1924 Fiat Mefistofele

[cobraman]

Very nice !

[Harry P.]

Well, I finally got the body installed, which was pretty tricky. The body has to be squeezed to fit between the rear shock assemblies. so I couldn't install the floor until after I had installed the body. That means I had to glue the body at the shock assemblies, but not along the front frame rails... because I had to be able to pull the front sides of the body apart enough so I could slide the floor in front to back. Once I had the floor in place, I ran liquid cement along the joint between the bottom edges of the body and the top of the frame rails. Finally I finagled the firewall in place and glued it in place with super glue.

 

[Harry P.]

The dash had to be installed before the body is installed on the chassis.

[Harry P.]

Once the body was installed on the frame, I inserted the steering column to make sure it would mate up to the steering box. Well, it didn't. The holes in the dash and firewall for the column are too far to the left, so the tip of the steering column missed the attachment point on the steering box. I know the hole for the column is in the right place on my scratchbuilt firewall because I used the kit firewall as the template. So the kit parts are engineered incorrectly.

The fix was to remove the steering box (it was attached with screws, not glue, so removing it was no problem). Then I glued a small shim of thin sheet styrene to the rear of the steering box on the side of the box that contacts the frame rail. When I reinstalled the box, the shim caused the box to be tilted slightly, and not parallel to the frame rail. Now the steering column meets the steering box perfectly.

[Harry P.]

This car was built in 1923, so the paint was brushed on. Spraying cars didn't start until 1924. The paint surface is rough, with various dings, scratches, and imperfections showing. The finish on this car was never intended to be showcar smooth and shiny. I tried to duplicate this "less than perfect" finish by leaving in small scratches and other imperfections in the paint, and did not polish it at all. Here's a shot of the real car... you can see just how imperfect the finish is...

[Dann Tier]

This car was built in 1923, so the paint was brushed on. Spraying cars didn't start until 1924. The paint surface is rough, with various dings, scratches, and imperfections showing. The finish on this car was never intended to be showcar smooth and shiny. I tried to duplicate this "less than perfect" finish by leaving in small scratches and other imperfections in the paint, and did not polish it at all. Here's a shot of the real car... you can see just how imperfect the finish is...

not being all weird, but you do such a fantastic job that you should set up your own museum. i'd love to see these in person, as i'm sure many others would as well. thanx for your inspiring work!

[Twokidsnosleep]

Some great progress and problem solving

Finagling is my middle name 

[Ramfins59]

Great work as usual Harry.

[sjordan2]

This could be your best ever.

[bobthehobbyguy]

Another beauty in the works. That woodwork looks great.

[Harry P.]

Boy, lemme tell ya... this kit is a real challenge. First of all, it's very complex with a ton of very small detail parts. On the usual "difficulty scale" that typical 1/25 scale models are rated (1-3), this one would be a 10. It's very challenging. It's much the same as building a Pocher with two important differences: It's "only" 1/12 scale, so the small detail parts are tiny and fragile... and Pocher used a very tough, stiff, strong styrene. Their parts, even the small detail parts, are pretty bulletproof. But Italeri molded this kit using a very soft and flexible styrene, making the whole model kind of spindly and fragile, and making the small detail parts very easy to break. I installed the engine... it installs exactly like a Pocher engine does... four screws through the frame rails into the engine's four mounts. Installing the engine takes away a lot of the "floppiness" of the chassis, as the engine block itself adds a great deal of stiffness to the whole chassis. Now I have to deal with a very detailed, very multi-piece set of linkages for the carbs. Wish me luck!

[cobraman]

Looks fantastic !

[Twokidsnosleep]

Absolutely looks the business as they say. This will be a doozy of a model when finished

[slusher]

Terrific work and progress Harry. I am not rushing you but when does the chain come in?

[peteski]

 

That engine looks YOOOOGE!

[Harry P.]

Terrific work and progress Harry. I am not rushing you but when does the chain come in?

Umm... I'm kinda holding off until last. I'm still not sure exactly how it's supposed to go together. I looked at the instructions several times, but still don't have it straight in my mind. I'll get it, though.

[Harry P.]

That engine looks YOOOOGE!

It is! It's a WWI Fiat airplane engine. They had to extend the chassis to get it to fit!

Remember... this car was built for only one specific purpose... to break the land speed record (which it did).

[sjordan2]

Umm... I'm kinda holding off until last. I'm still not sure exactly how it's supposed to go together. I looked at the instructions several times, but still don't have it straight in my mind. I'll get it, though.

You might look at Grandt Line model railroad chain made of delrin. It's a bit large for the bicycle size chain I need for my 1/14 Bugatti brakes, but could work for a 1/12 drive chain.

Edited August 3, 2016 by sjordan2

[Harry P.]

I was thinking the same thing... pre-built scale chain. The way the kit chain goes together is you lay one layer of links over another layer and "join" them by melting the protruding pins down. Can you imagine how long it would take to melt all those pins down, front side and back? And not melt the chain links themselves? And then you "release" the chain from the tree by cutting each individual segment free. Is this model building or advanced brain surgery?

There has to be an easier way, and pre-built chain might be the way to go.

[slusher]

I was thinking the same thing... pre-built scale chain. The way the kit chain goes together is you lay one layer of links over another layer and "join" them by melting the protruding pins down. Can you imagine how long it would take to melt all those pins down, front side and back? And not melt the chain links themselves? And then you "release" the chain from the tree by cutting each individual segment free. Is this model building or advanced brain surgery?

There has to be an easier way, and pre-built chain might be the way to go.

Sounds like a chain search would be the way to go if you can find what you need. I would be holding off with that process to build the chain..

[Harry P.]

Got the right side of the engine finished...all levers, lines, and linkages in place...

[Cato]

Looks great. Is that all kit-supplied or did you scratch some?

[Harry P.]

It's all kit supplied, didn't scratchbuild a thing. This engine is better detailed than a Pocher engine! All I did was substitute brass rod for the coil of copper wire they supply for the hard lines.

[Cato]

It's all kit supplied, didn't scratchbuild a thing. This engine is better detailed than a Pocher engine! All I did was substitute brass rod for the coil of copper wire they supply for the hard lines.

How about K & S copper tubing for the intake? Like you always say - 'nothing looks like real wood than....'

[Harry P.]

I'm not nearly as die-hard into detail as you are. I'll settle for Copper paint!