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Mercedes Benz 300 SLR n° 722 - Overall winner 1955 Mille Miglia, driven by Sir Stirling Moss - FINISHED


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58 minutes ago, Toftdale said:

The exhaust tips look fantastic,  far superior to any kit supplied item - Andy 

 

It's very kind of you, Andy, to post such a huuuuge comment, thousand thanks 🙏
Much appreciated, obviously 😉

 

I try always to do my best, and, as for everyone her, my skills improve day after day.
It's probable that, when I'll come back to my 1:8 Lady Bugatti, a lot of enhancements I did many months or years ago, could appear to my - now demanding -  eyes, very poor, and will be redone !🙄

 

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Afternoon, guys :)

 

Here is the making-of of the double exhaust box clamp:


- I'm going to give myself away by admitting that it was by opening a bottle of a good old wine, that I found something to make them: the 15 year old metal cap around the neck of the bottle being made of tin :)

- Once flattened and the painted logo sanded, I have a thickness of 0.07 mm, which at 1:1 scale makes 1.68 mm, a correct thickness for a solid metal clamp.
- So I cut off with a new scalpel blade, in several passes, a thin strip of barely 1.5 mm wide and I started to shape it little by little, on the two exhaust boxes, having previously temporarily fixed the two outlets of 4 exhaust pipes on the engine, to get the right positioning of the "cans"

 

And here is the result, extremely fragile because very malleable, which will be glued with PVA glue at the right time.
For the time being, the exhaust painting work has started: primary, then black, then Alclad Burnt Exhaust. then Alclad Burnt Exhaust, then MIG pigments in rust colour, and finally matt varnish...

 

52059118784_5fc84f3554_c.jpg   52059090199_c606ec9594_c.jpg

 

52057846427_0492c301a5_c.jpg   52057849782_64b7b780f7_c.jpg

 

52058852976_8910c19f38_c.jpg

 

This part will be put alone in a special box, to prevent any risk of spoiling it.

 

To be continued....😎

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Evening mates :)

 

Tireless, at the moment, I continue my work

 

Exhaust tubes and cans have been primed, painted, rusted, and mat varnished.
All parts have been assembled, the cans not glued on the exhaust lines, as they are retained by a metal pin, and must remain free to move a bit if necessary when I'll put the bodywork on the chassis.
However, several blank tests show that all come nicely together, what was not expected to be that easy !

 

52059270923_0b98f8ae10_c.jpg   52059272363_42be435520_c.jpg

 

52059240921_0f5ccded8c_c.jpg   52059277268_3829ef37b6_c.jpg

 

52059245626_a3ecf5d593_c.jpg   52059732330_8c2896ba1c_c.jpg

 

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52059294013_1e05dd03e8_b.jpg

 

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And the bonnet closes correctly 😎

 

x52059499414_944c3e3a94_b.jpg

 

 

See you soon :)

 

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Stunning absolutely stunning your attention to detail is second to none!

 

    Stay safe             Roger

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Evening gentlemen :)

 

My nickel plated exhaust ends have been slightly weathered with a gradient of orange-brown to blue on about the front half. First tile I experiment this, so I'm frankly not sure it reflects well the real thing of a burnt chrome exhaust .

Anyway, it will be fix easily with IPA and a cotton tip, without spoiling the nickel plating !

 

If anyone want to give an advice or suggest anything, fell free to do it...I'm a newbie in weathering !


The exhaust system has been glued o the engine block, using a slow-setting adhésive, and I've immediately placed the engine on the chassis, and the the bodywork over the chassis, the chrome exhausts coming out their aperture on the right side.
And now, I let the glue set quietly, each thing is at its place, and tomorrow, I could remove the bodywork and the engine, being absolutely sure that the exhaust system has been definitely correctly placed.
I'll be then able to put the double clamp on the exhaust cans and it will be finished for this part of the build.

 

52059689623_726f43693d_b.jpg   52059663091_6b3ed81d21_b.jpg

 

The steering shaft has been assembled, my gloss clear being fully cured, thanks to the hit weather we had her this afternoon:

 

52058631057_c9838357bc_c.jpg   52060161625_d6f8cde35a_c.jpg

 

Next steps:

- glueing the upper water cooling line on the engine

- then fixing the spark plugs ducts over the engine, not an easy task...I really don't know at the moment how I'll managed that !

