Matt Bacon

I developed hankering to build something different and straight out of the box (ish) after the NSX. The much-missed Richard Messner posted a comprehensive guide to a few simple changes you can make to the body of this kit to make it more accurate and capture the really quite lovely shape of the real thing back in 2015, which I had folded into the box in my stash. So thank you Snake45, may you RIP in your better place. https://www.modelcarsmag.com/forums/topic/98126-amt-67-68-camaro-review-improvements/ First job is to remove the wedge of trim at the bottom of the window to reveal the curve of the rear fenders Then scribe round the overscale raised trim around the rear screen and sand it off to a more scale appearance, followed by scribing the panel lines down from the window sides to the boot line. Extend the front shutline of the door down to the bottom the body to mark the separation of the front fender, and the bottom edge of the door line back to the rear wheel arch where there is a weld seam. The front of the nose tapers to a knife edge rather than the thick and blunt ledge as molded. I have a full set of etched brass Model Car Garage badges and scripts, so I could sand the plastic to taper gently from about 1cm behind the edge and worry about replacing the molded relief later. What exactly is a 67 vs 68 1st gen Camaro is a bit of a mystery to me, made more confusing by the various SS, RS and Z28 specs, and the modifications applied by restorers and collectors over the years. So I'm just going to a build a car that I like the look of with features that appeal rather than try to match any factory-fresh period spec. There are plenty to look at, for sale and previously sold, at RK Motors. What I will say, as someone who hadn't really looked closely at a Camaro before starting this, is that I hadn't realized how petite, shapely and well-proportioned it really is. Not so keen on the later generations, but this is a really good-looking car and a design classic. And Snake's legacy of fine-tuning modifications really helps the kit show it at its best. Best, M.

Ahem <clears throat>… @carsntrucks4you I think you forgot somebody… 😜 best, M.

Inspired by an article in a recent issue of Octane, this is my version of a special order NSX-R built for a British banker in Tokyo when they were new, shipped home and cherished since then. This build is essentially the regular Tamiya NSX kit from 95ish, detailed with some parts from Fujimi's version. If you just want an NSX or Acura NSX, then buy the Tamiya kit. If you really want an NSX-R then there is a dedicated Tamiya kit, but it's rare, and pricy. The Fujimi is not as nice, but has some key parts you can steal and add to a base Tamiya kit to achieve this effect... I've taken a few liberties with the original... the wheels for example are not the super rare type option it sports, but since you can only get those in a transkit that costs more than both Tamiya and Fujimi kits put together, I hope I may be forgiven. The colour is as the original, but it's only in these pictures that the real beauty and nuances of the pearl "Racing Green" are visible. This is the real thing: Mine's "inspired by" rather than a "replica of", hence it's sporting different (but period-appropriate) number plates... I really should try building a model that doesn't require combining or converting several kits and adding aftermarket one of these days... best, M.

I guess there’s room for all sorts in the rarified atmosphere of the super rich! 😜 Personally, if I had a few tens of millions of dollars drop on me from a great height, I’d be in the queue for one of those common as much Paganis… but only after I’d got done buying my GMA T.50, 911 Reimagined by Singer, and an Eagle E-type. This lovely looking piece of work would not be on my list, but we’re all different, eh? best, M.

It's beautiful, but it's basically sculpture, isn't it? Unless it's being driven regularly from state to state, ragged around the curves of an Alpine pass, or racing and dicing with other classy chassis and determined drivers, it's not really a car... best, M.

OK, you may be questioning my sanity on the wiring and plumbing, but it's there, honest... Last details and the final few decals and it will be done... at last! best, M.

Two weeks holiday and a welcome (I think...) return to the world of full-time work put progress with this on the back burner, but I've managed to get back to the bench the last couple of evenings. The cockpit is about five shades of black and that's it. Seats, steering wheel and gear shift are from the Fujimi kit. The seats are too narrow, but I don't have any better-proportioned Recaros and I just want to get the build finished so no hunting down replacements or major surgery for me. The seat belts do actually work like that -- they are regular street belt hardware that passes through a couple of holes in the Kevlar seat pan. The dashboard combines the angry red dials with yellow needles from the Fujimi dash applied over the carbon fibre panel from the Tamiya, which I suspect was a bespoke choice made by the original buyer. This is all you or I will ever see of it after today; it's completely hooded and invisible in the normal orientation. You could keep plumbing the engine for days: I just wanted enough that it looked a bit busier through the mesh cover under the rear glass most of the time, and would stand up to opening up the cover on special occasions. As you can see, most of the hoses and wires just trail off out of view -- I certainly don't have the reference to try and connect up the real cooling, fuelling, oiling and electrical components to one another in the right places, nor the patience. The engine bay opening is semi-circle from the firewall to the rear edge of the upper engine cover at it's deepest and about as wide as the gap between the wheel wells at its widest, so you can imagine how much of this view you'll actually be able to see one the engine is inside the body.... Once the cockpit has stuck firmly into place on the chassis (hence that lonely bit of masking tape corralling a recalcitrant pin into bonding) it will be time to put the chassis inside the body, and see if anything falls off... best, M.

I’ll enjoy this! best, M.

Very cool. It’s a beautiful car in the first place, and the execution of the iconic livery on that curvaceous shape is spot on… both in design and in your flawless application. Great model! best, M.

Metalcote comes in rattle cans as well as regular tins. best, M.

