Nacho Z

I love watching these MFH kits going together. I can appreciate how much work you are doing just to get it to the point where most plastic kits start out at, regarding fit and finish.

Awesome! Congratulations, Bruce! This is such a gorgeous model.

Nice job, Aaron! That is a good looking model!

Thanks, Josh! The model was started in 2019 and set aside until a few months ago. I dug it back out and finished it at the beginning of June. The contest it won was held in the middle of June. It just took me until this month to post it here. I’ve actually finished two more models since then which I will post here as well. I appreciate it, Chris!

Thank you, Bruce! Thank you, Bruce!

Thanks, Chris! I used a combination of Alclads and AK Interactive Xtreme Metals. I tried to use as many different shades as feasible. Your eyes will pick up on the subtle differences. Even putting the same shade of metalizer over different primers will change them up enough to make it visually interesting.

I would like to share my Spirit of America Porsche 956 with all of you. I fell in love with this livery when I first saw it. I found the Studio 27 decals and just had to build it. This post will be a little photo heavy so be forewarned. If you would like to see the WIP you can go here: WIP: Other Racing: Road Racing, Land Speed Racers - Model Cars Magazine Forum. A list of products used is listed there. There is also a little rant within that thread so be forewarned about that too...lol. Questions? Ask away. Comments? Please post them. Critiques? I'm a big boy. Maybe I'll learn something from them. This model has only made it to one model contest so far. I am pleased with the results. It is nice to have your work recognized by your peers. This is a shot of some test fitting during the build process. The drivetrain is not complete in this picture but I thought it was kind of cool. The rear cover is not fully in place, it is just sitting on the model. The model will normally be displayed with it off.

Timing is everything...lol. I just hopped on here to post the finished model in Under Glass. I'll have the post made very shortly. Thanks for the kind words!

This is just an all around great looking model! Well done!

Thanks, Ira!

Mine arrived in WV today.

I was getting ready to post another update but I think I will just go ahead and post the model in the Under Glass section. Obviously any update is going to be more decals. It was a challenge getting the red stripes to line up and also position the decals around the various openings, etc. As you will see in the finished model, it all worked out pretty well. Thanks for following along!

For this update I am going to address the body paint. The post will also be a bit of a rant. As a reminder, I started this kit in 2019. This was well before I began to use an airbrush so I had to use rattle cans. In one of my first posts I showed that I had some yellow coming through the Tamiya white primer. Without going into all of the reasons why I will just say that I ended up painting the body in Krylon. Now for why I did this and the aforementioned rant. I asked on 2 Facebook groups a question about compatibility between Krylon and Tamiya spray paint. The thing about Facebook, and to be totally honest, sometimes on MCM too, is that reading comprehension is sadly lacking. So again, I simply asked about compatibility. I immediately get beaten up, stomped on, put down, had my modeling skills questioned and pretty much called stupid for even thinking about Krylon. One or two guys actually tried to answer my question. That was just the first group...lol. The second group, before the question could really even be discussed, the Administrator basically said that due to the very fact that I even asked the question just showed how little I know and should I even be building models! He then locked the thread so I couldn't even respond! It was actually at that point that I was so mad that I determined come heck or high water I was going to paint this doggone model in Krylon and it was going to be contest quality. All I did was ask a question about compatibility! We have the same thing on here sometimes. Someone asks a question and gets basically told that if he doesn't do something the way the expert thinks it should be done, well then you're an idiot. Don't be a tool, answer the question with factual information and not an editorialization. BTW, the group that the Admin. locked my thread, my models have been his banner pictures multiple times since then...lol. One last thought. I know that Krylon is not as nice to use as Tamiya. I know Tamiya is a far better product for models. I also know that it isn't just about the product, it is more about the model builder. On to the Spirit of America Porsche 956 that was painted in Krylon. The body was painted white and allowed to cure. I then masked the white and sprayed Krylon True Blue. This was allowed to cure. I determined early on that I would not clear coat the body. This is a 1986 vintage race car, not a show car. I painted the dash and headlight buckets next. I did my normal paint polishing. I used the Micro Mesh system and Tamiya polishing compounds. Here is the body before any touchups or polishing. And now to polish it out. I don't use motor tools for this. I actually enjoy the process of polishing out a car body. It is very relaxing to me. One problem with those big ol rattle cans vs. airbrushing is that it is very hard to control how much paint you lay down. I noticed that I had some areas, the NACA ducts, where the paint had pulled away. At this stage in my model building career I was airbrushing. I masked these and shot some Zero Paints Pure Brilliant White into the NACA ducts. The rear polished out. Race car, not show car. The front polished out. Race car, not show car. And one teaser pic of the decals. The livery is what drove me to build this model. The decals were challenging. They were not made perfectly as far as matching the body but they were very close. They are also old so they chipped a little. As always, comments, questions and criticisms are welcome. Shoot, I'll even answer questions about Krylon spray paint...lol!

I say go for it!... I hear you about the lighting however. It is very important. You know, come to think of it, when a beginner asks about what kind of tools they should get to start out I wonder how many times they are told to invest in good lighting??? Thanks, Bruce! Thank you, Jim!

Bruce, you really knocked it out of the park with this one! She is a beauty!

Thanks, Dan! I suppose we are our own worst critic. I can point out all sorts of things that are wrong…lol. Regarding the work bench / work area, have you ever seen a Formula 1 team’s home base garage? You could eat off of the floors. That is more my style. I try to keep my work bench fairly clean and organized. I still loose small PE parts but most of the time I can find them ?. Thanks, Josh! My model building friends appreciate what we do but my non-model building friends just have no idea. The penny is one thing they can relate to. At work, when I show people my pictures I will pull a penny out of my pocket so they can see just how small the “0” in the date is. I will do a few more updates before posting in the Under Glass section. Thanks for following along!

Continuing on with the drivetrain. There doesn't appear to be much interest in this build, so I'll skip some of the details and hit the highlights. I've scratched up some missing pieces. There are prominent pipes running from the radiators/intercoolers(?) to the block. (I'm a little embarrassed that I do not know the names and/or functions of all these pieces.) Oddly, they are not in the Tamiya kit. I plumbed the transaxle. And I added engine plumbing with prototypically correct braided line or hoses. All hoses have hose clamps. Please note that the next two pics are NOT of the completed drivetrain. A quick shot of the under tray. How about a quick mock up of what I have done so far. There will be more details added. Next update I will talk about painting the body. As always, comments, questions are critiques are welcome.

Like I said I’m currently a little under the weather and have been couch bound so I’ve had it on pretty much continuously. As of this post there is 42 minutes left of the race. I love these cars. I currently have a WIP thread going for the Spirit of America Porsche 956.

Wow, John, that is such a nice looking AWB! You’ve really nailed it. Great job!

Looks like a nice, clean build to me! Glad you stuck with it. It is definitely an eye catcher!

I made a post about this year's 24 Hours of Le Mans that is currently running. This is a happy coincidence that I am posting a Le Mans build ?. Thanks to those of you who have commented so far. I know these cars are not everyone's cup of tea. On to tonight's update. As I said in the last post, I am leaving out a lot of details and pictures that went into this model. I don't want to overload you all with too much info. As a reminder I am using Scale Motorsports' PE. I did not use every single piece but I did use most of it. I scratch built a coil, (there is none in the kit), but after it was built and painted, I realized it was too long and did not look "right" sitting in place. I cheated and used a Detail Master item. Here is the first picture that I took of the drivetrain. I already have a lot of work in it. In this picture you can see the coil I made. It was just too long. There are times when you do not have the correct parts to replicate something on the 1:1. There should be banjo fittings on the fuel lines but I didn't have any so I used A/N fittings. This caused the fuel lines to have to be curved when if fact the 1:1 are much more straight. The wire routing is pretty close to the 1:1. There is a bolt head in the zero on this penny. Many of my none building friends have no idea how much work goes into a model such as this. I often use a penny so that have an easy to understand reference. And this is how I pick up and mount the bolt head. And this is the part with the PE bolts heads installed. Your eye will catch those small details when looking at the model. The turbos.

I can't believe that there has been no threads or mention of this year's running of the 24 Hours of Le Mans. I'm a little under the weather so I've been watching most of the day. Anyone else tuned in?

I just realized that I never really thanked everyone for their comments. Although there are probably "unbuildable" kits out there, I am of the belief that you can make any kit presentable. It may not be 100% accurate but it can still look nice on your shelf. Cheers!

A beautiful model of a beautiful car. The photographs are just icing on the cake!

Yeah, I’m really digging this one! I’m looking forward to watching it come together.