Wide Body RX-7

I just finished looking at aeandae's Veilside Fortune RX-7 and was totally inspired! What amazing attention to detail and skill!!!!

So I decided to change around what I was going to do on my RX-7. I was originally going to put a Blitz style body kit and do a few other small things.

But after seeing aeandae's RX-7 I decided to do a wide body. I'm going to take a few ideas from the Veilside kit and change it around just to be different. I'll most likely scrap the Blitz kit and do a completely different front and back bumpers.

This is what I was doing before:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v389/talon_454ts/RX7FrontSide.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v389/talon_454ts/RX7Ph2-2.jpg

Starting the wide body:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v389/talon_454ts/RX7Ph3-1.jpg

cool. another wide body fd. love the rx7s

Here is an update of the hood, just letting the putty dry, then some sanding.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v389/talon_454ts/RX7Ph4-1.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v389/talon_454ts/RX7Ph4-2.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v389/talon_454ts/RX7Ph4-3.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v389/talon_454ts/RX7Ph4-4.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v389/talon_454ts/RX7Ph4-5.jpg

Looking good man. The hood is turning out great. Not a big fan of the Blitz style front, but thats just me. Cant wait to see some body work.

Not a big fan of the Blitz style front, but thats just me. Cant wait to see some body work.

Yeah I'm not doing the Blitz kit anymore, I usaully HATE it, especially on 2nd gen Eclipse/Talons!!! But I thought it looked ok on the RX-7, but I've decided to do something else for the front end now. If you have any pics of some ideas post them up!

Heres some ideas for the front. I personally like th first two the best... especially the gold one. ;)

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v318/stagen/rx7front4.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v318/stagen/rx7front.jpg
and thses two pics are of the same
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v318/stagen/rx7front3.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v318/stagen/rx7front2.jpg

That hood's looking great man! I like that gold RX-7 too.

Awesome start cant wait to see how the hood turns out, lookin good so far. Interested to see your plans for the widebody :naughty:
maybe ill get to work on mine again soon :shakehead
keep us posted!

ok here is an update of the tail lights and the side, I'm not sure if I should take a bit out of the side skirts (part drawn in with pencil) or should I just leave it the full width?

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v389/talon_454ts/RX7Ph2-4.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v389/talon_454ts/RX7Ph3-4.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v389/talon_454ts/RX7Ph3-5.jpg

Here are a few more of the start of the back end.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v389/talon_454ts/RX7Ph3-6.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v389/talon_454ts/RX7Ph3-7.jpg

Here is an update of the front & back end.

I decided to make the vents in the back bumper thinner, they were looking a bit too bulky. The picture shows the difference in size.

Let me know what you think.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v389/talon_454ts/RX7Ph6-1.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v389/talon_454ts/RX7Ph6-3.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v389/talon_454ts/RX7Ph5-5.jpg

very nice reminds me of the vielside fortune kit

Cant wait to see the 1/24 driver park this WIDE thing...lol
Sort of...Mmmm...Exotic,but I like it!!

Sliming down the rear end looks much better! The saying "less is more" is often true. Looking good!

very nice!

.....wow!

-Chris

Here is a little update, still needs some sanding and I need to scribe bumper lines, but other then that I should be able to start on the engine and interior soon.

I made the vents in the front bumper smaller and I'm going to put these Racing Hart Type CR's on, they're a bit hard to see in the pics though.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v389/talon_454ts/RX7Ph6-5.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v389/talon_454ts/RX7Ph6-7.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v389/talon_454ts/RX7Ph6-8.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v389/talon_454ts/RX7Ph7-1.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v389/talon_454ts/RX7Ph7-6.jpg

That's starting to look great!!! I'm loving it!

I'm loving it too!! It looks so scary!! I LOVE IT!! :D

How are you going to scrib the lines? If you got a good way to do them,could you tell me?? I gotta scrib a few doorlines...:p

Nice looks very good!

I'm loving it too!! It looks so scary!! I LOVE IT!! :D

How are you going to scrib the lines? If you got a good way to do them,could you tell me?? I gotta scrib a few doorlines...:p

For my S2000 I used masking tape to make an edge for the blade of my exacto knife to follow. Just lightly go over it several times and once you have a decent line, use the back of the blade to widen it a bit.

The hood is brilliant! Keep it up.

Just finished opening up the passenger door, I'm going to take a stab at making some vertical door hinges, so far progress is good, but I'm not sure if the styrene is going to be strong enough, and fabricating the parts is also a hit and miss because there are very few pics of the hinge's individual parts.

Don't worry I'll have a tutorial on how to make the hinges... if I can get them to work that is lol

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v389/talon_454ts/RX7Ph8-1.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v389/talon_454ts/RX7Ph8-2.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v389/talon_454ts/Vert1.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v389/talon_454ts/Step2-2.jpg

WOW !!! Nice Works !! Epoxy or Pure Putty are apply to this mod ?

