[MOC] Lotus 49 (Model Team 5541 alternate)

johnnytifosi · September 23, 2024

Hello everybody,

I recently got the Model Team 5541 set, and thinking about possible alternate builds suddenly the idea of doing a 1960s F1 car popped to my mind, as it would be quite suitable for the available pieces. I googled around for classic 1960s cars, and as an avid F1 fan I decided on the legendary Lotus 49 as a good template. I think the chrome pieces of the set will make good exhaust pipes and roll bar, and the plentiful curved slopes will make for a good cigar-like shape for the car. Based on the pictures I used as a guide and using the wheels as a reference for scale, I have decided on a 6-stud wide body. The main colour will be of course blue (instead of green), with a red stripe on top and red air intake (instead of yellow). My main concerns now are how to implement the cone like shape in the front (medium difficulty, I have two ideas as is shown in the first pic), and how to hide/replace the whole rear black assembly and make something resembling a suspension with the parts available (hard difficulty).

I've done plenty of small MOCs in the past, but I think this is the most ambitious and the first time I try to replicate a real life model. As a result it will take some time and I was eager to share the early progress, hopefully getting some feedback in the process. If this succeeds I will post free instructions too. Here are some early screenshots placing the main parts of the car, copying some sub builds from the official A model:

Cheers!

Edited October 5, 2024 by johnnytifosi

Davidz90 · September 24, 2024

Nice! Making a suspension within part limits will be quite a challenge.

johnnytifosi · September 29, 2024

I am mostly satisfied with how this model turns out so far. This is an empty shell and needs some reinforcement in its insides, but I have plenty of spare pieces, currently using 253/421 pieces. I don't like how the black plates stick out in the front, but I have a limited selection of large plates to implement the shape of the car. I do have a 3x6 wedge plate that could prove handy for the front conical shape if I figure out another way to solve this geometry puzzle.

Edited September 29, 2024 by johnnytifosi

johnnytifosi · October 1, 2024

After some general refinement, including the front cone, the gap above the steering linkage, rear view mirrors, the plates used as base and the internal structure, this model looks complete to me and it exceeded my expectations. It uses 273 out of 421 pieces. All that remains is generating some instructions and verifying the build for myself, and hopefully make some more improvements when I see the model in the flesh. One could make an argument about the incontinuity of the shape above the steering linkage, but there aren't enough blue pieces in the set to make this much better in my opinion, and there is the space limitation of the steering mechanism (axle, gear, moving gear rack) underneath.