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Airfix (MPC) Stutz Bearcat in 1/25th Scale.Finished.


Alex Gordon

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She's shaping up very nicely! :thumbsup:

 

I wonder if strips cut from painted decals sheet would work here? I would recommend clear as white decal sheets will always show at the edges.

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Hello again Chums,a bit more engine this time.

 

dnl42,thanks old chum.I did think about decal stripes as an option.I don't have any decal sheet of any description for custom painting but I do have some solid colour sheet hidden somewhere but I don't recall which colours.I've also been eyeing the edging on various kit sheets in the spares bag and the stash,but I don't think that there's enough length on any one sheet to do the lot and look the same.It's not a race,I'll think of something.

 

Tim,many thanks old fruit.

 

The heads have had suitable holes drilled in the undersides to take the pushrods and the bits that are supposed to be brass have been picked out using a mixture of Humbrol 119 Light Earth and Palitoy Airfix G7 Gold.The holes in the top of the head are for the upper coolant pipe and are handed but I had not spotted this before I took it all to pieces to tart it up.Guess who hadn't a clue which way round it all goes. 

 

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Fortunately the inlet and exhaust manifolds are handed to their respective sides and the locating pegs are not only differently spaced but different diameters too.Well done MPC,you've got me out of trouble there :clap2: .

 

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What this means is that it will only fit together one way.

 

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A quick cobble together revealed that the cylinders need to be lifted slightly so that the coolant pipe sits properly,but this was an issue before I chopped it all into pieces.Lifting the whole engine would prevent the flywheel from joining the propshaft.

 

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The pushrods needed a bit of fettling.A drop of my brass mixture paint was slopped onto the block ends of my twiddly bits.

 

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I then offered one up to make it the right length to reach from the block into the holes drilled into the heads and then made the rest of them the same using a pin vice chucked into the cordless drill and a file.

 

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These ones are the second batch that I made and look a lot more uniform .They will go on the open bonnet side of the engine.

 

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The springs were threaded on to a length of wire ready for painting.

 

RkRBJDg.jpg

 

More soon Chums,thanks for looking in.

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G'day again Chums,anyone familiar with my way of doing things will know that I prefer to go for the simplest solution to any problem unless the hard way is the only way.

 

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This build is,as a by product,a method of using some of the paint that I've acquired over the years that will never be used for anything else.This time it is a Revell red enamel that,for a change,wasn't snot and sprayed rather well with little provocation.Having cut some very narrow strips of masking tape using two scalpel blades glued together,not an easy job to get both edges positioned so that they cut simultaneously,I spent a happy several hours masking off the pinstripes.I don't think that I would have managed to do that with decal striping.Some of it will be a little wobbly but I'm sure it'll be fine.

 

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We're ready to join the body to the chassis.The masking on the contact faces was removed

 

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and then both bits glued together.I'm not normally a user of clamps but the taping together method wasn't going to work so some strategically placed coffee stirrers to distribute the pressure and press the sightly unstraight chassis to the body was the approach of choice.

 

slKL2fl.jpg

 

More soon Chums,thanks for looking in.

 

 

 

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Hello again Chums,we've put some more bits together.

The seats had the overspray removed from the contact faces and the upholstery glued on.

 

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One of them needed some persuasion to sit together as it should,the other one just needed to be held together.

 

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I turned my attention to the glassware.There isn't much in this one but what's provided isn't really useable.

 

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These are some quite majestic flow patterns inside the circles,the surfaces are perfectly smooth and polished, and I'm intending to keep this item intact to use as a demonstration piece.I wonder if one of our injection moulding gurus would like to comment on this one.

 

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Anyway,I fished out a piece of suitable sheet to make some replacements.

 

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This was covered both sides with masking tape to prevent it becoming any more scratched than it already was.I then roughly traced round each circle using the tip of a scalpel blade to give me a line to cut to.

 

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Cutting out with scissors gave me some nearly there bits that were refineable to shape and size.

 

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These were offered up and,with a nip and a tuck,will do for me.

 

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Being as we will be able to see in to the lamp housings I suppose I ought to make some semblance of the bulbs and mountings.

 

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The dashboard has had a bit of attention.The lumpy bits,they're not gauges yet,were superglued on.

 

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The clock,ammeter and oil pressure gauges had their faces filed off ready for something representing the dials to be put there.The thing is I don't have anything to do that job.

