Codi

Good afternoon everyone, first a note to Daniel & Francis for their earlier comments regarding the seat & plating. Appreciate your positivity as it can be a bit tricky as noted to get it right, but when it does work well, it all seems worth it. I've started this week on the Lenco. It's a 4-speed of course but what I really wanted to achieve was the look of the magnesium case from the 70's pro stock era. I played around with some mild 12L14 steel. I love this stuff but it's extra work and clean-up as it takes longer to machine and requires lubricant while milling or putting it on the lathe. I took the rod I have and media blasted it as well to see what effect I would get & wow! I like it a lot and I think it'll be pretty realistic looking when it's done. The trans itself is the CS-1 model. I have several BEAUTIFUL 3D printed ones from Chris Sobak and was planning on using them. They even have the Lenco name / script on them. They're a great reference as I move along with mine and I say "Thanks Chris" just in case he still visits the forum. I miss his postings and models, he's quite talented & his gesture of printing these for me must be acknowledged. The first couple pics show what the real thing looks like and then a few pics of the start of mine. The flanges on the cases slip ONTO the cases and are not affixed just yet. Just a mock-up.......I'll media blast the entire unit once it's assembled. I've got plenty yet to do, ribs to cut in and numerous other bits and pieces to fabricate including the reverse gear case, but it feels great to just get after this now. Cheers to one and all, tim This pic is the trans in the Mopar Missile "Wire Car" This pic I put a piece of alum. scrap next to it so you can see the difference in color. Once media blasted it'll have the appearance of the 2 Lenco pics above.

Thanks Daniel & Ian.......feels good to finally something again & appreciate you stopping by to check it out. Francis....."hit or miss"........today was more "hit" thankfully. I did the flash copper to the frames first and then the copychome dip. They turned out fairly well and I won't have to re-do em'. I'm getting better at it and I've made some notes that were from lessons learned before so that now I'm getting more consistent results. Simple but important steps to get decent results I've found. Granted it took quite a bit of trial and error. Here they are plated, the pics are fairly poor....sorry bout' that! cheers, tim

To quote Charlie...."I keep finding more and more parts to be made"...........YIPPEE!! Happy to hear it and even happier to see them getting made. Cheers Charlie! tim

Marcel, take an over the top car like the Countach and make it even crazier.........LOVE IT! Amazing what 3D printing has brought to our hobby. Well executed......cheers, tim

Morning Charlie, I've been away for too long but will be sure to check out your progress as well.....I always enjoy seeing what you're up to.......and no, I won't build you a radiator, I'm flattered but I've no doubt yours is sweet the way it is. Started fabbing different bits and pieces while I wait for my opportunity to visit the shop I mentioned earlier. 70's pro stocks had fiberglass seats and many used those made by a company called "Solar"......some earlier seats had chrome moly frames though and I went that direction just for the added detail versus the simpler frame of the Solar. Anyways, here's what I came up with and just have to make it's sister seat. The frames will be nickle plated or I might opt for "CopyChrome"........cheers, tim The frames are 1/32" brass btw.

Great subject for a build Ian. Love how you just jump in there and whip up a brass chassis too.......I'm just jealous! Cheers, tim

The wait was worth it Jason........just glad to see you back on this one and looking forward to your next post. Impressive looking! cheers, tim

Well done Tom. You do very clean/crisp work and it shows on this car. cheers, tim

Oh Francis.......you might not be getting all of the bench time you'd like but you DO make the most of what you get. Well done as usual sir! cheers, tim

Hi Daniel, it's been too long since I've visited and checked out everyone's progress. You have moved along with this one.......just to share, it's not the body work I'd dislike it's paint at the end....never been outstanding at that and too many factors can mess up a ton of work and have to start over. Scratch-building is FUN but re-doing something (I know you get it) is frustrating as you near the end. I like your vision for it and can't wait to see it in paint! Good luck......tim

Welcome and thanks for sharing Santiago. I'll be sure to check out your links and other builds and congrats on a nicely done car. cheers, tim

Thank you Dave and not just for the comments.....woke up this morning and took my daughter to that drag car show you told me about the other day in Lebanon on a whim. It was a solid show BUT the big deal for me was walking in and seeing the Pro Stock Mustang II of Scott Schafiroff. I've been doing my chassis drawings for the Mav based upon a 75' Hardy twin rail, all tube chassis which THIS particular car has... I have no drawings or blueprints so I was going by photos that I found on the web and from period magazines. So I'm on my back taking pics of the bottom of the car to get whatever I could and when I'm done who is standing there but the man that owns the car........well, he must have been shocked when I told him I've been looking for HIM for a long time. We talked for about 10 minutes and I showed him what I'm working on and he kindly said, come down to my shop and I'll take the clip off and put her up on the lift for ya'. I jumped at it to say the least. My drawings were off a little bit but I"m sure after I see the car up close (and with a tape measure in hand) that I'll come away with exactly what I need to make the Mav as accurate as it can be...........I'm stoked, can you tell? So, thank YOU Dave for even mentioning the show in the first place as I had no knowledge of it. I'll update this briefly after my visit to his shop and pics of the car up close. Cheers, Tim

