Alan R Posted February 24, 2015 Share Posted February 24, 2015 Another one on the bench: This is a very old kit that I have previously attempted to work on. I had painted it with cellulose paints, and to be honest, it wasn't a roaring success... So, I stripped it back to the plastic, and then promoted it to the loft... Recently, I decided to give it another go. I learnt to drive in a rather weedy 1100cc Escort Mark 1, and this just suddenly appealed to me again. I am looking forward to the Belkits Escort mark 1, and I think the two together might look good. The stripping process (or the original painting) didn't damage the platic TOO much: This is after I cleaned it up a bit with very smooth wet 'n' dry. Apparently, the model is really the Rally Escort, with too few changes to make it look right. If you follow the instructions it still rides too high. So, way back when I bough the kit, there was an article in 'Scale Models' magazine that shows a couple of things that can be done to make it sit better. Mostly widening the track, and lowering the suspension even further. This is the mag: and these are the instructions: So, onwards and upwards, as they say... 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Cameraman Posted February 25, 2015 Share Posted February 25, 2015 Hi Alan R, I'm looking forward to following this build with keen interest. Regards Reggie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
heloman1 Posted February 25, 2015 Share Posted February 25, 2015 Nice one Alan, I think I built this kit when it first came out. Have you seen Belkits are going to release the Mk1? Lots of options there, both race and rally. Colin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rs2man Posted February 25, 2015 Share Posted February 25, 2015 I too will be watching with interest . I've got one of them part-built in the stash , which I must get finished some day . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ptcruiser Posted February 25, 2015 Share Posted February 25, 2015 here's the one I built "back in the day" Alan, a little worse for wear now. The decals on the tops of the wing flaked off (I've roughly painted replacements). Body was painted in Cellulose rattle can - remember when they were the only ones available? Rich 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alan R Posted February 25, 2015 Author Share Posted February 25, 2015 (edited) Hi Rich, Yup. Cellulose paint.It was more brittle than the plastic! It would flake off if you flexed the body. Still, yours looks pretty good. I hope that mine looks as good. I have no idea if the decals are any good after all these years. I remember building a Frog Me 410 a couple of years back, and I used the original decals. It must have been about 40 years old. I 'bleached' the yellow out by taping them to the window for about two weeks. Got an odd comment from the missus... Then, I sprayed Halfords Gloss varnish over the top before using them. That stopped them from breaking up. Worked a treat. I think for this one, I'll scan them into the 'puter and then print them onto white decal sheet as a back-up. Alan. Edited February 25, 2015 by Alan R Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hamden Posted February 26, 2015 Share Posted February 26, 2015 Interesting project I will follow with interest Roger Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kawacrossa Posted February 26, 2015 Share Posted February 26, 2015 Hi Alan, i`m looking forward to the Belkits MK1 too. i i built this kit when i was a kid about 20yrs ago, so i`ll be watching this closely. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alan R Posted March 5, 2015 Author Share Posted March 5, 2015 Some more progress. After some trepidation, I started on the surgery required to make the car sit properly with a widened track and lower stance. You can see that the front struts have been modified to have the axle sit further up, so that the front of the car sits about 3mm lower. Each wishbone has been lengthened by 3 mm as well. Notice that now, the anti-roll bar is bowed, and the mounting points would not sit correctly on the body shell. They appear to 'float' inside the chassis runners... If I had left the rack pivots (?) on the struts where they were the body shell would interfere with the steering rack. That also needed to be lowered. So, I lowered the pivot points so that the rack would sit correctly in the shell: One thing that the article forgot to mention was that the steering rack would need widening, otherwise the front wheels would look decidedly 'knock-kneed'! This was my first attempt: This fell apart as the white plastic rod was only butt-joined to the rack. Should have realised this would have happened , so I cut the rack up to the 'rubber' boots, drilled small holes in the ends, and cut a length of 30 'thou rod to the correct length (34mm, for those who want to know) and cemented that into the newly prepared holes, thus: Much better... I also slightly lengthened the anti-roll bar, thus: It fits the chassis rails much better. Later photos will show that. The back axle needed widening as well: Finally, the car has holes in the boot (trunk for our cousins overseas....) I drilled them out thus: Well, that's all for the present, All the best, Alan. