Building a Subaru Model Car! 12-14-12 FINISHED!!!

[Dead91silvia]

Ok, so some of you know I am a model car nut as much as I am a full size car nut. Some have said they want to see a DIY on how to build a model car, so here ya go!

Feel free to ask questions if you have any...

This will be a work in progress for sure. So you all know, I have been building models for the last 20+ years. I started when I was about 8, but didnt get good till I was about 13. I used to do hard core competing, but havent for a while. Now it's for fun.

Ok, The tools and paints... Like I said, I was hard core for a while so I use a lot of different things.

This is my tool box. I set this up when we still did big family trips. Works well and if any of you guys get into this, it will hold most all you need. to work on a few cars/airplanes.

This holds my paints, knifes, cutters, brushes, glues, extra plastic (custom stuff), clamps, files, and a few other odds and ends. I'll get more pics later of the tools I use all the time...


My files.... these are used all the time! I actually have 3 different sets, this is the medium set....

[Dead91silvia]

What car are we building?! What do you guys think! A Subaru Legacy yo!

I picked up a few Subies in the last year or so. They are a little hard to get now since we dont have any reliable and or good importers of kits from Japan.

This kit is a Fujimi Subaru Legacy GT-B kit. I know, the box art looks dumb, but you build it how you want, not like the box.
Most people think that Japanese kits are the most bad ass and most detailed kits around. Well, thats crap! Only a few are super nice and thats about 1 in 20. This kit is typical Fujimi. The interior detail is crap, the body is ok, no engine detail (no engine at all), and ok chassis detail.

This car is what is called "curb side". No engine detail at all. Few kits have them at all in Japan. This goes for most of Fujimi, Aoshima, Tamiya, ARII, Hasagawa, and others. Tamiya is know for great detail, even with their simple kits. Hasagawa and Aoshima are about the same with car kits. They do mostly military, but some cars and the detail is ok. Aoshima has fun doing cars with body kits. Case in point, I have a Hippo Sleek BG in the works... ... They sometimes have working suspenchion even though the detail kinda sucks at times. Fujimi can be hit of miss. I have a beautiful Porsche 356 that I have had for years and I'm still scraed to build becaue the detail is so insane! On the other hand, Just about any of their kits from the 80's like the Celica XX, Truenos/Levens, and such suck balls! They look ok when done, but they can be so simple the build is not that fun unless you add parts.

Anyway, lets get to the car! I'm building this to look like my BH I sold about 2 months ago...

Fujimi Subaru Legacy GT-B


The contents....


The body... (I started the kit before I thought of the DIY, so a couple things have been done already... my bad... )

[Dead91silvia]

I already did the bumpers on both the kits I have... So sorry about that...

Bumpers and other body parts...
Ok, this is where you need to figure out what you want car color and what you dont... Some cars you cant attach the bumpers till the car has the interior tub and frame installed, but this car in test fitting is not like that.
I used a "welding" type glue for this (look in 1st post). It melts the body panels together and drys fast.

When glueing, make sure that you have test fitted a few times and you know where it's going. Also, you DO NOT want to get ANY on the outside of the body! It will look like crap and you will have body work to do.

This is the front bumper trimmed and glued...


Rear bumper attached...


What the inside's should look like, nice and flush...


I messed up a little here, but when the car is done, no one will really notice...


Too sunroof, or not to sunroof?! Well my car had duals so this one will also!


They have an outline if you want to cut it out. I use the back side of a X-acto knife to cut it out. Take your time! I cant tell you how many cars I have messed up not taking my time with...


After a few minutes, some filing, and test fitting your glass, you should have something like this...


This is where my anal retentive modeling comes in... I learned from some old dude at a show when I was 14 that "cars dont have seems in the middle of a panel". If you look, you will see one that does not belong at all...


There are many ways to take care of this... This is what I used... These are sanding sticks made just for this. Any good hobby shop should have them and they are not to spendy...


now for adding those other parts... Side skirts, side mirrors... Just like the bumper, test fit a few times then glue.




Now it's time to prep for primer... Yes, I prime my cars about 90% of the time. I use about 1200 grit from cars like this that are just stock, no custom body work done.