WOW !!! Nice Works !! Epoxy or Pure Putty are apply to this mod ?

I used styrene first then I used Tamiya Epoxy Putty, then sand, sand, and sand some more lol

This thing looks great!!!

Good luck with those hinges. Your wideboty looks great on your 7, reminds me a little about the old Fujimi Super aero kits. Oh,in my opinion i think it would look better with a aero fin on the rear, looks a little weak back there.

Great to see it take such beautiful shape. Can't wait to see the doors finished and the whole body painted. Nice choice of wheels. Are you going to add a spoiler to this monster?

any updates? i agree, the new rear end looks much better, very innovative on the tail lights as well.

WOW! This is an amazing RX7. It totally shits on mine!:grinyes: I wish i could do something like that. I like how the wide bodykit goes onto the door. Very cool! You have great skills! Sorry if this is a stupid question but that yellow putty, what is it and is it easy to use? Anyway great work! And good choice of wheels:bigthumb:

I was wondering how that door was going to open, with the body work keeping it from being able to open like a normal car does. Interesting solution.

Great to see it take such beautiful shape. Can't wait to see the doors finished and the whole body painted. Nice choice of wheels. Are you going to add a spoiler to this monster?
Yes I actually have a spoiler that I was going to put on my R34 Skyline, but I think it looks better on the RX-7.

WOW! This is an amazing RX7. It totally shits on mine!:grinyes: I wish i could do something like that. I like how the wide bodykit goes onto the door. Very cool! You have great skills! Sorry if this is a stupid question but that yellow putty, what is it and is it easy to use? Anyway great work! And good choice of wheels:bigthumb:
The putty I use is Tamiya Epoxy Putty Quick Type, it is very cheap ($7.95 Canadian) and easy to use/sand, just cut off equal amounts of the white and orange epoxy (you don't need a lot) then mash them together until it is the yellowish colour, then spread it on with your fingers. Make sure your fingers are wet when spreading it on. The smoother you can get it, the less sanding you'll have to do after it dries.

I was wondering how that door was going to open, with the body work keeping it from being able to open like a normal car does. Interesting solution.
Yeah the extra wide front fenders would restrict the normal movement of the doors, so I came up with the vertical door hinge idea. I actually just bought some brass and more aluminum tubing to make the hinges, I am still using styrene to get the exact design down first, rather than waste all the time/money on brass. Styrene is much easier and cheaper to work with! lol

I WILL HAVE AN UPDATE SOON!!!!

Here is a quick update. Still figuring out the door hinges, but progress on the new exhaust and rear diffuser are going well. I used a lighter to get the weathered look on the exhaust pipe & muffler.

Also building a single, larger turbo for the RX-7, along with intercooler piping and intercooler. I'll have some pics of that up soon.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v389/talon_454ts/RX7Ph8-8.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v389/talon_454ts/RX7Ph9-1.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v389/talon_454ts/RX7Ph9-3.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v389/talon_454ts/RX7Ph9-4.jpg

Nice detail on that exhaust. Havent seen this car in a while. Keep it coming

Here is another small update. I got most of the turbo and the diffuser done, but both need to be touched up a bit. I have to trim the fins on the diffuser a bit and I'm going to remake the K&N air filter, it didn't turn out as nicely as I had hoped.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v389/talon_454ts/RX7Ph9-6.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v389/talon_454ts/RX7Ph8-6.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v389/talon_454ts/RX7Ph8-7.jpg

NICE! I like the detail your putting into the body. Nice turbo too. How are those doors coming along?

Ok here is a small update of the doors, still working on test fitting them. Still need to drill some holes and solder on the "hydraulics". I decided to use a flat piece of brass for the inside, its easier to mount and has a lot more working room on it.

I have honestly been working a bit more on getting the engine bay all test fitted and making the intercooler piping and turbo fit properly. Still need to add some details to the turbo and intercooler.

Progress is going fast on the engine bay then it'll be 100% on the vertical hinges, I promise. Hahaha

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v389/talon_454ts/RX7Ph8-9.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v389/talon_454ts/RX7Ph9-6-1.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v389/talon_454ts/RX7Ph9-9.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v389/talon_454ts/RX7Ph9-8.jpg

Nice curves you got there on that pipeing! Engine looks good. I cant wait to see those doors though!

OK here we go!!! I finally got a working version of my hinges going, now they aren't designed like the actual 1:1 hinges, I messed around with some aluminum tubing to make "hydraulics" but it was becoming extremely difficult to mock them up properly so I improvised.

I bent the end of a pin 110 degrees and attached the 2 pieces of brass (large flat piece & the hinge), I then soldered the pin to the large piece of brass. The friction between the pin and the hinge is enough so that it holds up the door. Thus solving my "hydraulic" dilemma.

