Aussie Modellers

j.s.harrison, it sounds like you have premision from SWMBO. Take the chance while you can. lol ." i saw them advertised in TMMI magazine". Is that the Tamiya magazine? tweety1thanks for the nice comments about being a model car gur, I think that's going a bit far. Nice throught thro. As for a mclaren M4/19 you may be able to convert either the tamiya for revell kit to those specs. Or you maybe able to get on from Studio 27,etc. it would be expensive but.

Cheers Trev

Hi all,

I've been spending waaaaaay to much time in the GB forum at the moment, so I thought pop in and see what is happening.

Speaking of wheelie things I have the Tamiya Lotus 25 Coventry Climax which has been in my "to do" pile for ages now. Unfortunately I have only gotten as far as stripping the chrome off the various sprues. I plan to re-do these in a couple of different ALCLAD shades which I reckon will look a lot better.

Chris, congratulations on your wedding the move into your new house. I hope the new boss is used to the smell of glue, thinner & resin

If anybody is interested, Classic Airframes have announced the release of a 1/48 vampire. The kit comes with decals for a couple of RAF birds and one from the RNZAF. This is supposed to be the first release in a series of vampires, here's the link http://www.classicairframes.com/newproducts.htm

Cheers
Darren

Oh don't worry Trev, i've jumped at the oppurtunity to get it and by tomorrow i'll own a Lotus coventry climax .......
Darson the alclad11 thing sounds like a cool idea so hurry up and finish it will ya, so i can copy, when it comes to cars i'm kinda

Well i got it.......





As you can see there's not that much to it (thankfully) and i can't see building it to be a problem but there are some things i'd like to change....
Firstly Darson is right the Chrome has gotta go, i don't think it will suit the car, the rear springs i also want to change to metal ones and the clear part that goes over the injectors has to be replaced with some pe mesh or something, and lastly i'm gonna want a racing harness in it...........

So here's my first how do you remove the chrome.......Jules......

Ok, Trev, ta for the info, and I still reckon your the car guru.
BTW, when do we get to see the sierra???

Darson, many thanks for the Vampire info, have been wanting one of those in 1/48 for years!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

As for stripping the chrome Jules, well, you can paint it over for starters.
There is always the 'scraping' method, little tedious though.
I'm sure Darson will let you know, but personally I wouldn't try using Alclad on such a small item.

Bare Metal Foil would be my first choice.
Wouldn't have to strip anything then, just apply over the top.
It's good stuff, I'm using some to mask the canopy of my 109!!!!

Thanks Tweety i duuno what to do at the moment cars are territory to me mate...

I like the BMF idea it sounds cool, especialy for masking canopies, i used Tamiya 10mm for my 109 canopy and i was never happy with the finish........

So how about a quick rundown on masking a canopy with BMF, with the 10mm Tamiya tape i cut small pieces to fit, 4 peices of tape per panel.....Jules..

QUOTE: Originally posted by j.s.harrison Well i got it....... As you can see there's not that much to it (thankfully) and i can't see building it to be a problem but there are some things i'd like to change.... Firstly Darson is right the Chrome has gotta go, i don't think it will suit the car, the rear springs i also want to change to metal ones and the clear part that goes over the injectors has to be replaced with some pe mesh or something, and lastly i'm gonna want a racing harness in it........... So here's my first how do you remove the chrome.......Jules......

Jules,

Check with Trev, but I don't think from what I read I don't think that those cars actually had a harness

I totally agree with you on everything else, I had planned to scratch build the rear springs, ditch the injector cover completely and then add a little wiring to make it look good. There is a beautiful picture of the rear of a slightly later Lotus at ALCLADs web site, check it out at
http://www.alclad2.com/alclad-home.html

I am going to re-apply some chrome to the roll bar, rear view mirrors and exhaust pipes etc, but the chromed plastic just looks too toy like.

To remove chrome off styrene is easy, all you need is a container, protective gloves, an old toothbrush and some Easy-Off Oven Cleaner.

