Ferrari 250 GTO by CDW - Model Factory Hiro - 1:12 Scale

[CDW]

This is the 1:12 scale Model Factory Hiro Ferrari 250 GTO. It's going to be a huge, intimidating project for me being my first MFH kit. In preparation, I have been watching all the videos I can find that will be helpful for the task and acquiring the necessary tools, supplies, and reference materials.

I found the kit at an online model shop in Europe after coming up empty handed anywhere and everywhere I looked in the USA. These MFH kits seem rather hard to come by anywhere, and when they do come up, grab one quick if you want one because they will be gone the next time you look.

I am starting this thread more as a place holder for the moment. With another 1:12 scale Porsche project underway, I will finish that one before I start another build like this. 

Just as a teaser, I took some photos of the big resin body shell as soon as it was removed from the bubble wrap. Straight as an arrow, no warps or blemishes at first look.

[gsdpic]

Wait, I thought over in @DocRob's shelby cobra log you said that you bought the MFH 1960 Corvette.   I'll follow along either way.   I am most tempted by the Eagle Gurney Weslake F1 car and I see that spotmodel claims to have a couple in stock.  I keep telling myself I prefer plastic or wood over metal.  But I've been on a break from building anything last couple months...maybe pulling the trigger on that would get me inspired again.

 

[DocRob]

7 hours ago, CDW said:

Just as a teaser, I took some photos of the big resin body shell as soon as it was removed from the bubble wrap. Straight as an arrow, no warps or blemishes at first look.

It worked, Craig, I´m teased . Congratulations to that great find. These GTO´s are hard to come by. You will have loads of fun with the kit accompanied by challenges of course. I´m sur, with your skillset and experience, you´ll make it easily. 
Be sure to have enough drill bits in tiny diameters, you will need them. The classic HSS stuff works better than the brittle PCB drills, which "eat" into the material to fast. 
I´m always a bit underwhelmed, when I take a first look into a MFH box, exploring the resin bodies, but that´s only the first impression of the white resin, on closer looks, it reveals all the details and I´m happy again.
Have fun with the kit and I´m happy to join in, when you start earnestly.

@gsdpic I have an eye on the Gurney Weslake Eagle as well for some time Gary, should be a great kit. I hope you´ll find the inspiration with this kit. It will be demanding and utterly rewarding at the same time.

Cheers Rob

[davec]

I'm looking forward to watching this build progress - MFH kits look amazing.  

[yvesvidal]

That is going to be epic !!

 

Yves

[CDW]

11 hours ago, gsdpic said:

Wait, I thought over in @DocRob's shelby cobra log you said that you bought the MFH 1960 Corvette.   I'll follow along either way.   I am most tempted by the Eagle Gurney Weslake F1 car and I see that spotmodel claims to have a couple in stock.  I keep telling myself I prefer plastic or wood over metal.  But I've been on a break from building anything last couple months...maybe pulling the trigger on that would get me inspired again.

 

Guilty as charged. Including this Ferrari and the Corvette, now have four MFH kits in my stash. There are two formula one kits that have not yet been revealed. 😄 I have sold off other kits to acquire these. I had a glut of aircraft kits that lost my attention. As a matter of fact, I want to sell or trade off a lot of other kits to focus on fewer, more interest specific items. 

 

7 hours ago, DocRob said:

It worked, Craig, I´m teased . Congratulations to that great find. These GTO´s are hard to come by. You will have loads of fun with the kit accompanied by challenges of course. I´m sur, with your skillset and experience, you´ll make it easily. 
Be sure to have enough drill bits in tiny diameters, you will need them. The classic HSS stuff works better than the brittle PCB drills, which "eat" into the material to fast. 
I´m always a bit underwhelmed, when I take a first look into a MFH box, exploring the resin bodies, but that´s only the first impression of the white resin, on closer looks, it reveals all the details and I´m happy again.
Have fun with the kit and I´m happy to join in, when you start earnestly.

@gsdpic I have an eye on the Gurney Weslake Eagle as well for some time Gary, should be a great kit. I hope you´ll find the inspiration with this kit. It will be demanding and utterly rewarding at the same time.

Cheers Rob

Indeed, they are hard to come by. I will take heed to your advice about the drill bits. What is your favorite source for the bits you use?

 

4 hours ago, davec said:

I'm looking forward to watching this build progress - MFH kits look amazing.  

 

3 hours ago, yvesvidal said:

That is going to be epic !!

 

Yves

Thanks guys. I am looking forward to doing this in the near future.

[DocRob]

39 minutes ago, CDW said:

Indeed, they are hard to come by. I will take heed to your advice about the drill bits. What is your favorite source for the bits you use?

