UPDATE: MORE PICS PAGE 2




I have had many people ask me for some updates, and pictures and whatnot, so here they are


I am a member of the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE for the newbs) at USF and we are taking on the task of building a Mini Baja car and a Formula SAE car. We have had this club since 97, then the group graduated and we didn't build shit for a couple years. But its been alive and well the last couple years, and we were 2nd place in the Mini Baja in the nation last year, and 39th in Formula, up from 92nd the year before.


At the end of the year, we race for a month and a half around the country. This years races are in Ocala, Rochester, South Dakota and Detroit. We have a bus we have renovated into an RV, which we live in for that month and try to tolerate each other for that long


We have 80 members, only about 7 do anything. Im down at the shop at least 40 hrs a week, and do Mechanical Engineering full time. Now a senior, hoping to graduate on time.


Anyways, here are some pics



The Baja first

this was last years car



the frame for this year, i know i know, i have rusty fingers




us at a race last year






The Formula car




this years frame on the jig table





Motor tear down




Look at all that carbon



Us at a race




Where I spend too much time






Here is our bus












That is all for now, Ill have some good pics up later tomorrow hopefully. Ill keep this thread going all year with updates.





This year for Baja, the four of us are all first year members, so this has been a HUGE learning experience for me, with everyone else on our team. Formula has the veterans on it, but only 2 this year really. We have had some new guys out, and so far it looks like they are sticking with it, which is GREAT.

Any questions just ask...

 

oops, forgot the important shit


Everything is designed, built, raced and broken by us and only us. Except the motor, tranny and steering rack, its all hands on.

the baja goes 40 mph offroad, through mud, ponds, jumps, forest and desert. They throw everything at us. We have 100 mile endurance races, drag races, log pulls, uphill and rock climbing with manuverability.

the formula is 140 mph capable, but we gear it down to around 90 for our tracks we race on.


we also have to do design reports, cost reports, business meeting type reports at every race. so its not all racing.

 

Good stuff and people say college is all books and theories, pfffffft

It looks like the suspension on the baja car has adjustable rods. Does the formula car have the same? Or, are they spherical bearings with no adjustability?

 

the formula is adjustable, only on the inside by the center of the car, at the hubs its fixed

 

HAHA. This is awesome. I was on the first two years of the team (Dale Patterson, Tom and I can't remember the other guys names) when we did mini baja. We hit the Kansas and Canada races and did pretty well. Is Kevin still there? I know when I transfered to Cal state in the spring of 2000 he was taking over the team. You guys still out in the lab....north of Campus near maintenance? That is awesome to see you guys to FSAE as well. I did that at Cal state and went to Detroit in 2003. For a Mechanical Engineer, FSAE and Baja are the best things you can do for your future/career. Good luck man. Let me know if there is anything I can do for you guys.

What are you guys using for FEA and Solid modeling there now? Haha....I just looked at the pics. That is out in the old lab. And that old lathe still works!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!LOL. That is hilarious.

Oh yeah...you forgot your site info:

USF Racing

Jason

 

This is one of the biggest things I am anticipating for next year...although for the past 3 years I was pretty damn set on USF, I have chosen UCF instead. I thought USF did pretty damn good though coming in second! Since it is a fellow Florida team and I havent gotten my acceptance letter, I still root for USF...just not as much

 

UCF has a great program as well. There Masters program for combustion is awsome. I need to stop working and go back to school to fill my head with more crazy stuff.

 

i believe Kevin is working for Sun Hydraulics now. We use Solidworks for everything, and for our FEA we are using the Cosmos part of Solidworks


we have tried using ANSYS, but everyone who tried got fed up with one of the most user unfriendly programs ever.

Drew Bridges just graduated, i know he was out there when you were, Chris Chow comes around every once in a while, he was there for you too i bet.


yeah, the lathe still works, the mill is still good. The welder is still up and kicking ass, and im trying to get us a damn plasma cutter. I spent 3 hours getting the firewall perfect on the baja tonight, and that plasma would have worked great. Although, we have an in with the Art department and we can use their sheet metal shears and bender now.


Mocked up the steering columns tonight, tacked them in, and i hope to fucking god i have enough clearance for the back of the steering wheel connection




but come on out some night, im there every day almost, and leave around midnight each night.

 

I have some elka's for sale...Long Travel 19 1/2 if you know any one looking for another set..

 

yeah, i was talkin to the head dude at the car show a while back, very cool, and when i get back to USF i'm definately looking into this