AmericanMuscleFan

Your dragster was certainly one of your best builds and we have to enlarge each photo to convince you that we are really looking at a model car and not the real thing. Your talent is immense and is matched only by your kindness and your pleasure of sharing, you are obviously what we call an great asset for this forum and this wonderful hobby! 👍

Wow Steve!!! This is a fantastic build of a superb car, you have really bring this great kit to the next level. I have rarely seen someone invest in such a project for a gift, you certainly have a good relationship with him and he will certainly be impressed and grateful, I would be! Happy birthday to him and thank you for this great WIP thread of great interest, it will be an example to follow for anyone who would like to assemble this kit and give it VIP treatment. 👌

Hello everyone, Now that I have returned to building for the peak season, I have moved on to making the front suspension components as I mentioned in my last update. My goal is to fabricate something that look like the Chris Alston's Chassisworks 3 X 2 Front Clips. I found a good article on the internet where they do the installation and I will refer to the photos to make my parts. As I mentioned before, this is not an exact replica but just something that looks believable and will provide a nice challenge, a step closer to perhaps one day making the whole frame out of brass. There will be a lot of parts to make and I already realize that some of the work done on the frame might need to be modified, that's what happens when you work from photos without technical dimensions. No problem, it's just a hobby and we all learn from our mistakes, when you get into scratchbuilding you need to be open-minded and imaginative. As a first element, I tried a simple technique to make functional ball joints, it's not exactly what I had imagined at first but I had this idea along the way and it should work. Next I made the upper control arms, I uploaded the reference picture of what I tried to replicate, I used brass for its quality to be welded. Comments are welcome! Francis The Target. Ball joint at the start of machining. Hole drilled to insert the small threaded bolt. Now onto the lathe to separate the ball joint from the rod. Different point of view. Almost final pieces, I still have to make the caps for the top. Machining of the rings where the arms will be welded and the ball joints inserted, this one will be for the lower control arm. The one for the upper control arm. This is what it will look like, I used RB Motion rod ends to mount them in the intended location on the frame.

You have good friends Bob! 😊

Thanks, lots more to come! 😊

Great job Ian! I'm with you, I can't wait for the strike to end at Canada Post, I feel even more isolated these days as if I wasn't already isolated enough in my little country village! 🙄

Great job Daniel, I am happy to see that your beautiful precision tools do not collect dust, the more you use them, the more you discover all the beautiful and precise things you can do with them. It's addictive! 😉

We are numbed by the cold, we don't have enough energy left to argue! 🥶

Thanks Keith, I accept your compliments with great humility. As I said before, I'm a little ashamed not to show you more substantial parts but I hope (and can't wait) to work on the engine and everything that ends up in the engine compartment (my favorite part of the build 😊). However, the front elements of the suspension and steering should provide a good challenge, the margin for error is very small to create the desired result. I'm starting to tackle it in the next few days, stay tuned! Francis

Hello Pierre, Welcome to my WIP thread, I am happy to meet another guy from the Province of Quebec on the forum! I really think that the beauty of this hobby is to build as you want and without putting pressure on yourself, it's a hobby that has evolved over the years but which has retained its childhood magic in some ways. I love details and try to create or reproduce intricate and often imperceptible details just to satisfy or challenge myself to find a way to recreate those particular details. My projects take a long time to complete because I don't have a lot of free time, I try to do as much as possible when the opportunity presents itself. Winter is my most productive season so I hope to make the most of it and progress this thing as much as possible, check back from time to time if you like to see my next updates. Francis Thanks Will, I hope to show you something more substantial in the coming weeks, I'm going to move to the front to make the suspension parts, it promises to be a good challenge. Francis Hi Charlie, I'm a little ashamed when I compare what I did to your incredible build, you truly are a source of motivation and endless wonder. Whatever the scale of your projects, it will always arouse great interest and you can count on me to be among your loyal followers! Yes, the cold has set in here and that's a good reason to go down to the basement to work on my project. Francis

Going back to your thread from the beginning, I noticed that one of the best reference images for your project was the one where the car flipped onto its roof. This shows how rare your bird is but we take everything that passes, the misfortune of some makes the happiness of others! By the way, thank you for publicizing my project but I see that you do everything necessary to keep your admirers well served! I'll come back! 😉

Thanks you very much for your kind comments Ian! I have to say I'm a little ashamed to be so late in this build, you all managed to make complete models or make a lot of progress during my summer break. I'm going to try to speed up and do more substantial things over the next few months, I have so much to do! Francis Thank you Daniel, you are always there with me and I really appreciate all your interventions, it is always constructive and useful. 😊 When it comes to making parts, I think we are just limited by our imagination and tooling is only part of the success. The human brain can do very beautiful things when we put it into action for what it should serve, create and not destroy! 😉 Francis

I am always impressed by your resourcefulness and your precise explanations Daniel, everything is always as detailed in your words as your builds. I'm with you on the copper, the color is great and it gives that little extra "eye-catcher" that we sometimes need to add without overdoing it as they say. You continue to surpass yourself my friend and that's a good sign! 😉👍

Hello Hello Hello, this is a message from beyond! It's been a long time since I visited your threads my friend but I see that you have lost none of your imagination and your dexterity my friend. I'm afraid I'm going to run out of superlatives once I catch up on all the wonders you've done during my extended break... Another display of endless imagination, I must add you started with good bones, you can't go wrong with a '69 Mustang! 👍 No rest for the... talented! 😉

It seems that you like details Andrew, and in any case, you do not lack imagination and dexterity sir! 👍 It must be said that a Maserati deserves special treatment and you are invested in it as I can see! 😉

Wow Rich you have jumped into the big leagues, 1/8 scale is a big toy but you will definitely have details for your hollow tooth! I'll come back to check your progress, I'm curious to see what this kind of kit can offer, it seems that upgrades are available so it's very interesting.

You never cease to impress Charlie, your imagination seems endless and your prowess tends to prove it. I am in awe every time I visit, you are a true magician my friend! 👌

Hello guys, This isn't really an update but I thought it was worth showing you a very small part I made yesterday. By gathering the pieces scattered across my workspace I realize that I haven't made the brake line splitter (T-Junction). I made it to attach to the differential cover, but I'm thinking instead of mounting it somewhere on the frame rail or floor pan and using flexible lines to connect it to the rear brake calipers. There will be a lot of parts fitted to the differential and I don't want it to be too cluttered. I can now move on the front suspension elements. Francis

WOW Tim! I remember your comment (Now THAT'S a radiator.) when I made the radiator for my D100 pickup, I can certainly express the same for yours! The sharpness of your cuts and details are absolutely impressive! It's been a long time since I caught up with your updates and I must admit that you haven't lost any of your magic, your precision inspires me! 👌

Great work Ian, I've heard many times that sanding 3D printed bodies is like sanding rocks, so you deserve (again...) my admiration, you are a warrior my friend!!! The stance is absolutely perfect by the way! 👌

Thanks Jerry! Sorry my friend, it's probably more my lack of English vocabulary than the meaning of your question! The pins are brass (nickel plated) rivets from Scalehardware. The quality of their products is exceptional and I hope they will be in business for many more years, we must support them. I have all the tools necessary to make them myself but I prefer to use the limited free hours at my disposal to make all the parts of the project. It takes a long time to make all the parts and it would add dozens of hours (which I don't have) to the project if I started making my own bolts and nuts. Francis

Thanks Trevor, the machine is slowly coming back into action, I hope to have a productive late fall and winter, this thing is going to take forever to finish at this rate! 😔 Francis Thanks Will, I'm going to move on to build the parts for front suspension components and the steering which are what I consider the most difficult, I hope everything goes well. I can't wait to move on to building the engine and its components. Besides the body modifications, this is my favorite part. 😊 Francis

Nice job Dan, I love the 71 Charger, the hood and taillights are some of my favorite details for this body year. Very good choice of colors by the way! 👌 Another gem for your transporter project. 👍

Nice job Bill, very cool car, what's cooler than a bench seat car powered by a big block engine? 😊

Great job Jim! When stopping by to visit your projects we know we will get a lot for our money, your paint job always impresses and this one is no exception! Your improvements on the kit parts are of high quality like everything you do. It's been a while since I visited your projects and it's very inspiring! 👍