***WARNING DO THIS OUTDOORS***
Place the sprue or chromed parts to be stripped into the container (I use an old Ice Cream container)
Fill the container with enough oven cleaner to completely cover the sprue.
Leave for about 15 mins
Remove the sprue (the chrome should be gone) wash it in warm soapy water and scrub it with the old toothbrush.
That's it, the chrome is removed and the styrene is untouched. If you don't trust this or would like to give it a test run, use an off cut of sprue first.

Cheers
Darren

QUOTE: Originally posted by darson QUOTE: Originally posted by j.s.harrison Well i got it....... As you can see there's not that much to it (thankfully) and i can't see building it to be a problem but there are some things i'd like to change.... Firstly Darson is right the Chrome has gotta go, i don't think it will suit the car, the rear springs i also want to change to metal ones and the clear part that goes over the injectors has to be replaced with some pe mesh or something, and lastly i'm gonna want a racing harness in it........... So here's my first how do you remove the chrome.......Jules...... Jules, Check with Trev, but I don't think from what I read I don't think that those cars actually had a harness I totally agree with you on everything else, I had planned to scratch build the rear springs, ditch the injector cover completely and then add a little wiring to make it look good. There is a beautiful picture of the rear of a slightly later Lotus at ALCLADs web site, check it out at http://www.alclad2.com/alclad-home.html I am going to re-apply some chrome to the roll bar, rear view mirrors and exhaust pipes etc, but the chromed plastic just looks too toy like. To remove chrome off styrene is easy, all you need is a container, protective gloves, an old toothbrush and some Easy-Off Oven Cleaner. ***WARNING DO THIS OUTDOORS*** Place the sprue or chromed parts to be stripped into the container (I use an old Ice Cream container) Fill the container with enough oven cleaner to completely cover the sprue. Leave for about 15 mins Remove the sprue (the chrome should be gone) wash it in warm soapy water and scrub it with the old toothbrush. That's it, the chrome is removed and the styrene is untouched. If you don't trust this or would like to give it a test run, use an off cut of sprue first. Cheers Darren

Darson tup] thanks mate for the site, it's hard to beleive that one was a model, i don't think mine will turn out that goodbut i have the pic saved for future reference..
I think i'll add a few wires here and there myself , also some brake lines
And tar for the rundown on stripping the chrome i'll give it a go but i think i'll use testors enamel MM paints, i think i'll enjoy building this one, to bad i won't be starting it until the middle of next year but wingy thingy's need to be built first......
Cheers Jules....

tweety1, your to kind. The pix of the serria will get here, but they won't set any speed records on their way. lol. j.s.harrison, you shouldn't haveto many problems with the lotus kit. Ihaven't personal built it by it is from tamiya. So at worst it will be equal to the best of AMT or Revell. As to the seatbelts I'm not to shore. I'II have a look around for you.

Cheers Trev

This could be of help.

Cheers Trev

http://images.google.com.au/imgres?imgurl=http://www.michaelp.org/photos/cars/donington_collection/1963_lotus_25_from_rear.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.michaelp.org/photos/cars/donington_collection/&h=768&w=1024&sz=234&tbnid=5kJfEFoIj5kJ:&tbnh=112&tbnw=149&start=11&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dlotus%2B25%2B%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26sa%3DG

http://images.google.com.au/imgres?imgurl=http://www.michaelp.org/photos/cars/donington_collection/1963_lotus_25_from_rear.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.michaelp.org/photos/cars/donington_collection/&h=768&w=1024&sz=234&tbnid=5kJfEFoIj5kJ:&tbnh=112&tbnw=149&start=11&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dlotus%2B25%2B%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26sa%3DG

http://images.google.com.au/imgres?imgurl=http://www.michaelp.org/photos/cars/donington_collection/1963_lotus_25_from_rear.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.michaelp.org/photos/cars/donington_collection/&h=768&w=1024&sz=234&tbnid=5kJfEFoIj5kJ:&tbnh=112&tbnw=149&start=11&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dlotus%2B25%2B%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26sa%3DG

http://images.google.com.au/imgres?imgurl=http://www.michaelp.org/photos/cars/donington_collection/1963_lotus_25_from_rear.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.michaelp.org/photos/cars/donington_collection/&h=768&w=1024&sz=234&tbnid=5kJfEFoIj5kJ:&tbnh=112&tbnw=149&start=11&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dlotus%2B25%2B%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26sa%3DG

