McLaren MP 4/6

[ace91]

Hi guys,

After making McLaren MP 4/27, the name of Ayrton Senna came into my mind & I was like 'Hey, why not I try to make another Ayrton Senna's car after making Camel Lotus 99T Honda?' Also the Malboro McLaren kind of make me want to make one as well as I had an early Malboro McLaren as I had a remote control version (can't remember which version was it or the name of the type as we have to insert an engine in it & place the switch on & let it run. Also I couldn't remember where I had them as I had both Benetton B192 & Mclaren (couldn't remember which version)).

The McLaren MP 4/6 that I'm making here is made by Fujimi & it will be out of box type as I wouldn't be working on extra details. I started making the engine as the kit suggested but it was not easy to make due to fitting issue (I guess). Took me 2 days to get it right (sort of). Really have to work out on the alignment of the rear suspension.







Here are the photos of the exhaust along with the exhaust attached.











The monocoque along with the under panel.



That will be it for the moment.

Adrian

[ZEQUIELLE]

Beware, this kit has a terrible fitting problem, the engine cowling does not fit when te monocoque is finished. Try to make a test fitting, y may be useful to grind inside the cowling to make it fit .....

[ace91]

Thanks for the advise. I will take note on that.

Have you made Williams FW 14B made by Fujimi? Any fitting issue? Cause I'm planning to build that kit after the MP 4/6. Maybe next time I'll try to make MP 4/4 Tamiya version I guess for a change.

Adrian

[ace91]

Hi guys,

Some progress so far.

Here is the cockpit. The gear was hard to slot in at the right side of the cockpit & I unintentionally damaged the gear but by looking at the bright side, at least I managed to put in the gear at the slot by placing it. I guess Fujimi does have fitting issues after all I guess.









The monocoque after attaching the cockpit. This too also has a little fitting problem but at least somehow, I managed to attach them. He he.







More work on the monocoque. The Marlboro livery is from Tabu Design.









I will continue my work on the next day.

Comments will be most welcome.

Adrian

[stevenoble]

Nice work so far, it looks very good. I too started this kit many months ago but lost interest due to many little problems with it. It can be built into a really nice model it just takes a lot of extra work. Looking forward to seeing more progress..

[Porsnatic]

Great work so far, what silver or chrome did you use for the headers?

[ace91]

Originally Posted by Porsnatic

Great work so far, what silver or chrome did you use for the headers?

I used Mr Hobby H 8 (Silver).

Adrian

[Porsnatic]

Aqueous?

Originally Posted by ace91

I used Mr Hobby H 8 (Silver).

Adrian

[ace91]

Originally Posted by Porsnatic

Aqueous?

I put some thinner on the paint before I paint the parts.

Made used of the time I have today though my schedule was pretty tight with other activities but nevertheless, I've found some time to continue my work on the MP 4/6

For the side of the front wing, I have to measure the parts first cause when I read the assembly sheet, it was suggested to cut the part but the diagram wasn't clear.





Then, after I've confirmed the part, I've marked them with the pencil line as shown the photo below & it took me a while to cut the parts till it looks like the photo below.





The front wing has some fitting problem & I should have shown the photo of the fitting problem & again, the diagram in the assembly sheet wasn't clear. Took me a while for me to understand the attachment right & sanding the front wing till it can fit & attached the side parts of the front wing as well.



I've finally completed the monocoque which took me a while to finish it.





Will continue on by painting the cowling & the rear wing tomorrow which will take me a while since the cowling has 2 colours in one part.

Adrian

[John18d]

wow Adrian - your skills are really improving
you're doing an excellent job on a problematic kit
John

[ace91]

Originally Posted by John18d

wow Adrian - your skills are really improving
you're doing an excellent job on a problematic kit
John

Thanks John,

Some more work on the project. The Malboro logo on the rear wing is kind of small for me when I looked up at photos on the car though the size for other parts are right. Oh, well....
This took me a while just now due to fitting problem as I have to sand on the red part & I have to drill the hole bigger so that the upper parts of the rear wing can fit. The black part below was suggested to be coloured with red in the instruction sheet. But somehow, it was kind of unusual then I look up again on the photos & just as I thought, it was black. Some instruction sheet it is.





Completed the both set of brake discs (The 2 below are the front brake discs while the other 2 are rear brake discs). I believe it would look good if there is photo etch for the brake discs but it would be pricey for me.



After completing the brake discs, I've attached the front brake discs on the front suspension. I have to drill a hole bigger on 2 parts of front suspension till they can fit.





I need some help here for this. The cowling is kind of down with 'measles' (photo below). If you guys notice, there are pink spots on the rear part of the cowl while the other part is all white as I managed to put enough coverage as partly was covered with Tamiya masking tape. I should have trusted my instinct that I should use the Tamiya masking tape instead of the tape provided in the kit cause the tape is hard to stick on as it comes off easily.





Guys, please I need some advice or recommendation to 'cure' that ''measles' on the cowl.

