I sure as hell hope it never "pops." 
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If it does, I bet you'll be glad it did. Nice clean installation.
I agree. Nicely done, Paul.
Very clean, Paul. Is that a 3 foot length?
@JMM (Michael) posted:Very clean, Paul. Is that a 3 foot length?
Yes, it is - It's the BlazeCut T100E. The tube is quite "rigid" and does NOT lend itself to much bending, so the way I've got it placed is pretty much the ONLY WAY! This 100cm size is perfect for the Speedy's engine compartment. 
Cool. I'll be doing that. I was also thinking that I might have them make up a short one to mount up under the dash. That seems to be the next most likely place to have a fire break out.
Nice install, could it also be mounted under the lip on the body for the deck lid or would that place it too low at the engine?
That's where I have mine, Alan - tucked up and less visible but mine won't cover the fan belt side of the engine as well. With only a 3-footer it's a trade-off while the 6-footer covers everything but then yu have to stuff it in there. I covered the fuel lines (behind the fan shroud) and carbs - that's about it. Mine is only anchored at the lid hinges and it pushes against the wheel well liners and everything stays in place du to the rigidity of the tube.
The issue with tucking it up under the body is anchor points. Glass in a few of those and you'd be el Mecánico de oro (the mechanic of Gold).
@Gordon Nichols. -“el mecánico de Oro”. I love that!!!
Sounds like an anual award that should be issued on a yearly basis by this forum. Voted on by its members, and presented during an annual gathering for the most creative and amazing mechanical endeavors in the betterment and advancement of our hobby.
Llike the oscars, or golden globe in soccer, or crystal globe in skiing, or the green blazer in golf?.
N.J. Replicar Club we had a trophy for our adult Pine Wood Derby, it was a painted gold kids gumball machine mounted to a toilet plunger :~)
@JMM (Michael) posted:Cool. I'll be doing that. I was also thinking that I might have them make up a short one to mount up under the dash. That seems to be the next most likely place to have a fire break out.
I doubt very much that BlazeCut would do that for you. It won't cost anything to ask, though. One question: What "fuel" source under the dash might you be concerned about,...let alone that of sufficient "fire" to ignite it?
@Gordon Nichols posted:That's where I have mine, Alan - tucked up and less visible but mine won't cover the fan belt side of the engine as well. With only a 3-footer it's a trade-off while the 6-footer covers everything but then yu have to stuff it in there. I covered the fuel lines (behind the fan shroud) and carbs - that's about it. Mine is only anchored at the lid hinges and it pushes against the wheel well liners and everything stays in place du to the rigidity of the tube.
The issue with tucking it up under the body is anchor points. Glass in a few of those and you'd be el Mecánico de oro (the mechanic of Gold).
Before I started the installation, I spoke with two Customer Service reps at the BlazeCut home office to satisfy my questions re. the 100cm (39+inches) tube adequately suppressing a fire within the speedster's engine compartment volume. Both gentlemen told me it was more than adequate, and actually (based upon the measured volume), it produces almost 2 times the advertised suppression coverage for the compartment's cubic cm's. That sealed the deal for me and I chose the Model T100E. Also, the next size (200cm = 79+inches) would have meant my horsing with the tube to ensure it wouldn't be too close (less than 1") to anything that gets really hot.
At my age, the last thing I want is any "premature unwarranted discharge" 
....by me or, for that matter, the BlazeCut! 
Luis, a few years back, I created an award based on the trials and tribulations that Lane Anderson went through in messing with one of his carburetors and subsequently losing a "Brass Thingie", never found even to this day (and not for lack of looking for it). His persistence in looking for it, then taking a different direction and getting beyond his set-back, was a 42-page inspiration to us all in the hobby. Lane became the first recipient of the "Brass Thingie" award for persistence at one of our Carlisle gatherings.
Last I heard, it had been transferred to Ed Erickson, formerly of Nova fame, to show him that we all admire his persistence in overcoming obstacle after obstacle and persevering in the face of gargantuan odds in building his soon-to-be award-winning 550 Spyder (once we get the hell out of this Covid nightmare). I would leave it up to Ed to decide who the next recipient of this prestigious award should be. I just created it - It now has a life of it's own.
Please forgive the "ghost hands" reflected in the photo, but it's the only image I have for it.
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I like the ghost hands, Gordon, it adds to the mystery.
