Mercedes L 4500

[vytautas]

4 hours ago, NIK122 said:

Never put off what you can do tomorrow, tomorrow!🤔🤪

 

Yes, yes, exactly! What needs to be done tomorrow, should never be done earlier than a week, but it's better to do it in a month. Alright, alright maybe two. Believe me, I have a lot of experience in such matters! 

This way we will have the pleasure of watching this build longer.

 

Vytautas

 

[echen]

8 hours ago, vytautas said:

This way we will have the pleasure of watching this build longer.

And it will be really worth it!

Where else but on Britmodeller can we get masterclasses like this?

[Lummox]

My, my, it's been quite some time since my last update. Suffice it to say that there hasn't been a great deal of progress to report upon. I could bore you with a catalogue of excuses, but I won't, well apart from one or two maybe.

 

One reason was the Lummox clan hitting the road to La Belle France, taking in the Normandy beaches on the way (a visit to which has always been on my bucket list). Please indulge me while I post a few pictures.

We sailed past this white elephant on the way:

 

Stayed at Arromanche-le-Bains with the remnants of the Mulberry harbour:

 

Visited the bluffs above Omaha beach (pity the poor souls who had to land on those open killing fields):

 

If you go (and I recommend that you do) you should visit the various cemeteries/memorials and pay your respects to those who paid the ultimate price. The British Normandy Memorial at Ver-sur-Mer overlooking Gold beach is especially poignant with the addition of 1,475 bronze silhouettes that represent a life lost on D-Day. I believe that this 'Standing with Giants' installation will be removed later this month, which is a shame, as it certainly brings home the sacrifice of young men (on all sides) and the utter futility of war...

 

Right, enough of the holiday snaps, how's the build progressing?

Well, another reason for the slow progress is that we're at the weathering stage for the chassis. This being a process I dislike mainly because I struggle with it, and I'm terrified of overdoing things. So it's a case of do a bit, wait for the oils to dry, see what it looks like, do a bit more, wait for the oils to dry, see what it looks like - you get the picture. I'm kinda aiming for a relatively clean but dusty look, but may well end up with something quite different.

 

Anyway, enough of the blather, what's the current state of play? It's still very much work in progress, but I'm more comfortable with the look of the licence plates now they've got a bit of grime:

 

Swerving massively off tangent, let's go down a rabbit hole and talk about tyre pressure. You may or may not have noticed that German vehicles of the period had tyre pressure information stenciled above the wheel arches. The stencils don't appear on all vehicles, and when they do they are generally illegible 'squiggles':

 

The stencils state the required pressure for the tyre in Atü units. Preempting our friend Jochen (), the internet states that 'the traditional German unit of pressure was the Atü - atmospheres of pressure above atmospheric/reference pressure'. Fair enough, but what should the specific pressure be for our truck? Let's look for examples...

 

An extant museum example has 3.5 scribbled on the wheel arch. Hmmm, not sure about that:

 

A period Holzgas truck example, although very unclear, looks to have 4.something (possibly 4.5?):

 

A post-war(?) fire truck example looks to have 5.5:

 

So, I guess you pays your money and takes your choice. We'll go for 4.5 Atü, primarily because that's we have in the spare decal stash .

 

Small isn't it, which is good, because if it's wrong you can't really read unless you're really close anyway :

 

And that's where we're up to. As ever, cheers, and thanks for looking,

 

Paul.

[Keeff]

Any progress is progress, no matter how small! 

 

Normandy is on my bucket list too, so thank you for sharing the pictures! 

 

Keith 😁 

[Lummox]

On 8/10/2024 at 8:49 AM, Keeff said:

Any progress is progress, no matter how small! 

 

Normandy is on my bucket list too, so thank you for sharing the pictures! 

Cheers Keith. Normandy is well worth a trip, though if I was to visit again, I think I'd go with some like minded friends rather than the family. They indulged me, bless them, but there's only so many museums/memorials/gun emplacements/etc. you can drag them around before they start looking at their phones,

 

Right, I have some shocking news - there has been an uncharacteristic burst of activity! I don't know what's come over me to be honest. Perhaps I'm ailing for something, or maybe the holiday recharged some batteries I didn't know I had. Whatever, we have some progress to report on...

