September 21, 2003
Day 9 - Rear suspension/axle complete
Went through the process of putting in the driveshafts, building up the axle ends and attaching the calipers/hubs. Did the hub nuts up reasonably tight - the Nyloc is very strong and it's easy to think you've got them tight enough, but it's clear when you pull everything together as the nut just stops turning. I can imagine that 200 lb/ft won't actually turn it that much more but I need to wait until the brakes are bled before I can get them any tighter.
The short (RHS) brake piping curved out a bit early and was in danger of catching the damper if it was set to very soft (unlikely!). I 'persuaded' it in a bit and it should now be clear. The longer (LHS) brake piping curved up a bit early and could possibly hit the radius arm in the suspension was at it's bump stops. This is difficult to check whilst on axle stands but I bent it down a bit anyway. The clearance now looks alright (I'll check when it's on its wheels) but it is a bit close to the lower damper mounting on the De Dion, especially when you bear in mind that the caliper brake pipe mounting actually moves outwards when braking and as the pad wears down. Oh well, there's always something to worry about when building a Caterham. As I was trying to reattach the brake pipe there was a few brass filings around so I blasted it with WD40. A second later I realised that spraying WD40 into the brake fluid entry hole on the caliper was probably a very bad idea. Doh! I'm sure it will be cleaned out by the fluid when I fill it up - I hope so anyway. The routing can be checked by Caterham on the Post Build Check; I'm sure they've seen worse.
Started to fit the handbrake but unfortunately the large clevis pin was missing so I can't put the assembly together and will have to order one from Caterham. I also noticed that the gear lever which had arrived after the main kit doesn't have a knob so I need one of those. The routing of the handbrake cable is a bit Heath Robinson, but makes sense once you can understand the pictures in the guide, especially as they seem to have the adjuster on the opposite side of the car to the one that they tell you to fit it to earlier! [For the record, the adjuster on my car is on the RHS/driver's side]
Not being able to finish the handbrake, I loosely attached all the front brake hoses and the one to the rear De Dion pipes. I want to get the engine in next weekend so I'll be doing a few bits and pieces during the week to get it ready.
5.5 hours today, 36 hours total. Halfway???
Posted by charles at September 21, 2003 8:27 PM