I still have a lot, but I find it hard to get good HSS drill bits in larger quantities. I bought some missing sizes from Mineshima and Tamiya through Plaza Japan. I also use the tungsten DSPIAE sets you can find on AliExpress. These are better than the normal PCB drills, but also have the same wrong incline (don´t know, if this is the right terminus) The good with these is the constant shaft diameter. I have three pin vises for drilling, along a Proxxon micro drill with stand and even more important, a foot pedal, which allows to work with both hands. 
I once bought a huge box with drill bits from AliExpress, ranging from 0,3 mm to 2,5 mm ? These were absolute crap, most of them had no tips at all and were not grinded correctly, beware of these.

Cheers Rob 

[CDW]

14 minutes ago, DocRob said:

I still have a lot, but I find it hard to get good HSS drill bits in larger quantities. I bought some missing sizes from Mineshima and Tamiya through Plaza Japan. I also use the tungsten DSPIAE sets you can find on AliExpress. These are better than the normal PCB drills, but also have the same wrong incline (don´t know, if this is the right terminus) The good with these is the constant shaft diameter. I have three pin vises for drilling, along a Proxxon micro drill with stand and even more important, a foot pedal, which allows to work with both hands. 
I once bought a huge box with drill bits from AliExpress, ranging from 0,3 mm to 2,5 mm ? These were absolute crap, most of them had no tips at all and were not grinded correctly, beware of these.

Cheers Rob 

Is there a particular size that is dominant, such as .5 or .6?

[DocRob]

53 minutes ago, CDW said:

Is there a particular size that is dominant, such as .5 or .6?

There are only a few under 0,5 mm. Most are between 0,5 mm and 1,5 mm (with 0,1 mm inclination), a few are up to 2 mm. You need to drill hundreds of holes. I studied the manual very closely for each part and pre drilled all the needed holes for the part. If you forget a hole, it might be impossible to reach it later.
Try to drill holes for adjoining parts together for a better fit.
Test fit before gluing (more than normal). I had some problems with the holes in the PE, which were too small to accept their bolts. I took it for granted that they fit, first and it was a real pain to drill these tiny PE parts later.
I found it easier to drill tiny parts on their casting sprues, especially connectors, which later accept wires or rods.

It takes a lot of browsing through the manual to understand, where everything fits. This is especially necessary with the large parts, like chassis framings, where lots of components are added in later stages.
Some holes are pass through holes for screws, where you can add 0,1 or 0,2 mm wiggle room. For the, in my case very dominant 1,4 mm screws, I usually drilled 1,2 mm holes and forced the screw in, sometimes with a drop of CA.

Cheers Rob

Edited October 23 by DocRob

[Canute]

That's one beautiful resin casting. My only reservation about the white resin is spotting all the locations that need your attention like drilling holes and fitting parts together. Our white work-lights on white resin can be tricky. I took to dusting a gray primer on the resin so I could see all necessary locations. Craig, I look forward to watching this car proceed to completion, especially your smooooth finishes.

And those white resin casters listened to their market and now use a gray styro-urethane. Mush easier on the old eyes.

[king derelict]

On 10/23/2024 at 11:31 AM, CDW said:

I have sold off other kits to acquire these. I had a glut of aircraft kits that lost my attention. As a matter of fact, I want to sell or trade off a lot of other kits to focus on fewer, more interest specific items. 

Hi Craig 

I hope this is not an inappropriate question but what method do you prefer for selling your unwanted kits. When I was first attracted to plastic ship modeling I thought I would be mainly building 1/350 scale and thought I would do a couple of 1/700 as a learning process. I’ve found I work better with 1/700. My eyesight means I have to work with higher magnification / shorter focal length so big subjects are a problem and so is display space. And as for that 1/200 Bismarck?
So I’d like to let someone else have a chance to build them and replace them with something I can really work on 

Alan

 

[CDW]

2 hours ago, king derelict said:

Hi Craig 

I hope this is not an inappropriate question but what method do you prefer for selling your unwanted kits. When I was first attracted to plastic ship modeling I thought I would be mainly building 1/350 scale and thought I would do a couple of 1/700 as a learning process. I’ve found I work better with 1/700. My eyesight means I have to work with higher magnification / shorter focal length so big subjects are a problem and so is display space. And as for that 1/200 Bismarck?
So I’d like to let someone else have a chance to build them and replace them with something I can really work on 

Alan

 

There was a day and time when Ebay was a great place to sell off surplus and collectible kits but nowadays the fees and hassle are a little overwhelming for sellers. If the fees on the sale of your items were not enough, you will also be charged fees on the shipping cost. And to tie a bow on top, you'll get a little tax document at the end of the year where you will be forced to prove you paid more for the items than you sold them for or face income tax on the sales amount.

