Lets Talk Flywheels
Discussion
"Flywheel Fred" (thanks for that Peter 
) is The Man!
Fred actually makes flywheels for everything from a type 35 Bugatti to a Ferrari F40.
Not content with this he also makes the flywheels for Mclaren that go in their MP4 GT3 cars.
I feel honored Fred is making one to my exact specifications for 'Ol Gasbag'
And even more so that.. (based on our chat) Fred also offered to add his own top secret enhancements to my spec driven by the extensive knowledge he's built up over years and years of turning some of the worlds best flywheels.
If Fred & I have got all this right 'Ol Gasbag' has lost another 6lbs (in the right places) off her already lightened flywheel but will still pull away from the lights and trickle through town like a pussycat.
Lets hope we've found that perfect sweet spot of revability, throttle response and drivability
Only time will tell
) is The Man!Fred actually makes flywheels for everything from a type 35 Bugatti to a Ferrari F40.
Not content with this he also makes the flywheels for Mclaren that go in their MP4 GT3 cars.
I feel honored Fred is making one to my exact specifications for 'Ol Gasbag'
And even more so that.. (based on our chat) Fred also offered to add his own top secret enhancements to my spec driven by the extensive knowledge he's built up over years and years of turning some of the worlds best flywheels.
If Fred & I have got all this right 'Ol Gasbag' has lost another 6lbs (in the right places) off her already lightened flywheel but will still pull away from the lights and trickle through town like a pussycat.
Lets hope we've found that perfect sweet spot of revability, throttle response and drivability
Only time will tell
I drove Peters car,,, I couldn't tell any difference, it's a pussy cat at slow speeds and come to think about it, blipping the throttle on down shifts,, the engine responded tremendously well Dave,,
When do you think you'll be getting your present from Old Fred
I can't wait to see how it fairs,,, sounds spot on to me.
When do you think you'll be getting your present from Old Fred
I can't wait to see how it fairs,,, sounds spot on to me.
ClassiChimi said:
I drove Peters car,,, I couldn't tell any difference, it's a pussy cat at slow speeds and come to think about it, blipping the throttle on down shifts,, the engine responded tremendously well Dave,,
When do you think you'll be getting your present from Old Fred
I can't wait to see how it fairs,,, sounds spot on to me.
But Alun, you're not comparing apples with apples here mate.When do you think you'll be getting your present from Old Fred
I can't wait to see how it fairs,,, sounds spot on to me.
The thing with Peter's car is it makes like 428 torques, which if you really sit down for a minute and think about it is totally bonkers in a car this light!!!
To put Peter's torque into perspective...
- A 1997 - TVR Cerbera 4.5 produces 345.4 lb-ft per tonne
- A 2002 - Ferrari Enzo 6.0 V12 makes 355.3 lb-ft per tonne
- And a 2014 McLaren 650S 3.8 V8 Twin Turbo makes 375.9 lb-ft per tonne
And what of Peter's TVR Chimaera then?
Well that makes a tarmac shredding 411 lb-ft per tonne!!!!
And at just 1,500 RPM Peter's car is already making 90 lb-ft more torque than 'Ol Gasbag' can muster all out at 5,250 RPM!!!
A Chimaera is a very light car so 'Ol Gasbag's" 260 lb-ft of torque still gets her up the road very niclely thanks, but with 411 torques for every tonne of mass to move I doubt Peter needs anything much more than a bottle top on the back of his engine to give a super smooth drive.
Now lets look at a 2013 Ferrari LaFerrari 6.3L V12 that trumps Peters TVR by delivering 411.1 lb-ft per tonne, or does it
Well no it doesn't, because that Ferrari needs its engine spinning at 8,750 RPM to beat Peter's peak figure which comes in at a mere 4,000 RPM.
Now I know that Ferrari engine builds revs fast, but can it really get to 8,750 RPM before Peter reaches 4,000 RPM?
I doubt it
Anyway, Italian cars are for Ghays and posers, TVRs are for real men!
phazed said:
Even worse Dave 
Nearly 460 torques.
Peter, numbers are awesome.... your speed round Snetts and your driving ability are remarkable.. That was without question the fastest I've been round that circuit as a passenger Nearly 460 torques.
Your 5.5 litre lump combined with your driving skills are exceptional.... I doubt you've had a properly quick Chimaera up your chuff.... Like, Anthony is reasonably fast, but not proper quick... Alun is quick (scared me crapless round Marham a few years ago) but very inconsistent and has a pretty slow car...
Getting some proper tyres fitted this winter.... see you boys in my rear mirror soon
(just a bit of banter lads)
Done!
Flywheel ordered from Fred
Fred charged me an extra £26.40 for the custom job but assures me he's working some of his special magic on the thing to make sure it's just what I need.
Fred is a proper old school engineer but is not stuck in the past, as such he prefers to work in metric measurements.
This means what I'm getting will actually be exactly 8.6kg, which translates to 18.96lbs in old money
I will keep you all updated on how my custom 8.5kg steel flywheel performs in 'Ol Gasbag'.
