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Moments from my car modelling history


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Thanks a lot gentlemen, I'm glad you like them.

As I look through my photo files of many older models I realize that I have to take new photos before being able to post them. Not that I'm good at it today, but the digital camera I had in the late 90's was perhaps reasonably good for its time, but not today when looking at the result. Or I wasn't terribly good at using it. Will try to attend to that. I also realize I should show more 1/43, as I have for a long time enjoyed 1/43 resin and white metal kits a lot and have built hundreds of them. Sadly we no longer see such a huge amount of interesting 1/43 resin releases as we did in the late -80's and -90's.

Anyway, here is a favourite subject of mine; Alpine Renault. This is the A310 proto lightweight works car that Jean-Luc Thérier raced at Ronde Cevenole in 1974. A particularly nice subject as the car was fitted with a fuel injected engine and stripped of everything unessential to save weight at that event. I always like those special hard core race- and rally cars. The kit is from Provence Miniatures and was built in 2007. I did some small corrections according to period reference photos and added a little detail to the visible engine.

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Another lovely build Jörgen - & I really like the way you can see that excellently detailed engine through the clear engine deck lid! Terrific work in 1/43rd! I've always liked the A310 & have the more standard rally version as released by Airfix in 1/24th to get round to - one day!

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  • 2 weeks later...

Many thanks for the kind words gentlemen. Let's stay with the Alpine A310 a little longer and move up to 1/24th scale. Here is the A310 V6 in its updated phase II format, from -81. I built this in 2000, starting with Nichimo's old motorized 1600 Gr.4 kit. It has a lot of issues, but the basic A310 shape is actually pretty good. As I had a number of those kits laying around and also a lot of Tamiya R5 Turbo wheels and tyres left over, I thought they could make a good A310 V6 phase II model when brought together, with some scratching and modifications. So after a lot of cutting, Evergreen strips and filling this was the result.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Hi Jorgen, as I told you at the lemans thread this one is a great success, I can see how some of our friends are inspired by your work as I did almost 15 years ago. please I know there are a lot, but don't let any of your gt40s and your gt90 out of this photo session.

Thank you

Carlos Avina

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  • 2 weeks later...

Thanks a lot for the praise gentlemen. Carlos, I'm so happy for having provided that sort inspiration back then, it's nice to know. Sure there are many GT40's in my shelves, and the odd Le Mans GT90... They'll show up some day.

Right now though, I think it's time for a McLaren. I love the old true CanAm cars from the good old days and here is Bruce's M6A from the Laguna Seca race '67 that I built in 2001. It's the 1/24 resin kit from Fisher with a few modifications to make the version from this race, and quite a lot of details changed and added. I also remember reshaping the lower monocoque sides as they were too square and reworking all the openings in the rear end. The tyres are my own resin castings and the gearbox detail was cast from parts I worked on for a M8b project. Hope you enjoy.

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I'm glad you still enjoy them gentlemen. I had planned for another record car this time, but after a little request we go back to Le Mans 24h and the Alpine A210 from '66. This is again in 1/24 scale and based around the old Heller kit, also issued by AMT and Union. And I really mean based around... I built this in late 2000, that was a while before LMM's resin kit arrived. I have a very soft spot for the Le Mans Alpines, so I was easily motivated to put some extra work into it.

I was unhappy with the windscreen and roof profile, and a number of other areas. So the first thing I did was to cut the roof and windscreen surround from a Tamiya A110 body and incorporate that into the build. That operation fixed that problem, then it was various issues of reshaping and rescribing some other areas, some of which can be seen in the last small old pics. Much of the interior was also modified or changed, including the whole engine cover built from scratch. Most of the exterior detail parts was also updated from various sources and some resin parts of my own was also used. I drew and printed the race numbers and the other small decals came from my spares collection. This is one I like a lot.

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Oh great! Now I have to start over and redo my Alpine. Looking for another kit now. I thought I was doing well just addressing the sink holes in the plastic. Jorgen, your model is the gold standard for Alpine builds.

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Many thanks gentlemen. While we have been busy with Alpines lately I thought I'd bring you this little known version of the A110...

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Yes, it's the very rare Alpine A110 Break (hatchback or perhaps rather Shooting-Brake in english). It was based on the A110 1600 SC version with the updated rear suspension. Rumour has it that the idea was born in Dieppe after a Friday lunch at the factory with more red wine than usual. For some reason it never took off beyond the first concept though, one small problem mentioned was the fact that rear engine layout made the rear compartment more or less useless. It looked good though.*

It's a very quick build I did in 2009, using the Tamiya kit and inspired by some argumentation around the idea of hatch back converted sports cars. I think it was done in about two weeks time all in all.

