Automotive Forums .com - the leading automotive community online! Automotive Forums .com - the leading automotive community online!
Automotive Forums .com - the leading automotive community online! 
-
Latest | 0 Rplys
Go Back   Automotive Forums .com Car Chat > Automotive Art > Car Modeling > WIP - Motorsports
WIP - Motorsports Post topics for any "Work In Process" motorsports vehicles in this sub-forum.
Reply Show Printable Version Show Printable Version | Email this Page Email this Page | Subscription Subscribe to this Thread
 
Thread Tools
Old 05-20-2012, 12:02 PM   #61
ScratchBuilt
AF Enthusiast
Thread starter
 
Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: Norwich
Posts: 648
Thanks: 21
Thanked 111 Times in 87 Posts
Re: 1/8 Porsche 935/78 'Moby Dick'

Okay, I didn't post last weekend as I thought I would - not only was the race meeting at Brands a busy affair, but we've changed our ISP at home so I've only just got my connection back. So far, it's an improvement...

So, what have I been doing? The rear frame over the engine bay has been attached to the main cockpit sction - not easy when there are so many tricky diagonals to fit in-between, and you can't glue tham all at once. With that done, I started adding the supporting tubes for the main roll-hoop - the damper cross-tube has indeed become a busy place! The intersection on the left-hand side currently has seven tubes coming together at a point, and there's still another diagonal to attach...





To add to the complication I'm making the roof-section of the frame a removable piece - it's all pinned together, but I know I'm going to have access problems if I glue it all together too soon. Remember, this is the first car I've built with a roof...

The top corners of the main roll-hoop will be smoothed-out with greenstuff later, but for now you can see how I've drilled and pinned right through the brass to give a firm connection on both sides:



The next challenge was to make the main roof-rails and A-pillars, without using the flexible fire-extinguisher tubing. The starting point was the supporting lego structure - a combination of the original drawing, the mk1 frame measurements, and the changes I wanted to make for the mk2. This gave me the two key points on either side that I wanted the rails to hit - the bends at the top and bottom corners of the windscreen.



Hey - I've greenstuffed the corners of the roll-hoop by this point, too! I knew it was going to be difficult (and probably very frustrating) to bend the brass inner tubing as a single piece for each side, so I bent and cut three individual sections, then used the 3/16" styrene over the top to tie it all together. For extra strength I added short pieces of 3/32" ali tube inside the brass:



The side rails were slowly glued together, making sure that the bends went in the right direction and that the bottom end of the leg was aimed at the right point on the front of the chassis - you can just see the short 'anchor' tubes I've fitted to the front corners of the cockpit. A final pair of small ali bends will connect the bottom legs of the A-pillars to the chassis.

The shorter piece across the top of the windscreen is another length of 1/8" ali tube bent to shape, with 3/16" styrene forced over the top. As usual it's pinned at both ends, but not fixed together just yet. A final diagonal tube will eventually be added to complete the roof structure.



Right now the roof rails are only connected at the top of the main roll-hoop - there will soon be a pair of 'door bars' to give further reinforcement, and the whole lot will eventually be attached to the fibreglass front bulkhead and chassis. There's some more detail work required for the diagonal running behind the driver - a horizontal tube which mounts the shoulder straps, and a vertical which provides the head-rest - but these can be added in time.

Although there is clearly a lot of the chassis frame still to do, I'm nearly at the point where I will start working on the fibreglass bodyshell again. All the complicated work is involved with the cockpit and rear end, so there's not much point taking the frame any further until I know I have a shell to fit around it. My preparation with the mk1 suggests it is possible, so we shall soon see if that is true.

More next weekend - honest!

SB
ScratchBuilt is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-20-2012, 12:46 PM   #62
lovegt40
ItaloSvensk
 
lovegt40's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2009
Location: Marstrand
Posts: 3,383
Thanks: 1,077
Thanked 296 Times in 270 Posts
Re: 1/8 Porsche 935/78 'Moby Dick'

I force myself not to write any more compliments, but I cant resist.
Too nice work sb. thanks for posting.
__________________
Paolo - LoveGT40 Modelworks

website www.alsoldatino.com
my YT channel : https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCIp..._as=subscriber
FB: https://www.facebook.com/alsoldatino
lovegt40 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-27-2012, 12:30 PM   #63
ScratchBuilt
AF Enthusiast
Thread starter
 
Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: Norwich
Posts: 648
Thanks: 21
Thanked 111 Times in 87 Posts
Re: 1/8 Porsche 935/78 'Moby Dick'

Hello everyone,

I've spent this week getting the main cockpit chassis section to the point where I can start working on the fibreglass bodyshell pieces (again). After working on the roof tubes and A-pillars last weekend, I realised that the rear part of the upper frame was slightly out of alignment - it had moved slightly to the left. I don't think it's obvious in the photos, but it was something I wanted to correct immediately in case it had knock-on effects elsewhere. So, I carefully cut the joint where the bracing diagonal tube meets the main roll-hoop at the base and this allows the top of the frame to shift position. When the whole lot is glued together further down the line, it should be okay.



