F1 Group Build

Aaah Easter weekend... Nice time for some momentum on the R25! Completed most of the appendages, left one side's front barge board off due to problems with the front suspension fit, which I've identified and will rectify in the final build. Front wing built up - which went easy against all expectation... Will see when I try to fit it whether it was just the beginning of a new struggle! After that, rear wing build-up and addition (do we really want to do that?) and then mirrors and wheels. Then take it all apart and start over, this time with permanent glue and painting added...

Also started fiddling with a 1:43 (also my first) MP4/4. Sheesh - it's soooo small! The length of the thing is about the width of the R25!

Which kit is the MP4/4? I have most of the early McLarens and built many years ago.

It is Tameo's WCT88, I think. Used to be part of their "World Championship" series, but has since been replaced with a super-detailed kit, number WCTN88. I got hold of the basic (old) one - got it to try out 1:43rd. I think it's the Japan race version.

Yes thats the one I built (the wct88) and its a great kit. The Marlboro red has definately changed over time. No flourescent and more red now. 

Having great fun on that, yes! In retrospect I feel 1:43rd F1's is actually a must-do before attempting a multimedia 1:20! Improves the skills and the eyes a lot - once you've gotten used to the 1:43rd building, the rest just feels so much easier!
Having said that, I am "stuck" on trying to gather the confidence to assemble the rear wing of the R25. It's been cleaned up, individual parts have been test-fitted. Now I must just go ahead and do it. Won't happen tonight, though - have a visit I am dreading at the dentist this afternoon and will most likely be feeling very sorry for myself tonight!

SeaBee:
The WCT kits from Tameo are awesome, but a little overwhelming.  I did the WCT87 Williams FW-11B, something like 5 parts to build up 1 shock.    I really can't say there is a negative on them, the fit of the parts is excellent and the end result is unreal.  The only problem I had, and I have heard this from others, is the seat sits to low and you need to grind some off the bottom to get the pan to fit to the chassis. 

For your rear wing phobia.  Others may have a better solution, but here is mine.  First, there should be a main element that sits on top of the transmission.  Glue that on first and MAKE SURE IT IS LEVEL!  Yea, I missed that step once.  Okay, at that point glue on an endplate, then the other endplate.  Now carefully, glue on the top two elements.  You may need to gently flex the endplates to get these on, but at least it will be straight when you have them done.  Here is another trick.  After final painting and clear coating, I use 5 minute epoxy as my glue.  Several reasons, but for our purposes this is why I do this.  Mix the epoxy until it is starting to set up, just starting to get gummy.  Then apply the glue to the part, say and endplate, and attach.  Notice there will be a little slop where the parts meet. Wait until the glue has started to get firm, but not hard!  Now carefully take your scribe or other soft tipped tool and peel away the excess glue.  You should be left with a really nice joint with no glue showing.  Careful pulling away to much glue that you don't pull it all away.  Because you clear coated the parts, you should get no glue marks on the paint from where you did this. 

On the Marlboro orange.  During the days when McLaren ran the Marlboro colors, it was very orange.  Most people I know use Day-glo orange as their color and I think it is pretty close to what I remember the cars looked like then.  The Ferrari Marlboro is a strange beast indeed.  I have heard the factory actually uses a two part process, but I think the paint is actually a single stage color.  Tamiya has an ok color for the cars.  The best I have found is Finisher's Paint out of  Japan.  Get it from Rainbow 10.  This is a 2 step process, red over orange with a clear top.  The real cars have a very orange look in bright light at the right angle.  On TV they look bright red, but they really have an orange tint to them that is impossible to replicate.  I've done 6 of the Schumacher Ferraris and I still don't have it right. 

On my front the workbench is being resurrected and with luck should be operational within another few weeks.  I hope so, I'm really sick of looking at all my kits and not being able to build something!

