1/12 GT40 Group Build – Completed!

Rex started the project by building the engine. He added nice details like the spark plug wires, a distributor that he had to special order and more.

The next round of work was done by Ed. He put 20 hours of work into the paint. Thank’s Ed for taking care of this important step!

Robert’s turn with the kit, stripping the chrome was next.

Danny had to color match the shocks to a set done by Rex, he also finished the suspension.

Back in Black! With the exterior paint done, Brad and Danny are moving this project forward with work on the tires and chassis.

Robert then drilled holes in the seat eyelets. 300 in total.

The undercarriage was painted in Tamiya XF-8 by Danny.

Danny’s work on the floor pan and some engine details.

Here’s a close up of the engine cover.

With all of the chrome stripped, it was time to prime and paint the parts with Tamiya Flat Aluminum (XF-16)

With the patch work done, the cockpit shell was assembled and primed in white.

Here’s the same part in Tamiya Flat Blue (XF-8) Side note, Danny painted the belly pan with his Tamiya Flat Blue. Comparing the parts from two different bottle of Flat Blue reveals they are not the same color! Scroll up and you can see Danny’s is more blue while this one has a red shift.

The seats have been shot in black primer, that’s it. A new silver sharpie was used to detail the grommets.

Super glue was used to fill injector pin marks on the firewall, this piece faces the engine. A Sharpie was used to monitor the flatness of the patchwork while sanding.

This part attached to the back portion of the body. Oddly, the kit has the aluminum painted already while the rest is white plastic. The aluminum part was masked with removable vinyl, then the seams we brushed with matte clear to seal from color runs.

The cockpit shell in Tamiya XF-8.

Getting creative with the blue seatbelt material. Rex, the owner of the kit, purchased this blue material to replace the black that comes with the kit. The blue material requires some creative thinking to get it cut to the right shape.

A copy of the template was made, the blue material was taped to the cutting board, then the template was taped to the cutting board directly on top of the blue material. Then a new #11 Xacto was used to cut the strips.

Next was the dashboard, again it is in black primer. A Molotow pen was used to highlight the steel rings around the gauges. Kit decals were put in the gauge pods and the fuse panel on the left was painted with Tamiya Flat Aluminum, Flat Black and Orange.

Here’s the result, good enough considering this is the under side of the roof.

Here the doors are installed and test fit of the interior and chassis to the body is done. Everything fits nice so far!

Here is the cockpit painted and assembled, with blue seatbelts. Rex wanted the belts only for the driver, to make the model more accurate to the racing car.

These parts are in complicated shapes. When the gloss black was done, tape and other creative methods were used to just hold the parts. Now it was time to sand this a smooth as possible and paint with Tamiya Gloss black. I taped the front of the door, sealed with gloss clear and hand brushed Tamiya Gloss Black.

The doors were then assembled.

Now we are getting into the mechanical details. This is one of the fuel cells. The kit provides photo etch for the straps and they fit pretty well. Tiny springs were used in place of the kit’s provided “wooven sheath” for the hoses.

The brake ducts are an issue, they kink and attaching them is a loose concept in the instructions.

From left to right, unstuffed and then stuffed.

The radiator catch can was modified to be more realistic.

The kit’s tire decals are terrible. Thankfully Rex purchased a set of after market decals that did a real nice job of adding realism to the wheels. Thanks to Brad for the wheel assembly.

Following another modeler’s suggestion, t-shirt material was cut and stuffed into the ducting. Careful here, too much t-shirt and the ducting is to stiff to allow turning of the wheels.

With the kit coming together it was time to tackle the 6 fuel pumps that came with the car. These pumps are inter-connecting for fuel flow and resiliency. Sounds complicated? It is.

Getting so close!

Details like photo-etch lanyards, mylar sheeting and fitment issues were done next. Then everything was put together.