Ace-Garageguy

Thanks for the review and the pix. You gotta remember when these things were raced, the huge wide meats we're used to seeing on race-cars today were in the future somewhere. Cars set up for vintage road-racing often end up with more rubber than is exactly period-correct, so just check your references and go with what looks right to you.

Very realistic. I've looked at a LOT of rusty cars, and you've nailed it, dead on.

Perfect combo...a Deuce 3W with an Ardun. Perfect perfect perfect. Just for the record, it's only some of the later model engines that have the front mount at the center of the "front cover". Ford fiddled around with a single front mount, and two side-mounts on the transmission, but went back to the two-front, one at the gearbox. You will find that the vast majority of Ford flathead V8 engines have the front mounts on the corners of the block, and from '37 on as integral parts of the water pumps (still on the corners, like zo).

Anybody who is seriously considering getting into 3D printing is going to HAVE to learn some CAD first. Point-scan-print, that some folks seem to think is right down the road, is a ways off I'm afraid. BUT (big but) you can learn SketchUp for free, and the software is free from google. http://www.sketchup.com/ Okay, now you've got your feet wet. I got this email today. I haven't tried it yet, but it sounds intriguing... Did you know that IronCAD invests heavily in R&D to make their product easy to learn? Designers that have experienced Solidworks, Solid Edge, or Inventor quickly discover that IRONCAD is truly a remarkable program. Using an innovative design approach, you work directly in 3D, simply dragging and dropping standard or customized components into your design. Editing and positioning is simply done by pushing and pulling handles. It's like working with intelligent Lego® pieces that can align and size themselves automatically relative to one another. You can intuitively and efficiently make changes at any stage in the design process to experiment with multiple ideas and quickly arrive at an optimal solution. You no longer need to worry about traditional rules, constraints, multiple part file management, or cumbersome datum planes. With minimal training, you will be confident that you get up to speed in hours and become proficient in days. To learn more about IronCAD's easy to learn solution, visit www.ironcad.com. Whatcha waitin' for?

Another one of my heroes has finished the race. Truly a man who was larger than life. What else needs to be said? EDIT: I almost forgot. Brabham was the guy responsible for Repco developing the Formula One engine based on the aluminum Oldsmobile 215 bottom end, and it was with that engine, in his own chassis, that he clinched his third World Championship.

Man...this is GREAT !!! I've been messing around trying to get the right wheels for a long-stalled project. Now I have some direction. I don't ever say awesome, but if I did...well, you know.

Yes sir, it doesn't get much cooler than that. Very well done and original.

Geez...what a mess. Gives a whole new perspective to the term "body mud". Maybe soak it in whatever you're using, then toothbrush scrub, then repeat as necessary? Or, whatever removes lacquer from styrene ought to work, maybe. I've personally never had to take that much filler off of anything. I admire your dedication to saving the thing. GOOD luck.

I'm sorry for what you're having to go through, but try to remember that death is a natural part of life, and comes to us all. I know it may seem frightening and cruel, but that's the way it is. I wish you calm and peace and strength. And listen to Charlie's very good and practical advice.

Best use of that kit I've seen so far. Very very nice.

Excellent point, but I think if the mold was vented on the non-visible side of the parts, you could probably get a good result. It would take some experimenting, and maybe a minor pressure differential between the resin-in side and the vent side. RTM (resin transfer molding) is a common technique in industrial applications to get good mold filling with liquid resins at low pressures. Here's more on the process, which could be adapted to small-volume copies of traditionally injection molded parts trees. http://www.rtmcomposites.com/tooling/resin-transfer-molding-rtm

You're absolutely right. I should have added "block" after "iron". The heads on the 300 were indeed aluminum.

I think Greg was referring to...ummmm...in the video link that he posted immediately at the beginning of the post. You know, no hot rods in the video. Mickey Thompson, of course, was another very well known American hot-rodder who had a presence at Indy with some radical machinery over several years, running a number of different chassis configurations and both Buick and Chevy stock-block power. He was quick to embrace the mid-engine concept.

I don't think scale model building gets any more precise or realistic than this. Wonderful skills, always a treat to look at the progress.

You got me pining for the front-engined Indy-roadster glory days, and I came across this mid-engined, Offy-powered Zink I've never seen before, from 1961.

Way beyond "wow".

Oh yes, I'd like to find the princess who fits THAT slipper !

Top photo says K-88, which looks a lot like the most common DragMaster too. Lower TE 448 looks a little more like the AMT kit.

From my experience, I'd say it would be pretty straightforward. Many trees are designed with only 2 mold parts, and so have a single parting line that goes all the way around everything, at the same level. A silicone mold could be made, up to the parting line for one half, and above the parting line for the other half. A potential problem is the property that most liquids (including mold materials) have of forming a meniscus where they're in contact with a solid. This would tend to make for a very thin mold-edge at the parting line, easily torn, and could contribute to producing a part with significant parting-line flash.

X2. The resin shell I have (Flintstone?) has a lot of issues and really isn't suited for anything other than the basis of a radical custom or drag car.

Yes, the 300 was an iron-block, aluminum-head derivative of the all-alloy 215 as well. The last in the series was the 340, only built in '66-'67. An entirely new 350 was introduced to the Buick line in 1968. The valve covers on the 215 (Buick version, not Olds version) and 300 look kinda like the nailhead. The tops are horizontal like it, but the bottom rails are canted, more like other engines. I seem to remember the 340 having valve covers that look like most other engines. I honestly have no idea (at the moment) which kits may have good interim smallblock 340 Buick engines.

Start 'em young.

I wonder why. Thanks for the comparison shots. It's good info to have.

Though not identical, the "Two Thing" used a chassis that's similar in concept to the dropped-center unit in the AMT kit, if that's the one you're using. The other more typical multi-tube dragster frame in the kit is similar to many vintage dragster frames from various builders. A google image search of "vintage dragster" or "vintage dragster frame" (or chassis) should return plenty of results. Once you find a photo that's a good match for the kit frame, follow the links to more information on exactly what it is and who built it.