Scale-Master

Good thing all those positive retooling changes/corrections didn't put 'em all out of business.

Thanks guys. These Fisher kits in general are an interesting mix of somewhat simplified assemblies (for ease of building) and eye catching details. The stuff that is not really seen when finished is not heavily detailed, and the little stuff that tips it into a really neat model are well done. The headlights are cast white metal with vac-u-formed lenses. I polished the metal and punched the lenses out of the sheet with a brass tube/punch. A nice detail is the PE mounting rings that attach to the rear of the headlights. Very little fiddling was needed to get the chassis and wheels under the body. Just a dry fitting here…

You've added just the right amount of weirdness to the shape that it looks very believable as a VW kit car.

Two tone repaint and custom made decals. I also painted the rims white. I thought this scheme (and number) was bit more fitting to a Toyota than a BRE scheme.

The seat belt hardware is provided in the kit, I used tape for the belts. A little work with washes and dry brushing was done to the seat to give it a used look and bring out some of the cast in detail. The belts were also made to look like they had seen some use…

The brakes are cast with the calipers attached to the rotors. Some bright silver and metallic gray was used, barely needed as they are mostly hidden behind the wheels. I sprayed the body too. I used Testors 1111 blue enamel tweaked with a little 1143 for a richer deeper shade.

Thanks guys. The dash is coming along. The gauges are printed on what appears to be an acetate type photographic film. I painted white on the back side of the film to bring the detail out. They fit to a PE piece that sandwiches them to the resin dash. The PE part was painted black. The bezels are raised so I just knocked the black paint off them to make them look chrome. The body is in its final primer (good old stock Floquil), masked and ready for some Sunoco Blue.

Agreed. It also speeds up the time it takes to do the job.

Thanks guys! The wheels & tires are done… I used Tamiya Chrome Yellow to make the centers a hair richer than the Bright Yellow I’ll be using on the body. Instructions call out for the raised ribs to be painted chrome silver. Can’t make that detail out in the few photos I have, but I went ahead and followed the directions like I have for the rest of the build…

I painted the tires semi-gloss black and hit the tread area with some dirtied (brownish) black. The tire decals weren’t the right arc shape, they looked as though they were for smaller diameter tires, but a little coaxing with some decal solvent and I was able to correct that and stretch out the wrinkles too. After the Goodyear decals were applied I shot them with clear flat.

The tires are resin. Mine were a little off in the tread area, not bad enough to require much if any work, but then a couple minutes on the lathe made them true, so why not…? Even the backs are cleanly cast only needing a few minutes of sanding to prep for paint. I didn’t have to do anything to the outer sidewalls. The rims are two pieces each. A white metal outer rim: And a resin center. The bottom two have been cleaned up, the top two are how they come from the box. The flash is minor and clean up only takes a few minutes. And after a little sanding and polishing the outer rims look like this… [url=http://smg.photobucket.com/user/Scale-Master/media/1971%20Sunoco%20Ferrari%20512M/DSC02299_zps8c36361e.jpg.html][/url

This probably won’t be what most of the people posting their work in this thread want to hear, but it is an honest viewpoint to the question that was asked, “What could have been done better”. I’m not going to point out specifics here as this is not a contest and not knowing what the competition was for each model, who is to say if the judges made the right call that day or not? It’s like racing, you only have to beat what is on the table at the time… But, many of the models posted in this thread clearly show some “fatal flaws” in the photos when it comes to competition judging. If I can see that in the photos, it makes me think there are probably more flaws that would be visible in person. Another issue may be that some contests are judged subjectively and others critically. If you have a low key but well-built model in a subjectively judged contest, you might lose out to a flashy and less well-built entry. It isn’t a bad idea to ask what the judging criteria (if it is not posted) are so you have some idea what to expect. Factor in favoritism and “leveling the playing field” and there are even more reasons why some models that many would expect to win don’t.

Thanks guys. How do I do it Dean? I just try to figure out how to. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. This is actually my second attempt since I started on this car last week. Keep in mind this was the part that held up this model being built for almost two decades. As far as the decals Skip, I don't know what to tell you. I just draw the art and output it. I guess knowing the parameters/capabilities of your printer(s) helps...

I’m building a replica of my Mom’s first Corvette using an old AMR 1/43rd scale white metal kit. It has been on the to-do list for almost 20 years, but since the kit did not have to correct wheels to make her car, it sat. Until I figured out how I could make the right wheels. I made the outer rims from brass tubing. I made the centers also from brass using the etching process I have been fine tuning. I made decals for the center caps. Still some clean-up to do… The kit’s tires were hard and brittle; I test fitted one to a rim from the kit and it promptly (and as expected), split in half. I repaired it and made a mold of the four kit tires and cast a new set in soft rubber-like resin. Until fully cure (about a week) they tend to get all sorts of dust and junk stuck to them. The dust will wipe off before I need to install them on the car.

Man, this site is really wonky today... I know what I posted, and it is not there...

Finally, it’s done…

Thanks, but this thing is being a real female dog... I'm looking forward to being done with it too...

Clear coated… Ready for final assembly.

Yeah, it is a common issue to have to do minor touch up on these kits. I have found it is easier to touch up as I go than to try to find all the little cracks and problems later. Fortunately on this one Tamiya gold was a good match, and some very old Testors purple was really close too. Almost all the decals have been applied, (just the driver names have to be put on), and I still need to paint a few details before clear coating…

I have been following this from the start and I must say, it is shaping up beautifully! And rapidly too.

Thanks Chris. The side decals fit as bad as the top one and I had to repaint some of the gold to make up for where the artwork was off (and discolored) and add some fine black pinstripes… Not a perfect match, but maybe if I don’t say where the repairs are no one else will see ‘em…?

I installed the windows and headlight covers since decals that go on them also overlap onto the body.

Turns out the center part of the rear section decal does not fit, so I cut it apart and tried to get a better fit…, did a little touch up painting and moved on.

Back to the rear of the car… The headers are done and installed. I used a mix of Krylon white primer and Tamiya lacquer to get the texture.