- Plumbing the lefts side of the engine and the injection pump.

- And only after these steps, I could fix the engine on the chassis

 

See you soon :)

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11 hours ago, Hamden said:

 

Stunning absolutely stunning your attention to detail is second to none!

 

    Stay safe             Roger

 

Thanks a lot Roger for this huge compliment 🙏

 

1 hour ago, Fnick said:

Those photos of the engine in the engine bay makes me think I am looking at the real thing. Your attention to detail is second to none...😲

 

Nick

You and Roger have taken it upon yourselves to make me blush...with pleasure :)

Thanks for the kind compliment .

 

To tell you the truth, I'm not up to the level of some modelers who stand out from the crowd, either here or on other media...

I do my best that's all, and if you appreciate my work, I'm happy  :)

 

 

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Hi CC,

                   Nice work on the exhausts.

I used aluminium tube for my exhausts. I polished the end of the tube enough to make two exhausts then separated the two lengths with an old modelling knife. It's very easy to get a chrome-like finish and doesn't take long to do. The ends of the tube were thinned with a knife. It matches any chrome in the kit which isn't really chrome anyway - it's aluminium. In any case, because it's such a small area, any colour mismatch isn't noticeable.

I did the heat bluing pretty much as you did but if I was doing it today I'd consider a Tamiya weathering kit for exhausts. It uses waxy colours and fine powders and although you might not think it would stain a polished metal finish, it does work. It gives a much more subtle effect than paint. I've said Tamiya but I think that there are suitable weathering powders from other suppliers - there's such a lot of stuff available to aircraft and armour modellers these days.

 

Dave 

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2 hours ago, CrazyCrank said:

To tell you the truth, I'm not up to the level of some modelers who stand out from the crowd

 

Don't put yourself down your work is up there with the best I just wish I could come somewhere near your level!

 

      Stay safe           Roger

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Afternoon gentlemen :)

 

Today, I've cut off my tin sheet the 2 straps which retain the 2 rubber ducts of the spark plugs, have simulated at each end of them a bolt or rivet, pointing them from the back side with a thin point.

And finally, I've cut off the excess length of the ducts, shaped then little by little, glued their ends on the flutes, and fixed the ducts with the 2 tin retainers.

Then I've put the double collar in place over the exhaust cans.

 

52061210261_75c0264fd8_c.jpg

 

52061696990_6205c4512f_c.jpg

 

52061235863_687c5e449a_c.jpg

 

At last, I've placed on the engine the air intake manifold, not without difficulties because the spark plugs ducts pass between the 2 central pipes and there was not room enough. I've had to flatten the ducts with pliers and manages to install the manifold !

 

52060166007_2f6bcca12f_c.jpg

 

At this stage, the engine isn't fixed over the chassis, just put in place, which allowed me to do the previous tasks in a much more easy way.

 

Obviously, I've checked the correct fitting with the bodywork on the chassis, and verified that the bonnet can be correctly closed:

 

52061283363_1ef56fa140_b.jpg

 

52061281618_f366f7765b_b.jpg

 

I've now to make the piping of the injection pump.

I'll use 0.35 mm brass wire, which I'll cut of 8 sections, that will be shaped little by little.

Once the right shapes gotten, the brass lines will be nickel plated !

 

But, before all this tedious job, I must fabricate 5 retainers:

 

52061264703_538dc6da88_c.jpg

 

My drawings:

 

52061695520_fcc1b8a15f_c.jpg   52061234443_a193519ff5_c.jpg

 

52061737215_18116879e2_c.jpg   52061737265_1764114a17_c.jpg

 

Let's go for another 3D printing 😉

 

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5 hours ago, Fastcat said:

Hi CC,

                   Nice work on the exhausts.

I used aluminium tube for my exhausts. I polished the end of the tube enough to make two exhausts then separated the two lengths with an old modelling knife. It's very easy to get a chrome-like finish and doesn't take long to do. The ends of the tube were thinned with a knife. It matches any chrome in the kit which isn't really chrome anyway - it's aluminium. In any case, because it's such a small area, any colour mismatch isn't noticeable.

