Airfix 1/32 Triumph Herald - Trying Something different

[Stuart]

If I had that kit, I'd probably make it a little hot rod out of it.

Following this one...

Pro Street! Go for it!! I haven't seen a whole lotta hot rod stuff in 1/32nd scale though.

Will be watching this one Stuart.

lol - Nice idea but I'll probably keep it simple as it's my first auto build - I want to get my head around the process of building one first. That's not to say I don't want to mod it slightly, I do, but nothing major.

Anyway - IT's HERE!!!!!!





The mojo's realy up for this one. I've got to dail into a meeting now but I've taken a load of sprue shots and wil post them up later. Really looking forward to it.

Cheers!

Stuart

[KSaarni]

- Kari

[Stuart]

I did not know that Triumph made such cars. My dad always had roadsters when I was a little kid: Triumphs, MGs, Fiats... and a few biker friends of mine had Triumph bikes... I just never associated them with an everyday car like this one...

Yeah they did make some normal saloon cars as well - they were actually very popular.

From the text on the instruction sheet.

''The Triumph Herald, introduced in 1959, was looked upon as being quite a radical design in motor cars. Its tilt forward bonnet (hood) and unusual styling, plus all-round independent suspension were a breakaway from the traditional design theories of the era. Engine maintenance and servicing were easy tasks, with all parts and components easily accessible. The turning circle was unusually small at 25ft (better than a London cab). This made parking and manoeuvring much easier then its competitors.

The original engine was a four cylinder, single carburettor 984cc unit, which was later enlarged to 1147cc (woohoo!) with twin carburettors for certain models. Other body styles available through the production years were the Coupe, Convertible and Estate car

Max Speed: 70mph
Brakes: Drums front and rear
0-60mph in 30.4 seconds
mpg: 45 average.''

What a Machine!

[Stuart]

Ok all so here's what's in the kit, first moulded by Airifx in 1967 (so right up my street).

(original boxing)


There aren't many parts, but what you get does look pretty good (I wonder if they've cleaned up the mould tools) and should be a good little starter project...





Clear parts look ok (might need some suggestions on how to improve them)...



Decals - what there is of them...



old style instructions...



Some detail shots - not too bad, but hopefully I can add some more...



(plastic wheels)...



Overall not too bad considering it's age - I wonder what the fit will be like It builds into a good sized model.



I'm really looking forward to this one. Some additions I want to do are add seatbelts and some other bits to the interior, and attempt some cable and pipe work under the bonnet (sorry, no hoods here, this is a british car ), and maybe some basic brake pipes...

Joe you're a bad influence!

Some issues I will have...

Tthe main one I think will be painting and getting a gloss on the exterior. I have a basic single action exterior mix AB and I think I'm going to learn how to use it... I guess at a push I could use a rattle can. I guess I'm going to have to get better at exterior prep too.

Other issues:

If I do nothing else - I need to do something with these plastic headlights, I hate them! - any suggestions?





And how the hell do I highlight these? (or actualy what would you suggest for all of the exterior crome work?), it's got to be done as they'll look really good I think.





I'm also thinking of putting it on a base.

I have to say I'm really looking forward to this project, and unless it goes really badly, I suspect it'll be the first of many Auto builds from me.

Regards (and thanks for reading this far!!!)

Stuart

[Stuart]

Will be watching this one Stuart.

I hope so - I'll be needing some advice!

[speedgraflex]

Headlight ideas:

Use a silver decal that fits inside the current kit plastic. Check slot car decal sheets. Jens Scale Racing in Germany may be a resource. The owner is very helpful.

Drill out the headlight area and heat smash a bit of clear to give a bit of curvature — I don’t think the headlights are flat, are they? Add silver behind the clear to create your final effect. Hmm. Me likey this idea and Lord Google Tube hath provided this:



Edit: I don’t think you will have to drill out the headlight. Just melt round circles of clear and trim two to fit. That’s exactly what I would do unless experten auto modelers know a simpler solution.

Of course Mustang Joe is the master and I would defer to his ideas.

Raised lettering ideas:

Go for the Molotow Chrome paint pen or use your fave shiny silver on a thin brush. However I would do an area mask and black base before you silver, then to fly in the face of convention, I would allow that to cure then mask the letters with small pieces of tape before the color coats... but I am a total nutter when it comes to conventions.

Of course Mustang Joe is both incredibly competent and sane, so I defer to him here as well.

[Stuart]

Headlight ideas:

Use a silver decal that fits inside the current kit plastic. Check slot car decal sheets. Jens Scale Racing in Germany may be a resource. The owner is very helpful.

Drill out the headlight area and heat smash a bit of clear to give a bit of curvature — I don’t think the headlights are flat, are they? Add silver behind the clear to create your final effect. Hmm. Me likey this idea and Lord Google Tube hath provided this:

Edit: I don’t think you will have to drill out the headlight. Just melt round circles of clear and trim two to fit. That’s exactly what I would do unless experten auto modelers know a simpler solution.

Of course Mustang Joe is the master and I would defer to his ideas.

Raised lettering ideas:

Go for the Molotow Chrome paint pen or use your fave shiny silver on a thin brush. However I would do an area mask and black base before you silver, then to fly in the face of convention, I would allow that to cure then mask the letters with small pieces of tape before the color coats... but I am a total nutter when it comes to conventions.

Of course Mustang Joe is both incredibly competent and sane, so I defer to him here as well.

Interesting ideas Bruce and I shall watch the video in a mo - I was thinking of AM lenses but you're right in that I could smash mould some clear plastic right over the headlights as it to make some clear parts, and then maybe hollow it out some and back with tin foil to give it some depth.

As for the writing - it's tiny so I don't think painting would be do-able... Maybe the crome pen would work though.

[KSaarni]

Bruce, that lens video was really great, belonging to the series:
"when-you-see-someone-coming-up-with-these-brilliant-ideas-and-you-think-why-haven't-I-thought-about-that" - video clip!

As a matter of fact, I was so impressed, so I tested the "concept" immediately... and here are the results:


*) apologies of the dirty candle




Stuart, highly recommended, though the staples I used was sort "too tight" attached to each other, therefore pretty subtle result... but still, concept tested and it works!

- Kari

[speedgraflex]

BRAVO, KARI!—I am so excited you tested and photographed your steps because (1) Stuart, that's it! and (2) Good GRAVY, Kari, I am SO inspired I am using CAPs right now (and I never use caps). Thank you so much!!!!!!

[BlackSheep214]

Bruce, where in the world did you find these interesting photos? Every single one of them is more interesting than the next.