Tamiya 1/24 FC3S RX-7: Akagi's White Comet

Hi all,

After building Revell's Shelby Cobra 427 last time and went through all the troubles, I am going to switch to something entirely different to see if I have better luck. The chosen model this time is the Tamiya FC3S RX-7 GT-Limited:

http://files.automotiveforums.com/gallery/watermark.php?file=/502/379173CIMG0893a.jpg

I acquired this model a while ago on eBay with a reasonable price. I think it is pretty rare nowadays. So what am I going to do with this rare kit?

I am going to attempt to build a version of FC that is "inspired" by the one in Initial D driven by Takahashi Ryosuke (They call him Akagi's White Comet in the anime). The reason why I say "inspired" is because I am not going to replicate everything. First off, Ryosuke's car is the Inifini III. Tamiya's is the GT-Limited that's a few years earlier. Also, I am not going to get rid the sunroof to replicate the anime one because I think the sunroof is pretty unique on this model. There are also some minor body differences.

I know some might say, why not build the Fujimi one? The reason is simple, this one has an engine! The Fujimi body shape is not as slick as the Tamiya (I have the Fujimi one as well and I am going to use the decals to finish this one). I know Aoshima has a late version FC3S with engine as well, however I already acquired this kit before that one was released...

OK, Enough with the talking. Here is the progress:

First picture shows the construction of the front bumper lip to make it look like Ryosuke's FC. This is by the way the first time I am doing any modification on a car body:

http://files.automotiveforums.com/gallery/watermark.php?file=/502/379173CIMG0878a.jpg

After some cutting, puttying and first stage of sanding:

http://files.automotiveforums.com/gallery/watermark.php?file=/502/379173CIMG0880a.jpg

The last one shows a test fit of the car and the wheels. The selected wheels are 17" RS Watanabes by Fujimi. This set as shown here comes from the Tofu AE86 borrowed for the test shot, the real ones are in transit from HLJ:

http://files.automotiveforums.com/gallery/watermark.php?file=/502/379173CIMG0879a.jpg

For those interested, this car is based on the Third stage movie where the FC was equipped with some RS Watabes wheels.

Thanks for looking.

Winston

Sweet! I have this kit, and just had it out last week to check out the parts. For a mid-range Tamiya kit, it really has an amazing array of features.

Looks ike you've got a solid start. Will be watching for updates! :D

Nice work on the front lip, so far. This is going to be pretty cool, and the wheels are oddly suited. What makes the sunroof so unique, if I may ask?

Great work so far. I cant wait to see it when finnished.

Nice work on the front lip, so far. This is going to be pretty cool, and the wheels are oddly suited. What makes the sunroof so unique, if I may ask?

It has a slide open sunroof that I don't want to take away:

http://files.automotiveforums.com/gallery/watermark.php?file=/502/379173CIMG0901a.jpg

Winston

hmmm, interesting kit! can't wait to see it finished. :D

That is a pretty nice kit, and good work on the front lip! I think this one is gonna be good, keep us posted.

That is a pretty nice kit, and good work on the front lip! I think this one is gonna be good, keep us posted.

I'm a big Initial D fan, so i'll definitely be looking forward to this.

Incidentally, I didn't even notice Ryosuke's wheels had changed when I watched Stage 3 until you mentioned it here. I guess I just thought it looked "updated" to the newer animation quality.

Hi all,

I have managed to get some more work done on this build last night. First of all, I have sanded the front bumper a bit more and applied a quick coat of grey primer to the front just to see how it is, it looks alright. Although there's still some more filling and sanding to do:

http://files.automotiveforums.com/gallery/watermark.php?file=/502/379173CIMG0889a.jpg

http://files.automotiveforums.com/gallery/watermark.php?file=/502/379173CIMG0890a.jpg

I started the work on the engine. The engine and engine room on this model are really impressive. There are a lot of parts to work with and it seems like it needs no modification to make a great looking engine room. The following shows some progress pics the engine:

http://files.automotiveforums.com/gallery/watermark.php?file=/502/379173CIMG0884a.jpg

http://files.automotiveforums.com/gallery/watermark.php?file=/502/379173CIMG0882a.jpg

I will be wiring this engine...

Winston

Nice conversion! Good luck with the build.

