WIP: Tamiya 1/20 Honda RA272

[SeanyG]

Morning guys

No carbon fibre, no ugly aero parts, no chunky white metal parts... aaahhhh, feels like a comfy pair of slippers!!!

So this will be a full detail build of the 1965 Mexican GP winning car driven by Richie Ginther. Having read a little about this car recently I didn't quite appreciate how much of a significant car this was for Honda - and how quick it was in comparison to it's rivals at the time - and was held back due to Honda's unreliability probably down to the fact that it was only their second season in F1. I always thought it was a classic, maybe not as aesthetically beautiful as the Lotus 25 nevertheless still a lovely looking car.

So, I started with the engine as per the kit instructions...

After assembling the main engine block I added a couple of plates that are missing on the kit which surround the drive shafts, made from plasticard and I also added a small bracket to the top cover to allow a throttle control assembly missing in the kit...





I drilled the base for the Air Trumpets and the fuel injection assembly to allow for the fuel lines to be added...





I also drilled the engine block to take some plug leads.

I used Scaleproduction.de Air Trumpets which needed adapting and lowering in height as they were too long...





With the prep done I sprayed all the engine parts using Alclad 2 matt silver and pale gold...





I then added washes using Tamiya's panel line colours, brown for the gold parts and dark grey and black for the silver areas, once this was dry I reset the base colour before picking out the raised areas with some drybrushed highlighting ...







I then looked at replacing all the moulded bolt heads with aftermarket ones from Taurus Models...





The cam covers will be up next, firstly I added some Honda badges courtesy of a Crazy Modeller 'Honda' logo set...





Finally for this update, I painted the Injection assembly as per reference photos, a lot more detail to be added to this part to come...

[SeanyG]

Update:

Further engine work, I detailed the rear and side engine frame removing the moulded bolt heads and replacing with after market ones as before. I also extended the rear anti-roll bar with metal rod to replicate the real car more...



This was then all attached to the engine block...



and so began the 12x wiring and tubing, starting with the ignition leads first...



I used MFH's tubing and wiring...



and with the first bank of ignition leads in place, I used some thicker hollow pieces of tubing as cable holders...



and with the fuel lines completed and the injection plate added along with heat protector from the exhausts, these needed to be scratch built as the kit version is far too thick...



Finally I replaced the exhaust end section with copper tubing for better realism...

[SeanyG]

Update:

Suspension units completed and painted according to the references...



The rear sub frame and upright support need a little work and will benefit from some re-work... I removed the support bars that attach to the body as these will be replaced with metal rod and detailed either end with fastening nuts...





The brake discs are relatively plain looking affairs (vented discs in F1 were a little way off in 1965) and so these only need painting in the appropriate colours. I detailed them with some hose joints from Hobby Design which will be connected with brake lines later.



I added the oil tank tot he rear of the engine frame, this was detailed with a strap to hold it down which will have an etched buckle which attaches to the exhaust bracket on the real car.



Lower exhausts installed...



Finally for this update, suspension units, uprights and remaining sub frame - detailed with bolt heads. The top exhausts added too but only as a dry fit, I also installed a scratch made throttle linkage including spring which completed the injection assembly.

[billypee]

Looks like a great start Shaun. I'm looking forward to this one.

[SeanyG]

Update:

A lot of prep work in this update, mainly around the chassis. The floor is moulded with two parts of the bodywork included either side, meaning that there would be a nasty gap once this is fully assembled. In order to try and avoid this I removed the strips of bodywork from the floor and attached these to the body, then filled the gap using Mr Hobby fine surface filler and sanded back until smooth and invisible. Once this was all set I did a dry fit to ascertain that all this can still be assembled without any dramas so hopefully I'm not gonna regret this once I come to put it all together!



and with the two sections outlined in red removed...



I also removed the rear section of the front lower wishbones, the reason being is the bodywork is lacking in detail where this is attached to the body, this is prominent on the finished model. Each mounting is surround by a riveted plate - just like the rear engine mount supports, I recreated this with drilled plastic card and have ordered some resin rivets to replicate the original car better.

The kit would have you assemble these like this... very lacking in terms of the 1:1 car...



I cut the wishbones as below...



Drilled plasticard...



The bodywork OOB... missing a few areas of rivet detail...



and with the revised mounting plates attached...



I removed the moulded bodywork fastenings from the nose and replaced them with p/etched ones...





The suspension arms and fluid reservoirs were then removed in order to make it look more detailed replicate the original better, giving a much more realistic look than having them moulded to the chassis...







I also removed the very basic moulded detail on top of the fuel tank...



I then added two plasticard sections to the rear of the tank to fill in an area which would otherwise be completely open if left off, very different to the actual car.



Painted the completed tank in flat aluminium with a little highlights dry brushing to add detail. Added two An fittings and an etched tank cap from the etch spares box.



The floor plan was then painted using washes and dry brushing to bring out the lights...



Finally, finished wiring up the engine with brake lines and oil tank hoses...



and a quick dry fit to make sure it all fits (which it seems to do so far :-)



Thanks for following :-)

[DRUMS02]

I really like the thought and details you are putting into this car.

I built this kit several years ago and loved it. The kit is wonderful in itself, but you are bringing this to another level.

Keep up the inspirational work. I'll be watching this one to completion.

Ben

[SeanyG]

Further update...

The crazy surreal days we are currently living in has meant I have been able to spend a lot of time on modeling... and so I've made some healthy progress...

Having already drilled holes for the further rivets that were needed to accurately replicate the bodywork on the car, I added resin rivets from Masterclub - 0.7mm flat rivets.



The completed bodyshell...



I then turned my attention to the interior, first up both interior sides need hoses which run the length of the interior which are very prominent and consistent on the original car. These were secured with very thin fuse wire and attached through pre-drilled holes on the cockpit sides.





The dashboard needs some attention to bring upto the detail level of the rest of build, I sanded all the raised details flat and used some etched dial surrounds and scratch built the switches, I also added bolt heads where references indicated. Once the decals were dry I used Krystal Klear to recreate a glazed effect on the dials. I also added relevant cables behind the dials...







The steering wheel is very over size and so I removed the centre section and replaced with a photo etched version, I also hand painted imitation stitches on the inside of the wheel to replace the wheel more accurately...



The gear lever again is rather simplified in the kit and so I cut the connecting rod from the main selector housing, I then drilled out the housing until is was hollow. I then added a metal rod (paperclip) for the linkage and a resin bolt head and washer, along with some tubing to recreate the wider sections where it joins the housing. The actual lever will be recreated with more metal rod and I will use the existing knob, drilled to take the now rod. The housing was detailed with etched bolt heads.



The near completed chassis is now taking shape...





Finally, I have got paint onto the bodyshell, I cut a mask for the red circle rather than using the kit decal. Some metal mesh was inserted in the front of the nose to replace the grill on the 1:1 car.



That's all for now :-)

[ianc911]

Looking really good; glad to see you've had some (enforced) time to work on it...

ianc

[pgarat]

Beautiful build!
Bravo!

[360spider]

Very nice! Been thinking about getting this kit, or maybe Lotus 25 to build some vintage F1 machine. Like these "cigar" cars a lot!