Tamiya Stuart

[rbaer]

I've had this in the stash for a while now, and I thought it would be a good one to take to the beach. I did the majority of the assembly in the trailer, then the last bit like the tow cables and some bolt heads once I got home. There's no etch, no AM unless you count the tow cable itself. I filled and drilled the Tamiya cable ends, thinned the kit headlight guards and front step, added tool straps from masking tape, and used the kit figure, substituting different arms by mistake. The antenna is carbon fiber, just about the last of my supply. I did the paint and weathering in two afternoons, and the only "issue" I had was the yellow stripes: the kit decals were nearly translucent, so after a flat coat, I touched in a little color with Vallejo "deep Yellow" and a brush. Start to finish, I may have 25 hours in this kit, a near record for me, and it was all fun. It's also the second kit in the last twenty years or so that I've stayed on start to finish, and actually finished.

IMG_1343 by Russel Baer, on Flickr
IMG_1342 by Russel Baer, on Flickr
IMG_1340 by Russel Baer, on Flickr

[joelsmith]

Is that the new Stuart Russ? Looking real nice!

[rbaer]

It is, and it's a pleasure to build, and from what I can tell, amazingly accurate. I have ideas for more, using the old Tamiya kit and the Academy kits as well.