I did the heat bluing pretty much as you did but if I was doing it today I'd consider a Tamiya weathering kit for exhausts. It uses waxy colours and fine powders and although you might not think it would stain a polished metal finish, it does work. It gives a much more subtle effect than paint. I've said Tamiya but I think that there are suitable weathering powders from other suppliers - there's such a lot of stuff available to aircraft and armour modellers these days.

 

Dave 

 

Thank your so much for the info, Dave 👍
I've just ordered a "Tamiya Weathering Master Set D " (powders)

I'll redo the job on Friday (deliver expected on Thursday )

Chears

Thierry

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Hi Thierry,

                         That's great. Hope you get on well with them. I bought mine over three years ago on a whim and now they're my first choice.

 

Dave

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2 hours ago, Fastcat said:

Hi Thierry,

                         That's great. Hope you get on well with them. I bought mine over three years ago on a whim and now they're my first choice.

 

Dave

 Thank you so much again for your great support 😉

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On 5/8/2022 at 2:05 PM, CrazyCrank said:

Not bad imho 

Not bad? To me it’s looking fantastic, Thierry

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Evening gentlemen :)

 

Not a big progress today since my last post. I've been busy with home and garden works 😉

 

Nevertheless, I've found some time to paint my new rear shock absorbers, and the front ones too, but, for these ones, I've decided to modify the 3D printed parts.

 

Indeed, the stainless steel  central rod of them is significantly longer than the same portion on the rear shock, and I want to get them with a mirror finish.

There was the Hasegawa Mirror finish solution, but it increases slightly but visibly the diameter to the rod, or Molotov Chrome.

 

As I am quite playful, I decided to remake the upper part of the front shock in metal, and then to nickel-plating them.

 

- So, I used a.1.00 mm brass tube, in which I drilled a 0.8 mm hole.

- In the hole I inserted a 0.8 mm brass tube, and I solder it on the 1,0 mm one, perpendicularly.

- Then, having found in my stash the 0.6 mm brass bolts (1.00 mm head) that I thought I haven't anymore, I inserted a  bolt in the 1.0 mm brass tube , soldered it and got a quite passable upper part.

- I took a 3D printed print shock absorber, cut off the upper part, drilled a 0.8 mm hole, and threaded the upper brass part in it.

- It remains to fabricating some clones and to nickel platting them.

 

52062810054_4306d3f687_b.jpg   52062571421_b6ab56aaa8_b.jpg

 

52062597158_629cc11e3b_b.jpg   52062577411_7573a26a25_b.jpg

 

52062600483_be2f4b4e0f_b.jpg   52063070535_d4918114e6_b.jpg

 

52062817729_7ba5a5a743_b.jpg

 

See you tomorrow with new 3D printed parts :)

 

 

 

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Morning guys :)

 

My 3D printed retainers for the fuel line came out nicely of the resin bath.

 

The large flanges are 4x1.3x1.3 mm and the short ones 2x1.3x1.3 mm

 

The only problem, and not the least, is that the 0.4 mm holes were just marked and remained blocked, probably due to a bad orientation of the parts on the support.
All the holes will be unblocked under the microscope, in 2 passes with first a 0.3 mm drill and then a 0.4 mm drill.

 

I have just done this on a large and a small one, and threaded short sections of 0.35 brass wire through them, to give you an idea of what it will look like when the tubing has been shaped and installed.
The spacing between the pipes at each flange is fundamental, and this was the point of modelling and 3D printing

 

52063675834_d3f4c324d8_c.jpg   52063450401_1e6341908f_c.jpg

 

52063453241_0a013c19f5_c.jpg

 

Now, I've to drill 12 holes more, 2 times, hoping not to break too much bits !

And then I could shape little by little the 2 groups of 4 fuel lines.

 

See you far later :)

 

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Whilst I am in awe of all the bits and pieces you create and refine...it's the smallest that have the most interest for me...and these fuel line retainers are a perfect example.

 

Nice job mate 👍

 

Ron

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Evening mates :)

 

Thanks, Ron for the very kind words, much appreciated :)

 

Not a big progress today:  I've spent at the moment 6 hours (yes, six) to begin to scratch the front group of 4 fuel lines.

 

It's a hell of a thing ! 


