114 replies to this topic

[don.siegel]

Thanks Rick, that looks good, will see what's available here... 

 

Don 

[Steve Okeefe]

Rick,

 

Your chassis build turned out nicely!  That Cobra drop arm gives it crisp, clean lines as opposed to that hideous guide mount contraption that Rubin (and others - including Emott!) used during that time period.

[don.siegel]

Hi Martin, 

 

I just received the same one this morning, in the same little blue plastic case... also dedicated to cans! 

 

That angle vice looks like a nice piece of equipment, but no more room on the worktable! 

 

Don 

[Regis4446]

Thank you Rick Kim Martin and Don

It is too small for me, I will order the one that is the largest.

[dc-65x]

I've been a bit sidetracked lately but I've gotten back to work on the King Cobra project. Here's a preview of what this super cool Lancer Super Competition Body looks like mounted down LOW on the Rubin inspired PRO inline chassis:

 

 

To try and make the this "Low and Wide" style handling body appear more like a model of the real car I'm adding some detailing pieces and a scale style paint job patterned after the real car.

 

First off the bodies molded in velocity stacks were cut out to be replaced with aluminum stacks. A piece of .030" Evergreen sheet styrene is double backed taped to a hunk of aluminum and drilled for the stacks. It's super easy to cut the sheet oversize, eyeball align the hole pattern location and then cut the drilled sheet to fit the opening in the body:

 

 

The detail pieces include the above mentioned velocity stacks and mounting sheet, a narrowed Lancer interior, Russkit driver's head, aluminum rod roll bar. Russkit mirrors, aluminum tube exhaust pipes and Pattos Place Shelby King Cobra decals:

 

 

My "paint booth" (a trash dumpster with the lid flipped up) is outside. I'm waiting for it to warm up from the 30's and low 40's and stop raining to paint this baby. 

[Bill from NH]

That's going to be a sweet- looking cars when it's done Rick. I only recall seeing photos of the yellow 55. Do you know what the 98 & 45 were?

[dc-65x]

Thanks Bill. I don't know about the other numbers on the decal sheet. There was the early number 98 car of Dave McDonald but it didn't have the bottom of the roundel cut off or the black outline.

[dc-65x]

It stopped raining yesterday and the temperature got to almost 60 degrees so I decided to try painting.    A some Krylon yellow paint, little tape, foam packing material and a piano wire holder.....

 

 

............and the painted can is ready to assemble into a motor:

 

 

The assembled motor. I went with shunted brushes like Champion started using during this time period. I added my "invisible spring insulation"............

 

 

..............and the super cool THORP sticker:

 

 

 

 

Time to get this baby into the roller.........

[Pablo]

Sweet lookin' hot rodded motor     

[Geary Carrier]

Very nice motor Rick...

[dc-65x]

Thanks     Here's the motor installed:

 

 

The finished roller:

 

 

 

 

I'm finishing up painting the interior and detail parts..........

[Pablo]

           

[Martin]

Rick, this is why we love slot cars. Great looking roller

That combination of color, brass, mag and steel. Spectacular.

[dc-65x]

Thanks Pablo  

 

I love them too Martin.    

 

I hope to paint the body Friday. So far the forecast is mid 60's and maybe no rain. In the mean time I got some paint on the interior and engine detail:

 

 

 

Hopefully it will look better when it's more hidden inside the body   

[Martin]

No need to hide. That red seat and blue suit will really pop with the yellow body. Opps, I do not know if the body is yellow? Only that the real car was.

 

Just a suggestion, try a lighter blue line a shade or two darker between the seat and drivers suit. Then under his sleeve where it meets his torso. I know you like to keep it simple and clean, it just adds that little bit of 3D separation IMO.

 

Just ignore me if I have over stepped. 

[dc-65x]

I've seen you artists use shading to create a 3D affect and it looks amazing. I'm afraid I've reached the limit of what these shaky hands can do with a paint brush!         

