Harry P. Posted October 18, 2014 Share Posted October 18, 2014 Here we go with another WIP! For me, this is a very "modern" car... it doesn't even have a crank! It's the 1/16 scale 1928 Mercedes SS. As usual for so many kits of brass-era or vintage cars, this kit has been issued under various brand names over the years... Minicraft, Entex, Revell... who knows how many more! As far as I know they are all the same identical kit. The one I have happens to be the Revell version (if that even matters)... My buddy Skip sent me a whole bunch of references on this car, so building an authentic, detailed model should be easy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cobraman Posted October 18, 2014 Share Posted October 18, 2014 Good looking car. Painting it like that ? How good are the wheels in the kit ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harry P. Posted October 18, 2014 Author Share Posted October 18, 2014 This kit has a unique way of making the wire wheels. There is a jig, and the rims have little knobs on one side and slots on the other. The idea is that you put a rim and a hub into the jig, then take some thin wire (supplied in the kit) and you wind the wire around the rim in a specific pattern to create the "spokes." Sounds simple enough, right? Uh... no. Let's begin at the beginning... here is the parts tree with all the wheel components (four wheels plus two spares). You can see the center rims with the liittle tabs, the back side rims with the set of seven larger tabs, and the inner and outer "final" rims that you glue to the front and back of each wheel once you have wound the spokes: Good looking car. Painting it like that ? Not sure yet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harry P. Posted October 18, 2014 Author Share Posted October 18, 2014 So like I said, you take the center rim and the hub and place them into the jig... Then you wind the wire around the rim in a specific pattern, creating the spokes. But it sounds easier than it is. First of all, the instructions are vague at best, actually pretty useless. One of the items Skip sent me in his reference collection was an illustrated article on how to do the spokes, but even following that, I kept messing up the pattern. I tried many times (using heavy thread as "practice" material... kept screwing up, and not winding up in the correct place at the end, and not getting the correct spoke pattern. So I would wind the wheel, take it out of the jig, and see that the pattern wasn't right... unwind the wheel, put the rim and hub back into the jig and start over. And over. And over. Sheesh... it was getting very frustrating. The problem is that it's so easy to get off the pattern as you go around the rim. If you are off by one lug, the pattern will be off and you won't wind up in the correct spot on the rim at the end. I don't know how many times I wound the wheel incorrectly, but it was many times before I finally got it right. So now that I finally had it figured out, I thought I'd do a "real" one using the wire supplied in the kit. Which quickly brought up problem #2... the wire was impossible to keep taut as I went through the winding sequence. I kept on getting loose and "saggy" spokes; I couldn't keep the wire taut as I went through the process. After several attempts using the wire, I decided it just wasn't going to happen for me, so I wound up using nylon thread instead, which was much easier to handle and keep tight as I wrapped the spokes around the rim. The thread I happened to have on hand is tan, but no matter, as the wheels will be painted anyway when done. Here is what a finished center rim looks like when correctly wrapped: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim B Posted October 18, 2014 Share Posted October 18, 2014 This should be a nice looking Benz. Interesting process to make the wheels. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cato Posted October 18, 2014 Share Posted October 18, 2014 Sorry I didn't catch this earlier. Dude, All your criticisms are right on. The nazis used that wire on their fences... I like dental floss for mock-up purposes. I would have recommended different, more malleable .012" wire, for final finish. Your thread's OK if its thickness is about .012". And as good as you are (and you're great), Skip will expect the tuning bar on the radio to work and the nap of the carpet to flow in the 'correct' direction... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harry P. Posted October 18, 2014 Author Share Posted October 18, 2014 Sorry I didn't catch this earlier. Dude, All your criticisms are right on. The nazis used that wire on their fences... I like dental floss for mock-up purposes. I would have recommended different, more malleable .012" wire, for final finish. Your thread's OK if its thickness is about .012". And as good as you are (and you're great), Skip will expect the tuning bar on the radio to work and the nap of the carpet to flow in the 'correct' direction... The thread I used is like a microscopic hair thicker than the kit wire. But I'm going to paint the wheels black, so everything should look perfectly fine. The black spokes will sort of "disappear" into the background. And I know Skip will be watching... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sjordan2 Posted October 19, 2014 Share Posted October 19, 2014 For information for those following this, of all the boxings of this kit, the Revell version is the only one that doesn't have a chromed wheel sprue. Which is just fine, since the 1:1 cars didn't originally have chrome wheels. I am truly excited about watching a person of Harry's skills build this kit, since I've gathered a ton of research about this car over the years and the kit has been #1 for takeoff for a while.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harry P. Posted October 19, 2014 Author Share Posted October 19, 2014 I am truly excited about watching a person of Harry's skills build this kit... You're making me nervous, Skip... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
