Nacho Z

A beautiful model for sure!

Yes, I have. My problem was, I wasn’t sure what size to get. I do a fair bit of “eyeball engineering” and want them to not only be in scale but also look “right”. Then there is the satisfaction of trying to make my own. I’m on my third iteration of them and I’m still not satisfied. I have a few friends and one small FB group that I share a lot of my work with. I love them all, but they drive me crazy because they don’t let me slack off and get too lazy. It is truly constructive criticism and I do appreciate it. Regarding the Williams, I have the complete Thunder Valley F1 set. Set isn’t really correct, I have everything he made for the Williams. I have everything Top Studio made as well. And to the best of my knowledge, I have everything RB had for it as well, or at least, what would work on it. I have Tabu or Shunko decals, I forget which, as well as some CF decals for it. The CF decals probably won’t work. I believe someone copied and upscaled Studio 27’s 1:20 sheets? We’ll see. Going back to Thunder Valley F1 and Paul Raterink. I was fully aware of how he ripped people off by taking their money and not sending out the items they paid for and about all of his sob stories. However, there were reports that he was trying to make things right. After a little more investigation, and talking to him, I ordered the Williams items. They arrived and to the best of my recollection there were no problems. Beautiful, exquisite stuff! Then I landed a 1:12 Tamiya Ferrari 641/2. I went back to TVF1 and placed my order for all of those items. He told me on the phone and in emails that I still have, that he had almost everything on hand and would have to make a few pieces. The only thing that I have received is a whole lot of BS from him. I’m out hundreds of dollars. He strung me along long enough that I really have no recourse. While typing this reply, I Googled his company and the website appears to no longer exist. I’m curious of how many people Paul Raterink has stolen money from.

Marcus, thank you very much for the kind words! How amazing is it to have been around those famous racetracks!!! I have stated elsewhere on this forum that I post these WIP threads for a couple of reasons; it helps me remember what I did and when I did it and hopefully it may help someone else out in the process. No false humility here, but I really do consider myself a bit of a hack and a lazy modeler. I know where I took shortcuts and where I could have done better. I’ll never be at the level of a lot of guys and gals but I do try to do the best I can with my limited abilities. So, thanks again! It is interactions like this that help push me along with my builds.

Wowzers!!! Like others have said, this one is my favorite! Outstanding!

You really do these land yachts proud, Bill!

She’s a beauty, Bill!

Now that is one nice looking Camaro! The color works well on it.

Cool beans!

Great looking model, Bob! You may have persuaded me to do this kit for this year’s Annual 24 Hour Build.

My sentiments exactly.

Another beauty, Scott! Thanks for sharing.

Wow!!! I think that thing is gorgeous! Awesome job on it. Makes me want to build mine.

Good looking car and a good looking model!

Yes, Sting, I do have pics, but one thing I really, really dislike is when people hijack, or attempt to hijack, someone's thread. This thread is all about your beautiful F430. On a side note, I know what you mean about the Fujimi kits. I just finished their F355. It was a bit of a pig of a kit. Ended up nice, but it took a fair amount of work to get there.

She looks darn good to me!

There is no doubt that you have built a beautiful model and the excellent photography only maximizes your work! Just a fantastic job on both aspects. I built the Fujimi F430 Challenge model a number of years ago and I remember that it was a nice kit. Zero is definitely some hot paint. I do believe that some colors are hotter than others for some reason, at least that has been my experience.

She is looking good, Justin!

Fandamntastic!!

This is soooo cool! I think it is just fantastic! Great job and thank you for sharing.

Absolutely stunning!

Thanks, Chris! I’m hoping to have this one completed and ready for the 2024 contest season, but I don’t think that will happen. I’m getting ready for some major plumbing of that V-12. Lots to figure out. Last night I started scratching up some banjo fittings…?‍♂️ At this rate I will not be ready for the Spring season. Maybe the Fall season…lol.

Mark, I'm right there with you. I made these one at a time, or, one per session. The wire and the drill bit are so small that I really had to hold them tightly.

Thanks, Andrew! I am just using my android. It is a Galaxy S21. I almost always shoot on a plain white background. Every now and then I will use a colored background like blue.

Welcome back to the Matra MS11 build! For some of you who may be seeing this as one continuous thread, you should know that I have taken a full 10 months off from working on this build, (9 months since the last post, but I am always a little behind on posting my WIPs). I was very surprised to see that this build thread continued to get views, even while not active, and is currently sitting at over 11,000 views! My last post in this thread had mentioned that I was in a pretty bad funk, and I was. I think I am over it and I feel refreshed and excited to tackle and finish this model. I took a couple of nights to reacquaint myself with the model, my plans, my references, etc. Although tonight's update will seem small, it is a huge step for me! With that, let's get back to the build! In my last post in March of this year I stated that I made the exhaust springs only to realize that I didn't like them. I felt that they were too big. They were made from 32 gauge wire wrapped around a .8mm drill bit. I made 8 new ones, this time using 34 gauge wire wrapped around a .7mm drill bit. Original one on the left and new, smaller one on the right. Thanks for checking in! Comments are welcome.

I have. No issues. I tend to use HobbyLinc Japan more often just because of their "Private Warehouse" option. I have a number of friends who have used the site that you listed with no problems.