1/12 forum
Tech Adept
Joined: Sep 2006
Posts: 238
To me it does look a mercedes and it might not have been made by Protoform at all but by a company called Andy's. I don't have any bodies to compare with but the sides of the rear wing look a bit wrong for the Protoform, I seem to remember the vertical sides towards the rear of the PF be smooth with no ridge on the side of the body near the rear wheels.
-------Mitch

-------Mitch


Just trying to be contrary I guess..........The body does look good though.
And Slowerone........I just offered an opinion that it may be a different body, I didn't say that it wasn't a PF. I wanted to put something snide here and surround it with little action icons to show how much superior I am than someone just offering an opinion but I won't.
Have fun at the track!!!
Mitch

Last edited by flyernemesis; 04-17-2010 at 04:34 PM.
Well keep in mind that I have'nt done this since the late 80's but as I recall I would dunk the wheel in the acetone.

I haven't mounted donuts since the early-mid '90's myself

I know methods differ, but just double checking again, coat the wheel with contact cement, dry, dunk wheel in acetone [to lightly reactivate the glue] and slide it together, done?
I never had any problems with good adhesion coating the wheel with shoe goo and putting everything together, but a cleaner method that works well is good info too.

Especially since it's been long enough since I mounted donuts [and don't remember exactly how messy/PITA it is] that I'm getting ready to start mounting them again for experimentation.
You really want a full surface glue job on foams for the best life and tire behavior.
I know plenty of people use CA glue to mount and repair foams as well, but I really don't like CA mounted foams, personally. Every time I've tried to use CA to fix adhesion issues, or used foams that were pre-mounted with CA, it always seems the tires chunk a lot easier to me.
Again, it's been since the early-mid 90's since I mounted donuts myself, but from what I remember, my shoe-goo mounted foams always seemed to be a bit more robust against chunking.
I know plenty of people use CA glue to mount and repair foams as well, but I really don't like CA mounted foams, personally. Every time I've tried to use CA to fix adhesion issues, or used foams that were pre-mounted with CA, it always seems the tires chunk a lot easier to me.
Again, it's been since the early-mid 90's since I mounted donuts myself, but from what I remember, my shoe-goo mounted foams always seemed to be a bit more robust against chunking.
Tech Champion

Joined: Nov 2001
Posts: 7,191
From: Hawaii, USA
Personally I still like the old contact cement method...with a good sanding on the rim you could make tires that were very resistant to chunking. However since manufacturers have gone to using CA to glue the tires the rims are not all safe to dunk into lacquer thinner. Given the cost of pre-mounted Primsms...you'll actually spend more money mounting your own. Not my favorite rim but you can't beat the price.
My plan is to experiment with different compounds and/or dual compound mounting once I get up a collection of bare, straight wheels.
For this kind of pricing, I don't see it being too terribly expensive: http://www.windtunnelracingproducts....21_169&&page=1
For this kind of pricing, I don't see it being too terribly expensive: http://www.windtunnelracingproducts....21_169&&page=1
A buddy of mine mounted some up for his 1/12 and seemed to like them, but he may not have completely dialed in on which compounds work the best on our track yet.
Hard not to try it for that price though.
Hard not to try it for that price though.
Tech Champion

Joined: Nov 2001
Posts: 7,191
From: Hawaii, USA
My plan is to experiment with different compounds and/or dual compound mounting once I get up a collection of bare, straight wheels.
For this kind of pricing, I don't see it being too terribly expensive: http://www.windtunnelracingproducts....21_169&&page=1
For this kind of pricing, I don't see it being too terribly expensive: http://www.windtunnelracingproducts....21_169&&page=1
Also remember since the existing tires are CA glued on you won't be able to soak the old worn tires off, you'll need to true them down to the rim. So for your first set it may be easier to start with new rims and remount after that. CRC rims will melt in lacquer thinner so if you plan to use the contact cement method you won't want to use those rims. Prisms don't stay straight long enough to remount. And most of the other rims out there are still the older, smaller diameter rim. I thought about using the RC4Less rims with the Gecko donuts but I heard from someone that used them that they were not 38mm.

I hear ya. I'm just getting back into pan cars with my BMI Copperhead 12. Thanks for the head's up on the CRC wheels. I'm planning on just using shoe goo whenever I do start mounting. Even back when I ran 1/10 oval I never tried to get absolutely all the old foam off the wheel, just put the wheel on the truer until I got off everything I could, then shoe goo, new donut, and true it back up. Always worked fine as long as about 1/4" from each wheel edge was totally clean, which emery paper on the truer will take care of.
Probably going to be at least the end of the year before I have enough wheels sitting around to even bother though.
My plan is to experiment with different compounds and/or dual compound mounting once I get up a collection of bare, straight wheels.
For this kind of pricing, I don't see it being too terribly expensive: http://www.windtunnelracingproducts....21_169&&page=1
For this kind of pricing, I don't see it being too terribly expensive: http://www.windtunnelracingproducts....21_169&&page=1
The easiest and BEST way ---get a good 3m contact adhesive-- small pint can with plenty of those cheap steel handled throwaway brushes--"Harbor Freight" will have them--
You can use acetone---but lacquer thinner is cheaper and will work just as well--it's flash is slower too so it gives you better working time.
Coat the wheel and the inside of the tires well with the cement--you can do several sets because once you dunk BOTH into a lacquer thinner "bath"--it will re-activate the glue--- then slide the tire on over the wheel using your Kimbrough tire mounting tools. Slide the tire around a little bit to get a good coating of cement all the way out to the edges-- you will have enough tire to trim down to the wheel on both the inside and outside -- just clean the glue off the outside of the donuts-- let them dry for a day before you try to true them.
Once they are trued--- for 1/12 scale especially---then CA down the very edges of the tires to the wheels --it will stop any "rollover" that the tire may have--and give you better more consistant bite!!
FYI
T



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