Roll cage field test!

admin

I just had my first "field" test of some of my work. This was a hard hit. No welds cracked or showed signs of failure. The car had nascar style bars and I am surprise how much abuse that front weld took! I am curious to see if anyone else has any other field tests. I will post a before pic as soon as i find it. I will post some closeups of some of the joints later tonight also. Eric Attached Images1995 supra 6-speed. 9.91 @148 mph on e85
Reply:Was that your Supra? Maybe it can be fixed...you ok?City of L.A. Structural; Manual & Semi-Automatic;"Surely there is a mine for silver, and a place where gold is refined. Iron is taken from the earth, and copper is smelted from ore."Job 28:1,2Lincoln, Miller, Victor & ISV BibleDanny
Reply:It was a chumpcar/24 hours lemons car i built. A friend was driving it. He is in bad shape but will be ok.1995 supra 6-speed. 9.91 @148 mph on e85
Reply:This is from an old thread..No after pics but here is the story and the before pics........Dug out some pics i thought i had lost..I did the cage and the swing out for the door..This thing had tubing in it everywhere!!But it was a safe car for sure..In '99 They entered it in the Mt Washington hill climb..Was going good untill the driver went off course..and down into a 400 foot ravine head over heals..the only thing left that was any good was the rear deck..it flew off..I never got to see the aftermath but the driver walked away with 2 fractured ribs..From what i was told even the floor was buckled here and there..engine..tranny was ripped out and everything..But it was nice to hear the 'cage held up just fine..The owner of the car was Craig Ludwig..of the Ludwig drum co.All welds were done with a "Dan Mig"It was a looooong time ago.....zap!Last edited by zapster; 04-06-2010 at 05:03 PM.I am not completely insane..Some parts are missing Professional Driver on a closed course....Do not attempt.Just because I'm a  dumbass don't mean that you can be too.So DON'T try any of this **** l do at home.
Reply:I guess it's fortunate that you don't get to see cages 'tested' too often.  But when it happens, I'd like to see as much analysis of what held up and what failed as possible.  It'd be interesting to see what (if anything) you'd do differently after seeing the cage stressed like that.It's not a big deal, but: that nerf bar padding isn't going to stop any broken bones (or a banged skull, in street driving) in a crash.  That stuff is strictly a comfort item for getting in and getting out of a caged car.  SFI-rated high density padding is a better choice when it comes to broken bones when you impact the cage.It's great to see that the cage held up.  I have a cage in my 911, and I often think about how much faith I'm putting in the guy who welded it together.  Good job!Jack OlsenMy garage website
Reply:Great job on the cages!Eric with that did you welded that cage?Any specs on the tubing, velocity of the crash, etc?My Babies: HF Drill pressHF Pipe Bender3   4.5" Black and Decker angle grindersLincoln Electric PROMIG 175that´s it!
Reply:It was tig welded, 1.5" .120 wall mild steel. Not sure of speed yet. As far as the roll bat padding you can see the longacre sfi stuff going down the a pillar bar and it was everywhere the drivers head could contact(main hoop, diag down bar, top of the drivers door bar, halo beside and in front of drivers head). The other foam stuff was for comfort on your ankles and getting in and out. As far as changing anything I have not found anything yet. I am really glad and actually pround that all the welds held 100%. Thanks for all the comments. I will have some other pics up in the next day.1995 supra 6-speed. 9.91 @148 mph on e85
Reply:Here is one that gives you a general idea of before. All the other pics I have are of other parts of the cage. Attached Images1995 supra 6-speed. 9.91 @148 mph on e85
Reply:IndySupra..   Is there a horizontal bar missing (cut out) of that first photo?  There must be something between the floor bar and the top of the door belt line, no?  I don't know much about roll cages.. is that something the welder designs and specs out, or are the rules for each class of race car so definitive that there are few options?  (or is that engineered by a third party as required by class rules, etc...?)  Where I'm going is this...  The welds held up well. Great job!  In hind sight (which is always 20/20), would a different cage layout in the door area have provided more protection against a high velocity side impact?  Did the Honda have a horizontal ladder arrangement at the left door similiar to the Mt. Washington Hill Climb car?  Just curious, zip
Reply:yes and it also had an extra rocker bar that the rules did not require. This pic is before a few of the bars were in place. Attached Images1995 supra 6-speed. 9.91 @148 mph on e85
Reply:wow.....that seems like a crazy cage for a "24 hours of lemons" car!!!!  aren't you only supposed to have $500 car for that race?  that cage looks like it would have cost alot more than the whole car!!was the damaged caused in a "lemons" race?
Reply:Looks like Most of your work held up.   The cuts look like Jaws of Life to make it easier to remove driver. Try adding a 3rd door bar in the middle of those two with supports going down from it to the rocker bar you put in. Also bend out in door skin more IF you can, looks like  you did an brace the back of seat to cage where the belts  hooked in . I had a driver break there neck when they backed into a wall  an the seat flexed back an loosened the belts . What did it hit? Hope your friend is OKLast edited by Rentawrench; 04-07-2010 at 11:25 PM.Reason: Forgot something
Reply:Glad your buddy is going to be OK and congrats on your work passing the 'field test'.I'm afraid you're too late for the Cash-for-Clunkers program though.MM200 w/Spoolmatic 1Syncrowave 180SDBobcat 225G Plus - LP/NGMUTT Suitcase WirefeederWC-1S/Spoolmatic 1HF-251D-1PakMaster 100XL '68 Red Face Code #6633 projectStar Jet 21-110Save Second Base!
Reply:The budget for the lemons deal is $500 in the car minus safety equip. A seat back brace was manditory so yes i had one for it. As far as my friend he will be ok but it will be a long road to get there. Thanks for all the comments guys.Last edited by Indysupra; 04-08-2010 at 08:09 AM.1995 supra 6-speed. 9.91 @148 mph on e85