The 2014 Automotive Group Build

Thanks guys! I had planned to clear coat over everything and try to get it nice and glossy, but I've read some horror stories about clear destroying decals so, ehh it's glossy enough I guess. I might be able to finish this weekend, we'll see. I really am happy with the color, it's Tamiya rattlecan Metallic Blue. At first it seemed too light, but as I put more coats on it deepened nicely.

Nice looking Cobra Steve

got my suspension replacement part from REVELL in the yesterday so i can finish up suspension on UNIMOG. will finish up a couple in near final stages and pull this one off the shelf.

Nice progress fellows, which of you will finish first ???

I'm working away at the Ferrari F92A. Almost every part has multiple ejection pin marks or sink holes, so it's a bit slow. I've managed to get the nose / cockpit area together, and primed the engine cover.  I've decided to glue the engine cover down, as the fit to the body isn't great despite a lot of attention, so I'll want to align it as I go. THe internal details aren't great either. I'll post some photos shortly.

Cheers

Tony

I'm a late starter guys, but I would like to jump in with the Revell 1/24 Opel Blitz S. 3 tonne, Civilian version.

Welcome WIRRAWAY. I'm sure Tony will be by to add your truck to the build roster.

I managed to get some bench time in between working on the bike, lawn mower, and cutting grass.

I got a start on the decals, when there is this many decals I like to do a few at a time, and hopefully I keep my fat fingers away from some I just applied.

I also glued in the roll bar braces. They left ugly seems so I filled them with super glue, and finished them up with Bondo Glazing compound.

Here is a picture of one of the wheels with a tire and decals. Since there were decals for the lettering I sanded off the raised letters, and brushed a few coats of Future over them before the decals. It didn't turn out to bad.

The texture dosen't look as bad in person as it looks in that picture. I also got most of the braces painted for the windows, of course I forgot  to take pictures of them.

Welcome Wirraway,

I'm sure Tony will be by soon and add you to the list. That's an interesting subject and I'm looking forward to seeing it.

I've been busy the last few days and missed out on some of the updates.and you guys have made a lot of progress. I'll look back over everything later this week.

As a side note, I picked up a cool new tool this weekend. I've been using a scribe I picked up from a local hardware store, but it always created a ridge that I would have to sand back down. The hobby shop I go to in Nashville started carrying bare metal foil and he also had their scribe that is designed not to create the ridges. I was sceptical but he gave me a discount so I bought one. All I can say is WOW! This thing works great. I scribe around the windows before I paint so I have a good clean edge to apply the foil to after. This thing removes a very thin line and leaves no ridges. Now I have a square edge to cut along to help keep the blade moving straight.

I have the basic fitting of the hood for the Gremlin done. I have to rework the corners to get them even and finish sanding it.

When I was test fitting the carbs, I found that none of the alignment pins are correct, both on the carbs and the rear one on the intake. I put pins in the carbs and will re-drill the alignment holes on the intake to make sure they are center.

Got the rims painted. 

I have most of the interior assembled so I should be able to get that stuff painted tomorrow.

Wiccan Warrior, thanks again for the purple power tip! It works wonders. As you can see, it took all 4 coats off without any scrubbing or sanding. Also cleaned the Mustang Funny Car, so I can put that one back on the bench hehehehe. I thought the clear I used only attacked the paint, but as you can see in the 2nd photo, it went all the way down to the plastic (all crazed all around the windshield). I think it will sand out, fingers crossed hehehe.

L8TR,

Eric

Hi Dale,

We must have been typing at the same time hehehehe.

That roll cage is sharp.

L8TR,

Eric

We used to get those Nascar kits over here, but haven't seen one in ages. Would really have liked to do one. But looks like you're doing a great job on that one, Dale.

Nice resurrection, Eric! Really miserable to have to redo everything, but it'll be worth it in the end. Good luck with the sanding, crossing thumbs.

Things went another path than I expected... and the Brawn is nearly done. Thought the Lotus would be done and dusted long before! All decals applied. Somebody tell F1 sponsors to think about 43rd modelers when they design... goodness! I think ion this instance the worst was the "Graham" with the stripes on the mirrors. Antennae to do (some of which goes in between decal wording and had to be applied after decals to avoid decals having to be precision-cut before applying) and that's about it from memory.

