1/12 Porsche 917 and it's not MFH

[Pete in Lincs]

Very impressive. 100% (or more) better.

[Coors54]

2 hours ago, Schwarz-Brot said:

Looks as if you had a plan right from the beginning.  😄

If only! It's definitely a case of winging it, the more I do the more I see. But thanks for your encouragement.

[Coors54]

It's been a busy week so not a huge amount of progress, I'm still working but from home so my shifts are a bit less tiring but don't leave a lot of time for modelling once the household chores are squared away.

I've been slowly chipping away at finishing the rear suspension and engine details -

 

 

I've replaced the luggage tray stays with thinner brass rod and some etch plates from the scrap box, lead wire for the cabling to the rear lights held in place with wire ties.

 

 

Here's a view "up the chuff" showing the oil catch tank with an inlet pipe and overflow from silicon tube and the rear brake caliper flexies from the same stuff.

 

Then you put the spare tyre in place and cover most of it up! Ah well, to use that well known modellers phrase, I know it's there.

 

 

I've installed the rear light lenses after first putting in some "bulbs" using pieces of clear sprue.

 

 

Major macro just shows the indicator bulb.

 

As a little change of pace I also played about with the wheels and tyres, as I said in an earlier post "Tim" had been out scrounging parts and came back with some decals for the Firestone tyres. This was to correct the error that @klubman01 pointed out, here's a reminder of what we started with -

 

 

the rings needed to be gold and they're missing the little F trademark. BBK in the Netherlands do a set suitable for the era so a set was purchased and here they are -

 

 

I've lost the pictures I took whilst doing the next stages (no idea how) so I'll have to describe the process.

First off I put the wheels into a variable speed drill and scrubbed the vinyl rubber, I hoped this would suffice to get rid of the pasticky look but alas no so the tyres got a couple of coats of Revell Aqua Anthracite a more tyre colour than black. The lumps that were supposed to be the tyre valves were removed with a micro chisel then drilled to accept some white metal valves after which the wheels were given a couple of coats of matt black.

Once everything was dry the outer walls of the tyres were gloss coated in preparation for the decals, these were a bit delicate to apply but went down well, after they were dry I added some yellow hand painted identifiers as per race photo's then matt coated everything.

 

 

I've added some tyre weights and covered them with a speed tape coloured decal, ripped at the ends rather than cut and dulled down the starkness of the lettering with a dusting of matt black, wheel edges were touched with a silver pencil but I'm thinking that might be too heavy, I'll revisit these before fitting along with the handwritten bits which look oversize in this picture.

 

Next time on Model Car SOS - I'm about to move onto the front suspension then onto the more sexy stuff in the cockpit.

 

Fuzzy Dave

 

 

 

[klubman01]

Nice work.  The wheels and tyres look the business.

 

Trevor

[Sabrejet]

Nice: this is going to look very impressive.

[Coors54]

On this weeks instalment of 1/12 Car SOS we're putting some extra detail into the front suspension. The model has some man size suspension arms but I'm not going to replace or reduce them as they will lose their integrity and the body has a lot of weight that needs their support. But I am going to add some missing details like the shocks, brake hose and mess about with the brake discs.

 

 

Once again my eBay glue bomb Lotus 78 has donated the front shocks and lower mount, the upper mount is plastic card and Meng nuts and bolts, these are also added to the upper and lower arm ends.

 

 

 

 

Close ups do highlight my rough painting!! Anyway this shows my "fibre glass" bonding strips which although not totally prototypical in position are the way Porsche bonded in the wheel arch panels and the chassis to floor panel, in this case they can cover the way the two main chassis mouldings join. Watching some of the Gunnar Racing build videos suggested this so I've used strips of loo paper tissue soaked with a mix of PVA and water and I'll edge the floor plate as well.

The front discs had a single 4 pot caliper but also a duct at the front that joined the flexible hose bringing cooling air from the front NACA ducts, this isn't attempted on the model but I thought if I turned the disc and used the undetailed model caliper as the duct then add a more detailed Tamiya caliper at the rear this would add interest when viewed through the front wheel.

