Background:

A great looking race car but I found the original livery uninspiring. The kit was going cheap at IPMS Telford 2021 so I thought I'd treat the car and kit as a blank canvas to make up my own livery and to have some custom decals made up at Indycals.

Pros:

There's a well detailed engine. Most of the kit fits together well - in some places like a snap-fit. The tyres are good, they feel like rubber rather than that usual stuff Revell use. Door mirrors are securely mounted - enough that you can just push them in, no glue. The window masks are prepainted. The rollcage is comprehensive and fits together with only a little clamping and the seat fits securely

Cons:

No suspension detail whatsoever. The wheels do not steer, just two solid axles. The windscreen wiper is moulded-in. The fit of the glass is so very tight that it doesn't quite fit, leaving a gap at one side. There are no solid mounting points for the body onto the chassis, so picking the car up means it'll half slip off. Some grinding of engine and body parts are needed to get the body to sit down at the level it should be. The kit feels in parts so thick and solid it's almost toy-like.

Verdict:

Both well-detailed and very-non-detailed in parts, with some dodgy fitments of the body it nonetheless works out well in the end. The toy-like nature of the kit and construction makes it seem like a basic beginners kit, but the flaws that need correcting and dealing with means that some experience is needed at least.

Build notes:

Built over the space of about a month in May-June 2022. Painted in Porsche Peridot Green metallic, along with Tamiya's Aluminium, Light Gun Metal, Gun Metal and Semi-gloss black, with some custom decals created by myself in Adobe Illustrator, and printed by Indycals - following the colour scheme of Ryobi Power Tools. I've also added some extra detailing in the interior (wiring, seatbelts), the rear bulkhead (electrical boxes and wiring) and the engine bay (more pipes and hoses) along with some aerials. This kit only spent a brief 6 months in the stash from purchase to completion.

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