1/24 Italeri Mercedes Benz Actros MP4 GigaSpace

[cifenet]

Hi guys,

This is my latest kit I am working on and thought I share my progress and build experience here.

Also to add some fun and cool details, I picked this detail set from Hobby Design which contains various P/E parts.

Besides the detail kit, I want to stay simple and make this a quick build, so I am building it as how the kit is produced.

 

I actually did not know what to expect since it is my first attempt at building an Italeri truck kit.  Quickly I found out how most of the build requires joining two halves together.  Oh no...

 

The frame rails also require two halves connecting together.  I gave an extra effort to ensure that my frames are straight and leveled. 

 

Immediately I started to replace existing parts with Hobby Design's detail set.

 

There are many ways to remove joint seams, and I find Tamiya's basic putty works quite well (and cheap).

 

Never seen this kind of left over sprue ends once the wheels were removed from sprue tree. 

Luckily, there were only six wheels to clean up!

 

There was no drama when it comes to assembling and attaching components to the chassis here. 

My initial feeling of building an Italeri truck kit is a positive one so far!  I hope it stays this way till the end. 

 

Added some wiring and air hoses.  Also P/E parts were used in various locations.  Easy work so far!

 

I can definitely feel that the detail kit is definitely enhancing the overall look of the truck. 

Now I am ready for painting!

 

I like to paint often in smaller sessions throughout the building process.  I suppose I can only manage smaller batches!

 

I contemplated on which frame color I want to apply and finally decided to go with draker gray-ish tone using the above paints.

I thought about applying semi gloss clear coat to the entire frame at the end, but I quickly kill that idea.  

I reminded myself that this build is supposed to be simple and quick...

 

   

After roughly 30 minutes of painting session, I have my first painted parts ready to assemble.  Getting excited! 

 

 

 

 

[Rockford]

Looking forward to this build, you always do a really impressive job. The seam issue is frustrating but I don't understand the chassis design, it's not like it's a big chassis in truck terms! I'm sure you've nailed it though. 

[Force]

Nice start.

I have a tip for you.
When I put together parts like engine, trans, axles, tanks and other stuff with the conecting seam in the middle I use regular styrene glue like Revell Contacta Professional or similar cement style glue wich solves the plastic, first I cut off locating pins and sand the parts so they are completely flat where they join, then I put the glue on and let it do it's work for a little while so the plastic softens up slightly at the seam, I put the parts together and adjust the seam so it looks good, and I press slightly so some of the plastic and glue ooze out of the seam and let it dry.
Afterwards when it's dry I take a thin liquid brush glue that also solves plastic and brush it over the seam and on the surface of the part, this solves the joint some and blend it in and I let that dry, when dry I sand down the seam and it gets invisible...I seldom need any putty for this kind of joints. 

Edited December 27, 2023 by Force

[Gary Chastain]

Good progress

[SpikeSchumacher]

Looking good so far. Will be following this one ?

[iamsuperdan]

Nice start!

I'm a big fan of the Italeri truck kits. I find them much more pleasing to build than the US truck kits from AMT.

[cifenet]

9 hours ago, Rockford said:

Looking forward to this build, you always do a really impressive job. The seam issue is frustrating but I don't understand the chassis design, it's not like it's a big chassis in truck terms! I'm sure you've nailed it though. 

Hey Steve, appreciate your feedback here.  You are always bringing positive atmosphere to this forum.

Yeah, I wondered the exact same thing!  Full size frame rails would have been so much better.  Maybe they were planning to release a longer version with 10 wheel configuration?  Hmmm.

 

4 hours ago, Gary Chastain said:

Good progress

Thank you, Gary!  Surprisingly, I am building this one with speed and making some forward progress for sure.

 

3 hours ago, SpikeSchumacher said:

Looking good so far. Will be following this one ?

Thanks, Mathias!  I am hoping I can finish this one quick, but you know how we all build here!

 

43 minutes ago, iamsuperdan said:

Nice start!

I'm a big fan of the Italeri truck kits. I find them much more pleasing to build than the US truck kits from AMT.

Hi Dan,

I am enjoying the build so far!  The box does say 100% new molds, I am not sure if this made my build so much better. 

 

[cifenet]

Hi Håkan!