imatt88 Posted October 19, 2014 Share Posted October 19, 2014 Ah yes, another masterpiece in the making.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harry P. Posted October 19, 2014 Author Share Posted October 19, 2014 Ok... once you have the center rim "spoked," you have to glue the inner (backside) part of the rim in place... those are the rims with the seven larger tabs: Once the glue is dry, you then wind spokes onto those back side rims. Much easier than the center rim, because A, there are only seven lugs, and B, they are numbered and even have little arrows molded into them... so you can't possibly go wrong! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cobraman Posted October 19, 2014 Share Posted October 19, 2014 They look pretty darn good. What a pain they seem to build. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harry P. Posted October 19, 2014 Author Share Posted October 19, 2014 They look pretty darn good. What a pain they seem to build. They are a pain. And all the extra trouble doesn't get you all that much, especially if you paint them black, like I will. Could have just as well been molded plastic spoked wheels to begin with. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cato Posted October 19, 2014 Share Posted October 19, 2014 (edited) Harry, I'm concerned the thread may: A. Sag B. Get 'fuzzy' -when hit with primer or paint, especially thinned. Sorry to be a worry-wart but I'd test on stretched thread off the wheel first... -Jus sayin'... Edited October 19, 2014 by Cato Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harry P. Posted October 19, 2014 Author Share Posted October 19, 2014 I already painted one as a test (the "bottom" spare that nobody will ever really be able to see. Looks great. Believe me, when painted black, everything just sort of "disappears." Even under the magnifier it looks good. When I have all the wheels painted I'll show you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cato Posted October 19, 2014 Share Posted October 19, 2014 Good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobthehobbyguy Posted October 19, 2014 Share Posted October 19, 2014 Interesting project. Will be following. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Krazy Rick Posted October 19, 2014 Share Posted October 19, 2014 As always, your in progress threads are interesting, informative & the end result is well worth the effort. I'll be looking forward to see this one complete - thanks again Harry Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harry P. Posted October 19, 2014 Author Share Posted October 19, 2014 Many people paint small parts while still attached to the sprue. Wrong! (IMO... ). Think about it... you can't really get at all the mold seam lines and sink marks while the part is still attached. Plus, once you paint it, then you have to remove it from the tree and file or sand those attachment points smooth, and touch up the paint. Cheap Trick: I find it much easier to remove all parts, do all the cleanup, and then paint them. Once a part is cleaned up and ready for paint, I use a tiny drop of CA to glue the part to a "handle"... either a piece of scrap sprue, scrap wood, or my latest favorite, bamboo shish kabob skewers. (Note: I build small subassemblies that will all be painted the same color beforehand, then paint as a unit. Easier than painting the individual parts and then assembling). I glue the part in a spot that won't be seen once the part is installed. After paining, I just snap the part off the "handle" and install it... no further cleanup or paint retouching needed! Here are several engine components ready for paint: Be creative! Paint handles can be made of almost anything. Sometimes the part to be painted will "tell" me what type of handle to use... as in this case, where a Q-tip makes the perfect handle to slip over the axle stub: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harry P. Posted October 19, 2014 Author Share Posted October 19, 2014 Another Cheap Trick: I find it much easier to tape off spots on a piece where other pieces will be glued later before painting the part, instead of painting the part and then later scraping the paint away from the glue areas. It's not always easy or possible, but many times it is. By pre-taping, there's less handling of the part once painted, and the glue area is nice and clean, with no danger of scraping too far or too much area. It took only about 30 seconds to tape off this engine block/trans assembly. It would probably have taken longer to scrape away the paint in all these areas later... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harry P. Posted October 19, 2014 Author Share Posted October 19, 2014 Same deal with these frame rails... much easier to add a little piece of tape over the areas where other parts will attach and paint the rails, rather than paint and then try to scrape the paint out those little "pockets" where the front crossmember, engine mounts, and muffler will go. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobthehobbyguy Posted October 19, 2014 Share Posted October 19, 2014 Harry another trick is to use white glue on the locating spots especially where there are pins or a spot too small for tape. Cuts down on handling painted parts also works well for tempoary gluing parts together that need painting but can't be finished glued until final assembly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sjordan2 Posted October 19, 2014 Share Posted October 19, 2014 (edited) Are you going to add the fuel lines? These would be run from the rear tank along the inside of the left frame rail to the reservoir on the firewall, and from there inside the rail into the supercharger air tube/box. PS: The black wire wheels won't be totally invisible if you make sure the brake drums are the correct copper finish. Edited October 19, 2014 by sjordan2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harry P. Posted October 19, 2014 Author Share Posted October 19, 2014 I'm going to add some details, but not everything. Basically what I can see in the photos. At such a small scale, it'll look ok even if I add only some of the stuff that would be there on the 1:1. My main focus is always what you can see when the model is finished... body and interior detail. Once the model is done, if the hood is ever open more than a handful of times ever again, I'd be surprised. Once for "Under Glass" photos... not much after that! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cato Posted October 19, 2014 Share Posted October 19, 2014 How about opening a driver's door? Much easier to see your upholstery magic that way. Can be displayed all shut too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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