Claude Thibodeau Posted February 16 Posted February 16 Salut Francis! Of course, the rack is spectacular. but the rubber booths are making me smile! Bravo! CT 1
AmericanMuscleFan Posted February 18 Author Posted February 18 On 2/13/2025 at 4:42 PM, Codi said: Nice rack Francis..........😁.................cheers, tim Thanks Tim, I'll take that as a compliment! 😁 Francis
AmericanMuscleFan Posted February 18 Author Posted February 18 On 2/16/2025 at 6:48 PM, Claude Thibodeau said: Salut Francis! Of course, the rack is spectacular. but the rubber booths are making me smile! Bravo! CT Thanks Claude! We do what we can with what we have, as they say! 😁 Francis
AmericanMuscleFan Posted February 18 Author Posted February 18 Hello everyone, Hopefully I'll have less trouble today than last time with my update...it took me probably 10 attempts to finally be able to post it. My last part made is the radiator, I used almost the same technique as for the D100 but I made the frame in 2 parts instead of 4 for the truck, it made my life easier so that it was straight and square, it is probably more rigid too. Let's take action, there are several photos but don't hesitate to ask if you have any specific questions, I didn't take photos of all the fabrication steps, I wouldn't have finished it yet! I hope you will like it, Francis After determining the measurements based on an Internet reference, I reduced a rod to the desired size to create the 2 tanks. I added some details and drilled holes for the inlet and outlet for the cooling water. I started with a square brass tube that I cut for the radiator core. I made a cut to bend the corners 90 degrees. Both tanks after a bit of sanding and polishing. I inserted the photo-etched radiator mesh inside the brass frame I made earlier. This is the inlet where the radiator cap is screwed on, this part will be inserted into the top tank. I am drilling a small hole for the overflow pipe. I made the radiator cap from brass, I made a cut so that the cap fits in rather than remaining on the surface. Now onto the lathe to separate it from the raw rod. A close view. Once completed. I used 0.005" nickel alloy sheet to make the 2 installation brackets, It welds wonderfully with brass. I tried to reproduce the pressure test in the center of the cap. I also drilled holes for the transmission cooling plumbing, I will plug them with brass bolts depending on what type of transmission I will be using on the car. 4 1
Steve H Posted February 18 Posted February 18 You never cease to amaze Francis. Incredible work. Everything about the rad is fantastic, but the rad cap with a recess … sheesh. 1
BK9300 Posted February 18 Posted February 18 I’ll second that - fabulous work. I’m doubt I’ll ever find my way to machine work like yours, Francis, but watching the steps you take with metal gives me inspiration to try similar process with styrene (not machining, but fabricating and assembling!). Learning lots along the way. 1
Straightliner59 Posted February 18 Posted February 18 I love it! That radiator is a work of art, my friend. Bravo! 1
Pierre Rivard Posted February 18 Posted February 18 Wow, beautiful fabrication, you even thought of plumbing connections for in tank TOC. Leaving no stone un-turned here. Can you share on the maker/supplier for the PE radiator mesh. It makes such a statement. 1
rv1963 Posted February 18 Posted February 18 Great work on that radiator Francis nice details, neat and clean like all your wok, I do have one question where did you get the mess for the radiator. 1
AmericanMuscleFan Posted February 19 Author Posted February 19 21 hours ago, Steve H said: You never cease to amaze Francis. Incredible work. Everything about the rad is fantastic, but the rad cap with a recess … sheesh. Thanks Steve, nothing really new here, I've made several this way so I thought this cap improvement would be a nice addition, I'm glad to know you liked it! 17 hours ago, BK9300 said: I’ll second that - fabulous work. I’m doubt I’ll ever find my way to machine work like yours, Francis, but watching the steps you take with metal gives me inspiration to try similar process with styrene (not machining, but fabricating and assembling!). Learning lots along the way. Thanks Brian, in fact, the first radiator I made with this kind of detail was all Styrene, I then moved to aluminum and brass for my pickup and this one. I really like working with Styrene, the advantage of brass is that you can weld it and you can make thinner parts that would be very fragile in Styrene. 17 hours ago, Straightliner59 said: I love it! That radiator is a work of art, my friend. Bravo! Thanks Daniel, I didn't want to make a replica of a vintage OEM but rather a more efficient model for a competition engine. The one I took as a model is from the Cold-Case brand, it seems like a good product for this type of application. 10 hours ago, Pierre Rivard said: Wow, beautiful fabrication, you even thought of plumbing connections for in tank TOC. Leaving no stone un-turned here. Can you share on the maker/supplier for the PE radiator mesh. It makes such a statement. 6 hours ago, rv1963 said: Great work on that radiator Francis nice details, neat and clean like all your wok, I do have one question where did you get the mess for the radiator. Thanks Pierre and Robert for the kind comments! The PE radiator mesh comes from Detail Master (DM-2490), it is one of the most beautiful and realistic but it is also very fragile to handle. Francis
AmericanMuscleFan Posted February 19 Author Posted February 19 15 hours ago, rv1963 said: Thanks for the info Francis. No problem Robert, they might be temporarily out of stock but several hobby stores carry the Detail Master product line, you should be able to get some. 15 hours ago, Tony Coomer said: Great work as always… Thanks Antony, there is more to come, still much to do! 8 hours ago, Codi said: Nailed it Francis. VERY nice sir. cheers, tim Thanks Tim, I will still have to hide the brass color around the radiator and that will do the trick, I can't wait to start working on the engine, apart from the bodywork, it's one of my favorite parts! 😁 Francis
