Stickframe

Wow! that is a real beauty! Looks much better than the actual Chargers I've seen in real life!

HI Ron, thanks! in the process though, I am getting a bit burned out 😅 I need to soldier on and get moving!! Leaving bits and pieces scattered about will just lead to me breaking or losing them 😁 I have painted the base color on the body, but ran out of clearcoat, so am waiting for a new supply to arrive. I really want to get the car assembled, but of course, not that easy - I need to build another rack for this to be sitting on! And, unlike the previous two, I'll need to be a bit more careful with the height and placement so the "dangling" rear end parts can be firmly attached to the dio base - see? I just keep talking myself out of finishing! Cheers and stay well - Nick

Well shoot! I hope I didn't predicate the problems! Despite the challenges, your solution looks great! I like the scale use of real metal anyway, it has a good look 😀

Hello model builders, These two didn't exactly arrive today - they've been gradually arriving over the course of the last few months, buying parts here and there, so I can pretend the cost is a bit less! 😁 When I eventually get to a point that I can say my F1 projects are at a reasonable break point (and if I still like building models!), I'll start one of them. The first is a 1/25 scale resin kit (AITM American Industrial Truck Models) of a Mack B75 tractor. These trucks were built from the mid to late 50's into the mid 60's. The shop set me up with the correct cab, and the appropriate chassis and so on, and service was prompt: As you can see, this aught to be quite an interesting and challenging build! Just for fun I've already done some rescribing of seam lines. As I haven't built too many (any larger than 1/35) resin model truck kits, I can't say if the quality is particularly good or bad (comparatively). You can see though, there will be more carving and clean up! This is a curb side kit, so I'll only show the bottom of the engine. I am glad to report I haven't seen any bubbles or irregular surfaces yet. But I can see some fit issues - take a look at the tires and wheels, which I think will be easy enough to fix with thin styrene sheet - as for the tread pattern, looks like the need for some patience while carving. All of that said, I am basing this build on a specific truck, which is not something that looks showroom fresh, so maybe some latitude in the build for a few rough fits and so on. One last thing, no instructions - the good news is I've built a few kits, so I'm hoping I can figure out how this all works! Next up, something of a hybrid (of kits, not mode of power!) I will build either a Peterbilt 365 or 357 6x6, starting with a 378 cab. To do this, I'll modify an Italeri 378 cab and engine (1/25/1/24), and use suspension and chassis parts from KFS (Kit Form Services), including the front drive axle, rear dual drives, and other bits and pieces etc: I've used KFS parts before and can say they are excellent - which is good, because as you can see from above, I'm not starting with much of a traditional "kit"! You can also gather, this will involve plenty of cutting and scratch work. So, hopefully before too long, one of these will make their way to the workbench! Cheers Nick

Hi Malc, Sorry about the late reply - quite a nice course in body work going on here! the louvers look the part too - in fact, much better than some of the etch versions out there - great idea and application. Oh, and thanks for the tip on the Meng resin bolts - I'll order a set or two! Cheers Nick

Hi Ron, I need to echo the words of others on this update - it sure is coming together well! While I don't exactly know the problems you ran into on the steering column, I can report potentially similar headaches in the 1/20 F1 kits - the non-operable u-joints are big, oddly shaped, making them awfully awkward to work with, even with much of the details molded in - above, you actually have the steering column, and the need to get it to line up, through the hole and then into the mounting bracket - ugh! I can imagine that being quite frustrating! In any event, it looks great 🍻 It looks like you've got the throttle linkage attached too - very nice! actually, all of the pre-wiring is looking great 😀 So, all of the headaches seem to be paying off, and to go back to a comment I made some time ago, the shifter assembly still looks perfect - Cheers and happier model building Nick

Bravo and thanks for posting all of your process - really great to see, very interesting and well done - Looking forward to your next post- Nick

