*FINISHED* McClaren F1 GTR Long tail LeMans "Gulf" livery

[mrversatile]

Here is my next victim: The McClaren F1 GTR Long Tail LeMans race car in "Gulf" livery. This is the Fujimi kit. Basically "curbside," but I liked the livery colors and decals, plus I had an open space on my "race car" shelf, so here we are. I already have the "Gravity Colors" paint and it should be a challenge. It consists of "Gulf" blue with a pearl midcoat over a dark Steel gray on the lower sides and rear. I plan to paint the "Gulf" faded orange stripe on the sides instead of using the included kit decals. The biggest challenge is the two toned paint with no demarcation line and very little room for error with such a thin orange pinstripe decal separating the upper and lower colors.

[Leon]

I'll be following along Gil! I love these types of race cars.

[joelsmith]

You sure don't pick anything easy! I would use a burnishing tool on the tape edges to prevent bleed thru. I'll be keeping a close eye on this build.

[dupes]

Oooooh...nifty! Following along for painting tips on this one for sure.

[mrversatile]

Cleaned up all the flash on the body, filled a couple of depressions, sanded the sheen off the plastic, added some extraneous parts,primed with Tamiya fine primer, and then shot the Gravity Colors "Gulf Blue." I then followed that up with a couple of coats of clear pearl. This is where I am at.

[Leon]

WOW...That looks great Gil!

[joelsmith]

Looking real nice Gil!

[dupes]

Tamiya fine primer - rattlecan? Or do you decant?

[mrversatile]

Thanks, and I just use it out of the can, Dupes. This stuff is amazing. The fine primer rarely has to be sanded, it is THAT smooth.

[dupes]

Cool. I hate decanting!

[mrversatile]

Got this one painted and ready for clear coat. Actually four different paints if you count the pearl mid coat. The orange "swoosh" on the sides was a challenge as was the masking for the separation between the Blue and Carbon Fiber colors. Hopefully when the orange pinstripe decal is applied it covers the line perfectly.

[Leon]

WOW....Great work on the painting Gil!

[mrversatile]

I applied the clear coat, polished, and then added the decals. They went on beautifully, even over some precarious curves. Got the wheels and tires almost done, just some detail painting and flat coating to finish them.

[Leon]

WOW....That is sharp looking Gil and nice work on the decals!

[deafpanzer]

Beautiful colors!

[wing_nut]

DUDE! That's smokin hot. Reminds me of what may be my all time fave car, Ford GT, in any color but hot in the Gulf scheme.

[wing_nut]

On that subject...Can you point me in the right direction of the Best Ford GT kit?

[joelsmith]

In my opinion the Fujimi GT 40s are the best overall. their only problem is that they are curbside kits. Historic Racing Miniatures has a engine/transaxle/suspension conversion available that fixes a lit of the deficiencies of the Fujimi kit. A good forum to visit for extra info is race-car-models.proboards.com, there are a lot of articles that will help you. HTH, Joel.

[mrversatile]

Joel, I think you are referring to this: It is the Fujimi Gt-40 with the HRM engine.








If Wingnut is referring to a mid 2000's Ford GT then I think AMT may have made the only kit and I think it may be a snap kit.

[joelsmith]

Very nicely done sir! You illustrated my statements perfectly, Thank You!

[jpc1968]

Speachless

[mrversatile]

Almost done with this one. I just finished the interior. Originally I wasn't going to go nuts with this since both doors will remain shut, but alas, I succumbed to the detail gods after some research pics and decided to line the interior basin with spare carbon fiber decals. I made templates out of masking tape for all pieces before applying them. I also had to use the included photoetched buckles for the 6 point harness. Fortunately, I have a diagram from a "Detail Master" set since the model instructions never mentions these. Also the body is pretty much complete with all glass, lights, etc. Additionally, I added carbon fiber to a rear engine grate, as per photos.

[Leon]

WOW....Excellent work Gil!

[mrversatile]

Finished this one and I am really impressed with the final result. Love the colors and although a curbside kit, it finishes into a nice rendition of the "Davidoff" Mclaren F1 GTR Longtail.

[Leon]

Great finish Gil! I really like it.

[sabre]

Superb finish on it Gil, love that blue grey... what was it Gulf Blue very nice. What's those Gravity paints like Gil, do you need multiple coats to get coverage.

[mrversatile]

Thanks and Sabre, the gravity paints are beautiful to spray. The Gulf blue was over sprayed with a pearl mid-coat like the real car. The more difficult color to match was the dark gray/brown color on the sides. I ended up choosing Gravity Colors "carbon fiber" color and it matched perfectly. Because these are lacquer paints, light pressure is needed and a few light coats are needed to build the color.

[wing_nut]

SCHA

[wing_nut]

WING

[moramarth]

I just love what you've done with this kit.  I knocked out the Airfix Porsche 917 when it first appeared in the early '70s but I used the Humbrol Sky Blue and Orange (all I could lay my hands on!) - I wonder if the colours have changed over the years.  I suppose the new shades would be appropriate to the Airfix Gulf Aston Martin DBR9 that came out a few years ago.

In my youth I was a big McLaren fan; I have signed monochrome photos of Bruce and Denny's M8Bs.  Unfortunately the only kit I have (somewhere in the deep stash) is the Airfix rebox of the MPC 1:20th M8D - the car that killed Bruce!  It was already a bit of an antique when I bought it and I stowed it until my skills could do it justice, but they've actually declined since then to the point I'm now a non-building kit hoarder...  The other problem was the precise shade of golden yellow/orange; I suspect it's close to "Grabber Orange" but I haven't seen that in a rattle can in the UK either.

Regards,

M