Mercedes-Benz 300SL (Tamiya 1/24), "Fat Boy" restomod

[PauliusLiekis]

I asked Santa for Mercedes-Benz 300SL last Christmas and my wish came true! It came as Tamiya kit and I love it. The level of detail and production quality is amazing. I have recently
tried Revell (level 3), Fujimi and Tamiya, and I would rate them in the same order. Would you say that it's a standard that Tamiya kits are better in general or does that vary a lot kit by kit? Does Revell get much better if you get level 5? Do other brands have levels as well?



The plan is to make heavy modifications and turn it into "Fat Boy": modern wheels, chopped off roof, shorter windshield, spoilers, etc, something like this:

[PauliusLiekis]

Regarding quality of the kit: just look at this frame, how can you not love it

[Mr Bowcat]

Nice.

[Andy T]

Restomod is definitely my kind of thing and a route I fancy going down, so I'll be watching closely!

My experience is limited compared to many here but as a rule Tamiya make very nice kits. They have the odd pup but generally the fit & engineering is top drawer, although they can sometimes be a bit light on detail.

I read that the Revell level system is just based on the number of parts in the kit, so not really an indication of anything else. Maybe someone else can confirm (or deny) that.

[PauliusLiekis]

This is the most heavily modified project that I have tried. It needs custom wheels, new arcs, a chopped off roof, a lower windshield, a whole custom area behind the seats, a back spoiler and a front lip.

As usual I got a cheap model (something like 5$ ) and then model new parts on top of it. They are usually accurate enough. What's is not accurate can be addressed with some putty

[PauliusLiekis]

The first problem was printing the wheels in a way that doesn't produce too many printing artifacts. The level of detail is at the edge of what my printer can produce. I have Bamboo P1S - it's a great printer, but from what I've seen it would be easier if I had SLA/DLP printer. Anyway, 7 iterations later I managed to produce something that doesn't have too many printing artifacts. Basically, just subdividing the model in a way that doesn't require supports and then playing with printing settings a bit.


^^^ this is the final result before any polishing. The wheel is made from 5 parts - as I'm to printing without supports. I would have to have 3 parts anyway, as it has to be 3 colors anyway.

[PauliusLiekis]

Made some extra parts to install the axis straight, although I feel it's not strong enough and I would try to glue/print it differently next time.

[Andy T]

I'm envious of your ability to model & print your own wheels (and other parts). I'm having to order them in and hope for the best!

[Tim Marlow]

Great start on what is usually described as a peach of a kit….be great to see this develop.

[PauliusLiekis]

I'm envious of your ability to model & print your own wheels (and other parts). I'm having to order them in and hope for the best!

yeah, I experienced the same when buying custom tyres for my Cobra. Printing them was way easier for sure. Even the size of decals was off (I bought 1/24, but it felt more like 1/18 or for truck tyres).

As far as the modeling goes I'm not doing anything complex. I know just the basics of modelling. But I guess buying a printer and learning it is not a cheap/quick investment...

Ironically, there is a kit for purchase for this "FatBoy" modification, exactly for this Tamiya set and I'm pretty certain it has better quality than my print

although it's for closed roofs si I'm happy to make something more custom...

[PauliusLiekis]

Some progress on the body:

The original body:


New 3D printed arcs attached, doors glued-in and chopped-off roof:


Holes near the arcs are closed up with clay putty and regular putty. I also managed to break the windshield supports while trying to make it shorter :/ Thus, I had to do extra work fixing them and making them stronger with clay putty. I also had to make them thicker than I originally planned, but that's ok.
Also there is the custom spoiler


Fixed the windshield, covered it with based color just to find all irregularities and made a second round with putty. I hope nothing major will show up after one more base cover:

[PauliusLiekis]

Before final assembly:

[PauliusLiekis]

The final photoshoot:
The photos could be better. I need a better camera. And more patience

[PauliusLiekis]

Fun story: during the final photoshoot the background board was blown by a windgust and if fell straight on the car. The damage was severe: broken of wheels, shatered rear compartment, broken windshield frame, and buch of small parts fell off. On a positive note: I learned that I like the look of glass without a frame - I go for this sort of mod next time

BTW.: I think I made tires like a bit too thin. The car would look better with a bit fatter tires. I had considered redoing the wheels, but the crash solidified the idea that I won't redo them


Anyway, I guess stupid mistakes happen to everyone

[HAWKERHUNTER]

What a shame you ended up breaking the model after so much work went into it. At least you got some photos before the malfunction. Brilliant finish well done.