Let's Talk Cyclecars

Was the V cut gear the Citroen first claim to fame? I've always wondered how they were cut. Bob

 

Wikipedia: "The origin of the logo may be traced back to a trip made to Łódź city, Poland by the 22-year-old André Citroën, where he discovered an innovative design for a chevron-shaped gear used in milling. He bought the patent for its application in steel. Mechanically a gear with helical teeth produces an axial force. By adding a second helical gear in opposition this force is cancelled. The two chevrons of the logo represent the intermeshing contact of the two."

Citroën was born in 1878, so would have been 22 in 1900.

 

Iskenderian used to regrind customer's cams, such as your Panhard, but that was decades ago. It may be that the company no longer offers that service. Is there not a Panahrd/Deutsch-Bonnet specialist in France who could regrind a cam to suit your needs?

FYI, Ed is now in his 90s and, as far as I am aware, no longer involved in the business.

 

Yeah, there's somebody who does regrind the CD and DB kind from an S or M cam, but I was interested in the Devin grind and it was Isky. I know the owner of a Devin and to his word it's nothing like the CD's or DB's.

To go back to Cycle car, there is one I'd like to build: a Citroen 5hp, dropped, big disc wheels, full fender, chopped windshield and a Peugeot 203 4 banger with a Constantin blower protruding through the side of the hood.

 

See if your friend with the Devin can give you the cam specifications. Once you have them, your local cam grinder should be able to do the job for you.

I dug out my '79 Isky Cams catalogue this morning and there is no listing for Panhard camshafts, hence the suggestion above...

 

The diminutive size is why I consider Austin Sevens in the same class as a cyclecar.This one via Adam Wrag and Sherwood Restorations.

 

Happy New Year to all..!

 

Interesting underslung tube-axle front end with forward tie rod is typical of Seven single-seaters of this sort. They all seem to have a very appealing tidiness about them. Note the more usual road-going Seven special next to the Mustang.

Happy New Year! About an hour into 2013 at the Cape of Good Hope.

 

These Sevens were built in series by Adam's father.So they made them tidy from the start to the finish.Very good craftsmanship all through the vehicle.

 

Interesting website for supercharging small capacity engines

http://www.elsberg-tuning.dk/supercharging.html

 

The Austin Sevens I've seen at Laguna Seca are indeed tiny. It's hard to get a real sense of the scale in photos, even with people next to them. This looked like it was built by speed demon elves! A lot of car in a tiny package.

 

A vow of silence? ... A New Year's resolution?

 

That's beautifully engineered: great to see something as small/good as that being done in Leviathan Land.
I wonder how much of the 8k tacho gets used?
And ... is there any anti-tramp on the front axle, or is it all up to the springs?

 

There are friction shocks

 

Fair enough, but they'd mainly/only deal with the upsy-downsy motion of the axle, rather than the twist generated by heavy braking, non ?

 

The axle seems to be located by those strangely-twisted hairpin-like arms, which makes me wonder if that is a rotary articulation on the left side of the axle. I see no lateral locator, however?

 

Can someone explain why that front axle is a two piece affair? Bob

 

If the axle is located by hairpins the ends of the axle would have to rotate slightly relative to one another about a lateral axis. I'm not sure if a rotary joint is what we're looking at, though. One of the other photos shows what looks like a bent plate bracket attached to the joint: is this part of a lateral-locating device? The joint looks quite similar to the ends of the axle: could this just be a clamp to hold a Panhard bracket or suchlike?

This is giving me ideas, not for geometry but for method of construction. And I like the nickel-plate(?) finish.

 

It looks like the mounting bracket for the steering damper, I don't think there is any rotating thingy to prevent the twisting motion because otherwise it would happen strange thing to the steering link and the wheels no?

 

Those brake lines look kind of scarey too.

 

I think the difference in length in relation to the track rod would be negligible over the sorts of angles involved. It does rather make sense if that is what holds the fixed end of the steering damper, however. Those seem to be some sort of standard non-automotive fitting. They seem familiar but I can't place them.

 

I think the steering damper is a cheap motorcycle type
I used to run the ohlins suspension race service for British super bike
And wouldn't let one of those damper out on a race bike, ok on the street?

Most Austin 7 race cars run the friction dampers transverse in the same axis as the spring
Giving some effect like a panard rod my own Austin used the STD friction damper
With the drop link removed at one end to give side to side location not ideal but better than nothing

 

Bloody Mary

 

GN, Frazer-Nash.Lewes 1939.G.L. pic...

 

I love this thread, since it dovetails nicely with my concept of a lakes modified. My under construction modified is 4 cyl. powered and uses over/under quarter eliptics front and rear, with friction shocks and no radius rods/wishbones, a la Miller Indy cars of the '20s.

I see similar suspensions on many cycle cars, and on Fraser Nashes. What I don't see is any lateral location of the axles. Can I get by without Panhard bars also? My frame is MUCH stiffer than the aforementioned cars, and the springing probably significantly softer.

For some reason I can't upload a photo, sorry.

Thoughts? Concerns?

 

One of two neat photos of cycle cars we have in a post filled with photos on early race driver Chester Cheney on theoldmotor.com In it you can read more and see another photo about the “Cyclecar made by yours truly and Charles Hathorn & Chet Cheney….Sixty miles per hour on dirt roads”. (Note on the back of the photo)

 

Now the jappic was a j class record holder under 350 cc the car that later captured all of the jappics records was the vitesse special driven by g b gush I have been hunting for a picture of this elusive car ,
The other day I was moving some files to my new laptop and I found a file called nice cars which I used to use as a screen saver , now I was looking through when this picture struck a chord

<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/55288722@N00/8337505854/" title="Untitled by little green austin, on Flickr"></a>

If you look at the tail you can just make out vit

 

The vitesse special held a number of standing and flying start records at a number of distances at times up to 24 hour,
The 24 hour record is actualy half the average speed of the 12 hour record , at brooklands they couldn't run through the night so the car ran for 12 hours then the team went back to the hotel woke up in the morning then claimed the 24 hour record

This car still holds a number of Uk speed records

 

Think I overlooked the fact that the radius rods (correct terminology?) are fixed top and bottom so that takes care of the brake reaction, I'd say.
As for the "two piece" axle, dunno, but it makes me think of the M-Benz (GP cars from the 30's) de Dion tubes, which were articulated, I believe.

 

Yes, the radius rods locate the axle in place and prevent wind-up when braking.