Ferrari 599 GTO, Revell, 1:24

[mattbacon]

bestest,
M.

[mattbacon]

That's the full set!

bestest,
M

[mattbacon]

OK... so what did I think of Revell's 599 GTO?

I loved it. I may comment below on a few things that are useful to help build it, but don't let that give the impression I'm complaining. I think this is a great kit, certainly in the top 2 or 3 I've built, and though I say it myself, it's probably my best ever 1/24 car build. Compared to a Fujimi, perhaps some of the detailing lacks finesse, and there's a bit of flash even on this brand new tool kit. But the fit and engineering is outstanding. The glazing, for example, just clicks into place, to the extent that you have to haul it out with masking tape to apply glue after the test fit! Even the headlight covers just drop into place. The fit is so good in places, in fact, that you have to make sure that there's no primer and paint in some joints or they won't fit. This is especially the case with the "flying buttresses" behind the cabin -- they will socket down into the body perfectly, but only if they and the socket are absolutely clean bare plastic.

The cabin interior is simple, but nicely moulded, and responds really well to detail painting, as does the engine. You could certainly add a bit more wiring and tubes around the engine, but the real thing is basically a darn great red airbox sitting in the middle of an acre of crackle-finished black plastic.

The two main areas that need attention are the bonnet and the brake disks. Before you start painting at all, check the fit of the bonnet into its recess. Mine wasn't quite curved enough toward the front right corner to settle down, but heating it in the steam from a kettle and gently flexing it downward resulted in a perfect fit. Then, you'll probably need to thin the fixing pins of the hinge, removing material from the upper surfaces, so that the bonnet can fall low enough to close properly when it's socketed into its hinge.

The other issue is an error in the instructions. Revell have mixed up the front and rear brake disk parts in the drawings. The BIG callipers go in the narrower front wheels, the smaller ones in the wider rear wheels. The profile views above show how the callipers are oriented when correctly fitted. You may also need to pare back the centre of the hubs on the brake disks and the wheel faces to get the wheels to close properly around the hubs. Although the rear of the wheels have completely "unreal" spokes, you really can't see them after they've been painted matt black... can you? You could replace the disks with etched parts, I guess, but if the coarse detail (which is only visible in a few areas) really bothers you, it's a lot easier and cheaper to fill the holes and draw in a new pattern with a fine point pen...

This one is finished in Zero Paints Rosso Scuderia and home-brew matt black with a touch of graphite for the roof. The wheels are Zero's Graphite Grey. The panel lines are washed with a mix of Citadel's red wash and a bit of Ogryn Flesh wash to darken it a bit.

All in all, I recommend this kit very highly... especially if you need to complete your stable of GTOs...

bestest,
M.

[jano11]

Great looking model! You did great on this one.

[ChristopheB]

Great work and big thanks for your review.

[Veyron]

Looks great!

[John18d]

thanks for the review - I just ordered this kit from my LHS the other day - got it for $23.00 all taxes and shipping included
John

[andybmw7272]

Super job all around.
Thank you for the insight on the goods and bads of the kit.
Your panel lines are awesome. Not too dark which is often such a problem. Yours are some of the best I have seen! You dont really notice them which is what I think is key.

What clear did you use on this thing?

Great job Matt!
NICE collection! What a stable!
Andy

[hd221813]

The 288 GTO is the Italeri/Revell one? Beware that the left windshield wiper is where the right windshield wiper should be, and viceversa. Very nice builds, by the way!

[Kjenjak]

Nice build, and a great collection of GTOs!

[bullroad]

good job .
The revell kit staying improvement the quality.

[Ferrari TR]

Very well done!
Your review is only missing a link to your build.