FINISHED PICS! AMT's old McLaren M16 C/D "Johhny Rutherford"

Modeling Subjects Autos
1

Hi guys,

This is the OLD AMT McLaren M16 C/D of Johnny Rutherford, the charismatic “Lonestar Jr” Texan whose career is matched by few others. He is one of only eight three-time winners of the Indy 500. This is his 1974 winning car.

This is the first model that my Dad ever built for me when I was but a young turd…I remember him fretting over getting that mysterious “McLaren yellow”, and how I watched, fascinated, as it took shape on his desk downstairs in the den. Me, sitting there, silent except for 10,000 questions! LOL!

J.R. was my favorite driver; we would go up to Pocono International SPeedway and see him race in what was then “The Schaeffer 500”, named for a local beer. I can still hear the high speed whine of the cars…“Undercover Angel” playing in the station wagon, waiting in the long lines on the narrow country road that led to the entrance to the track, and the excitment of the first green flag! [:P]

I started this in May! Man, it has been a loooong road! I have lovingly nursed it to this point–LOTS of filler, lots of sanding, etc! SO here, I present what progress shots I have thus far…

“The Man”, and his machine…

The engine/ rear suspension…I decided not to plumb/wire it, cuz it would all be hidden under the cowl anyway…

The whole thing was first painted Model Master acrylic Steel.

…and then painted with various mixes of Tamiya Metallic Grey, Aluminum, Bronze, and Steel again. Washed with Black oils on the bottom parts…

My own mixture of Tamiya Yellow + Orange got me a close match*…*

…and then I had to mask the blue accents. Man, what a PITA!

The car was sealed with Tamiya Clear–this stuff works GREAT!!!

…and the driver and tail…

…and a set of 20+year decals! [:O] I first made certain they wouldn’t self-destruct by coating them with MicroScale Liquid Decal Film…

The decaling session–complete wit a big ol’ mug of Cappachino! I stole a technique from the “Future” boys–I used a swab of Model Master Gloss Clear under each application of each decal, which was them patted down onto the model with a soft water-wetted facial tissue; no Solvaset was used. This sat the decals pretty well!

…and where I am so far! I have to say I’m pretty pleased with the results so far! Got some detail painting to do now, and some more assembly, and I’ll be close to putting a memeory back on the shelf!

Next update as soon as I get something good to show! Comments and questions always welcomed! [:D]

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Looks great so far!!! Excellent job on saving those old decals!

I, myself, am trying to find a kit of the McLaren M3B (Designation M1C in Europe). My friend, former boss, and the man who introduced me to my career drove one in the Can-Am series in the 70’s.

Any Can-Am guys out there, his car was #72, Black with Gold. One of the few completely independent drivers in the series.

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Yup, I agree - that’s a good looking job so far. Almost inspirational enough to get me to fetch one of those kits out of my stash and take a stab at it. But I know the body is a blob that doog has done a tremendous amount of work on.

And speaking of less-than-sharply detailed McLarens, I also have a McLaren M1B Can Am body shell waiting for a lot of work. It is from Resilient Resins, (http://www.resilientresins.com/home.cfm). Just a body shell with two vacuform windshields. I’m hoping to use an AMT/MPC Howmet turbine roadster for a donor. Or maybe the AMT Hardcaslte & McCormick “Coyote”, which was actually a McLaren M6GT, which AMT trashed from the old MPC Ford GT Mk IV kit. There is still donor potential left.

For a 1974 vintage M1C, you’ll need to add wheel bulges, a bigger spoiler, and who knows what else. But I think it’s a more realistic starting point than to hope to find the old AMT kit from 1966. I assume you’re speaking of Jeff Jones? I culdn’t find any photos of his car, although that black and gold #72 sounds familiar - I don’t know why.

Good luck,
Rick

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Thanks for commenting, Steve and RIck, and for the [tup]'s!!! [:D]

I can’t even believe I’m building this kit–it’s so far outside of what I’m used to! I have a new respect for Auto builders however–these old kits require a ton of patience and diligent attention to flaws and error correction.

Vacuuform?! Wow, man! THAT’S a serious challenge!

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Well, here it is! FINISHED! (whew!) This little baby was a MOST difficult build! But, as I said-this is a great memory come-to-life, in many different aspects! Hey Dad–I built this as a tribute to you! Thanks for introducing me to modeling as a young turd!! [:I]

I changed the layout of the engine a bit–it just didn’t look acurate compared to the first picture there I posted–the exhaust was plainly on the wrong side according to the kit direction.

The model here is not polished yet or waxed here, but the finish seems to have really come out well for Tamiya Gloss acrylics!

Here’s the “old” engine configuration:

…and the changed parts–you can see now that the exhaust is on the “right” side.

And the finished kit:

A nice shine!..

“Lonestar J.R.” rides again! [:P]

Well, on to finishing the SuperBee now…then back to my more-familiar medium, Armor, for a while…

Questions and comments always well-appreciated! [:D]

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Gee, this is probably a “tankish” thing to say (but meant to help). I think it would improve alot to add a subtle wash to accentuate the panel lines. You can see here how obvious they are…The image “http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u244/heydoog/Model%20Cars/outfitjohnnyrutherford14S.jpg” cannot be displayed, because it contains errors.

