AmericanMuscleFan Posted January 9, 2021 Author Share Posted January 9, 2021 But what's going on here! I go to work for 3 days and my good friends meet to have a discussion on my building methods... Don't look too far guys, you all set the bar so high that I have no other option but to always do more to stay interesting. I'm running out of ideas but I'm going to force myself... Thanks to all of you my friends, you are an invaluable source of motivation! More to come soon and take care of yourself, Francis ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AmericanMuscleFan Posted January 10, 2021 Author Share Posted January 10, 2021 3 hours ago, charlie libby said: WOW! awesome parts. you are building a masterpiece , AGAIN!! Your methods are ingenious. hope your holidays were great. charlie Thanks for the kind comments Charlie! I do not see my methods as ingenious but quite simply unusual, because they would undoubtedly question an experienced machinist! When you have no training in the field, you often have to improvise and draw from the depths of your resources... Take care, Francis Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mustang1989 Posted January 10, 2021 Share Posted January 10, 2021 Love the tach Francis. Pure genius! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
foghorn62 Posted January 10, 2021 Share Posted January 10, 2021 6 hours ago, AmericanMuscleFan said: But what's going on here! I go to work for 3 days and my good friends meet to have a discussion on my building methods... Don't look too far guys, you all set the bar so high that I have no other option but to always do more to stay interesting. I'm running out of ideas but I'm going to force myself... Thanks to all of you my friends, you are an invaluable source of motivation! More to come soon and take care of yourself, Francis ? You can’t turn your back for a minute without people talking about you Francis. It’s all good though, you are still master of the bar. your friend, The clown on the tricycle.? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AmericanMuscleFan Posted January 10, 2021 Author Share Posted January 10, 2021 14 hours ago, mustang1989 said: Love the tach Francis. Pure genius! Hey Joe! I am glad to see you back buddy! I don't think it's genius but it was just an opportunity to take advantage of the high end devices I was working with at the time. I would like to have them still at my disposal today... The rest of the RPM elements seem more difficult to do than they actually were... Take care, Francis Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AmericanMuscleFan Posted January 10, 2021 Author Share Posted January 10, 2021 12 hours ago, foghorn62 said: You can’t turn your back for a minute without people talking about you Francis. It’s all good though, you are still master of the bar. your friend, The clown on the tricycle.? Talk about it well or talk badly about it but talk about it as the expression says... but I still prefer the first option to the second if you know what I mean... To me, your tricycle looks more like a 3-wheel Harley Davidson my friend!!! ? Take care, Francis Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AmericanMuscleFan Posted January 11, 2021 Author Share Posted January 11, 2021 Hello everyone, Today's update covers other parts of the cabin interior. I really like the well-detailed cabin interiors despite being one of the part of the build that I like the least to do, but I have to force myself to do a little more than usual since the doors will be functional and the components more visible than on my previous models. There are still a few minor details that will be added during final assembly, but you'll get a good idea of where I'm headed with all of this. I have not yet added the shift light to the RPM as pointed out by my good friend Claude T so I will check later if I decided to invest more time on that part even if it's not a complex modification. I might need to adjust the length of the steering column, but it's just a piece of aluminum rod, so not very difficult to do. Next, I'll be working on the dashboard components including the gauges faces and the knobs, so hopefully I'll be back soon with some photos with all the details completed. Comments and suggestions are welcome. Take care of yourself and good build everyone, not much else to do these days anyway... Francis Steering column bracket on the milling table, the smallest hole is used to pass the wires behind the dashboard. Steering column bracket completed. A quick test fit, it will be mounted under the dash with 2 small brass bolts. Some of the steering wheel components in progress including the quick release mechanism. The center of the steering wheel (rays) has been machined on the milling. The steering wheel (donut) was made with a slice of 0.500 "Evergreen styrene tubing to which I glued a 0.040" half-round strip on the outer edge. I rounded the inside with sand paper, the final size is 13,000 "at full scale. I added 0.010" styrene strips to emulate the padding over the aluminum rays. Quick release mechanism anodized in red for contrast and stay in the concept... Quick test, I temporarily installed the RPM to check what it might look like. Closer view, the line lock button will be painted in red or course as it is not finally installed. The steering wheel is permanently mounted on the quick release mechanism with 5 brass bolts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bainford Posted January 11, 2021 Share Posted January 11, 2021 Brilliant! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
