[model murdering]

Bill any progress on the datsun wagon ? happy new year

To you and yours Jim!

That wagon project belonged to Slotto over at the Slotlodge. I just sliced and diced the rough stuff on the good samaritan plan, and mailed it back. I'll post it up when he finishes it.

 

[kchevyjim]

thanks Bill Steve builds some cool stuff

 

[model murdering]

Unusually temperate here after the deep freeze, the weather gods insisted on some retribution. Craptacular weather always drives me to the slot cave, to wait out the monsoon.

The "Forever" rail project got some whittlen' over the holidays. Some projects fly off the bench, others fight to the death. The chassis bottom stop for the rear was installed early on. The lateral stops were bonded in, so the final clearance on the rear hubs could be set, and the rear axle could be cut to fit. JAGS mag rear hub is a much needed improvement over the heavy looking AFX/AW Fat lipped Ansen.

With the back tightened up, I finally committed to completing the dummy chrome blob up front. To finish the blown big block, I needed some vertical clearance.

Bits from four different diecasts stacked up, eventually gave me the look I was after. The final fitments are right around the corner.

I pick stuff up, I put stuff down. Especially resins. Once in a while, I make notable progress. Jaybob sent me this last year, so it's way ahead of schedule LOL! This example is quite nice. Chasing and clean up was marginal; but it had a few fitment issues, that required some careful whittlen'. We're hunkered down fairly level, on a narrow 440 now, with front independent wheels. Besides the obvious trinkets like wheels and tires and fixing the shoe overbite; hands down, IMHO it's one of the better things you can do for your 440's. Still a bit wide, I'll bob the front carrier a few mm.

Color is an ancient Testors blue metallic that I only break out when I need something special. It has a very fine mettalic that's hard to come by now-a-days. I dole it out with the eyedropper.

The glass insert is a rough fit, so I'm gonna think on it a while. Meantime, I'll be eyeing some period appropriate Vincents for the next JAG order. I can always re-use the bushed Ansens on another build.

The body work for this junk box "fatty pick up" project happened pretty fast. Then reality sets in, and I have to build a chassis under and around it. Once in a while I include something new if it isnt too risky. My experimental blind mount for Vincent independent front wheels is included. Obviously the hub portion gets shortened.

Here's the blind part. I works well on the bench ... yuk yuk yuk. Spins like a HW Redline wheel. The upshot is that if it fails down the road, I can simply pierce the outer hub and pin it conventionally.

There's a few tricky bits here. At first a straight axle was used, then an independent right off the frame horns; but I really couldnt get enthused about either, the former was ugly and the latter was weak. I settled on the drop beam for it's characteristic look, as well as re- enforcing the front. The frame horns were bent out, the beam was stuffed in, and the horns were bent back. Once I re-squared all four corners, the beam and front crash bar were soldered in.

For now, a fixed braid carrier will do the pick up work. I'll get it laced up and tested this week. I can always go with some sort of drop plate, if the handling feels off.

 

[KensRedZed]

Bill,

Stunning work as usual!

 

[kchevyjim]

some nice work there Bill , the gt40 would look good with afx turbine rims on it

 

[X2slotbob]

"Unusually temperate here after the deep freeze"--MM

Yep. Florida boy was driving through all that from 12/25 until 1/08. In Oregon about New Years. Didn't hit anything.

Not enough superlatives for your work, sir.

 

[model murdering]

You were in "Organ"?! Yer sooo fired. Thats just down the block!

 

[Steve-E-D]

Yeah, what the heck? I'm even closer to "Organ" than Bill.

 

[X2slotbob]

300 mile+/day round trip from Denver to Langlois, via the Grand Canyon, Zion, & Yosemite. In the middle of about 45 blizzards.

(X2 = lightweight)

Initially, I used to pump gasoline & turn wrenches for a living.

Then came "self serve" as an option at a "cheaper" price (actually, the original me-pump gasoline was just raised, of course).

Then only self serve, and I have been self serving it for 40 years or so.

But not in Oregon. They pump it and you like it. Even though it's a rent a "car", it bugs me.

