Lotus Europa

[Scale-Master]

Yes, another Lotus...

Nichimo 1/12 scale from the original 1976 issue.  I started this in 1994 with the intent of building it out of the box as nicely detailed as possible even though it was essentially a glorified motorized toy in many ways.

I was happy with the progress until the body broke in two places during the near final phase of assembly.   

I was using a urethane clear and at time it wasn't a material that responded well to blending and buffing.  (Now that type of repair with more modern materials is not an issue.) 

Frustrated, I put it in storage in 1995.  Apparently it was not a totally dust free environment and this is what it looked like after about 28 years of being parked in its own drawer in a closet. 

Being that this was done well before digital cameras and social media, I have no record of what was done other than my memory and I remember quite a bit of what I had done just by looking at it now. 

My goal is to just clean it up, repair the cracks, blend the paint and clear and make a presentable model. 

Even back then the BMF under paint technique was a commonly used trick for some of us…

The black paint is Testors Classic Black enamel.  However, the clear is a product made by Mar-Hyde and was never intended to be color sanded or buffed out.  (It was for panel repair and stayed somewhat pliable when fully dry.)  Hopefully the quarter of a century of curing it has had will work in my favor.

Hand painted woodgrain dash, shifter ball and steering wheel…

[Mittagskind]

Interesting. I'm curious what you make of it.

[NOBLNG]

It looks like a really nice barn find. I hope you can get her cleaned up.

[Justin Porter]

Add me to the list that's curious how you'll bring this one back. 

[Pierre Rivard]

Very interesting. For sure this at 1:12 will be a super detailed project like the Lola?

[Scale-Master]

1 hour ago, Pierre Rivard said:

Very interesting. For sure this at 1:12 will be a super detailed project like the Lola?

Not at all.  This was intended to be a purely box stock build from its inception.  That has not changed. 

This has about 6 months of simple work invested in it.  It shouldn't take more than one more to button it up.  (The Lola was 4 years of comprehensive design and fabrication for comparison.)

[Scale-Master]

This looks promising.  A good wash then a deep cleaning and wax job.  There was just one scuff on a part that needed to be polished out.  Fortunately the clear is now hard enough to take a decent buffing to do that repair; no need to repaint.

[Rattlecan Dan]

You Master Modelers freak me out! I love it! Thanks for sharing.

[Mattilacken]

Nice!

 

[Rich Chernosky]

I have two of these in pieces and will be interested to see your take on it.  One kit is a glue bomb and will be used for parts and the other is fairly complete and was a gift from the late Dale King.  If you need anything LMK..yours free. 

[Scale-Master]

2 hours ago, Rich Chernosky said:

I have two of these in pieces and will be interested to see your take on it.  One kit is a glue bomb and will be used for parts and the other is fairly complete and was a gift from the late Dale King.  If you need anything LMK..yours free. 

Thank you Rich!  Mine appears to be complete.  I bagged everything before I put it away back then and even filed the instructions with it.  Surprisingly even the decals I didn't apply to it look useable.

[Scale-Master]

The main body cleaned up surprisingly well too.  The rockers had something react to the paint were it was sitting all this time.  That was sanded out and the cracks around the gas caps were chiseled out & filled.  This is after the first sanding.  The undersides of the cracked areas were reinforced too.

[Kenmojr]

Very nice...

[rrb124@sbcglobal.net]

One of my favorite cars!

Great work on your kit. 

In 1974 I drove my boss's  red one.

[Scale-Master]

28 minutes ago, rrb124@sbcglobal.net said:

One of my favorite cars!

Great work on your kit. 

In 1974 I drove my boss's  red one.

I'm seriously considering doing one in mostly red...

[rrb124@sbcglobal.net]

2 hours ago, Scale-Master said:

I'm seriously considering doing one in mostly red...

The right shade of red would be tremendous. As I recall, the paint had no orange in the makeup. It was like the true solid Red on the 2002-2006 Mini Cooper S cars on the streets. 

[rrb124@sbcglobal.net]

By the way, the paint was solid-no metallic anywhere.

[Scale-Master]

The cracks were filled and feather edge sanded to 1500 and the Testors Black was blended in.  This is how it dried.

[Mittagskind]

Very well repaired.

[Scale-Master]

1 hour ago, Mittagskind said:

Very well repaired.

Thanks!  The repair isn't done yet, it still needs the clear coat.

[Bugatti Fan]

A bit of a quirky looking car that Lotus. Nice short term restoration job Mark and I will be following the work.

The late Dale King was mentioned in an earlier post. I did not know that he was no longer with us.

I can remember seeing examples of his work in a car modelling book by Robert Schleicher that I no longer have. Seem to remember from the book his 1/12 Tamiya Porsche and a scratch built Fiat Spyder sports car that he made.

[Scale-Master]

5 hours ago, Bugatti Fan said:

A bit of a quirky looking car that Lotus. Nice short term restoration job Mark and I will be following the work.

The late Dale King was mentioned in an earlier post. I did not know that he was no longer with us.

I can remember seeing examples of his work in a car modelling book by Robert Schleicher that I no longer have. Seem to remember from the book his 1/12 Tamiya Porsche and a scratch built Fiat Spyder sports car that he made.

Yes, we lost Dale two years this coming January.  I was lucky to have known him since 1980.  Incredible model maker and artist.

[Scale-Master]

The clear is modern Valspar two-part urethane.  Here is how that looked after it kicked off.  Now it has to fully dry, and this heat is working in my favor.

[Scale-Master]

The chassis cleaned up well; it wasn't even very dusty.  One inner fender well had to be reattached along with one wheel and the rear trunk bay. 

It had/has working suspension and rack & pinion steering, but the plastic is so brittle I broke a part on the front when I lightly compressed the suspension for fun; the tie rod end was already broken on that side too so those parts are now fixed (in both meanings of the word).  The rear suspension still works, but I'm not going to test its limits.

[Scale-Master]

The windows were stored in the original bag, but something got on them (besides dust). 

I polished them out and noticed they are not all that optically clear.  But they will do the job.  The door windows fit fairly well, actually a little better than I expected.