Anyway doog, I can appreciate the effort and frustration required to get it to turn out so well.

!http://server.blinkyou.com/blinkiemaker/gallery/08242008/x2NsWzvNgO.gif

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You know what, Steve/Mike/Wayne (LOL! [swg]) you’re probably right–I’lll bet that would improve the look. I actually washed the suspension and motor, and some inside the intake cowls too.

Hmmm…how to do it without ruining it?..I’m afraid that the wash would get around all those litle bolts there near the cockpit base, and then that would be hell to clean up! You know, actually, I’ve seen guys build this so you could take that cockpit cowling off–I should have done that, but didn’t think of it in time! Then you’d be able to see the demarcation lines.

I’m gonna mull it over…[:-^]

Thanks for commenting, Steve! [:D]

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Build a dam.

!http://th169.photobucket.com/albums/u207/mishi49/Smileys/th_thEmoticon-47.gifA dam “what”, you ask ???

Well, something along these lines maybe.

Depending on the medium you last used (this is all before the last glosscoat and the waxing is done) … to prevent the wash from going where you don’t want it; say it’s acrylic, so use a medium (experiment first) such as modeling clay or “maybe” pla-doh, or a buildup of a liquid masking agent … or something that won’t react to an oil wash. Don’t use blutac or the like with an oil wash or you’ll have a 'ell of a mess.

Use the medium to block the flow and be sure to add the wash in increments being aware of gravity, so as not to overflow the “dam” so to speak. Whatever you use, also make sure it won’t lift or stain the paint. You know the wash drill so this is the idea as to how to work it using a blocking technique.

After the washing is complete then lock it up with a glosscoat and wax away…

!http://www.blinkyou.com/image_bank/avatar/Looney_Tunes_-_Wile_E_Coyote.gifSo, am I making sense here? Always glad to help.

Disastermaster

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Thanks, Steve–makes perfect sense!

I just don’t know if I have the gumption to risk it…[sigh]…!

I’m itching to start that Revell Jagdpanzer Kanone WIP blog, so I might just call this one “finished”. But if I get up the nerve to attempt it, at least I know how now!

Thanks for the hints and tips! (I wouldn’t have thought of that!?)

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You’ve done an excellent job with that kit! Very nice!

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HI Very Nice and a great job. That’s not a easy kit to build.

Mckay[C):-)]

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Why, thank you for the kind compliment, McKay!

I was surprised after posting this on a couple sites that this kit really does have a reputation as a really tricky build–it actually was, to be sure. I’m pleased that I had no major issues in finishing it. [;)]

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I thank it’s one of those kits that you have to take your time and test fit every part so you can adjust it if nessery. Looks great

Mckay[C):-)]

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Got that one right! LOL! This was a real patience-tester!

Thanks again! [:)]

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I am absolutely speaking of Jeff Jones! If you figure out why you know the car or the name, let me know. I became friends with him (and worked for him for a couple of years). Amazing guy, great stories. He has been racing since the early fifties, and is still racing today pushint 70! If you have ever seen the “Quarter Car”, a 33 Ford 5 window (cut down to a 3 window) on the Supermodified Circuit (car # is 1/4), Jeff occasionally drives that car.

He was also involved in the hellish wreck at Road Atlanta in 1984. So severe that only 2 drivers continued in the sport afterwards, Jeff and Don Sak. Lots of bad injuries, but fortunately, no one was killed. If you EVER find pictures of that wreck, let me know. I have only ever seen three, as the track goons went around and took everyones film. At the time, Jef was driving the #13 Monza in the Trans Am series.

Ok, enough rambling…sorry for the sidetrack.

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Nice work! [bow] Truly a legend from Indy.

One question, did you run the MicroScale Liquid Decal Film through the airbrush?

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Yes, I did, Jeff–nasty stuff it was to airbrush, too! It’s reallly thick out of the bottle. I sprayed it with a “thick/heavy” tip, and full-out PSI on the compressor. I didn’t want to take a chance thinning it and ruining its effectiveness.

Thanks for the compliment! [:I] Johhny R. was “the man”! [bow]

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I think I know where that car is setting at right now. If it is, and the next time I’m over there I’ll shoot a dozen or so pictures of it for you.

gary

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Oh that would be AWESOME, Gary!

I would sincerely appreciate that! Some detail of the engine would be really nice! I might even be tempted to build a second super-detailed version! [8-]

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if your ever in Indy, then take the tour of the Indy 500 Museum in Speedway Indiana (about six or seven minutes west of downtown Indianapolis. It’s something to see! And race cars are not the only thing there. They have a huge collection of classic automobiles that go back a hundred years. And downstairs in the basement is double what’s upstairs for the viewing public!

But what I’d like to see is all those ME109 V12’s that are still in the shipping crates (brand new engines at that) that Tony Hulman picked up in Europe right after the war. There was a two car garage stuffed with them.

I’ll go over there one afternoon this fall. But it’s gotta wait till after I head south to the Patton Museum and Wright Patterson again. I need StugIII pics real bad.

gary