Thanks for joining my post!  I have been expecting your participation. 

Your procedure of minimizing/eliminating joint gap is a good one, and I think will have to try using liquid brush afterwards to further process.  I actually use similar method, and I think the key is to allow glue to fill the seam. 

On certain occasion, I can get also away with sanding only. 

I start with 600#/800#/1000# grit sand paper to even out the surface and then polish out with 2000#. 

The result is quite satisfying as shown below.  Unfortunately, if you are dealing with injection pin marks such as below differential, then you get no choice but to putty.

[cifenet]

Unlike US trucks, Actros lacks "chrome everywhere" mentality. 

I want to change this somewhat and for this reason, I am using various metallic colors to enhance the look of the truck.  

 

This Italeri kit uses many parts to construct an engine.  The engine is also highly detailed which I like. 

I used three different shades of silver for the engine components.   I will also apply heavy wash (black) and it should bring out some details.

 

Shiny!  Just like how I wanted here.

 

I must admit that this P/E radiator grille definitely adds the realism. 

For the fifth wheel (I learned this term not too long ago), I just painted black.   

I know some builders use petroleum jelly to simulate grease, but I am not brave enough to do that...  

 

Wheels were painted also and the radiator fan was coated with grey color mixed with yellow.

 

Everything is attaching and positioning without a fuss.  Test fitting sessions are important to ensure all goes well till the end, but so far, I didn't see an issue at all.

 

Silver + black wash combination makes things better for me. 

 

This was the first problem I faced.  The frame looks straight and flat, but not all wheels are touching the ground.  At first I blame the frame being twisted, but as I found out, I can rotate the wheels to make all four corners sit properly.  

This means, I can't make the truck with rotating wheels, I need to position them and glue them so they sit parallel to the ground!

 

The sitting stance is good now. 

Next, I will add some details on the engine parts.

 

[Force]

2 hours ago, cifenet said:

Hi Håkan!

Thanks for joining my post!  I have been expecting your participation. 

Your procedure of minimizing/eliminating joint gap is a good one, and I think will have to try using liquid brush afterwards to further process.  I actually use similar method, and I think the key is to allow glue to fill the seam. 

On certain occasion, I can get also away with sanding only. 

I start with 600#/800#/1000# grit sand paper to even out the surface and then polish out with 2000#. 

The result is quite satisfying as shown below.  Unfortunately, if you are dealing with injection pin marks such as below differential, then you get no choice but to putty.

You are right there.
Sometimes it's unavoidable.

Edited December 27, 2023 by Force

[Rockford]

Rapid progress! Looks great, shame about the wheels not sitting square but small beer in comparison to the issues with AMT classics! Keep up the good work. 

[cifenet]

2 hours ago, Force said:

You are right there.
Sometimes it's unavoidable.

Right on!

47 minutes ago, Rockford said:

Rapid progress! Looks great, shame about the wheels not sitting square but small beer in comparison to the issues with AMT classics! Keep up the good work. 

Oh yeah, AMT has its own charm!  

It is moving quite fast which makes the building experience more fun for me~

[Gary Chastain]

I always have to rotate the tires and wheels on any brand. Progress is fast and smooth, well done. Like your black wash, adds depth. 

[cifenet]

4 hours ago, Gary Chastain said:

I always have to rotate the tires and wheels on any brand. Progress is fast and smooth, well done. Like your black wash, adds depth. 

I see, then I don't feel too bad about this one.  

Thanks again!

[cifenet]

I must say the engine details in this kit is some of the best I have seen.  That does mean much, but I really enjoy looking at the details on the engine blocks.

It is shame the most of the details will be covered once the cabin sits on the top.

 

After a couple of wash applications, the overall metallic tone became calmer.  It can be fun playing around with this type of effect in scale modeling!

 

The engine fits tight, but the problem I can see is the mounting of radiator.  I will discuss more on this later.

 

I am only adding minor details when they are exposed externally.  One of those areas can be the compressor tanks mounted in rear.  The air hoses do not connect anywhere, I made them to disappear into the frame.  

 

I simply wanted to make it look busy with several air hoses.  This is an easy work, quick progress! 

 

I picked up this cable set from Tamiya Model Factory located in Shimbashi, Japan while visiting not too long ago.  I am using them everywhere in this kit.

