feretzrus Posted June 12, 2016 Share Posted June 12, 2016 Retrograde of Tamiya's Mini Cooper. Motor wired and plumbed, intake manifold converted to single carb setup. Interior: the instrument cluster was converted from multi-gauge to single gauge. Scale Motorsports used to provide a fabric decal that approximated the Austin fabric pattern. Colors are stock, mixed lacquer with a two-part urethane clear coat. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hubert Rollins Posted June 12, 2016 Share Posted June 12, 2016 Cool build!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aggie Posted June 12, 2016 Share Posted June 12, 2016 Wow great detail under the hood and the interior is spot on.If I may ask, how did you get the seat and the door panels to look like that? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
angelo7 Posted June 12, 2016 Share Posted June 12, 2016 Beautiful build with nice details! I always wondered how air enters to the front of the radiators on these cars. Is there a duct or something to redirect the air? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Metalhead93 Posted June 12, 2016 Share Posted June 12, 2016 The cooling fan sucks air from under the front air deflector and blows it across the radiator. Not the most efficient system since the air is already hot, but they did this to keep the car short and for the fan to remain on the accessory drive belt. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RancheroSteve Posted June 12, 2016 Share Posted June 12, 2016 Really nice build!Remember too that it doesn't get all that hot in the UK. I wonder how well that radiator arrangement holds up in warmer climates? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slusher Posted June 12, 2016 Share Posted June 12, 2016 Super nice.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Helix Posted June 12, 2016 Share Posted June 12, 2016 Very nice Thomas Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
'95 vette Posted June 12, 2016 Share Posted June 12, 2016 The inner fender that the radiator mounts to has louvred punched into it to allow air to be drawn through by the engine driven fan.On a seperate note, those license plates would indicate the car was registered 1978 in the UK. The front plate is correct, black digits on white, while the rear should be black on yellow. Our pre mid '70 s plates were white or silver on black.Hope this helps. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisR Posted June 12, 2016 Share Posted June 12, 2016 Great build and detailing. Nice to see the drip rail on the roof being body colour. Most modelers don't do that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dann Tier Posted June 12, 2016 Share Posted June 12, 2016 This is VERY cool and well done.............love those REAL minis! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1959scudetto Posted June 12, 2016 Share Posted June 12, 2016 The inner fender that the radiator mounts to has louvred punched into it to allow air to be drawn through by the engine driven fan.On a seperate note, those license plates would indicate the car was registered 1978 in the UK. The front plate is correct, black digits on white, while the rear should be black on yellow. Our pre mid '70 s plates were white or silver on black.Hope this helps.The license plates come from Hannu Mikkola's 1979 Ford Escort Mk II RAC rally winner (Revell, former ESCI kit).The conversion from a Cooper to an Austin Seven is great ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike 1017 Posted June 12, 2016 Share Posted June 12, 2016 KOOL Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skip Posted June 13, 2016 Share Posted June 13, 2016 (edited) - Ranchero Steve -There is a special fan for hot weather climates which moves more air than the standard (U.K.) fan. I had one on my Mini for a while here in Washington state, it ended up cooling things down too much in the early spring and late fall months, so they work. An interesting fact about the early Mini's shipped to some countries were that they were sent to Austrailia, New Zealand and South Africa in crates where they would be assembled into a Mini once they arrived into the foreign country from England. One of the guys in the Mini Club I belong to has a South African, "Crate Mini Mk. I". He has all the original paperwork from its existence in South Africa, plus the information from the Mini registery indicating that it was a crate mini. I think I read somewhere that the Crate Mini's were a way around some of the taxes. The Mini's that arrived here in the U.S. Until 1967 were fully built cars with very little fit up required by the U.S. Dealer. 