Hello guys, Thanks for having a look - Ron, yes, using metal joints - that's a goods idea - all of what you see here is resin - nice quality, but, you really need to keep a steady hand as you go about using/attaching/fitting/drilling. Regarding the two types of braided line, the dangling lines, in the rear are metal (and look a-ok to me!) - but, those in the front of the engine, along the firewall are fabric, and I have a hard time keeping fraying to a minimum (via CA) and attaching them to the joints. The good news, I'm done with them for a while! For today, a small update. As this is a dio, various parts of a normal build, will be displayed differently. I'd already modified a couple of trans/rearends for this project, but decided they needed a bit more of something. So I went ahead made up the parts used to hold the upper shock mounts , control arms, and anti-roll bar out of .32"thick alu sheet (which "feels" monstrously thicker than the .16") and then, added a few more really tiny nuts, and some larger NBWs. Take a look: It "looks" like the .32" thick alu was the right choice - enough to appear convincing. It's harder to shape than the .16" - which must sound obvious enough! 😁 but the point is, the transition is significant enough that you need to rethink the steps of fabricating the part - the measure drill or cut first sequence and so on. While the two horizontal brackets look fairly straight forward, I'll admit each took two tries. For the front, I didn't pay close enough attention to the location of the mounting holes!! so they were off....good job....then, for the rear, you can see the central portion is narrower than on the front, so on the first try I completely drilled out the three big central holes, then went about cutting the piece into shape - bad idea - snapped it along one of the holes almost immediately - just like car suspension control arms in corners, side cutter result in torsional force! If you don't believe me, give it a try! 😁 This is always a challenge when using alu, but as the .16 is thinner, it seems easier to gently cut - rather than the more macho shear! 😁 needed for the .32"! haha Building this made me wonder if I could redo all of this, and actually make all of it go together? I'm not sure - it all seems close, but hard to say. I think if I, or someone else, decided to try, you might need to build two complete kits - one essentially OOB as a test/scaling platform, and then using the "desired" replacement parts kit. I'd go this route primarily because of the somewhat rudimentary construction/measuring tools I have, and to compensate for the "eyeball" factor - that is, no matter how close I might get, this is still a project informed by photos and judgement, rather than a CAD file etc. OK gents, stay well, happy model building and thanks for having a look - Nick

Hi Chris, another great build! I can't believe how much you get done! You're on a roll! Cheers Nick

Hi Malc, I can't believe: 1) how much you're getting done; 2) the rate at which you're doing it; and 3) the overall quality you're achieving! wow! great work 😁 Cheers Nick

Hi Ron, well, you certainly provide us mere mortals with something to aspire to! The front end looks beautiful. I especially like the finish on the bolt heads on the shock towers and the lock nuts on the upper control arms! Those, and everything else you've done! Wow, stay away from the site for a few days and a guy can miss some remarkable work. Looking forward to your next update - Cheers and stay well Nick