They actually call this a "pipe" set and it really is meant to be used for Tamiya's 1/12 Ferrari 312T kit. 

¥451 is roughly $3.10 at that time and I thought it was a big bargain.  Also some of the fine wiring work, I used lead wires from UMM-USA.  They flex and stay flexed which is a big plus.    

 

Some of the mistakes I made so far aren't big, but they are annoying for sure.  I missed sanding these molding lines.

I suppose I am trying to build things quick and taking some risk! 

The lines showing up under the suspension arms do not bother me much, but I decided to redo the ones located on the side.

 

After sanding out the surface clean, I drilled some holes so I can insert my own bolts.

 

Tuner Model Manufactory made some of the best and economical tuned parts.  I will use these on the side.  Hopefully they bring some quality impact to the build.

 

I think these are better.  I am glad I decided to fix it.  But these will be hidden too once panels are attached!

 

Another mistake I made was when I tried to expose metal surface after covering it with black paint. 

Need to repaint this again.  I found out the front of the radiator isn't visible once the front bumper/grille is mounted.  Silly how things happened for no reason. 

 

I used Aluminum tubes from K&S #3403 to replace the existing drive shaft. 

 

Not 100% accurate, but I think the result is worth it.

 

Another painting session started.  The build has been fun so far and I really like building this kit.        

 

My shocks are in yellow and hopefully they can provide some eye catching look!

[Gary Chastain]

Very well done, it’s tuff to decide how much detail is enough but it does make a big difference. 

[cifenet]

On 12/28/2023 at 7:43 PM, Gary Chastain said:

Very well done, it’s tuff to decide how much detail is enough but it does make a big difference. 

Haha, that is true!  At the end, I am thinking it is how much you commit  to spend the time and effort on something you build. 

Your Kenworth T600  is something that I can't never do, endless effort required!

 

[cifenet]

One thing worries me about this kit is building the cab. 

Looks like most of Italeri kits want you to put together each cab panel first (front, top, left, right, and back).

The problem is, per instructions, you will need to complete the assembly of interior cabin including painting first.

 

Then windows/windshields must be mounted from inside as shown in step 31.

This means, you will need to complete the exterior painting unless you are going to mask windows and paint these panels later!

I want to avoid masking the windows to just paint, I rather want to paint the exterior first and then insert windows at the end.  This is the cleaner way to build.

Unfortunately, this kit doesn't allow you to do that.

 

For step 32 above, you will need to paint/finish building the interior cabin (D1) .  Also all of the exterior panels must be painted and ready to be assembled at this time.

It may not be a big problem if you don't think about this carefully, but the problem is, I CANNOT assume that this assembly of exterior panels will be perfect.

 

I did a quick mock build on the cab and the joint lines do not look clean. 

I want to glue everything, fill all the gap joints, and smooth things out, but I can't. 

The build requires you to have everything painted prior to the attach all panels. 

The interior cabin does not come out either, it bites all panels as you assemble.  Once you attach all exterior panels, you won't be able to take the cabin out.

Somehow I need to modify the cabin part so the exterior can be built around and then to be able to take out the cabin later so I can continue painting the exterior...  At least this is the one option I came up with  

I don’t know why the kit is designed this way, but it certainly created a unpleasant headache for me.   

I hope you guys can see the challenge I am facing here.

 

Edited December 30, 2023 by cifenet

[Force]

Yes indeed, I have built a few Italeri kits over the years and the mulit piece cabs are not an easy task to paint.
Personally I don't like Italeri's way of doing their kits, it's not just the cabs but all the short takes they take wich doesn't make many of their kits accurate.
For instance they often use outdated engines and drive trains, some with a few updates wich isn't enough, I also don't like their wheels and how you attach them.
They also only have two different chassis and drive trains for all of their US truck kits, one for the Peterbilt kits with a Detroit Series 60 and Peterbilt Airl Leaf suspension, and one for the rest of them wich in fact is a Freightliner chassis with a Cummins NTC inline 6 and a FAS Airliner earlier used by Peterbilt then called Stabilaire, one exception...the Italeri Freightliner FLD has a FAS II Airliner suspension wich came after 1990.
It was a long time since I bought a Italeri kit just for that.

