Seab Flipper Microcar

[AC-Boy]

Hi, Does anyone know where I can buy a windscreen for my Seab Flipper Microcar please. My screen is cracked and need to replace it. Any advice would be great. Thank you Lee 

[Barry]

You have good taste Lee.  A Seab Flipper and a Model 70  

Sorry that I cannot help with the windscreen.  You might try to get any contacts in France to keep an eye out for an old scrap car.

[Jean]

Dear Lee,

Have you put your Flipper on our Register?  I know there are several owners who have, so once you are on the Register Alastair may well be able to put you in touch with one of them who may be able to help you.  Whilst there is one in the Hammond Collection but as yet we have had no reason to source any spare parts.

Go to our website (www.rumcars.org), go to 'About the Register' from where you can download an registration form to put things in motion.  Jean

[AC-Boy]

Thank you Jean, will Register. Lee 

[steven mandell]

I spent a few months getting one of my two Seab Flippers ready for the Little Car Show and Concourse De Lemons for the fabulous Monterrey California car week that concluded about 6 weeks ago.
Seemed like I had to fix everything except the left rear turn signal, but with Big Al's never ending technical support, I was able to get all systems functioning, and looking as well as can be expected for an unpainted car made of ABS plastic that has been exposed to natural levels of UV  for nearly 40 years.

Most of what was needed that wasn't a generically available part was resuscitated, adapted or created.
So if you need some help with anything other than the windshield that you are currently after- please don't hesitate to ask, as I may have already had to deal with it.
My windshields show signs of mild to moderate delamination.  Pass it off as "charm".

Word of warning- do NOT hook up 12 volts to either headlight if it is not connected in series to the other one, as they are 6 volt 6 watt yellow screw in halogen bulbs that I never found a replacement for.
The rest of the car is exclusively 12 volt.

However, I did turn this need into a challenge to come up with something better.
It did require a lot of time on research, but in the end I finally prevailed.  It required some tedious de-crimping of the backing plate to very fragile headlight shell, and a bit of lathe work on a focused 7 led 7 watt cast bulb assembly. 
But the results were worth it-  clean white bright 600 lumen lights at virtually the same amp draw as the original dangerously feeble units.
It does help to be able to see where you are going.

[steven mandell]

Lee and fellow Flipper One owners,
Does yours have the leftmost pedal, chain and spring mechanism that is purported to enable you to pedal the car forward, still intact?

I simply need to know the number of links in the chain, and number of turns in the spring, as well as it's wire diameter, and width and overall length of the spring to be able to restore one of mine to supposed functionality.

Only one of mine came with the extremely long, and very sturdy pedal still on the vehicle, but no trace of the easy to source, generically available spring and chain.

It is more common than not to find these mechanisms removed from the pre 1979 vehicles that they originally came on, because they were installed simply to conform to archaic French regulation, (that was later repealed), and required so much force, that getting out and pushing the car was a far less onerous and productive way to move the car about when the engine wasn't running.

However, I did notice that if I were to make the mistake of allowing my Mini Comtesse to get a wheel stuck in a rut, like is commonly found at the intersection of a driveway and street - that it was helpful to give a well timed left foot shove on the pedal to avoid the automatic clutch's unintended effect of causing the engine to stall in such situations.
Also, it seems that the strength of pedal assembly and much longer length of the Seab's pedal pad to pivot length might give enough extra leverage to the driver/ pedaler, that each stroke might be accomplished with a lesser than Herculean effort.
That probably means fewer inches travelled per pedal stroke, but if one pedals fast enough - who knows?
It will be fun to try out if I can get this easily observable info from an owner who has such still intact on his vehicle.
Thanks all.
Steve

[steven mandell]

Incredibly coincidental timing, as I haven't thought to check for an article / video on USA Today Newspaper's website since last September, and they seem to have come out just a couple hours earlier than when I checked for it before getting up this morning.
Don't forget to click on the video prompt.
 
