jbanker

Hey Scott, At near the bottom of this thread plus on the Stalker Gallery site that is referenced after my signature. Several photos on page 5 & 6 on my Gallery photos. Are you and and Mary planning to come to the Stalker Ambush? Would be great to meet you guys. Jack

Hey Jason, It just occurred to me that you bought the new clams from Graeme Gee. I purchased the crunched ones from Graeme plus the old mounts. I am pretty sure the Caterham mounts will slip right into the split tube mounts that are on your Birkin. Should be a pretty simple retrofit. I bought the damaged clams because I was not sure the Cat clams would even come close to fitting the Stalker with the headers coming out close to the top rails and the longer length of the Stalker compared to the non SV Cat. Fit turned out to be no real problem. My son repaired the damaged clamshell. Now everybody is happy. Love your Birkin..!!! Jack

It appears to me that the bracket is an extension of the headlight bracket with a lower brace extending down to near the upper A-arm. Is that pretty close? Jason, I just looked at your post again. The mounting brackets mount on top of the upper frame rails pretty much right above the upper 'A' arms. I had to fabricate and weld a split tube to capture the mounting brackets. I thought I took a photo of the final mount mod and included it on my Stalker Gallery web page. You have to look at it pretty close. It is identical to what is done on a Caterham. Jack

Jason, Yes, I was lucky enough to be able to purchase the Caterham clams along with the Caterham front clam mounts from the same source. I purchased them used from one of our USA7s forum members last Fall. Here is another possibility that may help you. There is a company in Kneeland, CA called Curtis Unlimited. They fabricate replacement parts for Se7ens including Caterhams. They sell front wings (clams) for $70 each plus the forward front mounts for $40 each. I personally have not dealt with them but my son has a Se7en nose on order and should be arriving any day via UPS. I have another friend that has a set of clams and front mounts on order as well. Hopefully I will be able to pass along a favorable testimony within a few days once I see the end products. The owners are Bert and Fay Curtis. Their email address is curtisunlimited@aol.com Their phone number is 707 443 8523 and you must call between 3:00 PM until 3:00 AM. I don't believe they stock any products but fabricate as orders come in. Both my son and my friend have talked to Fay and so far indicate that their experience was extremely pleasant. A true Mom and Pop cottage industry. Somehow that really fits in with typical Se7en ownership. Jack

Here are a couple more photos of the clam mounts that might help. I have posted per the forum thread here previously: http://usa7s.com/vb/showthread.php?t=4883 Plus you might want to check the last couple of pages on my Stalker V6 album link at the bottom of my signature. Jack

Much more comfortable for touring. cuts down on a certain amount of buffeting and cockpit stays much cleaner...fewer pebbles. I have busted several cycle fender mounts and cycle fenders themselves. A lot of unsprung weight hanging out on those front spindles. From a visual point of view I really prefer the appearance. Jack

I did on my Stalker V6. I would strongly advise you to try to locate the mounts designed for your particular clams. Mine are from the Caterham where the clams came from. I really like the clams after having run with cycle fenders for nearly 7 years. Jack

HERE IS A LINK TO CRAIG'S LIST IN THE INDIANAPOLIS AREA. http://indianapolis.craigslist.org/cto/1839896778.html I BELIEVE IT IS STILL FOR SALE. TONY MONTGOMERY IS THE OWNER IN WESTFIELD, INDIANA JACK

Stalker owners do not have floor or passenger compartment issues with excessive heat. I finally realized why... All Stalkers have "Sprint Car" style headers with very short residence time under the bonnet. If you look at most other Se7en type cars you will find lots of exhaust travel inside the engine bay before the 4 into 1 collectors down near the lower frame rails. I would venture to say that a typical 4 cylinder Se7en has more exhaust radiated heat under the bonnet vs the V6 of any Stalker. My headers come straight out of the exhaust manifold and pass directly under the top frame rails into the open atmosphere outside of the car. NO EXHAUST HEAT ISSUES AT ALL AND I DO HAVE ENGINE SIDE PANELS. Jack

My wife and I have toured a lot and have never found the need to use any kind of radio to communicate. However, if one or both wear a helmet it is a different story. We have only worn helmets once and that was the first time that we drove the Dragon in 2004....Have not worn helmets since and that was over 20,000 miles ago. Exhaust exit location and DB level of your exhaust is the key. I am about 92 DB at full throttle. Cruising DB level is much less...slightly more than in my Miata. I find very little noise difference between the Brooklands and full wind screen. Oddly enough there is less buffeting with the Brookies. However, good eye wear and a helmet would strongly be recommended with the smaller wind screens. We did the whole 7-7-7 event and the following week long Stalker Ambush with the Brooklands only. Jack

Skip, Here is their web site. You can purchase various sizes. http://multivexmirror.net/ They are not convex mirrors that often make things distorted. They are flat with a slight vertical bend at the last 30% towards the outside of the mirror. This gives you great peripheral vision without that annoying distortion. These lenses can be stuck on top of an existing lens if you wish. Very popular in motor sports applications. Jack

Yes, I have Multivlex lenses side mirrors in SPA style housings except they were custom made by Prototype Development here in Indy. I don't think Mark offers them anymore. It took me a long time to finally come up with a mirror arrangement that I was comfortable with. I can almost get away with the Center mirror only. Side mirrors shown here http://www471.pair.com/stalkerv/gallery2/main.php?g2_itemId=14393 Center modified SPA mirror shown here http://www471.pair.com/stalkerv/gallery2/main.php?g2_itemId=14397 Jack

Skip, I run with Brookies. I change back and forth between the Brooklands and full wind screen depending upon my mood or event. I use a center mount convex SPA mirror that I purchased from Pegasus Racing. http://www.pegasusautoracing.com/bigpicture.asp?RecID=1568 I did modify the stalk to set it lower on the cowl. It is not mounted to the Brooklands aluminum mount. This way I can use it with both wind screen set ups.

