Zenrat's Flying Circus

[zenrat]

Bingo....   that's the problem. Folks make things that seem solid but they don't seem to understand science and how things actually act "at speed" and under tremendous stress. My cousin had been building one and even I could tell his efforts at welding and the materials were ahhhh.... "flimsy."  It was disallowed to participate in the local races and I'm not surprised.

The car I raced at the time was an experimental lightweight Hillman Imp, and the body shell was pressed from .028" material instead of the normal .032". It made a surprising difference in the weight of the whole car, but it was maybe 30% weaker in the structural tests that we carried out, so they gave up on the idea.

My pal John and I saw the possibilities of drag racing it and we bought the shell, completely painted and trimmed, for £75.  (A new Imp at that time cost about £650) We stripped it and I built a banzai engine for it and we raced it quite successfully for a couple of seasons, but the tech guys at the various ad hoc strips we attended were always a little wary of the way the roof ballooned upwards when we closed the doors! 

What happened to it?

Thanks guys.

If I don't build it this way Brad C then I won't know it could all work IRL.

I can appreciate that in multiple ways. It's not just "strictly" correct but doing so should be pretty fun. Micro-engineering of sorts. Or... "micro-mechanicing?"  Whatever.

I had to add new suspension parts to my "new-used" truck a few weeks ago. Not fun. There was a time when I enjoyed working on vehicles but these days I'd rather pay someone else to do it.   

Yeah, I know what you mean.  I could do a whole lot more of the maintenance on my car if I could be bothered.  I've currently got my motorcycle in bits but I just can seem to find the motivation to put it back together again.  Maybe the coming of spring will help.

[PR19_Kit]

Bingo....   that's the problem. Folks make things that seem solid but they don't seem to understand science and how things actually act "at speed" and under tremendous stress. My cousin had been building one and even I could tell his efforts at welding and the materials were ahhhh.... "flimsy."  It was disallowed to participate in the local races and I'm not surprised.

The car I raced at the time was an experimental lightweight Hillman Imp, and the body shell was pressed from .028" material instead of the normal .032". It made a surprising difference in the weight of the whole car, but it was maybe 30% weaker in the structural tests that we carried out, so they gave up on the idea.

My pal John and I saw the possibilities of drag racing it and we bought the shell, completely painted and trimmed, for £75.  (A new Imp at that time cost about £650) We stripped it and I built a banzai engine for it and we raced it quite successfully for a couple of seasons, but the tech guys at the various ad hoc strips we attended were always a little wary of the way the roof ballooned upwards when we closed the doors! 

What happened to it?

We won the class the first year, against almost totally Mini opposition, and then the fast (and moneyed...) guys realised that Imps were the way to go, and switched cars. The second year we were 16th out of a class of 20+ by half season so we said 'The hell with it'.

I sold my banzai engine to a guy racing sidecars and John had the bodyshell. He was going to build a grass track racer for his son, but it never happened, and about 25 yrs ago I met him again at Jags and he told me he'd scrapped it as it was so badly rusted.

One of the 'lightening' steps on Pressed Steel's part was to omit the rustproofing and undercoating apparently.

YEARS later I built a slot car model of it. 

[zenrat]

Nice little model Kit.

I've finished the engine for the 1/25 Revell Starsky & Hutch Ford Torino.

74 Ford Torino WIP 02-09-2020 by Fred Maillardet, on Flickr

[PR19_Kit]

That's looking good Fred. 

Did the dizzy come with the wires in place, and if not how did you attach them? They ALWAYS give me trouble getting them to stay attached.

[zenrat]

Thanks Kit.
The dizzy is a resin one from thepartsbox.com.  It comes pre-dimpled and I drill 0.5mm holes into which I superglue the wires.
https://www.thepartsbox.com/shop/the-parts-box/engines-drivetrain/auto-electrics/distributor-predrilled-8-cylinder/

Otherwise use the kit supplied part, cut off the moulded in boots so the top is flat and then drill holes into it.

Also drill holes into the cylinder heads (or valve covers if it's a Hemi or a Cammer).

In other news i've been working on the figures for the 1/48 Gaz truck and the boxes they will be sitting on.  I've been painting fake woodgrain and have named the four men (Noob, Gunnar, Charlie and Fourth) as I find this helps give them character which comes out in the painting.
Noob for example is the new bloke no-one wants to get to know until he's survived a few weeks in combat.  His uniform will be brand new and clean and his boots will be polished.