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John_W Posted March 6, 2015 Share Posted March 6, 2015 Lovely. A proper shaped Escort. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hamden Posted March 7, 2015 Share Posted March 7, 2015 That suspension/steering upgrade will make all the difference in the sit of the model Great work looking forward to more Roger Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
griffsrw Posted March 7, 2015 Share Posted March 7, 2015 (edited) i can still remember my excitement the first time i saw this kit, along with the rally version in arts and crafts model shop in chester. the date would be around 1982 ?. as i spent much of my time watching short circuit hot rods racing, i had to have them both. i built both as hot rods, one with x pack arches, then another as a tubocharged rallycross car, i still have them. only this week i have been stripping paint off a shell and floor that i bought cheap off ebay. i also did a roger clark cossack version for my mates 40th birthday pressy. although it has it's faults, i still like it lots. looking forward to your progress, it may tempt more 'out of the loft'. hope you can see it, its over 30 years old now. Edited March 7, 2015 by griffsrw 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alan R Posted March 7, 2015 Author Share Posted March 7, 2015 . i can still remember my excitement the first time i saw this kit, along with the rally version in arts and crafts model shop in chester. the date would be around 1982 ?. as i spent much of my time watching short circuit hot rods racing, i had to have them both. i built both as hot rods, one with x pack arches, then another as a tubocharged rallycross car, i still have them. only this week i have been stripping paint off a shell and floor that i bought cheap off ebay. i also did a roger clark cossack version for my mates 40th birthday pressy. although it has it's faults, i still like it lots. looking forward to your progress, it may tempt more 'out of the loft'.https://www.flickr.com/photos/77461910@N03/16556359790/ hope you can see it, its over 30 years old now. That's pretty impressive! I can only hope that mine turns out as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A5h Posted March 7, 2015 Share Posted March 7, 2015 I do like these Zakspeed Escorts, they look really cool when done... Hope it works out for you this time Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alan R Posted March 7, 2015 Author Share Posted March 7, 2015 (edited) I had a disastrous night last night. I was putting everything away after some work on the Escort. Nearly done, I was putting the bits in a small pot, when the lid popped off, and the back axle and steering rack both disappeared behind the workbench! After a lot of searching, I found the back-axle, but the steering rack has been consumed by the carpet monster! Which is quite clever, since our conservatory has a laminate floor! Argh! After over an hour pulling everything out, and making a complete mess of the conservatory, I gave up in a funk! That was one more model build scuppered and an early night lost, I thought. However, after a while, whilst laying in bed, I remembered that I had taken a picture for the forum of the modified steering rack, and that I should with a bit of patience, work out how to fabricate a new rack. So, with some evergreen rod and tube, I made this: It is almost exactly the same as the original, without the pesky seams that just refuse to go away, even after sanding... It's a combination of 1/8" tube for the axle pivots, 1/16" rod for the rack and tie-rods, and 3/32" tube for the rubber boots. To make the rubber boots, I cut the tube to the correct length, inserted into the chuck of my trusty Dremel, and filed the ends to a bevel, and carefully using my scalpel, engraved the concertina bits. I then assembled the bits together, and hey-presto, this is the result.Not too shabby, even if I say so myself. Saved!!! All the best, Alan. Edited March 7, 2015 by Alan R 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
griffsrw Posted March 7, 2015 Share Posted March 7, 2015 probably long enough now to get the tracking right ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alan R Posted March 8, 2015 Author Share Posted March 8, 2015 I think so. However, after this, any adjustments should be 'shimples' ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
heloman1 Posted March 8, 2015 Share Posted March 8, 2015 Some good nifty work going on there Alan. Colin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now