1/18th Graham Hill 1966 Lola WIP

[harveythedog2]

I finally got around to starting the 1966 Graham Hill 500 winning Lola. After I built 1966 Rodger Ward car it became a goal of mine to do all three 1966 Mecom team cars. After the Hill I hope to do the Jackie Stewart car as well.

Of course this car does not exsist in 1/18th scale but the Carousel 1 Lotus 38 proves as a good donor for the Lola.

Here are some of the changes that need to be done to convert the Lotus into a Lola. Alot of these changes apply to converting the IMC 1/25th scale car as well. That is unless Lance does it in resin!

1) Cockpit needs to be modified for longer windscreen
2) Rear upper trailing arms need to be relocated to inside the body rather than outside the body.
3) Eliminate rear lower trailing arms
4) Modify rear gearbox cover
5) Add hood bulge
6) Remove fuel & vent connectors. Fill and build up later
7) More as we go along I guess

[img src="http://i640.photobucket.com/albums/uu127/sbenford/GH02.jpg"img]
Original Nose

[img src="http://i640.photobucket.com/albums/uu127/sbenford/GH03.jpg"img]
Bulge added to nose

[img src="http://i640.photobucket.com/albums/uu127/sbenford/GH04.jpg"img]
Cockpit windscreen area cut. Fuel & Vent holes filled

[img src="http://i640.photobucket.com/albums/uu127/sbenford/GH05.jpg"img]
Rear gearbox cover cut and resin plug

[img src="http://i640.photobucket.com/albums/uu127/sbenford/GH06.jpg"img]
Plug inserted. Needs bored out and lots of filler!

More to come!

Stu

[harveythedog2]

Almost forgot! This is the goal!

[img src="http://i640.photobucket.com/albums/uu127/sbenford/t90_03.jpg"img]

[2lapsdown]

I'm sure it'll be spot on when you're done. I've heard Lance won't do it because of the controversial ending. Many still think Clark won the race.

John

[Calvin]

Oh wow! This is going to interesting!

[Calvin]

Nov 7, 2011 11:47:12 GMT -5 2lapsdown said:

I've heard Lance won't do it because of the controversial ending. Many still think Clark won the race.

Really?

So what does that mean for 1981? ;D

[SWT500]

What it means for 1981 is that if someone named Foyt, Ruby, Johncock or a host of others was running third, instead of someone named Vern Schuppan, the outcome would have been VERY different. That is my humble opinion.

[harveythedog2]

My biggest challenge will be duplicating the wheels. Ugh...

[2lapsdown]

Oh now Steve, you don't really think . . .

John

[clm1545]

Nov 7, 2011 12:16:44 GMT -5 SWT500 said:

What it means for 1981 is that if someone named Foyt, Ruby, Johncock or a host of others was running third, instead of someone named Vern Schuppan, the outcome would have been VERY different. That is my humble opinion.

Your opinion is shared by many. Selective enforcement of the rules is not a new thing. A couple of drive thrus would have changed the race. I watched Windtunnel this morning with all the Kyle Busch bashing. Wonder what the reaction would have been if SMASHCAR would have "parked" Dale Earnhart for a weekend.
Take Care
Craig

[2lapsdown]

Craig, I wondered the same thing. I remember the joke that went around after Earnhardt was killed. The joke went; NA$CAR won't know what to do now because Earnhardt isn't around to tell them what to do. I heard this joke was going around the garage area within weeks of his death. If Hornaday wasn't in contention for the championship the resulting penalty may have been different. Also Kyle was making NA$CAR look pretty stupid with his continuing defiant behavior. I'm waiting to see what Gibbs and his sponsors have to say.

As a side note, I wonder how Barnhart would have handled the 81 race!!

John

[2lapsdown]

I just read that they fined him $50,000 (Chump Change) and put him on probation (whatever that is) for the last two races. Joe Gibbs says it's his responsibilty (Gibbs) which is a noble gesture, but it just deflects Kyle's behavior away from the real problem, that being that Kyle has some real authority issues.

John

[gavkiwi]

Back on topic , This will be a great build, cannot wait for more w.i.p shots

[jeffmasengale]

I've been wanting someone to do this car for awhile. Which Lotus 38 did you use?

