Aoshima Toyota Celica TC Turbo

[Spiny]

On 08/02/2019 at 20:02, Windy37 said:

Don't give up hope just yet, at least for the bits like the roof where i's just bubbled as those bits may be just about salvageable. As I mentioned in your other thread, I had a similar issue with the decals on the Charger, the worst one being the large decal on the bonnet. As the kit isn't exactly common, and I could only find one decal source for it, I decided to see if I could make something of it. The original damage was not quite as rough as yourse, but showed more wrinking. First job was to give it a good thick clear coat - the last thing you want to do is sand through the decal. Then it was a case of sanding down the clear as far as you dare (remember, if you see any sign of damage on the decal stop immediately!). After that, I gave it another clear coat. I'm still at the polishing stage, but the current state of play is in the picture below. Only the decal has had any polishing (3000grit, then 12,000 grit thinny buffing sticks) and there is still a bit of smoothing to do in the front corners not to mention a run over with the polish and wax, but it looks promising.

 

 

Obviously you have more in the way of decalling, but I would encourage you to give it a go at restoring the decals - after all you've probably done the worst damage you'll do to them and if all goes wrong you'd only be removing these anyway.

[JeroenS]

Good one Spiny. And if all else fails, spray it with dust and make it look "end of stage". 

[Windy37]

I 'll get it sorted ! You learn by your mistakes ! It's a Safari car , so a few scratches and scrapes can be expected . Thanks for all the advice and comments . 

Gary. 

[Windy37]

More progress on the Celica. I ve fitted all the windows and cut the drivers side window out. This is something I always do as it lets you see into the car easier , showing off the detail . The front windscreen didn’t fit very tight , so I had to rub the bottom edge down to get a better fit . I ve painted the window edges and tidied up some of the vents on the body that melted with the lacquer. I hate painting window frames , you need such a steady hand and one slip looks bad . I will paint the windscreen frame when it has set . The end results do make the car look better though . I ve also painted the interior Matt black, as on the real car . All the window frames and vents were painted Matt Black too .

   At the front I’ve fitted the grille and headlights. Behind these is a small mesh panel that comes with the kit and needs to be cut to size . It looks quite effective . At the rear I’ve fitted the rear radiator and chrome plated light units , ready for their lenses when I get them painted . 

   Last weekend I was at a car rally local - ish to me , the Riponian Stages based out of Thirsk and using stages in North Yorkshire . Ben Mellors was taking part in his Toyota Celica 2000 GT RA40 . It’s always superbly turned out and makes a nice change to all the Escorts . Sounds really well too .  

   Thanks for your interest, Gary . 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This is Ben Mellors immaculate Celica historic class car before the start of last Sunday’s Riponian Rally . 

 

 

 

 

    

 

[Spiny]

Looks as though this is going well now - glad you appear to have got past your decal issues. I can relate to your comments on window frames too - I tried doing them by hand but it just didn't look straight so I've resorted to masking tape now. It's a bit of a faff, but for me at least it's the only way I can get them presentable - if you've done this by hand that is a stunning job.

[Windy37]

It’s done by hand , Spiny . There is no window masks in the kit , but my experience with them is that the paint usually bleeds underneath them . Since building my last kit , I wear glasses now and I do find it easier to do the detail painting !!

Gary .

[Alan R]

I find that with my dodgy eyes, and a somewhat shaky hand, that painting window frames "free-hand" is a hiding to nothing.

I found that if I apply 6mm Tamiya masking tape around the frame, then flatten it down with the pointy end of a cocktail stick, followed by careful cutting with my trusty Swann-Morton Scalpel (#26 blade), that I get a pretty good result.

 

Cheers, Alan.

[Windy37]

Thanks , Alan . Might try that on the next build . Skyline looks well . 

Gary .

[Windy37]

Just a quick update this week . Didn’t get anything done last weekend , weather far to nice to be inside . Today it’s raining heavily, so I’ve been on with the Celica again . I ve been preparing the Safari Rally spec parts . Front and rear nudge bars and Cibie spotlights. The front nudge bar has weld moulded into the plastic , great detail but nearly invisible to the naked eye ! The spotlights are in four parts and I used PVA glue to stick the lenses in . My daughter uses it to stick sequins onto her dancing costumes and dries invisible she tells me ..... we will see . Back in the day me and my mates all ran Cibies on our hot hatches . They were highly prized and often got stolen , as a 17 mm spanner was all you needed to remove a pair of spots worth about £ 80 ! 

  Thanks for looking , Gary. 

 

 

Here’s a close up of the weld detail on the front nudge bar .

 

 

[Windy37]

A bit of progress on the Celica this weekend . I ve fitted the wheels , tyres and the spotlights . The rear tyres are slightly taller and wider than the front . I wonder if they ever got mixed up in a rushed service stop ? 

  The spotlights look very realistic . The instructions show only the top spots on the nudge bar , but as a spare set are in the box I decided to make them up and put them under the top set  . You can display the lights with or without the covers  . I just need to touch up the paint on the light backs . The windscreen running lights have stays . These were very delicate to cut off the spruce  . 

  The car looks good now on it’s wheels and stands right . Often Safari Rally model kits have the wrong ride heights , looking more like tarmac cars ! 

   Thanks for looking , Gary . 

 

 

 

 

[Hamden]

 

Superb result, looks every inch a Safari car!

 

  Roger

[fet_thunderdome]

I had no problems with TS13 over decals. You have to be very very gentle with the first 2/3 coats. Very light and misty coats, or you are going to damage paint and decals. After you cover well, you can go a little bit wet, but don't go for a full mirror finish with first hands, or you will end up ruining decals, paint and plastics. TS13 is very thin but a nice clear coat. It's not candy-like and gives a lot of automotive look to the finish. But you have to be careful.

[fet_thunderdome]

And another important thing: decals should be placed perfectly on an alrealdy glossy surface (no silvering, no bubbles..) and they have to be DRY. At least 2 days of drying time.