41 replies to this topic

[Pablo]

I'll be doing everything on this car except the paint. Parts are all premium quality cool guy stuff, as usual. If you are a big fan of Tony P's work (especially retro stock cars) like I am, you will see a lot of his influence here   

 

The parts tub on left side is all stuff to be used for sure. The right hand tub is me playing around with different brackets/nosepieces/rail configurations, tongues, etc. 

 

[Geary Carrier]

A pile o parts is always a good start...

[Pablo]

The Bartos double ball bearing front wheels are quality products, nice and hard. Both mike .827. I'll true them down just a hair to get to fresh rubber

 

 

One is slightly wider than the other and I will fix that. Perfection of parts makes my job easier 

 

[Jaeger Team]

[Pablo]

If I can make it work, this nosepiece has the basic dimensions I want. I (roughly) cut it out from a kit. The axle hole heights are wrong, but if I bend them inward until the jig wheels are at ground zero I'll be good to go. No guarantees; that's why I didn't finish the cuts yet. Rgeo "front" retro jig wheels will give .050" clearance with .820" stocker fronts

 

[Pablo]

Yes, this will work    For now, that's all I can say. Tomorrow, I'll perfect it and begin motor bracket/rail planning 

 

[Pablo]

Planning - juggling bracket/rails/nosepiece, I had several motor bracket choices and I chose the Chicagoland 7/8. It will meet my rail plans, it's multi-.039 wire friendly, it spaces nice due to the brass width being .040, has a slight downward angle for the motor, an inner .039 rail slides under to nest the motor, etc.     

 

Nosepiece will need some more work to accept rails and clear flag rotation. No problemo   

 

[Pablo]

The flag needed more rotation clearance, so I clipped an FSF nosepiece on and used it as a pattern to Sharpie mark it

 

 

Then I carved the curve, band sawed the other cuts, and etched alignment marks on nosepiece and 2 degree Swiss tongue. Hogged the axle holes out to 1/8", got a dummy axle in place jigged up with RGeo "front" jig wheels, and set the 3/4" guide lead. Time to heat up the 455 Hakko for some dummy axle tacking and tongue floating   

 

[Pablo]

Nosepiece/tongue done. Rail notches will be widened as needed later 

 

[Rotorranch]

[Pablo]

All jigged up. No need for jig wheels at this point because the dummy has the front end set, and the motor bracket will use bearings straight on it without a tube. Looks easy, and it is. But making everything perfect takes me a long time.

 

Cut a bunch of .039 rail wires. I find it easier to take the time and do it right - first I flatten and radius each end, then hand sand each one. Then clean with isopropyl alcohol, and check for straightness. A group like this is easy to check, no dial indicator needed - rolling them across a flat block will indicate any problems. These were perfect, not a single bad apple in the bunch. Ready to become rails 

 

[Pablo]

Math says eight .039 rails per side will fit. That's one inside, one at bracket face notch, one outside, 5 more to follow. Just like making a sandwich, only with a digital micrometer 

 

 

Little alligator clips come in real handy for situations like this. I used silver solder on this piece because I don't want it melting when the bearings are installed

 

 

Now we have a 2 more wire braces for the bracket, and the first four rails on each side support the bracket connection in some way. The final four rails will simply be rails with no bends. Cross wire piece up front is a dummy to temporarily keep the rails in check

 

[Pablo]

All rails in place, scrubbed up and quality checked

 

 

[Pablo]

A couple guys have asked me about this, so I'm showing this photo. Sorry for shaking, I had to hold the ruler and camera same time LOL The question was, "have you screwed in the jig motor to ensure motor doesn't hang below chassis?" My answer was, no, but I did place the jig motor on it and checked it carefully. It is designed perfectly, slightly hypoid, face is angled down so front of motor sits at ground zero when uprights are flat on deck. Uprights are easy to bend (did mine with pliers and masking tape to avoid scratching it) and only took one minor tweak with fingers of the uprights to make them perfect in all respects. Screw holes are perfectly placed, motor shaft hole is big enough to use a 9T pinion without enlarging it, axle holes are in perfect positions to give proper clearance.

 

I give it      product rating. Here is the money shot, it's screwed in tight for your viewing pleasure, and I'm guessing that's about 7 thou daylight under the front edge of the motor 

 

[Pablo]

Rails connected to nosepiece and braced with .039 wire pieces

 

 

[Upfront slot cars]

Great step by step ! I learned something ! I had never thought of using an alligator clip to hold that top brace on while soldering it ! Thanks !!!!

[Pablo]

   

[MSwiss]

Andrew,

What were you using before?

 

Something fashioned from leftover copper tubing from your still(s)? LOL

[Pablo]

I get a sick thrill from burning my fingers only on rare vintage builds, not so much on retro LOL

[Bill from NH]

With vintage builds do burnt fingers smell better?

[Pablo]

Fowler deck, Tony P. style. 15 thou brass governed by 25 thou wire pieces inside 1/16" tubes. 

I didn't invent this stuff, I'm just copying the masters

 

[Pablo]

Long pans nested in the jig at a perfect 2.999" width. Mike Katz style 

 

[Pablo]

Pan management will be "old skool" twin .032 wire hinges. They nest close to the (.063) hinge tubes so they needed to be notched. All wires tinned, cleaned, and bent. I'm showing one pin tube set, which consists of .063 tubes inside 3/32 tubes to slightly elevate the body connections. There will be three pins per side 

 

 

Hey Rotor, do you remember I asked you what color you planned to paint the body? 1/4 oz. Team Associated weight is ready for prime/paint. Once dry, it will be permanently affixed atop the Fowler Deck

 

 

 

 

[Pablo]

Elevated pin tubes; three per side 

 

 

Rotor asked me "why six tubes?" My answer:

 

-better body connection to the pans

-redundancy - if you lose a pin, you're still in the race

-even if you chose not to put pins in the middle tubes, having that 3/32 tube piece right at the edge of the pan provides extra support for the body skirt as it flexes under cornering

-adds strength to those extra long pans on an extra long 4.5" stock car body

-it's all weight down low, no CG penalty

-psyches out the competition   

[Pablo]

Dummy front axle removed, Bartos axle installed. Braced to never fail