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A BIG Rolls-Royce Version II 1-7-2020


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12 hours ago, Codger said:

That's a nice compliment PK but - Excuse me, I beg to differ. :nono:

 

First, thanks for the compliment!

I've never built anything bigger than 1.24th and I very much doubt that what I can do in that scale would translate to 1:8th. And I wouldn't know where to put such a big model, were I ever to finish it.

But be assured; most plastic junkies such as myself definitely find it fascinating to watch a model like your Rolls coming together, though how many are willing to give it a go is perhaps another matter. Just the decision to buy a Pocher would indicate a pretty high level of commitment.

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Chas, I’d say, do continue your crusade. Every convert is one more.  I really like the scenic pictures you post and the ideas that come with them. Not boring at all!

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46 minutes ago, Pouln said:

Chas, I’d say, do continue your crusade. Every convert is one more.  I really like the scenic pictures you post and the ideas that come with them. Not boring at all!

Well thank you Poul.

Since you asked, here's a shot, waiting in line in the early, misty morning at the Pebble Beech Concours. Damp and chilly but all the competitors had outstanding vehicles...

CONCOURS-4608.jpg

 

No Blue Ribbon for us that day...:(

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10 hours ago, peekay said:

I've never built anything bigger than 1.24th and I very much doubt that what I can do in that scale would translate to 1:8th. And I wouldn't know where to put such a big model, were I ever to finish it.

 

For more evidence that you can I see your Duesenberg over on display in RFI. Sadly that great classic is not available in 1/8 scale.

Where to put one is another matter. Again I say if I could, you could too. Since I built it in an 11' x 12' phone booth (almost!) I had 38 months to wonder where the heck I could display it.

Finally, after a bruising steel-cage match with the Lady of the House, I secured the dining room server - provided I stained the case base to match the furniture. I did so gladly. At least I can see it every day...

IMG-6896-M1.jpg

 

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13 hours ago, Codger said:

Finally, after a bruising steel-cage match with the Lady of the House, I secured the dining room server - provided I stained the case base to match the furniture. I did so gladly. At least I can see it every day...

 

 

Perfect, the cabinet and the Rolls look like a period match.

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A flight of imagination...

Here is another step in the journey of David Cox and his love of slightly bizarre creations from humble Pocher beginnings. A lover of the outlandish and bold character studies-on-wheels, he combines engineering and creativity in all his works. 

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Here is the S-12, a name aptly chosen because a once dowdy Rolls cabriolet now houses a straight 12 cylinder engine. Where does one find such a thing in 1/8 scale? One makes one - from TWO (Pocher) Mercedes engines. This car is actually an early creation in Dave's beloved series of 'Monsters' - a test bed of ideas and techniques which he carried forward for decades.

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A common crankcase, one cylinder head and all amazingly true-to-real mechanical systems needed to create such a thing. A monstrous amount of torque would be generated by such a configuration. On the other side, a brace of carburetors, and a maze of copper cooling fins bring heat transfer to the exposed hood side. Mad genius, direct from Dr Frankenstein's lab. But a great way to learn your soldering techniques.

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The details extend to even where you can't see them. Note the custom pedals and controls:

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Bugatti seats (a perfect fit in the narrow Rolls cabin) , custom wood work in the style of the day, all immaculately executed:

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An aluminum fluid holding tank, folded and soldered is an eye catching necessary detail:

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Some may not agree but to my eye, Cox knows how to get proportions right on outlandish things. Minimal cycle fenders up front, rotated 'flying' wings in back, looong custom hood, shortened, lowered coachwork and trunk, a cut down windscreen frame, framed glass side windows -  all vital elements in his arsenal. Textures and colors sprinkled about - all provide layers of detail to visually enjoy. :

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I hope that by presenting these replicas of dreams that I encourage all to consider what can be done and how much satisfaction work at this level can provide:
I.jpg

 

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Just wow.

For some reason I’d not found these build pics, despite knowing Chas had built the Rolls.....simple stunning. Two Masters at work....saved for ref!

I love the chassis and engine work - the finish and detail is staggering.  Going to take some time and go back over this properly when I get a chance!

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  • 2 weeks later...

I continue to be surprised by the continuing stream of viewers to this thread. And very gratified. But somewhat surprised by the lack of questions about the advanced models displayed here.

Not seeking praise  but rather welcome discussion and questions, especially about the Cox models. Those are a treasure trove of creativity and technical methods.