Minor update. Today I finished the engine. As you can see, I have added plug wires to it. The wires are from an old USB cable. Hoepfully it looks OK this time and not too oversize.

I was having so much fun building this engine. It really is a shame that I have to put it in the engine room now and some of the details will be gone forever...

http://files.automotiveforums.com/gallery/watermark.php?file=/502/379173CIMG0900a.jpg

Notice I have added some major weathering on it to reflect the milage that Ryosuke has put into his car... :)

Very interesting project and the way this is all laid out is nicely done also. Excellent job on the engine, the weathering is very convincing. Looking forward to more.

More updates in this weekend...I am on a row here!

I have managed to finish the engine bay today. It has received quite a bit of weathering to make it look dirty. I think I may have overdone it a bit but it still looks OK. This following picture shows the engine bay completed:

http://files.automotiveforums.com/gallery/watermark.php?file=/502/379173CIMG0927a.jpg

On the body, a minor gripe I have on this model is that the side blinkers and signaling lights are all molded on to the body and no clear parts are given. Colouring them orange will not be realistic at all. Therefore, I have decided to remove them. I first cut out the molded on part and sand it smooth. Then, I added a pair of clear Fujimi lights from my other kit. In the end I will add some silver tape at the back to finish it up. Here is a pic to show the steps (I have to use one pic to save space on my account):

http://files.automotiveforums.com/gallery/watermark.php?file=/502/379173CIMG0960a.jpg

Next up will be to detail the interior and prime the body. I am still waiting for my RS Watanabes from HLJ so my progress will be stuck for a while I am sure...

Thanks for looking.

Winston

personally, i like the engine bay weathering. :D

personally, i like the engine bay weathering. :D
:iagree: Also nice work on the corner lights, the detail is what makes it stand out. Keep it up!

Hi all,

I have finally managed to get something done after a long time of no updates. I have recently gotten back to the workforce and since I am working again, model building is back to priority 2.

Anyhow, the following two pictures show what I have done so far. I've primed and coated the body with Tamiya pure white. This colour (and most Tamiya spray can) is very thick, as I have experienced before. It makes it challenging to apply a wet coat that does not eventually results to fish eyes. I didn't want to go too wet at this stage so the last coat applied was more like a medium mist coat. You may be able to see some orange peel in the picture. However, as I will be applying a clear coat on top of the decals, the orange peel will be sanded smooth eventually.

The decals you can see in these pictures are from the Fujimi kit. One big problem with the decals is that the license plate numbers (not shown in pics)provided are not enough to re-create both of Mr. Takahashi's license plate. I need to dig out one extra set from my other initial D model to finish this one. What were they thinking!

Some of you may be able to notice the decals on the front doors are different than the ones in the Anime. This is because the set of decals that came with the model actually was based on the Manga version. I've thought of recreating the anime ones by printing them using decal paper, but I am really not in the mood of experimenting on this build and I don't have a good printer either. So I have decided to stick with the Manga decals.

Anyhow, here are the pics:

http://files.automotiveforums.com/gallery/watermark.php?file=/502/379173CIMG0963a.jpg

http://files.automotiveforums.com/gallery/watermark.php?file=/502/379173CIMG0964a.jpg

Thanks for looking folks! Next update should be the interior which is only half finished with only two colours on at the moment...BTW, I am still waiting for my RS Watanabe rims and light grey flocking material to finish the interior...

Winston

Coming along nicely! :)

Niiiiiice!!!!!

Geez, and to think I was gonna sell my FC kit on ebay!:eek: I guess I;ll keep it. Your model is coming along very well!! The weathering looks terrific! I wouldn't change a thing!:sunglasse And congrats on rejoining the workforce!:)

very nice, great job!!

Grrr 2nt gen's are the best.

Hi all,

It's been a month since I have updated this thread, as I have been very busy lately. I have not managed to do a whole lot. It actually felt like eternity. Since I do not want my build to slowly disappear from cyberspace, I have to do a little update regardless of how little I have to show!

Like all winstona builds, this one has its own unique tragedies! The "fun" of learning to be a great modeller continues... ;)

First, the body. As with most of my models, I tend to over polish. The initial plan was to use the manga style decals for the front door. However, due to my over-polishing, those decals will have to be scrapped! Now, I really have to make the anime decals!

