Scale-Master

Happy Birthday Mark... You may come off as wise beyond your years and that is why some here may think you are in a completely different decade... As long as I'm alive you'll never be as old as me...

LeMans Winner 1983. Starter resin kit, 1/43 scale… Funny, I really like the Lowenbrau version, this one doesn’t really do it for me though, but it is a winner…

It'll be Friday soon enough... Just finished this little bruiser: I started with Treasure Hunt Hot Wheels, standard approximate 1/64th scale. I shaved the chassis, made a wire front drop axle and changed the wheels/tires. Tires are from my 1/43 scale parts box. Wheels are discs I cut from sheet Mylar. Paint is Tamiya Maroon over black. Decals are from the Warbirds/Scale-Master sheet 64011. Except the tire decals, those I custom made…

Brake lines from the brakes are plumbed, next I'll plumb them from the master out. Kit battery has been modified into a dual terminal model, I'm using the side terminals.

If you use gloss paint as your base, and get really good adhesion of the decals to the paint, you can scuff them with very fine sandpaper once they are fully dry and the decals will react much like paint. Then shoot some dullcoat over them to kill the gloss. I hope that makes sense...

I respectfully disagree, I think there is a viable contingent of sports car enthusiasts here. I see a significant amount sports car models represented too...

Another of a not so favorite car for me, but a LeMans winner nonetheless... (1981) Ye olde resin kit... 1/43rd scale... Testors High Gloss white is the base color.

Looks like a lot of redundancy there... I think the layout is fine as it is...

I'd like to echo a point made by Pete J. "In the Spirit of the Rules." The IPMS USA rules do clearly state that all work is to be "the Sole Work of the Entrant". They also clearly state BMF, decals and paint are allowed to be used. Want to get into a flocking discussion too? Farming any work out, while you could get away with it, is not in the spirit of the rules. That includes sending parts out to be chromed. Everyone gets an equal chrome shot from their kit, to send it out for re-plating is not doing your own work. If it was a bad shot, you can get a replacement from the manufacturer. If it is not available, well, apply your modeling skills and deal with it within the boundaries of the rules. BMF, Alclad or your choice of metalizer is allowed... Or maybe opt for that Endura bumper look... A little common sense applied to the spirit of the rules should provide you with the correct answers as to what is or is not allowed. Or you could just read all the way through the rules for the contest you intend to enter...

When we had our house re-roofed a few years ago, I had to move all my kits out of the (climate controlled) attic. At that time I created a list in Excel. As I add or remove kits I make notes on a pad of paper I keep up there. Someday I will actually update that Excel list with those hand written notes...

There you go! Much more customer friendly sounding already.

Brandon, I have an observation, and I mean this in the most polite way possible, but offering a product for sale with a caveat of "Please don't buy and bash the quality, consider this fair warning." is not a really good way to start a business. (Quote taken from the Confederate site.) Is that a way of saying you are selling a poor quality item and it is the buyers problem if they don’t like it? Not a great business model in my opinion. I get that you are being up front about not being a professional caster, but as soon as you offer a product for sale, you undertake a certain responsibility. May I suggest you take a little more time to hone your casting skills a bit further and offer a higher quality part in the future? Good luck with your venture.

I believe HOK is a lacquer, (I don't use it), but I would not recommend using Future under any lacquer. That's not to say it won't work, but long term it may develop issues. I have seen fissures appear months later in the Future under a solvent based clear.

Point of clarification... Future is clear acrylic.

Clear sheet styrene is available, but I find there is a lot of mass product packaging that will provide significant panels of clear for model use. You might already have something...? More info as to size requirements might help your search/query.

The Weber carbs are on... The ignition wires are installed (correct Even-Fire firing order), I had to change the distributor boots to 90 degree angles since the wires were too hard for the plastic cap. Also some of the other electrical wiring has been done. (I wrapped some of them around the trans to keep them out of my way while I am building, they will be routed correctly later. Headers are installed. Oil lines and clutch hydraulic line are started. The “fan†belt, (no engine driven fan on this one), was made of thin vinyl.

Good excuse to change the real one to an RS nose?

Since you are trying to correct an issue of accuracy with the kit, I'd consider it within the rules. If you were lowering it to make it look like other than what the kit intends, and lower than the stock height should be, it would be less of a pass in my opinion.

I'm not aware of any kit, yet...

Looking good. (I have a real '73 too that I need to get around to building a model of...) Are you changing the nose from an R/S to a standard to match your real one?

That is coming along nicely. Good job on the Seven frame!

Often masking tape works just fine. Scotch Magic tape pressed on firmly and yanked off at a perpendicular angle works quite well. But the stronger the decal bond the higher the chances of some paint coming along. If that does not work, you can try using decal solvent like paint stripper for the decals. But it may (small chance) affect the paint too. And it might take some time...

Could you be a little more specific about the decals...? Complete sheets or just certain sponsors for example.

Nothing like starting a new project to get fired up again. Must be why we have so many going at any given time...

If someone wants to build one, (or better, a pair), wouldn't be easier and cheaper just to get the more recent two car Snake & Mongoose set? Speaking as more of a builder than collector, what am I missing?