foghorn62 Posted January 12, 2021 Share Posted January 12, 2021 Sweet! Are you using the .07MM nuts and bolts Francis? TCOTTC ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AmericanMuscleFan Posted January 12, 2021 Author Share Posted January 12, 2021 22 hours ago, Bainford said: Brilliant! Thanks for the comment Trevor! 11 hours ago, foghorn62 said: Sweet! Are you using the .07MM nuts and bolts Francis? TCOTTC ? Thanks Tim! I think 0.07mm would have been a bit too small for my tweezers... (maybe you meant 0.7mm). I used 0.5mm bolts which are inserted directly (glued) into the quick release mechanism. Certainly not to scale, but that's the smallest size I have! ? Take care, Francis Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
foghorn62 Posted January 12, 2021 Share Posted January 12, 2021 1 hour ago, AmericanMuscleFan said: Thanks for the comment Trevor! Thanks Tim! I think 0.07mm would have been a bit too small for my tweezers... (maybe you meant 0.7mm). I used 0.5mm bolts which are inserted directly (glued) into the quick release mechanism. Certainly not to scale, but that's the smallest size I have! ? Take care, Francis Ah, good point. .07 would be a tad on the small size. Of course to my eyes, .7 are tiny enough. So you are using basically .5 unthreaded studs? Do you get those from RB Motion, or do you have another source? .5mm works out pretty close to .5” in scale. I don’t think you would want anything smaller than that for this application, would you? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Williams Posted January 12, 2021 Share Posted January 12, 2021 I like the results, beautifully accomplished. Francis, QUESTION; how do you remove the steering block cleanly from the solid block of aluminum? I understand the cuts you made and how these are done. From a solid block though, how is the milled unit removed? Mike.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlackSheep214 Posted January 13, 2021 Share Posted January 13, 2021 Just got caught up on this thread. I quit!! ? Seriously, you got mad skills and a master... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Claude Thibodeau Posted January 13, 2021 Share Posted January 13, 2021 Hi Francis! Well, forget about the shift light. The tach is right in your line of sight, and since you have years of experience with Mopar big blocks... I'm certain that you will be able to shift by ear, as we used to do back then... Great work! CT Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AmericanMuscleFan Posted January 13, 2021 Author Share Posted January 13, 2021 23 hours ago, foghorn62 said: Ah, good point. .07 would be a tad on the small size. Of course to my eyes, .7 are tiny enough. So you are using basically .5 unthreaded studs? Do you get those from RB Motion, or do you have another source? .5mm works out pretty close to .5” in scale. I don’t think you would want anything smaller than that for this application, would you? Hello Tim, I was wondering if you were playing a joke on me... They are unthreaded and the manufacturer is T2M. These are getting harder to find as I think the company is no longer in business but I still have some in my precious inventory... You are right about the size of 0.500" but I think maybe 0.4375" or 0.375" would have been even more to scale, but unfortunately I don't have any smaller... They are just glued in place using cyanoacrylate by the way. Take care, Francis Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AmericanMuscleFan Posted January 13, 2021 Author Share Posted January 13, 2021 18 hours ago, Mike Williams said: I like the results, beautifully accomplished. Francis, QUESTION; how do you remove the steering block cleanly from the solid block of aluminum? I understand the cuts you made and how these are done. From a solid block though, how is the milled unit removed? Mike.. Hello Mike and thanks for the kind comments! It seems more complicated than it sounds, I machined the steering wheel (spokes) on a round aluminum rod, I then separated the part on the lathe using the cutoff tool. I machined the outer edge of the spokes to fit well inside the plastic steering wheel and glued the aluminum part to it with super glue. Hope it make sense... sorry, I forgot to take a photo of the process, sometimes my head is somewhere else... Take care, Francis Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AmericanMuscleFan Posted January 13, 2021 Author Share Posted January 13, 2021 15 hours ago, BlackSheep214 said: Just got caught up on this thread. I quit!! ? Seriously, you got mad skills and a master... Thanks for stopping by and your kind words Thomas! Better late than never... Admission is free so come back often, I still have a lot of work to do to finish... Take care, Francis Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AmericanMuscleFan Posted January 13, 