1930s Jaguar Sports Coupe WIP

[LiliB]

Hi everyone

David has just begun the next project. He's getting worse than Lindsay Fox with his car collection!!!! lol. Our home has very restricted display space. I've banished the cars from the lounge room, into the study and the spare bedroom.

The vehicle is supposed to be an SS100 I think, but the plan is a little crude to my taste. It is the Toys and Joys plan. The tiny photo is off the Toys and Joys website. The other two are of the real McCoy. David tends to streamline aspects of the plan, and adds aspects like horns, lights, and chrome embellishments to give his cars a slightly different look.

The first problem has been solved. He wanted to do wire wheels, and has managed to get an interpretation of crossed wires in wood.

The wheel starts off life as a disc cut with a hole saw (3") on the drill press. He then cuts it a further two times with other hole saws to get the wheel, the tyre, and the opening to slot his bolt in to put into the lathe chuck, and eventually for the axle.

Cheers for now
From the lovely Riverina
LiliB
:U:U:U

I have shown the basic wheel, as well as a finished one. This stage will be a slow one, so I don't expect to be writing soon.

[elderly]

This one should be very interesting. I am looking forward to seeing it progress.
Cheers Elderly

[wheelinround]

Taken a seat

[LiliB]

The wheels are now completed. They're waiting for their knock-on hubs. I have put a new photos on the noticeboard he keeps near the bench to provide inspiration, and to see how the finished vehicle should look.

I think it's a handy thing because the plan itself is often fairly bland, and you don't necessarily get a good impression of what you're working towards. I added more photos of SS Jags to my database, including close ups of things like interior and dash.

The dash is totally different from the simplified version shown on the plans. The real one was composed of two curved elements holding different gauges and the switches (which Jags had heaps of when the SS developed into the XK series). It'll be interesting to see how David decides to do the dash when the time comes.

Cheers
LiliB
:U:U:U

[crowie]

G'Day "LiliB",
I nearly missed the post, it's under "scale models" :rolleyes:.
Anys ways I'm here for the ride.
Thanks for the WIP photos.
I'll be looking forward to some fancy details from a top toymaker [modeler] craftsman. :innocent:
Cheers, Crowie

[malb]

The SS has been a favourite replica car among kit car builders arround the world, with a range of repro accuracy from near spot on to abysmal. The accurate replicas use hand made replica chassis and bodywork, with 50's Jag drive trains and would pass muster until judged by Jag experts. Then there are the f/g bodies on other chassis with front mounted 4 and 6 cylinder drive trains that pass the 20ft test, then the various units that drop onto a VW Beetle chassis/floorpan/drivetrain that might pass at 50+ft with the sewing machine motor stopped.

The picture of the plans model attached appears to be a reasonable model of the VW floorpan variant.

The wheels look quite good in your pics. Hope you both enjoy working on your model.

Incidently the SS cars are not Jags, the company name changed from SS Cars (or very similar) to Jaguar prior to WW2 due to the potential for association with the Nazi SS. The company originators produced Swallow Sidecars, and when they developed the first cars, the car branch was called SS cars as an abreviation from Swallow Sidecars.

[LiliB]

Yes you're right Mal, I've taken a smack on the hand. I knew they were Swallows, but forgot. I hadn't thought of them on a VW, or indeed any other chassis. I'll be looking askance at them the next time I see one at a Motor Show.

Yes, Crowie, we've been shifted to Scale Modelling by our moderators. (Not before time ). Next step might be to put us into a separate big letters forum , MODELS, so people can find us.


Cheers
LiliB
:U:U:U

[malb]

No smack intended, it was a point of information not a
criticism. I have a lot of odd background info stored in the salt mine of my brain, and very little talent for making finely detailed things from wood ( ie I am a smart (a***d) hacker) and would not criticise someone for making something that I couldn't.

VW pan and mechanicals were very popular in late 60s and 70s as a basis for backyard custom builds because the original body could lift off the chassis/floorplan in a couple of hours leaving a complete drivavble base for a new body. Beach buggies, SS's, GT40's, prewar Bentley sports cars, T model Fords were common mods, none remotely like the originals.

[LiliB]

Hi again Mal

I'm not touchy at all and was by no means offended.

I love to have information from all kinds of sources. It's interesting to see just how the backyard brigade may have used the humble volksie to build up treasures.

As I said, I'll be getting David to look at the underneath of lots of treasures like the SS to see if they're the real McCoy or not. Chances are I've seen replicas without even knowing that that's what they are.

The only thing is, perhaps my photos in my little database might be compromised in terms of originality if they're replicas. I'm not quite old enough to have seen the real thing, and neither is David.