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* OK, I'll admit that I have never found any references to the real car anywhere. Or to that lunch meal in Dieppe for that matter... :wicked:

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Wow Jörgen, these are all superbly finished. They are a great collection of cars. The GT40's are all superb and have I considered getting a Fujimi GT40 myself recently. May I ask what you think of these kits and how do they compare to a Tamiya type kit?

Thanks, Rob.

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Thanks a lot Rob. I have built quite a number of Fujimi's GT40 kits, both more or less OOB and used as base for larger modifications. I'll show more of them here.

The Fujimi GT40 kit must be divided in two, or actually three or four, sub categories. :blah: It was first released many years ago as the MkII in Le Mans ´66 configuration with the body in one piece (separate front hatch). Much later we saw another two versions released as two different MkI kits with separate rear ends, one with the more "standard" rear end and the other with a wider rear, trying to look like the famous '68 and '69 Le Mans Gulf cars (which actually had quite different rear ends in '68 and '69 respectively). Around the same time came the MkII kit with additional parts to convert it to Daytona '67 spec. All of them have been issued in many different versions from various races.

The first MkII kits are IMO very good. It goes together well, have good detail for a curbside kit and is quite accurate in detail and shape. One minor complaint is the two rear wheels which are not perfectly identical, but you have too look hard to see... :rolleyes: I find it on par, or better, with Tamiya from the same era. I recommend it if you want a MkII. The later MkI's are OK as kits, but leaves a bit to be desired in accuracy and shape if you are picky (I'll admit that I am picky with GT40's :nerd::smartass: ), especially the two Gulf versions, but it goes for all their MkI kits.

All of them will build well into good looking GT40's, but the best are the first MkII kits from Le Mans '66, especially the winning car.

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  • 3 weeks later...

Thanks a lot gentlemen. Did I mention that I like speed record cars? Several times, yes. Here is another one, a kit that never even made it to the stash when it was released in 2003 (I think), it went directly on the work bench. It's the turbine powered Renault Étoile Filante from 1956, when it set the record for turbine powered cars at 307,4 km/h. The model is 1/24 scale resin from Le Mans Miniatures. I think I did some improvements to the exhausts, but otherwise it's more or less OOB.

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Jörgen,

Another unusual 1:1 vehicle perfectly replicated. Such more or less exotic models make a forum really interesting.

BTW apart from the tail fins isn't there an amazing resemblance to the streamline Auto Union Typ C & Typ D of the thirties?

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  • 5 months later...

I realise it's been an awfully long time since I updated this thread. I was thinking of adding a row of Renault 4CV models I have done, but I just found photos I took for this thread back in May when I was cleaning out a splash folder for camera downloads that I had completely forgotten about. OK, rather than throwing them I can just as well show them. I hope you enjoy them.

I like to build models of my own 1/1 scale cars, or cars I have had some sort of relation to, when possible. Here are two of my current 1/1 scale enthusiast cars built in 1/24 scale, a 1998 Mazda Miata MX-5 that I actually bought brand new, and a BMW E34 M5 3,6 1990 bought in 2009 which have since received a lot of restoration.

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The Miata was built from the Aoshima kit that was issued at the same time as the real NB model in 1998. I bought and built the kit a few weeks after I bought the real car, so references where close and plentiful.

I did some modifications to the seats to make separate head rests and some minor work on the centre of the dashboard to exactly match my own car; otherwise it's just from the box. The body paint is from a decanted original touch up spray can. The real car is still in the same condition and is a keeper.

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The E34 M5 was built in 2011 using Fujimi's M5 kit as the base. That kit needs quite a bit of work to the front and rear ends to make it look right, it also doesn't have the correct wheels and the interior is not from an M5, so a lot of work was called for. My car is a very early 1990 model built in August 1989, which means among other things it has the earliest M5 front bumper/spoiler and the two seated rear seat which meant some more work.

I made good use of 3D printing for this one, several interior details were done this way, and not least the typical 3,6 M5 wheels. The wheels were made as the real ones; with the right and left handed cooling fans separate from the rims that are different width front and rear. I actually had a small WIP-thread back then on the Swedish E34 M5-forum, it might be possible to see without a login, I'm not sure. The body paint is the original Misano red that I had mixed up for some work on the real car.

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Two more real stunners Jörgen! The finish on both is beautiful, but the Mazda looks exceptional! Does your real car have pearl paint, as the metallic particles look really close to scale size on the model - much better than straight auto metallics usually look.

Once again, two absolutely lovely models!

keith

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