Codger

Matt, Mercifully, most of the details you seek are not visible in the car. Your work is as neat as always; but the flaws are the major errors Meng made in imaginary shapes and plumbing. 1. The distributor is not wired that way. #8's wire is on the right side and goes across and the coil wire fits between two wires to get to the central terminal. The #3 wire is on the left side and goes to the engine's right side.. 2. The exhaust ports are totally wrong. The plugs are angled, 2 front, 2 rear. The timing cover is thicker and the water pump has longer legs to fit in front of it. It has a longer snout and deeper pulley which fits over it. 3. The heads and intake are not gold; they are raw ally and the block is black. 4. The fuel line does not go to the block but to the pumps and filter mounted on the bulkhead. 5. The crankcase evacuation (PCV) hose goes from the manifold rear, through the pan to a nipple on the side of the carb baseplate. 6. The wire looms you made are fine; leave them. You will have an excellent model of a Meng but less so a GT MK II, through no fault of your own.

A nice milestone... I see today we have reached 14,000 views here and I'm most appreciative of the attention. My hope was to raise awareness of what can be done with Pocher classics. And encourage owners/collectors/builders to post here and share. Or just plain interested parties. I know this is a very limited-appeal segment of modeling but it can yield very rewarding results. So thanks to all who come to visit but I gladly welcome comment, questions and an occasional brick or two. Support is greatly appreciated. Now I will try to pry an update from Mr Cox's dusty workbench....

Delicious details everywhere. I especially like your solution for the hose with external support. The fittings are a treat. Will you use PE for wing end plates?

Wonderful Jorgen - it rivals the most advanced Pocher's I've seen.

That's not a good reason to deprive yourself from having a modeling experience that stretches your skills and a very nice model on your shelf. You may or may not be right about your result but you can enjoy seeing the car every day instead of looking for Jorgen's thread. You can go as far as you want and still enjoy the result.

It will be a crime to cover this in bodywork - which I know will also be beautiful...

A good plan to see where you stand (literally) as it's a shame to have height troubles. These things get heavy fast...

100% agreement here. Just a question before the mishap Pascal; why JB Weld and not solder on the 2mm brass tubes? Certainly the JB is fine but solder can also give the weld-bead look too.

Another same old boring update - perfection everywhere you look. When are you gonna show us scratches, dust, glue fingermarks - LINT for Lord's sake!! I can buy a Haynes manual or such if I want to see perfect T 312's. Please take up knitting or something instead of showing us what perfection in modeling is and how to achieve it. That's a cool little gray 'stealth' workstand though.....

LOL- worse yet, it's what Benz put on the car !

Moving right along... More metal work continues. Not the proper time for upholstery or paint work . Here a new front apron is fashioned from copper to close the gap in the front fender join. Copper is chosen for its malleability for this difficult shape. As the shape is finalized, 00-90 screws are used to hold in place. Then brass is again used to make what will be the chromed trim strips MB festooned the car with. When all is ready, the heads will be snipped off and the shafts soldered in place making them invisible on the top and a retaining nut used underneath. David then recreated the MB grille guard used on Spezials. I'm not fan of this addition but he says his client demands authenticity. And this is the third Cox Benz model the client has ordered. That tells you something about the work I think. Again, everything will be chromed. The overall effect. Still to come up front here is the wider headlight bar, most likely with functioning lights. More metal tedium; flanges for the exhaust pipes in the fender tops. These are made from thin aluminum sheet. There is much major work still to be done but David likes to get the metal details worked out before the different finish details come about. More as progress continues.

Well stated and another excellent point. The overall goal and balance should always be kept in mind. You do that better than most of us. I remember the Ducati...

Poul makes a good point and thankfully, you ascribe to it. I think a major key to an outstanding model is knowing when to stop. If adding certain detail or color risks damage to satisfactory previous work, I've learned that 'less is more'. That's not cutting corners, that's being sensible. A successful model always allows further successes on the next because of the experienced gained. This model as it is would surely make a Ferrari technician think twice about it being a model.