Just Cool Cars: French minicar takes name of 'Flipper' TV show
http://www.usatoday.com/videos/money/cars/2017/01/20/just-cool-cars-french-minicar-takes-name-'flipper'-tv-show/95134376/

[Big Al]

I only just found this clip of Steve with the Flipper at a show. I do not know if anyone else had difficulty in loading the clip, but it suffered from a clash with my Add Aware programmes, and I had to turn a filter off to see it. That is one more Flipper about last year than I saw here.  I know how much effort was put into trying to get the thing to work correctly, but despite tracking nearly every wire on the thing, it still defies a total understanding of how it should be set up. The knock on is several other more mechanical problems did not get satisfactorily sorted, hence its not on screen making a nuisance of itself, as it might ideally have done. After all, that is what microcars do best in shows that major on ordinary Classics, thus nicking the lime light, or in this case, the lemon light.

[steven mandell]

I'll admit to wiring in a work around to an ignition switch/  starter non optimized function using an accessory switch that was already mounted on the dash.
But with your guidance we did solve all the other wiring issues, and the mechanical problems before the show, except a leaking seam that developed in the plastic fuel tank, and the sporadically failing fuel shut off valve that did flood the crankcase and produce a condition of hydro lock at the most inopportune times.
These have since been remedied.

We're you saying that the Flipper was too much of a lemon to be a proper participant in the Concourse De Lemons?

I protest your protestation on the basis that it contradicts the oxymoron inherent in the title of the show.

[Big Al]

With an excess of juice, but otherwise functioning, you might have a point. But was there any other Microcar present. You could risk the award of Jack Lemmon, being a sole exhibitor in class. An act that might be a tour de force, no doubt. But as I understand the rules, its a show wide competition, So Fizz the lemon juice into celebratory spray.

[Barry]

Going off at a tangent.
You were asking about the pedal arrangement on the Flipper Steven.
My one is in the bubblecar museum so I can't get to it but I did find these photos of the Super Comtesse if they are of any help.

[steven mandell]

Wow-- double pull rods, chains and springs.  Thanks for going through the effort of lifting it up and propping from the side with your shortened broom stick.
I'll soon compare it to my own Comtesse break.
It seems that they finally figured out that it weighs more than twice as much as the bicycles for which the ratcheting sprockets were designed for.
Have you tried pedaling it?  How hard is it compared to your other Sans Permis cars with mandated human propulsion capability?
What is your relative creep rate achieved?
I'll admit to not trying to do same with my Comtesse Break yet, as even though it seems to be in pristine shape, I haven't progressed enough yet to get to working on my last crate of eight yet. 

However the linkage on Flipper Ones is different.
Is there some way that someone near the Rumcar Museum could take a similar picture, or simply count the number of chain links and spring rungs and measure the length, width and wire gauge of its single spring?

Interesting to see the Comtesse's large undertray air funnel diverting colling air flow to the engine's head.
Also interesting to see that the exhaust outlet doesn't even make it to the front of the differential of its live rear axle.

[Barry]

I think a lot of people missed out on the video of Stevens car, I certainly did.

http://www.usatoday.com/videos/money/cars/2017/01/20/just-cool-cars-french-minicar-takes-name-'flipper'-tv-show/95134376/

Well worth a watch, especially if you are luck enough to own one

[Forcier]

I think a lot of people missed out on the video of Stevens car, I certainly did.

http://www.usatoday.com/videos/money/cars/2017/01/20/just-cool-cars-french-minicar-takes-name-'flipper'-tv-show/95134376/

Well worth a watch, especially if you are luck enough to own one

Cool video. It's good to see the little car get some airtime.

[steven mandell]

Welcome Forcier, you just got me to have another look at Barry's underskirt photos of his Comtesse Break.
I notice that there is no chain connecting the in line sprockets of the tranny and diff.
I also see a curved rod or cable running a bit lateral and paralell to the face of these sprockets that I thought might be intended to engage a reverse gearing at the differential.
However the bolt and bracket that it attaches to at the rear looks a bit suspect for being able to transfer this intention. 
Can anyone confirm or deny this?

Also there seems to be another smaller pully and belt on the other side of the engine.
I'm embarrassed to admit that I haven't yet got inside mine enough to see what this drives - a fan or small generator is all I can guess untill I dig mine out, or Someone else illuminates the mystery.