matto21 Posted August 3, 2021 Share Posted August 3, 2021 Hello everyone, First post in the WIP section for me. I used to do a lot of F1 [and car modelling generally] in my younger years when I was in school. I used to be able to buy several of the Tamiya 1/20 F1 cars - including the Lotus 107B, the Benetton B192, the Tyrell 023, McLaren MP4/4 and the Jordan 191 from my local model shop. Time passed, the model shop closed, and my modelling interests changed towards 1/48 scale aircraft. Like many, I suspect, the lockdown period gave me an opportunity to focus on my modelling [notice I say "opportunity" and not "time" - a toddler puts paid to that!]. I found myself being drawn back into the world of F1 in the 90's and I started buying Tamiya F1 kits on ebay where they were a] available and b] within my budget [I've lost more than I won!] but the one that has continued to evade me is the Jordan 191. Why this car in particular? Well it was the first F1 car kit I owned that I built correctly. I got it for Xmas from my parents when I was 15 [so 25 years ago!]. This model has resided in a cupboard in my parents house ever since. Last weekend, I started wondering if I could strip the model and rebuild it - something I've done successfully with other models I've built. For nostalgic reasons I've decided to give it a go and see what happens. At best, I may end up with a nicely rebuilt and painted model, at worst it goes wrong and I'll just stick it back in the cupboard and forget about it for another 25 years. J191a by Matt Owen, on Flickr J191c by Matt Owen, on Flickr J191d by Matt Owen, on Flickr Not too bad actually, especially considering it's age. The main issues are: 1. It's the wrong colour - obviously the sidepods should be blue not dark green! At the time, I only had green available to me. 2. The tyres have a really obvious seam down the middle which needs sanding. 3. The decals need replacing - especially the white portions on the rear wing [although again they're not too bad]. 4. I've added some extra that shouldn't be there. This isn't going to be a quick rebuild. Step 1 will be to try and strip the old paint. If it works, I'll try to share my progress here if there's interest. Thanks Matt 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spiny Posted August 3, 2021 Share Posted August 3, 2021 I have to say that that is really good for a 15 year old - are you sure you want to disassemble and start again? Although this is coming from someone who has done that to some of his kid-kits. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kpnuts Posted August 3, 2021 Share Posted August 3, 2021 I must say it looks great as it is. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matto21 Posted August 5, 2021 Author Share Posted August 5, 2021 Thanks both for the comments. I've been asked a few times if I'm sure I want to strip it and restart. I do - nostalgia wise, it'd be nice to keep it "as is", but truth be told, it hasn't seen the light of day for 25 years. Also, I'm not being held to ransom on eBay - these kits are going for ridiculous prices at the moment! I've started stripping the model tonight so it's too late to turn back now! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Redstaff Posted August 6, 2021 Share Posted August 6, 2021 Hi Matt Like the others, I couldn't see anything wrong with it, but you've started so now you'll have to finish. I've got a Ferrari 312 and an MP4/4 stripped ready for a refurb as well But I haven't looked at them for a while Ian 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kitkent Posted August 6, 2021 Share Posted August 6, 2021 It does look very smart as is, but a respray and the blue added would be a vast improvement. Chris. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bar side Posted August 6, 2021 Share Posted August 6, 2021 I recognise something in your story! I made all sorts when I was younger. I think my first F1 car was Mansell’s Williams FW11 but I have the Jordan in Schumacher’s number. there are a few more somewhere, including the FW11, an FW07 and a Bra ham BT54. They were in the loft for years but some of them are out and the decals are fading fast. Similarly I have moved on to1/48 aircraft. hope the rebuild & blue sides go on well 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Malc2 Posted August 6, 2021 Share Posted August 6, 2021 Nice collection, not often do you see a B188 or FW13b finished. Was the BT54 a Studio27 resin or a Tamiya conversion? Would be nice to see the whole collection together! @matto21 sorry for the diversion, following with interest. Malc. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bar side Posted August 6, 2021 Share Posted August 6, 2021 6 minutes ago, Malc2 said: Nice collection, not often do you see a B188 or FW13b finished. Was the BT54 a Studio27 resin or a Tamiya conversion? Would be nice to see the whole collection together! @matto21 sorry for the diversion, following with interest. Malc. Sorry was the BT50 - Piquet BMW turbo. Had the Mclaren & Tyrell but not sure if they survived. I was offered the chance to sit in a B187 at the factory while Benetton were off testing the B188 back in the day. Seem to remember the FW13 was something of a dog. The 99T is probably my favourite. They have one hanging from the ceiling at the Hethel business suite. Rather distracting when you are there for a meeting! Yes sorry don’t mean to hijack your thread @matto21! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matto21 Posted August 6, 2021 Author Share Posted August 6, 2021 @Malc2 and @bar side, no worries for the thread hijack. Actually quite enjoyed the diversion. My threads usually lack this kind of interaction so please feel free to continue! Stripping the paint is going to take a while I think. In some areas, the model is quite easy to dismantle, not surprising given the glued joints are 25 years old. In other areas, they're actually really solid - which again is a surprise given their age. So I have to exercise caution - I don't want to cause unnecessary damage as there's no fall back... Matt Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bar side Posted August 6, 2021 Share Posted August 6, 2021 Have you got a new set of decals for it? Mind you finding detail photos is a lot easier thanks to the internet. Not sure where I got details for scratch building bits back then. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matto21 Posted August 6, 2021 Author Share Posted August 6, 2021 34 minutes ago, bar side said: Have you got a new set of decals for it? Mind you finding detail photos is a lot easier thanks to the internet. Not sure where I got details for scratch building bits back then. I have ordered new decals from Indycals, should be here in a couple of days. Trying to decide if I stick with Tamiya TS paint, or go for a Zero Paint set... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bar side Posted August 6, 2021 Share Posted August 6, 2021 I use the Tamiya rattle cans for aircraft quite a bit, not heard of Zero Paint. Mine is good old Humbrol enamel. I think I hand painted it although I was in to spraying with my old Badger airbrush. My Lotus was definitely enamel sprayed 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matto21 Posted August 6, 2021 Author Share Posted August 6, 2021 This Jordan was originally brush painted with Humbrol enamels. I've not done any car modelling for years, I've focused mainly on aircraft where a high gloss finish isn't really an issue. Zero Paints do a matched set for this car, but I've no experience of spraying them. I believe they are a bit pungent! With a toddler, I'm not overly keen on the idea. But I'm not convinced I could get a good enough finish with the aerosols either. Matt Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Malc2 Posted August 7, 2021 Share Posted August 7, 2021 Hi Matt, I almost exclusively use Tamiya rattle cans, primer and top coat give superb results with very little effort. Especialy the primer which is very forgiving and can be sprayed in quite cold temps and still give superb results. I have read that Zero paints can craze Tamiya plastic quite badly as they are so 'hot' (lots of agressive thinners), so go carefully and perhaps do a test on the inside of the tub first. How are you stripping the old enamel paint off? 99% Isopropyl alcohol? Malc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matto21 Posted August 7, 2021 Author Share Posted August 7, 2021 3 minutes ago, Malc2 said: Hi Matt, I almost exclusively use Tamiya rattle cans, primer and top coat give superb results with very little effort. Especialy the primer which is very forgiving and can be sprayed in quite cold temps and still give superb results. I have read that Zero paints can craze Tamiya plastic quite badly as they are so 'hot' (lots of agressive thinners), so go carefully and perhaps do a test on the inside of the tub first. How are you stripping the old enamel paint off? 99% Isopropyl alcohol? Malc. I will bear that in mind about the Zero Paints Malc. To strip the paint I'm using VMS Clean Slate Ultra. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matto21 Posted August 8, 2021 Author Share Posted August 8, 2021 I've managed to strip the car down to its component parts with, thankfully, little damage. Some of the smaller parts are currently having the paint removed. While that happens, I've stripped the floor pan back down to the plastic and filled several (visible) ejector pin marks that I ignored first time around. It's had a coat of gloss black, and it's now masked up and ready for some metallic bits. I'm planning on applying some carbon fibre decals so once I've stripped the lower rear sections of the body (which need attaching to the floor), I'll be adding them. Matt 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matto21 Posted August 9, 2021 Author Share Posted August 9, 2021 Little bit of progress tonight. The floorpan has been resprayed - mainly gloss black with the metal sections under the exhausts painted using aluminum from Vallejo's Metal Color range. After spraying, I've noticed some fine scuffing after sanding out the ejector pin marks so this has been patched and will be resanded and painted. Earlier on in the thread, I was pondering using either Zero Paints or Tamiya TS Sprays. I wasn't keen on either due to the fumes/toddler scenario. I'm pleased to say that I've worked out a compromise that suits me. I happened to have Mr Hobby H25 Sky Blue acrylic. Although not exactly right, it's close enough for me and the fact it's acrylic makes me far happier. The lower parts of the bodywork have had their paint removed and then been refitted to the floorpan and sprayed. I've also started "carbon fibering" the floor (just visible). So far, so good. Matt 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matto21 Posted August 13, 2021 Author Share Posted August 13, 2021 Another small update. The engine: on the original build, I hadn't touched the engine - it was unpainted apart from a few bits and bobs. I told myself I wasn't going to do much other than a quick coat of satin black but ended up doing a bit more, including some primitive wiring, just to add a bit of visual interest (note it's unpainted here). It's still not completed, but I hope it looks reasonable...and certainly better than unpainted plastic! Matt 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bar side Posted August 13, 2021 Share Posted August 13, 2021 Looks good. I can’t remember doing too much with the engine area. Don’t think I even did HT leads. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matto21 Posted August 15, 2021 Author Share Posted August 15, 2021 Another day, another small step forward. The radiators had originally been painted (badly) by brush in Humbrol Gunmetal. Once I'd removed that, they were resprayed with Vallejo Duraluminium, and now look pretty nice. You can (just about) see the carbon fibre decals I've applied here too. Engine is also now approaching completion apart from some more detail painting. I've added some subtle heat staining to the exhausts (or at least I've tried to!) Ford logo now highlighted too. Matt 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Redstaff Posted August 15, 2021 Share Posted August 15, 2021 Nice progress Matt Coming along nicely Ian 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matto21 Posted August 15, 2021 Author Share Posted August 15, 2021 Thanks Ian! You need to get building some F1 (or Tornado's) soon too! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Redstaff Posted August 15, 2021 Share Posted August 15, 2021 4 minutes ago, matto21 said: You need to get building some F1 (or Tornado's) soon too! Just started a Peugeot 205 EV2 rally car for the French fancy group build 😁 Maybe an F1 after this one 😁 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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