 

Firstly, the front axle was weathered up and added to the chassis, the steering being set to a jaunty full-lock. I thought I'd add a picture of the steering mechanism at this point as it's doubtful we'll ever see it again when the wheel is on: 🤪

 

Talking of wheels, one thing led to another, and before we knew what was happening, the truck has it's boots on:

 

A bit of fettling was needed, but not too bad considering the butchering that went on with the wheels. There was some collateral damage on the way (note the absent width indicator) but any missing 'sticky out' bits are safe and sound but left off for now, I was momentarily concerned about the 'toeing in' of front wheels, thinking that something had gone out of square somewhere down the line. A bit of digging, however, confirmed that positive camber is apparently a good thing, giving 'a smoother ride for the vehicle on uneven ground, which makes it common for most off-read vehicles'. Every day is a school day (it is for me anyway):

 

Finding corroborating evidence of positive camber was more of a challenge, head-on pictures where the wheels are visible being hard to find. I did find a diagram, however, where camber seems to be evident, and a picture of an extant truck maybe suggests some camber?

 

The butchered wheels have turned out OK which is pleasing. As suspected that steering mechanism is more or less hidden now the wheel is on:

 

All six wheel touch the ground and everything is level, which is a result:

 

And finally, the weighted wheel effect gives a nice 'planted' look to things:

 

And that's things up to date. It feels like we've hit a significant milestone now the truck is on it's feet and starting to look like, well, a truck.

 

Cheers, and thanks for looking,

 

Paul.

[NIK122]

Excellent 😎

[Bullbasket]

Careful Paul. If you carry on at this rate, you'll be in danger of finishing before Christmas!

Chassis is looking excellent. Great work.

 

John.

[Shagohod]

Your attention to detail is amazing. Coming to this thread is always a pleasure.  

[Keeff]

5 hours ago, Lummox said:

there has been an uncharacteristic burst of activity!

Easy Paul!! 

 

Al looks very good.  Nice to see the wheels posed rather than straight. 

 

5 hours ago, Lummox said:

and a picture of an extant truck maybe suggests some camber?

There is some camber .... look at the nearside wheel and it looks like it tucking under .... characteristic of camber. 

 

It's nice the family indulge your interests ... luckily Mrs K has a gained a bit of interest in history since she met me! 😂

 

Keep up the good work!

 

Keith 😁 

[Hamden]

 

Very nice progress really starting to look like a truck now!

 

          Roger

[echen]

22 hours ago, Bullbasket said:

Careful Paul. If you carry on at this rate, you'll be in danger of finishing before Christmas!

Which one, 2027 or 2028?

[APA]

Just brilliant attention to detail Lummox 👍🏻👏 This is a great thread. may it never end, which it probably won't 😉🤣

 

Andrew

[robw_uk]

On 8/25/2024 at 6:21 AM, Bullbasket said:

Careful Paul. If you carry on at this rate, you'll be in danger of finishing before Christmas!

Chassis is looking excellent. Great work.

 

John.

That's Christmas 2026 tho.....

 

Great progress. I need to reread this build a few times.

[vaoinas]

Absolutely Beautiful!
Can't wait for more.

[Lummox]

Wow, I've been blown away with all the responses, although there appears to be a common theme that suggests that I'm not the quickest of builders. I'm not sure where you get that impression from, after all this thread has only been going for 3.5 years - it's only just run in.

Joking aside, thanks to you all - it certainly helps with the motivation!

 

On 8/25/2024 at 11:10 AM, NIK122 said:

Excellent 😎

Cheers Nik, much appreciated. Coincidentally, I was wondering the other day what had happened with your three-pointed star G4 beauty?

 

On 8/25/2024 at 11:21 AM, Bullbasket said:

Careful Paul. If you carry on at this rate, you'll be in danger of finishing before Christmas!

Chassis is looking excellent. Great work.

Thanks John. I suspect that Xmas is a bit optimistic - we don't want to rush things now do we?

 

On 8/25/2024 at 4:07 PM, Shagohod said:

Your attention to detail is amazing. Coming to this thread is always a pleasure. 

Cheers Shago, very kind of you to say. 👍

 

On 8/25/2024 at 4:55 PM, Keeff said:

Keep up the good work!

Thanks Keith. Yes, I think the camber is valid, so credit to Zvezda for moulding it into the front axle (though if I was being picky I think they may have overdone it slightly). I trust you're keeping Mrs K on her toes by testing her frequently on your history words of wisdom?

 

On 8/25/2024 at 7:25 PM, Hamden said:

Very nice progress really starting to look like a truck now!

Cheers Roger. It's amazing how the addition of some wheels has suddenly transformed things.

 

On 8/26/2024 at 9:23 AM, echen said:

Which one, 2027 or 2028?

Ha, steady on now Echen - what's that they say about people in glass houses?