 

[model murdering]

I scattered the old Tycppro armature during some test and tune. This is a 440 armature with the shaft ends trimmed. I use some of the old shims to take up the slop at the shaft end. They've got a bit much end float for my liking. I like to gash the comm box. It was an old cooling trick, but I like it because I can keep and eye on the health, and it allows me to sneak the seating stone in for the brushes. I paint the windings with epoxy using a cheapo disposable brush.

The fixed Picard style pick-up is pushed back a bit, to get it all under the bodywork. This pushes the braids back on the pan, so a PTEG insulator keeps the electrons from taking a shortcut.

As the pick up doesnt swivel, there's no need to cross the leads. I always like to leave some extra in the event of a failure. Rather than bobbing the excess, leaving a little extra tinned portion helps at service time.

Runs out good. Smooth and quiet. Body work next!

 

[Glock24]

Images are not visible.

 

[X2slotbob]

"Install the pickup assembly, number one"--Picard

"I am only here to look pretty, and you must be speaking Romulan"--Riker
​

 

[model murdering]

You'll find it buried in the Riggen history Bob. My twist on the idea. I did this one moons ago on another AJ's pan build.

I always liked the sturdy simplicity, and that it kinda disappears down and away underneath. It morphed a little this time around, but it's still just a chunk of plastic.

 

[model murdering]

Next Oversize. Another nono, but it was broke when I got here.

Here's a fix for sacked Tycopro rear axles. This tail of this TP 2 (rattler) example was wasted! Porked Tycopro rear axle bores are all to common, letting the rear axle flop around, and create havoc on the track. Rather than attempt some kind of complex re-bush, I simply snapped a standard t-jet axle in. What's it gonna do? Wreck it? LOL!

It was a hair snug so I just flute reamed through the bores with 1/16" bit to clearance the fit. Tycopro crowns are on the endangered species list, so you wouldnt want to overbore them for a retrofit. Until I latch onto some of the later "toothy" AW crowns for 'sperimenting, I set it up with the standard T-jet crown, and found the mesh to be reasonably smooth. I found some better TP 2 cores, I'll switch it all over to a less dog chewed chassis.


img]https://i.imgur.com/b6c68HI.jpg[/img]

Here, the Tyco 440 pinion is mated with the T-jet standard crown, who'd a thunk it? Same deal as above, only this tail section is in better condition. note the nylo-shims on the backside shoulders of the crowns. The chubby example was required for the extra hammered example above, ordinarily the thinner shim looks like the "go to". I'll know more when I get the AW crowns.

Granted, it's not for TP purists, but I like the old pan cars; and hate to DQ them on a mere technicality like the axles flopping around. I managed to scrape up enough bit's to make 3 drop arm chassis with any luck.


Fresh off the gun.

A sneak peak at one of my forever projects. In the event that all the lacquer thinner used in painting causes some squirming of the styrene body work, I like to refit the body to the chassis; so if there's any wandering, it'll take the correct set as it cures. I usally wait a week or so for drying. With lacquer, I smell the project. You can tell if it's still gassing off.

Miracle of miracles, I remembered to paint the head light buckets, as well as cut and pre-fit the glass. In the meantime, I'll polish the glass, while I watch paint dry.

When I get bench time, I always find some time to work on long term projects. With the chassis wrapped up, Chubby the truck goes into finish bodywork. I'll be in 600 a while, filling and sanding all the transitions where I took liberties. 5 minutes here 10 minutes there, maybe this summer!

 

[model murdering]

For fine lines, with minimum shoulder, I like opaque desk tape for air brushing. I've used them all (tapes), but some old cat turned me onto it, and it changed my painting permanently for the better.

The first pass had a bit more compost in it than I like to see, so we had a do-over after I scuffed it off and re-taped it. Whenever possible I just use a sheet of paper to block the model off.

This is where one needs to start with the air brush. Bare minimum pressure, light on the fluid, count the droplets. This is where your control is. Light as a butterfly!

Note that the spent mask has virtually no over spray.

