Tamiya McLaren MP4/6 1/12

[kpnuts]

That's looking incredible.

 

[JCH]

Hi All,

 

Work on the cockpit and monocoque continues.  Yesterday and today has been the steering linkage.  This was new for me and it took a couple tries.  

 

Bending:

 

After a great deal of fiddeling:

 

Dry fit:

 

Dry fit in the chassis and front bulkhead:

 

 

I'm not sure which is more precise Tamiya or Top Studio.  This one was hard but REALLY fun!  Oh and it works smoothly as a U-joint should.  

 

JCH

Edited July 27, 2020 by JCH

[roymattblack]

Amazing work going on here.

Hat off to you sir. Just lovely.

 

[JCH]

Hey all,

 

I made this yesterday.  Found the design on the internet.  Had an old bathroom exhaust fan and a light.  For the cost of a sheet of plywood and some sweat I've got a nice paint station.

 

 

And then there was light:

 

Switch on the side turns both the fan and light on.  Project would have been much easier with a table saw but one makes due.  I still need to run the duct work but that'll be easy.  I'll tap into existing duct work in the ceiling.  (Note the empty tumbler 😋).  

 

In case you are interested: https://hobbyzero.com/model-supplies/homemade-spray-booth-for-models/.  I used wood for the filter holder.  I also changed the design reducing the angle of the front.  This made the top longer for a larger enclosed space.  I'm also thinking of added a hinged section of clear plastic (plexiglass) that covers 1/2 to 2/3 of the front opening.  

 

Thanks all!

Edited July 30, 2020 by JCH

[Codger]

Beware of exposed switch wiring and unshielded bath fan with lacquer fumes.

[JCH]

20 minutes ago, Codger said:

Beware of exposed switch wiring and unshielded bath fan with lacquer fumes.

Good points... I thoroughly taped, HVAC tape, the interior fan and electrical assembly of the fan.  Mainly to improve fan efficiency, but it also serves as a vapor barrier.   A vapor barrier for the switch is a good idea.  I have a shield for the interior portion of the light.  An exterior housing is a good idea.  Thanks for the suggestions!

[Pouln]

You might want to add more than one light as this probably will give quite harsh shadows. Otherwise it looks like a very neat and usable paint station.

[JCH]

14 hours ago, Pouln said:

You might want to add more than one light

I was concerned with that too.  The light I have, LED with 8 sources albeit closely spaced, has a fair amount of diffusion. It also pivots on one axis.  I was thinking of bouncing it off the back.  I'm going to work with it for a while before any changes. 

[Pouln]

If it works for you, no change is needed.

[JCH]

A quick update... cockpit activity.  I'm pleased with the result of the seat-belt harness.  

 

 

 

 

I'm fighting the steering wheel at the moment.  5 REALLY small push buttons, ARGH!  I thought the switches on the control box were finicky.  I'll post when complete. 

 

If you are on the fence about anything from Top Studio, go for it!  The resin, photo etch, and turned metals are a treat to assemble.  

 

Thanks for looking . 

 

P.S.  As indicated previously, I did add a pane of acrylic sheet covering about 2/3 of the front of the paint station.  It works perfectly.  So much so I've been using the "paint" station for soldering.  No more bathing in lead smoke!

[Huckleberry75]

Dear fellow scale modelers,

I'm new in the hobby and my first project is the Tamiya 1/12 MP4/6 with some of the Top Studio details.

 

I painted the transmission in the color stated in the Tamiya instructions (XF-10:3 + X-10:2). It turns our very "brownish" and not like shown on real photos or in other models I saw.

 

Can you advise an alternative, more realistic looking color for the transmission?

 

Thanks in advance.

 

Thomas

Edited November 2, 2022 by Huckleberry75

[Malc2]

Hi Thomas,

This subject comes up quite often with regard to the Tamiya model, I agree the Tamiya callout is wrong. (And the FW14B which is also too brown).

The gearbox is not very visible so photos are hard to come by, but having looked through many, I believe the colour should be matt dark grey.

These are pages 46 and 47 from the FPM book.

You can see where the flash has lightened the gearbox colour in one pic compared to the other.

The MFH MP4/6 detail guide also ties in with this.

 

Malc.

[JCH]

Huckleberry75 -  I could not agree more.  I've assembled mine with the color specified in the kit, right or wrong.  It has contrast with the surrounding parts which I like.  A bit off from reality, likely.  

 

Malc, thanks for the pics.  I agree, much more on the gray side than brown. 

[JCH]

I've literally dusted off the completed assemblies, re-organized my work space, and am restarting the build.  More posts to follow.    

[Malc2]

Good to hear you are getting enthused again!

As a heads up, there seem to be a couple of problem areas to look out for that are common to all builds with full TS sets, one is that the intake plenum sits too high and so does not line up with the roll bar and therefore the body will not sit down fully on the completed chassis. So its worth doing a full assembly as soon as possible to check this. The answer seems to be to sand a bit off the base of the intake plenum.

The nose also commonly ends up being too long with the addition of the front bulkhead so again does not line up with the cowl. Simillarly adding the TS rear bulkhead adds length so the rear suspension arms do not match the cutouts in the rear body cowl.

Hope these help!

There is a Japanese guy on youtube called Night Rot Room (!), he has nearly finished an MP4/6 with full TS, its worth watching for the tips.

 

Malc.

 

[Huckleberry75]

Thank you, Malc, for the photos and hint. I think the MP4/6 has a magnesium gearbox housing. I will try the Alclad magnesium and see how it turns out.

 

Thanks again

Thomas

[k5054nz]

I'm painfully new to F1 modelling so am learning a lot about the various kits and scales...this thing looks like it should run! Remarkable work JCH and I'm so glad you're getting back to it.