So far i haven't had a chance to install it onto the car.. Been raining around here.

Its a fair amount of work filing stuff down and smoothing it out.
I definitely will tell the pattern making fellow to slightly change a part of the pattern that way i don't have to work on it as much.. Its a beefier design so with the extra material it wont fit into the handle cup.

This was done just in case to prevent thinness. These parts in specific are the ends of the handle were they curve. And the lower outside parts of the arm were they contour to the flat part of the handle.

The most annoying part of it all is the drilling of 2 legs. Pain in the $%#

The legs are double the size in thickness.

I am no metallurgist. But the arms seem to be strong like KIMBO SLICE's uppercuts. LOL

As far as paint prep work a good degrease and etching primer will be all you need on the face of the handle.

Do not expect the handles to be some perfect cast parts. They will not be perfect but will get the job done. Consider these home made. At times i want to be a perfectionist. But the time involved is too much for me.

So expect the following; a good face for paint and a strong set of legs....haha

I am on Vacation as of Friday so ill have time to tinker with these goods.

 

Thanks to those who Voted.

Well here goes. I contacted the folks regarding the aluminum warning lights console trim.

When it comes to a loose cast the price is higher because of the complexity of the part. Plus machining would have to be done on it too. On the other hand if a pattern is made is should lower the price for sure. But patterns are not cheap. This will be based on just how soon i can recuperate some of the tooling costs.

The price for an aluminum console trim will definitely be higher than its plastic counterpart. But the benefit of it being aluminum outweighs the cost.


The A-Pillars is something that is worth looking into too.

PS... Seems door handles in decent shape have gone up in prices.

 

OK here goes

I opted out and changed the hinge from short pins to a longer type pin.

Each arm will now support the weight of each other evenly. Rather than the single pin per arm which is probably why the stress really increased on use.

I am thinking that 2 nice tight locking bushings will be all that is needed to secure the 3/16 rod at 4.2 inches. 1 spring instead of 2 and that single spring will be on the arm that has the hammer. This gives holds the handle with less constant strain because of the extra spring tension.

 

The handle is installed in the car as of today. 3/11/12.

I managed to install it right before it began to rain..

It has a very nice solid feel to it. Opens smoothly.

Ill try to post a video of it in use.

 

Congratulations.

Although I'm not completely sold on the piece itself, the follow through on the project deserves praise.

 

+1,000,000

 

Lookin' good! B)

 

i always wanted to add the mx5 handles..

 

Thanks. Can you be more specific regarding the part??

Is it how it looks? Remember they had to be changed big time in order for the cast to be possible. There's limitations on how thin a part can be due to flash / draft etc.

At the moment it is a test piece. And there will be changes made to the pattern when the time permits. Mainly to improve the fit and overall look but like any casting hand work has to be done on the part.

As i mentioned before your opinions matters a lot. So give me insight on what i might be overlooking.

 

its on its 3rd day. ;0)

notice that there's a slightly small fitment issue on the right part of the handle. These are some of the things that i have to perfect. The trick is in the holes that have to be drilled on the arms.

Overall it has a solid feel.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WyN2Q8jAp-k

 

It's definitely not the appearance, it's the engineering.

I'm not an engineer by trade, nor have I any experience with 3D modeling software (specifically, it's ability to extrapolate stresses) but I do know that making a bad design bigger doesn't necessarily eliminate the original flaws...essentially, just what you've done.

It may be that the beefing up you've done will significantly strengthen the part but how will you know?
Most of the originals lasted for two decades and of those that failed, a percentage were abetted by unusual circumstances (i.e., frozen/misaligned doors, etc), so how much time passes before your improved version can really be called better?

So, specifically what I'd like to see is some sort of analysis showing that thickening up the lever arms a little actually makes a difference and what kind of forces are in play (not asking much, am I?) because I've thought from the onset of your project that the original design shouldn't have been cast at all, it should be machined.
Prohibitively expensive to be sure but a much better way to end up with a good part.

But still, congratulations.

 

Almost towards the beginning it was announced. I took a members advice and went with it and he was right. No pun intended but a lot of FC3s owners just don't spend money like the FD owners do. And if something is to be purchased it better be worth it.