 

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The engine block needed something adding to the upper surface to raise the cylinders a bit.The pushrod sleeves have their own mounting which is a distinctive shape.The number tabs on one of the frames were the right thickness and half way to the length and shape required.

 

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The engine was offered into place to mark out for the positions of all the upperworks bits.This was a bit of entertainment,having glued the car body to the chassis I found that the block wouldn't drop in any more and had to be pushed,twisted and generally levered into its hole before I could do any further work.  

 

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Some 10 thou plastic sheet has been added to the bottoms of the cylinders

 

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and a sheet of the same to the top face of the block.

 

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The number tabs ruse worked a treat

 

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and some paint has been added to hide the bodgework.There will be plenty of touching in before this one is finished.

 

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More soon Chums,thanks for looking in.

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G'day again Chums,a few twiddly bits this time.

 

PattheCat,thanks old chum.Sometimes the snag solving is a variation of something I've done before,occasionally it is a light bulb moment while I'm thinking of something else,a bit like what you are about to see.

 

The headlights needed reflectors.I was at a bit of a loss for how to do this so I had a dig though the spares box with nothing particular in mind.An Airfix 1/48th Spitfire spinner rose to the surface which looked sort of the right shape so I offered it up and found it to be the right depth and diameter. 

 

jCCJavy.jpg

 

I tried plunge forming some plastic sheet but that proved to be a bit fiddly and invited the attentions of the carpet monster so I tried a spot of Milliput instead.A blob of this was bunged into the light housing and,with a drop of water,the spinner tip was pushed in and twisted to form a thoroughly respectable looking reflector.I poked a couple of holes into it to take some stretched runner for bulb representation.

 

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While that was setting I turned my attention to the steering column.

 

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The arrangement as per the kit doesn't look too sturdy.

 

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A spot of drilling out later allowed a length of copper wire to do the joining bit and stands a greater chance of not breaking off at the slightest provocation.

 

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The windscreen (really? :rofl2: ) bits were superglued together.

 

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Once set the reflectors had a brushful of silver and the light bulbs superglued in.I'm going to have to find something a bit more reflective,these look a bit dowdy.

 

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The steering column was offered up and found to not quite fit.The flat bit where it joins the footplate didn't sit in position by a gnats whisker.

 

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This was due to the locating pin on the worm gear holding it off when in its hole.

 

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The appropriate half of the pin was filed off

 

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and it all now sits exactly as it should.That'll do for me.

 

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More soon Chums,thanks for looking in.

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Hello again Chums,dayoffski today so I've done a bit more.

 

Amongst the digging for photos I've done for this build I found this website https://en.wheelsage.org/users/docent/pictures/stutz to have some very useful images.This site https://www.makesthatdidntmakeit.com/stutz gives a bit of background to the manufacturer and a Google search for Stutz Bearcat Images threw up all sorts of goodies which have been useful if not always relevant.

 

Using some scraps of plastic card,square section rod and some 0.3mm wire I've made some latches for the the toolboxes and the trunk (so That's where it came from).

 

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The engine has had some more bits made too.The white prongs are,on the real thing,spark plugs.They don't tend to do much without their attendant wiring.On this one there are a couple of rails on the top of the heads that have the plug leads strapped to them.These were made from copper wire bent round a suitable diameter steel rod to form the corners.To make them both the same length I formed both from the same length of wire and separated them afterwards.

 

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These then had the ends flattened and bent round to form the feet through which they are bolted to the heads.The distributor is at the front of the block and will be clearly visible on the finished article so holes were drilled to take yet more copper wire,in this case some stripped off telephone cable,to make the various leads.The plug leads themselves were fixed to a length of circular section runner the same diameter as the round bit at the back of the distributor block.

 

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While fiddling about with this the block fell off which,oddly enough,will make life easier for shaping and painting.

 

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That was all put aside to set.The closed portion of the bonnet was offered up to the back of the dashboard.Guess what,it doesn't sit as it should.

 

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The  back face of the dashboard was marked out and,with as little unwanted gouging as possible,a square rebate was chewed out of the edge to allow both bits to sit together properly.

 

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Anyway,a quick cobble together to see where we're getting to.

 

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Crumbs! It's starting to look like a car.

 

Thanks for looking in Chums,more soon.

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G'day again Chums,more twiddly bits.

 

PattheCat,many thanks old chum.