 

 

And finished, once the wheel is on virtually none of this will be visible but it will look busier when you peer through the wheel.

 

And my virtual colleague "Tim" has been blagging parts again, this time for the cockpit and all the way from Spain and Spot Models, great service and swift standard shipping.

 

 

So now we have the parts to spice up the dashboard and the cockpit is where we're going in the next episode.

 

Fuzz aka Dave

 

 

[Coors54]

I hope you are all having a lovely weekend, dodging the rain showers if you're in the UK I expect.

As promised this weeks episode of The Great British Silk Purse from a Sows Ear concentrates on the cockpit, as you saw from the last entry virtual "Tim" the parts man got a bunch jewjaws to pimp up the interior so let's get started.

First off the cockpit floor had some toilet roll strips added over the chassis frames to simulate the bonding strips that hold the floor

 

 

All a bit messy but the real thing was not much better! The moulded on battery has had the terminals drilled out to allow new posts and wiring to be fitted later.

Looking at photo's of the interior shows a wide variety of finishes and colours, mainly various shades of grey, I'm using some of the Le Mans film stills as go byes and painting it all dark grey, so a quick coat of Mr Paint and we get -

 

 

Battery painted and a hold strap added plus the new posts and cables, I've also added the cable conduit on the nearside cockpit wall to take the wiring loom from the dash. The floor has also been given a Flory wash to emphasis the textures.

Now onto the rear firewall, you may remember this had some reasonable detail -

 

 

But by the miracle of lead wire and paint you can get -

 

 

I've added the triangular plate that allowed access to the timing marks on the engine and the plate decals are from the BBK labels sheet. With the firewall fitted it looks like this - 

 

 

Looks nice and busy.

 

I've been clearing some aviation books from my loft, I really can't see me making a jet aircraft model ever again, and the proceeds have let me buy this -

 

 

This is superb, over 400 pages and an absolute treasure trove of information about each chassis number used by the JW Automotive team with loads of pictures and to cap it all copies of all chief engineer John Horsmans race data sheets so I now even know the spring colour codes on the 1970 Le Mans cars! It does illustrate how the cars developed and changed race by race and also how JWAE were masters of detail and their cars were bespoke to them even though they rotated back to Porsche after each race for rebuild. I'm halfway through reading it and loving it, but I missed out on an auction of The Certain Sound so still looking for that.

 

Anyway onward and upward, I turned my attention to the dashboard, again the one supplied by Minichamps wasn't bad but I thought I could improve it and add some better switches and warning lights - 

 

 

Murky shot but I've added to the wiper knob, drilled out all the push button switches and replaced them with Decalgas resin ones, added the two warning lights on the angled panel to the right plus a Decalgas toggle switch. The instrument panel has had coloured attention getter lights added and I've attempted to flock the dashboard top to replicate the felt covering on the real cars, this isn't totally successful to my mind and I may strip it back. Once the steering wheel is added and a fresh air tube it looks like this -

 

 

See what I mean about the flocking? In the flesh it's not as bad as it looks here, it is matt and the bright sunlight is really highlighting it.

 

 

Mmmm, I'm still not convinced....

 

Anyway that's all from me, next time it's the secondary fuse board, internal oil piping and pedal trays, all exciting stuff. Hopefully see you then.

 

Dave

 

[Coors54]

G'day folks, I'm on the home stretch with the cockpit interior and I've been doing a bit of scratch building with the secondary fuse board that sits in the nearside footwell -

 

 

These seem to vary slightly as other pictures show small variations in fittings but here's what I started with -

 

 

Scrap plastic card, bits from the scrap box and some lead wire, painted up with a few more wires -

 

 

Ooo, macro photography doesn't do it any favours!

