aidandj

iTrader: (5)

Cool. I'll hit them up and see what they say.

It should be stronger correct?

cordycord

iTrader: (2)

I bet that they have at least a couple of sheets at a discount that have been damaged or scratched. That would be perfect for what you want, as you're going to be scratching and damaging them anyway, amiright?

aidandj

iTrader: (5)

Yess. And painting them.

cordycord

iTrader: (2)

I dunno, it could give a nice "living room feel" to the front of your car if you left them plain.

aidandj

iTrader: (5)

Any reason not to go up to 1/2"? Will the 1/4" be strong enough?

aidandj

iTrader: (5)

ThePass

iTrader: (3)

Hard mounted with a steel frame or a well-engineered aluminum frame (stick to steel if you'd prefer to be less OCD about load paths) is the way to go. I've had offs where I ended up in a small boulder field at WSIR, football sized rock took a small chunk out of the splitter. No damage to the frame or the rest of the splitter. Ran the car the rest of the day, went home and bondo-glassed the missing portion and good as new.

I think Moti performed the most unequivocal test of these splitter mounts when he went off into a loose dirt area and the whole front of the car "shoveled" in:



No damage to the splitter or frame. He came back to the pits with a pile of dirt on the splitter, we all had a good laugh, and then he brushed it all off and ran the rest of the day.

Mind you, there are lots of examples out there of DIY solid splitter mounts that are not strong enough to survive big offs, and even for a well-designed splitter mount, there are some offs where for one factor or another the splitter just doesn't stand a chance, but yes in a nut shell solid mount is the way to go.

cordycord

iTrader: (2)

Using bamboo is like walking on the moon. You're the pioneer. You're pushing boundaries. I wouldn't pick a thickness until I saw them in person. My guess is that these will be much stronger and more resilient than even birch. If the 5 ply was 3/8", I'd guess that would work.

aidandj

iTrader: (5)

Sean's splitter was so well documented and easy to remove that I will probably just mimic that. The Z bracket with tabs. I'll have to dig back and see if there were any other supports.

I'm just tired of ripping off bits of my bumper when the GV lip gets ripped off lol.

aidandj

iTrader: (5)

Any data on "strength" of the sheet? vs "strength" of plywood sheet.

cordycord

iTrader: (2)

Sean's splitter

cordycord

iTrader: (2)

Strength and Durability

Thanks to its unique composition, bamboo is naturally designed for strength…

Unlike wood, bamboo has no rays or knots, allowing it to withstand more stress throughout the length of each stalk.
Bamboo’s sectional anatomy, both as a cane and on a microscopic fiber level, enhances its structural integrity.
The high silica content in bamboo fibers means the material cannot be digested by termites.
Bamboo contains different chemical extractives than hardwood, which make it better suited for gluing.

It's also supposed to have a higher strength to weight ratio than graphite.

aidandj

iTrader: (5)

I like the sound of it. I'm going to call them tomorrow and pick some brains. They seem somewhat knowledgable.

But I am seeing prices around $130-$150 for a 4x8. Unless I can pick it up for a lot less I might stick to birch. We'll see.

ThePass

iTrader: (3)

To me the big question is: how flexible is the sheet? I shot them an email this morning but you may get more info by phone. Then again, since this goes down the road of applications it was never originally intended for, you may not get a definitive enough answer without just buying it and getting it in your hands.

aidandj

iTrader: (5)

If its not horribly expensive I'll buy a sheet.

Current plan is to build a splitter using a frame like sean's, but only have the splitter extend to the front of the GV lip. More of an undertray. I don't have any rear aero so it will more be for protection and some air ducting. Then when I work on rear aero I can just unbolt the smaller one, and put on the bigger one. Or just build another frame and be able to swap small for the street, big for the track.

aidandj

iTrader: (5)

What's the best way to attach the splitter in the rear? Are the factory undertray mounting locations strong enough.

ThePass

iTrader: (3)

Those are 6mm holes, they could work, depends on how you design it and where the fulcrum is when pressure is applied to the front edge.

jpreston

iTrader: (4)

In my experience, those mounting points are strong enough for the aero loads but not strong enough for any kind of impact or off track incident. I lost a splitter that was mounted using those holes.

aidandj

iTrader: (5)

Cool. Waiting to see some pictures of how seans is mounted.

jpreston

iTrader: (4)

Here's how I did my last one:

https://www.miataturbo.net/race-prep...9/#post1061231