[PR19_Kit]

Ooooh, I like that! I may get a few of them, thanks. 

I got a few pre-wired aluminium ones from an operation in the US some years ago, but I only have two left now.

Sadly neither solution will work for a V12.......................

[zenrat]

The parts box do pre-dimpled six cylinder dizzies.  You could concoct a twin distributor set up.
However, knowing the source of your engine, wouldn't it have electronic ignition?  In which case you just need to scratch up a coil pack and have it sitting on a convenient wheel arch or other engine bays panel.

In addition to Starsky's striped red tomato I have been working on the second '60 Chevy ute.  This one is getting a small block chevy to power it.  I had installed the engine mounts on the chassis but when I finally got the cab to fit (lowered suspension and RHD conversion required a fair bit of plastic removal) I discovered that it sat too far back and fouled the firewall.  So I removed what I had done and began again.
I have lowered the front suspension "properly".  I.e. I separated the components from each other and reassembled them in a lower configuration.  There isn't much clearance between the top of the tyres and the bodywork but I reckon it would just about be drivable.

[PR19_Kit]

I was thinking about twin 6 cylinder dizzies, one on the back of each cam cover like a Ferrari GTO, but a) there isn't enough room for them, and b) you're dead right about the electronic ignition. It'll be 'Black Box Time' I think.

But those dizzies do look good anyway, so I may get a few, when the postal service from Oz goes back to steamships rather sail, which seems to be par for the course these days.

That 2nd ute sounds pretty good, I'm looking forward to seeing the lowered chassis job. 

[zenrat]

As i've said elsewhere to it pi55ed down with rain today which kept me out of the shed due to the hammering on the tin roof.

I did however take something indoors with me to mask and paint stripes.  Not the Victomic.  Something else i've been working on.  Something inspired by a comment  Kit made on a thread here.  Something I am not prepared to reveal yet.
It was fairly successful.  I only pulled off one transfer with the masking tape.  Have I mentioned I hate masking?  Easier than doing it with transfers though.  I had already painted the aircraft (i'll reveal that much) in question with gloss white enamel and I painted the stripes with Vallejo acrylic.  This allows me to a) paint at the dining table and b) easilly remove paint which has crept under the tape by gently scraping it off with a toothpick.

I also put some clear on the 1/72 Mercedes W150.  This is nearly done but I do need to put some Alclad Chrome on the bumpers and headlights which is delaying things.

And the figures for the back of the 1/48 Gaz AA got some more paint.

Oh, and another egg plane for the Republic of Australia Egg Force.  This time an F-22.  It's all together and nearly ready for decals.





This was a test run before I use the same technique on the Victomic.

[PR19_Kit]

Something inspired by a comment  Kit made on a thread here. 

It's ALWAYS my fault...................

[zenrat]

Something inspired by a comment  Kit made on a thread here. 

It's ALWAYS my fault...................

Well it is.  But this time it's credit not blame.

Eggraptor.  Getting some low viz roos (when I print some more - I seem to have lost the remainder of the last sheet I made) to join the RAEF.
Eggraptor F-22 WIP 13-09-2020 by Fred Maillardet, on Flickr

1/72 Mercedes.  I am still procrastinating over preparing a plethora of tiny parts for Alclad chrome, and also fighting a PE steering wheel (thankfully there is also a slightly chunky plastic one if I lose the fight).
Mercedes W150 WIP 13-09-2020 by Fred Maillardet, on Flickr

And this morning I airbrushed the Mi-4.  This is Alclad aluminium over black Vallejo acrylic primer.
Mil Mi-4 WIP 13-09-2020 by Fred Maillardet, on Flickr

[NARSES2]

Merc' is very neat especially given the scale 

[zenrat]

Thanks Chris.  Ace Models - very intricate and detailed.  I dread to think what a mess I would have made of it as a kid.

[NARSES2]

  Ace Models - very intricate and detailed.  I dread to think what a mess I would have made of it as a kid.

And me now 

[DogfighterZen]

I love how the Mi-4 looks! 
I'm guessing that tone is due to the black primer undercoat, right?