DocRob

Progress is slowly due to off bench issues and a healthy dose of sports every day, trailrunning, surfing or swimming and mountainbiking, to get the head free. Nonetheless, I finished the rear suspension, brakes and drive shafts. My normal process with MFH kits is, select parts for the next step, cleanup and drill parts, priming and finally airbrushing, before the real fun begins, assembly. This time, it was not so much fun, unfortunately. All parts mount to the outer suspension part, which later accepts the wheel. Somehow this was impossible and I identified the drive shafts as too long. I have no idea, if this was my fault, but the main shaft leading to the differential was also to long. It needed a bit of metal surgery to get everything to fit and there are some touchups to be made. I also started with the pedals, which means, interior is next. Of course, there will be hydraulic lines later from the pedals cylinders. Cheers Rob

Thank you Peter, I hope time will heal some of the wounds and indeed I smile often over memories I have about times with my dog, despite the loss. The Cobra is a great subject to focus onto and yes, when there ever is the perfect kit, we will add some not so perfect aftermarket item, if only for the rant . Cheers Rob

Thank you Phil, but I meant the illness of my dog, before he passed, not mine. I´m healthy, but the soul isn´t. Actually, we don´t plan to get another dog soon, but lets see. Weather, well, it´s been crazy lately. We have a heat wave, but not where I live. It´s humid and around 20 degrees Celsius. only a kilometer away and less then 100m of altitude up, it was 32 degrees Celsius at eight in the morning. We have some strangely layered weather as of lately . Ah forgot to mention, down by the sea, there is a heavy blow going since weeks, up in my house, nearly nothing. Cheers Rob

Thank you for your heartful words, amigos. I can feel that you´ve been where I am now. The only good thing, I keep saying to myself is, my dog had very good eight years of life and he died with dignity and didn´t suffer much. Can´t say the same for me, as he was my steady companion and friend through the last years, so close, only rivaled by my wife. Some hours in the cave help at least a little, to free my mind. Cheers Rob

Due to illness and passing of my beloved dog, I haven´t been attending here lately. I have to get back to normal somehow and continued a bit with the Cobra, when time and mood allowed. I added the front cooling section, a fairly large and detailed affair. After that, it was time to mount the missing parts of the front suspension and braking system. The large venting tubes were sprayed with Tamiya LP brown metallic and then sanded over the risen parts for effect. Fit was very good again, but I had to re-drill tiny PE parts again, as either the bolts (part 308) are too wide or the holes to small, annoying. Another disturbing issue is, there are wires or tubes, where there is no mention, where they lead to. You have to search the hole manual for a fit, but some are not shown. The manual of the Crocker motorcycle always stated the section of the manual, where you could see the other connecting side, but that´s not the case here. I think long and thorough, before altering the building sequence from the manual, but decided to add the tube framing before the cooler section, to have mor wiggle room. The part around the engine proved to be a bit delicate, the more complex rear part was easy in comparison. The engine and drive shaft is now permanently built in and I´m ready for the rear suspension now. The chassis is quite heavy now and I will add spacers to relieve the suspension. Cheers Rob

The sheer size of 1/12 car models astonishes me as well, when inspecting a new kit. So much bigger than 1/24 or 1/20 cars and this one is heavy. I will add the spacers under the chassis, to prevent the cast metal suspension from bending. Cheers Rob

Very much like Hubert said, I used Albion slide fit brass tubes and Albion Connecto connectors for the job and flattened the tubes with inserted brass rods between wooden pieces i a vice. I described the process here in my build thread of said Fokker. Cheers Rob

Sure Peter, here is the link: Cheers Rob

Nice work and welcome to LSM. Unfortunately, I can´t help with Roden build experiences, but built some WWI kits from WNW Mikro Mir and Eduard. If there is doubt about alignment or rigidity, I always pin the struts with brass rod with my builds. With the Mikro Mir Fokker D.VIII I even substituted the struts with flattened brass tube ones, I fabricated by myself. Cheers Rob

Thank you Peter, the grade of detail is indeed amazing. I feared the hose clamps a bit, specially with that springy stainless steel PE strips, which were a tad to long also, but somehow, I managed. On YouTube, there is a thorough build video made by Pooh, which helps a lot. He substituted the PE by chrome foil. In case of failure, I would have followed his idea. Cheers Rob

