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Mercedes Benz SSKL, Matchbox 1:32 plus scratchbuilt and 3d printed bits!


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I had a small problem with the rims in that the top edge where the supports attached) was a little irregular. I'm not sure if this was due to too few supports, or that the attachment area was too small, but it appears that either the resin has drooped a little between the supports, or the weight has pulled the resin where the supports were attached. Either way, they have cleaned up ok and the rims don't appear to be too shallow at that point. You can see the problem at the top of this pic.

 

51106432198_c8eaa300cf.jpg

 

I cleaned up and drilled all 8 that were printed, so I have a couple of spares if needed. So, 84 holes per wheel, 8 wheels, means I have just drilled 672 0.3mm holes! Fortunately the indents had printed sufficiently that the location of the drill was a simple matter. Ironically, it turned out easier to drill from the outside, as per @CedB's suggestion earlier, and with the rims being fairly thin, accuracy on the inside surface wasn't affected. It took about 20 minutes per wheel if anyone is interested, from removal of the support structure, to drilling and final clean up.

 

51106432163_5ca101551e.jpg

 

All 6 with hubs....

 

51106432228_c3367865fa.jpg

 

I may start on the spokes tomorrow, probably with a first row attempted on one of the spares - just in case!

 

Have a good weekend, and thanks for looking in!

 

Stay safe,

 

Ian

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4 hours ago, Brandy said:

So, 84 holes per wheel, 8 wheels, means I have just drilled 672 0.3mm holes!

 

about 0.5 of an F2b then?

 

nice work Ian.  It's always fun trying to get a good clean edge on the surface where the supports connect.  It's hard to tell from the photo but as you suggested, it could have been down to too few supports

 

 

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Before I dive in and start the spokes I thought I'd give a quick explanation of what I intend to do (Yes OK, I'm delaying it!) just in case anyone else wishes to do something equally as silly!

 

The holes in the centre row are offset to be in the middle of the front and rear rows, which are level with each other. The spokes will be fitted by threading invisible mending thread through one hole, going clockwise around the hub, then out another hole. This will give me the opposing angles of two adjacent spokes and the order here is crucial. First off, hole 1 will be marked for the rear row. Hole 1 on the centre row will be one hole clockwise from it, and hole 1 on the front row will be one hole clockwise from that to give the staggered appearance. This may make it clearer...

 

51108072667_401ff0a23d.jpg

 

The spokes are in groups of 4 and will be threaded in the following order, the numbers representing the holes that each thread will pass through at each end (eg the first thread will run from hole 1, clockwise around the hub, and out through hole 14)

1 - 14

5 - 18

9 - 22

13 - 26

17- 2

21 - 6

25 - 10

3 - 16

7 - 20

11 - 24

15 - 28

19 - 4

23 - 8

27 - 12

 

and they will be fitted in exactly that order to ensure they cross correctly.

 

I hope that explains it. I don't think I can delay any longer - see you in a while!

 

Ian

 

Edited by Brandy
Grammar
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I finally stopped putting off the inevitable today and made a start on threading the spokes. I fully expect the first wheel to take a while as I find a method that works. To that end, I first did a dry run of the inner row of spokes. The plan was to attach all the wires then go back and tension and secure each one in turn. Here is the first half done

 

51116976739_852ecc0d47.jpg

 

That looks promising. At least it appears to be symmetrical. I continued with the second half of lines and got this.

 

51117224561_3300bec070.jpg

 

A couple of problems showed up. Firstly it was obvious that my intended method was not going to work, I would have to attach each line and secure it as I go. Second, I need to ensure that the lines are pulled into the hub properly at each side. Not a problem until about 4 lines from the end when it gets a little crowded and the lines have to be pulled in at both ends to ensure the geometry looks right. If that is not done the angles on the hub are all wrong. That can be seen on the pic above - the triangles formed by the spokes around the rim are even but around the hub they are very irregular.

