Three More Moulds to Go!!!

I now have three more moulds to make before I am ready to start on building the first Milan GT.

The one of the left is the storage tray that mounts in front of the left side wheel housing.  There isn't one available for the right side but if I find it really useful I will make one for that side too.  The down side of this is that you end up with more stuff as once its in there you do tend to forget about it.  Both of these storage areas together are about the volume of a mid size pannier.  The middle one is the hood.  It should be fairly straight forward to make once we have the mould with a flange on it.  The right one is the door.  It will need to be a two part mould as it has some undercuts.  There are three different sizes of door but I am starting with the one with the biggest bumps.  The others can follow later.   Same applies to the small mouldings used to mount the side stick steering and electrics.

It seems to have taken forever to get to this point.  There is still a lot to do before the moulds are ready to use but that is just sanding and polishing.  I will be quite happy to see the end of the sanding as its boring to do but you do need to be careful to do it properly.  More skill required than you would think at first glance.  I can only sand for a while each session as my hands an elbows can only take so much.  It's not so bad if you are outside on a sunny day.

Best seat at the Movie

I arrived early and had to wait a while until the movie started.  The velomobile was a big hit with the kids.  

Testing the system and waiting for it to get dark.  I took a picture in the dark but it didn't turn out very well.  The carbon top just disappears in the dark.

We had the chance to go see a movie at the Blenkin Park next to the community centre on Quadra Island.  I ended up with the best seat in the park.  Being inside the velomobile was quite an advantage as it cooled off after dark.  Folks sitting in chairs were wrapped up in blankets and wore toques ontheir heads.  I was OK with just a sweater on and my jacket draped over me.  I actually nodded off for a few minutes so I couldn't have been too cold.    I would not recommend sleeping in the velomobile but it is possible in a pinch. 

The screen is an inflated structure about three stories tall.  It only takes a few hours to setup.  The Coastal Cummunity Credit Union is the main sponsor for the event.  Luckily the weather co-operated --the week before it had been raining and a few degrees colder. 

The ride home was interesting as my lights failed to function properly.  I had forgotten to plug a battery into the E-werk and it doesn't work properly without it.  I have a Son dynamo which normally charges a battery and then runs the lights.  I had tested to be sure I had lights before I left as I had charged a battery and turned them on.  The lights would come on and then turn themselves off after about five seconds.  Luckily it was clear night and the moon was just rising.  I did have the flashing rear taillight working so cars could see me from behind.   In the last half on the ride no cars passed me and I could smell the honeysuckle that is in bloom all over the island.  One does go rather slowly downhill when you can't see too well.  Some spots where the forest was tight on both sides of the road were pretty dark.  A mini adventure not to be repeated.   

Rear Fender Etc

The three moulds for the shell lined up on the grass.  The top mould is to the left and the two bottom moulds on the right.  I have started sanding the right most mould as I used PVA as a release agent and it leaves some pattern in the mould.  Using  PVA insures that you do get a release.  I was not willing to rely just on wax for a release after touching up a few spots on the plug.  One more sanding in the mould gives me another chance at making it perfect.   I have built quite a few moulds but have yet to get one that is absolutely perfect. This mould so far is looking very nice. 

The rear fender moulds are now laminated and waiting to be trimmed.  I modified the recess for the chain a bit so it is possible to use just one idler if one chooses to do so.  I also added a couple of ribs to the fender so I can hoepfully build it a bit lighter as they will add considerable stiffness to the flat panel.  If necessary I can turn these recesses into tubes by filling them with foam and then laminating some material over them on the inside side of the fender.  The other option would be to just bond a flat sheet over the recess omitting the foam.  I'll try it without either of these steps to see if it will be stiff enough.  

  



Progress Report

So far I have managed to build the second mould for the Milan GT shell.

This part has been popped off the plug to clean up the parting line.  If all goes well the third and final mould for the shell will be hand laid up this week.  Just from looking at this mould it looks like I can avoid using peel ply in most of the two bottom parts of the shell so we will have a nice smooth finish on the inside of the parts like we do in the hulls of our kayaks.  It makes them easy to keep clean as the inside surface is as smooth as the nylon film used to bag the part.

It has been a while since I did this much hand laminating.  I can't see how folks do this on a regular basis.  I just detest it, having to wear a respirator, gloves, coveralls and deal with sticky gooey smelly resin.  I would much rather spend a bit more time and have it all enclosed under a bag.  Unfortunately for making moulds hand laminating is the most reasonable way to do it. 

After this there are still some more moulds to make before we can build the first Milan GT. I may take just as long to make these smaller moulds as they almost all need to be made in two or three parts so I can vacuum bag or infuse them.  Some of them took serious contemplation to figure out the best way to make the moulds.  The good part about these parts is most of the moulds are small and much easier to deal with as hand laminates. 

Progress on the Milan GT

I am almost ready to build the mould for the top of the Milan GT.  It has taken a while to get to this point.

Here you can see the flange being made.  You can also see the cockpit opening has been closed in so I can vacuum bag or infuse the parts.  The wide flange is also necessary for this.   I have also starting on some of the smaller moulds.  The folks at Raderwerk send me a vey nice light carbon seat to use in the first Milan.  I have been very carefull moulding the seat making sure I don't damage it.  

Once the mould was made I clamped a flange on so I could make the mould wider.  This is a multistep process that will take some time.  I also made a mould of the back of the seat as it has two stiffening tubes built into it.  My plan is to bag the front and back of the seat and then glue the part with the stiffening tubes onto the back of the seat.  This with avoid having to fill the tube shapes with foam.  I would be quite pleased if the weight ended up a bit less but will be happy if it ends up the same as the seat I was sent.  The seat I received was less than 700 grams without any holes drilled in it. 

The patterns for the Milan GT have finally arrived. Here is a picture of the shell pattern sitting outside the shop.

I have looked over the pattern and it is in quite good shape. There are a few spots that need touching up but nothing that will take very long.   What will take longer is closing off the openings in the plug.  If I am going to vaccum bag or infuse the parts I need an mould with no openings in it.  In the photo below you can see a jig being made of the cutouts in the floor.  I have also bonded on some drill bushings to pick up register points for mounting  the rear suspension, seat and wheel wells.

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Here is a link to a bit of video of a Milan SL.  It is interesting that you can see the speedometer on the screen.   The rider does hit some quite fast speeds. 

I am now more determined to fit into the Milan SL than before.  

First I have to build the moulds for the Milan GT.  I will be going to pick up the shipment with the plugs and some parts next week.  It should be arriving at the freight terminal in Vancouver tomorow or the next day.  Then its just a matter of it clearing customs and I can go get it.