Cobra Coupe - Le Mans - Model Factory Hiro 1/12

[HubertB]

Lots of prep work going on, Rob. If it’s any consolation, the fit of the body panels of the original Cobra was not that great, when you look at period pictures.

Hubert

[Landlubber Mike]

Nice work Rob - seems like a lot of work on such an expensive kit, but maybe that's part of the charm?

[CANicoll]

My eyes hurt just looking at those hinges and then having to fill and redrill the holes to get a better fit.  Wow...

[DocRob]

3 hours ago, HubertB said:

Lots of prep work going on, Rob. If it’s any consolation, the fit of the body panels of the original Cobra was not that great, when you look at period pictures.

I know Hubert, but want to do the preparations as good as possible. No way to tell, how everything will fit onto the chassis in the end. It´s definitely a phase in the build where I don´t want to rush anything.

Cheers Rob

[DocRob]

3 hours ago, Landlubber Mike said:

Nice work Rob - seems like a lot of work on such an expensive kit, but maybe that's part of the charm?

Somehow even these delicate steps are rewarding, Mike. You need a different methodical approach with all the sub assemblies, but I can see the day, when I start to paint.

Cheers Rob

[DocRob]

2 hours ago, CANicoll said:

My eyes hurt just looking at those hinges and then having to fill and redrill the holes to get a better fit.  Wow...

I did shy away from these steps for a while Chris, but it has to be done. I hope my later to add 2 mm magnets will keep bonnet, rear hatch and doors in place, when finished. 
Don´t get me wrong about the quality of the kits, they are extremely well engineered, but so close to the real thing, that even Tamiya´s 1/12 kits seem like cheaters.

Cheers Rob

[CANicoll]

Rob,

The kit itself is amazing, but equally amazing is how much work (really skill) you are demonstrating in putting it together.  Fascinating to watch.  The magnet idea is terrific.  I used those magnets on a Tamiya P-51 build to make it easy to remove the drop tanks.  I only have about 50 magnets left from that!

Good luck!

Chris

[BlrwestSiR]

Seeing your progress on the Cobra is like watching car restorers working on a real one. Testing the fit of the body panels, making adjustments and repeat until perfect. 

[CANicoll]

Carl, Exactly!!!  I think that is what makes this so cool - it really is like watching a total off-frame restoration.  Cool!

[DocRob]

23 hours ago, BlrwestSiR said:

Seeing your progress on the Cobra is like watching car restorers working on a real one. Testing the fit of the body panels, making adjustments and repeat until perfect. 

It´s indeed an iterative process and I hope the tiny threads for the screws hold up for numerous disassembling sessions. It can be a bit trying at times, specially considering, I wanted to spray on first paints on the body parts long ago, but it´s best to take time and prepare and align everything ahead of painting.

Cheers Rob

[DocRob]

18 hours ago, CANicoll said:

Carl, Exactly!!!  I think that is what makes this so cool - it really is like watching a total off-frame restoration.  Cool!

It is nearly this, Chris, except for the scale and no oily fingers .

Cheers Rob

[ScottsGT]

Amazing build!  

[Bomber_County]

On 12/27/2024 at 2:08 PM, DocRob said:

The Cobra Coupe is not forgotten and got some love lately. There is not a lot to show, but a lot of work has been done in advance to painting the body. Numerous sub assemblies has to be finished and you have to browse through the entire manual, to see, what connects to what and with which diameter the what´s need to be drilled. Alignment of doors, bonnet and rear hatch has to be taken in consideration, as well as fitting everything to the chassis.
I think, this is the most critical sequence in the build and I want to do it properly. I also think about adding some 2 mm magnets to hold the closed doors and hatches secure in place.



Cheers Rob

Rob, just catching up with this build, cars are a different beasts with this and the F1. Maybe I’ll put these off for awhile. Stunning modelling skills, congrats……

[DocRob]

14 minutes ago, Bomber_County said:

Rob, just catching up with this build, cars are a different beasts with this and the F1. Maybe I’ll put these off for awhile. Stunning modelling skills, congrats……

Don´t let you put off, Phil. there is a lot of fun in car building and my two examples, the Cobra and the McLaren where not the easiest picks for sure. I´m actually debating with myself, to shove an easy car build in between. The MFH kits are something special, but they need a lot of attention, specially with these huge body parts, which need to fit perfectly and also should stay openable to show the details.
Car kits call for a different skill set and I always like to learn new techniques, so it´s a perfect break for me.

Cheers Rob

[DocRob]

Preparations, preparations and no end in sight. I added the rear spoiler, which was not easy and needed a lot of sanding and bending and a bit of filling to sit right. 
The bonnet got some scoops and hatches and a spoiler, which is bolted on with tiny rivets. These rivets go everywhere in great numbers now, as they hold the clear parts in place and are added around the rear spoiler too.
Painting will start with the interior and I added some internal framing and the rear view mirror as further preparation.
I also cut my first clear vac part ever, a task that needed to be done more often in the next steps, as I plan to prepare all the panes and windshield before painting. After a lot of searching, I found some thin clear double sided adhesive tape on my island, which I intend to use, to install the clear parts.









