Codi

A simple question for anyone that has followed this thread from the beginning.....including & in particular, Mark Johnson. Nobody has "trashed you" on this forum Mark. Reputations are earned, not subjectively assigned. My assessment is that someone pays for something upfront, they have a reasonable expectation of performance, product or service. Ask yourself Mark, if it was YOU that put YOUR money upfront would YOU be willing or tolerant of a company or person who performed / delivered in the manner which you did? Rhetorical, I'm certain the answer is NO. So instead of attacking the community that you profess to have "served" due to your good graces, which is the way you make it come off, maybe it would be best if you did just go off and do your own thing. I am certain other companies and individuals will come forward, such as TDR / Shapeways, and will somehow serve the hobby in a positive manner. Nature hates a vacum, so does the marketplace. Best not to aggravate others OR yourself right? It seems the biggest issue in the resin casting world is the difference of expectations between the buyer and the seller. There ARE good resin casters that deliver great products and more importantly, in a timely fashion. I've said before and will repeat myself, someone comes to me and sets my expectations, well I must be foolish but I expect them to deliver based upon their commitment. Chris' point about FOLLOW-UP is most important to any business. If you're going to miss a dead-line, be honest and up front with your customer and communicate any issues you might have meeting that commitment. That's how you garner respect. THEN deliver as promised. These are just common sense business practices IMHO. If you collect someones money for a product or service, you're in business. At least until others decide otherwise. Cheers

Hey Brad, sorry to disappoint you but after drawing up a chassis for the funny car, I'm going to pursue that direction. Have to draw and machine a few axle plates for the rear and I've been experimenting on how to solder the rails up in a better fashion. Got great results with the test and know what to do now. It'll be a week or so till I post some pics of what I'm been working on and the results. Hopefully it will go well. Thanks for asking though and for following along. cheers, tim

Thanks everyone. Joe, Chris and Bill, yeah the bracing was a real necessity. I've figured out where I can brace the body (2 spots) when I begin the chassis. I can't leave it completely devoid of braces or I'm afraid it will twist or warp on me somehow. Even though it is very thick and I won't thin it down too much until its time for paint. I must say that it REALLY opens up the interior to the car in a big way and was worth the effort. cheers

Jeff, I build far too slowly to consider making them all. That's why I'm taking my time before I start drawing up the chassis in the coming days so I can get started. Each car takes me more than 18 months to do.........yup, s-l-o-w! Plus I'm going to be doing a challenging build of the Falcon alongside this one so I'll be busy on them for quite some time. Bob, appreciate it, right now I'm between the funny and the altered. I'll share soon which it will be. Whatever it may be, the other one will be on the runway for some time down the road. Chris, thanks for weighing in too. You've been very helpful for sure. Dave, yeah, ya' know I seem to remember seeing that car.................turned out kinda cool too. Ray, yes, yes it is. Oh to only have to figure this one out right? Cheers everyone!

Always appreciate the comments. Now to really stir the pot......I spent the week cutting out the doors / trunk on the Falcon and a Bantam blast (AMT / MPC kit) showed up. I have 4 or 5 great books on drag racing and in particular on altereds. Who doesn't like an altered right? I came across a single photo of an altered from back in the day called the Blister that was campaigned by the Trillo Brothers. It's gorgeous. So I ordered the kit and to mimic that pic immediately hacked the fenders off. So a 2 second mock-up has left me really pondering what this car will be. It's a problem that I like. Rear engined mustang funny, FED dragster (which a fellow builder from this forum has provided me with FANTASTIC renderings/specs) or do a fuel altered. If the altered, it would have a RAT TRAP style independent front suspension, side canards, a wing and an aluminum bullet style fuel tank. Not sure if the front wheels will be the standard 12 spoke or bicycle wheels. I'd really like to do the wire wheels. So, here's a couple pics of what might be. cheers, tim

Cleaned up the roof where it was re-chopped and got the door & trunk out. This body is so thick that I'm going to have a lot of sanding / thinning out of the body and panels as I go along. Had to add a lot of bracing to cut everything out which I'll remove when I get to fabricating the chassis. In the second pic you'll see the mini saws I used by Crazy modeler which worked great and the new Tamiya masking tape they came out with 6 months ago for masking paint jobs. I used it in a couple of areas and I have to say this stuff is just fantastic. If you've not used it yet, I can't recommend it enough. Comes in 2, 3 and 5mm widths. It just flows around curves. And sticks too! cheers, tim

Haven't posted here in a little while but man o' man, that's shaping up beautifully John. LIke the way you did the trim and the detailing of the engine. Oh, and the hinges on the door.....and and and....cheers, tim

Oh so close Chris, oh so close. Looks fantastic, what's the next step? cheers, tim

Tyler, you have a real eye for capturing "reality". Love the pics at night with the lighting and the guy welding is such a cool touch. Impressive for sure. cheers, tim

Thank you Thomas and John. I'm considering pulling this one out this coming week and prepping it for final paint. It has been too humid to paint right now but I can get it ready at least for when we get a break for a couple days. cheers, tim

You're steaming right through it John. I'd still be drawing sketches or something. Amazing. btw, how do you do your lettering on your tires. Anything unusual? Cheers, tim

Brad, thanks once more, this build has been a real challenge but treat as it progresses. Joe, "erector set bulldozer"...I laughed out loud since my 7 yr. old daughter and I just did an erector set pick-up truck together. kinda scary actually. Chris, even though I got them both done today, I'll plate them when I have several more pieces ready and do them at the same time. I'll try the caswell chrome on these. Dave, glad you're liking it. Davewilly, thanks to you too! Randy, I must agree, as I love to see what you're striving for with the pics you show in advance on your GT40......which btw, you're WAY past do for an update my friend. Thanks Mike....in all honesty, once you make one, it's not as daunting so long as the machine is still dialed in properly and you don't forget the numbers that got you there. I write EVERYTHING down as I go along and have learned never to throw my notes out until the item in hand is completed. So, here's a couple of pics of them both on the engine. The caps were machined of nickel/brass and as I noted for Chris, I'll chrome them during my next plating session. The flanges are not on the backs of the necks in these pics. I'll probably double them up for appearances sake during final assembly. cheers, tim In this pic you can also see the oil fill cap that I made for the lifter valley cover.