Interesting tip about the epoxy, will try it out next time... Yes, I say next time, because I went ahead and did it. Completely fearless after what turned out to be a bit of root canal "surgery"... Went very much the same route as yourself, first doing the base, the the two top wings. For glue I used Testors' metal glue in a green tube. Works okay for an initial glue, you have some time to play before it sets. Let the Bottom set overnight, then did the two top ones, "sliding" them in. Let that settle for a day. For good measure added some CA glue after all was set properly. Came out much better than I thought it would! Decided beforehand to got the assemble before painting route... Maybe that will turn around and bite me, but we can double-cross that bridge when we get there.

I know what you're going through with the kits taunting you...

Grand Prix is coming out on DVD in july here's a link.

http://www.putgrandprixondvd.com/

First:  Frosty, you are one brave modeler for taking on that Heller kit.  If I did that I would be ready for serious therapy after getting it done.  They are really nasty little devils.  Good work!!!

I remember reading in F1 Racing that "Grand Prix" was due out in September.  Doesn't really matter when they bring out, as long as they do it!    

  Ok folks, pop quiz.... what is your favorite line from the movie? 
Question 2  All time favorite racing movie line...  come on, be creative! 

To answer my own: 
1)  Tie:   Yamura:  Mr. Aron, if giving you the job would have meant firing one of the other dirvers, would you have still taken it?  (Silly question to ask a RACER)
Sarti:  I'm STILL the best!

2)  "What's behind me is not important!"  The Gumball Rally

Back to the workbench, we now return to your regular programming.

"DANGER TO MANIFOLD" on the laptop screen in the Fast and the Furious... 

Answer to (2) above:

And it's go-go-GO... every 2nd weekend (virtually) in F1 season...
Very closely followed by numerous Murray-isms...

On the R25 - I am at the point of starting to break it all up. *sigh* Did the final assembly and first primer coats on both the front and rear wings. When all is apart, I have two places I have to improve - the front suspension needs larger holes to fit better (even more so after painting!) and the area on which the rear wing "rests" need to be squared up a bit. But to do the latter (decently) I need to take it all apart anyways.

So the real fun is about to begin!

Il Leone wrote:

Frosty, you are one brave modeler for taking on that Heller kit.  If I did that I would be ready for serious therapy after getting it done.  They are really nasty little devils.  Good work!!!

 

Il Leone:

thanx 4 the kind words, the heller kit was actually quite fun 2 build, there wasn't much 2 itbut i added a few little details & the tire logo decals went on perfectly, i was afraid they would silver on me....

here r some WIP pix of the ferrari F1 kit, i'm going to build it OOB this time & save the SMS detail set 4 when i have more time (like after graduation, LOL )

i mite even get this finished before the F1 season ends, too !!!

anyone else got any pix yet ?

 

have a good weekend, all !

 

frosty

 

Very nice, F1 season has been good!

Hey Frosty, nice to see you getting some time on the Ferrari again! Lookin' good! haha, you're getting like me - getting excuses (detail set...) to build another one!

Pictures, sadly no... Tears, sadly yes! Not real tears, though. Just one word lacking... patience! Argh! Rebuilt as much of the R25's main body as I could figure would need the light blue, filled and smoothed to my heart's content. This afternoon I took it out for the first layer of primer. And just had... to... get some more into the side air intakes... Of course I took it too close to the body and caused some running primer! Which will of course lead to me spending much more time on sanding before layer #2 goes down!


Just alongside, much harder to see, the MP4/4 is also coming along - with it's fair share of hickups! Had to build up a part of the nose due to the cast apparently not having gone all that well. The agent was prepared to order me a new body, but I was sort-of in the mood for the challenge. (Much more so than waiting for a new body!) That came out okay, body is painted in white. Rear wing ready for decals. Just have to test whether the Fluo red I got matches the decals, because I saw a small part of the body needs to be painted red, no decal supplied. Right in the middle of the decal... So I may still go the paint-it-all route if there's a major missmatch. Wheels also mostly done.

Good golly, there's a F1 group build going on and I didn't even know about until half way through with my Tamiya F2000. My first F1 kit, well, actually my first car kit... I'll try to post some pictures soon to make you laugh .

SD

Ok, here some pictures. Frightening, those close-ups. Not I see all the pieces that need touch-up...

