Post by 1961redlegs on Feb 18, 2021 19:19:57 GMT -5
I finished this one a couple nights ago. It's a replica of the Ferrari 250 SWB (Short Wheelbase Berlinetta) George Arents and Alan Connell, Jr. drove to fifth place overall and second in the GT Class in the 1960 Le Mans 24 Hours.
The North American Racing Team, Ferrari's sporting arm in the New World entered many races the world over, including this machine. In 1960, the pair of Arents and Connell ran a strong, steady race twice ‘round the clock, helping the Scuderia take four of the top five finishing positions.
This car is an old ESCI kit that has a good chassis, but bodywork that needed some attention. It isn't terrible, but it takes some application to get right. The radius of the roof was off, so I gently sanded it down with 220-grit sandpaper, then smoothed it out with finer grits. I also narrowed down the trim, as it is rather thick and toy-like. Both of those fixes went a long way in getting the car right. In addition, I added air vents for the front brakes, filled the mirror post, fuel filler, and rescribed the trunk outline to accomodate the new fuel filler position. The wheels and tires are 3D printed replacements of the kit wheels and tires made by Bellingham Design. They are ions ahead of what the kit provided and really help sell the look of the car.
I painted the car Tamiya Yellow (TS16) and used Le Mans Decals to complete the look. The kit provides chrome plated and gray plastic versions of the grille and headlight bezels. I painted the gray plastic pieces rattle can Krylon chrome to give the car a more realistic look and am quite pleased with the result. Considering where I started with this car, I am satisfied of where I ended up. I believe I was able to take what the kit gave me and make a real winner out of it! Thanks for looking.
The North American Racing Team, Ferrari's sporting arm in the New World entered many races the world over, including this machine. In 1960, the pair of Arents and Connell ran a strong, steady race twice ‘round the clock, helping the Scuderia take four of the top five finishing positions.
This car is an old ESCI kit that has a good chassis, but bodywork that needed some attention. It isn't terrible, but it takes some application to get right. The radius of the roof was off, so I gently sanded it down with 220-grit sandpaper, then smoothed it out with finer grits. I also narrowed down the trim, as it is rather thick and toy-like. Both of those fixes went a long way in getting the car right. In addition, I added air vents for the front brakes, filled the mirror post, fuel filler, and rescribed the trunk outline to accomodate the new fuel filler position. The wheels and tires are 3D printed replacements of the kit wheels and tires made by Bellingham Design. They are ions ahead of what the kit provided and really help sell the look of the car.
I painted the car Tamiya Yellow (TS16) and used Le Mans Decals to complete the look. The kit provides chrome plated and gray plastic versions of the grille and headlight bezels. I painted the gray plastic pieces rattle can Krylon chrome to give the car a more realistic look and am quite pleased with the result. Considering where I started with this car, I am satisfied of where I ended up. I believe I was able to take what the kit gave me and make a real winner out of it! Thanks for looking.
