1/12 D50 by MG build thread

I started my annual winter season 1/12 F1 build project. This time it is the Lancia-Ferrari from 1956, with which Fangio got the WDC title.

I bought the model on ebay. Got lucky pricewise as they listed it with a typo and nobody bid. Still pretty expensive at over $ 400. The model is a limited edition by MG and I'd say for the advanced builder only: The instructions are sparse and the parts often need some special sanding to fit together. Most pieces are metal, resin or rubber. Barely any plastic pieces and none of the numberings as we know them from kits like Revell or Tamyia, which makes it often interesting to figure out which part goes where.

Here some pictures of various stages in the build:
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Thanks.

Another specialty was the 14.5 degree angle the engine was rotated from the longitudinal axis. The reason was to get the drive shaft through the cockpit (!!!) to the transmission. The prop runs between the driver's legs under the seat.

While Ferrari bought these cars from Lancia, I believe they improved/changed them quite a bit: I have seen pictures of the 1955 D50 version, which has a lot of small differences.

 

You can see the drive shaft in the pics. It actually goes through the firewall between the brake and clutch pedal, so it was between the driver's legs. Exposed, not in a tunnel.

 

Not quite: The drive shaft still goes underneath the seat. So if the goal was to lower the driver in his position, they didn't achieve that.

I took these pics with a temporarily installed seat so you see what I mean:

PS: I love my new Nikon Coolpix and its Macro function.
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This is solid resin, no warping whatsoever (I got a Terminator skull kit from Thailand and it looks like a tank drove over it).

The metal is very soft and can be easily bent, so I have to be careful.

 

Here are two current ebay auctions, where the fotos nicely show the differences between the original 1955 Lancia and the 1956 Lancia-Ferrari with all the changes:

http://cgi.ebay.com/1-12-MG-Lancia-D50-F1-55-Monaco-Resin-Kit-MP1234_W0QQitemZ270353094574QQcmdZViewItemQQptZLH_DefaultDomain_0?hash=item3ef24cd7ae

http://cgi.ebay.com/1-12-MG-Lancia-D50-F1-56-Resin-Kit-w-Engine-MP1227_W0QQitemZ370223943840QQcmdZViewItemQQptZLH_DefaultDomain_0?hash=item56331110a0

And looking at those prices, I have to say I really got lucky.

 

Got the drum brakes done. Exhaust pipes are next. They're really hard to squeeze in as they go between chassis and body.
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