Hello guys, Sorry about my tediously slow build and response time! Thanks and glad you like what you're seeing so far. Yes, @Kitkent, Chris, if you look long enough, you can find quite a variety of small detail parts - that said, you then need to often need to rely on your imagination to figure out what to do with all that you find! In addition to RB Motion, you might check Pimme-MiniaturesUK, who made the larger diameter brass eyebolts, and have a wide variety of bolts, rivets and so on. As you're already working at 1/43😲, I suspect you are already familiar with the patience needed when dealing with these parts - they're pretty small! @silver911, thanks, Ron! all I'm doing is watching your work and trying to figure out how to do similar at a smaller scale! As implied with the note to Chris - doing this without: 1) driving myself crazy and 2) destroying the build along the way! I suppose the two go hand in hand. @johnlambert, hi John, thanks very much - I've been drifting into and out of your many builds - the quality you're getting is remarkable! yet another high water mark to aim for. @Toftdale, thanks - yes, I don't have a lathe or mill etc, so, need to use what I have, which I've decided is part of the fun - a bit like that clutch mechanism you made - that still has me asking how you did it! And, @Malc2, you're not wasting any time with you build! another wow! So, there are some of us, who just can't help doing more that what the kit provides you with! Speaking of kits, I've made some headway. I went ahead and mounted the control arms to the firewall, finished the DFV engine, mounted it - piece of cake! - well, not really. Before I get into this, I have an ask of you guys, which is how you work with braided line and connectors/joints? You'll see below, I used Top Studio connectors, which are pretty nice, but, I also used two different types of braided line, the fabric kind from Top Studio, and some wire mesh from Detail Master (I think?). Anyway, they both cause me some grief. I find the Top Studio braided line to be a PITA to work with - do any of you have a relatively straight forward way of using this product? I find the ends fray easily, and then, fixing them (adding a small spot of CA), while saving an opening for the connector to be harder to do than I suppose it should be! I cut a length of the hose, then insert a thin metal rod (BTW, the instructions say there should be an internal guide wire - but mine doesn't have that), then hit the ends with a tiny amount of CA (which of course, glues the braided line to the metal rod), then cutting the rod out, then inserting the fitting! It's an awful process - which I'm sure I'm doing wrong. For the actual wire braided line, a different problem. This product has a thin wire embedded, which easy enough to clean up, leaving two stripped "tails" of wire on the ends, but, this requires me to drill out each of the Top Studio joints - which is not easy. I think I'm using a #78 drill bit, to make a small receiving hole in each connector, to plug the braided line into. This can be a fast and efficient way to break resin connectors! So, if you have thoughts on how to do this more efficiently I'm glad to hear them! OK, on with the update. First two, pics comparing the new engine with the engine on the stand: I've got to say, I like the looks of the new engine - it's a brute! The version I'm copying keeps the cam covers all black - the Ford logos aren't silver, which I thought was a nice change - in fact, much of the top of the engine is black. I painted the block silver, then added a layer of a blend of barley grey and yellow earth, to get the look of the cast metal. I left the machined surface next to the clutch silver. You'll also see, I scratch built the injector base, funnels and "deck" atop the funnels. Not a bad look, though to @Toftdale's point - yes, they are scratch built, but the limitations of my "tools" becomes apparent. The base material is brass, filed down to allow scracthbuilt alu funnels to sit atop, but I couldn't achieve a uniform production quality! so, they're each a bit similar and a bit different! I just couldn't justify spending more money, on more after market parts! The deck on top, below the mesh, is thin alu sheet, cut and filed into the correct shape, then drilled out to accept the funnels. I do like the look of lots of real metal, vs painted plastic, so not bad. On we go: The tube connecting the radiators - well, it was cut up, reassembled, and then cut up and reassembled a few times (and I still didn't sand off all of the seam line!) - I also added metal mounting brackets - yeah...not great. This came as a result of using parts from different kits. I probably should have tried to scratch build a new one. I'm doubtful anyone but us will ever notice. I left all the dangling parts and hoses because, remember, this car will also be in the shop, but with the rear end torn out. That nice clutch pack helps! In the pics above, you can see the base for the throttle linkage. For this I used a base Hasegawa part from a Type 79 engine, then drilled it out, inserting a thin metal rod, then adding a PE bracket and washer, which I'll eventually add a linkage to. I included the pic above so you can see the base for the mesh, but can also see the alu tube and sleeve used to help hold this to the firewall. Many kits provide a screw for this, but I either lost this one, or by mixing parts it didn't work out that way. And above, despite my whining the braided lines seem to look pretty good - and to my delight, you can actually see some of the nuts and bolts that hold the rear end parts together! And, yes, I include all the pics - that damned camera! it doesn't lie! 😁 though, it does make a few of these parts look like the paint is a bit muddy, but, in real life (with an optivisor nonetheless) they look good! maybe slightly out of focus? I don't know. OK, thanks for having a look - next will be last minute details in the monocoque and paint. Cheers, and stay well Nick

Really nice to see another vintage DFV under way - so many interesting parts of this build to see! Regarding Ron's note above about drilling the PE for rivets. I've had the same problems drilling the PE (tho in 1/20, maybe more of headache because of the smaller bit diameter), and will attest, the process is tough on bits and patience - both of which you need to get it done! If you come across some bits that are tough enough to survive, please post who makes them, or where we can find them too! RB Motion makes lots of interesting and useful bits - they might not have the exact kit you need for a linkage, but you could probably mix and match their parts to fabricate your own. The throttle assembly on some of the DFV engines is pretty straight forward, so you might be able to fabricate something out of a few RB bits and scrap materials. OK, looking forward to your next update! Cheers Nick

Hi Ron, It's so nice to watch all of this come together! I really like your choice in materials, as they "look right" and reflect the properties of the materials, to scale - that is, no unintended kinks in those hydraulic lines! At the outset, I was curious to see how that modulator up front would work out - clearance, spacing and the like, and of course, you made it look just right! And yes, though it will never be seen again, I really like the grime on the edges of the bulkhead! Looking forward to your next post - stay well - Nick