Front view:


Engine:


brakes and suspensions:



See the nasty red chassis parts? I forgot to put them in place when I was putting the wheel suspension and brakes together . Wwll, it was kind of difficult to do it afterwards - like one of these 3d-puzzles... When I had them in, I realizd that the holes in the engine block where to small for the struts, so I had to get them out again, sand them, and do it all over again. Now they just need some repainting.

wheel suspension


All comments welcome,

SD.

Welcome Sir Drake! All I can say is good going! Nice work on that foil on the rear suspension - they allways give me a headache...

R25's tears has been smoothed out and received 2nd layer of primer yesterday eve. Thanks goodness for fine sanding paper! And I seem to have stumbled onto something of a holy grail - without decrypting the Da Vinci code! Picked up a tin of fluo orange by Humbrol at a glance of the name, deciding it's worth the risk. And lo and behold, a very nice match it seems for the Marlboro red decals on the MP4/4. Just thought I'd mention it. Can't remember the number off the top of my head - 309? Will update progress.

  So much going on.  Hey Frosty, any cool photos from the NY Auto Show?  The local Ferrari place just had a F430 in and let me tell ya, that is way cool to sit in one of those.  But I digress...

SeaBee, you have chosen wisely.  The flou orange you are talking about is exactly the right color for the Marlboro McLarens.  They are very day-glo and in fact day-glo orange with a gloss coat works really well on those cars.  Make sure you put down a good white base before applying the color. 

Lots of Ferrari photos posted, very cool!   Meanwhile at Casa Il Leone a.k.a. Paragon West, the workbench has been returned to operational status.   Not fully as I need to finish the hook-ups for the paint booth, but at least there is work being done.  Deciding I couldn't leave well enough alone, and seeing all the 1/43 work being done here, I raided the closet.  Hey, build 1 McLaren might as well build 2 McLarens.  Same paint right?  So joining the S27 MP 4/19B on the bench is a Tameo MP 4/15.  I may regret this, but not right now.  I took a close look at the primer on the 4/19 and decided it was not up to par.  So it is getting another coat after I finishing the rub down.  The body on the 4/15 is put together but needs to fill here and there to look decent.  Look for pictures as soon as I can figure out this photo bucket thing again.  Time to get dinner on then it is off to the work bench! 

Monaco baby!  (I love the Villeneuve Intel Commercial)

Il Leaone, glad to hear the move is over and done with and you're getting to you models again! Jeez, you won't believe the amount of topics I've read on the correct Marlboro red (non-Ferrari) through the years and the pain guys have gone through to accomplish it. One tin of Humbrol worked fine for me! Maybe I'm just not finicky enough. Pity you're only starting the 1:43 now, I could've done with some words of wisdom! But then, I still have a lot to do on mine...

We have a funny ad on the sport channel for Monaco GP as well. It show pics of a guy with Schumi, texted below as "Tomasz with Michael" and then likewise with Fernando and Kimi. The screen then blacks out with the words "Everybody wants the Pole..." ! (and of course followed by broadcast times)

So for Monaco GP weekend - good news... It looks like local weather is coming in. So no excuses to go outside. Which, of course, is bad for spraying.

Hello all new to the boards, I happened upon here doing research for the F2001 model I am planning on starting. I realize i'm too late for the group build, (and that the model is taken) but all the work done so far looks excellent.

Frostygirl-I read further up that you have the sms superdetail set for the f2001, i'm contemplating purchasing it and was wondering if you could tell me a little more of what's in it besides the pe parts/extra decals/ and carbon fiber overlays.

Does the sms kit come with any of these items:

racing seat belts and hardware for them
wiring for engine compartment
gold foil for rear suspension
temperature sensor decals for rear suspension
rear led light assembly

Thanks for any help you can give me and good luck to everyone with their Formula cars.

-Kyle

Kyle, never too late to join! And multiple builds of the same topic is allowed!

I have the SMS Fw24 and F2002 superdetail sets and it is something else...
I know the foil is included in the Tamiya kit itself. There is also a point to remember in that they have a PE set only seperate from the "superdetail kit". But best is to check out their site (http://www.scalemotorsport.com) and you can send them an email as well, they are allways very helpfull. Have used some of their PE in past and it was allways good products.

