Post by Deleted on Feb 23, 2011 13:27:27 GMT -5
The first thing you’ve got to have is some good scale drawings. I found the following tow in the library at the San Diego Automotive Museum. The first set of drawing are by A. M. MacKennaugh published in an early 1966 issue of Model Cars Magazine (a U.K. publication out of print since 1972). The second set, drawn by Jonathan Thompson, were published in an early 1966 issue of Model Car & Track. There are slight differences in the two sets of drawings but they are generally very similar and seem to be accurate when compared to photos found in various books and Google Images.
The car is based on the Testor’s / IMC kit of the Lotus 38 (an old kit but still available from time to time on E-Bay). This is a great kit to start with as Gurney’s 1966 Eagle (Type T2G) was designed by Len Terry and was not unlike the Lotus 38 which he had also designed for Colin Chapman in 1965. Terry refined the Lotus design in several ways, most notably in the use of symmetrical suspension and the shape of some body components.
Additionally, some bits and pieces need to be used from the MPC kit of Gurney’s 1968 Olsonite Eagle to complete the 1966 Eagle (this kit can also be found on E-Bay). These include the drivers seat, the half-shafts, and the wheels.
The major modifications required to transform the Testors / IMC Lotus into the Eagle center on three body components; the nose assembly, the engine cover and the rear transaxle housing. The tub, engine, transaxle, front & rear axle carriers do not require any modifications. The tires from this kit are correct however, Norm at Replicas & Miniatures Company of Maryland has much better resin cast tires for this model.
Using the scale drawings for reference, the radiator opening was extended and reshaped by wrapping a piece of thin gauge styrene around the original opening. The top of the nose piece needs to be raised and the sides widened. Glue “shaping” guides to the existing nose for reference when sanding the filler that is used to make these dimension changes. I used two-part epoxy to bond the radiator extension and to fill on the top and sides of the nose. Glazing putty was used to refine the reshaped surfaces.
The other modification required to the upper body panel is the reshaping of the cockpit opening. The leading edge needs to be rounded, extended forward (use the drawing for reference and raised in the front and along the sides. I began be reshaping the leading edge as needed. Then I cut a narrow strip of thin gauge styrene and cemented it to the inside edge of the reshaped opening at an upright angle. After this piece set up, epoxy and filler was used to create a gradual transition from the top of the new cockpit opening to the existing body work. There is also an air scoop on the top of this body panel which I didn’t attempt on this car but have included in the master I had since created for resin casting.
Here you can see the white sanding guides showing through the epoxy.
The engine cover needs sever modifications. Fist I fabricated a “filler” for the “bump up” on the original cover from a piece of thick gauge styrene. The top surface of this “filler” should align with the top edges of the trailing edges of the original. It was glued into place under the “bump up” and allowed to set up. After the “filler” set up the original “bump up” was sawed off and discarded. Fill and detail as needed.
Now it’s time for some test fitting. You will need to cut off the top of the body behind the seat (under the roll bar) to conform to the top edge of the engine cover. Some filling is also required in this area as the headrest in the Eagle is smooth while the Lotus was not. Some minor adjustments are needed to the sides of the engine cover so that it flows appropriately into the top body panel. Just a little sanding, filling and sanding will do.
Now that things are fitting pretty good it’s time to modify the rear end of the trailing panels on the engine cover. I cut the original ends off and cemented pieces of styrene, which were shaped appropriately (slightly longer and more squared off) to the underside of the original. These were epoxyed into place and filled so that when finished these extensions could be shaped into a more upright orientation.
Here you can see the reshaped engine cover and the significantly reshaped transaxle housing. The rear housing requires gobs epoxy filler, a lot of sanding, refilling, sanding, time and patience in order to get it to conform to the scale drawings. After the proper shape is achieved the rear opening can be formed with a drill and careful file work.
The suspension pieces are no fun! All four of the front and rear a-arms need to be resized, the right side shortened and the left side lengthened. After taking measurements from the scale drawings and comparing them with the actual kit pieces I created templates (I have included these at the end of this WIP). Cut, fabricate, glue, hold your breath.
The swing arms on the top front suspension piece also need to be resized accordingly as well as various bits and pieces of rear the suspension.
Now it’s time to check for fit and prepare for painting. The first time I built this car I thought that it would be smart to paint the body white, mask it off and then lay the blue over the white. It started out pretty good but after the car was finished the paints reacted with each other and cracked. So, I ended up having to dismantle the car, sanding it down to the primer and repainting it again. OUCH! Stuff happens in this hobby.