To answer Paul's question about why under the dash, it's the second most likely place to have a fire start. While I might become aware of that one before the flames are enough trigger the Blaze-Cut and be able to extinguish it myself, I thought a little extra safety wouldn't hurt. Every race car I've seen with a system in it has outlets in the engine bay, fuel area, under the dash, and the driver's area. If I have to get out of the car fast I don't have harnesses and cages to navigate, so going that far seems a bit much.
@JMM (Michael) posted:I like the ghost hands, Gordon, it adds to the mystery.
To answer Paul's question about why under the dash, it's the second most likely place to have a fire start. While I might become aware of that one before the flames are enough trigger the Blaze-Cut and be able to extinguish it myself, I thought a little extra safety wouldn't hurt. Every race car I've seen with a system in it has outlets in the engine bay, fuel area, under the dash, and the driver's area. If I have to get out of the car fast I don't have harnesses and cages to navigate, so going that far seems a bit much.
Still wondering "Why in the world would you install a BlazeCut tube under the dash?" 
I called their home office (608-719-7212) and asked them that question. I told the gentleman exactly what our Speedsters are (and aren't) and his response was "it's not recommended." He went on to say he'd installed hundreds of their fire suppression systems, and not one of them had gone under the dash. He did concede, however, if a customer downright demanded that he install it under the dash...he'd do it. Then, he said, he'd walk off counting his money and scratching his head. 
Well, Paul, Thanks for the research. I had an MG Midget once that nearly burnt to the ground from a fire under the dash. There were flames, man were there flames! We got it out with a hand held, what a mess. These things get used in server racks, so it ought to some good if a short starts a fire and I won't suffer from nightmares of that ever happening to me again. So the guy from Blaze Cut can scratch his head all he wants. He's welcome to the steak dinner I'll buy him with my frivolous purchase. You can chuckle at me, too. I'll still buy you a beer if we ever got to SLO again. 
Then again, I may just install a 3 or 5 lb. remote system and plumb spray heads where ever it will do the most good (actually or psychological). 
Just saying: on a Speedster or Spyder (or most VW-based TD replicas) your fuel tank is five inches above your shins.
Yeah there’s that.
In my particular death-trap, the gas tank sits in my lap... and there's a means for ignition (a gasoline heater) a couple of inches away and inside the passenger compartment.
Ain't skeert.
@JMM (Michael) posted:Well, Paul, Thanks for the research. I had an MG Midget once that nearly burnt to the ground from a fire under the dash. There were flames, man were there flames! We got it out with a hand held, what a mess. These things get used in server racks, so it ought to some good if a short starts a fire and I won't suffer from nightmares of that ever happening to me again. So the guy from Blaze Cut can scratch his head all he wants. He's welcome to the steak dinner I'll buy him with my frivolous purchase. You can chuckle at me, too. I'll still buy you a beer if we ever got to SLO again.
Then again, I may just install a 3 or 5 lb. remote system and plumb spray heads where ever it will do the most good (actually or psychological).
I think the misunderstanding here is that the BlazeCut system only works in a "mostly enclosed" or confined area (e.g., a closed front or rear engine compartment), and NOT in the open-air and relatively "unconfined" large cubic foot area of a car's interior...which would include "under the dash." The largest BlazeCut system (T600E) is a tube 20'8" long and its maximum volume coverage is 75 cu.ft. to 122 cu.ft. Try installing that in a Speedster and I bet you could sell tickets for people to watch. 
All of this is really moot, though, inasmuch as you can't even calculate the Maximum Volume of a Speedies passenger compartment with the top down. That's like a 3-legged stool with only 2 legs. It just doesn't compute!
@JMM (Michael) posted:Then again, I may just install a 3 or 5 lb. remote system and plumb spray heads where ever it will do the most good (actually or psychological).
You better stop making sense. I had a BN-2 Eberspacher in my old Spyder, and you can bet I had a spray-head pointing right at it, and hopefully engulfing anything before it spread to the 8 gallons of BOOM right above it. Plus another two spray-heads pointing at each carburetor and flooding the entire compartment with Halon(unfortunately NLA).
I don't have a fire system installed in the new car yet. However, this time I bought a modern Webasto which has modern computer-controlled safety built into it.
To me, the Blaze-Cut looks like a science experiment. I'd rather have nothing or an actual system with somebody's stamp of approval.
What if I hang a St. Christopher medal from the rear-view mirror? Would that work to protect me when I'm driving my Speedster....even if I'm not Catholic?