I haven't put the hinges in permanently yet I'll do that after I paint the doors. The hinge is just taped in for now.

I still have a bunch of work to do on the door jams as you can see in the pics. I'll try to get some work done in the next day or so.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v389/talon_454ts/RX7Ph8-4.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v389/talon_454ts/RX7Ph8-5.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v389/talon_454ts/RX7Ph8-6-1.jpg

Nice to see it working! I couldnt wait to see it! Great job on that fabrication work! This is gonna look good once its all cleaned up.

Freakin awesome man!! Now I gotta see this thing in person again, just to play with the doors! Looks like the hinges are turning out great!

Ok I got a lot of progress done the past day or so. Unfortunately the yellow paint I'm using is extremely thin (its in a spray can, so not much I can do about it). Even with light layers it won't stay on some areas, just runs. I did a base coat in silver, hoping to bring out the yellow a bit, didn't really work though.

Also when I painted the hood and doors it was in the evening and the humidity went up and the paint clouded a bit, so a little sanding and another coat and it should be good.

I'm thinking of doing a black interior, but tan has also crossed my mind.

some other things:
- wired up spark plugs
- scratch built an oil filter & oil filler
- scratch built battery posts & cables
- scratch built radiator fan housing

C & C welcome!!!

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v389/talon_454ts/RX7Ph11-6.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v389/talon_454ts/RX7Ph12-6.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v389/talon_454ts/RX7Ph13-4.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v389/talon_454ts/RX7Ph13-7.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v389/talon_454ts/RX7Ph13-9.jpg

This is one awsome model.

:popcorn: Waiting for the rest to come

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v389/talon_454ts/RX7Ph13-4.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v389/talon_454ts/RX7Ph13-7.jpg

Looking GOOOOD!!!! Looks like the front could use a little more smoothing. Also is the yellow that pale? Or is it just the lighting? A bolder Yellow would look awesome, especially if you're doing any c/f details. But it's really comming along and looks awesome!! I love how the doors turned out. You did a GREAT job on those. Keep it comming!!! Maybe if you're not doing anything tomorrow, I'll have to come by and take a look at it in person.

Edit - Looking at this thing again!! I really love the shape you've given this thing! It just looks sooo gooood!! You really should almost cast this thing and sell resin kits or something.

'nother edit - I think I actually like that yellow the more I look at it.

Energon - yeah I had to put 3-4 coats to get the yellow that dark, plus the clouding of the paint made the hood & doors look very pale. And yeah it looks like I have to smooth out the corners of the front bumper a bit, and the hood needs some work too now that I look at it more. Hopefully I have enough paint left to touch everything up and after the smoothing. lol

looking good.

looks sweet man.
but...i feel like the body is too high.
idk...i still like what you have done though.

Awesome work my freind :bigthumb:

Looking good.

Ok well it has been rainy and humid here for the past few days so no clear coat yet! So I've been focusing on the engine and engine bay:

- mounted Corvette rad fan
- made rad piping (still need to make lower pipe)
- made BOV (with Dremel as a lathe)
- intercooler hose connections & clamps
- dip stick
- wired up battery

I still have to wire up the rad fan & make hose clamps, plus do a bunch of other wiring, but what do you think so far?

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v389/talon_454ts/RX7Ph11-10.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v389/talon_454ts/RX7Ph11-12.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v389/talon_454ts/RX7Ph11-13.jpg

Lots of rain lately, so no painting. But I wired up the engine bay a bit, still needs a bit more work. Hopefully I can get the whole thing finished soon.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v389/talon_454ts/RX7Ph14-2.jpg

Great progress.

what did u use for the tubeing for the turbo

great job are u planning to make a how to form on the doors......

Very nice indeed! Some carbon fiber on that hood will bring out the black on the rims. If you could, some carbon fiber on the rear diffuser will also look sweet! I know, I know, Im a fan of carbon fiber.

Nice work on the body, I like it a lot.

im a carbon freak my self i got to have on hoods, doors, fenders, wings, body kits, in side the doors, front and rear seats any wear i could even thinking of making a car all carbon fiber just not sure which car yet.........

Very nice indeed! Some carbon fiber on that hood will bring out the black on the rims. If you could, some carbon fiber on the rear diffuser will also look sweet! I know, I know, Im a fan of carbon fiber.

:rofl: :screwy: im carzy about it too.......:iceslolan

I am actually waiting on my CF decals from my local hobby shop. I am already going to do the hood in CF, its already primed in flat black. The idea for the CF diffuser is a very good idea though, I will defiantely have to do that!!! Unfortunately the yellow paint is extremely CRAPPY!!! So I am thinking of doing the RX-7 in Nissan Orange Mist (basicaly 350Z Orange). What do you think?

What colour should I do it? Keep it yellow? or something else? Let me know!!!

I would take orange, this yellow just don't fit.