I find nothing more soul destroying than having to strip a bad painjob :-(

maybe a littke mr surfacer can sort out that pitting.

What type of paint did that damage?

Hey.  I got nothing new to add myself.  

Since the weather has gotten nice I've been outside chasing butterflies, staring up at clouds and picking daisies but I have been keeping up to date and reading everyone's posts.  The builds are looking good and well done on the completed kits.  That caravan is a pretty odd find, should be interesting.  

Ah well, just wanted to check in and say nice work to everyone.  Those butterflies aren't going to catch themselves...back atter :)

Gordy

Haha, our weather just went the other way. My health with it... so even though I've just finished off the Brawn, I'll only (hopefully) take pictures over the weekend. And let me redefine "finished"... it's as complete as the mat monster allowed me to - he won a minor battle, but nothing too major.

Finished Brawn. Sorry about the quality, but still indoors and not feeling up to much. Noticed afterwards I forgot to even put the little plague in front. May take another pic with that later... Some errors (my own, not the kit) but came out okay. Four wheels touching and everything reasonably lined up is still an accomplishment for me in this scale! 

Nice job Seabe, it looks good. Hope your feeling better soon.

Hey Seabe sorry to hear your feeling a bit down.  I actually havent touched my projects except once for the past two weeks or so.  Good Looking F1!  Sorry for a stupid question but thats a 1/43 right?  

Dale-  Nice work on the NASCAR.  The decals look like they laid down nice and smooth.  Snazzy color as well.

Eric-  Sorry to hear about the Crazzing of the Plastic.  Cant tell you how many times a paint job has made me mad or went in a direction that I didnt intend.  There is a thread in the FSM Ready Room asking "Whats the Hardest Subjects to build".  Most all say Ships with rigging.  I can see that but I have found for me that glossy paint jobs are among the hardest thing to get right.  So many factors..... Paint compatibility, temp, paint type, coat thickness, air pressure, humidity, I could go on forever   I have it down better that I did after reading some of Cruz's Instructions but its still hit or miss for me and I still want to improve a lot.

Thanks guys - day 5 and at least improving from even yesterday. Have to - back to work tomorrow... Yes, it's a 43rd from the Tameo stable, this one called a Silverline, but basically the same thing. Small things tend to show up badly. 

Next 43rd up will be a challenge, but one I need for future models. The Jordan 197 - the snake one, for those who knows them. And the challenge - the rear wing is a bit of a monster to assemble. Several sections, a real nightmare. But have some more of those in the cupboard, so must do one to... actually DO one! Can't run away from them forever. And yes... that won't be the only challenge. Older tech kit and also the decalling will be extremely interesting!

One other thing I did get to do was the velocity stacks, will add them today. Here's one side:

And two more pics of the Brawn. I have thought of another, but for that I need to go outside... pairing it with the other car of his I've built a while ago, the BAR007. (I repeat: while ago, so even more flawed.)

Side view again, this time I remembered plaque!

And a shot of the rear end. (Tried one for the front as well, but focus was bad...) I suspect that irritating bits on the floor ahead of the front wheel is dust, even though I can't see it. Otherwise that might be the more metallic paint I used to try for the CF effect... but I'm going with dust! That really is not visible to my eye, but keeps showing up in shots.

Ok, I managed to finish the Cobra today. It's not a contest winner, but it's good enough for my shelf.

Overall, I was happy with the kit. It went together quite easily for the most part; the only areas I had trouble with - and it was a lot of trouble - was the radiator, radiator hose, and the 'fiddly bits' at the end. There are at least 5 pieces that I'm convinced wouldn't survive a stiff breeze, much less the depredations of my cats.

As I said, it's no showpiece, but I feel like my skills are improving, which is just about all I can ask for. This is by far the best paintjob I've done to date. My main regret is that I didn't get it more glossy before I put down the decals (by which time it was too late). Thanks for looking, I'm looking forward to continuing to follow everyone else's builds.

Edit: aaand I just realized I forgot to attach the chrome centers on the wheels. Just pretend they're there, lol.