http://images.google.com.au/imgres?imgurl=http://www.michaelp.org/photos/cars/donington_collection/1963_lotus_25_from_rear.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.michaelp.org/photos/cars/donington_collection/&h=768&w=1024&sz=234&tbnid=5kJfEFoIj5kJ:&tbnh=112&tbnw=149&start=11&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dlotus%2B25%2B%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26sa%3DG

http://images.google.com.au/imgres?imgurl=http://www.michaelp.org/photos/cars/donington_collection/1963_lotus_25_from_rear.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.michaelp.org/photos/cars/donington_collection/&h=768&w=1024&sz=234&tbnid=5kJfEFoIj5kJ:&tbnh=112&tbnw=149&start=11&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dlotus%2B25%2B%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26sa%3DG

http://images.google.com.au/imgres?imgurl=http://www.michaelp.org/photos/cars/donington_collection/1963_lotus_25_from_rear.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.michaelp.org/photos/cars/donington_collection/&h=768&w=1024&sz=234&tbnid=5kJfEFoIj5kJ:&tbnh=112&tbnw=149&start=11&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dlotus%2B25%2B%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26sa%3DG

Wow, those are an awesome set of photos, thanks Trev.

Can you imagine racing in any of those cars at the speeds they got up too without seatbelts, flame resistant clothing, oxygen bottles, crash cells, ete,etc...

Darren

QUOTE: Originally posted by j.s.harrison Thanks Tweety i duuno what to do at the moment cars are territory to me mate... I like the BMF idea it sounds cool, especialy for masking canopies, i used Tamiya 10mm for my 109 canopy and i was never happy with the finish........ So how about a quick rundown on masking a canopy with BMF, with the 10mm Tamiya tape i cut small pieces to fit, 4 peices of tape per panel.....Jules..

Well, firstly I dip the canopy in Pledge One Go, don't know if you use this stuff, but it's worth the effort.

Then, grab some BMF foil, I prefer to use the Chrome stuff, it's easiest to see the 'frame' outlines with Chrome, and cut a strip maybe 2.5mm larger than the section you plan to mask.

Where possible, I do 1 window section at a time, but on a 109G-6 canopy for instance, it would be easier to do 1 side of the canopy at a time.

Lay the BMF onto the canopy, and using a cotton bud, smooth it down, as you go you can see the 'framing' start to show through the BMF.

When the BMF is all smoothed out onto the canopy, get a toothpick, and sand one side down so it's nice and flat, and sand the other end to a round dull point.

Go over the 'frame' outlines with the toothpick, alternating between the flat and round ends so the 'framing' stands out enough for you too see it, and in the case of recessed framing like on the 109G-14 I'm doing now, use the flat end to press the BMF into the recess.

When all the above is done, grab a knife, and start tracing the frame work.
Instead of using the standard No 11 blade, change to a smaller one, it helps when going around corners etc.

DO NOT apply pressure, the weight of the knife is more than enough!!!

When done, lift a corner of the BMF and slowly remove the foil, any areas that the knife didnt cut can be pressed down with the toothpick again and cut again.

After all is said and done, one more gentle rub over with the cotton bud, and you now have a canopy ready for painting.

After painting, a quick and light pass with the knife again around the masked sections, and remove the foil.

You cant ask for a crisper canopy frame, and the only down side is the time it takes to mask off.

Doing the inside of canopies is a little trickier, as you have to cut freehand, tracing the canopy frame.
Hard to do, but do-able all the same.

Thats the quick rundown, thank God I didn't type the extended version!!

Actually, might put this in the Techniques section too, may save some people from chunky canopies

Trev mate thanks for the links,Great pics

No racing harness "Thats just plain Stupid" but it makes it a little easier and cheaper for the modeller....
Looking at the rear springs i've decided to hack , file and sand the cast on spings off the shockie and wrap fuse wire around it instead.......