 

On 8/26/2024 at 8:05 PM, APA said:

Just brilliant attention to detail Lummox 👍🏻👏 This is a great thread. may it never end, which it probably won't 😉🤣

Thanks Andrew. Great throwaway line there - proper laugh with that one.

 

On 8/27/2024 at 9:11 AM, robw_uk said:

Great progress. I need to reread this build a few times.

Cheers Rob, I didn't realise you suffered from insomnia though.

 

On 8/27/2024 at 9:51 AM, vaoinas said:

Absolutely Beautiful!
Can't wait for more.

Thanks Kristjan, much appreciated. 👍

 

 

Right, as for the build, the long weekend has happily allowed more bench time. With the chassis progressing nicely, I figured that the next logical addition would be the engine. Those of you with excellent memories may recall that the engine was built many moons ago, it being cocooned away awaiting the work on the chassis. Unfortunately the engine suffered some damage during it's hibernation, as illustrated by this pretty poor image. The red arrows indicate a broken line which should represent a fuel line that recirculates unburnt fuel (I think). The yellow arrow indicates the wire that connects the glow plugs (again, I think), this being broken at the LHS where it should extend to travel through the firewall:

 

That picture is a bit rubbish, so let's see what things look like on the extant truck at the Stammheim museum. Again red arrows indicate the unburnt fuel line, yellow arrows the glow plug connectors:

 

Another museum example, but with more period components. Same story with the arrows:

 

No doubt you're fed up with arrows by now, so let's see what the engine looks like with the damaged lines replaced:

 

While studying engine pictures I noticed a lever with spring 'thing' that disappears behind the Einspritzpumpe (fuel injector pump):

 

I don't have a clue what the 'thing' is (something to do with the throttle perhaps?), but let's add it anyway while we're here. What do you mean you can't see it?

 

The eagle-eyed amongst you may have noticed a few placards have appeared here and there on the engine, Some placards represent real features on the engine, some are more fanciful. I'm a sucker for 'em though as I feel they lift and add interest to what would fundamentally be a lump of greyness. 'Where do the placards come from?' you may ask. Well, from these 1/32 cockpit placard decals:

 

You get all kinds of shapes and sizes, and although these are Luftwaffe based, it doesn't really matter as they are generally illegible:

 

I'm rambling a bit, for which I apologise, but finally for completeness, let's see the other side of the engine. It's a lot less busy, but we've added some simplistic wiring to what is assumed to be the alternator and the starter motor:

 

And that brings things up to date. Cheers, and thanks for looking,

 

Paul.

[echen]

51 minutes ago, Lummox said:

Ha, steady on now Echen - what's that they say about people in glass houses?

I doubt I'll get anything finishrd before 2030 at the rate I get through kits...

Edited August 30, 2024 by echen

[Keeff]

Excellent work!  The engine is a mini masterpiece and looks fantastic!  I'm now scratching my head thinking what that lever and spring may be for ....

 

Keith 😁 

[robw_uk]

Not insomnia, am in the US for 3 weeks of sun and eacapism

[Bullbasket]

10 hours ago, Lummox said:

I'm rambling a bit,

Keep on rambling if it means that you keep turning out work like this. My only problem with this is trying to distinguish between the model engine and the real thing. Keep it up Paul. Great work.

 

John.

[echen]

I have 2 1/72 Famos to build. There are engines included. The tremendous detail here is something to aspire to - at least in theory. This one will be a great source of reference.

Edited August 31, 2024 by echen

[edjbartos]

Tremendous detail, beautiful work....

 

Ed

 

[FrancisGL]

Amazing detailing, great reference for painting engines.

Cheers

Francis 👍

[NIK122]

'Cheers Nik, much appreciated. Coincidentally, I was wondering the other day what had happened with your three-pointed star G4 beauty?'

I'm still working on it!🙄

Maybe these builds could become a competition to see who can spend the longest time building a model in recorded human history.🤪

Jokes aside, I'm finding the G4 a pig of a kit

 

[Jochen Barett]

On 31/08/2024 at 00:45, Keeff said:

Excellent work!  The engine is a mini masterpiece and looks fantastic!  I'm now scratching my head thinking what that lever and spring may be for ....

 

Keith 😁 

 

My shot from the hip: It's the "Gaszugrückholfeder" (Throttle Return Spring).

 

IIRC Diesel engines don't have (used not to have because they did not need, but have nowadays for other reasons) a throttle plate. "Throttle" was done by postioning some governor-thingie in the Einspritzpumpe, so the "cable" or "linkage" would go from accelerator pedal to the injection pump.

 

This is guess work, not kowledge.

