Codi

Thanks guys. To answer the question about parting off, I use a slit saw unless parting off round stock when I use my lathe. Oil pan is done other than putting in the .4mm bolts. You can see the holes drilled on the back half for the drain plug and the dry sump lines unfortunately. Next up is a reasonable facsimile of the dry sump pump and the gears for it. In the pics I'm holding everything together as nothing has been glued together as yet. Cheers, tim

Pete, ah, you caught that huh? Pretty effective actually. I had an end mill grab just a little too much one time and lets just say that it created a bit of "excitement" when it did. Better safe than sorry right? Thanks for sharing Brad, I don't visit there much but now I most certainly will. cheers, tim

That paint is gorgeous, mile deep. Nice build sir. cheers, tim

Hey there Brad, appreciated.......btw, what are YOU working on as of late? Time for another altered perhaps? J.C. (AFX) thanks sir........the planning (research and coming up with the rendering) was the most time consuming part. I've gotta be nuts the time I put into this little piece. cheers Tom (Brutalform) glad you came across the thread and hope you stop by again in the future. Francis, as you know all to well, the drawings / prep are everything, not counting the bolts and tubes, there are 5 different pieces making it up and I've still got to make the fuel pump extension. Thanks too !!! Dave....thanks man, you taught me most of what I know and I can't say how much that matters. cheers!!!! Daniel (Straightliner) time and practice will get you there. I do admit you have to have some patience too. My kids suffer because I use up my patience quota on the mill and have little left for them. ?

I've always admired your work Martin. Nice to see this thread you've just started. Cheers, tim

Chris, come on man, hope you get back to posting something soon. If Randy D. can do it, so can you. ? And thanks too for the compliment. Dave, I think you'll like these....... Pump is done other than making the extension for the fuel pump. You'll see a hole drilled on the bottom side of the piece where that will be attached. The round portion with the 8 ribs is only temporarily attached as an fyi. The bottom half will butt up against the oil pan. The last 2 pics I have it laying on the block as a reference........after taking the pics I realized I have the block upside down......duh!! In the next pic you can clearly see the hold for the fuel pump extension I have to make yet.

Well it would appear that Francis is a big ol' fibber..........he said earlier that he is SLOW when it comes to building. That is simply NOT true. For the level of detail work and the perfect results, I can only say I would take me a whole lot longer. Amazing work that reminds me of John Teresi (come on back soon John if you read this) in that not only is your work outstanding but you do it so quickly as well. Cheers, tim

Mark, I'm surprised you have to ask me. I was one of the people to have answered your questions from 3 days ago about what recommendations there are as to what mill to buy. Others responded as well. Why are you still asking the question? Please don't answer me as it was rhetorical. Let alone the fact my pic's show SHERLINE stamped all over the equipment. Sherlock you're not. Tim

You've posted this query for the 3rd time in 3 days. Anyone else responding to this thread is simply wasting their time in my estimation even though you had multiple replies and suggestions (including my own) before. You should go do your own homework and stop wasting peoples time here. Tim

Darn it......Bill beat me to it. I won't take a year to reply to YOUR post Randy so here goes..............as President of the Randy D. fan club, I can only say that this is some of the absolute, finest scratch-building, if not THE finest in the country. What I love about your work is not just the attention to detail and your ability to transfer it to the part IN scale, but you capture the "delicacy" of it all. Which describes the Birdcage Maserati itself. You've captured it like no one else Randy. Can't wait for more and so glad to see you back posting again. Cheers my friend, Tim

Mark, I'll echo what advice you've been given by others. Sherline for the hobbiest and what you're interested in making are a great choice. The DRO is the "Digital Read-Out". I don't know how or why you'd bother buying any mill or lathe without one if you're hoping to be accurate. Best advice is that you should spend a few dollars and go to the Sherline site and buy their comprehensive book on their equipment and machine tips / setup and other general advice before you buy anything. I'm assuming that you're also new to machining so if you can find a local machinist that might be willing to mentor you, that is worth any and all the money you'll put into your equipment. For the hobby machinist Sherline also offers a WIDE range of accessories so your imagination and ability are the only things limiting you in what you can make. Good luck. cheers, tim

Thanks Bruce, I know you enjoyed the bantam......I'm doing my best to make this one unique in its own right. Also appreciated Francis, I'm certainly enjoying your new threads as well. Thanks Dave, I know they aren't pretty but they do work for me. I've included a pic of the Can-Am dry sump system. Got to figure out where some of the fittings/lines lead off to but I have some other pics that I think answer those questions. Cool looking though and I know you can appreciate the pic. Got the gear cover/ water pump done except for the final detailing. I'll do that next. There are 5 separate pieces that make it up. The pump "snout" is 2.8mm tall as an aside. The penny gives some comparison. I'm tickled with it and it should really add to the overall engine when it's complete. Cheers, Tim

