Cato

Which browser do you use on MCM Harry?

No, because I've had complete success with Firefox everywhere else on the web with it. What do you suggest?

I just made another reply and got 404 when I submitted. Now I can't communicate.

That's NOT what I got. I got an ERROR 404 page with the bad face on it.

Harry, after posting an explicit and lengthy reply to you post, and hitting 'submit', I just got this: This is very frustrating, The BLAH_BLAH_BLAH_BLAH software doesn't do the same thing twice.

You'll need the kit jig, not just spokes Eric. Unless that wheel is just screwed together, you'll have to start from scratch. Contact Marvin, Dave Cox or Paul Koo for needed parts.

Great detail work and excellent build Bruce. But you've clearly widened your envelope with the Wolf.

A nice treat... With some interruptions, work has proceeded on the door. But as always, planning other associated areas of the build make for parallel tasks to solve before you get there. One such area has been the body paint. Now with favorable weather, I'd like to get the body in color so that the roof can be covered so that the headliner can be installed. When I have a total solution to the doors, that will begin in earnest. Before covering the roof, provision for the Landau Irons must be finalized. Months ago I had purchased the MMC irons which are seen here and are lovely. However, when I bought them I did not account for the fact that my altered roof is now 13 mm lower in front and 4 mm in the rear. A recent trial fit showed that the MMC bars are too long from each mounting point. And their elegant curvature made them actually stand off the roof and beltline in extreme fashion: Making paper templates from printed photos and a copy machine, I mock-up different sizes and discovered that 107 mm would be far better in straight line between the mount points. here is a slightly too small one at 105 mm. Notice too the the curvature of the ends is reduced to not protrude above the roof: Deciding that making these was beyond my primitive brass skills, I again contacted David Cox through his site for custom work. You may remember that he made the wonderful running board strips which in chrome, are glorious. David understood my needs and by sending a dimensioned photo, set to work Shortly after I received these bars 'to try'. They are not cast as MMC's are but are actual bent brass bar, filed and shaped, with tubes soldered to the ends and washers soldered to the centers to form actual pivots. If I had a drophead coupe, these would actually work on a folding top. All that remains is for me to fashion stand-offs from tube which go into the roof and belt line: Needless to say, they are perfect and fit exactly as I hoped. They also have a different but elegant shape which suits my car's altered profile exactly. Seen here, taped in place, I'm very pleased. David sent them with a basic nickel finish but will clean them up and send for chrome now that we know they work. For custom work not available from the other Pocher suppliers, I urge you to contact Cox through his site for anything you want or need.: http://www.detailedmodelcars.com/index.htm EDIT; I AM SORRY TO SAY THAT THE SITE HAS AGAIN FAILED TO INSERT THE ACTUAL PHOTOS INSTEAD OF THE LINKS. THE BUG IN THE SOFTWARE HAS APPARENTLY NOT BEEN ADDRESS BY DAVE AMBROSE YET.

Hey Bruce! I last posted Feb 10 and still no action from you. Wanna see this thing near completion!

This is more like an 'arts and crafts' project than a model build. But it's a beautiful result and I think a lot of fun for you to wade through all the various materials. Not a boring build. Nice addition to your brass era / industrial revolution collection Harry.

Peter's a good guy and you will do well with him. Excellent supply of parts too.

An excellent Pocher supplier I have used is Peter Doney: http://Peter R Doney <Peter@PocherParts.com> He's much closer to you in the UK.

1/8 scale.

Plenty good reason. I don't think real catenary had wrapped joints with 600+ volts running down them. Found a lot of shots of catenary but none close enough to see the joins in the lines.

Why not solder the brass Harry? Only five connections and no thread showing.

Excellent job Bo. You made it! Looks wonderful. Now finish the job and make a glass case for it. Would be a shame to leave it out to collect dust and be at risk. Bravo! On to a Rolls-Royce now!