Shot at a slightly longer distance with minimum pressure and fluid changes the character. It gives the gloss black lacquer a nice even matte finish. A mistake, that turned into an exploitable technique ... har.

You cant argue with the crisp desk tape line/edge. Unlike modeling tape, desk tape is cheaper than dirt; and doesnt dry out or go stale when it sits around. It stays sticky, but peels right off.

Yes, razoring it is a bother, but I'll trade a few minutes of fiddle time for the killer edges any day.

Im always toying with new twists on old ideas. Chrome tape's limitation is that it doesnt bend. Used flat though, it's hard to beat. After scribing in some detail, card stock is used as a backer to give the leather punch good bed to cut through.

A bit garish in macro, but nice under normal viewing. Maybe scuff them with 1500 to knock the "gumball" down a notch. I did the gas cap on the cowl for fun! For the finals, I'm eyeballing the axle beam width for some trim. I've learned to leave them long until the end. Vincent doesnt worry about plating the back side of their rims, so some Alclad is in order, and I'll sneak some finned drums in that gaposis between the tire and the rim. Some times it's better not to plan, and just dumb into things!

You can kinda make out the dark red (rose) glass. Scavenged from and old AFX Specialty Van. Cut and polished, it works with the dark purple flames. Quite striking in person, I couldnt get the cam-damera to do it justice. It's mounted with clear RTV so it can take a licken'.

 

[Glock24]

Impressive skills! The headlights look good enough. What's the grille made of?

Here, the Tyco 440 pinion is mated with the T-jet standard crown, who'd a thunk it?

I got a couple Tyco Pros with broken pinions and/or crown gears. I'll try this rather than making a hole to fit a 440 crown gear.

 

[model murdering]

Glock: "What's the grille made of?"

Two or three slices of plastic, and some common screen mesh.

1. You need a backer. If it doesnt already exist you have to make one

2. The mouse hole. It's an upside down "U" that allows the grill mesh to slip in the open slot at the bottom

3. Last is the decorative fascia plate. I like to have this piece near to perfect, as it is difficult to work on when bonded to the model.

The pieces are carefully bonded to the cowling and contour sanded to match. I leave a hair of extra clearance to compensate for painting; so the mesh slides in without a battle.

Prior to block sanding the grill shell sides, and contour sanding the fascia plate, you can just see how the pieces stack up.

This example uses jail bars and mesh. Simply widen the internal cavity to allow the fit.

It's not particularly hard to do, but you have to plan for it along the way.

 

[model murdering]

With the chassis reasonably dialed in, securing the truck body was next.

Generally I like to get the front screw post behind the core support on the Model A rods. Such was not the case here. Rather than drill a new mounting hole in the goose neck, I split the difference and landed the post kinda middling. With any luck it'll all disappear into the grill shell.

I threw in a couple of vertical cleats on the backside of the gate, to keep the tail of chassis from walking around. Heavy cardstock is used to hold center while things harden up

020" is about right. It looks closer than it is.

Finned drums from T-jet driven gears. I left the hub bushing long enough to use the small holed gear. They got a little Alclad while I had the airbrush loaded for another project.

Miraculously, I had a little extra cave time. I had filled little doinks and ****** last week, and chased them down with 600 to start. I spent the bulk of it where the cab was sectioned in, and the drip rail detail. The area was contour sanded , and the details are scribed in. A final brush out with 3502 begins to chemically feather all the transitions. I'll give it a coupla days to dry.

 

[model murdering]

5 post '55. Here's one you dont see every day. Somebody loved this car, the heavy playwear on the chrome bumpers tell the story.

After fixing 5 posts, I set this "fiddy fie" aside over a decade ago. One of AFX's flamed pair, the roof was mashed down an hanging by one thread, with a few pieces missing. It went from the back burner to forgotten, because I hate working in white.

I hadf left off on the second skim, so I freshened things up with light coat.

Along the way, we'll drag some wet and dry around before the sculpting starts.

 

[X2slotbob]

Like '40 Fords, you just can't chop a '55-57 Chevy without ruining the thing.