Sauber Mercedes C9

[2whl]

This will be a long term project of the Mercedes C9 that won Le Mans in 1989.  One of the first things I do with one of these MFH kits is to soak the resin pieces in a bath of denture cleaner to remove any mold residue.  I also print out the parts lists that MFH has on their website and inventory and sort the white metal pieces.

 

I got the main monoque pieces out, drilled the holes and dry fit the pieces to start checking the build up.  

 

I also tried the fit on the doors and while at it, fit the other body panels on for some glamour shots.

[Chris Smith]

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nice subject Paul!

[Nacho Z]

Another 1:12 MFH build to follow along with!  I love watching these come together.  Such a gorgeous car, too.  Please post a lot of updates and good luck with your build!

[absmiami]

How heavy is the chassis ?

[2whl]

Thanks Chris.  

Welcome aboard John. There will be plenty of updates.  The only thing is I have a lot of projects on the go and like to jump around.  So some updates might take a while.

Andrew, I got out my digital scale and the white metal monoque you see weighed 10 ounces.

 

The kit came with a beautiful set of black anodized wheels, so all I have to do is add valve stems and they will be complete.

 

 

I C/A'ed the basic block resin pieces together and put the other parts on for a mock-up

 

 

[absmiami]

10 ounces

without engine trans castings

holy cow …

[LDO]

I’m definitely following this. I have the Tamiya 1/24 kit. I really want the MFH. I’m a big fan of the car and the engine. The race version and the production M119. 

[2whl]

On 8/31/2022 at 7:27 AM, absmiami said:

10 ounces

without engine trans castings

holy cow …

I'm guessing that the completed model will be over 3 lbs.  MFH provides little stand-offs in each kit to keep the suspension from sagging.

On 9/1/2022 at 8:56 PM, LDO said:

I’m definitely following this. I have the Tamiya 1/24 kit. I really want the MFH. I’m a big fan of the car and the engine. The race version and the production M119. 

Lee, I have the instructions scanned if you want to use them for more detail.

[2whl]

I 've done some more checking on the fit of various sub-assemblies.  The trans is secured to the undertray by a screw and I wanted to make sure that it was going to line up.  So far everything is falling into place.

 

 

Then I added the side pieces and main cockpit for a test fit.   The doors made need a little more tweaking, but they look very close.

 

202

[Pierre Rivard]

Beautiful work. There's something about those metal parts, they look so much like ...metal!

[2whl]

Thank you Pierre

 

Step number 1 is finished.

 

 

Edited September 11, 2022 by 2whl

[Chris Smith]

Good progress Paul! 

[2whl]

Thanks Chris

[2whl]

Step #2 is finished on the front end.   And I got some color on the main drivetrain.

383

 

Edited September 15, 2022 by 2whl

[2whl]

I jumped ahead in the steps to get the exhaust assembled. I figured it would be easier without a bunch of stuff on the engine

 

Starting to add bits to the engine.

 

I've also spent a bunch of time getting the carbon fiber decals laid down.

 

 The dash is going to be a challenge with all of the labels and switches.

 

Belts are assembled and placed in the chassis.  I'm just waiting to finish the decaling on the seat

496

[Chris Smith]

Awesome stuff Paul! Glad to see your keeping things moving forward 

[absmiami]

Be very carful applying decal #56 !

[David G.]

This looks like a tremendously fun project! You have a great start on it so far, I'll be eagerly awaiting more.

David G.

 

[2whl]

14 hours ago, Chris Smith said:

Awesome stuff Paul! Glad to see your keeping things moving forward 

Thanks Chris

 

3 hours ago, absmiami said:

Be very carful applying decal #56 !

That decal will be a problem.....lol

 

3 hours ago, David G. said:

This looks like a tremendously fun project! You have a great start on it so far, I'll be eagerly awaiting more.

David G.

 

Thanks David

[Nacho Z]

She is coming along nicely, Paul!  Thanks for the updates.

[2whl]

1 hour ago, Nacho Z said:

She is coming along nicely, Paul!  Thanks for the updates.

Thanks John.   I just went through your Matra thread and I'm loving it 

[2whl]

I got all of the carbon fiber decals on the seat and cleared it.   After installing it, it was time for the belts.  MFH had the lap belt brkts on the p/e sheet, but didn't include them in the instructions.  Fortunately, I discovered them while going through that p/e sheet and installed them.

 

Since the side pods have been decaled and cleared, I added them.

 

The dash will take awhile.  Those parts are tiny and my eyesite isn't what it used to be.  Not to mention I'm all thumbs....lol

606

[bytownshaker]

Excellent build . This is my favorite Croup C car along with its sister the C11. As a Drag race fan a buddy invited me to go with him to the 1990 Group C race in Montreal  (he went with me to see the Molson Grandnational NHRA race in Montreal) and got to see the C11 in action along with the debut of the Peugeot 905 and I was hooked. I'm currently building the Tamiya C9 box to see how it fits etc and have ordered detail parts etc to do a detailed build so your build will really help with the larger scale and way better detail.

Edgar

[2whl]

On 9/28/2022 at 8:21 AM, bytownshaker said:

 I'm currently building the Tamiya C9 box to see how it fits etc and have ordered detail parts etc to do a detailed build so your build will really help with the larger scale and way better detail.

Edgar

Edgar, I scanned the instructions.  If you want to use those also to help detail your build, go here

[2whl]

It turns out I messed up checking the fit between a couple of parts.  As you can see in the first picture below, the dash top interferes with the main body work. The interference caused the front of the main body to bow enough that the nose did not fit correctly.  I should have caught it before I painted and decaled the dash.  The good part is that it is fixable.  In the second picture you can see where I have had to sand down the dash top.  Once I was satisfied that the parts fit correctly, I painted the sanded area.  

 

Then I temporarily attached the radiator mount to make sure the nose cleared it.   Everything is looking good now.

737

Edited October 2, 2022 by 2whl