Trooper Cooper Posted September 6, 2008 Author Share Posted September 6, 2008 The australian blzzard kit car aint far away from the pichttp://www.rhinobuggies.com.au/models.asp It would be a lot easier to mod this than start from scratch I dunno... either way the body would need redoing to make it look like the original. We'll see how things pan out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trooper Cooper Posted October 12, 2008 Author Share Posted October 12, 2008 Project is bimbling along - currently slightly torn in regards base vehicle due to a possibility of some nice cheap 109s, and difficulty in finding decent base 110s within our somewhat limited budgetary range. Attached is a pic of what we're up against, with a 109 as the comparative vehicle. I am still surprised at how good a fit the LR may well be for this vehicle as the general proportions look near enough perfect - it's just it's that bit smaller. One of the biggest problems being encountered currently is working out how best to raise the vehicle to fit such large wheels. It is reckoned that we'll need wheels somewhere in the 44" region to fit the scale and look, which brings up issues since I have no idea if such wheels could be put onto a 109 or 110 without screwing the whole thing up. My engineer also said that the axles might need lengthening due to raising the vehicle to fit the size of the wheels - what was originally a potentially relatively cheap build is spiralling in cost. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FridgeFreezer Posted October 12, 2008 Share Posted October 12, 2008 A random old 109" will be leaf-sprung, will have cr*p drum brakes, an athsmatic 2.25 engine (or 2.5 if you're really lucky), weak 4-speed gearbox, and no power steering. No 109 worth having will cost more than a 110 in similar nick, especially since you don't care about the condition of the bodywork - A V8 110 with rotten doors/bulkhead etc. should be findable for not much money. No Rover axle is going to spin anywhere near 44" tyres and even if it did, the gearing would be so far out of whack the thing would struggle to move. I would build it to scale - so stick with what you can reasonably get away with whilst keeping inside your budget. If you can scale it down sensibly to fit a RRC or 90/110 chassis then go for that, the RRC/Disco is still the favourite for the civilised powertrain and the ease of conversion it brings. If you're not driving it on rough terrain, you can probably get away with 37" tyres with appropriate wheels / spacers. An autobox will help ease the load on the drivetrain, and possibly a Defender transfer box to cut the gearing down to a sensible level. If you really must have it on 44's or thereabouts, you need to find a different base vehicle - something like a UniMog or light army truck, although that's another step up the price range. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trooper Cooper Posted October 13, 2008 Author Share Posted October 13, 2008 A random old 109" will be leaf-sprung, will have cr*p drum brakes, an athsmatic 2.25 engine (or 2.5 if you're really lucky), weak 4-speed gearbox, and no power steering.No 109 worth having will cost more than a 110 in similar nick, especially since you don't care about the condition of the bodywork - A V8 110 with rotten doors/bulkhead etc. should be findable for not much money. No Rover axle is going to spin anywhere near 44" tyres and even if it did, the gearing would be so far out of whack the thing would struggle to move. I would build it to scale - so stick with what you can reasonably get away with whilst keeping inside your budget. If you can scale it down sensibly to fit a RRC or 90/110 chassis then go for that, the RRC/Disco is still the favourite for the civilised powertrain and the ease of conversion it brings. If you're not driving it on rough terrain, you can probably get away with 37" tyres with appropriate wheels / spacers. An autobox will help ease the load on the drivetrain, and possibly a Defender transfer box to cut the gearing down to a sensible level. If you really must have it on 44's or thereabouts, you need to find a different base vehicle - something like a UniMog or light army truck, although that's another step up the price range. That was what I thought in regards the wheels. The original intention was to go with the 110 as it fit the scale better, and was more easily converted in comparison to ex-Army 109s. 36"~ wheels would also fit the scale considering the vehicle has been downsized due to the naturally reduced width of the vehicle in comparison to the original. I am hopeful I will have enough money set aside to pay for a workshop space somewhere and get a base vehicle by January with a hopeful project completion time of September 2009. Project budget remains around the £3000, though I can see it going up out of necessity. I'll have to see how things go with my engineer once we get to sit down and thrash things out a bit more. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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