Auto Union Type C, MFH version: Engine (I)

Lots of sorting, cleaning, sanding, drilling, filing, grinding, etc., all to get the basic engine block glued up and the camshaft installed.  

 

The narrow-angle V16 has a single camshaft acting on intake valves in both heads via rockers, and on the exhaust valves via individual pushrods and rockers. The cam drive is via a bevel gear at the back end of the engine, probably related to the compressor drive. The inlet manifold from the compressor runs under the cam and intake rocker box. 

This photo looks towards the front of the car and shows the left-side cylinder head and exhaust valve pushrods installed, along with the bevel drive for the cam.  

I'm still in the optimistic phase. We'll see how long that lasts...

Auto Union Type C, MFH Version: Prep

And it's off to the acetone bath for all the lovely little white metal bits, followed by a wash with Dawn dish soap.   

I am not going to claim the sorting is perfect, but each box contains the bits from a couple of baggies, subsequently separated into stuff that sort of looks alike following a quick scan of the instructions.

The real keeners are putting all this through a magnetic jewellery tumbler, a step I have not yet engaged in. I figure period castings were relatively rough, and this will get hidden by paint. And speaking of paint, I'm going to need a bucket of aluminum and silver paints. 

Next the resin bits got a wash and rinse in Dawn soap. There are only two body panels in metal, and they seem to fit the resin shell reasonably well, so perhaps the issues encountered recently in certain other MFH 1/12 kits with mixed resin and metal bodies have been sorted.

Next was test fitting the engine bits, which involved lots of filing and drilling. But first I had to identify all the engine bits ... easy enough for the bigger bits but as always there are loads of its bitsy widdle bits. 

Drilling and filing generated a lot of scarf. 

It's looking decent so far. 

Paint is next. Next post will document engine assembly. Stay tuned!

Auto Union Type C, MFH Version: Overview

Some time ago I built the 1/24 scale version of the Type C as offered in resin by Fernando Pinto of FPModelos. That kit was typical of resin, in that there were some challenges, and spent some time on the Shelf of Doom before being completed. Click here for details of that build. 

When MFH offered this at 1/12, at an appropriate MFH price, I decided to pass; but when they reissued it in mid-December (with a warning that there probably wouldn't be any more), I decided to buy myself an early Christmas present. The box turned up today.

First impression: This 1,890 gram package is up to the usual MFH quality.

Coincidentally I just cleaned up my workspace... Stay tuned!  

PS Like others, I have ordered in the past from the European sponsor of the MFH Facebook page, and have always gotten hit by DHL for substantial import duties. I ordered direct from Japan this time and FedEx did not charge me duties; MFH also gave me a 10% discount as a repeat customer. It occurs to me that Canada has a free-trade agreement with countries of the Pacific Rim, but not with the EU, and this could explain the lack of customs fees. So order direct and save.

Chaparral 2E: Complete (#14 for 2022)

The thing about vintage kits is they tend to be crappy; and no matter how much effort you put into detailing them, the basic bits are all still crappy. So best to simply build them out-of-box and accept that a modern kit will have so much more detail. 

Here the lack of locating pins for just about anything was painful. But hey, this is it as far as kits of Chaparrals are concerned. 

What's next? Not sure, stay tuned.

Chaparral 2E: Outline

This Union kit of the Chaparral 2E is one of the few kits of these iconic cars that include an engine. 

The car had an automatic gearbox and an aluminum 327. The driver had a pedal where the clutch would have been, that allowed him to change the angle of the wing for more or less downforce. This was successful and 2Es took first (car #65, driven by Phil Hill) and second (#66, Jim Hall) at the 1966 Laguna Seca Can-Am race. 

The kit includes what appears to be fuel injection stacks, but the Interweb seems to agree that the cars actually had Webers. Fortunately I've got a little baggie full of 3D printed carbs that will fit. 

First step is to wash the body which acquired some sticky stuff somewhere along the line, and strip the chrome off most of the sprue. Stay tuned!

