Project Schism - another offbeat '23 Ford T

[toddshotrods]

Time to spread my wings.


The plan is to have the shell ready to cut a test/mock-up piece this week. I need it on the actual car to develop the hard numbers for modeling the wings and motor meter.

[droptop73]

I understand how the mind's eye thing works. I have a warehouse full of projects and ideas stored in the back of my mind with the mothballs, waiting for time and budget.

[toddshotrods]

Almost done with the shell! I have a little clean up work to do on the back of each half, around the sockets, but it's pretty much there. I ran it through the programming software and the machine times are reasonable with a 0.125" ball end mill, so cutting the plugs will work as intended. The funny thing about this is it's probably the only part on the entire car that has no functional aspect, but I have an incredible amount of time invested in it, with a longgg way to go. Along with what's left of the T-bucket body, it's the signature piece that identifies the car (also identifying the specific vintage), so it's critical to helping all those other functional parts come together aesthetically, as a sum, a whole, a car...


I decided on four, large, heavily stylized,bolt bosses to clamp it together; and had a little fun with the upper mesh bars, bending them around the bosses. Those will probably have to be printed, as they have too many angles to machine (possible, but not practical). If the bolt bosses look huge to you, remember how tiny the whole thing is, and the fact that it's between your knees and ankles on the car.




Today, I am cutting wood mock-ups of the front and back halves of the shell - without the sockets - to test it on the car, and develop the hard numbers for the wings and motor meter.

[toddshotrods]

I still need to do some minor trimming and need socket head bolts for it, but a few strips of tape allow a peek at Schism's new mug.




Told you it was tiny! It's almost lost in the midst of all the electric drive stuff - just enough to give a clue what you're looking at.

[toddshotrods]

Roll Royce Wraith concept "Spirit of Ecstasy" - Inspiration.


Goal: not quite so ethereal, but not "normal" either - whatever that word means.



I can't believe how much time I have in this piece already! I have been working on it, almost none stop, since around 10 o'clock this morning! Plus, all the other days I worked on it...

Meet the "Spirit of OCD"


This piece actually does have a function - it is the grossly over-done upper "radiator support", for the grille that has no real function.

One, this is just a rough-in. From here I have to decide how much detail and precision I want to put in the model, and how much I want to do by hand. I could actually cut this, as is, and do all the detailing by hand, as most of what needs work are places where material would be removed.

Two, keep in mind it's really tiny. Overall dimensions of the "bird" are about 5.625" long, 2" tall, and 3.5" wide. It could fit in the palm of a man's hand. The Bat-T logo "motor meter" is around 1.375" in diameter. It will be interesting to see if people even notice it on first glance, in midst of the electric drive's chains, sprockets, and diff; and all the exposed, sculptured, suspension stuff. I planned it to be one of the things, with incredible attention to detail, you "find" in the midst of all the other OCD things.

The hood(less) molding will sweep back to the cowl, with a slight curve and tapering to kind of a pointer type point; and will be inset into the body. I'm working on plans and processes to machine that, including the Bat-T logo in the end, on the ShopBot from aluminum bar stock. There's a neat texturing featuring that I would like to use in the background areas around, and inside, the "T", so that when it's plated the T pops out.

I am also debating finishes. Both pieces will be plated, and slightly contrasting. Maybe something like brushed and polished nickel - plus, the grille shell will be plated or anodized, so all this has to work together.

[toddshotrods]

I decided to just add a couple feature lines in the wings, to add a little motion to it, and the boss/counter bore for the motor meter mounting bolt, and do the rest of the detail work by hand. I need to see it on the car to determine just how much detail I want in it. I'm going to cut it tomorrow, or early next week.


The larger the end mill the less detailed the feature lines will be. I don't really want a lot, just a subtle hint; and I'll blend the edges a bit by hand, after I see it cut.

[rtwind]

Impressive Thread!

[toddshotrods]

Originally Posted by rtwind

Impressive Thread!

rtwind!

For nearly a year, I've been wrestling with the decision on whether Schism is a race car with the attention to detail normally seen in fine art, or a fully functional artistic depiction of a race car. Subtle difference, but it has huge implications on how all these parts come together, and how far we ultimately go with each one of them.

I am leaning really heavily towards the insanely detailed race car. Curt, my engine guy, and I were discussing this last night over beers. I've been kind of migrating that way since I started assembling it, as that's just what it feels like it wants to be, when it grows up. The final straw that is really pushing it in that direction is I finally made some creative breakthroughs with my electric motorcycle project that will allow it to carry more of the art burden, freeing Schism to follow its own course.

Put in music/movie terms, the theme song in its trailer seems to feature an overdriven Stratocaster blazing through a stack of Marshalls...

[toddshotrods]

I epoxied a couple pieces of modeling board together...


...and started whittling;


until I ended up with this:


The broken wing tips are because I live in CAD, and forget sometimes that what is possible in my world is not always feasible here on Earth. They were quite literally paper thin, and couldn't stand up to the violence and terror of a carbide end mill spinning at 1y0K. I had the ShopBot running really gentle and slow too, but the just blew away into the piles of chips; literally. I will round them off, by hand, from where they are.

You might also have noticed that the feature lines in the wings are just very lightly cut. I chose a 0.375" ball end mill that gave me all the detail I needed in the whole piece, but wouldn't sink into these too deep. From here, I will experiment, by hand, using the cuts as templates until I find what I'm looking for.

As mentioned, it's tiny and can be easily lost against the busy backdrop of drivetrain components.



A strip of wood gives a clue of how the molding, along with the front cage tubes, will create the image of a hood; when there is none. This is the first time I've ever done a project like this. Normally I would start with a hood and concentrate on eliminating everything possible to make sure all you see are its lines. With Schism, it's the exact opposite - I have to keep strategically adding things until it paints the right picture. Now that I'm getting used to it, it's kind of natural because it's like drawing. The right lines, here and there, and the mind starts to see curves and reflections, and three-dimensional shapes that aren't on the paper.

[toddshotrods]

I cut the motor meter/hood trim piece yesterday, but was too sleepy to post it by the time I finished (late last night). The process I would like to pursue for realizing all these little parts is pretty intense, but it will yield awesome results. After the plugs are detailed and finished, I want to make silicone rubber molds of them, then cast them in wax, for lost wax metal casting.




I still need to create the recess in the firewall that will let the back drop into place, and the motor meter to fit into the wings properly. I cut the motor meter section from modeling board, and the trim section from a piece of oak wood. I wanted the surface quality the modeling board provides for the motor meter and the toughness the oak provides for the long, thin, trim piece; so I can work on it and test fit as much as needed, without concern of breaking it. It was also good practice in machining wood for the steering wheel.