Cheers
LiliB
:U:U:U

[Yonnee]

Awesome stuff, as always. You two sure make a formidable team, one a master craftsman, the other a thorough researcher and master detailer.

[LiliB]

Hi everyone

Well the wheels and knock on hubs are finished. Pictures will be taken tomorrow and posted. Production will be slow in the next few weeks. David is away with work for a number of weeks, but he's retiring in July so the production line will speed up greatly after that.

I thought these two machines might interest some of you. I bought a couple of new 'toys' for the workshop - A Proxxon Micro Bandsaw and Micro Drop Saw. They're both beautifully engineered and I'm really looking forward to what can be done with them. I find it irritating that when David uses the Dremel, the wood will often burn. It makes it hard to finish up to the standard I would like to see.

So I'm hoping that where he wants to trim just a smidgin he can use either the mitre saw or the bandsaw.He can carve a 'micron' off wood with the drop saw and showed me the tiniest little timber curl, like fine timber laminate.

I'm trying to get him interested in intarsia, and the bandsaw will be marvellous for that. It can turn a circle 'on a sixpence' It's like having an all wheel drive WRX after having a little conventional front wheel drive. Will corner like a dream.

If you want to know about the details of his new little machines you can look up the specifications on My Tool Shop - Proxxon - Bench Top Machines.The little bandsaw is engineered just like it's bigger Metabo cousin. These little things are mighty costly but worth every penny I reckon. You're paying for the engineering and precision.

I nearly get heart failure when I watch him using the big bandsaw to make model bits. The little one doesn't even scare ME. I even used it at the weekend.

[crowie]

Wow, LiliB, You were ring about "pretty penny",
though not too bad for quality tools.
$340 for the circular saw & $490 for the bandsaw.
Plus a heap more tools.
Cheers, Crowie

[LiliB]

Hi Crowie
They're horribly expensive and David wouldn't buy them himself because they are so dear. However, I look upon good tools as an investment. You will always get good money back on quality tools if you want to get rid of them.
But aren't they just gorgeous. It's a good thing for him, that i love good tools!!! lol

[crowie]

Hi Crowie
They're horribly expensive and David wouldn't buy them himself because they are so dear. However, I look upon good tools as an investment. You will always get good money back on quality tools if you want to get rid of them.
But aren't they just gorgeous. It's a good thing for him, that i love good tools!!! lol
Every blokes dream,
A great wife who loves goods tools and shed time.

[LiliB]

Hi everyone

The wheels are finished, but still on their little holders, waiting for several more coats of clear. This finishing is David's job, and he has opted to use oil based, not water based like I use. So he'll have to be patient in between coats.

The knock-on hubs have been done, and although the wheels will probably look good, I would like to see David perhaps try a lighter coloured timber like tassie oak for the next set.

Red gum is very variable in colour and can be pinky red or very dark reddish brown. This lot took up a very dark hue once the clear went on.

I would 'kill' to get some decent quality toothpicks (or finished thin wood) for the spokes. The American ones that you can buy are made from such lovely wood. I think it might be something like beech, and that's something I will have to pursue. The Chinese toothpicks are made from some particularly foul material.

Perhaps I can make contact with an American who can send me some better quality ones from USA. I live in hope here.!!! These are the little things that drive my perfectionist's heart to distraction. The wheels are so time-consuming to make, that they deserve to be made of top notch material.

Anyhow Cheers for now
LiliB
:U:U:U

[crowie]

wow!

[bj383ss]

If the wheels look this good I cant wait to see the rest of the car!

Bret

http://public.fotki.com/bj383ss/

[Sir Stinkalot]

Looking great ..... good to see that the spare is full sized and not space saving.

[LiliB]

Our little production company does not skimp on anything, so naturally full sized spares are included. Also five mag wheels of course, none of your el cheapo steel wheels for us lol

But then, would you buy a car from THIS man? He looks shifty to me!!!

[crowie]

Looks way too clean and wow, so much room to spare !!!!!

[LiliB]

The workshop was virgin territory when this pic was taken, having just been finished. It's now knee deep in sawdust, cobwebs, timber offcuts etc. The benchtop is covered in junk, glue spills bits of sandpaper, boxes of assorted offcuts etc. And the mice and spiders have moved in. We've had a mouse plague, which followed the locust plague earlier this year.It was like something out of the old testament!!!

We used to say at work, 'Beware of a man with a clean desk. Probably means he does no work'. Same goes for the workshop. It gets tidied up a couple of times a year, whether it's needed or not!!!