Next job was to add the diagonal tube across the top of the roof - again, this started as a length of 1/8" ali tube, bent at the end, with the styrene slipped over the top:



The corners of the frame were given an initial layer of greenstuff - this will be tidied and fettled at a later date. The next photo shows the complete roof section of the frame - you'll see that I've also added the two long diagonals across the doorways. Again these are ali-reinforced and pinned to the main upright tubes at both ends.





So, at this point I've got the frame pretty much how I want it - it's solid enough that I can take it out of the jig without it falling apart. Before starting on the bodywork I felt it would be sensible to re-do parts of the chassis drawing - just to make sure that what I've built still matches up with the external shape. Fortunately, it does! A few tubes have moved, and the gearbox frame has shifted quite a bit, but it appears to still be a buildable arrangement.



I'm not planning to create the bodywork as a single mould - the inner panels will be developed from what I did for the mk1 frame, for example. The most complicated section will the the roof and windscreen surround - not because of the detail, but because of the overall shape. I've spent a lot of time this weekend working out how I'm going to tackle this - hopefully you'll see some results in the next update. Meanwhile, I made a simple mould for the door skins by hot-wiring three curved pieces; a layer of draughting film taped over the top gives a smooth surface to lay-up onto:





This former can be used to make both doorskins - I only need to lay one up to prove that it will work okay, then worry about the other side later. The only detail that would otherwise 'hand' the doors is the recess for the door handle - but this can be added as a separate moulding (similar to the cooling ducts on the front of the 908).

I suspect the next update will include lots of foam offcuts, plenty of dust, and hopefully something that looks like the roof of a 911...

Have a good week,

SB

Last edited by ScratchBuilt; 05-27-2012 at 12:33 PM. Reason: extra chassis photo added
ScratchBuilt is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-27-2012, 01:15 PM   #64
ianc911
AF Enthusiast
 
Join Date: Sep 2011
Location: Redwood City, California
Posts: 651
Thanks: 0
Thanked 39 Times in 39 Posts
Re: 1/8 Porsche 935/78 'Moby Dick'

Nice, you're rolling on the bodywork already!

ianc
ianc911 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-03-2012, 02:10 PM   #65
ScratchBuilt
AF Enthusiast
Thread starter
 
Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: Norwich
Posts: 648
Thanks: 21
Thanked 111 Times in 87 Posts
Re: 1/8 Porsche 935/78 'Moby Dick'

Yep, bodywork is very much the next item on the 'to-do' list! Well, one small section of the bodywork, anyway...

As I've mentioned before, I've always felt this project had certain 'make or break' elements - parts such as the engine, gearbox, etc, would be a challenge but not too dissimilar to the 917's or 908, but if I couldn't recreate the original 911 shell that would be a major problem. So, better to find out now, than two years down the line!

The main roof stucture mould started as four 50mm-wide blocks of my trusty blue insulation foam, with the centreline profile used to cut each one to shape. The remains of two of the blocks were used as guides for cutting the outermost two to shape - the starting point for the side window surfaces:





Note how I'm just about at the limit of what my hot-wire can handle - fortunately this shouldn't be a problem for the rest of the bodywork...

To get the taper in the body sides as it moves towards the rear, more cardboard patterns were cut and taped in postion:



At the front, yet more templates were used to cut the curvature of the lower windscreen edge:



...and then I wanted to take the hard corners off the top edges. The final shaping would be done by hand, but there was a lot of material I could still remove with the hot-wire:





With the basic shape just about there, I made more templates to mark the positions of the side and rear windows so that I could hand-shape the body to suit. I've used some of my thin masking tape here to give a better idea of the shape:



I spent a good hour or so hand-shaping the left-hand side, trying to get a smooth transition from the sides into the roof above the doors, and getting a nice flow to the rear. Here you can see a comparison with the un-worked right-hand side:



So after a similar amount of time spent on the other side (plus the insertion of a 4mm spacer in the middle), I have a mould which is certainly looking like the roof of a 911:



No doubt I'll keep fettling and fiddling with the shape for a while, but right now I'm pleased with the result. Like many modelling jobs it has had it's 'that's not looking too good' moments, but I've stuck at it and gradually the shape has started to come out. It's a pain having to make all the templates for using the hot-wire, but it's the only way I can get accurate cuts!

