Gentleman's weekend racer Aston Martin DB5

[Pierre Rivard]

Based on the recent release Goldfinger DB5 by Revell. The kit was designed as a snap fit to attract new customers to the hobby. I am thoughroughly unimpressed with this kit. The shape of the roof is so off you lose the graceful allure of this car. Snap fit glass is wavy with poorly defined trim edges and the snap features are apparent after assembly. Simplistic chassis, no engine, a chrome tree with thick lumpy plating... but I really wanted to do a DB5 so I did what I could with it.

I chose to do a bumper less gentleman's weekend racer so all the Bond features were left out or hidden. I spent time on softening the roof lines in an attempt to recapture the car's gentle arch shape. I added a roll cage, lowered the ride height and substituted the pathetic front grille + wheels & tires with the excellent aftermarket units from USCP. I mixed my own colors and decals are from the spares box.

Thank you for watching and please chime in if you have ideas on how to improve this kit. With the Airfix kit being impossible to find these days this Revell kit is the only option for DB5 lovers.

[1959scudetto]

Nice transformation of the JB spy car, Pierre ! While the stripes and numbers are not to my taste, the model certainly is - the grille and wheels pimp it up a lot, and your interior is first class !

(You give me some inspiration for my glue-bomb Monogram DB4)

[Jim B]

Beautiful DB5. Very well done. 

[Rich Chernosky]

Pierre...followed your WIP and I think you achieved what you set out to do.  Some first rate modeling on display here.  Well done. 

[rrb124@sbcglobal.net]

Classic. Super cool. Backdrop is perfect!

[BK9300]

In spite of kit, you've produced another beautiful car (your photography shows it off well, too)!

[MarkJ]

Beautiful build as always, Pierre. The whole look of the model says that it came from an advanced kit instead of a snap kit. Love the brick wall and signs backdrop and your paint finish as always is magnificent. the wheels and tires were definitely worth waiting for. Another great build from the master.

[Dave B]

That looks great Pierre and a very quick build for you!!!

Dave B

[Dave B]

PS, I to love the background setting.

Dave B

[Kolu]

Oh yes ,  this would not look out of place on the grid at Goodwood or Oulton Park. Lovely model.  I like the new background as well.  Great work, thanks.

[Pierre Rivard]

On 10/13/2024 at 6:13 PM, 1959scudetto said:

Nice transformation of the JB spy car, Pierre ! While the stripes and numbers are not to my taste, the model certainly is - the grille and wheels pimp it up a lot, and your interior is first class !

(You give me some inspiration for my glue-bomb Monogram DB4)

Yes... I may have gone off course a bit with the color theme. I promise to go easy on the DB4. That old Aurora/Monogram kit actually looks pretty good.

On 10/13/2024 at 7:43 PM, Jim B said:

Beautiful DB5. Very well done. 

Thank you Jim

On 10/13/2024 at 11:38 PM, Rich Chernosky said:

Pierre...followed your WIP and I think you achieved what you set out to do.  Some first rate modeling on display here.  Well done. 

Thanks Rich. It's just too bad Revell chose to mail it it with this kit... such an important car.

20 hours ago, rrb124@sbcglobal.net said:

Classic. Super cool. Backdrop is perfect!

This backdrop is a new thing I am trying with this presentation. The brick wallpaper looks surprisingly real.

16 hours ago, BK9300 said:

In spite of kit, you've produced another beautiful car (your photography shows it off well, too)!

Thank you Brian. Just a shame a newly tooled kit feels so old. I actually enjoy improving/upgrading old kits but new  kits should feel... new.

15 hours ago, MarkJ said:

upgrading Beautiful build as always, Pierre. The whole look of the model says that it came from an advanced kit instead of a snap kit. Love the brick wall and signs backdrop and your paint finish as always is magnificent. the wheels and tires were definitely worth waiting for. Another great build from the master.

Thank you so much Mark. The wheels and tires from USCP are magnificent and combined with lowering ride height have made a huge difference.

12 hours ago, Dave B said:

That looks great Pierre and a very quick build for you!!!

Dave B

99% OOB = quick build

1 hour ago, Kolu said:

Oh yes ,  this would not look out of place on the grid at Goodwood or Oulton Park. Lovely model.  I like the new background as well.  Great work, thanks.

Thank you Philip, that was the type of car I wanted to replicate.

[kensar]

Your work is very good - as usual.  I could even forgive you for the color choice. ?

[Ace-Garageguy]

Very nice...but sorry to hear about the line and proportion issues with the kit. Bummer.

[Phildaupho]

To my eyes your Aston looks beautifully well built.

[Bainford]

That's a good looking AM, Pierre, with a great period vibe. In spite of the kit's shortcomings, you've wrung out a fine model. Your subtle roof correction is a great improvement. Oh, great paint work, as always. Very nice work. 

[Pierre Rivard]

On 10/15/2024 at 12:50 PM, kensar said:

Your work is very good - as usual.  I could even forgive you for the color choice. ?

Well... I'm still scratching my head on why I chose this color. 

On 10/15/2024 at 5:37 PM, Ace-Garageguy said:

Very nice...but sorry to hear about the line and proportion issues with the kit. Bummer.

I really enjoy trying to make old kits a bit better but strange that a newly tooled kit needs it. The changes I made were not drastic but I believe they make a difference.

21 hours ago, Phildaupho said:

To my eyes your Aston looks beautifully well built.

Thank you Phil

10 hours ago, Bainford said:

That's a good looking AM, Pierre, with a great period vibe. In spite of the kit's shortcomings, you've wrung out a fine model. Your subtle roof correction is a great improvement. Oh, great paint work, as always. Very nice work. 

Thank you Trevor

[Jim N]

Looks really good Pierre.  You did a great job.

[PappyD340]

Super nice Aston Martin

[ChrisR]

Looks great.