I've been working on getting the F2001 started and am waiting for the SMS carbon fiber decals to arrive, looks like a fun kit. Just wondering if anyone else has made any progress in this build?

-Kyle

Ready for more painting here.  The 1/43 McLaren is doing much better than I thought after the first clean-up.  Gotta love how Tameo splits the chassis in half and you get to remove a nice seam.  Gotta love 1/43 kits.  Kinda like resin, clean them up, spray some paint, put them in a box and shake.  Out pops a finished kit!  Fingers crossed that I can get some paint sprayed this week so it can start curing out.  The humid season is upon us now.  Meanwhile the 1/20 McLaren is back ready for more silver.  Hopefully this time it will come out decent!!

What brand and year is your 1/20 McLaren?

Studio 27 MP4/19B, Kimi's Spa winner from 2 years back.  Great race, was at Spa last year and am sorry it won't be on the calendar this year. 

Il Leone - I want that box you have!! The one you put the model in and shake - esp the 43rd ones!

The R25's body (and top part of the front wing assembly) just got the first intro to paint over the weekend, will give it a wetter layer tonight after a quick scrub of the previous layer. Having gotten used to blasting away with TS paints, this is the first body I did in a while using the a/b - usually reserved for exhausts, etc. And found it a bit fine for that kinda work, so had to go about it quite carefully to get even paint distribution.

The Tameo MP4/4 got it's windshield added - part of why I want thast box! Had to do a few touch-ups with the one side not coming out to my liking. Should continue a bit on the body decalling there as well.

Where did Tameo decide to split up the McLaren body on yours, Il Leone? I was fortunate enough not to have such complications. They did make up for it (unintentionally) by short-filling the nose...
On the Kimi and great races topic - I am seriously contemplating giving Red5's newer version of their MP4/20 a try to build a Japanese GP version. Talk about a race! Fortunately Spa will be back next season - allways a good race there...

SeaBee:  I will "try" to get the photos from last night posted today.    If I remember right you are building the WCT version of the MP4/4?  My WCT kit for the Williams FW-11 had a PE bottom to the tub.  Very easy.  The rest of the Tameo kits come in one of two versions.  First is the seperate white metal part that glues to the bottom half of the tub  Gotta have it mated perfectly flat before you glue it in.  Also have to check the fit to the rear pan so it all lines up together.  The other version is way worse.  It has the nose part molded to the pan so you put in the seat, etc. and then glue the pan and nose bottom to the tub.  YIKES   This leaves a nasty and I mean nasty gap in the front behind the wing.  The only reasonable solution I have found is to cut off the part and glue it to the tub.  (Unless you are Kamimura, then you solder it in)

The MP4/15 had the first version.  Also had chimneys on it that I decided to install now instead of later.  Makes the polishing harder, but I think the fit will be better in the end.  BTW, if you haven't seen the work of Akihiro Kamimura, you are missing the work of a true master.  His website is, "God dwells in small things"  http://www.linkclub.or.jp/~ak-model/index.htm  Look around and you can pull up his step-by-step photos of how he builds in 1/43.  If only I was so good. 

Oh, and wait on getting the Red 5 kit, they are updating a big portion of it because the quality was pure junk.  I'm debating on it still.

Seems I'm lucky, then. Whole body shell, floor pan and that's it! Keep in mind that I'm doing the "old" WCT kit, which was basically just a normal kit. Was upgraded recently to a "proper" WCT superdetail kit. Have some kits underway and will see which way they go together...

On the Red5 MP4/20 - they've allready done that. New version's been availabl for a couple of months. Replaced the all-metal body with some resin parts, added decals for later race versions, etc. I'm in no rush, anyways.... maybe waiting for a MP4/21 to be driven as beautifully as the thing looks! Have some Alclad chrome waiting for a release of that!

I have some pix of the F2001 i'm working on, cockpit is finished, and the body has been primed, sanded, and given a second coat.