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1/80 IMAI Mole Thunderbirds Vehicle


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Hi all, well, there is not much to this kit that's for sure, not one scrap of styrene in it. The corkscrew nosecone and Mole tube body are made from expanded polystyrene covered in a thin grey resin primer. The seam on the screw was pretty awful but I tidied it up with some 5-minute epoxy and careful sanding. Hopefully the weathering will hide most of it.

The cast white metal parts are quite crisp; the wheels are made from some hard nylon plastic. There are some inaccuracies in this kit, most notably the side rails where the yellow Mole body sits. The rail should be flat but has this raised area in the centre; this should be part of the Mole body. However, I decided to leave it painted in blue. Also, the jet exhaust pipe is missing from the rear, I scratch built one to correct this. Now that the decals are fitted I will seal them in a satin clear coat then I can begin the weathering and throwing some tunnelling dirt over the vehicle. I will build a small diorama to finish the model off.

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That's a great result. It's obviously just trundled out of it's pod. It's so clean!

I always loved the scruffy 'post rescue' look that was applied to the models.

To me it added to the effect back then.

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10 minutes ago, Pete in Lincs said:

That's a great result. It's obviously just trundled out of it's pod. It's so clean!

I always loved the scruffy 'post rescue' look that was applied to the models.

To me it added to the effect back then.

Thanks Pete,i will be weathering the Mole up for the final reveal.

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