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MFH 1/12 Mercedes Benz C11


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Hello everyone, this is Kenneth from Hong Kong.

 

I would like to share with you the progress of my build of the 1/12 MFH Mercedes Benz C11.  The car I wish to build is C11 #31 which won the 5th place of the 1991 Le Mans.  The car is driven by K. Wendlinger, M. Schumacher and F. Kreutzpointner.

 

My knowledge about sports car is limited so do correct me if you find any incorrect in the narratives.  Your valuable comments is welcomed.

 

I start the kit with the assembly of the roll cage and engine holder and below is some photos taken during the process.

 

White metal parts are filed and polished.

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Chassis, engine, gearbox, roll cage and engine holder are temporary assembled and their position fixed.

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The roll cage and the engine holder are joint by solder.  All joints are filed and polished.

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Though most of the roll cage will be covered by the body, it's fun to treat it seriously.

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Roll cage dismounted.

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Next I shall build the chassis and shall update this thread from time to time.

 

Thanks for watching

Kenneth

 

 

 

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Welcome to the forums Kenneth, that's a great start on another excellent looking MFH kit of a car I really like!

 

Some excellent soldering to get the cage looking so good!

 

Looking forward to seeing it progress :)

 

Keith

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  • LKF1130 changed the title to MFH 1/12 Mercedes Benz C11

Kenneth,

 

Welcome and welcome to that gorgeous MFH kit! You will find a number of Model Factory Hiro fans here (myself very much included). I'm really looking forward to seeing this build. I met the whole Sauber team at Le Mans '91 but I have to say that from scrutineering onwards I had my eyes mainly on the Mazda team. I was hoping that Yojiro Terada might take a well-deserved victory but in the end the result was still awesome.

 

The C11 was one of my favourite Group C cars, but I only took a few photos of the #31 car that year. I hope these may be of use: two photos taken during scrutineering and two during practice & race:

 

20

 

21

 

145

 

148

 

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Thanks for your warm welcomes and the reference photos for the C11.  It’s a great help in painting the model.

 

I have completed the first stage of building the cockpit and radiator frame.  It takes me around 30 hours.

 

C11’s chassis, cockpit, radiator frame and the wing are built from carbon fibre.  MHF creates them from resin and simulates the appearances of carbon fibre by means of a lot of carbon decals.

 

y4mKlcw-GA9IdB7uel65HWkThn5oYAs2hnnCsM_F

 

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Here’s how I execute the MFH’s idea.

 

The resin cockpit and the radiator frame are prepared and primed with gloss black.  Primed with gloss black not only provides a smooth base for the decals, it also eliminates the need to re-touch the decals’ borders in case that they are not perfectly matched.

 

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Next step is to apply the decals.  Since MFH does not provide decals for the sidewalls and the floor of the cockpit, I create them from scratch.

 

y4mQiIG8LOTaZoTgDsRsHcniEJ1y7kxRXI6CFuu3

 

Then the kit’s decals applied.  They are not difficult to apply, all you need is patience.  When their application is completed, they are sealed with several coats of gloss clear.

 

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Here are some pictures of the temporarily assembled cockpit and radiator frame.

 

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y4m-mTDgpuCrgTPq0oiCR00a0vvYSDleGsHbrwsF

 

For the next stage for the cockpit, I am going to install its white metal parts.

 

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I am looking forward to posting the next update.  Thanks for watching.

Kenneth

 

 

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  • 2 weeks later...

Thanks you all for your encouragements.

 

Here’s a small update.  I’ve completed the seatbelt system.  The seatbelt system comprises white metal parts, etched parts, ribbon and stickers.

 

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Thanks for watching.

Kenneth

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The work on the cockpit continues smoothly.

 

Pedals and the steering mechanism installed

y4mSS7Vn_i42aN_3ydrtoTDl-bMKYTSsboT3QrRU 

 

Aftermarket rivets inserted

y4mA0VTqcQw4UXBVPVderHPfZl0m1f9KwdNGzpk4 

 

The three resin parts of the cockpit are merged; engine control unit is attached and wirings will be added later

 

y4mSqOjwlAiPrF5ndA7wm-TidN0FZ5PlO3MLAw_d 

 

Front suspension and steering system completed, not all the contact points require CA glue, if applied it will be difficult to do the adjustments to the parts

 

y4mbsgT5IfhN_36fojWhKgGVztPWa4xXAnCzj70V 

 

White “bottles/containers” are installed but I don’t know what they are 😅

 

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Here’s the end of this update.  Thanks for watching.

Kenneth

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Really nice detailing Kenneth, good update! The front suspension looks very realistic!