Wow Malc, You haven't been wasting any time with this build! Lots of great work going on here - I'll have to go through it again. The litho plate is a really good idea. Someone mentioned it to me before, but I have not, or ever seen it used - really looks like something to keep handy! That front end looks like it was quite a headache, but also looks like you're getting it squared up. I really like the bracket you built for the exhaust tips, a fine piece of work. In my recent round of DFV projects, it seems that inevitably, one of the banks of headers goes together effortlessly, and the other a complete nightmare - and I haven't a clue why! then the kit brackets have been PE, not the metal you've used, only adding to the headache! Looking forward to your next update! Cheers Nick

Hello guys, Still going at it, but with some dryfit progress to report on the rear end. I've got to say, this has crossed the threshold of nerve wracking! As you look below - you'll see bolts and nuts! The nuts, are pretty darned small!! The good news is I only lost 1, and in an effort to ream one, destroyed it, so, not bad. Yes, I ordered more! The good news is that yes, all of this has gone together as planned - but, relative to the overall project, I'm not sure if it's really a victory or not! While the photos make these pieces look relatively giant, and they're not, and my sense is after this photo, not much of this will ever be noticed again! It took some real effort not to destroy this while assembling it - ahh, the joys of model building! 😁 The little white dots you can see are mostly shavings of metal or plastic, as I redrilled all the holes after paint, so I'll brush them off. Oh - the shocks are from RB Motion and are pretty nice! only downside, the springs needed to be painted, which was fine, but, try as I might, there a few evident chips. I'll live with them. On we go: You can see above, the various parts have gone together pretty well, just dryfit in the firewall - so far so good. Next, to illustrate the bigger plan: Above gives you an idea of where this is headed. I'll put the car on a rack, and let the parts dangle, in the workshop. I still need to add lower control arms, and the anti-roll bar links, but I am confident, that if I install them now I'd just break them off, so for now, just trying not to lose or scrape them! I am pleased with color and reasonable cast appearance of the wheel hubs. I painted them anthracite, then gave them a wash with a blend of barley grey and yellow brown - they look pretty good in real life. And, yes, I'll patch up the mating face of the trans.....just noticed that tasty scrape! and! it appears I missed a few stud holes in my haste....perfect - haha Not bad - I'm most surprised that I got the lengths correct on the four control arms coming off the firewall. The the tops, longer than the bottoms, the taper in tube diameter, and I guessed the off-set for the eye bolts. Now on to the cabin area. Nothing added up here was that hard to do, but, it did require some patience - be it for the steering rack or the reservoirs: The hydraulic reservoirs are pretty obvious above. They're concentric alu tube, with lead foil caps - I like this solution. I don't think I'll add tubing below - Or.....maybe I will - let me rephrase, I don't want to add tubing.....😁 You'll also not generous use of wine bottle foil and small rivets. The real version of this car, like the others in this project has an aluminum monocoque - which is clearly evident, and unpainted in the driver seat, so mine gets a bit more fanciness than the kit provides. Finally, above you can see some fancy wheel spindles - not fancy tho - odds and ends: As you can see - in the top image, the basic assembly, from alu tube. It was filed to a smaller diameter on one side to fit in the hub, and filed to a cone on the other to appear similar to the real part. The brass threaded rod is remnant from the eyebolts used on the rear suspension control arms, and works really well for this, and installed: Next up, paint, assemble and install the engine! The parts are ready to go Thanks for having a look - Cheers and stay well - Nick

This is all looking really good - the clutch mechanism is great! Nice touch - Nick