If you can get them in the US (Megahobby seems to stock them), Humbrol Metalcote Polished Aluminium and Polished Steel are great buffing metallisers. The Aluminium goes from fine matt silver to reflective and slightly darker, and is handy for aircraft where you can mask panels and change the appearance in a patchwork like real “natural metal” airframes. It’s also good for aluminium castings on cars to get some differentiation between highlights and recesses. But the Steel is amazing… it starts out dark matt gray, but the more and the harder you polish it, the more chrome-like it gets. It’s great for things like brakes, where a light polish results in a cast iron look for the hubs, and firmly pressing on the discs with a chamfered matchstick gives you the polished metal of the disc surface… best, M.

Tamiya, for example, has always excelled at delivering outstanding detail in relatively few parts. The entire chassis and suspension of the 90s NSX is about 10 parts but builds up into a detailed and accurate replica that just needs some (quite involved) painting to bring it to life… best, M.

Cool! The Revell Snap-tite 63 Corvette Coupe is very nice and a simple build: It’s not quite in your era, but I also very much enjoyed the Moebius Chrysler 300… best, M.

What kind of cars would you like to build? It’s helpful to know to guide recommendations. You’ll have more fun and are more likely to finish something that you want on your shelf. For example, there are some excellent “easy click” or “snap kit” from Revell or Aoshima but they aren’t of US period originals… best, M.

Apologies for muckiness. It doesn't half pick up grease and dust when you're wrestling the glass into the body, and the whole thing together for a test fit... The rear screen and engine cover does open as it should and close tight, which I call a result. Of course, it doesn't _stay_ open on its own, but I'll figure out some solution. Quick test on the chassis. That rear light panel was a complete nightmare to paint. I've never had any luck spraying the Tamiya clear colors... I just can't get the consistency right. So it's a lot of coats of thinned brushed paint. It looks ropey if you hold it up to the light directly, but in situ it's OK. Time to crack on and complete the black, black and more black interior... best, M.

These guys clearly did: best, M.

I managed to get the clear coat on in the cool of yesterday evening... I though outdoors in diffuse sunlight was probably my best shot at capturing the color accurately. Even I am amazed by how much the clearcoat brings the paint to life, and subtly swings the color to a more blue-green, as it should be. If you compare these, especially the last one, to the picture of the real thing at the top of the thread, I think we'd all agree that Steve has done a pretty good job of matching the color! best, M.

I’ve never seen one, or at least not an up to date one. A whole lot have never had a full detail option. As for the Enthusiast Models, your best bet is to locate one that is definitely an EM kit on Scalemates, and look at the “timeline”. For the 911, for example, they quietly re-released the early 911S and 911R in ordinary-looking boxes with all the EM parts a couple of years back. Which made a couple of my eBay saved searches irrelevant… best, M.

They’ve announced the 2024 McLaren which should be available towards the end of the year. I’m expecting to see a built up one at Scale Model World (IPMS UK Nats) in November, but probably not to be able to buy one until later. No one is going to give them access to a current season car early enough to kit it in the same year, I don’t think… best, M.

This color is rather hard to photograph, especially in the velvet texture of the Zero basecoat. Anyone who's used them will also know how much the appearance of Zero Paints colors changes when you apply the clearcoat. I'm not sure when I'll get to do the clearcoat. As a two part mix that actually cures rather than just drying, it's very sensitive to heat. Your working time drops rapidly the hotter it is, and the last thing I want is to be trying to apply the final wet coat when the mix has started to cure (that way you get orange peel, for sure). The workshop is about 34 degrees C at the moment... 😜 best, M.

I assume this one is just warming us up for the last-season one coming towards the end of the year… best, M.

The 250 GTO is one of Fujimi's gems, for sure. It's a much later kit than the Enthusiast Model series, but has engine detail, and you can pick up a box with a fabulous set of metal wire wheels in it, though the regular plastic ones are pretty darn good. best, M.

Definitely worth doing some research. You can find unboxing videos, and 1999.co.jp (Google “name of kit 1999.co.jp”) has viewable instructions for most kits. Fujimi kits in my experience are a mixed bag. As mentioned, the Enthusiast Model kits are complex and amazingly detailed. They are also often boxed without the Enthusiast branding (often as Manga tie-ins) or as regular “Red box” kits, sometimes without detail parts trees (eg no engine). Check instructions for particular boxings to see what you’re going to get. There are regular curb side kits. Many newer ones are well shaped and have accurate if simplified detail. Older ones are often over-simplified and sometimes compromised by having been designed to be battery powered back in the day. But they are often the only game in town. Some kits are not strictly 1/24 scale: the accurate Tamiya 240Z body fits neatly inside the Fujimi one, for example. Fujimi often plays fast and loose with versions of the basic car. The box may call it one thing, with accurate, well done box art, but it’s writing checks the plastic can’t cash. What you get inside is the same in three boxes, perhaps with an extra parts tree (say, seats and steering wheel). The FIAT mentioned above is one example. The RX-7 Spirit R is another: you get a few different decals and some Recaro seats, but the nose/front clip is not modified at all into the distinctively different Spirit R version with more aggressive aero. Your best bet is to tell us what cars you want to build, and the collective wisdom of the MC tribe will chime in on which kits/boxes to get, and which to avoid. Plus you might get a chorus of “Buy the Aoshima/Tamiya kit instead”… best, M.

Quick test fit with the wheels: Well, they certainly fill the arches. Arguably a bit too much, but I think that might be the price for using the Fujimi wheels, which are probably "inch-up", on the Tamiya kit. best, M.

The suspension is finished. Like the rear, the front assembly is primarily two big parts, a main frame with upper wishbones and the lower frame. Very nicely detailed and molded, though. Engine in place for a test. It looks reasonable through the mesh, but I think I'll add a few wires and hoses to busy up the space at the left between the heads and the airbox/fluid reservoir parts. Now I need to make some progress on the body. best, M.