 

I've remade the distributor,the copper wire wouldn't stay in the holes I'd drilled and my slathering of superglue made a mess of the body so it was easier to start afresh.

 

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The bodies for the ignition advance and ammeter have been made from runner and the lip on the open side of the bonnet from thin plastic card.

 

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The hinge for the open bonnet panels was made from self adhesive aluminium foil.

 

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The cylinders have,at last,been glued to the block and the plug leads have been routed around the engine and touched up with Humbrol 119 Light Earth.The exhaust manifold rather conveniently fell off while I was fiddling around with this,making life easier.

 

13rOxag.jpg

 

Thanks for looking in Chums,more soon.

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Hello again Chums,some more to show.

 

I've had a play with the gauges.I marked out with a pencil where to press the tip of a scalpel blade and leave a little slice mark where some black paint would lodge.My ever trusty leather punch has two tools which are just the right size to make the glasses so that's what was done,these were sat in place and a drop of Klear was wicked into the join to attach them.We'll get away with the clock but I might re-do the other two,they don't look quite right.

 

WwTmhDq.jpg

 

Sooner or later the wheels are going to have to be fitted.The way the kit has it the hub caps will be stationary while the wheels are turning and the plastic pins don't inspire confidence in their ability to withstand any sort of use.I made some new pins from copper wire and was going to mount them to the brake drums,but that was going to make centring the wheels difficult. 

 

BdhLyxH.jpg

 

I made a pair of longer pins and drilled out just enough of the holes through the hubs for the pin ends to sit just behind the face.The hub caps can now be glued to the hubs and turn with the wheels as per the real thing.

 

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The first pair of pins will do for the front wheels which have had some bushes made and glued in so that the decidedly sloppy fit can be addressed,left one untouched right one done.

 

OOIvJqD.jpg

 

More soon Chums,thanks for looking in.

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G'day again Chums,just a couple of bits his time.

 

LorenSharp,if I could go as fast as the runs in that red paint I'd be very quick tenor.gif

 

The dark side of the engine.This bit won't be seen once in place,it'll be hidden by the closed portion of the bonnet so I'm not going to do any more round here.

 

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The footplate has had a coat of silver paint and the two gauge dials on the dashboard have been re-done.

 

26SPoc2.jpg

 

We're starting to head towards final assembly,but there's plenty of fettling to be done yet.Thanks for looking in Chums,more soon.

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Hello again Chums,I thought I was embarking on the final assembly sequence but I've had to think again.The backs of the gauges had various bits of wire fitted to them to represent the loom and the closed section of bonnet was glued to the  dashboard.It doesn't quite reach the top centre of the dash but that might be helpful in an odd sort of way. 

 

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The exhaust components were fished out of the box and a length of wire fitted up to support the joint with the manifold.

 

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The flywheel had a slot cut into the end that joins up to the propshaft.

 

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The engine was then offered in and the flywheel slot lined up and then the whole lot was shoehorned into place using as much brute force as I dare to spread the chassis that I so diligently glued to the body.

 

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Looks pretty in there doesn't it.The dashboard bonnet wiring loom combination was inveigled into place but it wouldn't sit down properly.

 

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The locating peg at the end of the open side leg was conflicting with the starter motor.

 

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Hang on,starter motor?That's going to need some wiring isn't it...

 

Out came the dashboard,off came the offending locating peg and on went a few more gauges and wiring.

 

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While the glue was setting on that lot I offered up the exhaust system.The long pipe won't go past the engine bearer so the b****y engine has to come out again.

 

U8He5LF.jpg

 

Oh,by the way,did I mention that I'd given it another spray of red paint before all of this to cover up the edges that had been de-paintified by handling.

 

Thanks all for looking in,more soon.

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G'day again Chums,

Engine out,newly painted exhaust pipe in,engine back in.

 

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Exhaust pipe too short...

 

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A length of runner was turned down to about the right diameter,drilled,pinned and fitted with the other end in place,I wasn't doing this twice.

 

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The extra wiring was painted,the dashboard bonnet combo repositioned and glued in after a couple of off,on again moments while routing the cables.The upper coolant pipe was re-glued on and the radiator assembly offered up.The top doesn't mate up with the bonnet so the pipe will need to be shortened...