During the first phases only the FACE of the handle was to be machined.
The legs were going to be made separately,, but that didn't go so well.

 

And yes Clokker is right. It does need a thorough testing. However an analysis of the part is something that is out of my reach.

Ive already spoken to a machine shop about the original handles weakness.
Numerous welders have already told me that the OE mazda is an impure metal cast.

Frozen doors and the occasional hard openings due to not properly adjusted door mechanisms.

**For example. When you have to pull the handle all the way up to open it. It is either the handle that is getting ready to break. Or the nylon threaded piece that goes into the handle is not set to its right position.

What i might plan on doing is checking just how much weight it takes to push down on the door latch mechanism.

And perhaps check the strength on both the new and old handle design.

 

If anyone here has seen a broken **or an about to be broken handle it starts off as a hairline tear. Does it commence at were the pivot goes or right near the pivot point?

Anyone ever see a handle that is beginning to break?

 

I am using one of your pictures Fokker hope you dont mind. Handle Treachery


So it starts of as a tear from the force pushing upwards. Tensile strength certainly has a lot to do with it.

 

1 1/2 weeks so far holding up perfectly.

Going to take some time this weekend to make a little tool to adapt onto a older style torque wrench. Once that's done i will make sure the stress point will be on the spot were it always breaks.

I will compare both the old handle and the new one..
And observe at what /lbs does it break or bend. Ill try and make a video of this if possible.

I understand that its a crude testing method but its a way to see just how well the new material will hold up. I to work with whatever i have a available to me.

Ill keep you updated.

 

On a side note i am also going to have some help .

I am going to have a handle setup for testing for DEREKCAT.
This way the variables are added such as misaligned doors , misadjusted latches etc.


The help is going to definetely be cool. THanks DEREKCAT!

 

Since people are actually looking at this thread...

What is the microswitch on the back of some handles for? Additionally, how is it supposed to be attached because I just bought a new handle and the switch is not attached like I think it should be, want to know if I just screw it in or what... Thanks

 

Microswitch is for cars equipped with the factory theft deterrent system.

 

NP! ^_^ Happy to help!

I've got the door handle out and I'll try to ship it tomorrow.
Tsk tsk, no thread hijacking! [The switches are for the key illumination and the security system activation. Yes they should be screwed on with two tiny philips, see if the button is activated by turning the lock and opening the handle]

 

That switch that you are talking about triggers the keyhole light if yours has it and engages the stock OE alarm when you lock the door and close the car while you are pulling up on the handle. In order for that system to work the Body Cpu has to be in good working order along with all the switches this includes the hood /doors and trunk.


I think its a tiny metric screw that goes in there.

 

I am doing stress tests as promised. I even broke a cast handle leg on purpose.
In actual use the handle will never see horizontal forces but regardless i did that testto see if the handle got stronger . Horizontally it can take a few more degrees of bend than the Mazda one. The inside of mine is more dense and pure. Were the Mazda handle actually is porous.

Now forward and back motion how the handle really see's the everyday forces encountered to open the door. I managed to create minimal flex this being that i made way more force than what the handle needs to push the latch rod.
I am a hefty guy.LMAO

I will definitely get rid of that minimal flex. Simply by adding a round section which makes the flex go away by evenly distributing the flex ; rather than leaving it as a corner.
Were do i get these ideas hehe. Well i consulted my cousin who is an engineer.
A round corner is more effective.
Overall the tensile strength is way better.

Overall things are going well right now so very soon it will be available to you guys.

 

The tests that i did above were done with a set of locking pliers. Unless your the Hulk with your bare hands i doubt it can be affected.

 

I gave it some thought. And i think its time to make it available.

No parts have been cast yet to build with. Nor do i have cores yet.

So if you guys have any broken handles aside from what you have. Let me know because it will help me out.

I will go into group buy today. And let out the specifics of prices.

This thread is now at active at

Group Buy and Product Development Interest 2ndgen RX-7

 

Can't wait, I have anew set of handles waiting to be installed on my 7 and will have the old ones just sitting around....