I was going to try to address each of you individually, but I'll try to cover all the bases regarding your questions and comments. I'm going to polish the valve covers using some simple but VERY effective steps that Dave shared with me. After seeing his dragster wheels in person, I'm convinced that it's worth trying. You can see yourself in them. FED v, Mustang Funny. I'm leaning FED now. I'm doing a bunch of research as I said before and there are some new things I want to learn to do that the dragster would give me the opportunity to attempt and apply. Last but not least, I want to thank everyone again. Your comments are encouragement to keep this going. I think its progressed to the point that I can bounce happily between this build and the Falcon. Based upon my rate of accomplishment I suspect they'll both be done sometime 2018. Key operative word in that sentence, "both". My last update I mentioned that the water necks were "convoluted' in their design. At least in trying to figure out how to replicate them to a reasonable facsimile. Here's a pic of the one I liked. This pic shows the first one I got made next to the other before shaping it. There are 4 parts to make one not counting the PE flange or bolts. The cap is .5mm too wide and I'm going to make new ones. Overall dimensions are 3,0mm long x 3.0ww tall (without the cap) x 2.2mm wide. On the engine. I'll copper and then chrome plate them. When machining the new caps, I'm going to try nickel/brass to see how it contrasts. The metal has a very warm finish to it and a hue all its own. Doesn't solder worth a darn but it won't matter. As you can in this pic, the various pieces were soldered together. Once chromed, I'll use a brass nut for the end of the neck to mimic the real one along with two bolts to secure the flange directly to each head. Way too much information. sorry

Scott, shove that other stuff aside and keep this one going. The changes you're making do make a difference. Cheers, tim

The colors you've selected for the car will look spectacular with the chrome. I'm sure you can't wait to see them too! cheers, tim

Thank you fellas and Joe, appreciate the giggles as always. Love your sense of humor. Davewilly, trust me I was scouring the floor more than once picking up pieces making these things. I DID find them thankfully. Today I added the base plates to them. Took some PE pieces that I found from some firm in the UK and stacked them 3 high, re-shaped them a bit with the dremel and then assembled them. These things in real aluminum look pretty sharp in person I must say and I consider it time well spent for what it adds to the engine. Cheers everyone! tim The valve covers are only resting in place on the heads at this point. I'm going to give the v. covers a high polished finish and add the necessary bolts that secure them.

Now you went and did it Brad, you'll surely bring out the rivet counters now. Seriously though, I LIKE what you did. I've entertained it for the funny but it's cool to see it actually done. I'll have to give that some more thought considering how nice that turned out. Same aluminum as we discussed earlier right? ! cheers

Ray, Manfred, Dave & Dave, Marlowe, Joe, Chris, Randy and Niko......guys, you're very loyal followers and for that I'm very grateful. Sometimes the little things eat up time but it was my choice. I started the valve cover breathers today and have only the base part to do. What you see here are 2 separate parts drilled and pinned together. The length of the top part of the breather is 3.8mm and width is 2.0mm. I used a 1/32" corner rounding end mill to do the 4 sides of the top portion (yes Dave, I am truly nuts). After I get the base done I'm doing the water necks for the front of the heads, which are very convoluted...........then I have to get to some paint and body work on a couple of other builds. One to finish and one to kick-start. cheers, tim btw, Dave (comp1839) thanks for the FED dragster suggestion. I am SERIOUSLY considering it as I want this engine and rear end front and center......did a bunch of research over the weekend..........really intriguing notion I assure you. Also got the some pieces of the block finally assembled AND the ribs (22) put into the crank girdle.

Thanks Thomas........this one was supposed to have been painted and finished by now this summer......but I got knee deep on the Mustang funny car engine and time has slipped by. I want to get to this in a couple weeks along with the Falcon body mods (another build that is a MUST this summer to get jump started on) as our weather in Pa. has been HOT...........pretty humid, but HOT. Appreciate your interest and for the kind comments on it. I feel like a one handed paper hanger right now. cheers, tim

I just know that dragster will be on deck SOON! Looks great Chris, but you already knew that! tim

I just know that dragster will be on deck SOON! Looks great Chris, but you already knew that! tim

40 hours in the pair of these between the research, even with Dave's info that he shared, drawings and actual machining but I can move on. Cheers, tim

That................is..................just.................fantastic..............Brad. I went back and forth checking out all the pics again and again. Nicely done sir.

Many hours to get the first valve cover done but now I have it down wherein I can make its twin with less effort....hopefully. I'll insert stainless steel tube tube in the plug holes for shaping purposes and I drilled holes for twin breathers as well as the 6 bolt holes. Next day or so I hope to share pics of them both on it. Cheers

Ahhh, waiting on parts. So Dave walks into the shop and says hmmmm, what should I do today and knocks out some sweet little parts. Most certainly agree that it's a treat to see her on all 4 now. I know we'll see even more over the fall/winter months. Cheers, tim