Martin1962

any updates?

Wow! I thought the photos were closeups of the real thing. Magnificent.

Thanks Ratch. You're quite right and it was a bit disappointing at the time

The photos don't even show the interior, which is also quite complex, as is the chassis and running gear. Yes it's complicated, and not cheap, but well worth it. The tractor unit itself was available as a separate kit. Not sure if it still is.

Well spotted. As I pushed the lens in the light cluster fell out and I used some PVA glue to stick it back. I haven't checked but it should have dried transparently by now.

waiting with baited breath. The lights look great

Thanks for all your kind comments!

Oh no, the orange! I'm not sure there's a pre-made rattle can that is the right colour. If there is then please let me know as I'm still tempted by that kit (despite my comments above!!)

I found it much better overall to get rid of the chrome and spray with Alcald Chrome.

Another one of mine that I completed a few years ago. This kit is a monster, but a terrific and satisfying build. The level of detail and quality of the mouldings are stunning and it was a revelation when released. It matches the 1/35 Famo that I completed earlier (and I'll put some of those pictures on here later). It's OOB, spray painted with standard Tamiya acrylics and weathered with pastels, ground up and applied with a brush I found it difficult to photograph well due to its length so it ended up outside. So some of the shots aren't the best, especially with the guard dog in the background! Anyway, hope you like it.

This was completed a few years ago and was a really sweet build. I used the Eduard PE kit for it which replaced engine cover louvres, locker and door latches, front shield, license plates, exhaust shields and so on. It was fiddly, but the overall effect was, I think, pretty good. The bucket handle was made from a guitar string! Comments welcome. thanks for dropping by.

I've finished the kit - well 99% but wanted to get it on here before Christmas. I must be honest it's been a challenging build and the age of the mouldings meant that some parts were poor fits. Most of the chromed parts were unusable and had to be stripped then sprayed. A few of the flexible parts (on the Q frame) were perished and split into pieces when fitted, and some of the additional details I put on were probably more trouble than they were worth in the end as they can't be seen - especially in the engine department. I also had to respray certain areas again after a botched attempt at recreating windscreen surround rubbers. I took advice from here and used a permanent marker in the end and I'm happy with the results. I must have cocked up the front suspension as well as the screw threads sat proud of the body and had to be dremmeled into oblivion. Getting the ride height even close to what I thought was right was a major faff. It was fortunate that I had two sets of decals with the kit because the originals had yellowed and were intact a bit blurry. The colours were also a bit off. I had to use a couple of them and they broke up when released from the backing, so thank goodness for the other set, which were clearly newer and after-market. I ended up applying some gloss varnish to the decals only and the whole model will be polished when it's all dry and cured. I'm aware of some of the faults with my efforts here, but I'm not going to highlight them. If nobody notices, then happy days, but I'm sure a few will spot the errors, but in then end I did feel I'd bitten off more than I could chew with this one. Most of my kits have been military and I find there's always a way to cover up mistakes with a bit of dirt, but with these cars it's much more difficult. I have a lot of respect for those of you who manage to build cars that look like they've come from a showroom. I have a way to go yet, but may not do another one for some time due to all the aircraft I have stacking up! Thanks for looking. Comments welcome, good bad or indifferent.

It's now finished - well 99% done - and you can see it in the 'ready for inspection' section. Thanks for all your comments and suggestions

Wow that's really cool. I finished one of these off a few months ago for my brother. It had been sitting in a box fo nearly 40 years unmade. I enjoyed the build and will post some pics soon. not as good as yours!

Very very nice indeed. Super skills there.