Mefistofele
good afternoon.
After a long time building only models of planes or tanks I saw an Italieri kit that caught my attention at 1:16 scale and at the first opportunity I decided to mount it.
Levo with almost 6 months but it has been a great experience and nothing that I find something similar I will repeat.
I leave some images is not yet finished but could not resist more without showing it.
regards
Looks amazing, Carmelo!
Splendid, Carmelo. My god, the men who raced these were either very brave or completely nuts.
Wow, Carmelo! Just wow!
I’ve been sneaking around this model now for about 35 years which means that it started working on me when it was still labelled Protar and the body and frame parts were made of die cast.
Since Italieri has started re-issuing it in styrene it feels like an old childhood love has reappeared.
True by the way that this is the Italieri kit?
Your SLR pictures are staggering too.
Thanks for publishing this, you made my day.
Johannes (@halvarvonflake)
I was trying to find this particular model on Italeri's website, but can't get no results (I don't have much info neither) . Funny that on their search options, they don't even list 1/16 as one of the available scales! On Cars and bikes all they show as an option is 1/9, 1/6, 1/24, 1/12.
You say this was initially produced by Protar, right? I do have a couple of Protar models, but 1/9 bikes and no automobiles.
Any additional info on this particular kit that you'd be able to supply?
Thanks.
Cheers!
Dolf
Mine is 1/12
1 attached image. Click to enlarge.
Thanks a lot Rob (@robbo) !
Guess Carmelo probably made an error writting it's a 1/16 scale. Unless initially 1/12 and 1/16 both existed.
Your looks great btw!
Cheers!
Dolf
Hi Adolfo @dolfdylan,
okay, now you got me. I obviously got confused here.
In fact Protar did a 1/12 Mefistofele in die cast at some time in the seventies. I'm sending you a picture attached. I owned this model when I was 14 or so, but my skill wasn't anywhere close to what is required to do an acceptable build from it. A couple of years ago I came across a re-issue of Italeri who obviously have acquired Protar's moulds or at least their design, but re-did the whole thing in styrene.
All this, however, is related to 1/12 as a scale and not 1/16, so I leave it to Carmelo to solve the riddle.
1 attached image. Click to enlarge.
Thanks a lot for the clarification Johannes (@halvarvonflake) !
Apparently Italeri doesn't have models on 1/16 scale, so if Carmelo's Mefistofele is an Italeri one, it's apparently on 1/12 scale.
Thanks again.
Cheers!
Dolf
sorry I made a mistake, the scale is 1/12 I attached the Italieri link.
In addition to this has another model more and if they are reprints of Protar, but they are quite good.
https://www.italeri.com/scheda.asp?idProdotto=2400&idCategoria=8&idSottocategoria=61
I'm very happy, thank you.
If it is the Italieri and have taken another one that is also a reissue of Protar. And it looks very good
Absolutely stunning model Carmelo (@tupeman) !
Very nice indeed, and an excellent work on the weathering and all the details on the engine and overall!
Congratulations!
Cheers!
Dolf
Exemplary workmanship, sir...very nicely accomplished!
Beautifully done!
Thank you very much for clarifying that, Carmelo (@tupeman) !
A beautiful model indeed!
Cheers!
Dolf
Carmelo, @tupeman this is a great old racing car. Cars like this were some of the first racers on the (then) new Indianapolis 500 track, where I live.
David @dirtylittlefokker said: "My god, the men who raced these were either very brave or completely nuts." You may be right, though I prefer to think of them as brave.
Red cars are always the most interesting, just like some planes. New kit to me, so don’t care how old the moulds might be, it just looks beautiful and delicately detailed. Never had a thing for cars, but this one got my attention. Might look it up sometime. Bravo Carmelo!
Little story:
As it seems that there are enthusiasts of these vehicles I leave you a summary of how this car was born.
Until his conversion, the Mefistofele was a Fiat SB4. Its owner was Ernest Arthur Douglas Eldridge, who bought it from a British runner, a certain John Duff.
After risking his life busily looking for speed records by mixing different cars with aeronautical engines - besides being an automobile engineer, he was an airplane pilot - he died prematurely of pneumonia at 40 years of age. Things of destiny.
The circuit of speed of Arpajon, near Paris, was where it reached the 234,97 km / h in track where, in that occasion, the losers of the bet were René Thomas and his Delage V12 of 10,5 liters and 350 horses. Having accomplished his deed, Eldridge also sold the Mephistophele to the enigmatic Le Champion, in 1925; their lives dedicated to transgressing the limits of speed would never cross again.
The original engine was replaced by an A-12 Bis of Fiat origin. This engine is a six-cylinder in line and was used in military aviation (in the SIA 7B and R.2 Fiat, reconnaissance aircraft and the bomber SAML S.2 Caproni Ca 46). His 21,706 cc and cylinder head of two valves delivered a maximum power of 260 hp at a very low speed.
In addition, it was necessary to modify half the car since this engine did not fit in the original model, in addition to reinforcing the whole, reaching a weight of almost 2 tons
2 attached images. Click to enlarge.
Thanks a lot for the background story about this car Carmelo (@tupeman). Very interesting!
Cheers!
Dolf
A very nice model of an unusual looking auto! Speaks of an era long gone. Great work!
That's a stunning build!
I don't think this one would look right without the weathering. Nicely done.