Flat Bottom Girls ...

[Purple Frog]

There were two beautiful FBs on the PRI show floor. A stunningly turned out Sthor and the new RF1000.

One thing that I found interesting was the way the RF1000 handled the flat bottom rule to also achieve a long high arching front nose. You'll see two pictures posted. Even though the new chassis arches up from the flat bottom many inches behind the line that runs across the rear of the two front tires, the bottom continues forward on the same plane until it intercepts that line. So, the result is that one has a "flat bottom" between the rear of the front tires and the front of the rear tires, it's just that in some areas there's nothing above the "bottom" (the small black piece in the pictures). Cool thinking. The RF1000 has been homolagated by the SCCA.

Lots of ways to skin the ol' cat.

[Lee Stohr]

Um, that's been done since at least 1991. See the Jordan - http://www.gurneyflap.com/Resources/JORDAN-191-539.jpg

[Purple Frog]

Yes Lee.
But we haven't seen it used much in club tube frames. Virtually non-existent in FC cars in this country to date, and the SCCA FB rules were basically derived from the FC part of the GCR.
One of my points is that we could see this move into FC if there were willing chassis builders.

[S Lathrop]

Frog;

It is possible to do a raised nose in FC but the rules make the design feature very difficult. The frame rules require a structural under pan that is flat within one inch and extends the full length of the frame.

c. A stress-bearing floor pan/under tray, minimum of .060" heat treated aluminum or eighteen (18) gage steel, is required; at a minimum this shall extend from the front bulkhead to the rear roll hoop bulkhead. Its curvature shall not exceed one inch.

The bottom of your Reynard and my cars stretch that rule to the limit. This restriction was not carried over to FB. Ralph has the luxury that he is designing for FB only. The FB rules are quite different from FF/FC.

Ralph has made a substantial investment in this design. And his price is truly impressive given that investment. I think that this may be the most encouraging development in since FB was adopted. This looks like a quality product from people who really know what they are doing.

[R. Pare]

2 cars that I know of did this in years past - the Stohr FF, and an FC that was built in NY in the early 90's (can't remember the name at the moment). Both accomplished it by extending a token "frame" forward on the undersides - Lee for the radiator feed, and the other just to comply to that rule Steve quoted.

It can be done, but is a bit more complex than just adding a horizontal panel as can be done in FB.

[kea]

Richard,
Would that FC car from NY you're think of, be the BRD?
Keith

[Sean Maisey]

Nevermind...

[Dave Harmison]

What a memory, Keith. Yeah, Brad Bunting and Lynn Bishop built the BRD years ago that had the floor Richard is talking about. I knew them when they worked for Ford and lived around the corner from me. For some reason they "tested" the car a great deal and never really pulled the trigger and raced it. Crying shame.

[R. Pare]

Yes, it was the BRD. Thanks for filling in the gap in my memory - I'm still suffering from Friday nights dinner out with some customers!

Brad actually sold (or at least produced) a couple copies of his car - we made 3 or 4 rear sway bars for him. I also saw one of them both here at IRP and at MO back in '96 or so, before they completely disappeared from the scene.

[Tom Valet]

Yes Lee.
But we haven't seen it used much in club tube frames. Virtually non-existent in FC cars in this country to date, and the SCCA FB rules were basically derived from the FC part of the GCR.
One of my points is that we could see this move into FC if there were willing chassis builders.

Mike, any idea if this was the thinking behind the design of the Euroswift seen in this recent for sale ad:

http://www.apexspeed.com/forums/showthread.php?t=29985