Trumpeter Ford GT40 with my twists

[iBorg]

The fuses are an amazing touch.

 

[kensar]

I wasn't quite satisfied with the instruments so I made some Stewart Warner-like bezels on the lathe and added a few screw heads, so now I'm considering it done.

Then finished detailing the doors.  I found some thin leather to make the pull handles.  Also added some styrene on some door edges to correct wide gaps with the body.

Now taking a look at fitting the body panels.  Getting them all to fit with reasonable panel gaps is no small task.  After I complete this, I will take the main panel off the chassis and start painting and detailing it.  I had to flatten one of the exhaust pipes to make the back panel fit - I wasn't surprised I needed to do this.

Thanks for following along.

Edited June 21, 2024 by kensar

[TarheelRick]

Don't know where to begin recognizing the outstanding exceptional work you are doing with this build. Every detail, whether minor or major is a work of art. I have always been a fan of the GT-40 and other Ford racers, but never really familiar with the mechanics of the car. I have always heard real race cars have three pedals; however, this one has four.  All I can figure it to be is a dimmer switch or maybe a footrest, what is its real function?

Edited June 21, 2024 by TarheelRick

[absmiami]

Great stuff 

[MarkJ]

Ken, I am continually amazed with each new entry into this continuing saga on how to build a fabulous model. Every time I get a new e-mail informing me of a new post, I get downright giddy about it. 

[4knflyin]

Funny those toggle switches... I paid good money for some almost-as-good ones from Top Studio. Nicely done. Craftsmanship and cleverness are a great combination.

Oh no! I just noticed... not the exhaust. You should have bend the panel.

Also, did you add a governor to keep the top end to 70 kph, or just down a couple cylinders?

Edited June 21, 2024 by 4knflyin

[Mark IV]

12 hours ago, TarheelRick said:

Don't know where to begin recognizing the outstanding exceptional work you are doing with this build. Every detail, whether minor or major is a work of art. I have always been a fan of the GT-40 and other Ford racers, but never really familiar with the mechanics of the car. I have always heard real race cars have three pedals; however, this one has four.  All I can figure it to be is a dimmer switch or maybe a footrest, what is its real function?

Footrest

[Pierre Rivard]

The instrument panel oozes realism... it positively looks full scale. So much to learn form your build techniques. Thank you for sharing your secrets!

[kensar]

Thanks everyone for the comments.  It really is motivating when your work is complemented.

Tarheel - the fourth pedal is a foot rest, as Mark IV posted.

4knflyin - I did grind out what I could on the back window panel, but it wasn't enough for clearance.

Pierre - thanks for the complements.  I really have no secrets and I'm glad to share how I do things.  I hate buying aftermarket parts as it just adds to the cost of a model, so I use some imagination and tips picked up over the years to detail stuff.

Thanks again, everyone for following along and commenting.

One day I'm going to finish this thing!

 

[TarheelRick]

2 hours ago, kensar said:

One day I'm going to finish this thing!

But then all the fun will be over.  Looking forward to the "Under Glass" posts.

[kensar]

The fun is not over yet.

I spent most of the day scratchbuilding a new steering rack.  The kit one has huge gear teeth on it to connect the steering wheel to the front wheels, but I will be making it more scale like.

First make the rubber boots by winding some 0.022" beading wire around a screw to get a coil shape.

Then I cut some small sections of tube that fits over the 0.125" steering rack body.  This will be part of the boot.  Then made the steering column connection housing.

There is also a diamond shaped access port at the steering column connection.  I found a PE exhaust header that was the right size.  CA'ed it to a square piece of styrene and shaped it.

Then drilled a 1/8" hole just below the end and separated it.  This will let it sit on the steering rack body correctly.

Test fit

Next, needed the rack mounting bolts.  I will use straight pins to attach the rack to the chassis.  1mm brass tubing will come in handy.  I milled some indentations into the rack body tube and CA'ed them on.

The rack is mostly done except for painting and coating the coils with Micro Crystal Clear, or canopy glue (white glue) to form the rubber boot.   (Also made styrene pieces to form the other end of the boots). This may need to wait until I am closer to mounting the parts on the chassis to get the right length and angles of the connecting rods to the wheel hubs.

 

Edited June 23, 2024 by kensar

[MarkJ]

Yes, Ken. Yours looks much better than the kit part.

[Big John]

Try  some heat shrink tubing for the boots, it works well and gives you some flexibility too.  Wonderful detail on one of my favorite cars.

[kensar]

That's a great tip, Big John.  I did a test and it works perfectly.  Fortunately, I had the right size tubing already.

[kensar]

Latest progress...

Finished off the steering rack.

Test fitting the radiator and shroud.  They will be installed after this assembly is joined to the chassis.  I am working through a number of assembly sequences - deciding when they need to be done to avoid any problems.

Instrument panel and steering wheel installed.

As can be seen, the color scheme will be silver with a dark blue stripe.

I'm currently working on the body latches that will hold the front and rear clips.  This needed to be worked out before joining the two major parts.  Working latches are needed to ensure the body panels fit well.

 

 

[MarkJ]

Ken, all I can say is WOW. This build just keeps at such a high level that its simply amazing and enjoyable to watch the progress...

[4knflyin]

Boot clamps?

Regardless, nice work. 

[Musclecarbuilder]

Ken its looking great, that steering rack looks amazing! Nice work.

[Big John]

Yeah that worked great for the rack boots.  Shrink tube also works well for corrugated radiator hoses.

[kensar]

This build has reached a significant milestone today.

I got the doors painted.  I'll put number roundels on with no number.

Now I was ready to join the center section of the body with the chassis.  Everything went together without issues.

The doors don't fit perfectly with even gaps all the way around, but it's close.  I was concerned that they would fit worse when the center section was joined to the chassis, but it appears the fit of the doors didn't change after joining.

Now I need to paint the bottom side panels and deal with the open screw holes.

[MarkJ]

Ken, I can't get over how crisp and clean this build is. Its mind boggling.

[Pierre Rivard]

The refreshing color scheme is really nice. The chassis and powertrain are beautifully detailed and all the colors and textures add so much visual interest.

[kensar]

Thanks for the comments Mark and Pierre, I appreciate them.  I generally airbrush all the paint to keep things sharp.  My brush painting can't come close to matching the results.  I decant the spray paints and shoot it through the airbrush as well - much more control over the paint that way.  The details do get noticed when everything is together.

I now have one side pod painted and have addressed the open screw holes on them.

A look at what's coming.

 

[kensar]

I finished painting the side pod and moved on to the front end detailing.

I fabricated the side panels out of aluminum sheet since I rebuilt the front brake cooling ductwork to delete the holes for the hoses.

Here, I tried to simulate weld lines by using an excess of styrene glue and then making weld bead impressions with the end of a rod.  This was done when assembling this piece to the mid-section some time ago.

I moved the Optima battery to this location from the passenger footwell.  I decided to use this battery as this is a 'modernized' GT40 and not an 'as-built' one.

So the front end is pretty much done, except for the wiring to the headlights.  There is an open area just in front of the doors on each side that should be covered over.  When the front clip is raised, it is visible, showing a large empty space that shouldn't be there (just below the fuel fillers as seen in the lower right in the picture above).

Thanks for looking and following along.

 

Edited July 12, 2024 by kensar

[kensar]

This past week I focused on the engine bay and have it mostly completed.

I re-made the reservoir for the cooling system from aluminum.

Now on to the front and rear body clips.