DIY childs car
 

I like making things... My son likes riding things... So I decided to combine the two.

Originally it was going to be a pedal car, however I traded aluminum bracketry and accessories off a Rover V8 I won't be using any time soon for a 24V, 500W electric motor with a built in speed/braking controller. I just have to wire up a 5k potentiometer as a throttle/brake and two 12V batteries in series, and a way of disconnecting them. I have to solder together a charger but that's not a big deal. I like the controller being built into the motor as that's one less thing to find a place to mount somewhere.

Anyway, here is my project, consisting of four 10" pneumatic tires/wheels I got for $5 each at Harbor Freight, plus a plethora of scrap, leftovers, and junk I've been saving "just in case". It's nice to take from the scrap pile rather than endlessly dump into it.

Chassis:
http://frederic.midimonkey.com/booto...r/IM002030.JPG

Buildup, start to finish:
http://frederic.midimonkey.com/boo-electriccar.html

Obviously I have to make and mount a steering column, as well as the motor mounts, chain, and throttle pedal before the chassis can move and steer. Right now it's just a "roller" so to speak.

Having done fiberglass work before, I'm taking of making a ribbed wooden buck to fit over the chassis, and stretch fleece over that, soak in resin, then peel off the buck and lay fiberglass and resin over that until there is some thickness to the fiberglass.

I've been plotting paper templates for the ribs most of this evening since I'm too tired to stand up hunched over the chassis anymore today lol

you have 2 1/2 months to go. you gonna get it done in time??


btw, nice plow on the rider.:-X22

if I work on it every day, at least an hour, absolutely.

The problem is the "every day" part :)

I should have been out there at 10:30, but my wife is eating "my free time" steaming the carpets because she didn't get up before 10am.

Grrrrrr.

I would add a mechanical brake as a backup. Your URL did not work for me.

Link working now.

Seemed my DNS server decided to puke it's cookies.

I updated the above page, but have progressed from metalworking to fiberglassing. I have drying at the moment a pair of reasonably nice 50's style pickup fenders, which I constructed out of two layers (so far, four scheduled) of fiberglass cloth laid upon a wooden rib system.

For my son's car I'm done with the metalworking at the moment and have progressed to body work. After extensive digging I found 1/2 full containers of west marine resin and hardener as well as some unopened packages of fiberglass cloth, so I made the wooden bucks/ribs:

http://frederic.midimonkey.com/booto...r/IM002040.JPG

http://frederic.midimonkey.com/booto...r/IM002044.JPG

If I have some time tonight, I'll be making the hood that goes between.

When I was a kid it was a peice of plywood and old lawnmower wheels nailed (3 nails ea.) into the end of a 2X4s as axles. A rope was used for steering. Lucky if we could come up with a chair. I'm sure you know what I mean

Those were the days

I remember those days well. I fractured my collarbone riding mine. We lived on a really steep hill.

http://frederic.midimonkey.com/booto...r/IM002049.JPG

Two fenders, and a hood, about to be fiberglassed together. It's difficult to see the fiberglass mat/resin as it's almost transparent when wet, so you can see the "buck release agent" also known as masking tape :)

Kinda looks like the front of a Cord! Keep it up!

Due to technical difficulty (mostly from trying to remove the fiberglass from the buck at 2am while undercaffienated, and not well lit):
http://frederic.midimonkey.com/booto...r/IM002051.JPG

New buck, new shape, more to come:
http://frederic.midimonkey.com/booto...r/IM002056.JPG

I built a go-kart for my son many years ago. I made my own rack and pinion steering for it, w/ some rack stock from McMaster-Carr. That kart drove like a Cadillac! A 2 hp edger motor eventually gave way to a 5 hp. Now he drives a '98 Explorer on his commute to college. Time flies- enjoy it while you can!

You are having WAY to much fun!

Technical difficulty? Like my statement that it looked like the front of a Cord, instead of a front of a Ford? LOL:-X21

If I'm not mistaken, instead of cutting loose the top of the front axle to make it rebuildable, you've now welded it together twice? (the front axle itself, and the support frame behind it?)