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31 minutes ago, Enzo Matrix said:

That's why I bought two different sets.

I ended up buying a full aftermarket sheet to avoid that issue.

 

Apparently, Team Lotus had all their JPS gold (biscuit actually) stripes & logos signwritten rather than using decals - right up to 1986 when they switched to Camel.

 

Phil.

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On 9/25/2022 at 8:57 AM, Malc2 said:

The other thing that jumps out is that although the car is mid corner, the artist has got Ronnie steering straight ahead!

 

Maybe SuperSwede is flicking in some pre-emptive opposite-lock. 🤣

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On the subject of aftermarket and kit decals, in my experience, pick one and stick to it.

When I did my 97T a few months ago I had to use some kit decals and some aftermarket (Indycals)  due to circumstances and as you can see from the picture they both dried a different shade of gold to each other after the clearcoat was applied. They looked exactly the same colour on the sheets before the clearcoat was applied. It's not really that different, but from certain angles it really shows like on the top and sides of the front wing.

Once the model is built I think either will look ok, but just a heads up to sticking to one sheet :) 

Ian :) 

 

20220126_224231_resized

 

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The first step on the instructions involves building some of the most visible parts.  The forward part of the nose has two locating holes for what looks to be a spoiler on Ronnie Peterson's car.  Emerson Fittipaldi's car does not have the spoiler so the holes were filled in with some thick stretched sprue and sanded down. 

 

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Next step is to build the main body and cockpit.  The parts you see here are the external body parts for earlier versions of the Lotus 72.

 

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But the 72E had a second layer overlaid on the body.  

 

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I sprayed all the internal bodywork with AK Xtreme Metal,  a 50:50 mix of Aluminium and Dark Aluminium.  The top area, where various parts would be visible to an observer, were sprayed with BMW Jet Black from a rattle can.

 

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I have also done some assembly and detail painting on the forward suspension.

 

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Looking good Enzo.

 

When people talk about 60s & early 70s F1 drivers sitting in a bathtub full of petrol, this monocoque shows exactly that. A breed apart, that's for sure. 

 

Phil.

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2 minutes ago, PHIL B said:

When people talk about 60s & early 70s F1 drivers sitting in a bathtub full of petrol, this monocoque shows exactly that. A breed apart, that's for sure.

 

I didn't know that, but it makes sense.  There are no components in the kit for fuel tanks.    I suppose it's a bit like flying a Hawker Hurricane...

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7 minutes ago, PHIL B said:

When people talk about 60s & early 70s F1 drivers sitting in a bathtub full of petrol, this monocoque shows exactly that. A breed apart, that's for sure. 

It sure looks that way. 

And the only real safety advice at the time was: "Don't crash!"

And Colin Chapman was paranoid about weight - the adversary of performance.  Lotus cars were made from the thinnest aluminium sheet possible, for maximum speed - but the most flimsy in a crash.

The drivers were true Gladiators, Peterson right up there with the best of the lot.

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On 9/24/2022 at 11:15 PM, Enzo Matrix said:

The 1970 Gold Leaf livery was applied to the Lotus 72C which was a quite different car.  The 72C didn't have a double layer body.  Ebbro also produce(d) a kit of the Gold Leaf 72C - which I just happen to have in The Stash...   :) 

Deformable body structures.

I've just had a leaf thru this book, that was in a Haynes sale in 2019.   

Let me know if you need help with any details Enzo - it has lots of pictures.

Lotus72.jpg

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Ironically it was Colin Chapman who got fuel centralised behind the driver in aviation-spec bag tanks as they've been ever since.

Max size for each tank at the time was 80 litres but he needed fuel out of the way of the sidepods for his ground effect Lotus 79. He asked the CSI (FIA's predecessor) to change that rule, they did and within a year every car had its fuel tucked away from the perimeter of the car.

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I am really pleased you are posting this, as I am currently restoring a Tamiya 72D inbetween other projects.

I agree the Haynes maual is great, I really like that there are plenty of photos and that some parts drawings are included.

The Michael Oliver book is also great, but I just saw that its now going for over 4 times what I paid for it back in 2003!

 

Malc.

Edited by Malc2
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7 hours ago, theplasticsurgeon said:

I've just had a leaf thru this book, that was in a Haynes sale in 2019.   

Let me know if you need help with any details Enzo - it has lots of pictures.

Lotus72.jpg

 

I've just found a copy on evilbay!  :thumbsup:

 

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On 9/25/2022 at 6:29 PM, JOCKNEY said:

Brut 33, it's enough make you want to "splash it all over"

 

I still do. I also smoked JPS for a while as a result of this car appearing in Penthouse magazine, another pleasant memory from the 70s, before realising that they were pants and returning to good old B&H. And quitting in the 90s.

 

It's an excellent choice for the GB and I'll be watching, just as soon as I nip down the garage for a packet of ... biscuits.

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On 07/10/2022 at 08:49, theplasticsurgeon said:

I've just had a leaf thru this book, that was in a Haynes sale in 2019.  

Lotus72.jpg

 

Thanks for the heads up on this book.  My copy arrived today.  It is jam packed with some truly wonderful photos.  :thumbsup:

 

Enzo loves jam. 

 

 

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  • 2 weeks later...

Nice work boss. So much so that a colleague passing glanced at my computer screen asked if someone I knew was building a cool kit-car.

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26 minutes ago, Redstaff said:

Is it an optical illusion, or were the front inboard discs angled?

 

 

 

It's not an optical illusion; they are angled.   I don't believe that it is prototypically correct - the Haynes manual makes no mention of it, although all the photos of the front disks are for earlier cars.  However, that's the way they fit in the kit.

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10 minutes ago, theplasticsurgeon said:

I googled Lotus 72 disk brakes, and found images, vertical.

Then I looked up the instructions,  Your car has different brake parts from mine.

Does you kit have parts C16 - the disks for my car.

 

I used parts P11 and P23, in accordance with the instructions.  The kit does include parts C16.  These look as though they would mount the disks vertically.  

 

It's possible this is a mistake in the kit instructions.   I'm not going to correct it though.  The assembly is quite robust now and I fear that if I attempt to disassemble it, I will only mess things up.    I'll live with the inaccuracy.  Besides, when the front cowling is on, you won't be able to see the discs. :D   

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Hi both,

The 72E has vented discs, the 72C has solid discs, and each kit accurately represents each variant.

@Enzo Matrix As a note of caution, the discs do protude slightly in to the nose chimney vents, so may be worth trying the nose in position to see if they still fit under the nose?

 

Malc.

 

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14 minutes ago, Malc2 said:

As a note of caution, the discs do protude slightly in to the nose chimney vents, so may be worth trying the nose in position to see if they still fit under the nose?

 

 

Thanks for the advice.  They do.  :thumbsup: 

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