[cifenet]

1 hour ago, Force said:

Yes indeed, I have built a few Italeri kits over the years and the mulit piece cabs are not an easy task to paint.
Personally I don't like Italeri's way of doing their kits, it's not just the cabs but all the short takes they take wich doesn't make many of their kits accurate.
For instance they often use outdated engines and drive trains, some with a few updates wich isn't enough, I also don't like their wheels and how you attach them.
They also only have two different chassis and drive trains for all of their US truck kits, one for the Peterbilt kits with a Detroit Series 60 and Peterbilt Airl Leaf suspension, and one for the rest of them wich in fact is a Freightliner chassis with a Cummins NTC inline 6 and a FAS Airliner earlier used by Peterbilt then called Stabilaire, one exception...the Italeri Freightliner FLD has a FAS II Airliner suspension wich came after 1990.
It was a long time since I bought a Italeri kit just for that.

Hey Håkan,

This is interesting how they decided to run the business when I see so many truck kits are available from Italeri. 

Yeah, I wouldn't want to build my brand new truck that has totally incorrect setup!  

I did watch someone posted a video clip complaining how the newest (and expensive) Italeri Scania S730 kit is basically a repackaged (incorrect) kit with new exterior.

At first I thought it was an isolated problem, but now you mention it, it looks like the problem is actually a common practice.

Based on reference photos I found, I think this MP4 Actros kit seems fairly correct.  So that is a good thing.

[Gary Chastain]

Agree with Hakan, those can be a challenge to build. From Italeri’s perspective the tooling (mold) becomes much cheaper to build. Let’s use a molded complete cab as an example. The cab standing up is about 3 or 4 inches tall, this means the mold has a much thicker A plate and B plate to mold something this tall, second I need to remove plastic for all the windows which means when the mold closes I need to move steal over to contact the A side of the mold, that requires a collapsible core and some way to move it in and out at the perfect time. All this design work, tool build and additional steal costs. If we take the cab apart and lay it out flat, the tallest part may only be .500 inches and the holes for windows are in the movement of open and close referred to as The Line of Draw. I now can use much less steal (thinner A and B plates) no longer need a collapsing core (design and build are greatly reduced cost). The upside again for Italeri is quality control is much easier with smaller flat parts. There are many variations to building molds and way more complex than my brief explanation of why they do what they do. I spent over 40 years in the plastics manufacturing world as a mold builder first, then mold designer and then part designer. The good thing is polystyrene is pretty forgiving plastic to inject in a mold compared to nylon or polycarbonate. Sorry for the long response 

[Gary Chastain]

19 minutes ago, cifenet said:

Hey Håkan,

This is interesting how they decided to run the business when I see so many truck kits are available from Italeri. 

Yeah, I wouldn't want to build my brand new truck that has totally incorrect setup!  

I did watch someone posted a video clip complaining how the newest (and expensive) Italeri Scania S730 kit is basically a repackaged (incorrect) kit with new exterior.

At first I thought it was an isolated problem, but now you mention it, it looks like the problem is actually a common practice.

Based on reference photos I found, I think this MP4 Actros kit seems fairly correct.  So that is a good thing.

Steve, typically but not always when you buy a model kit and open it, you find several parts trees ( in the mold builders world that tree is referred to as the runner). Each parts tree is a strategic grouping of parts and typically that tree with parts is molded in one mold, but not always. In a kit you may have say 5 parts trees which may be molded five molds each mold may cost 20,000 to 50,000 (or higher) dollars depending on the complexity of the parts. So a new rollout of a new model could creat a very large expense unless I pull one mold out of an old release, design a new cab, hood and various parts for the cab and hood and now mold cost is greatly reduced to only one new mold and reusing the other 4 parts trees from the previous model. The sales strategies now offers a complete new late model mold sometimes stating updated, new art work and so on. All model manufacturers do this, the AMT T600 Kenworth is a great example of this applied strategy, new cab and hood but frame and running gear from a much older Kenworth, changing maybe only one mold and reusing the current molds. 

[cifenet]

Wow, that makes perfect sense! 

I can see how one large cab piece can contribute to higher cost when it comes to mold injection process and designing the actual mold for it.  As you explained in detail, I can easily imagine the actual injection mold getting larger by 3~4 times just to support the one piece cab. 

