JohnnyK

To be honest, I would not try to take that apart. There is a good chance that you will break something in the front suspension. On the plus side, very little of that will be seen once the model is assembled. Following are some photos of my model. I did a dry fit of the body panels. This model is designed so that the top panel of the body is removable. The side panels and the top two flat body panels are designed to be glued to the aluminum tub. The top and side panels of the tub will not be visible once the model is finished. Even the front suspension is hidden from view. Now you know why I would suggest that you do not try to take the tub and front suspension of your model apart. You will gain nothing from doing that.

Post a picture of the tub. Maybe I can help.

They also charge $35.00 to ship to the US. That's outragous!

UPDATE APRIL 16 Time to assemble the front suspension and steering. The front suspension and steering are composed of 51 parts. It takes a while to assemble the suspension and steering because certain parts need to be preassembled and the glue needs to cure overnight before they can be included in the overall assembly. Regarding the steering system, it is important that the flat spot on the steering shaft (red arrow) be in the up position and that the rack be centered on the pinion (green arrow) while the steering system is assembled. Otherwise the steering wheel will be offset when the front wheels are straight ahead. I painted a white dot at the center of the rack and on the pinion when the steering wheel is in the proper position. This helped to keep the rack and pinion centered during assembly. This is the final assembly. Be careful that you don't reverse the bulkhead. The instructions are not very clear. The front suspension is fully assembled but something looks wrong. The wheel hub and brake rotor are crooked!!! The mounting pins (green Arrows) on the hub are offset, which means that there is a right side hub and a left side hub. I assembled them in reverse. Fortunately, the hubs snap into the suspension arms so it is easy to correct the problem. The chassis, engine and suspensions are finished. Time to move onto the body panels.

You should definitely get the hose clamps. They will add a lot of realism to your model. FYI, the clamp are a little difficult to install because they are so stiff. First I bend them around a small paint brush handle or toothpick. Them I wrap them around the hose and push the tail through the slot on the other end. I use tweezers to pull the tail and then bend it over the slotted end. It takes a little practice.

I love those old Tamiya 1/12 scale models. I'll be watching. Where did you buy this kit?

The 1:12 scale hose clamps were included in the KA Models Detail Kit that I purchased when I built a Trumpeter Ford GT40 MK II. The detail kit included an entire sheet of hose clamps. You can purchase the clamps from KA Models for $9.00 here: http://ka-models.co.kr/?product=cable-tie

Thanks Chris. Al, If you like to add a lot of detail to your models then you will like this model.

Update April 14 The weather is too crummy for gardening, so I'm back to modeling. The fuel supply hoses and oil hoses have been installed. This thing has more hoses than Home Depot. The rear suspension is complete.

Really nice looking models. I love vintage kits.

Looking good. I love building 1/12 scale models, especially the engines.

Great looking model.

Please explain what a "model rectifier" is? My kit must have been an early re-release because there are no PE parts included in the kit.

Here is the info on the box: Big Scale Model Series No. 17, Item 12019-4000

Update March 21 This build is on-hold due to Spring clean-up and gardening work.

Update March 16 Well, the model is finally starting to look like something. I'm not sure what it exactly looks like, but at least it looks like something.

Updated March 13 The engine has been glued to the firewall with the help of some clamps. This is the oil tank and one of the oil coolers. The tank is finished in Bare Metal Foil and the fins on the cooler are highlighted using Tamiya Panel Line Accent Color. I added Bare Metal Foil to the ends of the oil hoses to simulate the fittings on high pressure hoses.

Updated March 9 Seatbelts were not included with this kit, so I purchased an aftermarket seatbelt kit. The kit includes cloth seatbelts and PE buckles. The problem is that the instructions do not indicate how long to cut the belts. So I measured the belts on my 1/12 Lotus. The finished seatbelts look really good. Except for one problem (see below) I installed the seat belts with the seat upside down. ? Luckily the belts are installed with double stick tape so correcting the belts was no big issue.

No engine decals in the Indycals. The original decals only had two engine decals.

Update March 7, 2021 I added a few wires to the ignition module. The ignition module has been installed and the main fuel lines and fuel filter have been installed. Here is a closeup of the fuel filter. Stainless steel hose clamps were provided at the ends of the main fuel lines.

Okay, now I understand. The kit is a very old kit and did not include any PE parts. eBay has PE parts for this kit, but the prices are way too high.

No. What are you refering to?

Update March 4, 2021 Finally, I finished the exhaust system. The final result looks impressive, but it was no fun to build. Tomorrow I get my second CIVID shot at a Walgreens about 30 miles from my house.

I have no experience with the 1/20 scale models. I would think that the 1/20 scale models would have less parts then the 1/12 scale models.

I built the six wheeler last year: 1/12 Tamiya ELF P34 six wheeler - Other Racing: Road Racing, Salt Flat Racers - Model Cars Magazine Forum The six wheeler was a difficult build due to the complicated front suspension. Where are you purchasing your kits: