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Trumpeter 1/12 scale Ford GT40


MrObsessive

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Well I have seen the pictures of the model, read the comments of several pre-productions test models(actually the final model) and look at the price of the kit...AGAIN!! NO THANKS!!!

This model is overpriced,simplified and with some big NO.NO in it's model parts desing and execution....why the chrome,the plain seats...and this is a BIG pointer since those "silver rings ventilation system" seats are a trademark in the GT40'S. I know that with even all the problems with this kit seems to have some modelers here will turn it into a spectacular piece...but with a LOT of work and probably more money!!

I have an old japanese model car magazine which I had to buy mostly because an article in particular, in it was an article about the rework and corrections in the 1/12 scale Lancia Stratos rally car model kit(can't remember the model company) the finished and corrected model is simply superb, a true labor of love and fidelity to the real thing....out of the box the model was quite "detailed' with a lot of parts and working features also was an expensive model for it's time...and quite noted by the Japanese modelers doing the work, the 'corrections' included, engine details,wheels,interior,bodywork and fabrication to scale of several parts missing in the original kit or wrongly desing or scale apperance, it was a LOT of work. When I saw the test shots of the GT40 model this article about the Lancia Stratos came to me in a flash!!!

Most modelers like myself who like this types of race cars and the big scales are happy with any new offering and I know tooling for such a big model cost a lot of money BUT one has to be careful since buying any overprice model will only make the model companys make more inacurate,simplified and expensive models, simply because they know they will sell them.

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Guest Davkin

I'll reserve judgement and let SMS judge it. If SMS decides it's worthy of a detail upgrade kit then it will be worth building, if they decide to not support the kit, that would be a bad sign and I most likely won't bother buying it.

David

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Well I bought Tamiya's 1/24 scale Enzo Ferrari...This is an excellent stand alone kit...but SMS's Super detail kit took it to a "whole n'other level" machined parts and extensive photo-etch that you'll never get from any plastic model company.

I agree that it doesn't mean Trumpeter should do a crappy job assuming that some aftermarket company will make their kits better.....Trumpeter should make a great "stand alone" plastic kit...and there should be aftermarket parts for that extra detail for enthusiasts....to satisfy everyone and their budget!

I really can't say that this Trumpeter kit is going to be great or not...I never make judgements on photos alone...YES...the chrome sprues and the seats have already ticked some of us off....these can be tweaked....I've NEVER built a kit straight out of the box anyway...I've always did my own lil things to add to the realism. I always looked at a basic kit as a starting point.... and as for prices

I've paid $400.00 for 1/12 Acura Nsx (Rosso) plastic kit only

$1000.00+ for 1/350 Akagi + all photo-etch sets, extra planes..etc

I am not rich...I am an average working joe...but I have a passion for this hobby

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Does anyone have the 1/12 Porsche Super Detail Kit for SMS??? How much of the Tamiya kit did you use after using SMs's kit? Could it be possible that we won't need much of the Trumpeter's parts anyway???

I have built 2 of them with SMS parts. See this thread "Tamiya 935 with SMS parts" under WIP. The Tamiya kit is about 70% by volume and 40% by number of parts. It really comes down to having good bones. For the most part, you have to have good bones or you can't make it look right. The basics of the engine are all there and SMS just enhanced them. Examples would be the fuel injection pump. I started with the Tamiya part and added nuts, bolts, and screw heads. I removed the plastic injection line connectors and replaced them with stainless tubing and aluminum compression fittings. It was not difficult but the shape and the correct items were already there and it was just enhancements. There are not a lot of things that are completely replaced by SMS parts. A list would be, suspension adjuster, gear shift, turbo boost, rims and break assembly, 80% of the rear suspension, and shocks. The basics of the engine were for the most part enhanced but not replaced. The interior was mostly enhancements as was the front. It was adding better looking or more precise pieces to existing parts. SMS is not into taking a poor kit and bringing it up to speed. For the most part they start with good kits and make them great. We will see if the GT 40 fits that category. If it has basic accuracy, then Matthew will tackle it. If he has to recreate important parts, then most likely, he will pass.

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Guest Davkin

SMS sent out an email update. They have a pre-production sample and first impressions are that the quality is pretty good, so sounds like they are likely to move forward with a detail upgrade kit.

David

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Kool! Not too surprised at that.

I see what's giving some of you guys problems about this kit from the pics, and I hope the seats and fanbelt are among the bits SMS might look at. It certainly isn't a case like Fujimi's 250 GTO, which pretty much bludgeoned any halfway-observant modeler with its superiority right from the first shots of the resin prototype.

But I'm gonna take a risk - considering Trumpeter's record, a pretty big one - and suggest that the actual kit may be more impressive than the pics lead us to believe. We see the plastic parts, and yeah, the simplification/pre-painting of the engine in particular seems strange for this kind of kit - but it appears there's also a bunch of bagged goodies we don't get much of a look at.