Simon, I'm not familiar with the actual 350:1 scale aspect......meaning that a pencil or hand or coin of sorts in one of the pics you've shared to reflect the models actual size would be cool to see. Great looking ship for sure. congrats on her! cheers, tim

LIN, fantastic! That's exactly what it looked like. 😀 Seriously though, you brought it to life and I'd be curious to see some of your other builds regardless of the subject matter. You're talented that's for certain. cheers, tim

That is NICE Jim.........thanks for sharing. cheers, tim

Congratulations Chris on another outstanding build. She presents herself so well and reflects your talents. I loved this car and thread from the beginning and regret only that the she is now completed. What's up next Chris????? cheers, tim

That brings back memories. Very well done. cheers, tim

I have to add that this thread has been a pure "giggle" to watch. Always something to smile and wonder at. The body is sublime and the little details captured (the welds on the driveshaft as but one example) all coming together to make an amazing one of a kind build. Cheers to you Charlie, tim

I've always been fascinated by those that can paint such as you.......John Teresi always comes to mind as one such person. Thanks for sharing your process and like others have stated, the colors are just fantastic along with the scheme you've chosen. The mix of construction methods, brass, 3D and others make it a truly interesting build. Good luck with her Jim! cheers, tim

To one and all, a belated but heartfelt "Merry Christmas"! Cheers, Tim

Hi Ian, I too am looking forward towards your next post....you're so close now and I can't wait to see her all together. (as I'm sure you are). cheers, tim

😏 Mighty fine Francis........got caught up as well on your progress and ALWAYS enjoy the shared insights you provide. You're moving along quite well and the "rust" has obviously been knocked off. cheers, tim

Morning Daniel, Sorry it's been a while since I posted but I got caught up and it's nice to see the progress.......also the shared thoughts on the hobby and methods you use when fabricating something. I too miss Caboose Hobbies btw.....they were a good source. cheers, tim

Francois, one can only marvel at the talents you're displaying here. It's been fascinating to watch and can't wait to see more. cheers, tim

I wanted to respond and also to answer the questions that were asked. Robert, yes, it can be time consuming as you know especially when working worth small end mills etc. I don't mind the time involved to be honest....only when I have to do a part over..... Rich, thanks for the sentiment and for also peeking in on the build. Daniel.....the petcock....I found a thin piece of photo etch in my parts bin that was part of a leaf spring kit or something like that. It had a fold line down the middle of it....I drilled a hole in the center of the fold line....placed a piece of stainless steel tube in it and then folded it slightly to form a V.....put a small drop of loctite thin glue on either side and used my photo etch pliers to squeeze each end as tight as I could up to the the tubing in the center. After I was certain the glue had dried i used my hand piece that spins up to 25k rpm with a jewelers .27mm cutoff disc to carefully shape it to the size desired and cut it off the steel tube. Was simple to do just took me some creativity to find something & method to make it. That's one of reasons I like to scratch-build though. Mike....I wanted to make the top portion as one but after considering many options, the simplest and best was to make it into 2 parts and put them together. Each started as part of an 8.0mm alum. rod that I setup in my rotary vice that was set at 90 degrees. I've included a pic of the set up to give a better idea of what I'm describing. Then following my drawings I cut the pieces using the following end mill: 1/8" - 2.0MM - .8MM & - .6MM and cut them off using a jewelers diamond cut-off wheel (.27mm thin). My mill has the 10k. rpm pulley kit which has proven invaluable when using these tiny end mills and drill bits. I'll spin the teeny ones at 8K+ RPM......still have to go slow though. ------ Radiator cap, took a piece of 1/8" nickel/silver rod and on the rotary I cut in the sides to the angle I drew up and then used a .27MM (.0100) end mill to cut the 2 circular grooves on the top. Parted it off and glued it to the rod that was inserted in the radiator base. That was actually simple & quick to make. Hope this helps.......I really have to get better with more pics along the way like Francis & Charlie to share "how" I make something. I appreciate when others share their methods and I'm a bit lax in that regard.