Last night I complete this build. It is a 1973 Nissan Laurel Coupe, from Aoshima.
This build is not my best work. I tried some new products, and experimented with a couple new building thechniques and the closer I got to the finish line the more disappointed I got with the results.
I tried a different chrome trim product from Hasegawa. It is a mirror finish vinyl sticker that is supposed to work like Bare Metal Foil. Cut it to shape, stick it on, burnish it, and then do some final trimming. But I didn’t like it at all.
It is thick so you can clearly see seams where you overlap pieces. And since it is basically a sticker, it doesn’t burnish out like BMF does. If there is a wrinkle in the sticker, it is stuck there. and you can’t press it into seams, so I was stuck applying it and then cutting it where seams were so I could press it inti the seam better. And then it is so bright and shiny it looks fake. I probably won’t use it again.
But I wanted to show the results anyways because there was a few things I liked about the build.
- These Aoshima curbside kits are actually pretty well engineered kits. The parts are well engineered. The fit and finish is great. And they make the parts trees work for several different kits which has an interesting side effect; you can chose different trim or features than the kit is supposed to use.
For example: This Laurel kit comes with the parts to build the grille and headlights 3 different ways. And it comes with two different rear bumper assemblies.
So if I need a break from my more complex builds I can grab one of these and build a pretty decent looking car without much effort.
- I experimented with some lowrider paints, and a crazy color combination that I think turned out pretty good.
The paint is called Bubblegum. I got it from Tropical Glitz, a company that sells custom paint for show cars and lowriders. Their paints are eurethane and they are SUPER hot so I had to do lots of testing to find a primer that the paint doesn’t react with.
So here are the pics.