[2lapsdown]

Stu, I apologize for hijacking your post, you and your work deserve better. Gavin, thanks for the reality check.

John

[senn65]

Nov 7, 2011 16:08:25 GMT -5 2lapsdown said:

Craig, I wondered the same thing. I remember the joke that went around after Earnhardt was killed. The joke went; NA$CAR won't know what to do now because Earnhardt isn't around to tell them what to do. I heard this joke was going around the garage area within weeks of his death. If Hornaday wasn't in contention for the championship the resulting penalty may have been different. Also Kyle was making NA$CAR look pretty stupid with his continuing defiant behavior. I'm waiting to see what Gibbs and his sponsors have to say.

As a side note, I wonder how Barnhart would have handled the 81 race!!

John

He would have used Rule: C1 like has has with every ruling.

Gonna be a nice build Stu. The wheels on Foyt's 77 looks like a good choice....if you can Jones a set.

[lance]

I do have both the 66 and 81 winning cars started but they will not be done for sometime. Lance

[2lapsdown]

Good news Lance, I'll be happy to wait.

John

[pje]

Nov 7, 2011 13:15:02 GMT -5 harveythedog2 said:

My biggest challenge will be duplicating the wheels. Ugh...

Stu, Have you considered using Gurney Eagle wheels as a starting point?

Paul Erlendson

[kurzheck]

The Tamiya 1/18 LOLA T160 has a pair of correctish Lola 6 spoke wheels on the front. Not my build, just used to illustrate the wheels. I may have a pair in my spares.
www.marcosaupe.de/images/mod_lo160ts_07.JPG

[harveythedog2]

Thanks for the tip Trevor!
I am also watching some 1/18 RC wheels on ebay that may work with some TLC.

Stu

[harveythedog2]

Thanks Ralph as I just happen to have a set of those wheels. They are a tad different but may be my best option.

Paul, yes, I thought of the eagle wheels as a last resort but they may be an option as well.

Jeff - The Lotus 38 I am using is from Carousel 1. It was an all white prototype with chrome and grey plastic. Nothing painted.
I love using the prototypes as conversions. Mainly because there was not great care to make sure everything was secure. Very little glue was used if any while making the protos so they come apart a lot easier.

Stu

[drums01]

I really like where your going with this. I'm still taking baby steps with the old Bandai 1/16 kit. I hope to post more pictures soon. I believe your build is going to be quite nice.

The old Bandai kit came with the Stewart decals. Perhaps Michael could copy and scale them down to 1/18? I sent him a copy when he designed the Red Ball set for me (us).

Keep up the good work...

[harveythedog2]

Still a few marks to fill here and there but here is the Lola gearbox tail cover transformation pics.

[img src="http://i640.photobucket.com/albums/uu127/sbenford/GH08.jpg"img]

[img src="http://i640.photobucket.com/albums/uu127/sbenford/GH09.jpg"img]

[img src="http://i640.photobucket.com/albums/uu127/sbenford/GH10.jpg"img]

[img src="http://i640.photobucket.com/albums/uu127/sbenford/GH11.jpg"img]

[img src="http://i640.photobucket.com/albums/uu127/sbenford/GH12.jpg"img]

[senn65]

Nice work on that piece!

[gavkiwi]

Really nice progress, question, is this for your own personal collection, or are you going to sell it ?

[harveythedog2]

"Really nice progress, question, is this for your own personal collection, or are you going to sell it ?"

Thanks! To answer your question, it is a commission job.

[drums01]

I like your work on the tail. This a really interesting build.

Your skills are inspiring, NICE WORK!!

I hope to glean something from your build to use towards my Red Ball Transit in 1/16 scale.

[drums01]

Also, just an FYI and not to be a smarty, the rear upper trailing arm suspension on the left is inside the cowl like you mentioned in the initial e-mail, but the one on the right side is outside like a traditional set-up. The difference is due to the three inch shorter suspension geometry on the left of the car.

That nit-pick aside, from what I see, this is going to be NICE!

[harveythedog2]

Thanks Drums. I realized that myself later and the filler was removed from the right side. The upper attaches like the Lotus 38 on the right side.

Stu

[Calvin]

Great stuff Stu!