I'm also a little worried about having room for the middle row. You can see from the pic below that the hub has spread where the spokes have been fitted. The middle row should fit in the slot just in front of those already done, but the slot has closed up. It will be interesting to see if the lines will fit!

 

51117139303_3b785e4597.jpg

 

Here's the second fitting, with the wires secured.

 

51116661412_55d9782db2.jpg

 

51116976759_903af5ff32.jpg

 

That looks a little better, although the inner geometry is still off. 

I'll do the middle row tomorrow and see how it looks. I have a feeling I may have to resort to thinner line to get it all to fit!

 

Thanks for looking in, stay safe!

 

Ian

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1 hour ago, hendie said:

blimey, that looks a bit complex.  

A BIT?!!!

Still, a minor challenge for a rigging expert…

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I was going to continue this today but thought against it as I think the line I'm using is too thick. I measured it (as accurately as you can measure something like this!) and it looks to be around 0.15mm.

I have ordered a variety of new lines: 0.08mm, 0.09mm, 0.1mm and 0.12mm and when those arrive I will remove what I have done above and start again. I think the 0.1 will be the one to go for here, which is what I had thought it was at the beginning!

 

Ian

 

 

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  • 4 weeks later...

Right, since I have 4 days off, I have decided to go for it. Full steam ahead and damn the eyesight! (Or something like that!)

Using thinner line of 0.1mm I started again. Two rows have been completed on the first wheel and all appears to be ok. The hub has distorted slightly due to the thickness of the lines but I don't think there's anything I can do about it so I'll take it as it is.

 

Here's the wheel as it is now, front row still to be fitted

 

51177330480_f2233c43fb.jpg

 

You can just see the lighter colour around the edge of the hub where it has bent forward slightly. I don't think it will be too noticable though. If I do this madness again I may make that part of the hib a little thicker.

 

and a comparison between the first one (with the thicker line). It definitely needed to be thinner.

 

51175562732_52521b5287.jpg

 

I need a beer!

 

Thanks for looking in, and stay safe!

 

Ian

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As ever, another pause has been thrown into this build. I decided that it might be a good idea to paint what I have done so far to see how it looks.

 

51179390032_30de2d4453.jpg

 

I'm pretty pleased with that, but it is clear that the hubs needs to be reprinted with a slightly larger gap for the threads to stop them bending forward, and I will make the front edge a tad thicker too for the same reason. I think this one will be OK as one of the spares though.

 

I tried to sign into my desktop and found that the keyboard batteries had run out AGAIN! They were only put in 2 weeks ago! Since there is no on/off switch on the keyboard I can't do anything, but it's costing a fortune in batteries so I have ordered a rechargeable keyboard and mouse to replace the HP wireless ones I have. Once I have those I'll be able to reprint the hubs and continue this!

 

Thanks for looking in, and stay safe!

 

Ian

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Very impressive work continues Ian. It all looks extremely delicate. Remind me what you are using for the spokes themselves? 

 

Thanks

 

Terry

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1 hour ago, Terry1954 said:

Very impressive work continues Ian. It all looks extremely delicate. Remind me what you are using for the spokes themselves? 

 

Thanks

 

Terry

Hi Terry, it's 0.1mm (2lb test) monofilament fishing line.

 

Ian

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I finished off the first wheel today just to make sure no more changes would be needed on the hubs. 

 

51181620797_92a656275f.jpg

 

51181620752_56d22937ee.jpg

 

just for the heck of it I placed one of the knock offs on it...

 

51182309326_010cd98316.jpg

 

I think the proof of concept is a success, I just have to wait for my new keyboard to reprint the hubs. Hopefully it won't be too long as I have another couple of days this week with no duties during the day so I could get them done then.

 

I'm almost tempted to forget about doing Carracciola's race car and do a generic car - the chassis lightening holes are wrong for his car anyway, and I could then paint the hubs and spokes white so they can actually be seen!

 

Thanks for looking in, and stay safe!

 

Ian

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