activexp Posted April 21, 2016 Share Posted April 21, 2016 Picked this up on eBay for a modest amount, listed as unstarted which in reality is not quite true but more of that later. The manufacturer LS is not one I've come across before but as it's made in Japan I assumed that the quality would be high, and I'm not disappointed. The box is rather faded from exposure to the sun, in a shop window perhaps, but otherwise in good condition and undamaged. I was a bit concerned that the contents might have suffered heat damage but as far as I can tell at this stage all the parts are in good condition. The kit is motorised which I'm not bothered about but I'll include it in the build anyway, just for the fun of it. Sprue layouts and a description for every part which is a nice touch. There's even an exploded diagram, another nice touch. The first page of the assembly instructions. On to the sprues. All bar one in sealed bags. This is the only one that's been opened with the engine block and sump removed from the sprue. The body mouldings are excellent, no flow lines, and protected inside a bubble pack. Good detail on the tyres. A bag of hardware, radiator tubing, bonnet straps, coil springs, battery box contacts and a few other bits. Blue wire for the motor wiring. The black vinyl tubing has perished and is unusable, stiff, almost brittle, the only part which has suffered from ageing. Someone made a start on assembling the motor/transmission, in fact the motor had wires attached to it but not the thin blue wire supplied, rather some heavy gauge white stuff. The heavy gauge wire found in the box with 2 lengths attached to the motor. There's no way the motor will fit into the engine block with this wire as the clearances are very tight. All a bit odd.............. More to follow soon.......... 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MetroRacing Posted April 21, 2016 Share Posted April 21, 2016 I'm not one for Morgan's and definitely don't have room for the larger scales but I'm a suckered for seeing a rare kit being built. So I'm in for this Ashley Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
activexp Posted April 21, 2016 Author Share Posted April 21, 2016 Good to have you onboard Ashley. I find 1/24 too small and fiddly (sausage fingers and ageing eyes), 1/12 and definitely 1/8 take up too much room, and 1/16 a good compromise. Having said that, I've no idea where the Morgan will go when it's finished Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sharknose156 Posted April 21, 2016 Share Posted April 21, 2016 Well done active Steve ! well done for the catch. Many rabbit holes here lucky you, wood and all Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
activexp Posted April 22, 2016 Author Share Posted April 22, 2016 Well done active Steve ! well done for the catch. Many rabbit holes here lucky you, wood and all I'll have to watch out for woodworm and dry rot Any idea where I can get 1/16 dashboard decals? There aren't any in the kit, a surprising omission. All you get is some number plate stickers I've made a start on assembling the engine, the red wire is from the Italeri Mefisto for the ignition wiring which I didn't use. With the motor installed, time for testing with a 1.5V battery. Yay it works 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
roymattblack Posted April 22, 2016 Share Posted April 22, 2016 If you can let me have accurate 'hole' diameters for the gauges, I can help with the decals... Roy. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
activexp Posted April 22, 2016 Author Share Posted April 22, 2016 Thanks for your kind offer Roy. The two gauges on the plated part are 8mm diameter and mount from behind the dash Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
roymattblack Posted April 23, 2016 Share Posted April 23, 2016 What about the other gauges - the small ones... Roy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
activexp Posted April 23, 2016 Author Share Posted April 23, 2016 The only other one is 5mm, the hole on the left. Steve Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
roymattblack Posted April 23, 2016 Share Posted April 23, 2016 So they would be Speed and RPM for the biggies, and fuel for the small..... Leave it with me... Roy. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
roymattblack Posted April 23, 2016 Share Posted April 23, 2016 (edited) These are genuine Morgan plus 8 gauges.... PM me an address and I'll print the decals off for you - freebies. There will be some spares too. Don't try to print them from this image - the actual decals will be razor-sharp. An afterthought... I notice there is a recess on the nose for a Morgan badge - What width - I'll add a few of those too. Roy. Edited April 23, 2016 by roymattblack 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
activexp Posted April 23, 2016 Author Share Posted April 23, 2016 That's fantastic Roy, thanks very much The badge is 10mm wide. PM on the way. Cheers, Steve Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
activexp Posted April 25, 2016 Author Share Posted April 25, 2016 More progress on the engine. I used tubing left over from a Tamiya kit for the ignition wiring which is thinner than the unuseable stuff in the kit. Even so it looks a bit too bulky. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