Cheers Rob

[BlrwestSiR]

That internal frame around the windows looks daunting. Nice work on getting it to fit. 

[DocRob]

3 minutes ago, BlrwestSiR said:

That internal frame around the windows looks daunting. Nice work on getting it to fit. 

That proved to be not too complicated luckily. I even left the rear ends unglued for now, because I have to remove the rear inner trim while painting and need a bit of wiggle room. These kits are designed so well, but sometimes you wonder how delicate parts fell together, but they are no shake and bake.

Cheers Rob

[Landlubber Mike]

Those details look really good Rob!  Nice job!

[DocRob]

I dreaded the day, but it has to be done. I speak about final test fitting of the main components, in this case the body to bonnet fit. This is quite delicate, as so many parts and sub assemblies are involved and the process is painful with some loosened parts, etc. and takes hours.
First, I screwed the body to the chassis. All doors and internal parts are only fixed preliminary. Then I mounted the bonnet to it´s hinges on the chassis and got that:



When I force the bonnet down, it will more or less fit, but without locking it somehow, it will open like shown.
I tried to identify the protruding parts and attempted to look, where they interfere, not an easy business, with only two tiny openings to see through on the sides of the bonnet.

As I identified the possible culprits, I dabbed some liquid mask onto them and closed the bonnet and bingo got the interfering locations.









In an iterative process, I removed the material as much as I dared and now the bonnet is paper thin, where the front funnels sit. It closes a bit better now, but not near as perfect as it should. At some point, I have no more possibilities to enhance the fit, as I also thinned the part in front, where the hinges meet the bonnet, to raise the bonnet a tiny bit. I will make a final try and then, I will add two tiny bolts, which force the bonnet into place and can be removed to open the bonnet.

Cheers Rob

[BlrwestSiR]

Wow, that's definitely one of those nail biting moments thinning the hood down. Knowing when to stop before you make a hole can be quite the challenge. 

[Landlubber Mike]

Wow Rob, that is a tight fit.  Is it possible to somehow lower the engine a tad, maybe shaving off a tiny bit from the underside of the tray where those cylinders sit (sorry, I don't know the technical terms)?  Has anyone else posted similar issues?

This similar to those nerve-wracking times I've found trying to add AM sets to kits where you try to find what is causing the issue and take risks to see if you can improve the fit. 

Good luck my friend!  Looks like you've just about resolved it.

[DocRob]

5 hours ago, BlrwestSiR said:

Wow, that's definitely one of those nail biting moments thinning the hood down. Knowing when to stop before you make a hole can be quite the challenge

I thinned that part of the bonnet before, Carl, but seeing, how it still provides tension, I decided, I will go a bit further. Luckily, I stopped at the right time. My first approach of thinning was about keeping the inside of the bonnet perfect, which I skipped now. With a tiny bit of force and two tiny rivets, the bonnet will sit good enough, I hope.

Cheers Rob

[DocRob]

4 hours ago, Landlubber Mike said:

Wow Rob, that is a tight fit.  Is it possible to somehow lower the engine a tad, maybe shaving off a tiny bit from the underside of the tray where those cylinders sit (sorry, I don't know the technical terms)?  Has anyone else posted similar issues?

This similar to those nerve-wracking times I've found trying to add AM sets to kits where you try to find what is causing the issue and take risks to see if you can improve the fit. 

Good luck my friend!  Looks like you've just about resolved it.

The only possibility lowering the engine would be shaving some material away, where the engine meets the chassis and I will not touch this area if there isn´t an urgent need to do so. The whole engine is like a block, not to be manipulated now. 
This is the time, where everything has to fit finally and I tike my time analyzing what to do.
My hesitation buying my beloved Alfa Tip 33 Stradale was exactly, because the fit of doors and body is so critical with these kits, especially when it comes to swing doors and huge engine rear body parts. 
Thanks for your good wishes, Mike, I´m absolutely not in panic mode, as I expected this and if it doesn´t work out unforced, two little rivets would be a viable solution.

Cheers Rob

[ScottsGT]

Jeeze, I’m having flashbacks of building my 1:1 scale ‘66 Mustang.  My body panels are all custom fitted with exact gaps. Nothing like the crap Ford put out back in the day.  

[Bomber_County]

Good lighting, eyesight and steady hands is the order of the day and plenty of patience. Hats of to you Rob, when I rebuilt my Truimph GT6 Mk III (1:1) it had an E Type bonnet, at that scale it was a pain to align so at 1:12 wow…….