Thank you fellas....... Dave, I'll post some pics the next time I post. I apologize for the big delay in replying to your question as I just saw your post. cheers Started finally machining the gear cover/ water pump. With no blueprints to work from I did a ton of research and got a little creative in getting some really good numbers on the piece so I could draw it up. DAVE, no laughing at my drawing, I know it's a mess and you must be shaking your head compared to yours.....I'm posting just 1 pic of the many drawings I had to do to get to this point. I will part off this piece with a slit saw into 3 different pieces. Next I have to make the water pump impeller housing and what I call the fan "snout". Overall length of the entire piece will be less than 8.0mm. It's a fraction of the size of a postage stamp. Not quite 11.0mm tall and 12.00 mm wide. 20 holes in total. The So far it matches the drawing fairly well so I'm hopeful that I can finish the entire unit sometime next week. cheers, tim I forgot to mention that all the holes will have Albion alum tube inserted & T2M bolts dropped inside each. Many/most of the holes on the perimeter are cut on the edge so the tube will stick up above the edge of the housing.........it will mimic the real unit by doing so. You can see in the drawing below for example holes 8 & 9 how they're past the edge of the cut line. It'll make more sense when it's parted off and assembled.

Thanks Francis for taking the time to post the pics of this build. I really enjoy seeing other machinists work and approach to doing things. Can always learn something new from others! The overall model is truly great and you're no doubt right to be proud of it. cheers, tim

For us modellers here it's like our own Sports Illustrated Swimsuit edition. Nice pics. cheers, tim

? Now that's some mighty fine machining and overall scratch-building right there. This truck is a treat to the eyes to see come together. cheers, tim

Joe, I KNEW there was a reason I started on the engine first on my build. This is a great tutorial on the areas that need addressed on this kit and I really like the way you're addressing them. Thanks and I look forward to your progress, you're off to a flying start. cheers, tim

Hi Hakan, agreed...I've got pics of the Holman Moody nascar pan / setup but I fortunately came across the actual pan/setup for the Boss 494 Can-Am engine which was pretty cool. The engine will have the required water pump / fan as per Pro Stock regs in the day but it will also have the unique Can-Am dry sump. I think you're gonna like it. cheers

Hi Kenneth, Saw the title of your thread and remembered building a plastic kit of this ship. One of the most beautiful that ever sailed IMO. Nothing compared to your of course and I want to say how much I like yours and the efforts you're putting forth. Good luck on the rest of it. cheers, tim

Love this build Ken. A beautiful ship. cheers, tim

Great thread JC. So many interesting cars posted....I can't pick a favorite but the "Singers" are insane. cheers, tim

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE !! Took some time away from the bench and now it's back at it. I'd like to acknowledge and reply to some of the recent comments/replies. Dave (comp1839) Yeah, I thought about doing the heads too right away but one of the challenging parts I've attempted to make is up next. The water pump / gear cover. You'll understand in a week or so when I post pics of it (if it goes well of course) The fab list is pump, then the dry sump pan & pump, then the heads, manifold and the Dominators. Saw the most recent posts of your car and what you're doing on it......NICE is all I can say. Lorne, thank you for checking it out and the sentiment. Those are some fantastic builders you've referenced and I'm sincerely flattered. Hope you like the rest of this one. Jason & Ron.......thank you too for noting the cars progress. Joe, I replied to your PM. Thanks for checking out my Maverick and I'll certainly be following yours.

Hi Francis......first I want to say thanks for the kind compliment you paid me. That's some mighty fine company you've lumped me in with and I appreciate it. Like everyone else that's commented on your build, it's simply fantastic. I've learned some things already from your posts and love the way you're documenting it. GREAT WIP no matter type of model you're building. Nice machining skills you have there too sir. Looking forward to any and all of your posts and like others would love to see some of your past builds too. Cheers, Tim

Thank you Niko & Hakan for posting both your comments and insights. Sorry for the mixed order of pics I'm sharing. The 1st pic is of the rear motor plate and block "flanges" as I call them along with the machined oil filter housing. I'll mill a bit off the front of the drivers side to mimic the actual block and you'll see some further detail later. More pics below. The next 2 pics show an actual alum. 494 block with the screw in freeze plugs. I'll be doing all 6 in the style of the one circled. This pic is the crank/flywheel flange. This pic shows the drawing for the crank damper that I machined in 2 pieces. I couldn't post the pic (file is still to big) of the completed unit but the smaller piece fits inside the larger one as an fyi. The diameter of the finished damper is 6.6mm. To those that celebrate it, MERRY CHRISTMAS and to everyone else a HAPPY HOLIDAYS! May the season bring the best it has to offer to each and everyone! Tim

Hey Pete, the finish was just dremel soft polishing wheel for metal & 0000 steel wool. I agree, it does look pretty cool in person . Thanks for checkin' in. Hi Chris, I have pics of the alum. block when they it nascar and they show it with a couple different options. None were brass however. I'll share more as I detail it for sure. cheers Bob, always appreciate the acknowledgements. My plan is to display the engine on a stand (think a shop stand) with the engine being prepped for install. Only oil lines run......... Hakan, I get that.........it's not for everyone, but it's something that I do enjoy even though it's a slow process for me. I still believe I can have this build completed by September NEXT year. Time will tell. Cheers