Do you think the Splinter can compete with the top supercars?
Joe Harmon: Speaking in terms of performance, the potential is definitely there. We don't have the time or the resources to put the Splinter through the same kind of testing and refinement that one would see in an Enzo or a Carrera GT, but we have designed it to have world-class characteristics in all the areas that make a supercar super, like power-to-weight ratio, weight distribution and centre of gravity.
What top speed are you aiming for?
Joe Harmon: To me, top speed is more of a by-product of a proper supercar than a goal for one. There are so many other factors that take precedence over top speed that it wouldn't make sense for us to set a top speed goal. If we make the car light enough, powerful enough and slippery enough, it will be able to move faster than we had hoped.
What are the pros of working with wood?
Joe Harmon: Wood is a truly amazing material to work with. It has a higher strength-to-weight ratio than aluminium or steel, and it possesses a versatility that makes many different types of construction techniques possible. The look, feel, and smell of a natural material like wood are not seen elsewhere and cannot be faked, and the satisfaction involved in making something from a piece of wood is awesome.
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And the cons?
Joe Harmon: There is not much room for error with wood. All the laminations, fits, glues, and finishes have to be dialled in. There is no welding up a hole or bending a piece to make it fit. The main con is probably the fact that wood has almost no ability to stretch. Think of trying to conform a piece of paper to a globe. Compound curves like those seen in the Splinter's body panels are extremely labour-intensive and difficult to make in a wood laminate.
What's your background?
Joe Harmon: I graduated from the School of Design at North Carolina State University in December 2006. My major was Industrial Design. I am currently finishing up my Master's Degree in Industrial Design from the same school. I have always wanted to design cars.
How do you avoid problems such as woodworm and rot?
Joe Harmon: The magic of modern coatings along with the proper selection of woods virtually eliminates problems of worm and rot. Keeping the car out of the rain won't hurt, either! Just like with carbon fibre, UV light is a big concern. On a painted car, this problem goes away, but a natural finish like the Splinter will have must be protected. The best protection is shade, but the coatings we have gotten from Becker will greatly retard UV degradation.
Will it be lighter than a conventional car?
Joe Harmon: We hope the car will weigh about 2,500lbs, which is less than 100lbs heavier than a late-model Mazda Miata, but with well over three times the power. The light weight is achieved through careful design and composite construction: the Splinter is not made from any carved-out, solid chunks of wood, but rather molded laminates. This type of construction is essentially identical to that employed in cars or other objects which are made of fibreglass or carbon fibre. By building thickness in a moulded part with a lightweight material, one exponentially increases the stiffness. One of the things that additional time and funds would allow us to accomplish would be a lightening of the chassis and various other components. We lean heavily towards the side of overbuilding our parts because we don't have time to stress test everything to make it only exactly as strong (and heavy) as it needs to be.
Could you build an F1 car out of wood?
Joe Harmon: An F1 car could definitely be made from wood. Some extremely creative engineering would have to go into it to overcome the strength-to-weight and ease of moldability benefits of carbon fibre, but it's definitely doable. Getting permission to race it would probably be a bigger challenge than engineering it. It would be fun trying to find out.
Joe Harmon: Speaking in terms of performance, the potential is definitely there. We don't have the time or the resources to put the Splinter through the same kind of testing and refinement that one would see in an Enzo or a Carrera GT, but we have designed it to have world-class characteristics in all the areas that make a supercar super, like power-to-weight ratio, weight distribution and centre of gravity.
What top speed are you aiming for?
Joe Harmon: To me, top speed is more of a by-product of a proper supercar than a goal for one. There are so many other factors that take precedence over top speed that it wouldn't make sense for us to set a top speed goal. If we make the car light enough, powerful enough and slippery enough, it will be able to move faster than we had hoped.
What are the pros of working with wood?
Joe Harmon: Wood is a truly amazing material to work with. It has a higher strength-to-weight ratio than aluminium or steel, and it possesses a versatility that makes many different types of construction techniques possible. The look, feel, and smell of a natural material like wood are not seen elsewhere and cannot be faked, and the satisfaction involved in making something from a piece of wood is awesome.
And the cons?
Joe Harmon: There is not much room for error with wood. All the laminations, fits, glues, and finishes have to be dialled in. There is no welding up a hole or bending a piece to make it fit. The main con is probably the fact that wood has almost no ability to stretch. Think of trying to conform a piece of paper to a globe. Compound curves like those seen in the Splinter's body panels are extremely labour-intensive and difficult to make in a wood laminate.
What's your background?
Joe Harmon: I graduated from the School of Design at North Carolina State University in December 2006. My major was Industrial Design. I am currently finishing up my Master's Degree in Industrial Design from the same school. I have always wanted to design cars.
How do you avoid problems such as woodworm and rot?
Joe Harmon: The magic of modern coatings along with the proper selection of woods virtually eliminates problems of worm and rot. Keeping the car out of the rain won't hurt, either! Just like with carbon fibre, UV light is a big concern. On a painted car, this problem goes away, but a natural finish like the Splinter will have must be protected. The best protection is shade, but the coatings we have gotten from Becker will greatly retard UV degradation.
Will it be lighter than a conventional car?
Joe Harmon: We hope the car will weigh about 2,500lbs, which is less than 100lbs heavier than a late-model Mazda Miata, but with well over three times the power. The light weight is achieved through careful design and composite construction: the Splinter is not made from any carved-out, solid chunks of wood, but rather molded laminates. This type of construction is essentially identical to that employed in cars or other objects which are made of fibreglass or carbon fibre. By building thickness in a moulded part with a lightweight material, one exponentially increases the stiffness. One of the things that additional time and funds would allow us to accomplish would be a lightening of the chassis and various other components. We lean heavily towards the side of overbuilding our parts because we don't have time to stress test everything to make it only exactly as strong (and heavy) as it needs to be.
Could you build an F1 car out of wood?
Joe Harmon: An F1 car could definitely be made from wood. Some extremely creative engineering would have to go into it to overcome the strength-to-weight and ease of moldability benefits of carbon fibre, but it's definitely doable. Getting permission to race it would probably be a bigger challenge than engineering it. It would be fun trying to find out.
