Zagato!

I got in the mail today a package I have been waiting several months for. Model Factory Hiro announced earlier this year that they were going to release another Climax kit, the 1961 Aston Martin DB4GT. I already have their other Climax kits so I figured why not get the car that James Bond made famous. Now you exclaim why Zagato? Zagato was a small Italian firm that started after WWI mainly engineering aircraft parts. After WWII they moved on to cars and were well known for the aerodynamic cars. These cars are almost always marked with the large Z.

http://images18.fotki.com/v329/photos/1/11926/3850546/am1168-vi.jpg

Now on to the model. Model Factory Hiro has always made great kits and the repops of Climax show just how good the Climax kits were. You can almost display the engine in pieces as it has cylinder head detail and even a gasket! Overall the kit is excellent. I will add comments as I show the pics.


http://images18.fotki.com/v25/photos/1/11926/3850546/IMG_0882-vi.jpg
I was expecting a red box, but look it's GREEN!

http://images15.fotki.com/v337/photos/1/11926/3850546/IMG_0883-vi.jpg

http://images14.fotki.com/v20/photos/1/11926/3850546/IMG_0884-vi.jpg

http://images14.fotki.com/v335/photos/1/11926/3850546/IMG_0885-vi.jpg

http://images15.fotki.com/v337/photos/1/11926/3850546/IMG_0886-vi.jpg
Wonderful decals and photoetch. There are several small detail parts like the seatbelts, dash, glass edges, and even the small "Z"'s.

http://images18.fotki.com/v25/photos/1/11926/3850546/IMG_0887-vi.jpg

http://images18.fotki.com/v329/photos/1/11926/3850546/IMG_0888-vi.jpg

http://images18.fotki.com/v25/photos/1/11926/3850546/IMG_0889-vi.jpg

http://images18.fotki.com/v24/photos/1/11926/3850546/IMG_0890-vi.jpg

http://images18.fotki.com/v25/photos/1/11926/3850546/IMG_0891-vi.jpg

http://images18.fotki.com/v329/photos/1/11926/3850546/IMG_0897-vi.jpg
The body is well defined and looks like the right shape. The chassis has great detail. It is simplified, but it looks great. The hood fits very well, too

http://images18.fotki.com/v24/photos/1/11926/3850546/IMG_0892-vi.jpg

http://images14.fotki.com/v20/photos/1/11926/3850546/IMG_0893-vi.jpg

http://images18.fotki.com/v329/photos/1/11926/3850546/IMG_0894-vi.jpg

http://images15.fotki.com/v337/photos/1/11926/3850546/IMG_0895-vi.jpg

http://images18.fotki.com/v25/photos/1/11926/3850546/IMG_0896-vi.jpg

http://images15.fotki.com/v338/photos/1/11926/3850546/IMG_0898-vi.jpg
There are so many small parts that I didn't want to get them all out of the bag. The bolts on the cylinder head are individual machined parts. As with all white metal kits, there will be some straightening involved as the metal is a little soft, but overall I am very please with this kit. I will be very happy building one.


http://images18.fotki.com/v25/photos/1/11926/3850546/DSCN0157-vi.jpg
Here is a pic of #3 as it is restored today.


http://images14.fotki.com/v21/photos/1/11926/3850546/AstonMartinDBR1-vi.jpg
Why is Aston Martin so important to LeMans? The DBR1 won overall at the 1959 race.

Hope you enjoyed this. This will probably be my next build, along with its great great great grandson, the DBR9. When it comes in a couple of weeks, I will post pics of it, too.
Nic

http://images15.fotki.com/v337/photos/1/11926/3850546/IMG_0886-vi.jpg

that's a gorgeous kit; i didn't know mfh made kits in plastic/ resin. and is that a p-e head gasket on the far left of that p-e sheet?

whoa, this is gonna be a great build!

Oh God! I think I hate you!! ;) j/k

Please start this ASAP :D

wow. look at all those detailed parts!

*drool*

Yes, that is a cylinder head gasket. Why, I don't know, but it makes the engine kind of interesting.
Nic

What a kit! One of the nicest cars ever made deserves it.
I think this could be my first MFH kit. It's a huge effort for me buying a MFH kit because its price, but I think this could worth the money.