OOB Mysterion

[mrm]

As the title says, this is going to be a Out of Box build. 

I have built the Mysterion once, about 20 years ago. I remembered it being quite challenging and always wanted to build one again. Well, it is not any less challenging now.  It is amazing however, how well made it is. Today's kits from revell don't hold a candle to it  IMO. Anyway…... 

Here is the chassis finally all put together. It definitely tested my patience.

 

[vintagercr]

Very nice!

[crazyrichard]

yes nice !!!

[bobthehobbyguy]

Cool great start.

[Misha]

Great start Michael on a classic kit! Looking straight and all four tires on the ground. Would you describe the issues as you build and how you get around them. This is a great vehicle, yet a daunting kit with the dual engines and all the chrome. Built the Roth cars as a kid, found them difficult (except the Surfite) and now have contemplated having a go at them yet thinking of stripping the chrome off to help glue it together and then Alclad.

I'll be following you build with great interest.

Cheers Misha

[Johnnycrash]

That IS looking real good. Just one note of accuracy... You don't have any 2x4s stuck inside that chassis.

I was looking to add several of these show cars to the stash. But, to be honest, they intimidate the heck out of me. As Misha said, all that exposed chrome...

[DrKerry]

Built the same thing about 5 or 6 years ago because I wanted it back in my collection. It is a trying build for sure but nice when it's done!!!! Ironically this is the only car from Roth that has never been found. Rumors are that the frame broke at one of the holes that were drilled in the side and a 2x4 was used to get it through the rest of the show circuit, after that it disappeared and hasn't been seen since..... It has been recreated/built by Galpin Auto Sports and is a nice rendition of the original.....

http://galpinautosports.com/2011/01/roths-mysterion/

Can't wait to see how yours comes together, good luck on it!!!!!

[mrm]

thank you guys.

The model offers quite few challenges. I will post pictures and try to describe them when I have more time. 

[mrm]

So, the issues…...

First there is an issue with the frame, more precisely with the front crossmember that the engines rest on. There are four crossmembers. The frontmost one is chromed and so is the the one on the very back. The two in the middle need to be painted. But the one the engines rest on seems to be too wide. So if you just install them the way they are, the rails will not be parallel. So, I adjusted that crossmember by filing it on each end. Now the rails are parallel, but altho I am not there yet, I have a feeling the engines will not quite fit side by side. 

Another issue with the frame is that the mounting points for all the pieces of the suspension are pretty loose. This can create issues as in my case, where some pieces were interfering with each other . 

Then there is the aforementioned issue with glueing bunch of chromed out pieces together. If I was building a highly detailed recreation of the Mysterion, I would probably rechrome the frame and replace most (if not all) the links with RB Motion pieces. But in my case I wanted it build Out Of Box. It was designed where you put everything on the frame together at the same time, so you still have things moving around to line up properly. Altho I can't see how it would be possible. 

Getting this frame to be square and everything to line-up was an adventure to say the least. My wife was definitely not happy about the things that were coming out of my mouth. 

Then comes the body, which is made from three main pieces. The one that comprises the firewall, creates a problem with the "vent" on top of the body, because the joints are visible inside of the slot and it is a major pain to fill them and sand them smooth. In my case there was a huge issue with the rear of the body, where the lower part of the body is a separate piece. If you glue the two together and line up there edges, the bottom of the body will not sit square with the top. So it needs to be pulled out on one side to square off. This opens a big gap on the side and requires quite a bit of filling on top. It is doable and once taken care of becomes a really nice shape. 

Another issue with the body is the frame of the bubble, which is hinged. But the way I see it, making it function properly going by the instructions is pretty much impossible. So IMO you should make it either open or closed. I opted for a closed look, so I glued it shut. Also behind the bubble there is a panel that is made to show detail inside with a separate cover. But there is no way attaching the cover to be functional. So you need to either scratchbuild hinges of some sort, or chose to glue it open or closed. Again I opted for the closed look. 

So far, these are the issues I have run into. 

Here are some pictures of the body being prepped for primer:

 

[Metalmad]

Good start with this one but it sounds like it is throwing you a bunch of challenges.

[mrm]

Good start with this one but it sounds like it is throwing you a bunch of challenges.