Hi Skip, Yes it is true there are at least 4 or 5 Stalker V6 cars with LS series V8s. Most are LS1s and there is an LS3 in the Chicago area. Dennis is building an LS1 for himself. So far the LSx V8s have all been owner conversions. I expect options from Brunton will soon include the V8 particulars. On another note...I was hoping you could have made it to the MG V8 Indy meet last week. I was able to join in with the group at ORP and one of the Gasoline Alley tours. Great group of folks with some very interesting conversions. Jack

Bryce, I have a Garman NUVI GPS that I use in my Stalker. You might be able to hear it at full volume without a helmet on. Not sure you could with helmet on. I mount mine via suction cup on the CF dash just to the right of the steering wheel. It is easy enough to keep an eye on it when you are driving, even at hi-way speeds. Jack

Here are some photos posted on a Picasa Web page by one of the attendees, Ed Young. Ed is in the process of building a Locost. http://picasaweb.google.com/qclotusracer/LocostMeet# Ed drove his white '88 Lotus Esprit to the the Minnesota/Wisconsin event. Jack

Bryce, It is easy to mount lights to the receiver mount cargo carriers and use the existing trailer light pigtail. I did that to a pickup truck bed extender. Also consider adding a spare tire carrier to the back of the Stalker. A luggage rack can be affixed to the spare tire and is very common with those that tour with their Sevens. Take some time looking at this link http://mycaterham.com/ You can spend hours on this site. Angus and Tessa have traveled all over Europe in their Caterham. This was one of my early inspirations to own a Se7en. Jack

Bryce, A Birkin is not as wide in the passenger/driver area as a Stalker. The Stalker is 4" wider overall and about 7" longer. Jack

That is a bunch of Bull S....That car was at LOG 28 in 2008 in Indy. The driver was doing donuts on Monument Circle downtown Indy. On the way to the Speedway he had it hammered from stop light to stoplight even with the police escort. I know because I was in charge of the Public Concourse on the Circle and the escort to the Speedway. We would not let him on IMS for the parade lap around the the Speedway. He could not drive it in normal traffic. Way too high strung to be driven on the street. Jack

Lenny, I believe a good automotive upholstery shop could do a good job on a fairly nice top. I have had two tonneau covers made for my Stalker and currently having some half doors made for the car. A Bimini top would be no challenge for an upholster. A complete door with side screens might be somewhat expensive but doable. If tried and true tested weather gear is the most important virtue then you may have to consider a Caterham or Birkin. Keep in mind that you will also want defrosters on the wind screen as well. Nothing worse than a fogged up windscreen. For driving in foal weather, I resort to a full face helmet with Rain-X on the face shield and personal rain gear. Jack

On our Stalkers most of us use a manual hand crank that clips over the wind screen. Have never had a problem with the BMV.

Leeper, I first saw your car at LOG 25 in St. Louis in 2005. This car is a very rare find here in the USA. I have to agree with the general feelings expressed ...DON'T DO THE MODS YOU ARE CONTEMPLATING. This car is way too valuable to start hacking away on it.

Just got this note from a friend of mine who lives a couple of miles from me and belongs to our local Lotus Lovers group here in Indianapolis. This is a very nice car that has always been garaged and well cared for. Hate to see Tony sell it but if you read his note you all will certainly understand. He is replacing it with a new Lotus Evora, which is a bit more family friendly. Jack "Folks, The time has come for me to part with my Birkin. We recently adopted a little girl, and the Birkin does not "fit" in my world right now. I hope to sell it to someone who can fully enjoy it. I have owned this car since new, it drives very well. 1999 Birkin, 25,250 miles; full weather gear, purple wings & nosecone 1997 Zetec SPC close ratio gearbox Quaife limited-slip differential Emerald ECU with mapping software Jenvey throttle bodies Wide-band lambda sensor (Innovate LC-1) installed; software included Fuel Safe Birkin-bespoke fuel cell; foam replaced last month 5-point harnesses for both driver & passenger Extra set of fiberglass wings (need paint to match) Custom Trailer built by Dennis Brunton Full history of invoices for parts and service $22,000 or best offer for the car, trailer, & other stuff. Photos at http://lotus.changeip.org/~birkin/ (photos of the trailer are in the archives) Tony Indianapolis" Was just listed on the Se7ens.net forum

The Ebay seller claims that it it a Caterham kit and some one stole the body. I don't think so..!!! Looks to be a home built that was never completed. Doubt that it ever had a body. Jack

Mazda, I think you are correct regarding only two V8's that are on here with any regularity. However, I know of 5 Stalkers that have been converted to or newly built with V8's. The Supercharged 3800 V6 SuperStalker is scary fast..!!! Jack