Full-boat-tail trailer with gap-fillers for Toyota T-100 pickup

[aerohead]

My departure date came,I left,but without trailer,and only went as far as Las Cruces,New Mexico.---------- With 186 man-hours into the project I wasn't anywhere near completion and now have moved my new deadline to Christmas holiday season.---------- I have a week and a half before I go back to work.With liberal scratching of my pin head,I guestimate an additional 120-150 man-hours to pull everything together.--------- I did do a 1,349-mile baseline run with the new "racing" tires and altered gearing to help me nail down "trailerless" performance which will help separate out future numbers with the trailer in tow.The T-100 hit a new high for highway mpg,I'll post a new thread on that.Looks like 40-mpg is doable under best conditions.

[aerohead]

Hello all.At 250-man-hours the trailer is beginning to flesh out.The body is defined now.All electrical has been dry-fitted and tested.I've basically fixed the design for the fin.As mentioned in earlier post,the trailer is "invisible" from the cab and the fin became a necessity,as it's a bit disconcerting to go down the road when you're not sure your "load" is with you or not.----- The fin will also help balance side gust loading and add some visual "mass" for motorists approaching from behind.I recessed the fin horizontally to protect pedestrians from snagging it,should they walk by at close quarters and it has a single LED lamp to aid in after dark operations.----------- Next begins the belly,followed by fairings.--------- The "integrator" is essentially complete and ready to receive the articulated panels.----------- "poco-loco",the boat derived aeroshell gets a side and rear window.--------- I would also like to do the modified nose.We'll see.------------ Much to do.Will post as things unfold.------ The T-100 touched 39-mpg on one leg of the New Mexico return trip,my hope is that with the trailer I'll finally break into 40-mpg territory.

[Cd]

Phil, why not put an antenna on the end and mount a red flag back there ? You would be able to see it better, and alert motorist at the same time.
The bigger the flag the better - maybe two.

[brucey]

Those little moon caps on the trailer wheels are an adorable touch.

[TEiN]

Originally Posted by Cd

Phil, why not put an antenna on the end and mount a red flag back there ? You would be able to see it better, and alert motorist at the same time.
The bigger the flag the better - maybe two.

Wouldn't that cause unnecessary drag?

[Blue Bomber Man]

There was probably a touch of sarcasm in Cd's post.

[Cd]

Joking aside, I was wondering what you intend to do about the areas directly behind the cab*, and other areas, such as the void above the plate on the trailer.

I'd like to see some pictures of those gap fillers back on. I'm interested in seeing a picture of how they work when you turn a sharp corner,


Also, do you plan to make extentions behind the trailer wheels ? It looks like the bottom of the trailer could use a bellypan as well - I see some low hanging grapes down there.

Where did you find your 'mini moons' ?

* I know this had been brought up before, but I thought you fixed it already.

[Cd]

Phil, in post # 27, you have a bed cap that fills in the void behind the cab. Why the switch ?

[aerohead]

Originally Posted by Cd

Phil, why not put an antenna on the end and mount a red flag back there ? You would be able to see it better, and alert motorist at the same time.
The bigger the flag the better - maybe two.

The thing with the fin,is that it will add crosswind impact area behind the axle helping to offset the larger area and higher crosswind Cd ahead of the axle to better balance yaw forces in side gusts.Also,a red light in the top,along with strips of high-conspicuity tape will add visibility for approaching motorists so there's less chance of being rear-ended.Flags would help with visibility but wouldn't address yawing moments.

[aerohead]

Originally Posted by Cd

Joking aside, I was wondering what you intend to do about the areas directly behind the cab*, and other areas, such as the void above the plate on the trailer.

I'd like to see some pictures of those gap fillers back on. I'm interested in seeing a picture of how they work when you turn a sharp corner,


Also, do you plan to make extentions behind the trailer wheels ? It looks like the bottom of the trailer could use a bellypan as well - I see some low hanging grapes down there.

Where did you find your 'mini moons' ?

* I know this had been brought up before, but I thought you fixed it already.

The driver's side cab fairing is still in my head and is included in the plan for the December trip.Also a side window and rear window and cut away for the 3rd brake light.------------------------ The gap-fillers are in flux and await completion of the trailer face to progress to the next phase.The facets of the trailer face are what the rollers of the gap-fillers interact with to swing the panels during turns.The upper and lower panels interact with the trailer and side panels to displace over railroad crossings/driveway ramps etc..--------------------- The trailer wheels get fore and aft fairings,as do the leaf spring/shackles and square tube axle; seven fairings in all.--------------------------- The trailer gets a full aluminum bellypan.I picked up the last piece of aluminum sheet on the way to Copy-Pro.I've spent the last two days underneath the beast and lack center-most 32-by- 36-inch section to complete belly,and about a half day's work to integrate the wheel houses for an airtight bottom.---------------------- The mini-MOONs are either cut down from real MOON covers,or fiberglass facsimiles laid up on the back side of the covers.I will be using 1/8-inch Allen socket-head machine screws,screwed directly into the rims which are drilled and tapped.------------------------ As to the void above the license plate,it will remain,will provide for ventilation when camping and there is a hand grab at the very top for maneuvering while separated from the truck.This whole chopped area constitutes 5%( 1.4-square feet ) of the original frontal area of the truck,and according to R&D conducted by Dornier Aircraft and Arado Aircraft,this area will be enveloped in a "phantom" tail,as referred to by Dr.Kamm and Dr. Korff,and will offer only a negligible drag increase.This is one of those concessions we're forced to make for a road vehicle with lights and tag.The upshot is that this is the entire wake area of the rig,for a 95% reduction,the key to drag elimination.-------------- I'll post photos as the thing evolves.Many hours of grinding/sanding/filling/primer/scratch-filling/guide-coat/and block-sanding to get ready for paint.------ A fella has agreed to do a non-toxic water based base-coat/clear-coat paint job here at the house and I get a lesson in HVLP spraying,something I've never done.