1/12 Rover Mini

[Emilssi]

Hello,
Here is my latest project - big scale Mini by Tamiya. Although quality wise it's not as good as other Tamiya's big scale kits I have built but it's still a fun model to build (so far). It will require some detailing especially in the engine bay but other than that I'm not planing on making any major changes to the kit. Anyway, here's where I am so far:
I cut and cleaned up all parts and got them ready for painting.
I also removed the toy-like chrome plating from the wheels and sprayed them with TS-17. I also had to try on the tires - simply couldn't resist



Then I gave the body a golden base and painted it with Mclaren F1's Metallic green as I thought this cool color would suit the Mini and it seems to be very close to the original metallic green that Rover was using in the 90's. It will change quite a lot after clear coat (hopefully in plus) but I'm pretty happy with the shade already.








That's it for now. I hope to do some more work on it soon,

ATB
Emil

[da_ashman]

Great Colour!!

[Emilssi]

Thanks!
I really hope it will pop under clearcoat

[guillote68]

Nice paint scheme, the tamiya sprays are great.

[Emilssi]

Originally Posted by guillote68

Nice paint scheme, the tamiya sprays are great.

Thanks! I also like the TS sprays - I use TS17 on the wheels almost all the time. However I never use other TS metallic colors as the metallic particles are waaaaay out of scale imo.

[Emilssi]

Hello,

It's not much of an update but hopefully regular posting will help me stay motivated to stay on track with this slightly frustrating project. Last night I dropped the painted engine block on the floor I had to thinner-wash it and start over. I also started scratch building the plugs and drilled some holes for the wiring. however... The big challenge is about to begin. Tamiya took way too many shortcuts on this kit, which is both; frustrating and certainly not Tamiya-like. But what they did on the alternator (which is probably one of the most visible parts of the engine) is just too much. It looks like a giant hollow piece of tube with no details whatsoever!!!!!




I will have to make the alternator from scratch then :/
I'm planning to use the front of the kit part, scratch-build the middle and add the back from a Lamborghini Countach kit.


I also did a mock up of the chassis and body shell to check if the color matching. It wasn't too bad but I gave the bottom part a light coat of base color to make it better.


That's it for now. I took last picture of the progress before I called it a night


Have a good weekend everyone
Emil

[dada man]

im in love with this colour and would love to get this kit some time.

[stump]

GREAT work so far.
I'm another who have fallen heavily for that colour, absolutely gorgeous...

[guillote68]

Thanks for the up date, keep going!!!

[Emilssi]

Time for another update from this (I hate to say this but...) annoying build. I decided to give the decals a go last night. I started with the bonnet stripes. I don't know if it was just my kit but the decals are really bad:/ I decided to fix it by masking and painting the stripes instead but unfortunately this happened:



It was mostly my own fault really, since I didn't realize that the green paint won't stick well enough to the gold base - lesson learned - should have sealed it with clear coat first
But that's not the worst part. The side stripes also cracked and broke beyond repair. I'm not sure if I should order another set or just build a car without the side stripes.

The only consolation today is that after applying the first coat of clear, the color looks really gorgeous





That's it for now
Have a good weekend everyone

[guillote68]

So sad to see this, sometimes s&it happens, but the color with the clear coat looks AMAZING.
Keep going please!!!!
Guillermo

[Emilssi]

After quite a few setbacks and frustrations I am happy to show you some substantial progress.
First all areas, where I rubbed through the paint were touched up and after getting a new airbrush (at last!!!) from my wife as a birthday gift I sprayed another coat of clear. I was shocked with the difference in quality between the new ab and my old and extremely worn grandpa airbrush.
I also polished the body using tamiya compounds and hasegawa ceramic compound (for the first time)





But it really started to look like a real mini when I glued the black wheel arches on (which btw don't fit very well). Since they looked a bit plain, I added little p/e rivet heads



After my first failed attempt on applying the side stripe decals (they were extremely brittle and basically fell apart) I got another set from a friend of mine and gave it another go being super careful this time. The result is not perfect but I guess it is still better than no stripes.





That's it for now.
Cheers
Emil

[gtziaf]

Very cool...

[guillote68]

Amazing shine!!!!!!! i never try the tamiya compound, and i need to say, looks great, also in big scale.
Thanks for share .
Guillermo

[Emilssi]

Hello,
Here's a little progress on the mini project. I finally started the engine compartment. I improved the 'nonexistent' alternator I know it isn't perfect but I can live with it.



I also added some p/e bolt heads here and there




I painted the inside and the outside radiators. I'm planning to weather the engine a bit so the fans were lightly sprayed with flat black.



The window trims have been painted and front lights installed



That's it for now
Cheers
Emil