Here you can see that the front suspension has been assembled and the rear suspension pieces are layed out for assembly.
TA DAA!
Here is the template for various pieces that need to be fabricated or modified. I sure hope all of this helps if you are interested in giving this car a try. Dan Gurney has said that
The car is based on the Testor’s / IMC kit of the Lotus 38 (an old kit but still available from time to time on E-Bay). This is a great kit to start with as Gurney’s 1966 Eagle (Type T2G) was designed by Len Terry and was not unlike the Lotus 38 which he had also designed for Colin Chapman in 1965. Terry refined the Lotus design in several ways, most notably in the use of symmetrical suspension and the shape of some body components.
Additionally, some bits and pieces need to be used from the MPC kit of Gurney’s 1968 Olsonite Eagle to complete the 1966 Eagle (this kit can also be found on E-Bay). These include the drivers seat, the half-shafts, and the wheels.
The major modifications required to transform the Testors / IMC Lotus into the Eagle center on three body components; the nose assembly, the engine cover and the rear transaxle housing. The tub, engine, transaxle, front & rear axle carriers do not require any modifications. The tires from this kit are correct however, Norm at Replicas & Miniatures Company of Maryland has much better resin cast tires for this model.
Using the scale drawings for reference, the radiator opening was extended and reshaped by wrapping a piece of thin gauge styrene around the original opening. The top of the nose piece needs to be raised and the sides widened. Glue “shaping” guides to the existing nose for reference when sanding the filler that is used to make these dimension changes. I used two-part epoxy to bond the radiator extension and to fill on the top and sides of the nose. Glazing putty was used to refine the reshaped surfaces.
The other modification required to the upper body panel is the reshaping of the cockpit opening. The leading edge needs to be rounded, extended forward (use the drawing for reference and raised in the front and along the sides. I began be reshaping the leading edge as needed. Then I cut a narrow strip of thin gauge styrene and cemented it to the inside edge of the reshaped opening at an upright angle. After this piece set up, epoxy and filler was used to create a gradual transition from the top of the new cockpit opening to the existing body work. There is also an air scoop on the top of this body panel which I didn’t attempt on this car but have included in the master I had since created for resin casting.
Here you can see the white sanding guides showing through the epoxy.
The engine cover needs sever modifications. Fist I fabricated a “filler” for the “bump up” on the original cover from a piece of thick gauge styrene. The top surface of this “filler” should align with the top edges of the trailing edges of the original. It was glued into place under the “bump up” and allowed to set up. After the “filler” set up the original “bump up” was sawed off and discarded. Fill and detail as needed.
Now it’s time for some test fitting. You will need to cut off the top of the body behind the seat (under the roll bar) to conform to the top edge of the engine cover. Some filling is also required in this area as the headrest in the Eagle is smooth while the Lotus was not. Some minor adjustments are needed to the sides of the engine cover so that it flows appropriately into the top body panel. Just a little sanding, filling and sanding will do.
Now that things are fitting pretty good it’s time to modify the rear end of the trailing panels on the engine cover. I cut the original ends off and cemented pieces of styrene, which were shaped appropriately (slightly longer and more squared off) to the underside of the original. These were epoxyed into place and filled so that when finished these extensions could be shaped into a more upright orientation.
Here you can see the reshaped engine cover and the significantly reshaped transaxle housing. The rear housing requires gobs epoxy filler, a lot of sanding, refilling, sanding, time and patience in order to get it to conform to the scale drawings. After the proper shape is achieved the rear opening can be formed with a drill and careful file work.
The suspension pieces are no fun! All four of the front and rear a-arms need to be resized, the right side shortened and the left side lengthened. After taking measurements from the scale drawings and comparing them with the actual kit pieces I created templates (I have included these at the end of this WIP). Cut, fabricate, glue, hold your breath.
The swing arms on the top front suspension piece also need to be resized accordingly as well as various bits and pieces of rear the suspension.
Now it’s time to check for fit and prepare for painting. The first time I built this car I thought that it would be smart to paint the body white, mask it off and then lay the blue over the white. It started out pretty good but after the car was finished the paints reacted with each other and cracked. So, I ended up having to dismantle the car, sanding it down to the primer and repainting it again. OUCH! Stuff happens in this hobby.
Here you can see that the front suspension has been assembled and the rear suspension pieces are layed out for assembly.
TA DAA!
Here is the template for various pieces that need to be fabricated or modified. I sure hope all of this helps if you are interested in giving this car a try. Dan Gurney has said that