Randy D Posted February 26 Posted February 26 Well you sure knocked the radiator out of the park Francis. Beautiful machining and soldering. Simply a feast for the eyes my friend!!!! Randy 1
AmericanMuscleFan Posted February 26 Author Posted February 26 32 minutes ago, Randy D said: Well you sure knocked the radiator out of the park Francis. Beautiful machining and soldering. Simply a feast for the eyes my friend!!!! Randy Hi Randy, thanks for the comment, I still have a lot of crust to eat to reach your level but I find a lot of motivation by going to fill my eyes with your prowess my friend! Thank you for your visit, it is much appreciated. Francis
AmericanMuscleFan Posted February 26 Author Posted February 26 Hello everyone, Tonight a quick update to show you my latest progress, I made some front fenders inner aprons and the roll cage. I found that the engine compartment was too open even though my primary goal was to be able to see the suspension components more easily. I came up with this solution by creating something that looks OEM but partly respecting my original goals. I kept an opening for the headers but I might have to enlarge or modify the opening slightly when I get to this stage, we'll see. For the roll bar, it is entirely tailor-made to fit the driver's cabin and passes through the aluminum plate to rest on the trunk floor and aligned with the frame rails. II designed it in two parts to be able to separate the driver compartment and trunk part in order to be able to pass through the 2 holes in the aluminum plate between the wheel tubs. I also put pieces of pipe as a base for the seats, I had seen this on a (real) drag Dodge Dart being built and I really liked the idea. Everything is white Styrene so it's not very contrasty and rather difficult to show in photos but I think you will still be able to see the details. A few more components to make before I venture into the powertrain. Francis 5 1
BK9300 Posted February 26 Posted February 26 Your styrene work is always as flawless as your metal work, Francis! And your pictures always have more details to find the longer they are looked at. Beautiful work on the roll cage - fish mouthed joins and those tiny gussets on the roof section (still looking - probably more I haven’t discovered yet!). 1
rv1963 Posted February 28 Posted February 28 Great work as always Francis, those fender aprons look factory, as you said you will get a better view of that scratch built front end. I am waiting to see you start the drive train. 1
Pierre Rivard Posted February 28 Posted February 28 Very convincing, looks the way a real car structure would be fabricated. You might want to extend the engine compartment upper tubes through the dash & Ip and connect to the front roll cage posts 1
Codi Posted March 1 Posted March 1 Always fun to get caught up with your progress Francis. Saw some neat little tricks you fabricated on the body work and have certainly made note to explore them as well. Nice to see your progress too.....hopefully winter will be long this year so you'll have more bench time (hint-hint) .........cheers, tim 1
Musclecarbuilder Posted March 3 Posted March 3 Wow Francis that is amazing work! That radiator is crazy! 1
AmericanMuscleFan Posted March 4 Author Posted March 4 On 2/26/2025 at 10:23 AM, BK9300 said: Your styrene work is always as flawless as your metal work, Francis! And your pictures always have more details to find the longer they are looked at. Beautiful work on the roll cage - fish mouthed joins and those tiny gussets on the roof section (still looking - probably more I haven’t discovered yet!). Thanks Brian, coming from you, I take your compliment on my work in Styrene with great pride knowing how much you excel on this point, your creations are a source of wonder! On 2/28/2025 at 9:07 AM, rv1963 said: Great work as always Francis, those fender aprons look factory, as you said you will get a better view of that scratch built front end. I am waiting to see you start the drive train. Thanks Robert, I think the wing aprons also give a more realistic look and will allow me to mount some accessories on them without overloading the engine mounting plate. I can't wait to work on the train drive, Tim (Codi) makes me salivate with his prowess and despite the enormous amount of time it takes, it's one of my favorite parts of the project. On 2/28/2025 at 9:18 AM, Pierre Rivard said: Very convincing, looks the way a real car structure would be fabricated. You might want to extend the engine compartment upper tubes through the dash & Ip and connect to the front roll cage posts Thanks Pierre, you are right, I still have to try to create the "illusion" that the part in the engine compartment connects to that of the passenger compartment because the way in which the assembly will be done, the roll cage must be in 3 parts and assembled in a pre-established order. On 3/1/2025 at 10:37 AM, absmiami said: Lovely … Thanks Andrew! On 3/1/2025 at 3:37 PM, Codi said: Always fun to get caught up with your progress Francis. Saw some neat little tricks you fabricated on the body work and have certainly made note to explore them as well. Nice to see your progress too.....hopefully winter will be long this year so you'll have more bench time (hint-hint) .........cheers, tim Thanks Tim, I can't believe I can give you tricks with all the talent you have my friend, everything you make is so thoughtful and inspiring. Don't worry, we are spoiled for winter this year, I have almost worn my shovel down to the handle, I must have a few more weeks before the mild temperatures bring the bear out of its den. 😁 8 hours ago, Musclecarbuilder said: Wow Francis that is amazing work! That radiator is crazy! Thanks Will, I had a great time making it and I'm pretty proud of the end result. I think it will be effective in cooling the big block that will be under the hood! 😉 Thanks again guys for you comments, more stuff to come soon! Francis
dragcarz Posted March 4 Posted March 4 I have No words Francis, just thought I would check in let you know I’m still here watching in amazement! 1
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