Lighter Faster?

[Marlow Sud]

Hi Guys,
I have been making the Golf lighter and weighing parts as I go. I know it's a Golf but I thought the weight savings would be of interest.
For me, I want it to stay looking like a recognisable Golf GTi.
Carbon Kevlar Bonnet 5kg Vs 12.5kg
Carbon Kevlar Rear Hatch 3.25kg Vs 7.25kg
New cheap bumpers 3kg Vs 6kg each
Door cards 0.5kg Vs 2.5kg each
A saving so far of 21.5kg.
Next up is taking out the window mechanisms and replacing the side and rear windows with Lexan.

Oh. I wanted Pirelli alloys instead of the Ronals that were on it. The centres took some finding.

[Kegsti66]

That is already quite a saving Simon.
You'll be flying.

[Spacenut]

Very impressive mass savings there, well done!

Now tell me about the bicycle

[Veesix75]

By the time you take the glass out you will have saved 50+ kilos. You will notice the difference .

Try a few laps, then put a a couple of sacks of spuds in the boot and try a few more....

[Sud 145]

Very impressive mass savings there, well done!

Now tell me about the bicycle

The bike looks very similar to something Jaguar did back in the 80's-90's. Think they had a toothed belt rather than a chain. Iirc

[Kegsti66]

Very impressive mass savings there, well done!

Now tell me about the bicycle

The bike looks very similar to something Jaguar did back in the 80's-90's. Think they had a toothed belt rather than a chain. Iirc

A cycle rack and bike will undo all that weight saving.

[Spacenut]

The bike looks very similar to something Jaguar did back in the 80's-90's. Think they had a toothed belt rather than a chain. Iirc

Thanks - I will have to check it out. When you spend as much time cycling as I seem to, you tend to notice these things

Lauren

[Spacenut]

After a bit of searching, it appears to be a Gocycle G2 electric folder. Nice

Because I'm a bit retro, I run a 1973 Moulton Mk3 full suspension bicycle, with a SRAM 7-speed hub gear in place of the Sturmey Archer 3 speed unit. Alloy rims and custom metalflake paint of course

Lauren

[Sud 145]

I will see your Moulton and raise you my trusty steed from my TT days.

[Spacenut]

A delta configuration trike, huh? That could take some beating... but I fear we are drifting off-topic here, time for a separate bicycle thread?

[Sud 145]

Yes we are - sorry.

[Kegsti66]

Go on you two, on your bike !!

[Marlow Sud]

Crikey, the hidden depths of the classic alfa forum users.
Yes its a Gocycle G2. I had a G1 and they did the most amazing trade-in deal for a G2.
Good job nobody spotted the sponson hanging on the wall or it would reveal the nutty professor in me.
Thanks for all the comments guys. I did have a chuckle.

All the best,
Simon

[KevJTD]

Crikey, the hidden depths of the classic alfa forum users.
Yes its a Gocycle G2. I had a G1 and they did the most amazing trade-in deal for a G2.
Good job nobody spotted the sponson hanging on the wall or it would reveal the nutty professor in me.
Thanks for all the comments guys. I did have a chuckle.

All the best,
Simon

did wonder what that was for

[Marlow Sud]

Hi Kev,
In 2009 I decided to do the Devizes to Westminster Canoe race. The fastest two man Kayaks are the most unstable. It seems that the kayakers who paddle the really fast boats started kayaking as children and have developed the skill to stay upright. The boats are graded in stability from 1-10. We started in our forties and just kept falling out of a stability 6 boat so we bought a stability 10 sea kayak.
Stability 6 or 5 would be great if possible. Its a long non-stop race of 125 miles and 77 locks so you are very tired towards the end and it took us 26hrs 45 mins to finish.
When thinking about doing it faster, we fitted a test frame and sponsons to the rear of a stability 6 boat. We guessed the sponson volume and positioned them to prevent the bow waves reflecting off of the main hull and causing increased drag. They worked well in that it was almost impossible to fall out of the boat. The next step would be to produce some carbon kevlar production sponsons and then measure the boat drag compared to a boat with no sponsons. The boat was so stable, I think you could move to a stability 1 boat with sponsons.

Brgds,
Simon

IMG_0736.jpg (44.05 KiB) Viewed 14196 times

[KevJTD]

I tried a canoe once Simon, very unstable beasts, always on the edge of a good dunking I felt, fair play to you for that epic ride

[Spacenut]

Well, that's the land and water covered, have you got a plane stashed in there too?

Very impressive mad professor skills

Lauren

[Marlow Sud]

Hi Lauren,

No planes stashed at this time. I have owned and flown one in the past and I do currently have a bit of an aeroplane stashed.
My peak mad professor moment was back in 2000 when I started up a hydrogen fuel cell in a shed for the first time. It was about midnight and I ran into the house to wake up my wife, son and daughter to troop down to the shed in their dressing gowns for a family picture next to the fuel cell.
I fitted it into a river boat. It was the first hydrogen fuel cell powered boat to be registered on the Thames.

Brgds,
Simon

[Spacenut]

Superb!

Mightily impressed - don't tell me, you generated the hydrogen yourself through electrolysis? I don't suppose there were any hydrogen fuelling stations at the time, and even fewer amenable to filling the equivalent of a fuel can...

I did briefly consider a rocket powered turbo-compressor system for my hillclimb friend Graham, using fuel-grade hydrogen peroxide. But I was concerned that certain government officials might take an interest in such activities, so that idea went back on the shelf. There may still be some mileage in the basic turbo-compressor concept though, using a largish model gas turbine to blow a conventional turbocharger to provide constant boost irrespective of rpm, like a supercharger. Much easier to manage than a closed-loop system like Nick Mann's Mannic Beattie, I got the idea from the turbopump fuel feeds used on satellite rocket launchers...

Lauren

[Marlow Sud]

Hi Lauren,

It was a BOC bottle I'm afraid. Just 175 bar when you can get 300 bar in Germany and the US.
The whole cycle was an issue. Electrical power to produce hydrogen, power to compress it. Then the hydrogen is fed to the fuel cell which is 40% efficient, through the voltage regulator that was 90% then to a battery. From the battery to the motor that was 90%? then to a water screw that is not very efficient.

The boat had a 3hr endurance at 4knots with de-mineralised water for exhaust and virtually silent. A fun project.

On the subject of turbo-compressors, have you read the book "not much of an engineer"

Al the best,
Simon

[Spacenut]

Hi Simon - can't say I have, but looks a worthwhile read. I've just finished Project Cancelled and British Secret Projects - Hypersonics and Missiles, so I was after some more light reading!

Lauren

[Kegsti66]

I have to say you two are a scream to read. If you ever do " an audience with" evening i willl get a ticket.
fantastic .
Thanks.