[Tamiya] Ford GT - WP

Washed. 

I soaked it in Clorox to remove the plating since I was going to paint it glossy black. 

After polishing the body parts, I painted the inside black to block light penetration. I used Vallejo Premium Paint, which can be applied to PC and PE, but strangely, its adhesion to PS seems to be lower than that of Mecha Primer. 

There were ejector pin marks that would be visible even after completion, so I had to sand it. 

The front and rear bumpers are each split into two pieces. 

When I looked into applying the etching grill, I found that the location of the joining pins between the two pieces were behind the grill, and there were also clips to join and secure it to the lower plate, so it seemed like it would not be removable. 

Fortunately, the rear bumper doesn't interfere with the grille, so I can apply etching, but I felt uneasy about applying it only to the rear, so I decided not to. Good excuse~ 😉 

Although the structure inevitably requires splitting, the attachment location is quite ambiguous. It connects to panel lines and is a concave area, making sanding difficult. 

Complaining won't solve the problem on its own. 🙂
Anyway, I applied the putty for sanding. 

Since I had to wait for the putty to harden, I assembled the parts that could be assembled in advance and trimmed the remaining parts. I didn't understand why this part was separated, since it wouldn't be visible after completion, and it was even the same color. 

Trimming done. 

I painted surfacer on the front air hole, but I think I need to do some more sanding. 

The black paint on the inside was peeling off a lot, so I applied Vallejo Mecha Primer this time. I also painted the etching and windshield. 

I used the included masking sheet, but the edges weren't clean.
The lower left corner was clean, so I took a closer look. There were plus molded markings indicating where to apply the masking tape, but the edges of the masking tape were hanging loosely over the edges, resulting in this.
I should have pressed down firmly before painting to ensure a good seal... 

Paint particles flew and stuck to the back side. I guess I'll have to replace the filter in the spray booth.
Fortunately, since it was water-based paint, I was able to remove it with Vallejo thinner without damaging the plastic. (If it were lacquer, you could just wipe it off with a compound.) 

I painted white surfacer and matt aluminium.
oh, never mind little porsche 😉 

Then I painted gloss white. 

Masked for two-tone color and decal painting. 

I sketched to design the decal. 

After scanning, I made a vector line. 

I printed it out and tested it, and it seems like it will work if I proceed like this. 

Masked for 2nd color. 

2nd color is orange. 

Masked once more for black stripe. 

I painted gloss black. 

And then I removed the mask. 

Masked last. 

It's been a while since the masking lines came out so clean. 

The interior parts are generally black, so it is nice that painting them isn't a hassle. 

I designed it as a vector to create the decal. 

Finding reference was harder than designing. 

Actually, since I'm going to use it in such a tiny size, there isn't really a need to make it as a vector, but for some reason, I feel uneasy if I don't. 

It didn't print in the exact color I wanted, so after several attempts, I printed it in a similar color. 

Attached all.
The link is the video I referenced.
Youtube Video 

For the 1st. coating, I used UV-cut clear. 

And I added a Super Clear III coating. 

I am sanding to remove the unevenness. 

Sanded.
I roughly trimmed it because I have to coat it one more time anyway. 

Final coated 

I painted with paint brush.
I also refined the masking line on the windshield that was not clean. 

I masked and painted the tail lamps.
Work was halted last October because I lost one of these parts.
Fortunately, I found it stuck in a recess of another part, so I was able to resume the work. 

Last sand 

Polished. 

Ready to assemble. 

I painted panel-line. 

Assembled body shell. 

Although there are many parts, true to Tamiya kit style, the parts fit together perfectly, so there was absolutely no stress. 

I applied the decals.
It didn't look like much at first glance, but once I actually started applying them, the amount of work was quite substantial. 

I assembled the headlamp.
It seems like this headlamp uses the most parts of any kit I have built so far. As such, the excellent quality is guaranteed. 😄 

The frunk and the mesh for the left and right main air vents are designed to be attached by overlapping two pieces.
Perhaps because the emblem was painted so long ago, it wouldn't come off with just wiping, so I sanded it down. 

Assembled front. 

Attached mesh of main air-intake. 

Attached windshield.
This part, which is designed to be inserted from the inside, fit well perfectly with the other parts in a truly amazing way. 

I cut and pasted Hasegawa Mirror Finish onto the back of the reflector to be fitted at the tip of the wing. 

Attached wing, engine room cover. 

I should have painted a part of the bottom plate glossy black, but I forgot. So I masked it. 

I was too lazy to paint it properly, so I used water-based glossy black, but it doesn't seem to have as much shine as I expected. 

Applied PE disc. 

The top part of the engine that I forgot to paint again.
This time, I was too lazy, so I just roughly painted it with dry brush paint. 

There was nothing particularly special to note regarding the internal assembly.
The only peculiar thing was the instruction to cut one side of the polycap. 

The interior parts are also well separated, so you just need to assemble it as instructed. 

All assembled inner parts. 

Another view. 

Assembled wheels and side mirror. 

Combined under and upper body.
The side skirt part didn't fit perfectly, so I used super glue to forcibly fix it in place. 

Attaching the side mirrors completes the assembly. 

Finally, I completed the all work by attaching the front and rear emblems.
I used a Metal Decal(MSM creation) for the Ford emblem on the nose, and an etched GT logo on the rear. 

It's finished. 

Thanks for watching.