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LIMERICK SOAPBOX GRAND PRIX 2015 , May 24th

A

airnwater

Club Member
Club Member
April 9, 2007
121
9
Limerick
The Limerick Classic & Vintage car club finally got the go ahead & the appropriate insurance cover sorted for the Limerick Soapbox Grand Prix 2015...which will take place at Limerick Racecourse , M20 Exit 4 .
It will be held on May 24th & at the same venue & date as the Limerick VW Show


http://www.eircooled.com/deforum/sh...ICK-VW-SHOW-24th-May-2015&p=210079#post210079


It's not much notice ,but hopefully those guys who were building soapboxes on here a couple of years back can dust them off :)

The racing will take place on a great new downhill tarmac track with a few twists to add "interest" !

Entry fee will be 20 euro per person .

The $6 million question....will the fastest Eircooled drag racers be the fastest soapbox racers ?!



Check out some homebuilt racers from Limerick...in 1978 :)


 
K

kvinyl

Club Member
Club Member
February 20, 2007
4,708
9
Galway
Excellent stuff!
Are you in that pic Colin?..!

Edit: Just realised that's Glenn...any chance you're in the pic?!
 
Last edited:
A

airnwater

Club Member
Club Member
April 9, 2007
121
9
Limerick
Not many rules........ so far !

Entries taken on day 20 euro
There will be a scrutineer who will inspect the "vehicles"...if he says they're not safe or strong enough ,they won't race
Will need to have rigid steering (ie no ropes etc )
Shouldn't have any sharp or dangerous features
Will need to have a brake
Will need to have a solid floor in case a foot gets caught
Will need to have a solid & secure seat.
Should not have any mechanical parts to increase speed (ie no catapults,pedals or jet engines ! )

Minimum age limit 15 & will need parental consent....younger enthusiasts sometimes haven't developed a self preservation instinct :)
Team must sign a declaration absolving organisers from any & all responsibility.
Driver to wear sleeved top & a helmet
 
K

kvinyl

Club Member
Club Member
February 20, 2007
4,708
9
Galway
brake = item to slow you down
helmet = item to protect head when brake fails
solid & secure seat = located in rear of ambulance when helmet fails
 
A

airnwater

Club Member
Club Member
April 9, 2007
121
9
Limerick
trev said:
define "brake"...
Click to expand...

Excellent...it would appear you are in the late design stage or else putting the finishing touches to your craft !

You would need to have a 6 pot caliper clamping on a drilled + grooved ceramic vented disc........at each wheel :) ..ideally

But..a hefty basic lever setup pushing stiff steel straps against both rear tyres simultaneously works ok

Needs to brake both wheels on an axle at the same time ,so kart won't swerve..

Something sensible that doesn't result in a serious injury / fatality or more importantly damage or gouge the track tarmac :)
 
A

airnwater

Club Member
Club Member
April 9, 2007
121
9
Limerick
Tony said:
define helmet
Click to expand...

Tony said:
While we are it define solid & secure seat.
Click to expand...

Seat which is solid & won't break away eg if one was sitting on the sturdy roof of a nice miniature split bus it should be ok :)

Helmet , minimum requirement is a bicycle helmet , perhaps if one was more exposed as above ,a motorbike item would be better
& elbow + knee protection a good precaution too.

Be reasonably sensible ,as it's a steep enough hill & even with engine disabled it'll be fast !
 
A

airnwater

Club Member
Club Member
April 9, 2007
121
9
Limerick
Few details of a local Limerick budget build !

SOAPBOX BUILD-UP, PART 1

1) The ads on DoneDeal are a good place to start any project, search for 'kart' and buy the cheapest / strongest that you can find! (pic not actual kart)



2) Remove any unnecessary bits and pieces, pedals, sprockets ,chain etc. etc. (pic shows actual surplus !)



3) Lower seat to lower the centre of gravity and improve handling!





SOAPBOX BUILD-UP, PART 2 (making simple things complicated..)

Top level motorsport is all about testing and ongoing development :) ,so the racer was given a quick spin down our hill. Our test pilot returned looking a bit pale & shaken...he reported a "speed wobble"!



Some adjustments to the steering geometry were required.
1) Caster Angle

-Kart didn't seem to have any ,so the main tube running front to back was veed & re welded , thereby adding some positive caster to help high speed stability!




2) Track and Camber
- the front track was narrowed and some positive camber introduced in order to reduce the scrub radius.



3) Centre of Mass
- lowering the centre of mass improves cornering, so frame modified at rear (body dropped 4" !) to lower the seat again , +ve castor angle was increased a bit more too ,as a result .



Off for another test run !

Much better :)
 
K

kvinyl

Club Member
Club Member
February 20, 2007
4,708
9
Galway
Good stuff Ed....I'm really looking forward to seeing this whole thing tomorrow, should be a good laugh... :D
 
Tony

Tony

Club Member
Club Member
April 20, 2012
394
34
Arklow
Great crack building something a little faster for next year though. We need pics of the injured!
 
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