A tough choice... Although not posting for a week, work has continued - with some life interruptions along the way. I had come to a crossroads with door mounting and needed to rethink the problem. A quick review; here is the passenger side door at the time the sweep cladding was added. Note it is taped shut. The compound curves needed to match the body and cowl were very difficult to get right. It was necessary to heat bend the door (in hot water) continuously to get the upper front corner (where the latch holds it closed against the cowl) so that there is no tension or strain on the latch: After much debate, I concluded that bending the door had reached its limits - so I must scratch build a new door. It needed to be a thinner shell and must have the curvatures built in, not heat-warped in. So after much testing I decided on a .030 thick door skin with the .020 cladding added on top. This was pliable enough to get curvature: But how to hold the shape? The answer became brass tubing. 3/32 rectangular tube was bent to match the contour of the rocker panel (door bottom edge) and a straight tube was added to the leading edge because that's how the cowl is. I still needed to get the latch close to the cowl at the top. But realized instead of heat, the secret would be to twist the bottom tube near the front edge. That canted the top edge inward: Here are views of the inside showing the latch and window frames in test position: But as usual with me, each solution brings a new problem. The window frames are 3/32 thick channel and Pocher never designed their doors to accommodation that added thickness. Although my new one is thinner, there is still a bit too much thickness. With the door now comfortably latched, the vent window is too far inboard in relation to the windscreen frame. The gap between can be seen in these shots. It should not be flush to the outer side but overlap by about half. So more thinking to come. Including making a new door (yes, again) but with a slot in the .030 to sink the latch into. The .020 cladding would then cover that slot and the frames would become .030 closer to the outside. Remains to be seen...

Mike, you used the right word; 'abrupt'. That's the first impression I got too. What these dopes don't realize too, is that by starting a polite or civil relationship and better describing their project or needs, that many of us can give more and better help. Tom you're right; these type guys are the exception rather than the rule. Especially when a guy from a slightly different culture 3000+ miles away delivers unprompted generosity to you. Happened to me on several occasions and I was only too happy to reciprocate or be generous with gratitude. Skip and I just got hit by a clinker here.

Now YOU'RE having PB photo problems. Dave said there were several update-related bugs here on MCM and would look into them. I do see your first post of the Bentley but no subsequent pics.

The very same one.

I just noticed this so am a little late in responding. Skip and I have become web friends due to our common interests and over the years I too have been a beneficiary of his expertise and generosity. He has done very similar kindnesses for me. And when possible I have responded to his help in similar manner. Wishing to aid the character described above, (but before knowing his true demeanor) Skip wrote me and asked if I would render some technical help to him. Mr. B (I'll call him) then PM'd me, and with no preamble, asked blunt technical questions about how I fashioned such and such parts for a Benz he was building. A model that Skip had provided his usual huge tech help about. I like directness in a new acquaintance so I answered and told him what he asked. I closed by saying to show me results of my direction and feel free to ask should he need more. With the theory that any friend of Skip's is a friend of mine. Well about a week later, a second PM arrived and with virtually no greeting or mention of the first contact, asking deeper tech questions about how, specifically, I did some things. Again, I went about my usual way of freely giving info and went further and provided several photos of exactly how I performed his desired operation. Again I asked for return feedback, so that I might better help him should he want it. And that was the last of him. Never heard a word. Nice or nasty. Clearly unlike Skip or anyone in Skip's orbit. I didn't mention this to him because I thought he may have a better relationship with this chap and continued to aid him. Now I see that Skip got the same treatment I did. Now I'm not a warm fuzzy guy that hugs a cuddly teddy each night but I DO know sincere, well-intentioned folk who are appreciative of assistance and say so or return a favor. I have built a nice portfolio of web friends who have enriched my modeling experience over the years. And hopefully, I theirs. I will help anyone who asks by first providing the basic info sought. But depending on the / any response, may not give my time or methods so freely past that. So Mr B, assuming you lurk here because you have not yet finished your colossal, definitive statement on that model, be advised that there are many here unlike you who are only too glad to help a soul. You get more with a carrot than with a stick. And being from the UK does not exempt you from contributing to or appreciating our folks. I have literally dozens of web friends from your country who are expert modelers and fall over themselves to contribute to and enrich a fellow modelers experience. You are the exception to that rule and obviously don't 'get' the reason forums like this exist.

But you're not bad for a guy that's building a house and a model..........

Forgot to mention; soon to come are the chrome window winder and inner door handle. I'm debating an armrest or small map pocket too.

Creeping up on the doors... I have been steadily working on the doors and realized I needed to finalize and size the inner panel because one thing leads to another. Hinges, latches and thicknesses are the big concerns. To take a 'break' from nerve wracking stuff I got the comfy side in near finished state. The main pleated panel was made nearly a year ago. In an effort to get the door as thin as possible (the window frames will make them .093 thicker than stock) I made a new thinner sheet backer of .015 styrene. I mounted the pleat section, carpet kick panel and trim strip permanently. The top wood cap and the thin leather fill strip are just placed. The design of the trim will hopefully match the rear side panel shown here. The top cap will be slotted to accept the frames and glass when I get that far. I shot a light clear acrylic on the trim; did not want the syrupy clear gloss of new. After all, this baby is slightly scruffy most everywhere.

Oh well. I get partial credit right Skip??