Couple more shots I forgot to take earlier:

Steve that's a sweet looking Cobra! Nice job

I would like to enter another build. i just finished a mig 21 that caused me a load of hassle so i need a break from planes.  it is the airfix Ferrari 250GTO Competition, a re-box of the Gunze kit. it is the curbside one without all the engine detail. it has been criticised for the shape of the rear wheel arches but i couldnt care less, i like it and i wanted one!

one problem - there are no clear parts, so i will have to make my own out of spares and 0.005 clear acetate. bang goes the OOB dream.

SWEAR it will be OOB (fingers crossed) its full of white metal and PE anyway

Have to share.... The F1 guys will know what I'm talking (and excited!) about...

Post Office visit has left me the proud owner of a.... *drum roll* Top Studio Super detail set for the MP4/4! Whoohoooo! Looking at the instructions.... that's going to be an interesting build! (I have the instructions in pdf format if anybody is curious about what madness (seems reality is setting in...) I've let me in this time around.

Also in there a nice base to take 43rd photo's on. Hope it's be less boring... Oh, and some Alclad Aqua Clear - Alclad is justabout as obtainable in SA as the above-mentioned detail kit any where in the world. Imagine my surprise when I saw it at a (online) shop, looking for the aqua clear. No elevated pricing, nothing. Just... an item in store!

Sorry, let normal service resume. I will go giggle elsewhere.

Sorry, in my excitement I missed your post, Steve. That is a great-looking Cobra, love the colour, very nice finish!

Looks sweet Steve!  Classic color combo!

Hi Everyone,

Misty and Wirraway, I've added your planned builds to the Build Roster. It's great to have you both contributing. Misty, I really enjoyed your Mercedes Mclaren.

Steve - I've always liked that kit, and yoiu've done it justice. Your Cobra looks better than mine, and the colour combo is great. I've updated the front page with your achievement.

Seabe - Congrats on the Brawn, it looks just right. It's a tough scale as any mistake looks so big against the model, so well done. I look forward to the Jordan, one of the great schemes which I swear I will get to in 1/20 one day.

Eric - that is hard work on that crazed plastic, is it worth trying to get a replacement body ?It reminds me why I am so reluctant to mess around with different clears, even though I'm still a little fearful of Tamiya TS-13.

All you other guys that are busy keeping the world turning, stay patient, we'll still be here when you'vegot time.

For mine, I've worked really hard on the Ferrari F92A. The decals are on, today it will get it's coat of TS-13, and all of the smaller bits are ready to assemble, if they are not already done. It's down to the slow bit where I'm waiting for paint to dry thoroughly before taking the next step.

The next one is the Tamiya Tyrrell 020. I took the time to bog up all the ejection pin and sink marks the other day, so I'll start in earnest later today.

All going well I think. Photos to come.

Cheers

Tony

I'd like to join. I'm not really a car guy, but I found a 56 Chevy Delray in my basement, and figured I try to get in on my first group build. I'm not as good as you guys, so I hope it doesn't come out too bad.

Hi Dave,

You're very welcome, I've added your entry to the build roster. Please feel free to comment and post pictures of your builds. I'm sure you'll pick up some tips here, I do all the time.

Is your kit the Revell or Monogram release ?

Alright, alright, I admit I had to google Chevy Delray to see what it looked like :)

Cheers

Tony

the body only had 3 small sink marks and some very fine mould lines to remove so not worth a pic. the body is quite a nicely moulded thing.

the difference in size of the vents

both done and first on blanked off

Thanks Tony.

It's  a Revell. If it comes out 1/10 as good as the one's I see on here, I won't be too embarrassed.

Seabe,

That looks awesome! After I get a few more done I would like to do one of the F1 cars.

Steve, That is a sharp Cobra. The blue really makes it stand out.

Welcome Dave, looking forward to seeing the Del Ray.

Tony, The crazing is pretty deep but I think I may be able sand and putty it. Fingers crossed.

It's been busy the last few days but I did manage to get some done on the Gremlin.

I sprayed a green base coat over the weekend and sprayed the lime green today. I like it. I think it's gonna look good with the gold trim and wheels.

I started fabricating the headers.

If I can find time tomorrow, I'll start bending the tubes.

L8TR,

Eric

Thanks Eric. Try one, you may find you'll like it!

I may start a war with some of the Aussie mates over here by saying you've got good taste going for the Bok colours instead of Aussie colours! But I won't say that! Oh... wait... ;)