There is a forum called Hyperscale dot com where you can join and sell items in their sub forums. One sub forum there is called Plastic Trading. No fees are involved, but you will need to gain the trust of members who have been burned by bad traders. Sellers should also be wary of bad buyers. Bad traders are not just sellers, there are buyers who have been known to rip off sellers. 

Another good sales platform is Facebook. Search for various plastic modeling groups. Some are geared entirely for genre specific model types. Make sure to check the group rules to see if they allow sales of model kits. Some groups do not allow sales, but others exist solely for that purpose. 

Last, search IPMS then look at upcoming events. Local and state model shows and contests are great venues to sell off excess inventory. You'll have fun, meet new modeling friends, and maybe sometimes come home with as much new inventory than you sold. 😄 Ask me how I know.

[CDW]

I searched high and low for a Haynes Manual for Ferrari 250 GTO. Crazy high prices here in the USA. Ordered one from a UK seller but Royal Mail lost it. This is the second item I ordered in a short period of time that has been lost by Royal Mail. Is there something going on with Royal Mail or just an unlucky streak on my part? I have bought many items from the UK in the past, shipped by Royal Mail with no issues ever until now.

[Old Collingwood]

Great new project  Craig  looks like it will be a Stunner,  bad news about your  manual  - cant think why  Royal mail  would be so  slack,   its a shame you do not have  Waynes  number or address   the guy  from chasing cars  (I know it  sounds like a  dumb  idea  but he was a  Ferrari  specialist)   and just wondered if he may have had a spare one  knocking around.

 

OC.

[CDW]

7 hours ago, Old Collingwood said:

Great new project  Craig  looks like it will be a Stunner,  bad news about your  manual  - cant think why  Royal mail  would be so  slack,   its a shame you do not have  Waynes  number or address   the guy  from chasing cars  (I know it  sounds like a  dumb  idea  but he was a  Ferrari  specialist)   and just wondered if he may have had a spare one  knocking around.

 

OC.

Thanks OC. I ordered another one from a bookshop in the UK, so a third test of Royal Mail is going down. The first two was through EBay where it goes Royal Mail to a shipping hub. Never reached the shipping hub. This third time is direct through Royal Mail. Hoping this is a charm.

[CDW]

11 hours ago, king derelict said:

Hi Craig 

I hope this is not an inappropriate question but what method do you prefer for selling your unwanted kits. When I was first attracted to plastic ship modeling I thought I would be mainly building 1/350 scale and thought I would do a couple of 1/700 as a learning process. I’ve found I work better with 1/700. My eyesight means I have to work with higher magnification / shorter focal length so big subjects are a problem and so is display space. And as for that 1/200 Bismarck?
So I’d like to let someone else have a chance to build them and replace them with something I can really work on 

Alan

 

I failed to suggest the trader section of Model Ship World. This is another great place to sell kits you want to liquidate. 

[CDW]

For my MFH 1960 Corvette, I found a genuine spiral bound Chevrolet factory worker assembly manual for the Vorvette. It shows the precise diagrams for each and every part of the Corvette.

[Canute]

Nice find. Now that Vette will be the show stopper. 👍

[king derelict]

3 hours ago, CDW said:

Thanks OC. I ordered another one from a bookshop in the UK, so a third test of Royal Mail is going down. The first two was through EBay where it goes Royal Mail to a shipping hub. Never reached the shipping hub. This third time is direct through Royal Mail. Hoping this is a charm.

I’m not aware of any particular problem with Royal Mail. I just received a letter from the UK which arrived four days after shipping. It was a bill of course 😃

I also bought merchandise from the Royal British Legion as part of the Armistice Day commemoration and that arrived four days after ordering. The Art Girona orders from Spain turn up in about ten days. I’ve not lost anything in the mail yet - even from Ukraine 

alan

[king derelict]

3 hours ago, CDW said:

I failed to suggest the trader section of Model Ship World. This is another great place to sell kits you want to liquidate. 

Thank you very much for your comprehensive answer. I tend to agree about eBay. There are some horror stories out there about dishonest sellers and buyers. I’ll try some of your other suggestions.

many thanks 

alan

[CDW]

3 hours ago, king derelict said:

Thank you very much for your comprehensive answer. I tend to agree about eBay. There are some horror stories out there about dishonest sellers and buyers. I’ll try some of your other suggestions.

many thanks 

alan

Bad traders are few and far between. Most people are honest. I could count on one hand the number of bad trades out of hundreds upon hundreds of great trades down through the years. If you use Paypal, a payment method preferred by most, be sure to read the rules and guidelines for sellers. There are things you need to know and do to protect yourself from unscrupulous people. Paypal has a good policy to protect buyers from bad sellers but you don't want to allow a bad trader to leverage the system to cheat you out of your item and money. Stay away from money orders and personal checks unless it's someone you know. Scammers use both to cheat sellers.