[munruben]

Wheels are looking good. I think one of the pet hates of most model makers is the making of the wheels, they are so challenging and frustrating but when you see results like that, the frustration is worth the effort.Well done.:2tsup:

Must say I was a bit concerned when I saw the pic of the workshop being so "clean and tidy" was relieved to hear that it now resembles a proper workplace. :)

Would I buy a car from that guy? mmmm trying to imagine the suit and tie. Nah! you are right. too shifty. :D

Nice work,look forward to seeing this one take shape.:2tsup:

[LiliB]

This afternoon we ratted through the timber rack to try to find something to make the body out of. Our local timber yard is getting mighty light on good pieces of Tassie Oak.

I'm going to have to get a supply of planks for future projects. I hate having a project decided by what is available in our timber stack, rather than what makes a suitable job.

We found a plank of Tasmanian myrtle which David resawed and thicknessed into thin pieces. (Now that sounds strange doesn't it - should I say he thinnednessed?)

The beauty of getting slices from a plank is that you can match the pieces left and right, and effectively book match the job. He has cut out the rough chassis, and has prepared some pieces for the bonnet. The chassis is out of some mystery, south east Asian (I think) timber that came in a set of timber drawers that we cannibalised to build a TV unit. It's lovely light coloured wood, quite soft, but with some interesting pinkish heart wood.

As soon as the SS begins to take shape, pics will follow. I've decided that the timber in the rack should be used, if it's suitable. We've got some lovely Tassie timber that we picked up last year whilst on holiday. Don't know what we're saving it for. Can't afford to have timber having birthdays at our place. Everything will be used.

Now, what do you all think about using black hearted sassafrass. Lovely stuff, but would it make a suitable timber for a car? I'm not so sure. I bought two or three planks, as well as some lovely camphor laurel. But I'm not certain of how such distinctively grained or figured timber would look like on a model car.

Opinions welcome.

Cheers
LiliB
:U:U:U

[LiliB]

Hi everyone
The little Jag is coming along slowly. The chassis was cut out of some kind of light wood, which I cannot identify. It is fine and light, and looks lovely worked.

The bonnet, which was made from three pieces of Tassie Myrtle with some silver quandong as the inlay. The Myrtle is a gorgeous wood, silky looking and very fine. I am really looking forward to finishing this, because it's a cut above anything I've ever worked on before.

Yesterday was taken up making a grille, and setting 22 pieces of fine bamboo onto the side of the engine bay to simulate the air vents. David also made the lights, also from silver quandong.

The plan is fairly ordinary. It lacks directions for the grille, the lights, the dash, the bumpers. It would have been a nightmare for anyone who wasn't experienced to work on.

We compromised with the grille, which is a fine wire honeycomb on the 'original' vehicles. After a couple of failures at trying to replicate the pattern, I said to hell with it. Let's just do a bar grille and be done with it.

I have an idea on how it could be done properly, but this will take time, and David isn't in the mood to fiddle too long, so perhaps our next car will come closer.

Cheers for now
LiliB
:U:U:U

[crowie]

G'Day Lilli,
I am in awe of David's work, the detail,
and all without plans.
Thank you for the detailed WIP photos & commentary.
Cheers, crowie

[LiliB]

To set the record straight, Crowie, the plans are only for the body, the other bits don't crack a mention. I think Joys and Toys simply forgot to print an additional page. But because the plans are shown as 1of 2 and 2 of 2, they haven't woken up to it yet. Might drop them a line sometime.

Well, progress has been better this arvo. David has begun finalising the body. He created the side panels, as well as the back. He's done a dry fit. There's still plenty of shaping to do. I really like the look of the back with the spare wheel mounted on an angle. Makes for a change from having it fitted on the mudguards. Actually the body looks pretty naked without its mudguards which are next on the production line.

We've just noticed that these cars don't actually have bumper bars, so you can't blame the plan makers if they don't include it. This is where having real photos of the car come in handy, to see what details are necessary.

Cheers for now
LiliB
:U:U:U

[Byc]

I like the wheels and spinners. I think the mesh grille as I see it there would have looked nice also.

[Yonnee]

Hi everyone

The wheels are finished, but still on their little holders, waiting for several more coats of clear. This finishing is David's job, and he has opted to use oil based, not water based like I use. So he'll have to be patient in between coats.

The knock-on hubs have been done, and although the wheels will probably look good, I would like to see David perhaps try a lighter coloured timber like tassie oak for the next set.

Red gum is very variable in colour and can be pinky red or very dark reddish brown. This lot took up a very dark hue once the clear went on.

Awesome, as usual.


I would 'kill' to get some decent quality toothpicks (or finished thin wood) for the spokes. The American ones that you can buy are made from such lovely wood. I think it might be something like beech, and that's something I will have to pursue. The Chinese toothpicks are made from some particularly foul material.

Perhaps I can make contact with an American who can send me some better quality ones from USA. I live in hope here.!!! These are the little things that drive my perfectionist's heart to distraction. The wheels are so time-consuming to make, that they deserve to be made of top notch material.