I´m completely innocent (devils advocate on four wheels chuckle) Cheers Rob

Just a tiny update, while I prepare the cooler parts and some internal framework. If you wonder, why MFH kits are special, then look for this magnificently casted white metal part. genius and madness are sometime close, as you have to replicate four hose clamps from steel PE strips with the screw parts being tinies casted parts . Cheers Rob

Thank you Carl, poco a poco like they say here. I don´t have a lot of time lately, but the Cobra keeps me motivated. Cheers Rob

Wow Peter, your Spitfire crossed the finish line fast and in beautiful fashion, as is your trademark. It´s a camo, but highly vivid and eye pleasing. Nobody would have noticed the missing rearview mirror, but now that you spoke about it... . Cheers Rob

Your engine looks sweet, Jeff. Tons of detail everywhere. I hope the hood opens easily to show everything. Cheers Rob

Pocher kits can be demanding, to say the leas, from what I read. Ixo Collections is a France based company, producing kits in 1/8 scale with pre painted parts and some even with lights and sound. Cheers Rob

Thank you Mike, the offers on ebay are a bit pricey, I find. Unfortunately the Cobra is not available from MFH directly unfortunately, they have the best prices by far. Cheers Rob

Thank you Chris, I guess, you can´t come much nearer to the original thing, than with a MFH kit. There are other companies, like Ixo or Pocher, but I never built their products. Build threads to me are a two way benefit, as I very much profit from the input from fellow forum members a lot. Another selfish aspect is, I can look for my own color call outs, later in the build, when I forgot, which exact hue was used. Cheers Rob

Thank you Peter. When mistakes lead to good ideas, you got a hole manual, which would be highly appreciated by me in form as a drilling diameter guide. I meant the Whole manual , when I wrote it. Nearly everything mounts to the chassis and you have to identify every part throughout the Whole manual find it in the stashing boxes and measure it´s connecting pegs. In case of screws, you have to identify which parts are passed by them and in which they need to cut in. I use the same HSS drill bits as ever, as they are generally angled for most metals and the cast white metal is relatively soft. Some bits for drilling printed circuit bords are not so convenient, as they are harder, more brittle and therefore break easier and their sloping angle is for fiber plastics and doesn´t go too well through metals. The latter are a bit more comfortable to handle, because the shaft diameter is always the same and you can put them into a collet. Generally, I´m astonished, how few of the bits I managed to break during the two MFH builds. Cheers Rob

Thank you Phil. Not all of the detail will be lost, the Cobra has a huge openable hood. The drive train and differential will be buried unseen though. Cheers Rob

I am shipping some difficult waters lately, not with the kit though and that´s why I made myself sparse. Nonetheless, some progress with the mighty Cobra. Having thought, everything would build up easier than the engine was partly untrue. The chassis as the central element has so many parts to add, that you need a lot of patience and discipline to get it right. Every hole - and there are many - needs to be drilled with the proper diameter. To achieve this, you have to identify the various parts or sub assemblies through the hole manual and understand, how it joins and what is used for joining, nuts, bolts, screws, pegs, whatever. Finally, I build up the suspension arms and completed the front axle and tubing with a real metal leaf spring. Steerable wheels are not planned with the kit. I made some mistakes on the rear end with the differential housing, but managed to correct that without too much damage. Again Tamiya LP semi matte black proved to be the perfect weapon of choice for the black chassis parts. The engine is only loosely attached for now. Cheers Rob

Thank you jep and Andy, you need some patience and a methodical approach to tackle these kind of kits. Somehow everything goes together as should. Cheers Rob

A fantastic paint scheme on a great build, Gus. I like the vivid aspects, like tail, wing numbers and missiles, as they add a lot of detail. Like you mentioned, resin kits are not so much harder to build than plastic kits, if the casting quality and engineering is done well. Congratulations to a well earned prize, which now transferred to a beauty in your display shelf. Cheers Rob

Congratulations to your new 1/1 scale ride, Peter. I wish you lot of joy and plenty of fun miles with your Kia, BUT, where are the photos of yours? Cheers Rob

Fantastic result, Mike. The translucent effect on the wings is outstanding. Cheers Rob