I'm now working on the final shaping around the base of the windscreen - creating a small extension piece which will attach to the main mould and provide the transition to the front bonnet. If I can get this piece finished tomorrow, I'm going to start laying-up some fibreglass - then we'll find out how well it fits!

Oh, and before anyone mentions that the rear bodywork of the Moby Dick isn't the original 911 bodywork - I know! When I've got this section sorted out and made more progress with the project, I'll use the mould again to create the long-tail engine cover and roof extension - which will then be grafted onto the 911 panels. The Tamiya 1/24 kit just has the outer Moby bodywork, but you know me - it's all part of the fun!

More next week!

SB
ScratchBuilt is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-03-2012, 03:56 PM   #66
John18d
AF Enthusiast
 
Join Date: May 2009
Location: Tucson, Arizona
Posts: 1,468
Thanks: 12
Thanked 126 Times in 120 Posts
Re: 1/8 Porsche 935/78 'Moby Dick'

SB - I am amazed at how you can turn plastic rod & tubing along with some foam into these wonderful scale replicas - John
John18d is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-04-2012, 01:34 AM   #67
JesusM
AF Enthusiast
 
JesusM's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2009
Location: Madrid
Posts: 649
Thanks: 109
Thanked 68 Times in 67 Posts
Re: 1/8 Porsche 935/78 'Moby Dick'

Amazing!!
__________________
Regards
Jesus
http://blog.maquetea.com/
JesusM is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-04-2012, 12:08 PM   #68
ianc911
AF Enthusiast
 
Join Date: Sep 2011
Location: Redwood City, California
Posts: 651
Thanks: 0
Thanked 39 Times in 39 Posts
Re: 1/8 Porsche 935/78 'Moby Dick'

Great work as usual SB! Were you able to use the dimensions of the Tamiya kit at all when you were measuring out the foam, or is it just a visual guide? Does the Tamiya kit appear accurate?

ianc
ianc911 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-04-2012, 02:31 PM   #69
ScratchBuilt
AF Enthusiast
Thread starter
 
Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: Norwich
Posts: 648
Thanks: 21
Thanked 111 Times in 87 Posts
Re: 1/8 Porsche 935/78 'Moby Dick'

Hi Ian,

I'm keeping the Tamiya bodyshell close at hand as it's always good to have a 3D reference, if possible. I'm trying not to use it for measurements, though, as I'm aware that kits are not always accurate! If I had better original drawings to work from, I might be in a better position to comment on the accuracy of the 1/24. I don't think I've found any glaring errors so far, not that I've particularly been looking for them! I've given up waiting for the 1/18 version (AutoArt?) to appear - be nice to add it to the collection, though...

My main reference for the body dimensions is the single set of 'official' drawings of the car (side, plan, front views) which I've photographed from a book and blown-up to useful size - then recreated at 1/8th scale. Yes, there's plenty of opportunity for errors to creep in, but that's why I'm trying to take things steady - if I can get the cockpit section and bodyshell right, everything else has a good chance of working properly!

...and I've put the first two layers of fibreglass on the roof and door moulds tonight - more to come tomorrow, too. It's looking promising!

SB
ScratchBuilt is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-08-2012, 07:01 PM   #70
spamsac
AF Newbie
 
Join Date: May 2011
Location: York
Posts: 10
Thanks: 1
Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts
Re: 1/8 Porsche 935/78 'Moby Dick'

SB, I've tried a couple of times to send you a PM, but each time it doesn't show up in the sent folder so not sure if they've worked or something has gone wrong.

Just to say I have a few prints that might be of interest to you.

Let me know if you're interested

Simon
spamsac is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-09-2012, 01:57 PM   #71
ScratchBuilt
AF Enthusiast
Thread starter
 
Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: Norwich
Posts: 648
Thanks: 21
Thanked 111 Times in 87 Posts
Re: 1/8 Porsche 935/78 'Moby Dick'

Early post this weekend - it's off to Silverstone tomorrow...

Firstly, Simon - I've sent you a pm; apologies for the slow response.

So, having made the mould for the main roof section, I added the small piece which would connect the base of the windscreen with the front bonnet - even this required four different hot-wire cuts to get the correct slope and shape. I had to resist the temptation to lay-up too many layers of fibreglass cloth at once - I was going to take my time with this one!



This is five layers of 1oz cloth, giving a thickness of about 0.5mm. I laid the first layer on Monday night, two during Tuesday, then two more on Wednesday and Thursday night; any obvious 'lumps and bumps' were given a rub with fine emery cloth between layers to get a smoother finish. It'll still need work later on, of course, but hopefully not as much!