1967 was the last year that the Mini and Mini Cooper were imported into the U.S. because of "safety" regulations. More likely whining from GM and Ford competing against the Corvair and Falcon; even though both were giant in comparison. Edited June 13, 2016 by Skip quote didn't work Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skip Posted June 13, 2016 Share Posted June 13, 2016 Very nice Mk I Mini, I've seen that color or colour combination on a Mk I Mini at British car shows. Most of the Mk I mainline Mini's I've seen are either the light blue and Old English White top or light green and O.E. White top, the other red ones I've seen were the darker red single color paint scheme. Nice job on the dash looks like the Mk I center binical Mini's I've seen a time or two even has the correct speedometer only, Cooper and Cooper S had the three gauge binical plus the twin carbs which you addressed on yours. Looks like you either did your research or had a nice example of the real thing to refer to. Nice job! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CFMgarage Posted June 13, 2016 Share Posted June 13, 2016 WOW! That's a great looking mini! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RancheroSteve Posted June 13, 2016 Share Posted June 13, 2016 There is a special fan for hot weather climates which moves more air than the standard (U.K.) fan. I had one on my Mini for a while here in Washington state, it ended up cooling things down too much in the early spring and late fall months, so they work. Thanks for the info - always good to come here and learn something! I do know several guys here in SoCal that have Minis, so I know it can be done. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Earl Marischal Posted June 13, 2016 Share Posted June 13, 2016 Very nice work.However, just one point. The rear window wiper was never available on that model of Mini. It would have to have been an aftermarket item.steve Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unclescott58 Posted June 13, 2016 Share Posted June 13, 2016 A real Mini! Not that big German designed thing. I like it. Especially the interior detail. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skip Posted June 13, 2016 Share Posted June 13, 2016 A real Mini! Not that big German designed thing. I like it. Especially the interior detail.In real Mini circles the MINI is either called a BINI as in BMW-MINI or a BEON, (the first handful of MINIs used the same engine as the Neon because BMW couldn't meet production on the New MINI engines. We refer to our Minis as "Actual Size", RHD Minis often have an arrow pointing to "Driver Over Here". We have had handfuls of MINI owners try to crash the party with their German built Not-So-MINIs only to be pointed to a couple of Bimer MINI Clubs. Incidentally the New MINI is spelled with all capital letters, BMW bought the Mini Concept and only owns rights to the name MINI not the original Mini which only has one capital letter. The New MINI was actually of British design and intended to be built by Brits as a continuation of the Mini's legacy, when BMW bought the rights to that concept is where the milk curdled! I actually drove one of the first three 2001 MINIs, (not for sale Demos) in Western Washington, which was a Cooper S. When it plowed through a tight corner like a new Honda was when I sort of lost interest; it was tight, it was new but it just wasn't special because it didn't have a heritage of its own! I let the owner of the Tacoma MINI franchise drive my Mini; he was going through the tiny slalom course they had set up on their empty lot, so precise and gingerly that he almost freaked out when I shoved his knee down harder onto the gas as he was entering a tight corner! He thought he was going to spin or worse, he would have in his MINI! 1973 Mk III Mini up-rated to Cooper S Spec versus straight out of the box MINI Cooper S; it was a total hoot! Reminded me of when I heard once on a BBC soccer match one of the first times I visited the U.K. The announcer was talking about the crowd, "the crowd is absolutely going potty!". As a couple of U.S. high school kids in 1973, we thought that was the funniest things we ever heard on TVI know why the air cooled VW crowd holds the "New Beetle" with such distain, many of the NB owners thought they were going to fit into the Air Cooled VW clubs as well. (I own one, but never thought of horsing in on someone else's thing with my newer version.) Same goes with the PT Cruisers who tried to horn in on the Street Rod Events, only they were really met with rudeness! A real Mini! Not that big German designed thing. I like it. Especially the interior detail. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GTJUNIOR Posted June 14, 2016 Share Posted June 14, 2016 Very nice real Mini. Beautifully executed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Plastheniker Posted June 14, 2016 Share Posted June 14, 2016 A classic! Very clean build, great interior. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
花火 Posted June 15, 2016 Share Posted June 15, 2016 Great build! nice interior. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Volksfan Posted June 16, 2016 Share Posted June 16, 2016 Beautiful Austin! I just got one also. But this is a mk 2 Austin mini by heller in 1/43. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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