Another seem line on the roof...

[Dead91silvia]

Ok! We are ready for PRIMER!

Time to prime!
After you prep out the body with your 1200 grit wet dry paper, give her a nice wash with mild dish soap.
dry it out and make sure the body is as nice as you want it.

My dad made me this paint stand when I was in high school and I have painted maybe 200 cars with it! Works grate! The reason for this is to keep the car elevated for paint. If you have it just sitting flat on cardboard, you will get bounce back and over load the paint on the car and that will make it look like poo... You can even use a spray can to elevate the car as well.




I use Tamiya Gray primer most of the time. Good stuff for sure! Drys fast and lays down nice! Also fills nice.


All primed up now! Time to let her sit for a few days to dry nice and hard...

[Dead91silvia]

PAINT!
Alright, now we are ready for paint... After you have sanded and prepped the body after being primed, give it another wash and a good dry...

I use a newer paint system from Model Master. This is a base/clear system that comes out looking nice!
Using the paint...
I heat the cans up before using so I get a nice flowing stream from the tip. Also, test spray and make sure the can works. And dont forget to make sure you have enough to do the whole car! These little cans are more then enough for a 1/24 scale car.



When spraying, give light coats to start... some what like this... DO NOT GET FULL COVERAGE ON THE FIRST COAT!!!! If you do, it may run and then your screwed... Just light even coats. Make sure you get the nooks and cranny's first and foremost.




This is what she should look like with full coverage. This took about 20 minutes to paint and about 3 full coats...




I also prepped and pained the frame... Like I said, I'm building it my way... I wanted it green...


Oh... I never work on just one car! Ever! This is a Full custom Aoshima Honda Accord Wagon I started about 10 years ago and finally painted...

[Dead91silvia]

And now time for awesome shinny paint!

Clearing
If you use the same system I am, just read the sides of the cans and you can not go wrong... I do it a little different, but thats me. I also paint full size cars, so I use a little of that skill also.... LOL

I did this the next day (about 12 hours later)... Just the way I do things, no real reason...






At this point, the body painting with a can is done! Later we will get into painting the trim, what I hate doing the most cuz I suck at it! HAHA

[Thomistopheles]

For some reason I enjoy threads like this as much as actual car builds. I've seen some on other car forums.

Looks good so far! Subscribed.

[Dead91silvia]

Ok, now we will do some work on the inside...

Interior!
I looked at old pics of my car to see what I wanted to do... Well, this kits sucks balls in this detail since the door panels are not even close to the way they should be, but it's ok. No one will care other then me anyway... haha

Most of the tub is gray and I use a "fabric" spray from Model Masters for this part. I'll get a pic of the can later...

I masked off what I didnt want painted. The least amount of paint you have on a kit, the better. It covers detail when you have too much or painting the other color will sometimes pull up the other color and then you would have some funcky color thing going on... Not cool, I know this all too well...





The parts that are still black plastic will later be painted with a flat black/gray to look like cloth. I never leave parts raw plastic, I think it looks lazy...






This is it for tonight... now to go back to working on the car!

[Dead91silvia]

Making that clear coat shine!

So for some reason, this clear always gets super orange pealy. Drives me nuts! But, it's not much work to get it looking nice! Note, this car has been sitting for about 1-2 months so the paint is nice and hard.



No joke, I use Meguiars rubbing compound. This stuff is a level 9 cut. I do this by hand with blue shop towels.
This is after about 5 minutes. now remember when you do this, it DOES remove paint just like on a real car! So be careful!








After cutting with the compound is done, no joke, I use Turtle wax to make it pop that much more! It also evens out the polish job a bit.

[Dead91silvia]

Detail work!

This is what I hate doing almost more then anything. Mainly because I kinda suck at it.

Doing the window moldings and window backing sucks... I'm almost never happy with my own work. However, if you use the right paint, brushes, and methods, it can turn out nice. Just take your time.

I use flat black on the trim. I can in most cases remove bits that have got on the body to make it look nicer if I mess up. You can also use some detail masking tape if you dont trust yourself or just want to make it easier.