 

Next bit of scratch building was the drivers foot plate, this seems to be a common feature of racing Porsches, the 934 and 935 have exactly the same thing with the raised part protecting the throttle cable, mine is made from the foil top to a wine bottle formed over a plastic card triangle to make the cable tunnel.

 

 

The last couple of parts are the gear lever assembly from the original model with an added securing nut and bolt and the oil pipes that on the JW cars ran inside the cockpit rather than through some of the chassis tubing. Presumably JW didn't trust the chassis tubing not to crack!

 

 

The oil pipes were lagged with some sort of material to try and cut down heat transmission which I simulated with cheap masking tape but I now realise why the Gulf cars had so many vents for the cockpit!

 

Final job was to pimp up the drivers seat, I cut holes in the sides for the lap belts to come through rather than over the top as the model had them and I got virtual "Tim" to get me an MFH harness set to provide the belts, buckles and the prominent Britax decal for the shoulder straps.

 

 

You can see the throttle cable heading aft under the seat here and the oil piping going the same way on the "passenger" side.

 

So putting everything together gives me -

 

 

Without the dash, and with -

 

 

Taking inspiration from some of the great MFH builds online I could have gone to town at the front end by adding brake and clutch cylinders, more chassis tubing and full oil radiator detailing but as absolutely none of this would be seen once the body was on sense prevailed and I decided to stop.

You will notice (if you are a 917 spotter) that I haven't painted the gear knob as a wood one, which is usual on 917's. Going through my Gulf 917 bible there is picture of Derek Bell sitting in the cockpit of this car in early 1971 and it has a metal gear knob, I then looked hard at pictures of #20 at Le Mans in 1970 and there is a well known one taken just before the start from directly in front but elevated (I'll try and scan it from the book) and there is a bright mark where the gear knob would be, again indicating metal. I then looked at the start footage from the Le Mans movie and Steve McQueen is getting in then waiting and his hand rests on - the metal gear knob!  Probably not this chassis in that clip but it shows metal knobs were used in period. Such small discoveries make me a happy nerd!

 

Next time I hope to be tackling the bodywork, this worries me greatly as I think I may have to get my hacksaw out and if that goes wrong then all this work will be wasted!

 

Fuzz aka Dave

 

[Sabrejet]

Looking good! One small note: I'm not sure that 917s were fitted with that 'passenger' seat in period. Most modern-day survivors don't have it either. I've poked around in many 917s over recent years and the only one that currently has one (apart from road-going 917-030) is 917-023, the Le Mans winner. Even then I think it's only fitted so that it can take passengers on PR rides. 

 

I may be wrong but I have a suspicion that the 'passenger' seat was fitted for the initial inspection of the 25 cars for homologation but not thereafter.

 

Do you know either way?

[Coors54]

I'm pretty sure the passenger seat was an homolagation requirement in period, the same as carrying a spare wheel and the ludicrous luggage trays behind the rear wheels. Brian Redman also recalls having to put the spare wheel into the passenger seat when the fitting broke to enable them to finish the race adhering to the rule of having to carry the spare!

It's late but I'll check my references in the morning, I'll be embarrassed if I spotted the gear knob but missed the seat!

 

Dave

 

PS According to 917-023 The Biography the genuine car makes very few appearances, they do have a replica that races, I don't know about PR rides, sure your not thinking of the old red 917, Herr Messlers Taxi froM the late 70's?

Edited July 1, 2020 by Coors54
PS

[Sabrejet]

8 minutes ago, Coors54 said:

I'm pretty sure the passenger seat was an homolagation requirement in period, the same as carrying a spare wheel and the ludicrous luggage trays behind the rear wheels. Brian Redman also recalls having to put the spare wheel into the passenger seat when the fitting broke to enable them to finish the race adhering to the rule of having to carry the spare!

It's late but I'll check my references in the morning, I'll be embarrassed if I spotted the gear knob but missed the seat!

 

Dave

 

PS According to 917-023 The Biography the genuine car makes very few appearances, they do have a replica that races, I don't know about PR rides, sure your not thinking of the old red 917, Herr Messlers Taxi froM the late 70's?