[Egilman]

I would suggest getting a paypal credit account and using it as your primary method to pay... If the deal goes bad, or the seller is a fraud, you will know within a week and paypal refunds the money almost immediately... I back that up with a low limit Visa card that carries the same protections...  I've never lost money using a paypal account, this dates from back in the day when you needed a bank account setup with paypal to even have a paypal account....

 

It's one of those things that common sense goes a long way to protecting yourself online from scammers...

 

I don't buy anything online without paypal's protections

[CDW]

19 minutes ago, Egilman said:

I would suggest getting a paypal credit account and using it as your primary method to pay... If the deal goes bad, or the seller is a fraud, you will know within a week and paypal refunds the money almost immediately... I back that up with a low limit Visa card that carries the same protections...  I've never lost money using a paypal account, this dates from back in the day when you needed a bank account setup with paypal to even have a paypal account....

 

It's one of those things that common sense goes a long way to protecting yourself online from scammers...

 

I don't buy anything online without paypal's protections

I certainly can't argue with this. Paypal is very good for buyers and sellers alike. However, there are certain specific things a seller needs to know when selling an item using Paypal. Failure to follow these guidelines can allow the seller to forfeit their sale income. There is little or no equivocation. I don't want to speak more specifically, just suffice it to say a seller is well advised to thoroughly read and follow the Paypal guidelines for sellers. Honest sellers have been ripped off by unscrupulous buyers who knew the rules better than the seller.  

[Egilman]

9 minutes ago, CDW said:

just suffice it to say a seller is well advised to thoroughly read and follow the Paypal guidelines for sellers. Honest sellers have been ripped off by unscrupulous buyers who knew the rules better than the seller.  

Amen brother... I don't sell online anymore, hard lessons learned the hard way...

Edited October 26 by Egilman

[king derelict]

On 10/25/2024 at 2:09 PM, CDW said:

Bad traders are few and far between. Most people are honest. I could count on one hand the number of bad trades out of hundreds upon hundreds of great trades down through the years. If you use Paypal, a payment method preferred by most, be sure to read the rules and guidelines for sellers. There are things you need to know and do to protect yourself from unscrupulous people. Paypal has a good policy to protect buyers from bad sellers but you don't want to allow a bad trader to leverage the system to cheat you out of your item and money. Stay away from money orders and personal checks unless it's someone you know. Scammers use both to cheat sellers.

I must confess I have one had one bad experience buying off eBay and none as a novice seller. I used to be interested in watches and some of the forums have scary stories about sellers selling a watch and the buyer complaining about it, the money being refunded and the buyer returning a substitution leaving the seller empty handed.

probably a highly unlikely eventuality with a Trumpeter Queen Elizabeth or similar 😃

I use PayPal quite a bit to limit exposure online.

Thanks for all helpful information I need to sort out what is on the sale list.

alan

[CDW]

When I bought this Ferrari kit from Europe, the transaction was made through PayPal. PayPal rules for sellers require that sellers send merchandise that exceeds a specific threshold amount via insured mail with signature required upon receipt of package by the buyer. Failure to do so can result in a buyer putting in a claim that says package was not received. It makes no difference that package may have been sent with delivery confirmation, it must be signature upon receipt. Secondly, the seller is only protected if the package was sent to the certified buyer address on file with PayPal. These two things are a Potential seller liability. Buyers often don’t like signature required because someone must be at home to sign for the package but it’s the only way the seller has to protect themselves. I have not checked in a while, but I believe the dollar threshold is $100 for a transaction. 

[king derelict]

Ahhh, that would explain why all my shipments from Art Girona required signature on delivery. Thanks for that.

alan

[Old Collingwood]

Also  over this side of the pond  delivery  people  started  taking a  photo  of the  item at the  door step  as proof it had been delivered.

 

OC.

[CDW]

This Ferrari is the same year model as my kit. Very similar markings, too.

 

[CDW]

Third try was a charm. I received my order from the UK, sent via Royal Mail. It arrived quickly without any incident whatsoever. This now leaves me suspect of Ebay's international shipping program. Both previous attempts to buy this book were done through Ebay using international shipping. Royal Mail got tagged with the blame but I'm not so sure they were at fault. In the past, I never had a single issue with Royal Mail until these two Ebay purchases. This purchase was made directly through a bookseller website in the UK. By the way, this bookseller is an excellent resource for automotive books. If you are looking for something specific in the way of automotive reference material, give them a try. Their service was excellent.

David Thomas Motoring Books

www.allautobooks.com