jaymcminn Posted July 21, 2014 Share Posted July 21, 2014 This is Trumpeter's controversial 1/12 Ford GT40. You can find the build thread (and a lot of general GT40 discussion) here. http://www.modelcarsmag.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=90053 A lot of things have been said about this kit- it's lousy, it's great, it's toylike, it's detailed, it's an amazing replica, it's wildly inaccurate... and they're ALL true! It's a 310 piece kit where about 200 of the parts are chrome-plated. And I mean some random stuff, like the sides of the engine block. Some more random parts are pre-painted. The kit tires are tire-shaped only in the sense that they are round, and a lot of the details are clunky or non-existent. But the proportions are correct, the "bones"are there, and it's possible to make a really nice model out of this weird kit. This is a true multi-media kit. In addition to the plastic, there's PE metal, turned aluminum, fabric, woven oil and fuel lines, tubing, screws, clips... lots and lots of parts that contribute to a truly impressive model. I built mine in the Arcadian Blue livery of chassis # 1015, which placed second in the 1966 LeMans 24 Hours. The car had day-glo red vinyl ID patches added to the front wings for LeMans... I wasn't crazy about them so I left them off. I have seen pics of the car racing without the patches. I tried not to drive myself too nuts getting every little detail perfect. The Trumpeter kit doesn't lend itself well to that kind of precision anyway. What it does do is capture the essence of the GT40, and that's what I hope I did here... A lot of extra work went into this kit, such as photoetched washers to represent the seat grommets, toggle switches scratchbuilt from plastic bolt heads and silver wire, and a kitbashed fire extinguisher and battery. The tires are beautiful resin items by Icon Automotive and the decals are by BBK. The Icon tire set also comes with a resin spare tire and wheel, as the kit doesn't provide one. It ain't pretty what you have to do to that spare to get it to fit, but it does look good in place. I scratchbuilt the hold-down from leftover seat belt material, wire, and aluminum. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaymcminn Posted July 21, 2014 Author Share Posted July 21, 2014 Here are a few more pics... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rossy Posted July 21, 2014 Share Posted July 21, 2014 I followed most of the build thread and can't say enough good things about it! Looks fantastic finished Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DynoMight Posted July 21, 2014 Share Posted July 21, 2014 (edited) Amazing job. Is this kit any good? I've heard some stuff about it, not sure if it is good or bad, or what... Your model is absolutely amazing, now you have to find somewhere to put it on the shelf hahha Edited July 21, 2014 by DynoMight Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Silver Foxx Posted July 21, 2014 Share Posted July 21, 2014 First time I have seen one of these built , and what a top class build you have done , this is so nice , well done . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaymcminn Posted July 21, 2014 Author Share Posted July 21, 2014 (edited) Amazing job. Is this kit any good? I've heard some stuff about it, not sure if it is good or bad, or what... Your model is absolutely amazing, now you have to find somewhere to put it on the shelf hahha Thanks, Glenn! I think the kit itself is excellent. Parts fit is good, panel fit is alright after some tweaking, and the kit detail provides a very good starting point. Some of the parts, however, are out-of-scale and "clunky", especially the suspension and interior parts. Building this kit involves a lot of compromise... it helps to determine ahead of time what you can live with and what you feel you need to fix. If I had the patience, I could have spent another four months on this thing. As it was it took about three. I would recommend this kit to anyone wanting to push his abilities without going to the extreme of, say, a Pocher kit. Edited July 21, 2014 by jaymcminn Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vamach1 Posted July 21, 2014 Share Posted July 21, 2014 (edited) People expect a model (from China no less) to be 100% accurate and not resemble a toy in some ways. Thankfully the aftermarket steps up and makes up for glaring omissions and provides some better parts than the originals if one chooses to "upgrade." The photo etch metal upgrade kits are for those that want to add more details. Of course the modeler can add anything they want and scratch build their own parts too. The kit is not perfect from what I have read but what kit is? Consider the alternative of no kit at all. I have yet to start on mine but when I do will refer back to this fantastic build by Jason. http://www.ebay.com/itm/KS-1-12-GT40-Super-detail-up-pack-for-Trumpeter-KS00007-/250606669197?pt=Model_Kit_US&hash=item3a59524d8d Edited July 23, 2014 by vamach1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cobraman Posted July 22, 2014 Share Posted July 22, 2014 Beautiful model. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slusher Posted July 22, 2014 Share Posted July 22, 2014 Great looking model.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PappyD340 Posted July 22, 2014 Share Posted July 22, 2014 OUTSTANDING MODEL!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
o-man Posted July 22, 2014 Share Posted July 22, 2014 That is so awesome looking! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sflam123 Posted July 22, 2014 Share Posted July 22, 2014 I too followed the build thread. You did an amazing job with this! You should be very proud of your efforts! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yellowsportwagon Posted July 22, 2014 Share Posted July 22, 2014 Looks great to me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lovefordgalaxie Posted July 22, 2014 Share Posted July 22, 2014 The very best build of this kit I ever saw. It's a real masterpiece. replica of the very best race car ever built. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Helix Posted July 22, 2014 Share Posted July 22, 2014 Very impressive build Jason, well done mate Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blunc Posted July 22, 2014 Share Posted July 22, 2014 I totally agree with all the comments, a little photoshop fun could put your model in the pits of LeMans and very few would be able to tell it wasn't real. Bravo sir! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisR Posted July 22, 2014 Share Posted July 22, 2014 Looks great! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DeeCee Posted July 22, 2014 Share Posted July 22, 2014 That is a very impressive build, superbly detailed too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris White Posted July 22, 2014 Share Posted July 22, 2014 outstanding detail work Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
donb Posted July 22, 2014 Share Posted July 22, 2014 Those interior pics are beautiful as qell as the rest. Great work! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
afx Posted July 22, 2014 Share Posted July 22, 2014 Your extra efforts really lift this kit. Nice work Jason. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eric C Posted July 22, 2014 Share Posted July 22, 2014 Fantastic work. I really like the finished look of this car and you've described the kit perfectly for what it is to start with and what it can be built into.You've done a great job building this kit and it represents the GT40 very well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tonioseven Posted July 22, 2014 Share Posted July 22, 2014 Truly awesome build!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kopperkart Posted July 23, 2014 Share Posted July 23, 2014 You have the right attitude to make something special out of a less than stunning base. Well done! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bbowser Posted July 23, 2014 Share Posted July 23, 2014 Add my congrats as well. Great work! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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