1320wayne

A lot more completed on this one. All of the wiring, plumbing is done. The last few components have been assembled, painted, detailed and attached. All that's left is to add the brake lines, clear coat and body fasteners.

This is looking awesome.

More updates. Front suspension is all in place, fuel tank is painted and installed, fuel line and fittings are run, fuel fittings are installed and painted on the carb., working on the details for the cooling system including a mounting bracket made from brass sheet for the radiator and the steering rod is mocked up. It's starting to look like something now.

Here are the completed pics. of my latest build. It's my first official Tamiya sports car build so there were some small challenges to it. I also had a time with some challenging decals, especially the side panels so I ended up adding some subtle weathering to help minimize the flawed decal application. It was so much of a different, fun build than what I'm used to building I'm looking forward to attempting another one real soon. Oh, and yes, the paint job is part gloss and part matte finish.

The interior is done. Didn't go overboard with any added detail other than what comes in the kit. Once the body is installed it's hard to see into the interior anyways. I left the passenger side panel off long enough to snap a few shots.

Thanks guys. Happy with the results so far. Should have more to update soon.

Slowly working on the passenger side decals. A much slower process as I'm breaking the large decals down into smaller pieces before applying and then giving ample time to dry before moving on. It's coming along though. With the front end decals completed I was also able to apply the lower front carbon fiber decals.

A little more progress. Headers are painted and installed along with the carb and attachment for the scoop. I also started mocking up the radiator/electric fan assembly.

Added the white decal film to the inside of the side vent and the last couple of stars. Also started on the opposite side decals. Will update those when I'm further along. I also made a purchase that just arrived. It's carbon fiber contact paper/film, adhesive backed. I figured it would look cool as a display base. Just size it, peel and stick and your good.

Another small update. Finished the detail painting on the exhaust and added more decals to the drivers side and rear of the car as well as painting the rear spoiler and adding decals to it.

Absolutely stunning craftsmanship John. But that shouldn't be a surprise to anyone. Your skills are superb.

Since my last update I have had some ups and downs with this one. I got started on the decals and immediately realized that these were not what I expected them to be, for the price that was paid. The quality and registry of the decals are superb but they are very thick so when it came to getting the large side panels to conform to the contours the decal has fought me every step of the way. Ample amounts of setting solution seemed to have minimal affect on them. I posted on Facebook about the issues and numerous folks chimed in with similar stories and stated that the best way to apply these larger panels was to cut them into smaller pieces. Now, I'm not trying to sound negative about the decals because they are very nice graphics and the site where they were purchased is the only source for these decals. Just having never used them before and running into this kind of challenge was initially frustrating. So, as I kept moving forward I was able to change my mood as each new decal added made the progress look more promising. I've had to touch up some areas along any of the openings because these decals are so thick they don't want to slice easily and fold under with setting solution. I also took a couple liberties with adding decals that don't exist on the real car to hide a couple of touch up areas. At this point I'm much happier than where I was two days ago and when I get to the other side I will have a better outlook on how to approach putting on the decals. I also have the tires and wheels attached and mocked up the rear spoiler to see how it will look. Coming along.

Got the body finished in a matte finish and I'm happy with the results. I also decided to go with masking the gloss blue rather than decal film. A couple days to cure and I will be ready to start the decals.

Thanks David, for the suggestions. Right now I'm not willing to chance placing an order with Gravity paints as I've heard mixed reviews of people waiting months for their orders. I've been working with on hand choices and I believe that I came up with a suitable color. Testors Arctic Blue Metallic is what I'm going with. Right now, after the first couple of coats I've got a really nice gloss finish. Next is to change it to a matte finish. Hopefully it doesn't change the tone too much when that happens. I've already made my templates to cut out the gloss blue for the sides and hood from blue decal film. Also got the template made for the white inside the side inlets. Also finished up the tires and wheels

Yeah, I haven't done the matte finish on the tires yet. Should look much better when they're done. And I'm not happy with the color so the body is currently in the strip tank to start over. I've also got to work out the issues with the blue in the wrap being a brighter blue than the rest of the body.

Got a few coats of paint on. Not sure if I'm happy with the overall color. I might have to keep trying. I also got started on the adding detail to the exhaust and I've got the left side tires and wheels ready for install.

Very nice build. Love the shade of blue.

I've put all other projects on hold to get started on this one. First off, I'm venturing into uncharted waters with this build as I've never really delved into sports car builds much in the past but when I saw this Tamiya kit I was very much impressed with the style of race car and decided that I had to do one. Next was to find a more interesting paint scheme to do than what comes in the kit so I stumbled upon Slotfabrik out of Germany and they have plenty of cool schemes to choose from. I selected the Riley Motorsports red, white and blue scheme because it's cool. Be aware that if you go looking for any of their decal selections that they're not for the faint of heart in regards to the price. But in my opinion their well worth the extra money. So, I just received my decals so there is my instant motivation to get started on this one. I also joined a GT sports car model site on Facebook which has become invaluable in regards to research and knowledge for the sake of detail. The first hurdle was to identify the base color of the car and to discover that it is a dark blue metallic shade that is actually a matte finish. Upon further study it is apparent that the blue within the wrap is a different shade and appears to be more glossy. Before I chose to invest in ordering any new paint to match I went through my existing stash and found that MCW Neon Blue Metallic Lacquer is almost a perfect shade. Stay tuned as I dive into this one.

How about a new update on this one. I had to put this one away a short time ago after the clear coat didn't cooperate. So, I pulled it back out and decided to fix the problem by going in a different direction. New paint scheme with new graphics. I also got started on paint and assembly. Chassis is the pearl blue that I did the original paint scheme in along with the front wheels. I also started assembling the front and rear suspension and getting the tires and wheels attached for good.

Superb job, as usual.

Looks good.

Here are the completed pics. of my most recent build of Jimmie Johnson's 2017 Coke 600 paint scheme using more of Stoney's superb decals.

Which version are you attempting to build? It appears that you might be doing the museum truck but you don't really confirm that. Why I ask is that if you are trying to replicate the museum truck then you would have to remove the tops of the door frames as a few of the later trucks ran without them. See my build below. Just one of the many variations that he ran throughout the years.

I ordered a couple of sets of the Holley 3116 Hemi race carbs and was so impressed with them immediately put in an order for more so I could have them in hand for all of my future projects. The detail is mind boggling.

My memory keeps going back to the Revell Miss Deal Studebaker kit but I'm not sure if that's right.