The door skin was easier to lay-up as it only has the single curve, so I could put two layers on during a session to speed things up. It ended up with five layers of 1oz, plus two extra layers of 1.5oz cloth. With both pieces I varied the direction of each layer in an effort to increase the strength. Ideally I would have laid extra strips of cloth along the windscreen pillars, tops of the doors, etc, but this would have also resulted in more lumps and ridges. In time I will add internal strengthening to the roof, so it should be okay.

I left both pieces on the moulds until this morning, when I had the messy job of getting everything apart. Vaseline is great as a release agent to protect the mould, but it takes some cleaning-off! I was able to get both panels off without damaging the moulds, and after an initial trimming followed by a good scrub in warm soapy water, I finally had a shell:





I used the cardboard templates again to add the window edges, etc - I'm not planning to cut anything out just yet, but it makes it look better!

The rest of the day has been spent doing a little more trimming and marking, and playing around with the parts to get a feel for what to do next:



Adding the cardboard parts from the mk1 gives a little more shape:



Okay, the bonnet looks alright but I'll need to improve the fit of the rear wings!

I think the next stage will be to build more of the front of the chassis, maybe just up to the front axle-line, so that I can add the detailing to the base of the windscreen and possibly think about moulding the bonnet. The roof section needs to be located so that I can remove and replace it without screwing up the measurements each time! Then I can start moulding the door openings and sill sections...

Progress at last, I think.

SB
ScratchBuilt is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-09-2012, 02:05 PM   #72
JesusM
AF Enthusiast
 
JesusM's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2009
Location: Madrid
Posts: 649
Thanks: 109
Thanked 68 Times in 67 Posts
Re: 1/8 Porsche 935/78 'Moby Dick'

I have no words for it!!
__________________
Regards
Jesus
http://blog.maquetea.com/
JesusM is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-09-2012, 05:13 PM   #73
puffyrs
AF Regular
 
puffyrs's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2005
Location: london
Posts: 414
Thanks: 3
Thanked 22 Times in 20 Posts
Re: 1/8 Porsche 935/78 'Moby Dick'

looking good, great progress.
puffyrs is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-10-2012, 06:36 AM   #74
stump
AF Enthusiast
 
stump's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2003
Location: Nthern NSW
Posts: 799
Thanks: 48
Thanked 7 Times in 7 Posts
Send a message via MSN to stump
Re: 1/8 Porsche 935/78 'Moby Dick'

Quote:
Originally Posted by JesusM View Post
I have no words for it!!
I got to say SB, I'm a little lost for words myself mate.
Simply incredible does not even come close. An absolute pleasure to watch and witness probably describes my feelings at this time.
Subscribed.

__________________
Hello, I'm Greg. I'm an Aussie and a compulsive model starter... http://public.fotki.com/Greg5000/

Currant builds...
1:12 Datsun Z432R
1:12 Datsun OS-Giken
stump is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-10-2012, 11:40 AM   #75
spamsac
AF Newbie
 
Join Date: May 2011
Location: York
Posts: 10
Thanks: 1
Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts
Re: 1/8 Porsche 935/78 'Moby Dick'

Quote:
Originally Posted by ScratchBuilt View Post

Firstly, Simon - I've sent you a pm; apologies for the slow response.
No worries, I sent you an email

Great update, looks like you've got a lovely finish with the fibreglass.

Simon
spamsac is offline   Reply With Quote
 
Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
WIP : Porsche 935-78 Turbo - Ickx (Tamiya 1/24) Sennake WIP - Motorsports 60 12-02-2015 05:27 AM
Porsche 935/78 Moby Dick boesel Le Mans and Sports Car Road Racing 1 09-02-2015 09:23 PM
Looking for info on the Porsche 935-78 "Whale Tail" CFarias Car Modeling 9 04-06-2010 07:45 AM
2000 Mirage 1.8 Timing Belt changeout Mangoacn Mirage 0 12-18-2009 08:51 PM
Finished : Porsche 935-78 "Moby Dick" (Tamiya 1/24) Sennake Completed Projects / Gallery 17 04-01-2005 04:50 PM

Reply

POST REPLY TO THIS THREAD

Go Back   Automotive Forums .com Car Chat > Automotive Art > Car Modeling > WIP - Motorsports

Thread Tools

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off



All times are GMT -5. The time now is 09:27 AM.

Community Participation Guidelines | How to use your User Control Panel

Powered by: vBulletin | Copyright Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
 
 
no new posts