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Old 10-07-2011, 12:20 PM   #1 (permalink)
Diesel_Dave
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Join Date: May 2011
Location: Indiana
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White Whale - '07 Dodge Ram 2500 ST Quad Cab 2wd, short bed
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Yet another aerocap idea

My mind has been chewing for a while now on ways to make a practical aero cap for a truck. By "practical" I mean something that accomplished the aerodynamic advantage of a "traditional" aero cap, but also allows the driver to utilize the full bed when needed. Basically, that mean it needs to be easily removeable by one person.

Here's my latest idea. Why not use hoops and canvas? Think like the construction of an old covered wagon or an army cargo truck like this one:


But rather than all the hoops being the same, make the hoops shorter and shorter as you go further back. Because of the taper, you'd have to sew some pleats into the canvas to get it to fit correctly. You could use snaps or ties to hold the canvas down. The hoops could either be made of bent metal (maybe conduit) or maybe wood.

Removing it would be fairly easy. The canvas could be folded and stored in the cab and it could be mad so you could move all the hoops to the front of the bed out of the way.

I would think it would also be (relatively) lightweight, depending on what type of hoops & canvas you used.

What does everybody else think?

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Diesel Dave

My version of energy storage is called "momentum".
My version of regenerative braking is called "bump starting".

1 Year Avg (Every Mile Traveled) = 47.8 mpg

BEST TANK: 2,009.6 mi on 35 gal (57.42 mpg): http://ecomodder.com/forum/showthrea...5-a-26259.html


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