Anyhow Cheers for now
LiliB
:U:U:U
My research says it's Birch.

Be nice to a stockist here, but probably expensive. I wonder if some of our American Model makers here on WWF have a source...??

[Yonnee]

White Birch toothpicks, here in Oz...

INDIVIDUALLY-WRAPPED TOOTHPICKS WOODEN 1000/PK BRANDNEW (eBay item 160507091475 end time 14-Jul-11 08:38:36 AEST) : Home (http://cgi.ebay.com.au/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=160507091475&fromMakeTrack=true&ssPageName=VIP:watchlink:en)


Do reckon a Thousand would be enough...

[bobman 58]

hi looking good especially the wheels looking forward to when its finished bob

[crowie]

To set the record straight, Crowie, the plans are only for the body, the other bits don't crack a mention. I think Joys and Toys simply forgot to print an additional page. But because the plans are shown as 1of 2 and 2 of 2, they haven't woken up to it yet. Might drop them a line sometime.

Well, progress has been better this arvo. David has begun finalising the body. He created the side panels, as well as the back. He's done a dry fit. There's still plenty of shaping to do. I really like the look of the back with the spare wheel mounted on an angle. Makes for a change from having it fitted on the mudguards. Actually the body looks pretty naked without its mudguards which are next on the production line.

We've just noticed that these cars don't actually have bumper bars, so you can't blame the plan makers if they don't include it. This is where having real photos of the car come in handy, to see what details are necessary.

Cheers for now
LiliB
:U:U:U
Thank you LiliB, For the additional info.
Sorry for being a bit slow in replying but 8 days ago I broke my hip after a freek fall,
the ball off the top off the fima.
The doctor's said that at 55 I was too young to have done that and as such gave me a new ceramic hip, late "pm" on Wednesday 15th.
Good to be home in wheelchair and on crutches but out of the woodwork for 6 to 8 weeks.
Thank you for keeping up the WIP photos on David's car.
Cheers, Crowie

[bj383ss]

Wow Crowie,

Sorry to about your incident. Hope you get to feeling better!!

Later,
Bret:D

[LiliB]

Hi everyone
I haven't been on the forum for a while.For some reason, the replies are not being forwarded to my email. So I have no idea that people have responded, unless I go on.

The little car is near finished. Today David put the windscreen on, and once it's dry, the car will get a coat of sanding sealer.The screen still has its protective coating.

The silver quandong feels like it will go very fluffy without a sealer underneath. There will be lots of fine sanding needed before any finish goes on. It looks a little naked at the moment, without its gloss finish.

David amended the plan considerably. He built a more complex dashboard. He also put in a little console, because he felt that without it, the car looked a little bare. One of our earlier plans had an infill behind the mudguards and he has adopted that idea for this car. It means the mudguard is more securely fixed to the body. It also helps in alignment of the two guards at the same height.

He also modified the fold down soft top plan, and made it a little more prominent. I still think it could do with a little more detailing on the folds.

Sorry I couldn't catch up with earlier stages for everyone, however, he has a habit of going off for a couple of hours and coming out with a near finished product. It will become even harder now that he's a man of leisure, a new retiree.

If you want to ask questions about specific ways things were made, please do. It may be easier to deal with questions than to try to explain how things were made. Lots of you will be able to work it out anyway.

Cheers
LiliB
:U:U:U

[crowie]

G'Day LiliB,
Just brilliant........Thank you for the WIP photos & commentary.
You are a top craftsman David and now that you're retired, maybe a few more masterpieces.
Cheers, crowie

[STAR]

Fantastic work.

I am in the rethinking process of where my future lies in this toy making field. I am only doing this for my grandson but really want to do some complex work like David's Jag.

But unfortunately, something like that will be to good for a childs toy so might have to make some games or whatever.

However I would possibly like to make some thing for our next years annual Agricultural Show so I might have one more of something in the pipe line but it will have to be something stunning.

That Toys and Joys plan with a bit missing does not inspire me to much but your suggestion to have a real photograph of the vehicle or thing your model is based on sounds a very good idea.

Thanks for sharing all the information.

Pete

[Byc]

That is a great result Lil and Dave. It'll be great to see the finish on it

[wheelinround]

Well timed LilliB as its Jag's E-Type (http://www.jaguar.com/gb/en/about_jaguar/Jaguar_heritage/50_years_etype/etype_merchandise) 50th this year and The Goodwood Festival (http://www.goodwood.co.uk/revival/welcome.aspx)

[Yonnee]

Love it Lili, as always David, awe inspiring work.

[munruben]

Looks great. Beautiful model. :2tsup: