sjordan2

This kit is based on the car that was a gift from Mercedes to their leading race car driver of the era, Rudi Caracciola. You can find a bit of my reference at this link, mixed in with a bunch of 540K images: http://s827.photobucket.com/user/sjordan47/library/Mercedes%20500-540K?sort=3&page=1&_suid=1430497537816037794784898869693 This is the car as presented to Caracciola: The car was later restored by a wealthy LA butcher, and this is the form that JoHan used for the kit. As the story goes, it failed to start after he showed it at a concours over 30 years ago, so he had it towed to his exotic car salvage yard, where it remains to this day and hasn't been seen since. His heirs have refused all offers to sell or restore it (offered free by Mercedes). You can read the whole story if you can track down a copy of Town & Country magazine, February 2012 (available here: http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=town+%26+country+magazine%2C+february+2012). The parts manager at Mercedes' Classic Center in California has seen the car, and he told me the interior would look like this Autobahnkurier, with tan seats. As a general rule, closed hard tops would have wood dashes and open-top roadsters would have leather dashes matching the seats. Here's a somewhat overchromed 500K engine(which is found on the 1/8 Pocher kits, both 500K and 540K). The engine turned finishes would be either special order or a restorer's preference. I have a lot of good visual reference on CD (probably all the reference a modeler would need); PM me with your home mailing address and I'll send you a copy. one note... Just about all modelers of this kit overlook the fact that the door window frames should be chrome, not just the drip rails.

Thanks. That Johan Mercedes kit is one of the finest and most accurate kits ever produced, especially in the original Gold Cup version.

I've never quite understood the preference of some modelers for 1/25 vs 1/24, but the latter seems to be the general preference for car kit manufacturers and modelers in the rest of the world. To each his own.

Coming along. Do you have more images of the Mercedes 500K?

Yes, I meant the 1/24 Heller but incorrectly stated Italeri.

I say forge ahead with the test shots in spite of any rude criticism (stupidity is its own reward and doesn't interfere with my appreciation of the process). The result will be better for everyone.

I wonder if this would be useful as a coating to strengthen easily breakable parts such as wheel mounting spindles (my kits are usually 1/16, creating more stress on thin parts).

If you look closely, you'll see that Italeri based their Gullwing kits on the basic roadster kits. Their roadsters correctly reproduce the more pronounced fender shape, more angled eyebrows and larger grille, along with twin coils. These are inaccurate for the Gullwing. The Minicraft/Entex, etc. 1/16 is more complete and overall accurate with its space frame, but oddly lacks a firewall. (I think I may have mentioned this earlier, but that was many pages ago.) Except for the too-sharp corners at the top of the windshield frame, the Italeri roadster/cabrio is probably the best 300 SL kit available.

Right on. I'm shocked that Art, of all people, would suggest such a thing.

Please reply to the earlier questions about your cars of interest. Otherwise, this is a useless thread.

Also sold by Italeri.

Looks to be the same as the Italeri kit.

Yours is superb. Bear in mind that Harry's kit is 1/16 while yours is 1/24.

Now that you've done the Caddy and the Packard 12 convertible coupe, you need to fill the gap with this one. I would add that your previous build journals have been invaluable, and it would be good to see you resume them.

The Gentile book is the best. You'd have to amass a variety of books to do better.

Wander around the pinned subjects on this site under Tips, Tricks and Tutorials. Just scroll down on the main menu.

I assume you have copies of my reference CDs. What other reference material do you have, and what do you want?

Another stunner. What material did you use for the top?

Killer. A subtle thing like the bit of weathering on the exhausts adds much more than would be expected.

Your example looks good to me. Note how the curved molding at the top of the door sweeps down to the upward curve at the bottom of the roof, which meets the curve at the top of the trunk. An excellent replica of the car in your example can be built with the 1/16 Revell Phantom II Continental kit.

I'd scan any of them that you may want to use in the future.

I'd say it's following the same course it always has, time after time that someone brings it up again. If all the different threads on this same subject were linked together, it would be longer than "What did you get today?" But we can't expect all forum members to know what's gone before, or keep members with some skin in this game from repeating themselves.

1959 Alfa Romeo Giulietta Super Spider Veloce identical to this, like new in 1966. (Veloce refers to dual Webers instead of the single Solex, and "Super" refers to the fact that it was prepared for weekend racing by the importer, Hoffman Motors -- short wheelbase, special cams). I was too young and inexperienced to maintain it properly and drove it into the ground (Not hard to do with Alfas before they pulled out of the US market). In spite of further Alfas, Porsche 944 and C4 Corvette, it's still the most fun car I ever owned and I'd love to have it back. Restored standard versions go for around $65K today, and I bet this one would now fetch over $100K.

At one point, you talked about having a more rounded trunk lid. Whichever approach you choose, I think that would match the horizontal lines well.

I agree. 2-tone gray with black fenders. Very classy.