1955 Mille Miglia Mercedes 300SLR

[Hoffman]

Thank you, Pierre. Jason shared some of the photos with me. I agree, it's looking fantastic. Just by changing the knock-off and the finish of the wheel, they become infinitely appropriate for Mercedes, Maserati, Ferrari. The best part is, being 3D prints, the details are so fine, clean and consistent from batch to batch. Very much looking forward to hitting 'Buy Now'. ?

[Pierre Rivard]

Thank you all for the feedback. Jason will be starting on prototypes. I have also asked to produce two style of spinners for these. It should cover most needs.

Sorry about the french language on the slide, which is part of my exchange of communication with Jason.

 

Edited March 13, 2024 by Pierre Rivard

[1959scudetto]

Perfect - these will be very useful for several cars/kits of mine !

[Pierre Rivard]

Some work has been happening (slowly) and I did not take pictures so a bit of catching up required

Chassis has been assembled and painted

Interior has been completed. Seat patterns are from Indycal sheet. I added Instrument dial bezels (wrapped thin wire) and a turned metal shifter, then a bit of weathering to show some race use.

 

[Pierre Rivard]

Engine elements pre assembled for test fittings (lots of these needed for this build) have been painted and I am now starting on the slow process of adding some detailing (water, oil and fuel lines).

Water feed to rad, I added some tape (painted black) and wrapped wire to simulate hose & clamp elements

Fuel distribution unit fabricated using styrene and 1,19mm brass tubes

Distributor to collector ignition wires have been added. Not very convincing but it will be mostly hidden low into the engine bay.

 

[MarkJ]

So glad to see you are back on this one. It's going to be awesome.

[Straightliner59]

Thanks for the update, Pierre! I always enjoy your wonderful work.

[Pierre Rivard]

22 hours ago, MarkJ said:

So glad to see you are back on this one. It's going to be awesome.

Thanks Mark. I'm out of my comfort zone with this one so I'm trying to plan my steps a bit more. It's a chassis and engine design like no other I have seen before.

[Pierre Rivard]

5 hours ago, Straightliner59 said:

Thanks for the update, Pierre! I always enjoy your wonderful work.

Thanks Daniel. I'm attempting a bit of engine detailing here. I don't know how you do that stuff...everything is so small!

[1959scudetto]

I very much appreciate that you are showing us more progress on this iconic racer, Pierre. It will look awesome again: very nice details abound !

Edited March 24, 2024 by 1959scudetto

[Pierre Rivard]

Time to build the fuel manifold & feeds. Manifold is 8 stacked 1,19 mm brass tubes and the fuel feeds are made of 0.4mm wires (from Michael's jewelry section)

After the fuel distribution was done I was ready to install the engine into the partially pre assembled engine compartment structure. Planning the layering of components is required as dropping the engine into a fully built front end won't work. So engine install, then steering shaft, top of firewall, then top engine  compartment structure. Now I can proceed with adding the oil reservoir and more detailing.

 

[absmiami]

I like the bends and shape of the fuel lines - fr Michaels ??  Would you pl post a pic of the package ? gracias .. 

[MarkJ]

Another WOW moment. That engine detailing is through the roof impressive. Looks very real. I forgot to mention how Awesome the seats look.

Edited March 24, 2024 by MarkJ

[Pierre Rivard]

15 hours ago, absmiami said:

I like the bends and shape of the fuel lines - fr Michaels ??  Would you pl post a pic of the package ? gracias .. 

One of them still has a label. The smaller rolls came as a lot and a bit thicker gauge (0.016") than the larger roll (0.013"). 

 

[cifenet]

This is as realistic as it can be!  Superb progress so far, nice job. ?

[absmiami]

Oh ok - its tinned copper - so its soft but less likely to kink like alu - good stuff- Etsy sells this stuff too - i think- 

[Pierre Rivard]

We always forget something right. This time it was the drive shaft and everything is glued tight. The way this thing was layered assembled there was no going back. I cut the shaft in 3 pieces, inserted the pieces in and re-assembled in that tight space. Some paint touch ups have to be done after it has dried (see first pic).

The chassis and engine compartment are all done. My first attempt at a more elaborate detailing job and pretty happy with it. Some weathering has been incorporated to show a bit of oil and grime. I'll leave the engine compartment as is but I am considering adding some road dust & debris type weathering to the underside. This will be determined at the same time I decide if I go for a race weathered exterior body. 

 

[MarkJ]

Pierre, you have such a special talent for making everything look so real. Under the hood and the interior of this build are phenomenal.

[Pierre Rivard]

19 hours ago, MarkJ said:

Pierre, you have such a special talent for making everything look so real. Under the hood and the interior of this build are phenomenal.

Thank you Mark. Variation of the aluminium shades (by mixing in a touch of black or dark gray) to some of the parts and a liberal use of Vallejo oily earth wash has helped provide more realism to the engine and chassis. 

[Allan31]

Stunning work Pierre

 

[Pierre Rivard]

14 hours ago, Allan31 said:

Stunning work Pierre

 

Thank you Allan. Now on to the last phase of the build. Other than a few exterior trim pieces the big job is race weathering of the body. I'm still thinking about how to take on that task. Any advice will be welcome.

[MarkJ]

I haven't got a clue how to weather, so I can't help on that at all.

[Gramps46]

It is a shame the chassis and interior will be mostly hidden when the body goes on.  I do suggest you put the model on a mirror when you display it so others can get at least a glimpse of what you have accomplished.

[250 Testa Rossa]

On 3/13/2024 at 1:35 PM, Pierre Rivard said:

Thank you all for the feedback. Jason will be starting on prototypes. I have also asked to produce two style of spinners for these. It should cover most needs.

Sorry about the french language on the slide, which is part of my exchange of communication with Jason.

 

I'm gonna have to get a set of these for my Birdcage Maserati!

[Zippi]

This build is really taking shape.  I'm liking it.