Cato Posted September 9, 2015 Author Share Posted September 9, 2015 My Rolls woody chassis sits pretty level. The problem is the body... it's not exactly identical left to right. Not Pocher's fault, though... Thank you Scotty, glad you likee. How not Pocher's fault Harry? You mean warps? My Rolls body had real dimensional differences between the two body halves and the doors also different sizes. Despite being injection molded in place in their body openings. And two completely different rear fender arches.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harry P. Posted September 9, 2015 Share Posted September 9, 2015 How not Pocher's fault Harry? Because Pocher didn't do the body. I did. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cato Posted September 9, 2015 Author Share Posted September 9, 2015 Thanks and stay along Mike. And post your big scale builds soon; can't have enough. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cato Posted September 9, 2015 Author Share Posted September 9, 2015 Because Pocher didn't do the body. I did. Ahhh-forgot that detail. That's right; you used the cowl and fenders only. You're smarter than me.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Twokidsnosleep Posted September 10, 2015 Share Posted September 10, 2015 Your brilliant skewer sticks remind me of marking water lines on model shipsIt is simple and smart to get everything balanced and even like that; going to use some version of it when I build from now on as a double check for level.My little MG was out of whack left to right dimensions in the rear Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sjordan2 Posted September 14, 2015 Share Posted September 14, 2015 Eagerly awaiting the latest updates on this masterpiece. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cato Posted September 14, 2015 Author Share Posted September 14, 2015 Eagerly awaiting the latest updates on this masterpiece. I'm waiting for a masterpiece too Skip; wish someone would build one for me...Don't have any 'glamorous' stuff to show but work has gone on. With the car in the state of the last picture, I've been trying to engineer the boring stuff; the fasteners that join major assemblies together. The car has so many changes from Pocher 'stock', that simple Pocher screws don't work or locations are in different places than where originally designed. The fenders are rotated and the trunk has new inner structure needed when it was all cut up. Can't just drill a hole somewhere without knowing what you're going into.In particular, the rear fenders have to be screwed to the trunk (they already are to the main body) or the chassis to pin them flush to the panels. The trunk has to attach solidly to the back of the main body and chassis too. And the body lower front fastener bolts will be in a new location since the body was moved rearward 5mm. Of course, this all has to be removable for final finish. So I'm noodling around with brackets and trying to find locations for studs or bolts. Not fun, exciting work.I AM about to lay-out and fabricate the brass side window frames so they fit the door's new contours. At the same time, the internal door latch and handle mechanism needs figuring too. I have Marvin's beautiful outer door handles and they go in nothing like the Pocher parts. Everything takes figuring and testing from here on out. Sometimes I really miss the simple assembly of parts like chassis and engine where you get visible results and a little gratification very quickly.Photos and progress soon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobthehobbyguy Posted September 14, 2015 Share Posted September 14, 2015 When you are doing a project of this magnitude it takes a lot of time. There are always problems to resolve and some take a bunch of tome to get the right solution. Keep up the good work you've shown pictures of what you want to accomplish and its is going to be a masterpiece. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Twokidsnosleep Posted September 14, 2015 Share Posted September 14, 2015 When you are doing a project of this magnitude it takes a lot of time. There are always problems to resolve and some take a bunch of tome to get the right solution. Keep up the good work you've shown pictures of what you want to accomplish and its is going to be a masterpiece.and darn life gets in the way of important modelling....two family dinners for me last weekend, two! Who needs to see relatives two times in a weekend, gheese Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cato Posted September 14, 2015 Author Share Posted September 14, 2015 and darn life gets in the way of important modelling....two family dinners for me last weekend, two! Who needs to see relatives two times in a weekend, gheese With that attitude, it won't be crowded at your wake Scott.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Twokidsnosleep Posted September 14, 2015 Share Posted September 14, 2015 HaHaAt least I will finally get some peace and quiet...for eternity Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cato Posted September 15, 2015 Author Share Posted September 15, 2015 Lucky sometimes... As described, a bunch of planning and test fits have been going on before the next big project; soldering up window frames and door assembling. In particular, I needed to get the trunk and rear fenders fastened solidly to the main structure. I kind of hit a wall with this boring stuff so I began disassembling the last mock-up to begin the door work. And then, an idea simply presented itself. Having made several types of brackets and looked at 3 types of screws / bolts, I had no satisfactory way to secure the trunk. But the simple answer was, the same way I secured the rear of the floorboard. Using 2mm threaded rod, I had drilled and tapped the chassis and made a 'stud', then drilled the floor in the exact location (fun) and retained with a nut. I've had the floor / body unit