No -definitely 023 (the car without the mirrors). I've seen both, so know it's the real one with the seat: here are a few I've photographed in recent years, including -023

 

917-001, the recently-restored Porsche Museum car:

 

917-5LT

 

 

917-10 (David Piper's flip-front car, which I think also has a metallic gear knob😞

 

 

917-013:

 

 

917-023 (no mirrors!):

 

 

917-030 (the road car):

 

 

917-031:

 

 

[klubman01]

I'm fairly certain that passenger seats were fitted at the time - homologation requirement.  It was much smaller than the driver's seat, though.

 

In this picture you can just see the passenger seat beyond the driver's seat.

 

Hope that helps.

 

Trevor

 

[Sabrejet]

In fact I found a photo of 917-001 just after its homologation and it has the seat fitted, so yes, definitely there in period. Which does make me wonder why Porsche restored it to its initial configuration but without the seat. 🤨

[Coors54]

You really got me worried there @Sabrejet ! I couldn't believe I had missed the seat NOT being there. Nice pics, you must have a good lens taking those from over the rear decking!

It's always a chore sorting out genuine in period pictures whilst trawling the 'net, there are so many restorations and so many incorrectly captioned ones as well, so like restored aircraft, racing cars are restored to their owners wishes which are not always in keeping with the original article and are generally not good sources of reference. Mind you any restorations are sublime to watch and listen to so we can't complain too much, it's their money paying for it and we are lucky they do.

And anyway if you're racing a 917 in classic events why would you cart a seat, spare wheel and other no longer required by rules parts around?

 

So going through my saved pictures and the 3 books I've recently bought on the 917 I'm positive the cars had to have the seat installed, here are some from 1970 that show the seat (it's low down so doesn't usually show up very well) -

 

Jo Siffert have a quiet ponder in 917-14 at Watkins Glen 1970

 

Bit of a grim one, 917-13 after David Pipers accident in which he lost part of his leg whilst filming the movie Le Mans in the autumn of 1970.

 

Bit more cheerful, Le Mans winner 917-23 at the Ostereichring September1970.

 

I appreciate the comments and feedback, that's why we all post here after all, now I can breathe more easily and get back to plucking up courage to get my saw to the body.

 

I'm always interested to see others photo's and pictures in build threads, they add to the value so why not add yours like @Sabrejet? There's no excuse needed for a bit of 917 porn! 🤣

 

Dave

 

 

Edited July 11, 2020 by Coors54
extra text

[Coors54]

4 hours ago, Sabrejet said:

Which does make me wonder why Porsche restored it to its initial configuration but without the seat. 🤨

Maybe so they don't get asked to give rides?  

 

Like all restorations, he who pays the money makes the decisions, Bruce Canepas restoration of 917-04 is one of the few recent ones that seems to have added all the in period parts, most others are restored to be raced in classic events so leave the non essential parts out, gearbox cooling ducting being one, being replaced by a small cooler.

 

Dave

[Sabrejet]

5 hours ago, Coors54 said:

I'm always interested to see others photo's and pictures in build threads, they add to the value so why not add yours like @Sabrejet? There's no excuse needed for a bit of 917 porn! 🤣

 

Dave

 

 

Well you asked for it! (and apologies over Seatgate).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

...including such luminaries as Richard Attwood, Derek Bell, David Piper, my hero Brian Redman and a young whippersnapper called Mark Webber.

[Coors54]

Oh matron, I feel a  turn coming on.......

 

Most excellent pictures and the greats are all there ( but no Derek Bell?).

 

Dave

[Sabrejet]

1 hour ago, Coors54 said:

Oh matron, I feel a  turn coming on.......

 

Most excellent pictures and the greats are all there ( but no Derek Bell?).

 

Dave

Derek Bell is in the No.20 car, photo 1.

 

(I seem to recall Hans Herrmann was in the 21 Martini car too).