2021 Author Share Posted January 13, 2021 15 hours ago, Claude Thibodeau said: Hi Francis! Well, forget about the shift light. The tach is right in your line of sight, and since you have years of experience with Mopar big blocks... I'm certain that you will be able to shift by ear, as we used to do back then... Great work! CT That's a good point my friend! Your precious advices aregreatly appreciated by the way, the experience cannot be bought and you keep me in the straight line... between the 2 lines of the quarter mile...! Thanks for the kind words by the way, it's like racing fuel... that makes me think, I will have to make a gas tank... ? Take care, Francis Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Claude Thibodeau Posted January 13, 2021 Share Posted January 13, 2021 1 hour ago, AmericanMuscleFan said: That's a good point my friend! Your precious advices aregreatly appreciated by the way, the experience cannot be bought and you keep me in the straight line... between the 2 lines of the quarter mile...! Thanks for the kind words by the way, it's like racing fuel... that makes me think, I will have to make a gas tank... ? Take care, Francis Hi Sir! A gas tank, eh? Well, let me throw you a "challenge": We know how talented you are bending styrene and milling aluminium and brass... SO: why not fabricate a gas tank out of, say... Carbon fiber? Think of the plusses: light weight, almost impossible to puncture, etc. Just kidding, of course! Gotcha! CT Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AmericanMuscleFan Posted January 14, 2021 Author Share Posted January 14, 2021 On 1/13/2021 at 12:55 PM, Claude Thibodeau said: Hi Sir! A gas tank, eh? Well, let me throw you a "challenge": We know how talented you are bending styrene and milling aluminium and brass... SO: why not fabricate a gas tank out of, say... Carbon fiber? Think of the plusses: light weight, almost impossible to puncture, etc. Just kidding, of course! Gotcha! CT Carbon fiber would be a great idea Claude (do you really have anything other than great ideas for me actually?) but I'll try to start limiting myself to what I have on hand... My workbench looks like a tsunami of all kinds of debris and parts slowly engulfing my workspace! Soon I will be forced to work on the floor... I better pick up the pace if I don't want to get caught up! ? Francis Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
foghorn62 Posted January 14, 2021 Share Posted January 14, 2021 1 hour ago, AmericanMuscleFan said: My workbench looks like a tsunami of all kinds of debris and parts slowly engulfing my workspace! Soon I will be forced to work on the floor... I better pick up the pace if I don't want to get caught up! ? Francis You have a classic case of “Model Builder’s Bench. I have four 2’x8’ work tables in my build area, and I wind up doing the majority of my work in about a 6”x6” space. tcottc Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Williams Posted January 15, 2021 Share Posted January 15, 2021 (edited) Francis, I meant this, not the steering wheel; How would this unit be removed from the solid block? Concerning tach shift lights, Mopar big blocks and shifting....I thought this was the reason for making such good automatic trans with shifter kits! Suddenly, most didn't need to shift gears, but won anyway! Automatically. Laughing now. Mike.. Edited January 15, 2021 by Mike Williams Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AmericanMuscleFan Posted January 15, 2021 Author Share Posted January 15, 2021 23 hours ago, foghorn62 said: You have a classic case of “Model Builder’s Bench. I have four 2’x8’ work tables in my build area, and I wind up doing the majority of my work in about a 6”x6” space. tcottc I think it's a different kind of epidemic in our hobby... there are several of us with this incurable disease... but there are no vaccines being developed... lol. Francis Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AmericanMuscleFan Posted January 15, 2021 Author Share Posted January 15, 2021 20 hours ago, Mike Williams said: Francis, I meant this, not the steering wheel; How would this unit be removed from the solid block? Concerning tach shift lights, Mopar big blocks and shifting....I thought this was the reason for making such good automatic trans with shifter kits! Suddenly, most didn't need to shift gears, but won anyway! Automatically. Laughing now. Mike.. Hello Mike! I try to work with round aluminum rods most of the time so the part is simply separated on the lathe using the cut-off tool (that was the technique i used for the column support). If the part is larger and I am forced to machine my part on a square or rectangular shaped block, I use a cut-off disc directly on the mill. For the benefit of those concerned, I should have taken a photo of this operation... sorry... Good pun with the automatic transmission by the way, I'm laughing too! Francis Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tortuga Kustomz Posted January 16, 2021 Share Posted January 16, 2021 Great tip, i want to get one of those machines so i can do cool stuff like you guys Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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