Vinegaroon3 Posted June 8, 2016 Share Posted June 8, 2016 (edited) The thing that really becomes an issue, as mentioned, virtually all of the "tubing" winds up bent either in shipping or in the process of unpacking it and removing parting lines from the casting. Thus when assembling the "cage", it is very difficult to know when you have it lined up correctly. In my case I soldered the main connections in my "cage"....because as a main structural element in a very heavy model I wanted to make sure none of the joints came apart down the road. But that was maybe not a great idea, because now all the corners are very rigid and it limits the ability to tweak things so that the tubes are straight and the angles correct. As with Cat....my engine mounts did not line up either. The engine is aligned correctly in the critical spots...it is centered in the framework where the front of the engine attaches to the bulkhead....and if you look at the center seam on top of the gearbox it is centered in the "X" brace at the rear of the cage....so I hope I got it right....or at least close enough. The problem with these kits as far as aligning things....there is no 100% solid frame of reference because the soft nature of the metal parts makes them so easily bent.... My rear frame parts looked like pretzels when I started working on them. These kits are challenging, at least for me. The hardest part always seems to be getting the bodywork to line up correctly....because by then any errors in building the frame components are greatly magnified....and minor dimension errors are almost impossible to avoid during the build. Regarding the colors, every photograph I have seen of the fiberglass fan/cooling shroud parts on multiple Porsche racing cars has showed them to be pretty distinctly yellow in color. I think the various brown shades on the engine parts are a result of a protective coating for the magnesium....similar to anodizing on aluminum....and the "brown" color varies greatly. I have seen pictures showing it anywhere from reddish brown, to grey-brown, to a very rich almost chocolate brown. The cylinders, being aluminum rather than magnesium, and a completely different color....typically bare aluminum. Another thing about MFH....I personally would ignore many/most of the recommended painting colors they list in the instructions. They are very often (usually) in conflict with my research. Edited June 8, 2016 by Vinegaroon3 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
caterhamnut Posted June 8, 2016 Author Share Posted June 8, 2016 Looking forward to that bit then! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xffw45343tg Posted June 8, 2016 Share Posted June 8, 2016 Incidentally, what is the lump in the centre of the fan? I know that the hub of your common-or-garden 911 hides it alternator there (to make it so much fun to service) but the fan itself on a 911/964 etc is a different shape to accomodate this. Am I right in recalling that the brown colour is a magnesium alloy? Quite a while since I read about these engines so I could be wide of the mark. As a kid (before girls became almost as interesting as engines) I always fantasised about having a road-legal 917 - I think there was one, not sure if it ever spent any time on the road; Now I worry about keyless central locking. Keep the pics and problem solving coming chaps. Loving this! Kirk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pouln Posted June 8, 2016 Share Posted June 8, 2016 With a 917 you'd not need to worry about locking..... I would start to worry if you would be able to find a lock. V's engine is a beauty too. I particularly like the wheathering on the resin parts. Very realistic. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vinegaroon3 Posted June 13, 2016 Share Posted June 13, 2016 Caterham, Just wanted to say make sure you bring your "A" game to step #5, assembly of the rear chassis framework, if you are not there already. I found it to be pretty fiddly and tricky to complete. The overhead view of the chassis framework provided in the kit is a great help, but getting everything aligned and glued together is a chore. The fit of the various parts is marginal, and it took me a lot of tweaking and improvising. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Borez Posted December 10, 2016 Share Posted December 10, 2016 Just catching up on stuff here, has this build ground to a halt? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimmac2005 Posted January 13, 2017 Share Posted January 13, 2017 Caterham, Hello. those MFH clamping bands back on page 1, can those be painted. say paint the white ones to silver? JimMac2005 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
P993 Posted January 25, 2017 Share Posted January 25, 2017 (edited) On 6/13/2016 at 6:27 PM, Vinegaroon3 said: Caterham, Just wanted to say make sure you bring your "A" game to step #5, assembly of the rear chassis framework, if you are not there already. I found it to be pretty fiddly and tricky to complete. The overhead view of the chassis framework provided in the kit is a great help, but getting everything aligned and glued together is a chore. The fit of the various parts is marginal, and it took me a lot of tweaking and improvising. Thanks so much for the warning. I will be building this soon. Do you think it would be feasible to build a "jig" out of tube brass and get the body all correctly aligned to the jig, and then build the frame to match the jig? Edited January 25, 2017 by P993 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scott H Posted January 28, 2017 Share Posted January 28, 2017 I am working on this car as well. I have been looking at this thread though for ideas. When building the engine carrier frame keep in mind that the bulkhead slopes a little. I thought it was at 90 degrees but looking at the foreword cabin which has the actual bulkhead molded in and the overhead view it is clear that the bulkhead has an angle. I think it also advisable to build the cockpit and front section of the car then use that to assist in building the rear and finishing the rear suspension because then you should be able to mock it all together and check suspension alignment as you go. Anyway just a thought. I think I am going to try to go that route, I am working toward finishing the motor now but intend to move to the front of the car next. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vinegaroon3 Posted January 30, 2017 Share Posted January 30, 2017 On 1/25/2017 at 10:33 AM, P993 said: Thanks so much for the warning. I will be building this soon. Do you think it would be feasible to build a "jig" out of tube brass and get the body all correctly aligned to the jig, and then build the frame to match the jig? In this thread I wrote kind of a long narrative about the problems I had building this kit: As far as a jig....I thought about that...but could not really come up with a way to do it. The problem is that there are few (or none) frames of reference about how the kit is supposed to align...hard to explain but you will see what I mean as you start assembly.... 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vinegaroon3 Posted January 30, 2017 Share Posted January 30, 2017 On 1/28/2017 at 5:23 AM, cbk57 said: I am working on this car as well. I have been looking at this thread though for ideas. When building the engine carrier frame keep in mind that the bulkhead slopes a little. I thought it was at 90 degrees but looking at the foreword cabin which has the actual bulkhead molded in and the overhead view it is clear that the bulkhead has an angle. I think it also advisable to build the cockpit and front section of the car then use that to assist in building the rear and finishing the rear suspension because then you should be able to mock it all together and check suspension alignment as you go. Anyway just a thought. I think I am going to try to go that route, I am working toward finishing the motor now but intend to move to the front of the car next. I think what you suggest is a good idea, and might help significantly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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