 

29lKwkg.jpg

 

On a brighter note the wiring has had all the attention that it's going to get,apart from one earth lead that fell off,and it was worth the effort I reckon.The wire colours were selected using a guide from https://www.classiccarwiring.com/sample/ as a reference,I can't just paint them any old how can I?

 

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There's plenty more to be done yet but now she's starting to look like something.More soon Chums,thanks for looking in.

Edited by Alex Gordon
Spelin.
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Hello again Chums,a little more to show.

 

Jeroen,cheers old fruit.I'm certainly making a meal of it.

 

dnl42,thanks old chum.

 

Having chopped a lump off the coolant pipe hose and stood the radiator up as it should be I offered up the surround and found that it didn't meet up with the bonnet.  

 

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The placement of the surround is governed by the position of the radiator,it won't push back towards the bonnet.Some 10 thou plastic card was cut to fit on to the edge of the bonnet to fill the gap.

 

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While I was at it I made the lip that the open portion would sit on if it wasn't open.

 

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The card strips having been glued in I thought I'd have a look at how the lights were going to be mounted.

 

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The bracket arrangement sits on top of the chassis in between two pairs of locating guides and not very well at that.

 

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The bracket feet were squared up and the light components prepared for cobbling together.

 

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Some telephone wire was used to represent the conduits for the wiring.

 

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The chassis rail tops were squared off and the front locating guides removed,most of the rough bits will be buried and the rest will have a decent slathering of paint so this work should be mostly invisible when finished.I've glued the fan on too,don't want to forget that now do we? 

 

tpwlD8B.jpg

 

Yet more touching in of paint beckons.Thanks all for looking in,more soon.

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9 hours ago, Alex Gordon said:

I've glued the fan on too,don't want to forget that now do we? 

I think I may have one or two models without a fan under a glued bonnet

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G'day again Chums,just some small stuff this time.

 

Jeroen,it's not an omission if it can't be seen to be missing :whistle: .

 

Pat,Tim,thanks chaps.

 

I presume these levers are for the handbrake and either gears or forward and reverse.The shiny will have to be removed from the contact faces before the glue will work.

 

jwC49Gz.jpg

 

Above the engine there is a very prominent tie rod which connects the dashboard to the top of the radiator.Some 0.6mm copper wire was rolled straight and the radiator end fettled to look a bit like the pin and clevis mounting that is there on the real thing.This had to go in before the radiator surround which would be in the way otherwise.

 

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Once the paint had dried on the tie rod the radiator surround could be fitted.In true fashion the bonnet didn't line up with it and so had to be persuaded into place for long enough to allow the glue to set in a way that wouldn't lift paint or tear off the pinstripe masking left on for when I want to spray the last coat of red.Bog roll for padding,tape for placing pressure and a pipette and a burnishing stick to apply the pressure where needed.    

 

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The levers were glued together and the mounting frames given a hairy stickful of red.That leaves the handles to paint.

 

JZSdgfl.jpg

 

More soon Chums,thanks for looking in.

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Hello again Chums,

 

I chucked a bit of masking on for the final (hopefully) spray of red.

 

KU5Ce2T.jpg

 

Once that had dried and the masking removed the lights were positioned and fitted.The chrome on the radiator surround wasn't too good in places so it was touched in with silver paint.It's not too obvious to the naked eye but it sticks out like a cobblers thumb in this piccie so I might have to work something with some ground up pencil lead.

 

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The bonnet hinge was cut from self adhesive aluminium sheet and the starting handle is part way to finished.

 

xklhgez.jpg

 

More soon Chums,thanks for looking in.

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G'day again Chums,yet more twiddly bits.

 

It occurred to me that the bonnet was going to need handles and catches,out came the copper wire again.

 

ueqWIni.jpg

 

They won't be seen once they have been painted red.

 

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Thanks for looking in Chums,more soon.

 

 

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On 21/04/2021 at 20:38, Alex Gordon said:

The seats have dried (the joys of Terebene in enamel paint,no waiting a week to work on it)

for  those curious, Terebene is paint driers,  

https://www.rustins.ltd/rustins/our-products/decorating-products/paint-driers

1336_1_610x610.jpg?10:52:58&_e=.jpg

 

 

 

 

It was mentioned, but unless you put a barrier between the plastic rim and 'rubber' tyre, they will melt over time.   I was going to note that this was a US rebox, when I saw the Airfix (MPC) title.

 

Neat and interesting work,  I don't think I ever did a car kit...   

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