Tweets thanks again mate that sounds a whole lot easier than my normal method, not to mention quicker, imagine cutting tiny peices of Tamiya 10mm tape and placing them on the canopy, 4 peices of tape inside each panel and 1 more to cover the middle, the canopy of my 109 took 3 hours to mask..........
Just a thought..........instead of masking the inside of the canopy have you ever considered painting the interior colour on the outside first and then painting the outside colour over the top, might save a little time, or is it one of those Sabre things again

Once again thanks guys for all the advice, every model i do is getting better and better and i have you fellas to thank for pointing me in the right direction.....

Muchly appreciated Jules.......

To mask the canopies I prefer to use the opaque Scotch Tape. This is cheap and very effective way of doing it. I use it in the same manner that Tweety uses the BMF. The only drama I have ever had is that fro some reason it does, on the odd occassion, leave adhesive on the canopy. This is easily removed though by pressing scotch tape on it several times.

hey guys

just passing through and thought I'll say hello!
I haven't read all the posts but it seems like some sport cars are on the drawing boards.

j.s.harrison hope thatb they are useful. luke it looks like I'm conveting the wingy thingly mob. Who knows what eill happen next.

Cheers Trev

QUOTE: Originally posted by s3053396 j.s.harrison hope thatb they are useful. luke it looks like I'm conveting the wingy thingly mob. Who knows what eill happen next. Cheers Trev

Trev, well maybe converting is a little too strong a word wingy thingys are still my prime interest, but there's something that's just cool about racing cars, especially the older ones.

G'day Luke, you're right in between all the aircraft and tanks it looks like a couple of cars might get built.

Cheers
Darren

Just a reminder to those that may be in the Adelaide area this weekend about the South Australian Scale Model Expo at the Centenary Gym, Christian Brothers' College, 214 Wakefield St Adeliade. The Expo will be open from 11am to 4 pm on Saturday and 9am to 4pm on Sunday. More info can be found at http://www.gumnut.net/sapma/expo

I tried different masking tapes, and Scotch tape also, just couldn't get it to work for me, about the only thing that does is the BMF. Have no idea why.

Jules, spraying the outside of the canopy huh?
Hmmm, didn't even cross my mind
Well, that will save alot of time huh!

South Aussie, thanks for the heads up on the Excpo, my Dad is down there ATM for surgery, so maybe he can check it out.

Just got my goodies pack from Eduard. I got the detail set for the 1/48 Bf109-G10 (Hasagawa) I'm soon to start on & I have to say I find it pretty intimidating. I've done a little with etched brass before but this detail set must have a hundreds pieces, many of them incredibly fine & small. Any tips for bending etc will certailnly be appreciated.

I also spoilt myself & got their Mirage III plastic kit. Unfortunately no Aussie decals, but it looks lovely. Confused about the instrument panel. Front panel with the instrument holes is ok, panel behind that with the dials etc is ok, but there is a film which seems to replicate the back panel & will just obscure the dials if installed at the front as per the instructions, & then a decal which seems to be the same thing. Are these alternatives or is there some mystical system here that I'm not seeing?

Carl

Aahhhh i just got online and now i have to go KIDS KIDS KIDS gotta love em....

Be back later.........Jules

Jules, I built that Lotus several years ago. Its a beautiful kit. I just added the plug leads, made up a fine mesh cover for the trumpets and did the brake lines. Remember its NOT British Racing Green, Tamiya do make the correct green for it so don't be tempted to use their BRG. Several years ago FSM had an excellent article on the Honda which spelt out a number of relatively straightforward detailing some of which could be applied to the Lotus. Have fun

Kids all asleep so's the missus"breathes a sigh of releif ".........

Darson i think wingy thingy's will always be my main interest but i have to admit i'm really looking forward to building this lotus, it's booked in for June 05 thats the earliest i can make a start on it.......

Tweety BMF is on it's way so i'll try it out next time i mask a canopy, to late for the Spit 1 I masked it off tonight with tamiya tape, it didn't take to long, not much framing...
I might try the Scotch Tape mentioned by Dave as well and figure out which material works best for me, as long as it's easy to cut "don't want to apply much pressure just in case i slip and cut the canopy"

Nicholma thanks for the heads up i looked at the colour and thought BRG is the one, without even looking at the colour guide......
BTW i know i'll enjoy this one, and i'll almost certainly invest in another....