Be patient folks, while it is being machined from a new forged chrome moly steel blank in a few days it won't actually be fitted until December when all my other S-10 gearbox mods and lighter clutch are installed by Lloyd Specialist Developments.
I'm hoping everything will come together to deliver a super slick gear shift, a feather light clutch and an even more responsive engine, but very importantly for me one that still drives nicely at low speeds too.
Will I get my cake & eat it?
Here's praying I do
Flywheel ordered from Fred
Fred charged me an extra £26.40 for the custom job but assures me he's working some of his special magic on the thing to make sure it's just what I need.
Fred is a proper old school engineer but is not stuck in the past, as such he prefers to work in metric measurements.
This means what I'm getting will actually be exactly 8.6kg, which translates to 18.96lbs in old money
I will keep you all updated on how my custom 8.5kg steel flywheel performs in 'Ol Gasbag'.
Be patient folks, while it is being machined from a new forged chrome moly steel blank in a few days it won't actually be fitted until December when all my other S-10 gearbox mods and lighter clutch are installed by Lloyd Specialist Developments.
I'm hoping everything will come together to deliver a super slick gear shift, a feather light clutch and an even more responsive engine, but very importantly for me one that still drives nicely at low speeds too.
Will I get my cake & eat it?
Here's praying I do
ChilliWhizz said:
phazed said:
Even worse Dave
Nearly 460 torques.
Peter, numbers are awesome.... your speed round Snetts and your driving ability are remarkable.. That was without question the fastest I've been round that circuit as a passenger Nearly 460 torques.
Your 5.5 litre lump combined with your driving skills are exceptional.... I doubt you've had a properly quick Chimaera up your chuff.... Like, Anthony is reasonably fast, but not proper quick... Alun is quick (scared me crapless round Marham a few years ago) but very inconsistent and has a pretty slow car...
Getting some proper tyres fitted this winter.... see you boys in my rear mirror soon
(just a bit of banter lads)
Because of you, I'm going to give up my day job, how hard can it be and, I've got a helmet
ChimpOnGas said:
In that link he talks about going to a 12kg flywheel, that's around 26lbs so heavier than my 25lb one.
I still feel 15lbs may be a step too far for what I want, 20lbs remains my target as something is telling me this would be the best compromise.
I wonder if I the solution is to have a 20kg one made, I think they are made to order anyway so the 15lb one with 5lbs more materialb left on the back of it should be spot on.
It would still be 5lbs lighter that what I have now and 2lbs lighter than a 5.0 litre one.
In theory it should also have less of a negative effect on drivability while still giving some engine responsiveness benefits I will feel.
Well that's the theory!
I had the original 12.6 kg one in my 400, milled that down to 10 kg and felt the difference, but could have taken off more. As I said I now have the 6.8 kg one in my 4.6. Nice idle and no problems with pootling along. Mass removed translates to acceleration, do it!! I still feel 15lbs may be a step too far for what I want, 20lbs remains my target as something is telling me this would be the best compromise.
I wonder if I the solution is to have a 20kg one made, I think they are made to order anyway so the 15lb one with 5lbs more materialb left on the back of it should be spot on.
It would still be 5lbs lighter that what I have now and 2lbs lighter than a 5.0 litre one.
In theory it should also have less of a negative effect on drivability while still giving some engine responsiveness benefits I will feel.
Well that's the theory!
OleVix said:
I had the original 12.6 kg one in my 400, milled that down to 10 kg and felt the difference, but could have taken off more. As I said I now have the 6.8 kg one in my 4.6. Nice idle and no problems with pootling along. Mass removed translates to acceleration, do it!!
Good to have your feedback Ole, much appreciated.In the end I've gone for a half way house, I'm having a bespoke 8.6kg chrome moly steel flywheel made which translates to 18.96lbs in old money.
I started with the comically heavy 32lbs cast iron Rover SD1 flywheel TVR stuck in all 4.0 litre Chimeras which I then had machined down to 25lbs, as when you did something similar Ole this made a massive difference to throttle response and the way the engine picked up revs.
I was really impressed with this simple and cheap modification but always felt I could have gone a little lighter than 25lbs, the problem is you are close to the safe limit of machining at 25lbs.
You were brave to take your standard cast flywheel down to 22lbs, my understanding is TVR had to produce their own casting to get the 5.0 litre flywheel to 22lbs.
So I've gone from the silly 32lbs flywheel to the way way better 25lbs one and now rather than going for the 15lb one I'm playing it safe somewhere in the middle at 19lbs.
That's still a full 6lbs lighter than what I have now which I feel it should be the sweet spot for my 4.0 litre car.
If anyone would like to buy my V8 Developments supplied 25lb flywheel it will be available in early January, if you have a 4.0 litre Chimaera this 25lb flywheel is a cheap mod you will really feel.
If you're gearbox is coming out for a clutch replacement fitting my cheap to buy 25lb flywheel is an absolute no-brainer!
All inquiries by PM please
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