Thanks to all for the interest however. / C :worthy:

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1 hour ago, Codger said:

I continue to be surprised by the continuing stream of viewers to this thread. And very gratified. But somewhat surprised by the lack of questions about the advanced models displayed here.

Not seeking praise  but rather welcome discussion and questions, especially about the Cox models. Those are a treasure trove of creativity and technical methods.

Thanks to all for the interest however. / C :worthy:

Hi @Codger, if I may, I'm speaking for myself but maybe this is true for more of us mere mortals... I'm just dazzled by these builds, and honestly don't know what else to do but be amazed at what's shown... If I consider myself a level 10, then this is level 1000, way wayyy up there. I'm not even close to recognizing the cases in which to use the techniques behind all this. If you catch my drift 🙂

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1 hour ago, JeroenS said:

Hi @Codger, if I may, I'm speaking for myself but maybe this is true for more of us mere mortals... I'm just dazzled by these builds, and honestly don't know what else to do but be amazed at what's shown... If I consider myself a level 10, then this is level 1000, way wayyy up there. I'm not even close to recognizing the cases in which to use the techniques behind all this. If you catch my drift 🙂

Well Jeroen, this is tough to respond to. Your comments are very generous of course. But I will tell you that there's a galaxy of stellar builders (pun intended !) here that cause me to feel that exact way - my 'level 10' to their 'level 1000'.

I refer to the superb scratch builders of long-running, complex projects. Along with those that super-detail and do advanced builds on large scale kits (sadly, fewer of those lately) and already complex MFH kits. A goodly number of guys are doing incredible, high-quality builds.

I suspect in this case, there is not a large fan base for elderly Rolls Royces, which is completely understandable. It's a somewhat 'acquired' taste. Although good work may be appreciated, there's just not enough motivation to corner the market in these and build a  fleet of them. So I am fortunate to be able to display the work of Cox here.

He has accumulated the parts, kits and research over decades. Rather than build the same model in different colors, through creativity, he devised the magical mutants seen here. A rare collection indeed.

If there were further interest in his work, I could probably coerce him into letting me display a few of his non-Rolls, classic Pocher builds - Bugattis, Mercedes, Fiats and several creative 'monster' one-offs that sprang from them. I had hoped to keep this a Rolls-centric thread with your Rolls builds within but again, I recognize that there is very limited Rolls interest.

My main hope in showing my own work is that value could be found for the casual builder. Techniques I employed while solving problems can apply to very basic builds. And I hoped to inspire those builders to be creative and fearless about altering their basic model.

All discussion welcomed. / C

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Ah yes, stellar builders roam this site freely! When I signed up I had no idea that it would the source of fun and inspiration which it is. I never suspected there would be so many ways to build and enhance a model. The mindset has to be that anything can be done with enough effort and the will to do it. Skill follows later 🙂 ... The scratchbuilding shown here is greatly entertaining and it is contagious as well. I've just scratched my first truck chassis and engine and I'm sure more will follow. 

 

31 minutes ago, Codger said:

And I hoped to inspire those builders to be creative and fearless about altering their basic model.

So yes: you, and others here, have certainly done that!

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Hi,

 

Impressive!

Reading the post from the beginning ... I’m just speechless for the moment!
 

Pascal

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Waaaay off the beaten path.......!

To further fuel your entertainment and possibly your nightmares, I present another fantasy Rolls-Royce model from David Cox.

When one builds commission models one must accommodate the client's wishes. But that constraint seldom limited David's imagination, skills or research. In this case David had a repeat and satisfied customer who had a unique request. For our purposes, we will refer to it as 'The Gun Car'.

56.jpg

Yes, a 'roaring '20's' -style gangster Sedanca, bristling with the gangster's tools of the trade - artillery!

How about starting with a (1/8 scale) demountable .30 Cal. machine gun? No problem!:

2.jpg

Cox brings new meaning to the term 'suicide doors'. He threw his entire bag of tricks at the basic car to start with; severe top chop, leather covered roof, body channeling over the extended wheelbase frame, cut down doors and body, chromed brass window frames, giant whitewalls, double spares and a full box Gurney - style trunk. WHEW ! Long, low and intimidating.

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And naturally, plenty of scale torque underhood:
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But that only covers the basics of this tour-de-force. A full luxury leather interior bristles with the client's wishes; .45 Cal automatics and all manner of sawed-off and exotic hand guns, all in cabinet-grade wood work:

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You can't make this stuff up - only Cox can. Note that both seats contain cabinetry full of guns and everything is hinged and operable:

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Of course for severe duty, like robbing banks, nothing works better than heavy artillery:

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Complete overhead lighting is always helpful for those late-night robberies or massacres:

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So once again I will beat the drum for you spectators to become daring big-scale builders and allow your imaginations to push your skills. David has been doing this for three decades for a reason; it is immensely satisfying !