I painted the cowl & rear wing with TS-26 & florescent red (Not Tamiya as I have difficulty getting paints here)

Thanks.
Adrian

[stevenoble]

Adrian, I think that cowl will need to be re-painted. It looks like the red has reacted with the white and has cracked on the second photo. Personally I would sand the whole thing back with wet and dry used wet. Make sure you remove all of the red and sand the white so that it is smooth and blemish free. What brand is the red by the way, it would help to know..?? Once it's all smooth clean it off with warm soapy water and allow it to air dry, then apply a nice even coat of fresh primer. Allow that to dry thoroughly, then wet and dry that back until smooth and re spray the Tamiya TS26 white. Let that harden for a week until you do any masking on it. The tape can mark Tamiya TS very easily if it's not properly hardened. Although it may look dry it can still be soft underneath.
Now the masking. Use Tamiya tape only. Stick the tape onto a cutting mat. Then using a steel ruler and a fresh, sharp, scalpel blade cut the tape into a thin strip, maybe 1mm wide. Use this thin strip to mask the cowl freehand. You will find that the thin tape will follow anywhere you want it to go and will not wrinkle. Once that's done you can use the thicker Tamiya tape to fill in the sections where you don't want any red. I also sometimes use a plastic bag for this taped on so I don't waste loads of expensive tape. Spray the red in light coats at first especially at the tape edge to prevent any paint creeping under the tape. You could also spray some clear first or a little of the white to seal the tape edges and prevent creep. Once you have the red on and it's the correct colour leave it for 30-40 mins and slowly remove the masking, don't go fast or you may pull off the red you just applied.
I hope all that makes good sense because it's a lot to take in. Any problems post here or PM me and I'll try to help you some more..
Oh and one last thing. Did you spray the white on first and then the red, or red first and put the white over the top of the red..?? Looks like you got some pink hue in the white on the second picture, almost as if the red has bled into the white..

[ace91]

Originally Posted by stevenoble

Adrian, I think that cowl will need to be re-painted. It looks like the red has reacted with the white and has cracked on the second photo. Personally I would sand the whole thing back with wet and dry used wet. Make sure you remove all of the red and sand the white so that it is smooth and blemish free. What brand is the red by the way, it would help to know..?? Once it's all smooth clean it off with warm soapy water and allow it to air dry, then apply a nice even coat of fresh primer. Allow that to dry thoroughly, then wet and dry that back until smooth and re spray the Tamiya TS26 white. Let that harden for a week until you do any masking on it. The tape can mark Tamiya TS very easily if it's not properly hardened. Although it may look dry it can still be soft underneath.
Now the masking. Use Tamiya tape only. Stick the tape onto a cutting mat. Then using a steel ruler and a fresh, sharp, scalpel blade cut the tape into a thin strip, maybe 1mm wide. Use this thin strip to mask the cowl freehand. You will find that the thin tape will follow anywhere you want it to go and will not wrinkle. Once that's done you can use the thicker Tamiya tape to fill in the sections where you don't want any red. I also sometimes use a plastic bag for this taped on so I don't waste loads of expensive tape. Spray the red in light coats at first especially at the tape edge to prevent any paint creeping under the tape. You could also spray some clear first or a little of the white to seal the tape edges and prevent creep. Once you have the red on and it's the correct colour leave it for 30-40 mins and slowly remove the masking, don't go fast or you may pull off the red you just applied.
I hope all that makes good sense because it's a lot to take in. Any problems post here or PM me and I'll try to help you some more..
Oh and one last thing. Did you spray the white on first and then the red, or red first and put the white over the top of the red..?? Looks like you got some pink hue in the white on the second picture, almost as if the red has bled into the white..

How do I sand the parts? I'm lost here in the first paragraph cause this is something I haven't done. How do I start? For the red, I used Nippon Paint (Not sure if your place has it). I was informed by the art shop that the colour is no longer in production.

For the tape, I would try that as it is something new to me.

I sprayed white first before painting the red parts. The pink spot there was my attempt to try to clear it up but looks like to no avail for me. That time I wanted to paint the front part of the cowl but kind of spread to the parts I didn't want to paint red. I should've shown the photo of the cowl before I attempted to try to undo the parts by spraying them in layers.

Thanks.

[stevenoble]

Originally Posted by ace91

How do I sand the parts? I'm lost here in the first paragraph cause this is something I haven't done. How do I start? For the red, I used Nippon Paint (Not sure if your place has it). I was informed by the art shop that the colour is no longer in production.

For the tape, I would try that as it is something new to me.

I sprayed white first before painting the red parts. The pink spot there was my attempt to try to clear it up but looks like to no avail for me. That time I wanted to paint the front part of the cowl but kind of spread to the parts I didn't want to paint red. I should've shown the photo of the cowl before I attempted to try to undo the parts by spraying them in layers.

Thanks.

Ok, I'm assuming you have some wet and dry sandpaper..?? Well if not you should be able to buy that at your local hobby shop or motor parts store. It comes in various grades or roughness. For sanding back the paint on the cowling either 1200 or 1000 grade will be adequate. Use it with some warm water and gently rub the painted areas using a back and forth motion. You will see the paint slowly coming off. Keep rinsing the sandpaper and the model with fresh water to prevent the sandpaper from clogging. Do this to the entire painted surface until it's nice and smooth.

[John18d]

Adrian - Steve is correct - you will need to follow his direction to be able to have a good result.
your skills are improving so do not let a poor finish on the cowl spoil your work.If you do not understand any of the directions keep asking questions - I know Steve is very helpful and I can try also to help you understand
John