 

[Bill from NH]

That shading isn't going to show up at speed Rick. They must make a light bulb for shading with all these LED & Halogen bulbs of today.

[Jairus]

Shading is not necessary.  Interior looks great Rick!

[dc-65x]

The livery on this Shelby King Cobra is a very simple yellow color:

 

 

I thought, as Martin mentioned, that the interior could help make that simple livery "pop". The aluminum interior color with the black dash and contrasting seat color along with the traditional Dunlop blue drivers suit will hopefully help with that "pop".

 

I really don't enjoy the detail painting aspect of building because I find it very difficult to do. My free hand painting sucks.    

 

But I wanted that interior to have contrasting colors so......  .....I tried using thin strips of tape to mask off everything I could. I masked off the dash board, seats, drivers shoulder harness on the interior and the goggle strap on the driver's helmet. I rattle can spray painted the red, black and aluminum on the interior and the white drivers helmet.

 

This might be something other builders who are "paint brush challenged" like me could try. 

 

The weather forecast is still on track for painting the body tomorrow.......

[Jairus]

I hate going too off topic... but.
One thing I learned about myself is when my hands start shaking, and they do at times.
Drink more water and get more Potassium in your system.  Banana's, Broccoli or pills did help me!

Carry on mister artist.

[Martin]

.....or try a adult beverage of your choice. It does not stop the shaking but you wont care as much about the results.  

 

But seriously my wife is always coming up with nutritional remedies. Good stuff Jairus. 

 

On the subject of painting interiors. I always use gloss enamels. They flow better and give you way more time to work. Then I mist with matt clear.

 

Hard to beat a spray can for large areas. So nicely done Rick. This is going to be another masterpiece.

[dc-65x]

It's finally painted! 

 

The sun was out for a few hours this morning. The wind was calm. I raised the lid of my "trash can spray booth" and..........

 

BAM!

 

It's yellow! 

 

 

Time to pull the tape off and clean up all the over spray with Testors enamel brush cleaner. Hopefully all will be well..........

[strummer]

Although I'm just a newcomer to all this, and I "play" in 1/32, I find these threads VERY interesting. The level of workmanship that you all put into these scratch-built frames, etc., is just stunning...

 

...which leads me to making an observation I will probably be kicked off this site for. 

 

Why is it that so many times we see a beautifully built chassis, lovingly measured and soldered together...only to then see a thin shell attached to it with very little detail? And what's with those commonly seen "O ring" front tires? I get it that "Faster is better", but after all your meticulous work on the parts that don't get seen, why don't we see that same effort put out when it comes to the body?  

 

I guess I just don't "get" 1/24...

 

Okay, kick away!  

 

Mark in Oregon

 

PS: Most of the above comments/questions have nothing to do with the subject of this thread: it's awesome!  

[dc-65x]

Hi Mark,

 

What I'm having fun doing (or trying to do) with this build and several others I'll picture below, is show that a low and wide Pro style car can look like a real car. Yes the wheels and tires are smaller in diameter than scale but the low and wide bodies are proportioned for them.

 

And no, they don't have to be hard bodies to be detailed and look good.

 

Here are some examples that I think strike a balance of real car looks and slot racer speed:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mark, "putting the effort in the body" is dependent on the where the car will be used. If the club or organization requires and rewards detailed appearing cars the effort would be put into that. 

 

Pro racer Bryan Warmack sent me pictures of some of his old cars that were very detailed because the club where he raced them required it. And the MESAC organization comes to mind. Very detailed, very fast cars.

[strummer]

Hey Rick

 

Thanks for posting those pictures; the mirror-like finishes on the chassises are just incredible! Beautiful models...

 

Question: why do some of these cars have multiple wires running from the pick-up shoe to the motor? On the McLaren you have (2) wires going to one pole, and (3) going to the other. Why is that?

 

Thanks again

 

Mark in Oregon