 

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8 minutes ago, rjfk2002 said:

Wow that’s quite a get away car...  Did he use actual wood I. The interior?

Yes Rich, he always does. Many types of veneer for the finished areas.

All his featured cars here have it; of note is the Star of India Torpedo.

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Extravagant, Decadent and Opulent...

I will again unwrap a flight of fancy from the mind and bench of David Cox - because I sure as heck would not have thought of this. Whom do you know that would kit-bash TWO rare Pochers? And no this is not 'just another Rolls-Royce' from the site Rolls fanatic...

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OK so first we spot Bugatti T-50 wheels on a Rolls Sedanca. Hmmm...pretty cool but..then you notice something about the cars nose:

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Bugatti hoods and famous grille shell and radiator. Now who in real life would strip a Bug to get those body panels and wheels? - The same guy that would lift the blown Bugatti jewel of an engine. Can you envision a Bugatti up on milk crates with a big hole in the engine bay and no wheels on? Cox obviously could...

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Carefully arranged in fully-functional style. Looks at home and fits like a glove:

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Now let's view the marriage of the Anglo - Franco cultures on one chassis - not normally good bedfellows. Spectacular French creature comforts in the genius style of Ettore Bugatti housed in the stately arch-conservative structure of a Rolls.

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The finest veneers and leathers, perfect for touring the continent in supreme comfort and elegance:

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All the 'standard' Cox tricks for improving a Pocher's posture were applied as to all his cars; body placement and proportions and many lights and features, all bathed in chrome. The complex work of blending the Bugatti hood panels to the Rolls cowl is deceptive and completely natural-looking.

ModelMotorcar's beautiful landau irons perfectly compliment the Cox pebble-grained leather roof:
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The dazzling bright work, huge lights and badges are another hallmark of a Cox-built car:

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A little sight-seeing with a lovely lady outside the Royal Albert Hall is always fun:

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With any luck and your indulgence I will be able to bring a bit more of the Pocher work of David Cox.

Now we all have a 'Shelf of Doom', which as the name implies, is not our best work, left to decay in shame.

But here's a peek at a 'Shelf of Excellence' in the Cox household museum. Some of which you haven't seen yet. A mighty expensive shelf at that:

IMG-0582.jpg

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This must be my favourite one up to now. I noticed the wheels right away (no idea they were from a Bugatti, I don't know that much about cars). And it has a "compact" look about it that I like. And how on earth does one get the upholstery so tight?

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6 hours ago, JeroenS said:

This must be my favourite one up to now. I noticed the wheels right away (no idea they were from a Bugatti, I don't know that much about cars). And how on earth does one get the upholstery so tight?

First one starts with or makes the leather very thin. This allows pulling tight to stretch. CA is the adhesive of choice and sometimes double-sided or transfer tape. But not just any CA; the very thin will stain through the back of the leather to the front and ruin your work. Only one I know of will not and is called 'Bondini'. The preferred adhesive is CA Gel (I like Loctite) which for some reason does not. When making pleats a sharp straight edge is used to push leather into the pleat gap. Like the back of a knife or saw blade.

It's way up there in my actual build where I show the front and rear seats being fashioned.

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I fell accidentally on this thread, taking a break between 2 builds, and, what can I say? Impressive, very impressive, Codger, what a build! Definitely, there are really amazing builders on Brit. I admit I just looked at the photos (a lot of text and my english is just average) but showing such an amazing modeling work leads to humility.

 

Cheers,  Olivier 

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!

Although this thread has been present for five months, today I suddenly find a flurry of 'Likes' and generous comments by Titans of this site. Now I know that's because of the presence of all the Cox models which are unique and amazing. I will pass on to David all your warm compliments.

And Harvey, you say it would take you 'two lifetimes' to accomplish this work; but that's because you start from nothing and scratchbuild where as David and I simply modify kits. Remember that he has been doing this professionally for three decades. And you have not even seen his Bugattis, Alfas and Mercedes yet. I recommend his website for that.

Roginoz and Olivier were most generous and obviously enjoyed the work presented. I thank you on Dave's behalf. As I thank all who took a moment to write or express compliments about our old crocks.

I hope interest remains as I may pry out a few more of the Cox builds to display. Again I encourage any of you to build one or question what you see here.

Thanks again, to all. / C :worthy:

 

 

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