Yeesh... more dangly hoses than a Ridley Scott sci-fi movie. You will definitely need rehabilitation in a quiet country side asylum. But just plain brilliant and true to life. That torque wrench is also brilliant but looks lonely. I'm serious now; that is a model unto itself. I would build the whole rest of the car and display it alongside this on its wheels, not stands. That way nothing here is concealed and you still get the natural beauty and brawn of the race car. Maybe a small engine hoist with chains nearby....

Superb work Peter.

Absolutely right -It took you minutes to do what took me a week to find out! I made hood tops of ally and plastic before I got it right. Raising the rad not an option for me. Great correction and now we're both happy !

Thanks for not hating me. It's hard to say a bad word about such good work. Hoping the shimming does the trick. C

Matt, you have done a meticulous and exacting build on an outstanding kit and subject. As one who has sweated details on a classic Rolls model, it pains me to pick this nit, but I learned with mine that the smallest changes can bring an exact looking motorcar. In no way what I say is meant as negative criticism - indeed your effort warrants nothing but praise and respect. I learned that a level and square hood line is the major reason all RR's have that stately appearance. It seems your hood stands a mm or two proud of the grille shell. Earlier in assembly I'd have suggested sanding the hood bottom edges a bit to make the hood line level with the grille and possibly the cowl. But now that finish is applied, if you share my opinion, perhaps you can remove and shim the grille higher to meet the hood center. Failing all the above, you still have a lovely model. C

No - would hate to do that even to a model....

Nail biting time... Who said this was a relaxing hobby?? Picking up right where we left off, Mr Cox continues his magic with brass trim. But he consumed many cookies between tiny solderings to steady the nerves. Fender trim for the other side must match the first: Imagine drilling dozens of holes, snipping dozens of tiny wires, then silver soldering all together at correct angles...OH and polishing each within an inch of its life ! If the plating shop loses any of these, it's do it all over again. Just a bit easier, the bigger bits get fabricated: And here is where those will go - the rumble seat: Note the angles of the trim edges for easy opening and closing: This mock up shows how elegant the lines get with the addition of this type trim. Chrome handles will be added to each side of the rumble lid. Soon to come, more metal work but of a different type than the brass seen here. More snaps as soon as I get them. But we must let Dave's nerves calm down a bit...

Thanks Nick. Those two words have been my reason to present this whole shootin match. I know my work and Cox's won't cause a run on Pocher kits but so much of what's presented applies to most all scale car models. Thanks for sending a few words and I hope you're a regular viewer. C

The Pocher Disease has spread to Hornby. One team of design guys not talking to the next...

I've had it. I had gotten to the point of taking a blowtorch to my Rolls after this presentation of other-worldly realism in scale modeling. My wife stopped me lest I set the drapes on fire too. But now - you commit the unspeakable - you overwhelm us with your carpentry skills..........in addition to all the previous. Soon, none of us will be able to look in the mirror. Before you, building a 'nice model, advanced model, extreme model' was high praise indeed. Now 'The Absolute Real Thing' is where you've set the bar. What are we humble modellers to do? But no hyperbolic praise from me. I have a damning criticism for you to suffer. Those colored wire ties have no place on a 180MPH vehicle. I don't care if Ferrari used pink ribbons. When mechanics reach in the Zip Tie drawer, there is only black to choose from. So there, god of finishes, writhe in your shame......

If you politely mean Cox is a Madman, you're correct. He has pushed Pocher classics very far, almost to the doorstep of scratch building. He's done nearly 90 I'm told - when most of us are thrilled to accomplish one or two - much less scramble them like eggs to make a feast. Thanks to you loyal lads for following along.

Yes they are Poul. Wait until I bring you finished paint; they are staggering in the impact they make on these somewhat over-decorated icons. But Lord, there is nothing like real chrome trim on these. Because there is so much of it, it detracts from the model without them.