Porsche 917K (MFH): Chassis (IV)

Well, this has gone back onto the Shelf of Doom. Two week's work has gotten the rear subframe "installed", if not completely straight, and with rather more glue than I would like to admit. 

The issue is that every little tube connects to about 4 other things; the tubes are all easily bent white metal; the little dowel and socket joints need filing and drilling. Basically the frame around the motor relies on the motor for strength and dimensional accuracy, but the further you get from the motor (a big and relatively dimensionally-stable lump of white metal), the harder it is to get it all to line up.

Of course I knew this going into the project as the 908/03 is pretty similar. But the warning stands: these Model Factory Hiro kits at 1/24 are diabolically difficult to get right. 

So on to something easier for a bit. Stay tuned! 

Porsche 917K (MFH): Chassis (III)

Front suspension and cockpit are complete, with the exception of the driver's seat and gear shift lever which both require the firewall in place. The dashboard will go on shortly, but will hide a lot of the wiring and plumbing.

 

Next is the rear tubular structure that supports the rear of the engine cover, the spare tire as well as the rear suspension. There are also various tanks and other bits hanging off the sides between the firewall and the rear wheels. Getting all this straight is shaping up to be a major challenge. 

So the grunt work continues. Stay tuned.

Ford vs Ferrari: comparing models

Recently I completed the Model Factory Hiro 1/24 kit of the Ferrari 330 P4, and the MPC 1/25 kit of the Ford GT40 Mark IV. The objective was to reproduce the Ford vs Ferrari movie; the fact I am three months late for the Ottawa contest where this was a theme is besides the point.

Once complete, I sat them side by side. The Ford is noticeably smaller than the Ferrari, which is not the case in real life; according to my good friend Mr Google, the Ford is 4343 millimetres long at 1:1 while the Ferrari is 4185 mm. (Wheelbases are essentially identical at 2400 and 2413 mm).

Getting out my trusty ruler and HP 15C RPN calculator, I came up with the following:

MFH kit: 179 mm X 24 = 4296 mm (111 mm too long, close to 5 mm at scale)

MPC kit: 175 mm X 25 = 4375, 32 mm off and on the edge of my measurement error, so we'll call it "accurate".

I wonder how many other MFH kits are off by these sorts of margins.

Porsche 917K (MFH): Chassis (II)

 If my blog record is correct, this got shelved in March 2021.

I spent a quiet morning reminding myself of where I was when I parked it 18 months ago ago. Realised that a couple of white metal panels had been put on incorrectly, and needed to be removed and subtly bent to fit better. So no new progress to report, just correcting past mistakes. 

Next will be to finish up the cockpit, front chassis and suspension bits, making sure the resin body will fit over it all; then the big one: bolting the engine and rear of the chassis to the cockpit tub. I may do some more assembly of the rear chassis structure and suspension prior to this.

Stay tuned! 

Ford GT40 Mark IV: Complete (#13 for 2022)

This older MPC kit is a disappointment compared to available kits of the 330 P4, whether the Fujimi or Model Factory Hiro version. But short of getting my hands on the very rare Union kit, it is the only way of building a model of the 1967 Le Mans winner.

The biggest problem is poor molds with lots of flash and other flaws, compounded by the fact that the whole thing is molded in red. The chrome is particularly bad, and the there is too much of it. Decals were not especially opaque. 

Nonetheless it is possible to build up a reasonable replica.

The comparison with the MFH kit of the second place Ferrari 330 P4 is interesting but also shows the difference between the 1/25 Ford and the 1/24 Ferrari. I've minimised it in the photo by putting the Ford closer to the camera; posed the other way the size difference, while theoretically small at just over 4%, is much more noticeable.

What's next? Stay tuned!

Ford GT40 Mark IV: Chassis

Older kits just can't get any love. Lots of flash, poor chrome, crude attachement points to sprues, everything molded in red (even the chromed bits)... still it's not looking too bad, although to be honest I could have been a little more thorough in fixing the flaws. 

 

Next: glass and decals. Wish me luck! The glass has been polished and looks OK, but the decals may be beyond repair.