interest. Damn you!

DB

[unjonharley]

DB, how much did they pay you to Ppost that?

two years now and that thing just sits there..

After the burn The Cat will say" sorry you didn't get to ride..

[LeChatNoir]

Heh Heh

Sorry you didn't get a ride, unjon...

Third time's the charm, right?

By next year, I'll have her running better anyways. Maybe we'll get all the way up to 5 mph!!!

[unjonharley]

Heh Heh

Sorry you didn't get a ride, unjon...

Third time's the charm, right?

By next year, I'll have her running better anyways. Maybe we'll get all the way up to 5 mph!!!

I saw a couple of those cross fires with cast iron lids on the water pot.. Wounder if they all had them at one time or another..

Also,, When I lived in the south west.. The big swamp coolers had brass ballcocks.. That would be neat in keeping water level. Thing were about the size of my hand..

[LeChatNoir]

:D
Thank you. I did put some time into that front crossmember and the spring hanger layout. That said, there is one serious thing wrong with this front suspension. And I mean SERIOUS, as in it WILL break eventually. I accepted it as a temporary arrangement, and it is one of those things that would have needed redoing to make the car safe for more driving than the 6000 miles I put on it. Anybody see it?

The only thing I can see is that it’s a single spring for a vehicle that may encounter a variable road surface again and again, causing the spring to twist in an “Sâ€

[Captain Goddammit]

Sorry you didn't get a ride, unjon...

Sorry?? Hell, took me hours to get unjon the hell off my boat!

[LeChatNoir]

Sorry you didn't get a ride, unjon...

Sorry?? Hell, took me hours to get unjon the hell off my boat!

Shit... booze and a ride aorund the playa and the dude is on like a tick.

[Captain Goddammit]

I can't tell from the photo how stout the spring mount is... but you don't want a pivot there or the car will roll uncontrollably.

[LeChatNoir]

Heh Heh

Sorry you didn't get a ride, unjon...

Third time's the charm, right?

By next year, I'll have her running better anyways. Maybe we'll get all the way up to 5 mph!!!

I saw a couple of those cross fires with cast iron lids on the water pot.. Wounder if they all had them at one time or another..

Also,, When I lived in the south west.. The big swamp coolers had brass ballcocks.. That would be neat in keeping water level. Thing were about the size of my hand..

I'm on the lookout for an old brass fire extinguisher. Hang that sucker upside down on the smokestack with a ball valve and a line leading to the cooling water tank. Just add water as needed!!

I've heard of some engines having lids, but I think this might slow the cooling evaporative effects. I've also heard of folks putting a block of wood in the tank to keep it from splashing out so much. Seems like that might be a good idea for next year.

[LeChatNoir]

Didn’t some of the early ford trucks use a single spring mounted crossways? Seems like I’ve heard of them being horrible to control at any bit of speed.

[Captain Goddammit]

I also can't tell from the angle of the photo, but if the wishbones aren't mounted to pivot in the right arc they'll stress the spring and it's mounts as the spring compresses... but I still mainly get the heebie-jeebies about the "suicide" axle mounted on the wishbones ahead of the spring more than anything else I can see.

[Captain Goddammit]

Didn’t some of the early ford trucks use a single spring mounted crossways? Seems like I’ve heard of them being horrible to control at any bit of speed.

ALL Ford cars used a buggy-spring front end until 1949! And yep, they suck!

[unjonharley]

I've heard of some engines having lids, but I think this might slow the cooling evaporative effects. I've also heard of folks putting a block of wood in the tank to keep it from splashing out so much. Seems like that might be a good idea for next year.

Make some type of baffel plates up.. Maybe the wood from an old mash barrel..

I'm carrying my fresh water in a cooler next year.. My baffels will have to be plastic but the same idea.. Keeps the water from gaining any speed to splash when it rolls..