 

The white bottles I believe are the clutch/brake master cylinder and possibly power steering fluid resevoirs with the big one being the coolant overflow tank (or maybe screenwash container? )

 

Keith

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There are at least six model shops in MongKok / Yau Ma Tei Districts, some emphasise on kits and materials, some emphasise on aftermarket accessories, do pay a visit to them when you visit Hong Kong next time.

 

Kenneth

Edited by LKF1130
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  • 2 weeks later...
  • 1 month later...

Hello fellow modellers, the build of the C11 continues but a bit slow.   

 

The instrument penal is completed.

 

y4mkKAWkB8H6OF0WdAHVWxSo883YhuIV7FQEnDvR 

 

The next thing is to build the chassis.  The chassis is a large sheet of resin (14 inches long, 7 inches wide) and it is not difficult to deal with.  Just sand it and paint it black.

 

The application of aluminium foil to the engine compartment requires some tricks.  The aluminium foil is self-adhesive and is not easy to handle.  If they are pasted directly to the chassis then the re-positioning of which will not be possible and wrinkles/damages are certain to occur.

 

I add a few drops of detergent to water and apply it to the chassis and the detached aluminium foil with brush in order to temporarily reduce the adhesiveness of the latter so that I can re-position them until they sit correctly.  Toothpicks are used to expel the water underneath the foil by moving towards their edges and to iron the wrinkles.

 

y4mPMRsI7hvTGPOv-Q1AlwqEergUTX8R4ujbfegA 

 

Aftermarket rivets are applied to the chassis.

 

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Here’s some photos with the cockpit sits on the chassis.

 

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Then come to the construction of the exhaust pipes.  One end of the exhaust pipe is connected to the engine and the other end is connected to the turbocharger.  The position of the four insertion pins of each side of the exhaust pipes is fixed by the engines’s resin parts.  Parts are put together by solder and supplemented by CA glue.  Solder is applied at the bottom of the exhaust pipes so that they are not visible after installation.  It would be very difficult, if not impossible, to construct the exhaust pipes after the completion of the engine.

 

y4mVRHbDJHqSQAHvAQc77UpV2Z8wYc-Lwrb698k- 

 

The exhaust pipes, together with the turbochargers and the intercoolers, will be attached to the model when the engine, gearbox and the roll cage are installed at a later stage.

 

Here’s the end of this update.  I shall build the engine, gearbox and the rear suspension system and hopefully to present them to you soon.

 

Thanks for watching.

Kenneth

 

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  • 2 months later...

Hello, I am pleased to present an update of my MFH 1/12 Mercedes Benz C11, this time the middle section of the body.

 

The middle section of the body comprises several resin parts and a pair of door made of white metal.

 

Resin parts are covered with #1200 surfacer; they are polished with 1000/1200 grit water-proof sandpaper when dry.

 

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Holders made from plastic sheet are added to the side panels for receiving the air intake ducts.

 

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Insertion pins and holes are created for the side panels and the cockpit roof to fix their position.

 

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Side panels and the cockpit roof are test fitted to the chassis for installation of the doors.

 

y4mj5xSxW5z-A9lNe-zAHoLlvWCYOSwVq_u_03MM

 

The doors are made of white metal.  Adjustments to its height and thickness should be made for fitting them to the body.  I use diamond files and a battery-powered grinder to do the adjustments.  Further, they should be carefully bended to conform with the contour of the cockpit roof.

 

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Here’s some pictures of the middle section of the body with the components test fitted to it.

 

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Here’s the end of this update.  Thanks for watching.

 

Kenneth

 

 

 

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  • 1 month later...

Hello All,  here’s another update of my build of the C11.

 

As the weight of C11 is increasing, in order to protect the fragile suspension systems of finished model, I added foam pads to the chassis so that the weight of the model is spread across them instead of concentrating on the suspension systems and the wheels.

 

y4mdDxf9t5LNunTeelvOE-5vKtpgGKVll-IFf4U4 

 

The roll cage, the M119 engine, rear axles, rear suspension, transmission and the rear wing stand are completed and merged.  Here’s the pictures of the finished system.

 

The M119 Engine:

y4mUK-lI2800G0JM9db3cQZK7KB9ifzA7ZX7NrDQ 

 

The roll cage, engine, rear axles, rear suspension, transmission and the rear wing stand:

y4m5aQS7zJoIB9vo81ZK8JBpf34huSw7t6oOnBG0 

 

I think I have passed through the most complex and difficult part of the build which has only a small allowance for errors.  I am looking forward to posting my next update.

 

Wish you a merry Christmas and a happy new year.

 

Thanks for watching.

Kenneth

 

 

Edited by LKF1130
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