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Rover SD1 (3500), Heller, 1/43


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Simple to build but exquisitely detailed in parts, with fit that's great in some places, not so good in others...

 

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It's really not very big...

 

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Got quite a little stack more of these little Hellers as light relief between larger scale builds...

best,

M.

 

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52 minutes ago, cmatthewbacon said:

Simple to build but exquisitely detailed in parts, with fit that's great in some places, not so good in others...

I was going to say but...

2 minutes ago, gt6mkiii said:

Like the real car?

...he beat me to the drop.

 

Great work, I'm hoping some more of these will pop up in the Classic Heller GB, these really are Heller classics and you've done a fantastic job there!  :thumbsup2:

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1 hour ago, cmatthewbacon said:

It's really not very big...

He says... seriously, I went to the box in which I keep my Tamiya paint jars and took one out to double check the size... the car's tiny!

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The SD1 always looked good to my eyes, and that's as true of this model as it is of the real thing. Fantastic work, especially given it's only 1:43.

 

I wish someone would do a 1:24, but that's probably a big ask and small seller in the grand scheme of things :(

 

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The SD1 was a good car plagued by build and reliability issues. Shame really.

The V8 was quick!

 

Under-pinnings were a bit agricultural, though. Live rear axle when all their competitors has IRS? What were they thinking!

 

Cheers,

Alan.

Edited by Alan R
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On 19/01/2020 at 21:26, Spiny said:

The SD1 always looked good to my eyes, and that's as true of this model as it is of the real thing. Fantastic work, especially given it's only 1:43.

 

I wish someone would do a 1:24, but that's probably a big ask and small seller in the grand scheme of things :(

 

 

I'm hoping that Beemax will do a Vitesse touring car (one is visible in the background of the artwork of their Volvo 242 Turbo).  I suspect that is the only way a 1:24 one will appear.

 

10 hours ago, Alan R said:

The SD1 was a good car plagued by build and reliability issues. Shame really.

The V8 was quick!

 

Under-pinnings were a bit agricultural, though. Live rear axle when all their competitors has IRS? What were they thinking!

Simply a case of cost saving - this was the dark days of BL...  Rover were fully capable of desigining and building a more advanced rear suspension, as demonstrated by the de Dion rear on the P6 from a decade earlier.  However, I recall back in the early / mid '90s that Performance Car mag (when still a proper car mag) featuring the Vitesse version in a regular series of articles on older performance cars, and describing them as being not far off a 5 door TVR, so the live axle can't have been that bad.

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On ‎1‎/‎20‎/‎2020 at 12:52 PM, Alan R said:

Under-pinnings were a bit agricultural, though. Live rear axle when all their competitors has IRS? What were they thinking!

 

Cheers,

Alan.

Ah , but it was a properly-located coil-sprung live axle .  A good live axle is better than an indifferent IRS , not least because you don't get any track or camber changes & your tyres stay planted square on the road .  A lot of IRS set-ups tend to be semi-trailing arm & , unless the springs are very stiff , suffer from considerable camber change .  That's why Sierras had tyres that were way too wide for the rims (195/60s on 5.5 inch rims)  so the tyres could roll sideways on the rim & keep the tread on the road .  If they'd had 6.5 inch rims , which are more appropriate for a 195/60 , they would have spent much of their life balanced on the inner or outer edges of the tyres with consequent rapid tyre wear & loss of grip .

 

Now back to the original subject of the thread .  Great model Matt  - I'd forgotten about that kit .  Those 1/43 Heller kits really were lovely little things .

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  • 2 weeks later...
On 19/01/2020 at 17:24, cmatthewbacon said:

Simple to build but exquisitely detailed in parts, with fit that's great in some places, not so good in others...

The end result looks like it turned out great to me!  Proportions and shape look just right too.  What went well, and what wasn't so good about the build?  I have one of these which I was originally planning to paint in one of the solid colours that they were available in, but the colour on your model looks absolutely spot on for a pre-facelift SD1 😎

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  • 2 months later...

looks stunning. I think the vanguards and minichamps versions (series 2 I know) are too small width-wise - can you tell me please if this version is wider than minichamps? If so I would like to get it and redo in another colour, thanks.

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Many moons ago I owned an SD1 2600S.  It was like driving a boat!  The power steering was too powerful, with little feedback to the driver.  Build quality was dubious at best, but a great looking car.  The touring car V8's were fantastic.

 

Great model, well done.

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Lovely model Matt.  It takes me back to my silver 2600VDP.  I managed to average 8mpg on one tank through 'enthusiastic' driving.  Ace car, ace model.

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Ah-hah! Sorry, I didn’t notice this one had popped up again. So... thanks chaps. I always thought they looked cool, but I’ve never had the chance to own/drive one. Though my first car was a Rover Vitesse, it was a 216... mind you, I liked it a lot! I’d have an SD1 Vitesse in a heartbeat. Amazing that Heller of all companies did so many of BL’s finest — I have an XJ-S and a Princess to go, along with a Renault 30 and Citroen CS. 70s car park classics all!

best,

M.

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