Edited July 2, 2020 by Sabrejet

[Covjets13]

Fantastic progress Dave 👍👍

[Pascal]

Very nice work Dave, love all the details that you added.

 

Great photos Sabrejet !

[Coors54]

G'day all, it's been a while since my last update, I've been gainfully employed by SWMBO in revamping the kitchen and I am so over painting cabinet doors!

So only a small update to show one of the last interior parts, the rear window above the firewall. 

Using period photos again and mainly the well known still of Steve McQueen in the car at the race start I masked off the sliding window to leave the top and bottom to be painted and added some rivets from dabs of Krystal Klear.

 

 

 

And fitted into place -

 

 

I need to touch in that frame on the left.....

 

But a comparison with what I started with and where I am now is encouraging.

 

 

All this is of course putting off the modifications to the body, my metal working skills are not, how shall I put this?, - proficient .......

and I don't want to have to strip and repaint the shell if I can avoid it.

I can see  7 areas that need attention -

1) the roof vent, a feature of all JWAE cars.

2) rear wing, this was broken on my model so will need repairing and replacing but the main problem is the two flip up wings on either side of the rear decking, more details next time.

3) fresh air duct in the nose directly in front of the windscreen, missing on the model.

4) emergency cut off switch cut out on the nearside, at present only a decal.

5)  on the opposite side to the cut out switch is a decalled round circle, on the Le Mans car this is an identification light, green on the #20 car so this will need to be redone or enhanced.

6) New racing number illumination lamps, the ones supplied are the wrong pattern.

7) a new more delicate (or scale like) windscreen wiper.

 

No doubt others will rear their heads but it's more than enough to start with.

 

See you soon.

 

Dave

[Coors54]

It's time for a final update on the 917, I've been chipping away at the last few jobs over the last couple of months but I've been very remiss in not taking pictures or updating, so here's a round up of what I have done.

 

One of the main comments that @Schwarz-Brot made at the beginning of this saga was the windscreen wiper and how out of scale it was, I totally agreed so set about making a new one using brass strip.

 

 

I kept the ends of the arms from the model and added new arms and blades.

 

 

Slightly fuzzy focus, sorry.

 

 

And painted and in place, the washer tube is tinted silicon tubing. The lower clip has come unstuck! Didn't notice that......

 

Again early on @klubman01 pointed out that the rear spoilers stuck up too much, they did and they were far too thick to boot.

 

 

I was worried about modifying them as they were cast into the body but I had a stiff drink and got the hacksaw out, filed the cut then made new spoilers out of brass sheet. JWAE used a different spoiler arrangement than the other teams and coupled with a centre wing this gave more adjustable downforce, so some adjustment linkages were made and voila.

 

 

The racing number lights on the model were also wrong, they were square Hella pattern number plate lamps as used by the Salzburg team, whereas the Gulf cars being run by a British team opted for what look like MGB rear number plate lights, being more rounded. So I plunge moulded some clear plastic from a food container, trimmed up the best ones and added fixing bolts.

 

 

As you can see I've weathered the car to represent it at about 7.30 in the evening, before the headlight protectors are removed but far enough into the wet part of the race to get things dirty. This is based on a photograph in the Gulf Porsche book along with some inspiration from the Le Mans film cars, I'm not 100% happy with it but I'm drawing the line here.

 

I've really enjoyed messing about with this big diecast, it's not perfect but it satisfies my yen for a big 917 and it's been satisfying to add detail without spending mega money.

 

My thanks to all that have commented, it's provided encouragement and other eyes on the problems.

 

I'll put up an RFI thread with some more overall pictures but here's the final one for this thread.

 

 

Now onto the big BMW CSL.

 

Dave

 

 

 

[klubman01]

Ooh, that looks really good.

 

Trevor

[Pouln]

+1. Totally agree. Very convincing.

[Schwarz-Brot]

There you go. A few little brave moves gave you a nice and way more realistic model. I think you can be proud of your work.