Work Shop 1/17/2009

"Electrifying Vehicles Workshop" Round-up

The Minnesota Electric Auto Association's (MNEAA) January 17,2009 "Electrifying Vehicles Workshop" yielded five battery-operated vehicles by the end of the day. The workshop, which lasted from 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. brought 35 enthusiastic members and non-members interested in building electric vehicles together in a St. Louis Park, MN warehouse on a Saturday with temperatures near zero.

Led by EV mentor Lee Hart of Sartell, MN assisted by five other mentors, Jim Black, Jon Nygren, Stew Roberts, Carl Gulbronson and Chris Born, the workshop divided attendees into teams to work on "Junkyard Wars" type projects. Materials were supplied by mentors and participants. Carl Gulbronson (who secured the building) acted as host for the event.

All attendees were instructed bring their own tools and "junk" to include wheels, wires, electrical components, volt meters, batteries (dead or alive), motors, metal shelving, scrap lumber, metal parts and anything that might remotely be used to build an electric vehicle.

After surveying the parts and materials assembled, the teams established "visions" for their projects and started to re-assemble the miscellaneous parts into battery operated electric vehicles.  Member Jukka Kukkonen was on hand with welding equipment and assisted many of the teams. One popular component for vehicles was portions of a bed frame.

Hart and Nygren gave some hands-on basic electric hookup information to each of the groups separately. Marty Elstrom handled notices and registration, as well as refreshments. A small fee covered coffee and pastries in the morning and pizza and soda for lunch, as well as some of the materials for the workshop.

Michael Shoop was official photographer for MNEAA, and a number of others had cameras.

Completed projects included an electrified bicycle, which was supplemented by AxMan surplus parts; a 3-wheeled vehicle (one in front, two in back) with a platform for cargo or a standing passenger; an electric tandem scooter, where the lead driver steers and the passenger holds onto a non-functioning steering apparatus; a classic red 4-wheeled, one passenger vehicle with a duct-taped seat; a 3-wheeled vehicle that started out to be two wheels in front and one in back, operated with a tiller-rudder like apparatus that was modified in the end to a conventional rickshaw style 3-wheeler with one wheel in front and two in back.

Participants were enthusiastic about building the vehicles and driving them around the warehouse upon completion.

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Thanks to Michael Shoop and Jan Hubbard  for the photos.

Comments (positive and negative) about the workshop can also be posted to the wikidot site participants are asked to be frank about their likes and dislikes (via suggestions for improvement for future workshops).

Thanks to all the mentors and participants for a successful workshop.

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Marty Elstrom, MNEAA member and former secretary