Well guys, I'm still moving on this, albeit at a ridiculously slow pace. Malc and Ron, thanks - despite the pace, I really enjoy this type of work. Seeing what you both are doing has certainly set a high bar for what modifications/scratch on race cars can be! So, here we go - first, one more shot of the rear hubs: I know - It seems I'm showing the same thing over and over, but no - it keeps getting modified. The two additions above include the brass "U" shape bracket on the interior, which is where the shocks will mount. Next, the aluminum triangle shapes, with the bolt heads. The lower suspension control arms, and anti-roll bar drop-arms will attach. What you can't see is that on the opposite side, there are two similar, but rectangular brackets, for the lower suspension mounts on the other side. I eventually cut out the small plastic loops inside of the inner side, and inserted a continuous aluminum tube (Ron, similar to what you just showed). Next up a few pics of these bits and pieces generally together: Above, most of the parts to be used. You can see the control arms, dryfit in the firewall. The black styrene hubs (for lack of a better term) will plug into to the control arms, with the upper arms pinned into the two white styrene connectors. The styrene connectors will go into the top side of each hub and hold the two short control arms. The four longer control arms will pin into the previously described lower aluminum brackets. The two really thin control arms with the alu eyebolts, will connect just above the lower brackets for the anti roll bar. I added the two tabs to the lower side of the firewall to make for a stronger connection to the engine. The plan is to attach all the suspension parts first, then plug in the engine. I suppose in real life, you'd do the opposite, but at this scale, there just isn't enough room to do it that way - on we go, a couple more views: I'm using this as a bit of test case for the next build on this project, which will be a Wolf Models kit, that features lots of white metal, but the quality seems to be just OK (and some chunky resin parts), and I think I'll be using some of these steps to make it work, not just for a fun design challenge! I'm using RB Motion shocks for this - which I won't assemble until they get some paint. In the meantime, I need to finish the cabin!! I'm driving myself crazy going back and forth, between this and that. I've already added lots of rivet heads, but of course, there are other odds and ends to add. Then - on to a painting extravaganza! Body, engine, and suspension - good times - 😁 OK gents - stay well and happy model building - Nick

HI Ron, Short of sounding like a broken record, what I think is most interesting about this work is the contrast between textures (In addition to the obvious overall project), in that as a viewer, you can tell what is representing cast, machined, or other surfaces, plus of course the weathering throughout! And, when this is all done, I'm sure you'll pluck that brass eyebolt out of the torque wrench and reuse it on a kit! Cheers Nick

Hi Malc, This build will be great to watch - looking forward to seeing how it all comes together. Nice to see you cut the air intake out. It seems many of the resin kits send out blocks of materials for key body parts, but skip out even general representation of the underside. I usually consider carving/cutting the bulk material out too, and typically remove at least some of it. I've got a kit lined up for the next project and will need to consider how much to cut! So interesting to see how you're doing this. On another post you asked me about some photo etch I used. It was remnant from an Eduard 1/35 set for the exterior of an MATV (an armored vehicle). I enjoyed building the kit and variants so had extra material, which of course I keep for just such a situation! Cheers Nick

Great build, there's lots of nice stuff going on here - a bit of humor, not over the top with weathering - and the overall concept! The dedicated, maybe ornery mechanic, just like real life MAK or otherwise! Cheers Nick

The mechanics might be out to lunch now, but, they sure did a great job while they were working on this! 😁 Wow! I really like the black sleeves you added where the fuel lines connect to the injectors - they push it over the top in terms of realism - very nice touch! Cheers, looking forward to the next post! Nick

@Codger, thanks for posting all of this info. I haven't built a Pocher kit, but do like to try and go beyond what's in the box on builds. So, Pocher or not, it's the process! not only impressive in it's own right, but inspiring, and helpful - along the lines of "oh...that's how you do it!" Cheers Nick

HI Ron, This is shaping up nicely - it was worth it to adjust the tee fittings in the back, which really looks good. And the exhaust springs, look the part. Just curious, are you drilling out, then inserting metal tube/rod into the cast fittings? I hate to be isolating and stating the oblivious, but the fuel injection connections look great too! Ha - your build is so nice, that it's easy to focus on various bits that make up the whole! Thanks for providing these incremental steps. cheers Nick

Hi guys, I'm still in the world of small fabrication - on the same parts, the rear hubs. Take a look: This is the receiver for the upper control/four link set up. I got the idea looking at Ron's build - though he was using nice metal parts. You can see on the left, I tried alu tubing, then alu sheet metal, and now, styrene. Not beautiful, but getting close. Next, I'll try alu rod. Who knows though? this might be it. And for some context: Above, you can see them in use. And some small rods- call me compulsive, but I needed to add the bushings in the "open" end - haha And back to the housing: More from the odds and ends/junk box - on the out side, needs the threaded road for the wheel knock off, and still need to add bolt studs for the inner spacer. Then on the inside, which will likely never be seen, half a u-joint/yoke and the tiny bolts that hold them in place. Next will be more brackets, this time for shock absorbers, and one more set of control arms. It will be a headache to paint, but I'm hoping it looks the part when done. Then, back to the cabin. So, making progress on this. Cheers and stay well - Nick