A hundred times I almost gave up, I broke two 4.0 mm flanges -  fortunately I have some spare -, made an countless number of blank tests, to arrive at something acceptable, - if I manage to finish the job-  and I estimate that it will take me at least 6 more hours to finish this set, which, it must be admitted, is the more complicated of the two.
I still have two injection lines to finish, and you can't even imagine how difficult it is, without being able to light up properly given the cramped conditions, to correctly estimate the length and direction of the lines so that they fit in the right place in the hole of their injector.
Nothing is won, because the 0.3 mm brass, once shaped with these angles on so small sections, become very rigid.
Once the part is nickel plated and the flanges are painted in satin black with a 20/0 brush, it's not certain that I'll be able to fit nicely the upper end of the lines in their respective outlets on the injection pump.


That said, the new pump is glued in place with CA glue, and I can't go back and replace it with the kit part.
That would be a shame, by the way!

 

I'm tired, and I'll go on tomorrow 😴

 

Some pictures to satisfy your curiosity :

 

The set of 4 lines (it's not achieved and the position of the flanges will be adjusted too)

 

52064685826_d8bb901047_c.jpg   52065190155_d10bb42bdd_c.jpg

 

And, for the fun only, I've put this unfinished part o the injection pump, roughly, to show you what we could get, I all accept to go well !

 

52065169105_f10e951227_c.jpg

 

Stay connected if you like and thanks for watching :)

 

 

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Morning guys :)

 

It appeared that it was absolutely impossible to give their final shape to the bras lines, in order to put them in their respective holes.

The 0.35 mm brass is far too rigid.

The risk was great to break everything.

 

So, this metal isn't the right one.

Nevertheless, it was worth the efforts, because the shapes I already gave to the fuel lines was going to serve as a template, and I've decided to use 0.4 mm solder tin wire.

 

This wire is much more malleable and flexible than brass, which is a grey advantage, not to mention its colour which will save me a nickel plating session. On the other hand, it has the disadvantage of twisting easily at undesirable angles and is more brittle.
It must therefore be handled with extreme care.
I also had to take new flanges, and drill the holes delicately in 3 passes, from 0.3 to 0.5 mm, passing through 0.4. (that is to say 30 holes for 2 long and one short breaker)

In a first try, I started to assemble the 4 lines on the 3 flanges by giving them the shape of my Brass template.... But when I wanted to install the junk on the injection pump: same hell!

So I did it differently, in reverse this time, and it worked!
I threaded 4 long lines of tin wire on the 3 flanges.
I glued the ends in the 4 holes of the injectors, then I went back up slowly, shaping it all, to the pump outlets.
The 0.5 holes on the flanges made it much easier to slide them onto the 4 wires.

 

The result is not too bad, but I'm a bit disappointed by the upper part of the lines, rather distorted after multiple handling for adjustments.

In any case the look is in conformity with the real thing.

 

52066142550_7da48819f0_c.jpg   52064611577_05a12b934f_c.jpg

 

A little  bit of improvement:

 

52064611587_1406d5b4da_c.jpg   52065669673_70424f12f0_c.jpg

 

One the flanges correctly repositioned and painted, this give the set a better look :)

 

52065651096_fa7d228ec9_c.jpg

 

And after glueing of the front banjo, whose hose passes above the fuel lines, and some paint touch ups :

 

52066163290_d83c7d97d4_c.jpg   52065691168_dabdf16553_c.jpg

 

52066163280_fe3544b9d4_c.jpg

 

These close-up pictures don't do justice to the real look, far better, to the naked eye in any case.

The following photo was taken in such a way that the size on the screen of my smartphone is roughly the size of what my eye sees at a distance of about 15-20 cm:

 

52066167880_239e7586b0_h.jpg

 

I'm pretty happy with this result, finally :)

 

And now, second set of 4 fuel lines, same method, as it works fine 😎

 

See you in a couple of hours :)

 

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Afternoon guys :)

 

The piping of injection pump is now complete. It's been a hard job, but it was worth it !

I swear that the 8 fuel lines come really in their respective injector, in the same order as on the real model  😇

 

52064800727_3eb017f51f_c.jpg   52066075974_dfb8013c5c_c.jpg

 

I've also installed the alternator:

 

52065839656_b3dc42fd8d_c.jpg

 

To be more realistic, it remains to add some missing plumbing (engine oil inlet and outlet pipe especially) and to connect all those that have really installed.

It's going to be tough!

 

As it is, the engine look more like a real engine, although a big amount of details and piping have not been added. 

