BMW-Williams FW-24 Project...

[jgmodelcars]

again excellent work! the radiator looks like metal.

[Toughbeard]

Well I recieved my SMS CF decals today and they are much easier to work with and they are darker. ( I think the silvers can be darker but I am happy,)

I finished one of the shocks.... here how its looks at the moment. Take note that it hasnt dried yet. and has microset on the decal.



The spring is made with copper wire, painted x-18... It will probably get more details on it but I need some pictures of the engine bay...(close up)

[RallyRaider]

Great! How did you bent the copper wire into the coil so perfectly?

[jswillmon]

very nice, I'm loving it.

[willster127]

Originally Posted by RallyRaider

Great! How did you bent the copper wire into the coil so perfectly?

That's what I want to know too!!!

Everything looks awesome so far, can't wait to see it finished.

[Toughbeard]

Count the number of "Full" coils on the original plastic part. in this case there were 4 plus the end parts. mark the coil places on a suitable item u will wrap the wire on. In this case I used a toothpick whick was the right dimension.

Leaving about 2 cms (about an inch) This is to make sure you can handle and bend the spring easier. Bend the wire (copper here) over the toothpick (or whatever you decide to use) Make sure to put half a turn more. this makes it easier to gauge the length and the number of coils. if long you can always trim to right size but if its short you have to remake the spring.



here you can see the marks on the toothpick I used as a guide...



Once carefully pulled out of the toothpick ( I [U]MEAN[/u] carefully) you trim the two ends to the right length..



Now place the spring back on the toothpick and shape the ends of the springs.



Basically, you close the spring by touching the end of the spring to the coils. then you remove the spring again carefully and sand the ends of the springs with a flat file. just be paitient and let the file do the job. Dont force the file or you will just ruin all the work you have done. when you look at the spring from the top (you will see it as a circle) it should look shiny and flat. The end of the wire can be sanded hair thin where it touches the coil. Once you are sure, place the spring on the toothpick again and check for misalignment of the coils, the length, fix everything.




Remove the spring and you are done...

[RallyRaider]

Thanks Toughbeard, great step-by-step. It could become its own tutorial and be added to the FAQ!
That's basically the way I've made coils in the past, it's just that you managed to get the spacing perfect. I had to have several goes and fudge things around to get a decent result on my Stratos. Maybe the secret is copper wire? I used steel in the past.

[Junhao]

A great How-to with good pics as guide!

[BRM]

Wonderful "how to" for the springs, great work. Damn...I have 2 projects on the go and I really want to start my FW24 NOW...damn you!

[Cychalen]

Thanks a lot for sharing.

[Toughbeard]

If there is no sharing there wont be a hobby Anyway I can help...

[Decs0105]

WOW the shocks are simply amazing!!! keep up the good work!!!

[willster127]

Thanks Toughbeard, those springs are amazing, you even closed and ground the ends!! That's what makes them look so realistic to me instead of just the main coil running out

[Toughbeard]

Well, I recieved my SMS CF decals and templates for the FW-24 and these cf decals are awesome. very easy to work with.

But (oh-oh), Soon I realized that these templates didnt have all what we needed. It seems more like a template set for the full view version which comes with its own set of Cf decals. So I was missing some decals...bummer...

Now looking at the arms and the empty decal sheet in my hand, I knew I need to make these myself but how in the world without wasting too much or no decal... I read a tutorial here in the AF forums about making templates but that just doesnt work here (for me at least) as these parts are too fragile and my hands are too big

The looking at the parts I realized something, lets see if you can see it, too...



As I look at the part I noticed the shadow of the arms cast on the paper below. ( I always use white paper underneat the models before painting or when cutting decals). So I grabbed my drawing pen and drew the outline...





I am not exactly an artist I know I know... I cut the outline out using a steel ruler and placed it on the back of the decal shhet and cut a piece of decal the same shape of the template.



then follow the instruction for the decal and apply it... Here is the result of about 10 min work...



I hope this will be useful.. Enjoy...

Serdar

[robrex]

That's an excellent way of making templates for those arms. Thanks !!!
By the way your Model is looking sensational !!