I've been sticking with project-specific posts so far, but thought this new They Might Be Giants video was too cute/optimistic/fun not to share. I hope you don't mind the diversion.
Adapter Parts Have Arrived
Wednesday, August 19, 2009 by EV Hacker
It look a bit longer than expected, but I just picked up the parts Revolt fabricated for me. This includes adapter plate, spacer, and hub. While they were at it, I had them do some work on the flywheel including removing the gear ring (it's there for the starter to spin the crankshaft - so not needed with an electric car) and the flywheel lightened and balanced. The stock flywheel came with an unexpected surprise: a built-in counterweight, which the shop had to remove. I presume this is needed to offset some sort of imbalance inherit to the eccentric shaft of rotary engines.
The next step is to test fit, then get on the ball with the sourcing the next major component: the controller.
Adapter Design Done
Monday, June 22, 2009 by EV Hacker
The design for the adapter is done. There are actually 3 components: The adapter plate, motor hub, and spacer ring.
The design's been sent off to the machinist. If all goes well, the parts will be here in 4 weeks.
Flywheel Removed
Sunday, May 24, 2009 by EV Hacker
I was finally able to remove the flywheel today. There's a big 54mm nut torqued down rather tightly holding the flywheel on the shaft. When I looked for a socket in the past, they were around $50 (!). Today, I found a 2-1/8" socket for $28 at Sears that should work. I'd purchased a cheap little Harbor Freight electric impact wrench years ago and figured I'd try using that to remove the nut (my back up plan was to borrow some air tools). I also bought a set of adapters that would allow me to use the 1/2" drive wrench with the socket, which takes a 3/4" drive.
The impact wrench is 12V, so I connected it to the battery in my Miata.
That's a huge socket, huh? The impact wrench worked surprisingly well. The nut was off within 2 minutes.
That's a huge socket, huh? The impact wrench worked surprisingly well. The nut was off within 2 minutes.
Here's the flywheel:
And here's the engine with the flywheel removed:
Now, the folks at Revolt can come over and take the remaining measurements needed to design the adapter plate.
Motor is Here
Monday, February 23, 2009 by EV Hacker
My friend, Umar, and I just picked up my motor from the freight dock. It's sitting in my living room for now, but having a major part of the conversion here means it's one step closer to completion.
Here's another view to give some idea of its size:
It's a bit over 15" in length (not counting the shaft), around 9.5" in diameter, and about 150 lbs.
ยต-update: Motor
Monday, February 16, 2009 by EV Hacker
I just placed a winning bid on a 9" Advanced DC motor!
Get into the Groove
Sunday, November 30, 2008 by EV Hacker
Inertia. It can be your compadre or it can be a mofo.
There's a certain amount of momentum needed to keep a project like this going. The frictional forces of an unusually busy (and odd) work schedule, wrenching on my other cars, limited availability of parts needed to move forward on the conversion, consulting projects, dealing with my rental property, etc. were all bringing progress to a halt.
Knowing the longer I wait, the harder it is to get started, I figured I should at least work on something. Even if it's not significant, it's a matter of keeping some momentum. The good news is since I'm not constraining myself to significant stuff, I might as well do fun stuff (the two are often mutually exclusive). And as Neanderthal-ish as I'm sure this sounds, power tools can be the source of tremendous amounts of fun.
In this case, it's a Craftsman 8 amp reciprocating saw (bought on sale for $59.99 at Sears).
Install the blade, plug it in, and in no time at all, the floor of the trunk was out.
Eventually, some sort of battery box will go back there. That's a problem for another day. Today it was all about having some fun.
I'd say: Mission accomplished.
But there's more!
Later in the afternoon, Chris and Aaron from Revolt Custom Electric Vehicles came by with their coordinate measuring machine to capture dimensions on my transmission. From these dimensions, a design will be created, from which a machine shop will build the adapter plate and hub. Also, since the design is now in Revolt's library, anyone else doing a conversion on an FD RX-7 will be able to get their own plate and hub through Revolt.
Normally, having the transmission removed from the car is preferred since there's more room to work and it's easier to ensure a stable base (and more accurate samples). Chris and Aaron were beyond accommodating and were willing to give it a shot with my transmission in the car. Overall, the measuring process went pretty smoothly. Although I mostly just sat back and watched, it was very cool to see a 3D model being created from the sampling of points and curves.
Due to not yet removing my flywheel from the engine, there is one remaining measurement pending, but Revolt has what they need to get started on the transmission plate and will come back once I'm ready.
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