Scale-Master Posted November 4, 2021 Share Posted November 4, 2021 I picked this kit up in Japan at Tamiya (on my second TamiyaCon tour). A good friend had asked me to snag it as it wasn't readily available in the U.S. at the time. It's been patiently sitting for over 18 years and is now on the bench for that friend's collection. It's a reissue of the 1/24th scale '78 motorized kit; sans motor. It will be built out-of-the-box. I'm amazed at how thin the wall thickness of the body is and delicate the molding is. While that is impressive, it is a concern due to the fact that the dark blue plastic is excessively brittle. (This I know firsthand…) A few hours of scribing new and rescribing existing lines plus seam and sink mark removal resulted in this primer ready body. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scale-Master Posted November 5, 2021 Author Share Posted November 5, 2021 The wheels were painted and the tires hand-lettered with Tamiya acrylic colors. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iamsuperdan Posted November 5, 2021 Share Posted November 5, 2021 Watching this for sure. I have this one on the bench right now too. Built it (poorly) when I was in junior high school. Found another kit last year for cheap, and just started it a week or so ago. Still getting the body ready for primer and paint. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scale-Master Posted November 8, 2021 Author Share Posted November 8, 2021 The taillight panel is clean but the lights are a bit simplistic. Tamiya transparent colors over chrome. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scale-Master Posted November 8, 2021 Author Share Posted November 8, 2021 The "battery cover" or rear section of the interior. It's just three pieces so I hand painted the details rather than mask anything. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stinkybritches Posted November 8, 2021 Share Posted November 8, 2021 I'm liking everything. I love Group 5 cars. They are just so aggressive looking. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scale-Master Posted November 9, 2021 Author Share Posted November 9, 2021 I shot the body with some age appropriate Testors enamel, 1111 Blue. A fresh bottle from about 40 years ago; only a little younger than the tooling for the kit. It dried pretty nicely overnight, but this will have to set awhile to cure… 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scale-Master Posted November 12, 2021 Author Share Posted November 12, 2021 This is Harald Ertl. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steveracer Posted November 12, 2021 Share Posted November 12, 2021 No no! That is Tamiya. Ertl sold out years ago.... /Joke Nice work on a nice kit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scale-Master Posted November 13, 2021 Author Share Posted November 13, 2021 The instrument cluster has some detail molded into the gauges. Keeping with the theme of building it straight out of the box, I hand painted them; mostly dry-brushing silver over black. And a drop of clear for the gauge lenses. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scale-Master Posted November 14, 2021 Author Share Posted November 14, 2021 It was easier to install Harald around the steering wheel, then slide the seat under him. The interior is not overly detailed, but then it was a motorized model/toy. The gauges on the console received the same treatment as the dash. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scale-Master Posted November 16, 2021 Author Share Posted November 16, 2021 The chassis/underside is no more detailed than the interior, but a little detail painting and mild weathering serves it well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scale-Master Posted November 29, 2021 Author Share Posted November 29, 2021 The side window trim was done with Warbird Decals Chrome Stripes. The windshield banner decal was the first one I applied to the exterior of the car, looks like they are on the brittle side. A small piece chipped out during application. I filled it with a drop of acrylic black and sanded it smooth. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Len Woodruff Posted November 30, 2021 Share Posted November 30, 2021 Nice 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mattilacken Posted November 30, 2021 Share Posted November 30, 2021 Looks beautiful as always! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scale-Master Posted December 1, 2021 Author Share Posted December 1, 2021 With that issue brought to light, and a little extra caution, the rest of the decals went on pretty well. They are matte finish so clear coat (already planned) needs to be used. I knocked down the blue paint with 1500 before decaling it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iamsuperdan Posted December 2, 2021 Share Posted December 2, 2021 Looking good! Will have to be careful with the decals on mine. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scale-Master Posted December 5, 2021 Author Share Posted December 5, 2021 The dull sheen of the decals absorbed the clear more than I expected so a little more clear was put down than originally planned. Sure does wake up the color. Plus being in direct sunlight… Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scale-Master Posted December 10, 2021 Author Share Posted December 10, 2021 Once the clear had cured I was surprised how much die back it had on the white panel decals. Since they had to be sanded/polished out the whole car needed to be as well. Made for a much nicer overall finish. I used Hasegawa Flat Black Finish for the windshield frame. It works a lot like BMF but is a vinyl material. A hair dryer is helpful getting it to conform. The glass, headlights grille door panels etc. were installed too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mattilacken Posted December 10, 2021 Share Posted December 10, 2021 Looking good! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
porschercr Posted December 12, 2021 Share Posted December 12, 2021 Looks great. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iamsuperdan Posted December 20, 2021 Share Posted December 20, 2021 Body turned out fantastic. Hoping the decals on mine hold up as well as yours. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scale-Master Posted December 23, 2021 Author Share Posted December 23, 2021 On 12/20/2021 at 7:18 AM, iamsuperdan said: Body turned out fantastic. Hoping the decals on mine hold up as well as yours. Just be gentle with them. They don't want to release from the paper as quickly as some decals. Give a good 90 seconds to two minutes for them to slide easily. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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