Our Proposal....https://docs.google.com/document/d/1DaViV5w-vYx6Gr7VLldVm-DcoZ-Z7Yuak1WI0jWYYyU/edit

Our Report Draft....https://docs.google.com/open?id=0B891qkl31yPeSGhZNFRSdENLYVU

Front A-Arms

We finally have some front A-Arms on the vehicle...Owen did a great job designing them, and it didn't take that long to fabricate them. Once they were assembled, we put a hub and wheel on to test for camber, suspension travel and ground clearance, and we were really happy with the results. The last picture shows the angle finder with the wheel all the way up. The angle finder is showing the camber of the wheel, which is supposed to be 6-7 degrees. It was right on.

Suspension Testing

Christian has been working on some suspension testing. The purpose of the testing is to determine the optimal shock setup for dissipating the force when the car hits the ground. The variables in this testing are shock air pressure, oil level, shock orientation, orifice size, and force. The testing so far has gone well....but just takes time to test so many variables.

In these pictures, the axis through the weight tray and shock is not straight. Since these pictures were taken, bracing has been added around the wheel which keeps it upright. Christian was having lots of fun picking up the weights and dropping them .

Here are a few pics of the frame...it is up on its back end to facilitate easier welding.
I will get some better ones once we finish welding next week.

frame...cont.

We finally have the frame all tacked together!!...with a few exceptions :-( We can't do a couple parts in the front until we know where the shocks need to mount, and also can't do the parts that support the engine until we have the transmission....it would be bad if we didn't leave room for the transmission, and had to cut the frame apart.
Will send pics later this week

Sponsors

This project is not only demanding on the seniors. We have gotten a significant amount of help from many others. Dr. Allen & Matt Hays put in endless dedication to this project...I don't know what we would do without them. We have several underclassmen working with us as well. Our company sponsors are: Polaris, Great Lakes Elevator, Briggs & Stratton, VonLanken Snyder Farms, Air Gas, & Plymouth Tubing, Inc.

Project Sections & Progress

I haven't said too much about how we are dividing this project. All 5 of us are involved in each other's work, to some extent, but the focuses are:
Frame-Nick & Owen
Suspension-Christian
Drive Train-Becca & Josh

All that really has been posted thus far is the frame's progress, but the rest of us are doing plenty as well!
We still need a definite part that we want for the new shocks, but we know that we want to use the old A-arms with the new vehicle.
We have the drive train pretty much nailed down as to what we are ordering. This week we are taking measurements in order to be 100% sure before we purchase a non-refundable transmission. We also decided on wheel-mounted brakes and shafts that telescope in the CV joints to go with our selected transmission.
The frame is still coming together; the guys have continued their long hours on it.

As a side note, the new frame's designer came into town this past weekend to take a look at her work being made reality. Needless to say, she was pretty ecstatic.