 

 

[Lummox]

We're on a bit of a roll at the moment with more progress to report on. Shocking I know - I really don't know what's got into me!

But first, some responses to your encouraging comments...

 

On 8/30/2024 at 9:28 PM, echen said:

I doubt I'll get anything finishrd before 2030 at the rate I get through kits...

Never fear Echen, it's not a race, I think of it as getting your money's worth out of the kits that you buy.

 

On 8/30/2024 at 11:45 PM, Keeff said:

Excellent work!  The engine is a mini masterpiece and looks fantastic!  I'm now scratching my head thinking what that lever and spring may be for ....

Cheers Keith. What the lever and spring thing was for certainly got the old cogs whirring, but it looks like Jochen may have come up with the goods.

 

On 8/31/2024 at 1:17 AM, robw_uk said:

Not insomnia, am in the US for 3 weeks of sun and eacapism

Sounds good Rob - enjoy!

 

On 8/31/2024 at 6:43 AM, Bullbasket said:

Keep on rambling if it means that you keep turning out work like this. My only problem with this is trying to distinguish between the model engine and the real thing. Keep it up Paul. Great work.

Thanks John. One of my (many) faults is that I do like a good ramble, so pleased to hear it's not too off-putting.

 

On 8/31/2024 at 9:53 AM, echen said:

I have 2 1/72 Famos to build. There are engines included. The tremendous detail here is something to aspire to - at least in theory. This one will be a great source of reference.

Cheers Echen. 👍

 

On 8/31/2024 at 11:06 AM, edjbartos said:

Tremendous detail, beautiful work....

Thanks Ed, very kind of you to say. 👍

 

On 9/1/2024 at 11:01 AM, FrancisGL said:

Amazing detailing, great reference for painting engines.

Cheers Francis. I kinda struggle with painting engines, finding it a tricky balance between the need for them to look used, but not over the top grubby. Your comment is very encouraging - thank you. 👍

 

On 9/1/2024 at 11:17 AM, NIK122 said:

I'm still working on it!🙄

Maybe these builds could become a competition to see who can spend the longest time building a model in recorded human history.🤪

Jokes aside, I'm finding the G4 a pig of a kit

Sorry to hear that you've fallen out of love with your G4 Nik. Often we're our own harshest critic, but following your last update, it looks to me to be coming one very nicely indeed.

 

On 9/1/2024 at 7:40 PM, Jochen Barett said:

My shot from the hip: It's the "Gaszugrückholfeder" (Throttle Return Spring).

Thanks Jochen - I reckon your guess is not too wide of the mark. I've failed to find any evidence of any hint of a linkage to the throttle pedal, but I may let my imagination run wild and knock something up (although space is very limited when the cab is in place).

 

 

Right on with the update...

Have you ever noticed something, that you can't understand how you hadn't noticed it before, that you wish you'd noticed way earlier, and now it's been noticed it cannot be unnoticed? No? Maybe it's just me then. 🤪

Let me try to explain. Comparing the engine sump with pictures of the real thing we see that the kit representation looks somewhat crude and clumsy. The main problem seems to be the number of cooling fins(?) on the sump, the kit having 4 fins, the real thing having 6-7:

 

'So what?', you may ask, 'the sump will be hidden in the bowels of the engine bay anyway'. Well, not really, as the truck's high stance means that the sump is quite prominent:

 

One fix could be to 'box' the sump in which seems to have happened on some examples (maybe to protect the exposed sump when traveling off road?):

 

Another option would be to replace the sump with something more representative. Let's see what we can do....

Well you can't make an omelette without breaking some eggs. I must admit that I didn't expect the sump to be a solid lump of plastic, so hacking it off was more tricky than I'd expected. Thank goodness the engine didn't have lots of delicate, intricate wiring in place that could be damaged during the operation. Oh, hang on...

 

With the sump off we need to fabricate a replacement. A picture paints a thousand words so I'll let these do the talking:

 

The base of the kit sump was salvaged from the kit offering and everything was then pieced back together again:

 

Sloshing some paint on revealed the new sump with increased number of cooling fins:

 

And finally a before/after comparison. Amazingly no wiring was damaged during the process - the modelling gods were certainly smiling.

The proof of the pudding will be when the engine is mounted on the chassis. What's the betting that the sump won't be visible after all?

 

And that brings things up to date. After the burst of activity over the last few weeks, I suspect that normal service will unfortunately be resumed. Various trips and work commitments are rearing their ugly heads, so sadly progress is going to reduce. Ho hum, such is life

 

For now, cheers, and thanks for looking,

 

Paul.