So it does make sense why they are trying to make everything flat now.

But the cost saving is one thing, the design could have been better when it comes to assembling the cab. 

I would have no issues if they allowed us to insert the cabin interior from the bottom.  That way, I can always take it out once the external panels are assembled.

 

8 minutes ago, Gary Chastain said:

Agree with Hakan, those can be a challenge to build. From Italeri’s perspective the tooling (mold) becomes much cheaper to build. Let’s use a molded complete cab as an example. The cab standing up is about 3 or 4 inches tall, this means the mold has a much thicker A plate and B plate to mold something this tall, second I need to remove plastic for all the windows which means when the mold closes I need to move steal over to contact the A side of the mold, that requires a collapsible core and some way to move it in and out at the perfect time. All this design work, tool build and additional steal costs. If we take the cab apart and lay it out flat, the tallest part may only be .500 inches and the holes for windows are in the movement of open and close referred to as The Line of Draw. I now can use much less steal (thinner A and B plates) no longer need a collapsing core (design and build are greatly reduced cost). The upside again for Italeri is quality control is much easier with smaller flat parts. There are many variations to building molds and way more complex than my brief explanation of why they do what they do. I spent over 40 years in the plastics manufacturing world as a mold builder first, then mold designer and then part designer. The good thing is polystyrene is pretty forgiving plastic to inject in a mold compared to nylon or polycarbonate. Sorry for the long response 

 

[cifenet]

Right, I understand the logic here and these hobby manufactures are in this business for making money.

I also agree that it is super beneficial for the manufactures to come out with variations of a given kit and such, so they can re-use most of the "runners" except for the parts needed to build a specific version.  But they shouldn't end up producing an incorrect kit though.

Now I hear some of the latest kits won't have engines included for the same reasons.  It is a tough world out there for us modellers! 

 

10 minutes ago, Gary Chastain said:

Steve, typically but not always when you buy a model kit and open it, you find several parts trees ( in the mold builders world that tree is referred to as the runner). Each parts tree is a strategic grouping of parts and typically that tree with parts is molded in one mold, but not always. In a kit you may have say 5 parts trees which may be molded five molds each mold may cost 20,000 to 50,000 (or higher) dollars depending on the complexity of the parts. So a new rollout of a new model could creat a very large expense unless I pull one mold out of an old release, design a new cab, hood and various parts for the cab and hood and now mold cost is greatly reduced to only one new mold and reusing the other 4 parts trees from the previous model. The sales strategies now offers a complete new late model mold sometimes stating updated, new art work and so on. All model manufacturers do this, the AMT T600 Kenworth is a great example of this applied strategy, new cab and hood but frame and running gear from a much older Kenworth, changing maybe only one mold and reusing the current molds. 

 

Edited December 30, 2023 by cifenet

[Gary Chastain]

23 minutes ago, cifenet said:

Right, I understand the logic here and these hobby manufactures are in this business for making money.

I also agree that it is super beneficial for the manufactures to come out with variations of a given kit and such, so they can re-use most of the "runners" except for the parts needed to build a specific version.  But they shouldn't end up producing an incorrect kit though.

Now I hear some of the latest kits won't have engines included for the same reasons.  It is a tough world out there for us modellers! 

 

 

Totally agree, but for the average person who builds a model because he likes it probably does not know the parts are incorrect. I have been on several social media sites and the builders in this forum are probably some of the most informed builders with tons of knowledge shared, they expect a higher level of integrity in the kits they purchase. Why I like reading the builds and learning. 
 

one more thing on part quality and fit. These parts are molded in extremely high performing molding machines, new machines capable of 50,000 psi at the nozzle. Plastic when heated does not transmit pressure very well or consistently due to viscosity change. Therefore the pressure inside the mold (parts and runners) varies. When pressure in the cavity (parts) goes down, the shrink rate goes up ( parts get smaller). When the pressure goes up the shrink rate goes down ( parts are larger) all from the same mold. It is extremely difficult to manage this phenomenon because of the polymerization process of making plastic pellets. This is why sometimes my parts fit really well and I build the same kit a few years later and nothing seems to fit well. 
 

sorry for derailing your build thread but a really good topic. 

Edited December 30, 2023 by Gary Chastain
Corrected spelling