CMC Maserati Tipo 61 "Birdcage", #25, Winner SCCA Pensacola April 1960, Gaston "Gus" Andrey

A masterpiece of architecture model: CMC Maserati Tipo 61 “Birdcage”, #25, Winner SCCA Pensacola April 1960, Gaston “Gus” Andrey

Technical data of the CMC-model:

1. Model: Precision model, hand-assembled
2. Manufacturer: CMC GmbH, Classic Model Cars, Germany
3. Scale: 1:18
4. Item-No.: M-279
5. Color: white/red
6. Limited Edition: 1,000

Model details:

• Hand-assembled model composed of 1,523 parts
• A true-to-the original filigrane metal space-frame
• True-to-scale, exact-detailed body
• Elaborate two-tone paintwork as a tribute to the Swiss origin of Gus Andrey’s
• Front hinged engine hood with functional locking mechanism
• Highly detailed engine with all aggregates, piping, and cables
• Oiltank with movable tank cap
• Air scoop for the cooling of the floor room well made of metal
• Dashboard with detailed instruments
• Bucket seats covered with textile
• Moveable doors on filigrane hinges
• Removable rear-end cover with functional locking mechanism
• Metal fuel tank with the filler neck and movable cap
• Removable spare wheel, fastened with a leather belt
• Dismountable spoked wheels on aluminium rims. Stainless-steel spokes wired by hand
• Baseplate can be unscrewed to offer an even closer look to the space frame
• Rivited stiffeners used for cockpit floor plate of metal
• Single wheel suspension in the front with twin triangular transverse control arms, including coil springs and telescope shock absorbers
• De-Dion rear axle with cross-installed compound spring of metal and telescope shock absorbers

Description of the original vehicle: The Maserati Tipo 60/61 designed by Giulio Alfieri was built exclusively for customers from 1959 to 1961. There was no factory production due to the company’s difficult economic situation at the time. With 22 vehicles, total production was very modest.
The car became known as the Maserati “Birdcage” (“Vogelkäfig”), an allusion to the unusual tubular lattice frame weighing only 30 kg and consisting of more than 200 thin-walled steel tubes with a small diameter, but at the same time strength similar to a much more expensive monocoque. The unladen weight is 600 kg.
The hood of the “Birdcage” is very flat, because the in-line four-cylinder engine with initially 2.0 l and later 2.9 l displacement and an output of 250 hp at 6500 rpm/min is installed at an angle of 45 degrees so that the air flow is very favorable. Thanks to a wide range of aerodynamic optimizations (including a very low windscreen windshield, tightly enclosed front wheels, trailing edge at the rear), the vehicle achieves a top speed of 285 to 300 km/h, depending on the transmission ratio of the 5-speed gearbox. At the same time, these measures enable low fuel consumption, which is particularly important in long-distance races.
The wire-spoke wheels with 6.50 × 16 tires are suspended at the front on double triangular wishbones with coil springs and telescopic shock absorbers, rear is a De Dion axle with transverse leaf springs and telescopic shock absorbers. The vehicle is equipped with Girling disc brakes on all four wheels.
The vehicle with chassis number 2455 was sold in 1959 to the US racing driver Swiss-born US racing driver and later sports car dealer Gaston (“Gus”) Andrey – hence the Swiss colors and the Swiss flag on the vehicle.
With this car, Gus Andrey won the first race of the tenth season of the of the SCCA Championship (Sports Car Club America) in Pensacola, Florida (USA).

Technical data of the original vehicle:

1. Four cylinder in-line engine 45° sloped to the right
2. Single wheel suspension in the front
3. De-Dion rear axle with cross-installed compound spring
4. Maximum output: 250 hp at 6,800 rpm
5. Displacement: 2,890 cc
6. Top speed: 285 km/hr
7. Wheel base: 2,200 mm
8. Total length: 3,800 mm
9. Total weight: approx. 600 kg

CMC Legal Disclaimer The use of manufacturers’ names, symbols, type designations, and/or descriptions is solely for reference purposes. It does not imply that the CMC scale model is a product of any of these manufacturers.
The use of racing team and/or driver names, symbols, starting numbers, and/or descriptions is solely for reference purposes. Unless otherwise stated, it does not imply that the CMC scale model is a product of any of these racing teams/drivers or endorsed by any of them.

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