roymattblack Posted April 25, 2016 Share Posted April 25, 2016 For nice scale ignition wiring, buy a cheapo telephone extension kit from a £1 shop. Strip it and inside you'll find half a dozen lovely thin wires in assorted colours. Use a 3-4mm length of the kit tubing as a plug boot and glue the new thin wire inside. Simples... Roy. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pete in Lincs Posted April 25, 2016 Share Posted April 25, 2016 Nice. I like how they've hidden the motor in the engine block. I also like how the instructions show you hitting the motor with a hammer. Could be a 'Doh!' moment for some builders. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
activexp Posted April 26, 2016 Author Share Posted April 26, 2016 For nice scale ignition wiring, buy a cheapo telephone extension kit from a £1 shop. Strip it and inside you'll find half a dozen lovely thin wires in assorted colours. Use a 3-4mm length of the kit tubing as a plug boot and glue the new thin wire inside. Simples... Roy. Thanks for the tip Roy, I'll keep a lookout for it next time I'm in a £1 shop. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
activexp Posted April 26, 2016 Author Share Posted April 26, 2016 (edited) Nice. I like how they've hidden the motor in the engine block. I also like how the instructions show you hitting the motor with a hammer. Could be a 'Doh!' moment for some builders. It's a bit 'medieval' isn't it? And another possible 'Doh!' moment to come with the front wheel hub assemblies. Screws would have been a better solution but I couldn't lay my hands on any of the right size and length. The medieval approach was the only option.... And the required tool..... Amazingly the procedure was successful, not even a sore thumb. The engine is more or less completed for now. Note the missing fan blade which wasn't loose in the bag Edited April 26, 2016 by activexp 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
activexp Posted April 27, 2016 Author Share Posted April 27, 2016 Front wheel hubs mounted to the chassis with the 'sliding sleeve' suspension. It was at this point that I discovered that I'd fitted the steering links incorrectly. I blame the instructions for not making it clearer that there's a right and wrong way. All I know is that my assembly appeared to be exactly as shown in the drawings. With the wheels being 'nailed' to the hubs I can't get them off to attempt rectification so it looks like I'll have to settle for fixed steering in the straight ahead position. More hammering required for the back axle and a bit of a struggle to get it all together. Back later......... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
activexp Posted April 29, 2016 Author Share Posted April 29, 2016 I've had to abandon the motorization as after fitting the back axle I found that there was no drive to the wheels. The motor and reduction gears are turning but there's no drive to the prop shaft. Something's broke somewhere and it's impossible to strip it down. Oh well, it would have been fun to have it working but no great disaster. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
activexp Posted May 3, 2016 Author Share Posted May 3, 2016 A little more progress on this build. Dashboard with decals kindly supplied by Roymattblack. I'm painting the body '2-tone' a la Jay Leno's car 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
roymattblack Posted May 3, 2016 Share Posted May 3, 2016 Looking good. Just wondering re: the dash decals: Have you fitted them to the face of the dash? Would they not have been better mounted behind the dash, to show through the holes? Roy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
activexp Posted May 3, 2016 Author Share Posted May 3, 2016 Yes, you're right. They're actually on 'lenses' to represent the glass covers which are supposed to cover the plated gauges as per the pic in post #7. I thought about applying them on the back of the lenses but they're far from transparent and lost all the detail on the decals. Applying the decals directly onto the lenses seemed the best option. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
roymattblack Posted May 3, 2016 Share Posted May 3, 2016 I might have been tempted to bin the clear lenses and apply a coat of Klear to decals mounted from behind. Only an observation. Keep it going - A lovely build. Roy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Codger Posted May 3, 2016 Share Posted May 3, 2016 Great work Active, but a note about scale; the plug wires look to be over-scale. The original Buick / Rover eight had 7mm diameter leads. In 1/16 scale that would be .017". You may find wire that thin (or solder) close to it in old computer or phone devices. And a simple thin bracket to secure the alternator rather than the belt would improve the 'floating' alternator. Lovely color choice and neat work... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
activexp Posted May 3, 2016 Author Share Posted May 3, 2016 With hindsight I should have used 'kynar' wire which is pretty close to scale being 0.5mm OD. I'll get it right on my next 1/16 build, hopefully The floating alternator is a bone of contention! When I test fitted the fender moulding to the chassis I had trouble with it seating correctly at the front. I was going to get medieval on it when I noticed that the alternator was the culprit and in the way. It's now been removed temporarily and will be refitted later less floaty. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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