on and off literally countless times and the system has been bulletproof. So using some soft putty placed on the chassis in the approximate area, I placed the trunk in position and compressed the putty. This gave me the height of the spacer block I'd need. After measuring, 1/8 x 1/4 styrene rod was cut to 15mm long and checked for fit between chassis and trunk bottom. Much careful measuring of the distances from the rear of the body and in from the trunk side followed. This determined where the block should sit on the chassis and where holes should be drilled in it and the trunk floor. All this was necessary because the trunk has been severely altered from stock. Seen in other pictures, the details atop the gas tank had to be removed in order for the trunk to sit square in the chassis. No matter, as they are unseen even in a stock build. The chassis paint was scuffed in the area, the block also. A bit of German gray will make this all disappear later. A .062 hole was drilled off center in the block and matching place on the chassis. A peg of styrene rod was inserted to make a small locating peg which (along with the 2mm stud) would prevent the block from ever moving. A drop of gel CA and then the #49 hole was drilled and tapped for the 2mm threads. Then CA on the threads as they sank down to the bottom of the chassis channel. Trunk holes were located and drilled slightly oversize. A washer will be under the nut upon final assembly. I lucked-out with a perfect, secure fit. Once again the value of stout (compared to Pocher screws) removable 2mm fasteners are highly recommended to Pocher builders. I can now make simple 2mm bolts, (a nut CA'd to a length of threaded rod) to secure each fender to the trunk body. Just a lot of tricky measuring and a tapped block inside needed. I may not have to attach the trunk to the body because 4 studs already hold the floor unit to the chassis. Actually easier to do than write about. Overcoming a stumbling block always gives you much enthusiasm to move ahead... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobthehobbyguy Posted September 15, 2015 Share Posted September 15, 2015 Nice work. Glad you were able to find a solution to your problem. Keep up the good work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cato Posted September 17, 2015 Author Share Posted September 17, 2015 Another tip... This is primarily for Rolls builders but may work on other hard-roof cars like Alfa Coupe and Bugatti. I needed to work the bottom of the chassis but with the body attached. I've made body mount brackets (will show soon) which bolt to the bottom rails and connect to the new, lower body edge. First attach the body / floor unit to the chassis. I have 2mm studs through the rear floor and 0-80 bolts through the front floor. If you have workstands, remove the rear one and carefully invert the whole car. Rest the roof on a pad and you're done. Solid and safe to measure and attach parts. No front fender though because of the front stand. I knew there was a good reason I whacked the windshield down. Almost as good as a rotisserie... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cato Posted September 26, 2015 Author Share Posted September 26, 2015 Important but not exciting... I have been working every day since the last update so here is the important result. The body and floor mate as a unit and the whole assembly mates to the chassis - in a solid and repeatable way. You've seen many prior pictures of the car mocked-up this way but there is a difference now. Many hours of measuring and test fitting improved it all. I went back and made stronger, more accurate locations for all mounting points. I added two new ones (total of 6), and a pair of chassis brackets which now secure the lower front of the body. I made improved 'clamps' to securely hold the floor unit to the body lower flanges. The trunk aligns with the body perfectly. No Pocher screws anywhere; all fasteners are by 6, 2mm studs, tapped and epoxied in place with nuts. The lower front of the body uses 0-80 bolts with nuts through a brass bracket. I will post all the 'fill-in' shots of these parts and assemblies soon. But here is the result. For the first time, the unit sits flush on the chassis and firewall with no bind, twist or warp; it just glides right onto the locating studs and the bolt holes align. A 'tee' pin is seen in the lower front where the bolt goes through the bracket. They fit perfectly with all the other locators in place, a very rewarding feeling. This is what lets you install and remove body work for finish and interior and have it all go back precisely and unseen when carpet and seats are installed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Codi Posted September 26, 2015 Share Posted September 26, 2015 Cato, totally fantastic. As visitors to the forum, we're limited by the provided photos to discern the quality of a build. Yes, your build looks great but the true measure of what you've been doing on the build in all of the preparation and fine-tuning at this juncture is simply incalculable. Your efforts will all be realized when it's finally sitting in front of the judges and on your shelf some day. Suitably impressed. Cheers, Tim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cato Posted September 27, 2015 Author Share Posted September 27, 2015 Cato, totally fantastic. As visitors to the forum, we're limited by the provided photos to discern the quality of a build. Yes, your build looks great but the true measure of what you've been doing on the build in all of the preparation and fine-tuning at this juncture is simply incalculable. Your efforts will all be realized when it's finally sitting in front of the judges and on your shelf some day. Suitably impressed. Cheers, Tim No judges in the future; I'll be happy just to see it every day if it comes out as I hope. Thanks for the very kind words Tim. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cato Posted September 27, 2015 Author Share Posted September 27, 2015 Here's an early test fit; firewall even with grille shell (too high) and body cowl even higher. Compared to the above it makes me very happy I did all that surgery to get to this point. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Twokidsnosleep Posted September 28, 2015 Share Posted September 28, 2015 Looks great Cato, good to see her on her wheels with some clothes on the frameCuts a very classy profile Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eric Macleod Posted October 6, 2015 Share Posted October 6, 2015 To say you are doing justice to this kit is a serious understatement. With all you are doing I respectfully suggest that you should get going on a Duesenberg SJ for your next project...from scratch. Might as well with all the scratch building you have done on this one!I have been away for a while but really like what you are doing. Happy modeling!E- Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sjordan2 Posted October 6, 2015 Share Posted October 6, 2015 Here's an early test fit; firewall even with grille shell (too high) and body cowl even higher. Compared to the above it makes me very happy I did all that surgery to get to this point. I see you haven't house trained it yet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cato Posted October 6, 2015 Author Share Posted October 6, 2015 To say you are doing justice to this kit is a serious understatement. With all you are doing I respectfully suggest that you should get going on a Duesenberg SJ for your next project...from scratch. Might as well with all the scratch building you have done on this one!I have been away for a while but really like what you are doing. Happy modeling!E-Thanks Eric but I have my hands full with this obsession. I love Duesies but maybe in the next life.Work has been on-going just no 'pretty picture, show / tell stuff'. I've resisted the temptation to shoot primer and get that pretty look because of all the handling done and yet to be done.Having finalized the body, trunk and door positions, I have turned attention to the hood tops and getting a perfect fit between grille and cowl. I have gotten that straight, level hood I wanted. Took warps out of the front edge of left panel. The key was bolting the hinge halves to the panels instead of melting the pegs in place. This allows perfecting each half panel for fit. And later, painting without masking the chromed brass hinge. So far so good only to find a huge problem with the Pocher hinge; it warps upward at each end. The wire they used looks like a banana removed from the hoops.I have come up with a solution but it's tricky to execute. Will show and tell all soon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cato Posted October 9, 2015 Author Share Posted October 9, 2015 (edited) To further confuse you... A situation has occurred which caused me to divert from the above hinge / hood project briefly. To a really exciting addition of the model. Always planning ahead all the phases of construction, for some time, I had planned to make chromed brass strips for the running boards. Foil or paint on the molded strips just was not acceptable to me. But the learning curve to make them is a steep one at my skill level. So on a hunch, I contacted David Cox for advice about his advanced building techniques. Virtually all of his models feature chromed brass frames and strips in their decor. After some conversation, David offered to custom make strips to my design. I went ahead and purchased them and could not be more pleased. This saved me a hard learning project and much time. So I stopped the hood work to install them. I did this as a priority so I could return them to David for chroming as he had many bits of his own to be plated so mine could go along. I included my brass windshield frame, completed months ago. When I received them, they were also jewel-like in their craftsmanship, just as Marvin's parts are. David was Marvin's partner for some 15 years and together they built over 70 Pochers. Now David just builds for his own customers and his work on extreme and 'stock' Pochers can be seen here: http://www.detailedmodelcars.com/ In preparation for the strips, I had to sand the molded strips off the boards and then decided to make a drilling template. Seen in the first shot, the template made of .020 was sized exactly to the board. The strips are attached to the boards by 'pegs' which are inserted into holes drilled in the board. The strips are drilled in 2 or 3 places, the pegs inserted then soldered on top. The solder works down the threads to the back. The excess solder is then filed away, the parts polished and are then complete. Those pegs are actually 1mm bolts (he sometimes uses wire) which he gets precisely in even-spaced locations using dividers. This is closely related to watch-making, not model building. After preparing the boards and templates, I transferred the peg locations to the styrene and drilled .041 holes. I then placed the templates on the boards and drilled in those locations. The result is stunning and as real as you can get for a Pocher. I am much in debt to David and suggest you contact him through his site if you desire similar custom built parts - or even a whole model. Edited October 9, 2015 by Cato Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Twokidsnosleep Posted October 10, 2015 Share Posted October 10, 2015 Those look great in brass, will look smoking-nice chromed out!!! Bookmarked the resource as well for any future needOnce again you are a wealth of information Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cato Posted October 10, 2015 Author Share Posted October 10, 2015 Forgot... This is how the strips came from Dave Cox. And today, the running boards got their color. Tomorrow the clear. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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