Technics

I decided I wanted the original box art livery. Maybe its too obvious but I went with the final gut feeling. Some alignment issues which I will sort. Tricky but rewarding decal process on its way.

I decided to go with a colour since my other build will be black and this car has a great rear lamp graphic once trim is painted. I am super pleased! Content how it coated the body. It is possibly the best paint job I have done so far. In part it is the use of an airbrush, another is a "new" technique I am adopting which is trying to keep everything extra fresh, clean and debris free. I am misting down all rooms that the model will be in with water. Including myself and clothing.. to limit the chance of floating debris. When the mist settles I step in. I do not have the situation available of having a paint booth so it is all a bit of a hassle but It´s what i got available which is a balcony. In person the metallic flakes read very fine that feels realistic. The colouur itself feels very understated and mature. Dare I say OEM feeling Streetblisters Arden Green x3 coats Mr Color Black Primer 1500 x2

All 3 colours were applied and re applied as I saw fit via airbrush. Far from perfect but I am content. White Tamiya primer, red game air, XF Tamiya Yellow, re applied white in game air.

@TarheelRick You’re absolutely right about the seam lines in such a vital visual part of the model! I am in much deeper complex waters ( for me ) however I will try to address them all. Front clamshell was fused and separated from main body. Rear wheel offsets have been re worked to a bit more what I want.

@Mattilacken Oh, these look fantastic.

@Mattilacken Agree! I did I not realize you are local. MJ is my nearest shop. I am trying to utilize the paint I have bought throughout the years.... but interesting with new of course! Is that "gen 3" AK ?

I’ve been putting in the time to remove most scuff marks. I’ve been enjoying the process and it’s starting to show some promise. I will soon fuse the hood to the fenders and begin to cut off the front clamshell. Undecided how much I will modulate the black colour, but scuffs, dirt, real use look will look cool if done right.

I made a 3-4 light passes in red and yellow. I should have given some more thought about the order and layering of the colours. Nevertheless I am very happy with working with an airbrush and where it’s heading. Ultimately this is just a quick build to put miles on the skillset and tools. It’s so calm and composed compared to rattle can. I will blend the colours as best I can while keeping the roof white. I had it masked off not to foul the bright white with red paint.

@Mattilacken wow great. I love best motoring and the whole era, gran turismo... I actually remember seeing the original posts now randomly somehow as I was not building back then. Looks like just before Covid or Covid times the Tsukuba backdrop photo was posted. Fantastic! Is it simply a a3 or a2 backdrop printed? Love the feeling.

@Mattilacken Beautifully done! I love the subject car in itself and the twist of the JUN livery is a bonus! The livery was it DIY or sourced? I did not follow the build so I am not certain if it is the classic Tamiya kit or another one.

@MarkJ Straight out of the bottle, apart from a small drop of retarder to help aid tip drying. I am too amazed in the experience of how thin paint can go on. Definitely very rewarding. Very nice experience using both paints. @1959scudetto Thank you. I find all the Citroens to be really nice looking rally cars. I have the DS3 kit as well in the backed up pipeline. ?

Tested quickly one thin coat of 3 different colours doubling as airbrush practice.

Everything is in Mr Surfacer Black now. I’m tempted to keep things simple and throw on the logos and start the clearcoat process.

Quick build, filled in a few gaps on the exterior ( tricky rear badges that would never look good ) Made holes for the jack points on the side skirts. And worked on the overall stance. Interior is all black with a few decals. Depending on the result on the exterior might do belts but I find everything is secondary to a nicely done exterior. It’s the largest room for improvement to my skillset I aim to develop.

A neat little hatch. Can’t say I’ve seen many of these on the street. I never lived in a country that they were sold in. Especially a dual cam / hot version.

Citroen Xsara WRC 2001 Rally A budget auction purchase in order to accumulate hours of airbrush use. This is my first Airfix kit…. It’s no Tamiya! But the subject is obscure and I’m attracted to it. A simpler era that I look fondly back on so it’s an exciting topic. Quick colour tests to get used to pulling the trigger back. A Tamiya XF yellow and a Game Air red. Tamiya was thinned with lacquer thinner and the Game Air got served a dollop of retarder to slow down the needle tip drying and flow improver. Both went on beautifully.

Couldn’t help but mockup the body to interior to see how the rear compartment will look. I’m leaning towards an exterior colour of black with a yellow UK plate.

@jaymcminn stunning build yours in the red! And I can see what you mean directly with part fit at mocking up most … ? Overall however I am impressed at the quality and detail of the kit considering it is from 1994. Both the part count and scale accuracy to photo references is very high. The "drop in" ease as Tamiya kits is definitely not here. I primered everything but the Motor in Mr.Surfacer black 1500. For the interior cabin and rear engine compartment / storage I added flocking by using a base of Revel enamel as a glue. I am no hyper detailer or weathering master but I get excited to learn when I get to see and touch such nice pieces that make up the motor.

Alternate blasphemi route

@stitchdup Hi! Thank you very much. It’s no Tamiya but it’s a very nice build. The entire rear wing and rear wide fender areas are tricky to align when fusing all together. Some of the instructions aren’t clear and completely ignore some decals, parts and details all of which are included in the kit. But are shown on box art or in references. Generally just a bit more attention needs to be kept during building. A lot of reference photos of cars you want to simulate is a good practice for inspiration and build choices. I would buy and recommend NuNu kits for their continuous interesting subjects. Looking forward to seeing yours!

Most components are now fused onto the motor and it has been primed in Tamiya light grey. The motor needs to be final mounted into the frame to have more details and auxiliary items attached. I will begin painting on layers and doing details I can manage using some of the bottom photos as inspiration.

Lotus Esprit This will be a dual build of a special car and era. When I purchased this kit I was pleasantly surprised it actually contained two complete kits of the same year Esprit which the previous owner packed together in one box. I will start by building the 300 Sport version which is slightly wider and meaner to the narrow body original Esprit. It will be painted in a dark colour which I am not yet set on, but am getting there. I am aiming for a clean build with a touch of ‘been driven’ characteristics.

Thank you for all your kind words! Very inspiring!

I went ahead acquired Mr Surfacer in Black. First time using Mr Surfacer I absolutely love it. Just as good or better then Tamiya primer, it´s a nice option of if you want a black base. I have begun the process of gently wet sanding 320 - to finer. Laying down primer to see progress and adjusting where necessary. It´s not perfect by any means yet but I will keep cutting and priming until it is... or Good enough

@W-409 Very detailed and informative post, thank you for that! Like I said I am no expert, I do not know these cars or genre. The difference for me is negligible. I did notice after some time the roofline to be a bit lower but I thought it was the manufacturing quality of kit itself. The sedan looks even better agree. I went with this kit as it was a gasser already. I won’t be doing a rivet counting mechanically sound replica no. A light hearted eye squint tribute based on my skills at this time. If I can remove majority of signs of the exterior trim the build will be a success already from my perspective. A stepping stone on my learning curve.