Spottedlaurel

I like what you've done so far. I think these Impalas are great looking things. I got hold of the same kit this year and it'sjumped the queue rather massively, hovering at the edge of my bench as my next project.

Really interesting to read this through from the start, I didn't realise these Beemax kits had so many issues. Some are reminiscent of things I've encountered on other Japanese kits that were intended to be motorized, the way I've dealt with them is rather less thorough than your approach..... I only have the Fujimi Starion, it's been some years since I've had a good look at it but I suspect it will have a few challenges.

Some inventive thinking and effective work so far, I look forward to seeing it progress. Will be interesting to see your chosen colour, wheel choice etc.

Good to see you back here again Martin, was thinking you'd been quiet recently. Looks like a great start on this new project, look forward to seeing it progress.

Looking really good, the detailing is excellent. I've done nothing on mine, but I have the Christmas holiday to come......

I'd be very happy to see some things like that in a supermarket here.

You've just reminded me about a sale I made on eBay some years ago. Somehow I ended up with a 1950s American speed equipment catalogue, it probably came in a batch of magazines I bought. Wayne I think it was. I put it on eBay and it sold to someone in America who happened to own a car that was featured in this particular publication. It was a distinctive racing car, no doubting that it was the same one. He sent me some 'now' photos of it and I was really pleased it had gone to the right person. It didn't make a lot of money, but it was a very satisfying transaction. I haven't sold anything on there for some years, at present I don't have the time to list, pack and ship items the way I'd like to see and receive them. Bought and continue to buy plenty though, with very few issues. Sadly the days of picking up obscure/dull kits for very little money have long gone, I can only be happy I got what I did when I did. My usual policy is to throw in a bid near the beginning then leave it, and not get caught up in a bidding war. If I get it at a good price that's great, if not then I don't worry.

That looks great! I really like your take on it.

That looks fantastic, excellent work! Just because it's a snap-fix kit with a limited parts count doesn't mean it can't be painted and detailed nicely, you've done it proud.

That looks excellent. The blue paintwork is a great choice for it.

Have slowed down a bit on the kit purchases, but this old Fujimi oddity was a recent arrival: 1:24 Fujimi Toyota Crown 2800 Benz Mask by Spottedlaurel, on Flickr I've had a wide-arch version for some years. Looks like I have an old Monogram Chevy Luv stepside and Tamiya Nissan 180SX on their way to me as well, after a couple of eBay listing finished tonight.

Thanks Alex and Steve. Being self-critical I think my original build was slightly better, but it's great to see it on the shelf again. Haven't done much in the last week but after squirting the sprues with a bit of primer one evening I was in a position to enjoy some straightforward work on the Silvia today. Wasn't in the frame of mind to do anything too taxing, but a bit easy brush painting on the interior was just what I needed. 1:24 Tamiya Nissan Silvia K's kit by Spottedlaurel, on Flickr This one suffered less than some of the others. The damage makes it look like it's been drifted into something solid, rather appropriate given the fate of so many Silvias. I can re-use a reasonable amount of the original parts, including the suspension which I spent some time lowering. 1:24 Tamiya Nissan Silvia K's kit by Spottedlaurel, on Flickr Where I was at the beginning of today. 1:24 Tamiya Nissan Silvia K's kit by Spottedlaurel, on Flickr And after some low-stress painting - I didn't have a huge amount of time but wanted to do something that moved it forwards. Also applied BMF to the back of the front and rear lights and to the front indicators (which then need to be painted with clear orange). This kit is going to end up very close to the original. As a concept I was pleased with how it turned out first time around, I think this S13 generation of Silvia looks really good and the champagne colour and wheel choice is pretty much what I'd like at 1:1.

Nicely done Matt. I can appreciate the work you've had to put into getting it to look this good, having finished off a Heller 1:43 kit myself earlier this year (Austin Princess). They really are small after 35+ years of handling 1:24/25 kits! I have that Airfix 1:24 kit, been pondering how difficult it would be to convert to standard-ish spec.

Super clean, and very nicely detailed. Looks great.

Nice save, that worked out very well.

Sparkly! Looks great, doesn't seem to need much/any polishing?

Thank you Dominik. They are just plastic, worse things happen! Yours were amazing, what the heck were those that won like?! Final bit of work on the Skyline 4-door this weekend: 1:24 Tamiya Nissan Skyline R30 4dr kit by Spottedlaurel, on Flickr 1:24 Tamiya Nissan Skyline R30 4dr kit by Spottedlaurel, on Flickr Didn't hugely enjoy the BMF work on it, regrettably when I trimmed and peeled the excess back I lost a few bits of the maroon paint and red primer, it went right through to the white plastic! A bit of strategic touching-up makes it look OK on the shelf even if it doesn;t bear close inspection..... 1:24 Tamiya Nissan Skyline R30 4dr kit by Spottedlaurel, on Flickr 1:24 Tamiya Nissan Skyline R30 4dr kit by Spottedlaurel, on Flickr Not difficult to tell them apart! Tamiya Nissan, Toyota and Honda kits by Spottedlaurel, on Flickr That's three of the five completed. Silvia next, then the other Skyline to finish this project.

That looks really good, the weathering and detailing has worked very well.

Nice one, the colour suits it really well. I built the Tamiya snap-loc version of this car recently, this Hasegawa one looks to be a little more detailed.

All very inventive, and wonderfully well done.

More good progress there, your level of detailing looks just right to me. I don't know what the word for it is, but that link member between gearbox and rear axle isn't something I realised they had, similar to some Corvettes? I think you're right about the blue colour. I had this 1:1 on my driveway a few years ago, when I was storing it for a friend: 1991 Mazda MX5 by Spottedlaurel, on Flickr Not so dissimilar to that Ford tractor blue you recently used on the Model T?!

Very sharp build. With the white paint and black trim you have nowhere to hide, it looks great. Pleasing for me to see something built with a Norfolk registration.

But, isn't it nice to ponder what's in the stash and have a choice of what to build?

Excellent example of man maths there ?

Nice work, that colour combination looks really good.