Post by David Mitcham on Nov 11, 2017 14:32:19 GMT -5
My wife and I were at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London yesterday to see a craft display my wife was interested in. I noticed there was another featured exhibition on plywood. Doesn't sound very exciting does it - somewhat akin to Daddy Pig's library book on the 'World of Concrete' (those of you with children/grandchildren will understand this reference to Peppa Pig). Against expectations it turned out to be the highlight of the visit - what an amazing material; there's not much that can't be made using it - aeroplanes (eg the wartime Mosquito), furniture, houses, boats and cars. Right at the entrance to the display was the Protos F2 car from 1967 which had a plywood monocoque designed by Frank Costin. Motor Sport comments on the Protos as follows.
"The Protos F2 car was commissioned by Ron Harris [from Frank Costin] and driven by, among others, Brian Hart and Pedro Rodriguez. The commissioning fee was £20,000 but there was a stipulation that the car had to be ready for the start of the 1967 F2 season, which left just 127 days from the first pencil line to racing.
The time factor was the car's undoing for it was never properly tested and developed. It featured a wooden monocoque with a nose which recalled the Vanwall and, unusual for F2 at the time, inboard suspension. Typically, Costin sacrificed cornering speed for outright speed, but was prepared to reconsider had money been available for testing. In a straight line they were sensational. Without a tow, Hart was a second a lap quicker at Reims than Jim Clark's Lotus could manage without a tow, and Hart held the Hockenehim lap record for two years [and finished second in the 1967 race there].
They were sensibly stressed, too, for when Rodriguez crashed heavily at Enna, few thought he would survive, but the wooden monocoque, though destroyed, acted as a survival cell and the Mexican was unharmed.
The unusual windscreen which almost made the car a coupe, also worked very well as Brian Hart discovered when following a car which shed all its oil. The Protos was Covered in oiI hut Hart's vision was unimpaired.
Although there was much more to come from the design in terms of lowering the centre of gravity, shedding a little weight, and improving cornering power, the team did not last until the end of the season, Harris withdrawing his backing. The respect which Hart had for the design may be judged by the fact that he and Costin have remained close friends and have been jointly involved on subsequent projects. "
Here are some photos I took yesterday - the lighting was poor and I couldn't get right round the car hence the poor quality shots. I think it would make a great slot car, I wonder if there any drawings anywhere?
Best Regards
David
"The Protos F2 car was commissioned by Ron Harris [from Frank Costin] and driven by, among others, Brian Hart and Pedro Rodriguez. The commissioning fee was £20,000 but there was a stipulation that the car had to be ready for the start of the 1967 F2 season, which left just 127 days from the first pencil line to racing.
The time factor was the car's undoing for it was never properly tested and developed. It featured a wooden monocoque with a nose which recalled the Vanwall and, unusual for F2 at the time, inboard suspension. Typically, Costin sacrificed cornering speed for outright speed, but was prepared to reconsider had money been available for testing. In a straight line they were sensational. Without a tow, Hart was a second a lap quicker at Reims than Jim Clark's Lotus could manage without a tow, and Hart held the Hockenehim lap record for two years [and finished second in the 1967 race there].
They were sensibly stressed, too, for when Rodriguez crashed heavily at Enna, few thought he would survive, but the wooden monocoque, though destroyed, acted as a survival cell and the Mexican was unharmed.
The unusual windscreen which almost made the car a coupe, also worked very well as Brian Hart discovered when following a car which shed all its oil. The Protos was Covered in oiI hut Hart's vision was unimpaired.
Although there was much more to come from the design in terms of lowering the centre of gravity, shedding a little weight, and improving cornering power, the team did not last until the end of the season, Harris withdrawing his backing. The respect which Hart had for the design may be judged by the fact that he and Costin have remained close friends and have been jointly involved on subsequent projects. "
Here are some photos I took yesterday - the lighting was poor and I couldn't get right round the car hence the poor quality shots. I think it would make a great slot car, I wonder if there any drawings anywhere?
Best Regards
David