Begin the Beguine... Slot Car Blog
Just a little part of me, 1:32 slot car hobby days.
2024年10月1日火曜日
Scalextric Chevrolet Monte Carlo NASCAR
First I was considering using the MPC 1/32 snap kit of the Regal Southern Stocker as the base, but in the end, I chose this Monte Carlo instead. It saved me from having to deal with finding a matching chassis. And yes, this is a real runner.
The project started in July. The shape gradually emerges as I repeatedly build up and sand down the putty.
Ready for paint.
Progress for August. The project faced challenges in August, making it a difficult month.
The decals are standard "Silk-Ink" waterslides from Patto's Place in Australia. They feature rich ink on an extremely sheer sheet and are high-quality, vivid, very opaque, and flexible.
Temporary assemble before clear coat.
Out of my two project cars, the #2-Richmond-Stacy car is finished up to the decal application, but I made the mistake of spraying a "hot" clear coat without testing it first, which caused it to shrink and wrinkle. I ruined everything just one step away!
I was pretty disheartened, but I pulled myself together, stripped everything down to the base coat using isopropyl alcohol,
...reapplied the body filler putty (this time using polyester, as the initial epoxy had become brittle and peeled off) where it had come off,
and have finally gotten back to the gray primer stage, ready to repaint the body.
Have a look at the outcome.
Though some details didn’t quite line up when transferring the Buick Regal livery onto the Chevy Monte Carlo body, I did my best to make it work.
The project was tentatively completed by the end of September. The car itself was finished at the beginning of September, but in reality, I've been waiting the whole month for a resin copy (x10) of an old SCX driver head wearing a jet helmet that I bought on eBay.
I purchased it in early September, but no matter how long I wait, it hasn't arrived. The estimated delivery is mid-October, but it still seems to be stuck in Italy. Well, it doesn't seem to be a scam seller, so I figure it'll eventually arrive if I wait patiently. Once the driver heads arrive, I plan to update the interior. Once that's done, the project will truly be complete.
2022年7月19日火曜日
AIRFIX Triumph TR4A
"I thought you might appreciate these, and you have a knack for fixing things just the way you like."
In reality, I wasn't particularly fond of those outdated british cars, but I sensed a profound compassion from him. Therefore, I accepted them in silence at that time.
It's been a year since then. In that moment, I was absentmindedly gazing at them without any specific thoughts, but suddenly, I felt something click in my head, and I felt the urge to organize my ideas. I rummaged through a drawer and found two well-preserved old Ninco Ferrari 166MM chassis and NC-1 pods. Another search in a different drawer yielded the necessary components.
Over the past year, I had distanced myself from slot car hobbies and acquired some new tools and equipment for airsoft gunsmithing. Among them was a lathe machine, which I realized could also prove valuable for crafting slot cars.
Now, I can easily reduce the width of the alloy wheel's thick hubs or trim one side flange of the axle bushings using a lathe machine. By addressing this issue, it becomes much like the process required for building other cars.
After adding some weight, touching up on minor chips, and assembling everything, here's the final result.
I believe these wheels might be too sophisticated for these cars. If I had used colored mini light wheels, they might have given a much more rugged appearance than these.
It was enjoyable to delve into this after a long hiatus, but I'm still uncertain about returning to this hobby. At the very least, it served as a small form of rehabilitation for me.
<Aug. 2022, video added>
Slot Car 37:Airfix Triumph TR4A on NC-1-like Speed!