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Author Topic: Floor pans: how can they be so thin?  (Read 2733 times)

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Webby the Bear

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Floor pans: how can they be so thin?
« on: 03 January 2015, 19:19:48 »
Hi guys.

As above. Saw some vids on floor pans (chopping out rust and welding in new) and of course symes put a few piccies of his up too.

So how can you use such thin material (up to 1mm)? Wouldn't you put your foot through?

Confusedbear.com
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The Sheriff

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Re: Floor pans: how can they be so thin?
« Reply #1 on: 03 January 2015, 19:24:23 »
No.
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Webby the Bear

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Re: Floor pans: how can they be so thin?
« Reply #2 on: 03 January 2015, 19:28:51 »
But why? ::)

The 1mm stuff I have in the garage is easily bended
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05omegav6

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Re: Floor pans: how can they be so thin?
« Reply #3 on: 03 January 2015, 19:32:35 »
The strength comes from the shape ;) and anything load bearing is doubled or even tripled up into box sections ;)

Take a foot square sheet of tin foil. As it is, all floppy and useless. Now fold an inch wide strip around the edge to make a tray. Becomes more rigid.

Take away dishes are a bit thicker than kitchen foil, but demonstrate my point nicely... take a flat piece of material and press it into the desired shape, suddenly it can support an almost exponential load compared to a flat sheet :y
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YZ250

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Re: Floor pans: how can they be so thin?
« Reply #4 on: 03 January 2015, 19:38:02 »
The floor pan itself may be thin but there are many reinforcement points. The front end underside longitudinal usually goes as far back as drivers/passengers seats, bulkhead to floor pan reinforcement on the upper side, seat forward and rearward cross-member fixings span from the sill to the tunnel on both sides etc etc.
There's not any great distance between any reinforcement, hence the acceptance of thinner material.  :y
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Webby the Bear

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Re: Floor pans: how can they be so thin?
« Reply #5 on: 03 January 2015, 19:41:36 »
Guys, that makes sense and thanks for explaining that.

STMO, youre just silly!  ;D ;D ;D

So as well as the shape as taxi eludes to.... there should also be reinformcement points.... is that in the form of thicker steel or would it use the subframe as a reinforcement?
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YZ250

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Re: Floor pans: how can they be so thin?
« Reply #6 on: 03 January 2015, 19:59:21 »
Quote from: Webby the Bear on 03 January 2015, 19:41:36
Guys, that makes sense and thanks for explaining that.

STMO, youre just silly!  ;D ;D ;D

So as well as the shape as taxi eludes to.... there should also be reinformcement points.... is that in the form of thicker steel or would it use the subframe as a reinforcement?

If you look at a bare floor pan, it is really floppy. Add in the front seat cross-member forward fixing, then the rearward front seat fixing cross-member and it starts to gain strength. The floor pan can be one piece or two halves and a tunnel. The front end bulkhead has extended longitudinal on both sides which sit under the floor pan. There can also be an upper reinforcement from the bulkhead to floor pan. The heel board braces the back end of the floor pan and the sides are spot welded to the sill. It is no longer floppy and becomes quite rigid.
Floor pan can be anything from 0.7mm to 1mm material thickness. The seat cross-members, longitudinal, long members etc will be anything from 1mm to 1.4mm material thickness. The sill inner thickness is the main strength, without that the underframe will break its back. Hence the extra material thickness on convertibles.

HTH
« Last Edit: 03 January 2015, 20:09:01 by YZ250 »
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The Sheriff

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Re: Floor pans: how can they be so thin?
« Reply #7 on: 03 January 2015, 20:07:11 »
Quote from: Webby the Bear on 03 January 2015, 19:41:36
Guys, that makes sense and thanks for explaining that.

STMO, youre just silly!  ;D ;D ;D

So as well as the shape as taxi eludes to.... there should also be reinformcement points.... is that in the form of thicker steel or would it use the subframe as a reinforcement?
Silly? My answer was 100% correctamundo.
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Nick W

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Re: Floor pans: how can they be so thin?
« Reply #8 on: 03 January 2015, 22:13:01 »
A little experiment for you: cut a piece of your thinnest steel so that it's about 30cm square. Fold a 10mm wide flange along each edge - it doesn't need to be neat, so using pliers will be fine. Then open your vice about 15mm, and using a small ball-pein hammer, knock a bead along each diagonal.

Now try and twist your new (small!) floorpan.

If you then weld the corners of each folded flange together it will become even stiffer, and you'll probably be able to stand on it without it distorting.
« Last Edit: 03 January 2015, 22:14:57 by Nick W »
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Webby the Bear

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Re: Floor pans: how can they be so thin?
« Reply #9 on: 04 January 2015, 16:46:52 »
thanks for the info chaps :) I think I understand now.

note must domore research
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Lizzie_Zoom

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Re: Floor pans: how can they be so thin?
« Reply #10 on: 04 January 2015, 17:26:56 »
You should have had my A40s floor pans!

They were all rust with big holes, so your foot always came through and the rain always came gushing in! The cross members were non-existent!::) ::) ::) ;D ;D ;D :y
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Webby the Bear

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Re: Floor pans: how can they be so thin?
« Reply #11 on: 04 January 2015, 17:32:31 »
Quote from: Lizzie Zoom on 04 January 2015, 17:26:56
You should have had my A40s floor pans!

They were all rust with big holes, so your foot always came through and the rain always came gushing in! The cross members were non-existent!::) ::) ::) ;D ;D ;D :y

Sounds fun Lizzie  ;D

Luckily the Omega seems to be quite well undercoated from new but I was just pondering as I've just started welding and having now acquired thicknesses of mild steel ranging from 0.8mm to 6mm I know that the 1mm stuff is super bendy, especially if its a sheet.

Clearly the use of clever supports and angles allows the use of such thin stuff  :y
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4x4

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Re: Floor pans: how can they be so thin?
« Reply #12 on: 04 January 2015, 17:34:42 »
Another thing is weight aswell,if using 2mm thickness your also doubling the weight of them panels.
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Webby the Bear

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Re: Floor pans: how can they be so thin?
« Reply #13 on: 04 January 2015, 17:35:22 »
Very true.
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Re: Floor pans: how can they be so thin?
« Reply #14 on: 04 January 2015, 17:58:46 »
Quote from: Webby the Bear on 04 January 2015, 17:32:31
having now acquired thicknesses of mild steel ranging from 0.8mm to 6mm
TB must plan a raid in deepest Northampton  :-X
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