I take SMS's tacit endorsement as a VERY positive sign...

Edited by Chuck Kourouklis
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I'm stoked!!..SMS is giving it a rate of 8 out of 10 (maybe even a 9 out of 10) 10 being Tamyia's level of qualtiy.

Does anyone have GMP seats we can make resin castings? LOL

I'm going to the dollar store to buy some windex to strip all that chrome!!lol

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Uhhh, if Trumpeter uses the same plating process it used for its 1/24 scale car kits, Windex ain't a-gonna come anywhere close to touching it. In fact, I'm not sure there's a substance known to man that'll touch it. It's seriously tough stuff!

Have you tried household bleach???? dissolves chrome doesn't harm plastic

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Uhhh, if Trumpeter uses the same plating process it used for its 1/24 scale car kits, Windex ain't a-gonna come anywhere close to touching it. In fact, I'm not sure there's a substance known to man that'll touch it. It's seriously tough stuff!

If we're talking that nickel-on-top-of-copper plating Trumpeter first corrected their Bonnevilles with, I'm not sure we'll see that here. That stuff is actually cool to the touch, whereas the plating on the Monte Carlo and ALF didn't have that characteristic, nor did it seem as even and robust.

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  • 2 weeks later...
:lol: I applaud anyones effort to invest money in a project like this. I know the price is steep, but you have to look at in in the terms of value recieved. You get a lot of satisfaction from building something this big. My problem is I have nowhere to display something this big. Edited by elan
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  • 2 weeks later...

Scale Motorsport has ditched plans for a super detail kit.

Information here

Just in case the link end up dead at some point, here is what was posted on SMS's 'site:

"Many automotive model builders have been waiting years for a manufacturer to release a 1:12th scale builder's kit of the infamous Ford GT40 MKII. So when Trumpeter stepped up to the plate and announced they would be 'the' manufacturer builders around the world took note.

Hundreds of customers placed reservations for our GT40 MKII Super Detail Kit and we have kept everyone up to date on our activities. About two weeks ago we received our Trumpeter sample kit and immediately jumped into evaluating every detail. You can imagine how excited we were to have such an early opportunity and to report back to all the customers that placed reservations over our web site.

Our first impressions were good, the only negatives we could see was the extensive use of chrome parts and the incorrect molding of seat details. The body appears to be perfect and the wheels excellent but the tires too balloon like and out of proportion. All in all not too bad for Trumpeter's first effort into the field. We felt the problems identified could easily be corrected with our super detail kit.

But in order to fully evaluate the Trumpeter kit we needed to get further into understanding it, the same way we did by visiting the Holman/Moody Garage in North Carolina last January and spending a day with Lee Holman studying the original engineering drawings taking thousands of detailed photos and hours of video. Holman/Moody was the garage chosen by Henry Ford back in the early 60's to build a team of GT40 MKII's along with the Shelby team to beat Ferrari at Le Mans.

Scale Motorsport spent a great deal of time and expense on research we felt it was the only way we could move ahead with confidence and speed knowing our details would be right on. After assembling the engine, suspension components, mounting the wheels and body we have come to the conclusion that we will not be investing our development time into a super detail kit for the Trumpeter GT40 MKII.

Our view is the kit is too 'toy-like' and regardless of the amount or degree of detail we could create it wouldn't be enough to make economical sense for Scale Motorsport, nor our customers to spend the time and money it would take to build the kit into what it should have been.

We applaud Trumpeter's efforts for their first attempt at a large scale automotive builder's kit it is a good effort, unfortunately the result is not where Scale Motorsport believes it needs to be in order for us to bring to market the type of product our reputation has been built on and our customers expect.

The 1:12th scale GT40 MKII is the Holly Grail of builder's kits, and as Scale Motorsport is all about building, we encourage you to grab one of the Trumpeter kits for yourself before they are sold out. Since 1:12th scale subjects are so rare these days you will be amazed at how different it feels to hold parts of this size in your hands. And speaking of parts, the parts in the Trumpeter kit do fit extremely well, practically snapping together with little to no modification. Also make sure to get yourself a gallon of bleach, you will need it to remove all the chrome from all the parts!

We greatly appreciate everyone's interest in a Scale Motorsport GT40 MKII Super Detail Kit. The volume of reservations we received tells us there are enough interested customers out there to make our development commitment worth it, but only for the right 1:12th scale kit. Unfortunately the Trumpeter GT40 MKII is just not that kit."

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Bummer.

On further examination, I was wondering a bit about the all the suspension pivot points in particular, which seemed a bit large for scale. I'm still not sure I'd come to the same overall "toy-like" conclusion, but I may see that point better once I start building.

If all's the same to you, Bob, I'm gonna reference the same section myself...

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  • 3 years later...

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