To fix the spot, I have to overspray white onto the front door to cover the damaged decals. New custom decals will go on top.

As for the decal design, I searched through the internet to find a suitable image to transfer to an image file. I have been able to fiddle around with photoshop and was able to make a decent graphic file. Unfortunately at this time my inkjet just went out of ink. I will have to leave this till the next update...

Secondly, I tried playing around with spray adhesive for interior flocking...BIG MISTAKE. I am not criticising this method or anything. It's just that it won't work on this particular build. For general flocking, spray adhesive works. But if you have to mask a lot of un-flocked small areas, stay away from it. It is very difficult to mask small areas because when you lift the mask, it tend to lift off a little more than you want...This is why I believe the klutz carpet method (See FAQ if you don't know what I am talking about) is by far the best using double-sided tape. I will remember this next time...

In addition to this, I have to use white flocking, as I cannot find any light grey flocking anywhere (All LHS don't have it). Another mistake here...I should've waited for an internet order. The result of the bad flocking method could have been remediated by the grey flocking. But now it makes it a little bit worse because of the painting...I will show some pictures after I have taken some time to save it.

Well, onto the brighter side of things...

Here's the progress so far:

Brakes that come with the RS Watanabes painted:

http://files.automotiveforums.com/gallery/watermark.php?file=/502/379173CIMG0971a.JPG

This next picture shows one of the back wheels painted with the brakes installed:

http://files.automotiveforums.com/gallery/watermark.php?file=/502/379173CIMG0985a.jpg

The next one shows the car with the wheels installed:

http://files.automotiveforums.com/gallery/watermark.php?file=/502/379173CIMG0986a.jpg

As these are Fujimi wheels, I have to modify the suspension system to make it fit. The front wheels require sanding and the rear wheels require filling...And then I basically glued the wheels on directly and didn't bother with the female to male mod. I think this is the best method if the wheels are not be be removed in the future because you can adjust the ride height at the same time. You sorta killed two birds with one stone :)

Well that's it for now folks. I hope next time when I update this again, I will be proudly showing off my nicely done FC!

Thanks for looking!

Winston

Another update this week...

I have managed to print out and applied the decals to recreate the Anime version of the car:

http://files.automotiveforums.com/gallery/watermark.php?file=/502/379173CIMG0990a.jpg

The decals are printed with an ink jet printer on clear decal paper then sealed by Testors decal bonder.

Thanks for looking!

Winston

Looking great so far! Any update on the interior?

Looking great so far! Any update on the interior?

I am still waiting for the CF to settle in on the racing seats and deciding on the seat belts arrangements. I will show the interior when it is fully completed.

Winston

Another update:

Some pics of the 95% completed interior tub:

http://files.automotiveforums.com/gallery/watermark.php?file=/502/379173CIMG1000a.jpg

The CF on the back of the racing seats (I know this is not accurate, but who knows! It's just an Anime...):

http://files.automotiveforums.com/gallery/watermark.php?file=/502/379173CIMG0997a.jpg

And finally a close up of the front dash with racing steering wheel installed:

http://files.automotiveforums.com/gallery/watermark.php?file=/502/379173CIMG0996a.jpg

Thanks for looking!

Winston

That's gorgeous! Too bad most of it won't be visible when the car's completed, but still... props for the insane detail!

Interior's looking great. Love the steering wheel.

Beautiful looking interior! nice and clean, flocking and CF came out great.!

What was used for the interior carpeting?

What was used for the interior carpeting?

The flocking used here is Model master white flocking, masked and painted to the desired colour. It really wasn't my intention to buy white flocking to begin with...

I always thought that you have to paint the flocking after you applied it. I never realized you can buy the colour you like until after I bought this pack of flocking material! May be because the LHS here only sells white flocking...So I have no choice but to apply paint on top of it.

Anyways, thanks for all the kind words everyone. I really needed the motiviation! In my opinion, I screwed up a few spots while flocking this interior. It's definitely not perfect. I'd rather use double-sided tape instead the spray adhesive for the adhesion if I were to start all over again...

Winston

Thanks man, looks great as is.