@JMM (Michael) posted:Well, Paul, Thanks for the research. I had an MG Midget once that nearly burnt to the ground from a fire under the dash. There were flames, man were there flames! We got it out with a hand held, what a mess. These things get used in server racks, so it ought to some good if a short starts a fire and I won't suffer from nightmares of that ever happening to me again. So the guy from Blaze Cut can scratch his head all he wants. He's welcome to the steak dinner I'll buy him with my frivolous purchase. You can chuckle at me, too. I'll still buy you a beer if we ever got to SLO again.
Then again, I may just install a 3 or 5 lb. remote system and plumb spray heads where ever it will do the most good (actually or psychological).
At least after you install it you can sing, "Goodness Gracious Great Balls of Fire" and it won't be a cry for help.
@Napa Paul posted:What if I hang a St. Christopher medal from the rear-view mirror? Would that work to protect me when I'm driving my Speedster....even if I'm not Catholic?
How about hanging a welding blanket under the dash or tank
@Napa Paul posted:What if I hang a St. Christopher medal from the rear-view mirror? Would that work to protect me when I'm driving my Speedster....even if I'm not Catholic?
You know when Cartman sings "Come Sail Away" by Styx REALLY fast on South Park?
Say 8 "Hail Marys" and 3 "Our Fathers" really fast like Cartman, between the time you realize you're on fire and get out of the car. That might work.......
A St. Christopher medal will work as well for non-Catholics as it does for Catholics. This may have had something to do with why Pope Paul VI demoted him.
Michael, it's my humble opinion, that if you want to put a Blaze Cut up under your dash in the off chance that there might be an electrical fire up in there, then you go right ahead and do it. It should be a relatively easy installation and the peace of mind for you is probably worth it.
Bear in mind, though, that it is often harder to extinguish an electrical fire because unless the source of the heat is found and eliminated (typically, an electrical short circuit), the fire ignition source will continue. There have been a couple of older stories of Tesla cars on fire because of a battery or cable short and firefighters have been seeking special training on how to deal with an electrical fire in an electric car - They can be a bugger to put out because it's hard to fully shut down the power to eliminate the source of ignition - Especially in a hurry!
Now..... Having the Blazecut go off under there will certainly get your attention (if you don't already smell smoke) and you can then grab your hand-held suppression device and blast away, if needed.
Regardless, if having it in there makes you feel better, go ahead and do it. It won't hurt anything, well installed it certainly won't be visible and it just might, under the right circumstances, save your bacon someday.
One thing to take into account when installing a blazecut, is that it needs to be above or near the potential fire. If it's below it, it might not get hot enough to activate in time.
I wonder if the fire suppressant they use is harmful if inhaled or not???
Ugh! Unicorn farts are the absolute worst. And almost as expensive as Lincoln's Morning Breath.
But they get the job done.
@DannyP posted:Indeed. Who even knows what is inside the Blazecut? The manufacturers ain't telling. It could be Lucas smoke or even Unicorn farts. Or something far worse.
All you've gotta do is go to their website (BlazeCutUSA.com) and you can get answers to all your FAQ's. What's in it? HFC-227ea. This stuff falls in the category of Clean Agents as defined and governed by NFPA 2001 - Standard for Clean Agent Fire Extinguishing Systems. It's "the first non-ozone depleting replacement for Halon" which some of you know is federally rendered as illegal, immoral, bad for the environment, little children, small animals, and ex-wives. So-o-o, my suggestion for @Carlos G is you might smoke it, but don't inhale - kind of like Clinton with his weed.
Oh yeah...how do you guys know what Unicorn farts smell like, anyway?
That information is classified.
@Napa Paul posted:I sure as hell hope it never "pops."
Looks great; what hardware did you use on the two main anchor points? I can see the plastic zip ties and some foam on the hose at the main anchor points. Great to know we can use the 3 footer instead of the 6.
Thanks...I did quite a bit of due diligence in confirming the 1 foot model is more than adequate to suppress fire in this size compartment. As for hardware, nothing special - just a couple 1" nuts and washers going through new drilled holes. The only caveat I can think of is make sure the drill bit you use is rated for fiberglass and be careful when starting the hole. The fiberglass is really "slick" and tends to refuse the first penetration.
What’s wrapped around the Blszecut near where the luggage rack hole is immediately to the left and right of the zip tie?
Looks to be foam.