But you have to hold back at some point, and too much addition would impair visibility, creating an inextricable clutter.

 

52065873623_1cdfe11102_h.jpg

 

Time now  to remove the engine of the chassis, to weather it a bit, before glueing it definitely in place

 

See you later, and thanks for watching 😉

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Engine slightly weathered with Tamiya Black panel line.

 

Fortunately, I haven't in my stash the Tamiya brown panel line, which is generally used to simulated oil stains on the engine.

If I had had it, I couldn't resist and would have used it! 
What a heresy, Mercedes engines don't leak, it's only on British cars that you can see that 🤣🤣🤣🤥😛 ... I'm kidding, of course 😇

 

Before:

 

52064935097_2fa9954c91_b.jpg   52066209794_7aa648d5eb_b.jpg

 

52065974941_99328d2e6e_b.jpg

 

After:

 

52066209799_4f7eec0f12_b.jpg   52066465655_d15aa8c9b4_b.jpg

 

 

See you soon.... (For those who may have noticed that I am currently building faster than my shadow, in contradiction with my habit, I must say that, due to my health problems, I am on cortisone, and it is quite a doping agent! ) :)

 

 

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4 hours ago, CrazyCrank said:

The 0.35 mm brass is far too rigid.

Hi Thierry, I think that this is exactly the issue that you ran into. One line is rigid in itself, but the set of lines is like a massive unbendable brass plate.  I think, but that will not help you now, copper in the same thickness would be much more pliable (or even just use nylon fishing line in that size).

I once built the Testarossa engine in scale 1:8 (Pocher). Fuel lines were not there at all and after taking pictures of the real one at the local Ferrari workshop, I tried to fabricate them exactly like you did, but using thin steel wire. I can tell you that this did not work at all. 

Anyway, I do think that what you have accomplished here in this scale is great. Looks very impressive to me.

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14 minutes ago, PROPELLER said:

 

Do you annealed these wires? And I agree with Pool, copper, annealed too, is easier to work with...
Fantastic job Thierry!

Dan. 

Ouups, I forgot I could anneal them  ! 🙄


That said, if annealed, there is much work next to polish them before platting.

 

I know copper is easier to work with, but I hadn't anymore 0.35 mm in my stash. 🥲

 

And in reality, as you work here in a very small space, and as there is a lot of handling and bending, the defects would have occurred too imho.

I can say that with some experience because I used copper wire to plumb the injection pumps of my three MB 300 SL, and the results never  were perfect.

Finally, the tin wire did the job rather nicely, and no matter to plate it.


Thanks for the advice and huge compliment :)

 

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Evening gentlemen :)

 

This is my last post.............for today 🤣

 

I've assembled on the chassis the front axle with steering system and new suspensions... the radiators and the engine !


Logically, if I had followed the instructions, I would have first installed a small part of the engine, without the air intake manifold nor the upper water cooling line, but in my situation I had no choice.
To improve the engine, I should finish it almost entirely before fixing it on the chassis.
So, the installation in reverse order hasn't been a laughing matter, but I managed to do it, as expected, without breaking or un-glueing anything 

 

All water circulation and cooling pipes have been connected.
 

I gave her a little beauty for a photo shoot:

 

52066901451_096948be86_b.jpg   52067408375_73dbe289a4_b.jpg

 

52067408375_73dbe289a4_b.jpg   52067412000_9b093e1a5a_b.jpg

 

52066944843_58801d283f_b.jpg   52067165434_0dc7033944_b.jpg

 

52066947628_fb8a9aa781_b.jpg   52067420170_0b3b954f1d_b.jpg

 

52066954298_70d1eeb105_b.jpg   52066939376_4155f4aec3_b.jpg

 

And the same one in sportswear, with dust in front of the door, not correctly closed

 

52066954606_dc522c585f_b.jpg   52065913522_c734241a4e_b.jpg

 

52066971353_99f11ab005_b.jpg   52067192194_650b71785b_b.jpg

 

I think I've actually build the most difficult parts of the model, but it remains A LOT of work to do before she's finished !

 

So stay connected if you like 😎

 

Edit: 

PS: I haven't yet installed the injection pump spring I made because I lost it, and I have to redo it, but, don't worry, I won't forget it, it will be there, I promise!
 

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