USEFUL LINKS, ETC.

Vendors

Below are links to companies whos products and services I have personally used and can recommend to others. I generally do not receive any compensation for referrals (Tire Rack being the exception), but if you talk to the vendor and mention you saw them here it can only help improve my standing with them :)

Hartley Enterprises - manufacturer of the H1 V8 engine used in the production dp1 and in my Atom

The Tire Rack - Tires, Wheels, Brakes, Suspension and Other Peformance Products

Vehicle Handling and Performance Analyser - very useful program for estimating performance and the effects of various changes.

Lunar Pages Web Hosting - This site has now outgrown their offerings (I still use them for e-mail and RR site) but for anyone needing less than 80G bandwidth per month it's an excellent value.

Taylor Race Engineering - people who supplied pretty much all of dp1 driveline bits. Wide selection of standard parts at fair prices and service is quick for off-the-shelf items. They can also do custom components although lead times can be pretty long.

JCMotors - got the used Hayabusa motor for the Westie from them. Good service and pricing. Keep in mind that the motors are from crashed bikes, so some bits might be missing or scraped up. They were very good about locating and sending some missing sensors.

EliseParts - just like the name says. Wide selection, good pricing, prompt shipment from England. I get a lot of my Elise parts here.

TTS Performance - makers of Hayabusa dry sump system.

California Cycle Works - good source for Ducati parts such as chains, sprockets and tools.

Composites Unlimited - manufacturers of aerospace-grade composites and tooling. They made the carbon/nomex panel for the Westie and will be making the molds and bodywork for the dp1.

Janicki Industries - specializing in plugs for mold manufacture. They have one of the largest 5-axis CNC machines around (88 feet long!). Janicki made the dp1 bodywork plug.

Shock Shop - great source for Ohlins and other shocks, custom valving and dyno testing.

Geartronics - very nice gear indicator for Hayabusa motors (all GSXR actually and it works on bikes and cars).

BurkeBuilt - excellent fabricator of tube structures and frames, located in San Diego area. Highly recommended.

MetalCraft Machine - very good machine shop. Excellent quality, good pricing.

Sector111 - good source for Federal Elise parts in the US.

ChaseCam - source for helmet cameras and accessories.

Sites

These are some sites that I have found informative, useful and/or entertaining. You may too.

Kimini 2.2 project - custom garage-built car with Mini-replica bodyshell.

Meerkat - custom mid-engine two seat sportscar.

La Bala - another project along the lines of Meerkat.

FrankenMini - a 'classic' Mini estate converted to RWD and Ford power

368 Syndicate - site dedicated to BMW M Coupe and Z3 Coupe.

Roadfly M Coupe board - great forum for these cars.

Elise BBS - excellent source of info, especially the technical forum.

Sports Racer Network - dedicated to DSR/CSR and similar racecars, but a great resource for designers and builders of race machinery of all kinds. Forum is especially useful - some very knowledgeable contributors.

Portland International Raceway - the track I visit the most. Site has schedule of club track days for both cars and motorcycles. Most club days are open to all makes (Viper club is the unfortunate exception - maybe they fear being passed by a Honda?) and fees are very reasonable.

Original Car Concepts - a forum dedicated to designing and building original-design cars

Downloads

Some of the frequently requested files are here. I certify that I am the original author and copyright owner of these files. They may be downloaded free of charge for personal, non-commercial use. If you re-distribute the files please acknowledge their source (a link to this site will suffice). No warranty of any kind is provided and user assumes full responsibility for any and all use.

Note: While there is no fee for download or use of anything on this site, if you find it valuable enough to send a PayPal payment in the amount of your choosing to dp@randomresearch.com, I would be deeply honored :)

Hayabusa Engine IGES file (275K, zipped) - complete 3D model suitable for use in designing custom frames. Assumes use of TTS dry sump. Accuracy is about 1/4". For reference, engine weight as modeled is 180 lbs.

Yamaha R1 Engine IGES (pre-'04?) (761K, zipped) - courtesy of Mike Stieff.

Driver IGES file (290K, zipped) - a 3D model of a driver positioned as in dp1 (40 degree recline, feet raised 3"). Suitable for designing racecar cockpits. Assumes 'average' male build, about 5'11" and 180 lbs.

Driver SolidWorks 2004 file (780K, zipped) - parametric model of the driver allowing you to change position and size (just edit Sketch 1). Requires SolidWorks 2004 or later.

Quaife inline reversing box IGES (451K) - courtesy of Doug Smyth.