Carl Tweety's the one to ask about PE, he loves the stuff and the challenge
As far as i can tell your Mirage instruments sounds like alternatives, i have a PE set for an upcoming Stuka which has a film to put behind the instrument panel, and the same problem you have happens, when the film is in all i can see is black holes so i decided to use the PE istrument panel as a template, cut a backing panel from styrene sheet and stick the kit decals onto it, when i line up the decals with the PE panel it looks a whole heap better......Well thats the theory but i can't see it not working...
Jules........

Me and PE, your too kind Jules

Carl, I know exactly what you mean by small, I am doing the G14 kit ATM (Hasegawa), and the Eduard PE for that is TINY!!!!!

Alot of people use those Etchmate thins and the like, it's a PE bending rig basically, but I cant see the point in wasting money.

Sidcrhome made a set of small pliers, with a long nose, and its flattened, about 4 mm wide at the tip.
I bought 4 sets of these back in my Technician days, and since then, 1 set is original, and the others have had the tips filed down to 3mm, 2mm, and 1 mm across.
These allow me to get the smallest PE bit and bend it no probs.

As for the instrument panel, you might want to check incase they are to be ass'y OVERLAPPING a fraction.
By what you described, I'm assuming the film is a white item with coloured dials etc on it?
If so, this lives BEHIND it's corresponding PE plate, and shows through the dial holes.

Don't know if I helped you or confused you.

Thanks guys. The instrument film is black with clear or coloured dial details, & according to the instructions it goes at the _front_ of the rig!!! The confusing thing is that the plate behind the front one seems to have all of the detail you need, I would have thought the film would just provide the faux-glass sheen. I'll sort out some pics with my brand new digital camera so that you can see what I'm talking about. (I went down to the AWM last weekend & shot 350 pics in 3 hrs - if anyone wants lots of details of the world's only original paint Bf109 just holler.)

So Tweety, you're the guy . I've been looking at those etchmate rigs & wondering if it's worth shipping one over here, hard to tell the scale of the thing from the ads. Think I'll have to stroll around a couple of hardware shops to see if I can find something like those handy pliers you've mentioned. I'm wondering where jewellers & electrical techs get their kit from.

Carl

Here they are:



It's a bit hard to see but 3 of the 4 have the white dial detail (the 'white' on the film is transparent). There are also decals for the instrument pods either side of the seat.

OK Carl i see what you mean now, you have 2 options for the instrument panel,
It looks like the film goes behind the instrument panel with the open dials.why you have a decal i have no idea considering the other instrument panel is already detailed

Ah, I see exactly what you mean Carl

By the looks of it, your right about the clear film, although I have never used the clear film supplied, I always place a small drop of Pledge One Go onto each dial face after all parts are ass'y, looks aloy more realistic.

As for the pliers etc, there are companies like Electus Distribution, or even Tandy's stores for Technicians pliers, the flat nose kind.

Thanks guys. The Pledge sounds like the go - I think the film is an option to go on top of the front PE piece but even if you line it up exactly with the detailed PE behind it seems to cut out a lot of the display. The decals are a mystery, particularly for the side consoles. Perhaps they're back up in case you stuff up the metal.

The other PE bit that I'm struggling with is how to route out the indents for the small bits mounted flush w. the fuselage. Doesn't take much to create gaps around the piece & damned if I can mark the curved bits acurately, let alone get the depth of the routing sorted.

Yeah, this can be a bit of a pain to do, but small drill bits will be your saviour!

Using a hand vice to hold the bits, rotate the bit till it seems to go in far eonugh.
Dont concern yourself with getting the depth spot on, close is good enough.
Secure the really small bits with a drop of Pledge, and let it dry for 24 hours.

I suggest Pledge because small detail doesn't require CA, and the longer drying time will allow you to reposition the piece so it's just right.
Downside is you cant really do anything more till the Pledge cures, and I would advise doing this step just before painting, so the bits dont come off during normal handling while building.