It is, but that's half the pleasure, right?

[mrm]

So I tackled the engines yesterday and today. They are made up of 27 pieces each, not counting the exhaust. To put it politely, they will test you. But with some adjustments and patience they come out pretty nice. 

I painted them with Tamiya gloss black straight from the spray-can. And left them not perfectly glossy (no clear) to make them look a little more period correct. Everything was painted and done by instructions, save for the starters, which were labeled to be white, but I painted with "steel". Pretty happy with them.

 

Next I put the inside exhausts. Here is the time to mention that I believe it is better not to follow the instructions when they show the order in which the mufflers are fixed to the frame. I believe it will make your life a lot easier if you leave the two chrome mufflers that go in the middle of the car underneath, for after the engines are affixed to the frame. 

 

I was very skeptical, but the engines actually DID fit pretty good side by side. The only way to do this however, is by installing the right ("passenger") side engine first. Its starter fits inside the frame rail and if you put the other engine first it will be almost impossible to slide it in place. 

So the chassis and drive trail are pretty much complete, save for the outside exhaust and the mufflers in the middle. Honestly, I forgot to put the inside mufflers before the picture was taken. However the outside ones I will put after the body is in place, so pretty much last.  

 

Edited March 29, 2016 by mrm

[bobthehobbyguy]

Nice start. Great information on the build issues. Looking forward to seeing more.

[Metalmad]

Looking good !

Yes the challenges are very rewarding as you conquer them one at a time.

[mrm]

So the interior is completed...

First I painted the interior tub. For a model to qualify for an Out Of Box class, it can not have flocking in it. So I sprayed it with a Krylon paint called Natural Stone, I got from Hobby Lobby. It is textured and I sprayed it straight from the can. I think the color of it matches the color of the Mysterion pretty good too.

The seat and the front of the headrest were painted with Testors' One Coat Diamond Dust. The flakes in it are nice and chunky and once covered with Tamiya clear, they match the vinyl in the real car perfectly. The steering wheel rim was done in the same fashion and the casing of the headrest is in Tamiya Mica Silver. 

The TV did not have the buttons on it and I can't make them if I want to keep it box stock, so I drilled indentations, which I then filled with paint. Both the TV and the radio were done in various metalizers.

 

The body parts were sprayed with Gialo Modena (Ferrari Yellow) with a little white added in it and then cleared with Y2K clear. 

Thanks for looking and stay tuned….

 

 

[gtx6970]

Outstanding so far.

[Metalmad]

Looking Good !

[DrKerry]

Looking good!!!!

[mrm]

Thank you for the kind words.

I polished all the body parts and everything was painted flat black on the inside. Next I attached all the headlights, which was a challenge to make look good. The taillights were painted Tamiya clear red and then backed with BMF. 

Now I just have to paint the bubble with Tamiya clear, which to be honest intimidates the hell out of me. 

 

 

 

Thanks for looking and stay tuned…..

[DrKerry]

Good luck on the bubble,

[Can-Con]

Michael, I tint madel glass all the time with the Tamiya clear acrylics. Here's how I do it,,

Mist on your clear color coats. This will leave the clear part looking foggy. It won't look very good at first.

Then after the clear color is completely dry, give it a couple coats of regular acrylic clear. It will look better but not perfect.

Wet sand the clear with about 6000 or 8000 grit being careful not to sand through the clear to the color coats and give it another couple coats of clear. 

When dry, wet sand and polish like any other clear coated paintjob. 

This has worked for me for over a decade now. 

Here's a pic of some I did a few years ago. As you can see they're in a "factory shade" of tint but completely clear. [I do them a bit darker now as it doesn't show up as dark in the pics as they actually are.]

[mrm]

Thank you Steve. My main concern was able to apply the blue evenly all around without having lighter or darker spots. Also my biggest fear was my airbrush to spit here or there, as the coat needs to be super light as the bubble was barely tinted. 

I did spray it and it is curing, so I can mask it again and apply the black outline. Then I will clear coat it. 

I have heard of people dipping their clear parts in Future floor gloss and I am considering experimenting with it, but I would need some pointers, as I am clueless about the material or the technique. Any advice would be appreciated. 

[mrm]

This is also complete. Pictures coming up in "under Glass".