Also I was wondering about the paints you used to paint your rear seat, was it tamiya acrylic? If so, how do you get it to lay down so smooth. I tried air brushing and brushing, it seems to run on me all the time and leaves brush strokes...:banghead:

Also I was wondering about the paints you used to paint your rear seat, was it tamiya acrylic? If so, how do you get it to lay down so smooth. I tried air brushing and brushing, it seems to run on me all the time and leaves brush strokes...:banghead:

It isn't too smooth when you look at it in person, the photograph must have fooled you! ;)

But in general, testing is very important. I always test the paint before I spray paint. If it is too thin then add paint, if it is too thick then add thinner.

And yes, that's Tamiya acrylics applied with an airbrush. Lately I noticed a decline in quality in those Tamiya paints. I used to be able to spray it right off the bottle with no thinning and the result would come out great. But lately, I have to mix it right to get the desired result.

I can't comment on pressure because I am still using a cheap Testor compressor that doesn't allow you to adjust pressure! So whatever settings it gives me I have to accept or workaround it... :)

Winston

It isn't too smooth when you look at it in person, the photograph must have fooled you! ;)

But in general, testing is very important. I always test the paint before I spray paint. If it is too thin then add paint, if it is too thick then add thinner.

And yes, that's Tamiya acrylics applied with an airbrush. Lately I noticed a decline in quality in those Tamiya paints. I used to be able to spray it right off the bottle with no thinning and the result would come out great. But lately, I have to mix it right to get the desired result.

I can't comment on pressure because I am still using a cheap Testor compressor that doesn't allow you to adjust pressure! So whatever settings it gives me I have to accept or workaround it... :)

Winston
I have one more question then, do you mix your acrylics with water or special tamiya thinner? I mixed mine with water, could it be the reason why it turned out so crappy?
Also I have noticed with an airbrush(i am using the same as you are) I could waste nearly half a bottle of paint and it will still not satisfy me.

thanks for your help

I have one more question then, do you mix your acrylics with water or special tamiya thinner? I mixed mine with water, could it be the reason why it turned out so crappy?


You have to use their thinner. This may be the reason why your result is not what you want.

Winston

I have one more question then, do you mix your acrylics with water or special tamiya thinner? I mixed mine with water, could it be the reason why it turned out so crappy?

You have to use their thinner. This may be the reason why your result is not what you want.

Winston
I remember reading that Tamiya's thinner is 95%isypropyl and 5%water.
You can use isypropyl to thin it...
just water... will make the paint run... the pure water evaporates too slowly

More updates...

I am pretty slow approaching the end of this build. Not too sure why.

Anyhow, I have managed to complete the interior. I have finally decided on what to do with the seat belt set up. First, I have used some modellers self adhesive seat belt material plus photo etched parts to make the pair of 4 point seatbelts. I think it is a little bit unrealistic in a sense. However, it should not be too bad when seen through the windows.

As you can see, I have decided to scratch build the racing harness guide bar to have a relatively convincing racing set up. I have used a piece of metal rod and two pieces of aluminum can material for the two ends to simulate a real guide bar. Those cola cans are not bad for scratch building. It is very flexible.

Here are the pics:

http://files.automotiveforums.com/gallery/watermark.php?file=/502/379173CIMG1005a.jpg

http://files.automotiveforums.com/gallery/watermark.php?file=/502/379173CIMG1002a.jpg

Thanks for looking.

Winston

Man, you have done an outstanding job on this model so far. Even though it's not "accurate" per the anime (I know you weren't trying to make it accurate), it's freakin awesome!! I like it alot. Maybe the anime should've been like this one instead!! :)

I am liking this build, alot.

wow. almost there! :D

Nice nice and nice! Very cool interior! I wished that my FC turned out nice like this one...Mine doenst have an engine...oh well.
Nice,i loved the way you've done the safety bar!

Hi all,

The car is now completed. The delay is caused by modifying the crappy fujimi rear spoiler to make it look respectable. Thanks for all who followed this thread from start to finish. Another 3 month build...

The full completed thread is located at the Completed section here:

http://www.automotiveforums.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=4501484#post4501484

Winston

Hey Winston,

You've worked magic on this one mate. Absolutely wonderful.:smokin:
The interior looks amazing, and the motor is perfect, great work man...