Also, you paint the glass from the INSIDE!




Messing up on the glass can be really bad, but how do you get better, without trying?!






Gluing in the glass is... interesting.. I use "Glass" glue to do it. It's kinda odd stuff. I used Elmers for a long time and I would recommend it if you are just starting. If you mess up with it, you can peal it right off and do it again. If you use super glue or normal model glue, it can mess up the glass and you will never fix it again. I use a lot of this stuff to make sure the glass stays put since I do transport them to shows.


Also, dont forget the detail for the lights! I paint the body and also the light. Makes them look more real. The light will be painted red.


Holy crap! I had to use the instructions! HAHA...
every now and then they have some parts that go only one place. This time I'm making sure I'm using the right hubs in the right place.


This can also be a tricky part on the build. I like my cars to roll when I'm done! So I prep them well and use this Plastic Welding Glue.


Then comes the wheels. If you are doing a Import kit like this Fujimi, they have poli bearings that go in the hub's, or the wheels. Be REALLY careful when you install the wheels! You can brake off the pins and that can suck. I have done it a few times when I was younger.
We now have a rolling frame!

[Dead91silvia]

Finale detail and assembly!

Well, I decided to take an evening tonight and finish up my BH wagon... (12-14-12)... Took about 6+ moonths, but if you know me well enough, just finding the time is a miracle!

Now, there are a couple things that are not 100% done, but most of the time I leave them undone till I'm ready to go to a show. So the wipers and a number of the decals have not been finished, but they will be in May when I take it to the show.

The reason I dont install them now is that for some reason, they will pop off and I'll lose them and then not know where they go. Many of my cars are missing wipers and have flaky decals...

Ready to work on! Not many parts left!


Mounted dash...




Installed the interior tub to the frame.... This is pretty easy, 99% of these kits have alignment pegs, just a dab of glue and your good to go!




Lights! Remember to test fit! In test fitting I found I over panted a little of the silver.


Nothing a little bit of Sharpy cant fix!




Now for the glue... I use "glass" glue. If you mess up, do it again this stuff will not hurt the plastic.


I used a bit of Tamiya masking tape to hold the light down how I wanted it till it could dry...

[Dead91silvia]

And the finished pics...

[Dead91silvia]

For some reason I enjoy threads like this as much as actual car builds. I've seen some on other car forums.

Looks good so far! Subscribed.

Cool! I hope someone gets something from it... I'm still working on the car, but I know if I dont do it now, it will take me for ever later...

[subyj]

WOW! didnt know any one else on here did this. i did the same model your doing.
did it cause i wanted a mini me of my car. and since i work at a body shop i mixed up the same paint as my car.

i would like to buy another one and try to do a better job.

[MonstarMotorsports]

oh how i love model cars/rc cars. i think i put more detail into them than i do my real cars lol.
Lookin good so far!

[Dead91silvia]

I guess I should update this...

I got the car so much farther. Body is finished as well as the frame. Interior is pissing me off, so I took a break from it.

But yeah, I have the body polished out, wheels mounted, and glass installed. Just trying to figure out coloring with the 2nd part of the seats. I told you guys I'm anal... LOL

[Dead91silvia]

Just updated the thread... Look in some of the earlier post's... The car is almost done!

[chuckthefuk]

subscribed! how do u find time to have a full time shop .. build crazy cars.. and spend time making models.. ?

[OlyOriginal]

WOW! didnt know any one else on here did this. i did the same model your doing.
did it cause i wanted a mini me of my car. and since i work at a body shop i mixed up the same paint as my car.

i would like to buy another one and try to do a better job.

Looks great. I would love to have a hood like that on mine.

[Dead91silvia]

Got her all finished for ya guys! Finished pics are a couple posts up...

I still have a few stupid things to finish, but she's close enough...

Still have the wipers, a couple decals, and License plate left to do. I need to fire up Photoshop since I was going to make the plates from my old real BH GT.

Anyway, enjoy! Feel free to ask questions if you have any!

[danieltrusty]

This is sweet! I used to compete in 4H but haven't built in years. Maybe its time to get back into it!

[subyj]

wow looks awesome! i need to find another kit