1/24 Tamiya Jagermeister Alfa Romeo 155 DTM car

[barryf1fan]

Now the GSR BMW is done and on the shelf... let the wife pick the next one.
Gave her the options of one of the 3 Tamiya Alfa DTM cars I have, and she picked the Jager Alfa.

Pretty happy she did - going from the Fujimi GSR BMW Z4 with over 200 decals to the Alfa with, like, 12.

Few shots of the box and sprue:














I've ordered the PE and window mask set from Hiroboy (had to make my own window masks again for the BMW ) and this will be the first kit that I will use aftermarket PE/resin bits on, so we'll see how that goes. I've seen the great job that guys on here have done using it for the first time and have been itching to do one.

Anyway, thanks for looking in (and yes Gary, I have already looked at your beautiful Jager Alfa as my inspiration!! I may be PM'ing you over the course of this endeavor).

[Gary30]

I’ve got the Works (the red one!) one in my stash as well, one of my favourite cars ever, looking forward to this

[barryf1fan]

. . . . looking forward to this

I'll try and do you proud. Ever since I saw yours last year, I think, I have wanted to start one of them.
I've made a start on cleaning up some seams and getting a few bits glued together, but I need to wait on the PE set before I really get going. I'm not really sure what all is in the set I ordered - it didn't have a list, just a couple of pics of the contents. Thanks for looking in, man!

[barryf1fan]

Well, got the PE kit for this bad boy whilst I was finishing up the Goodsmile Merc (waaaay back in November 2020). Then... life happened and the wife got a new job. So, we loaded up the truck and moved near the house of mouse...



Gonna get this thread going again though, now that the Newman/Haas Indycar is done - wanna get this one going.
As I stated earlier, have never utilized PE or resin parts in a model before. Was a bit nervous at first, but figured you learn by doing so made a start today.

Ordered two of these as I have another Alfa to do in the stash.





















Not sure how much I'll get to work on it, but will try and keep posting if'n I manage some more progress.
Thanks for looking in!!

btw, do apologize for no posting on this one in, like, 18 months... shouldn't be that long before the next one.

[digger303]

That resin is very fine quality I can't but imagine this is going to look great.

[Shunter]

Great start, classic kit and look forward to seeing more progress.

[barryf1fan]

Got some time to work on the Alfa today... spent about 5 hours working on it - but man, this is slow going. My wife asked if it was worth it, as a lot of the detail-up stuff you probably won't ever see, but I'll know it's there. I say, so far, it's been worth it and a really good experience. Learning new stuff as I go, and that's never a bad thing.

Worked on the front of the car and a bit of the interior, also made a start on the PE bits for the rear wing... but only got about half of it done.



The roll cage was a real challenge, but pretty chuffed with how it turned out - it fits like a glove (and no, not an OJ glove, er, well maybe just like the OJ glove. LOL!!)



Had to get creative with the tape to keep it in shape...







PE steering column...





Dash switches.



Rear support for top plane of rear wing... and yes, that's a gargantuan glob of CA glue on there. I need to get something other than a toothpick to apply glue in some areas...



Doesn't seem like a lot but it took me awhile.

I also got some Milliput in the mail today to fill in the slots on the body for the wing. The PE supports are much thinner than the stock plastic pieces on the wing, which you cut off. It'll be the first time using Milliput, or any kind of body filler, so want to take my time on this part.

Thanks for looking in and hope to have a chance to work on it some more tomorrow. After that it may be on the shelf for a week or so as my son is coming for a week long visit.

[digger303]

[Bdiddy]

Great job Baz, glad to see you’ve made a come back on this one. The PE set looks great and those dash switches look killer!

[barryf1fan]

Got the rear wing put together and used the Milliput for the first time... made a start on the chassis - but no pics of that.

I prob need to get some molding tools if I'm gonna use this stuff, I ended up using the butt end of a pair of tweezers I have...
Came out okay (I think).









After I finish with the chassis assembly, I need to put some orange on spoons to compare the colors... Hopefully get to that in a couple of weeks.

[Gary30]

Well look who FINALLY showed up!

[barryf1fan]

Well look who FINALLY showed up!

BTW, if you guys have any suggestions or tips, I'm all...



Thanks!!

[Twokidsnosleep]

Cool car
Those dash switches are phenomenal

[DRUMS01]

All the little details are bringing this car to life.

Great job so far!

[Gary30]

BTW, if you guys have any suggestions or tips, I'm all...
Thanks!!

The main issue is that the engine cover doesn't fit properly, and someone more industrious than me might be able to sort it out, but I don't have a solution, just something to look out for.

You're putting mine to shame so far though!

[barryf1fan]

Had a nice visit with my oldest, but was able to jump back in and do a little bit of work on the Alfa.
Got quite a bit done again and "think" I'm ready to start the primer and paint process.

Got the rear of the body finished up with the new rear wing mounts, which are much thinner than the stock mounting standoffs.



And some more fiddly PE and resin parts. Drilling out the wheels for the resin wheel nut was new to me... Along with the air intake vents on the front bumper.









Also, not sure if I have the right cables to "wire up" the car - but gonna try.



Gonna test the two orange paints I have also... may need to do a custom mix, but I have decanted some TS-12 and TS-98 to try. Have a spare BMW Z4 body shell to test on.





Looking at the paint in the bottles each looks a little "off". The TS-12 is a little too light, or pastel, and the TS-98 is a skosh too dark/neon... I want to shoot it on some spoons and the spare body though just to compare to the decals.
Anyway, thanks for looking in - got a bit more done but didn't snap a pic of every little thing. And there are a lot of little things with this PE kit.

[Mpfiend]

Nice progress Barry,
I'm looking forward to see what you come up with for the wiring and the paint.

[barryf1fan]

After the long'ish hiatus, I've been able to recently get back on this one... after I did the Nigel IndyCar for my bud, had some issues with me, but all seems to be back to normal.

Anyway, last time I worked on this I sprayed SGB on most everything and something just wasn't right - the paint was all flaky and fell off. Had to sand, scratch and re-shoot it all.

Was also able to test the two orange colors I had on some spoons.





On the left is decanted TS-12 orange, the right is TS-98 pure orange... The instructions call for X-6, which is the acylic orange, so the TS-12 is the equivalent. At least as far as I could check.
The TS-12 looked just a little meh orange, but the TS-98 seemed to have too much fluorescent color to it - kinda reminded me of a construction cone orange.

Ended up shooting the TS-12 and pretty pleased with the results...



Will need a sand cycle (as I also screwed up the primer on there and didn't notice), prob do a light dry sand and then a wet sand routine... Will probably shoot another couple of coats before I decal it up.

Here's most the black bits painted in SGB again - after about 2-2 1/2 hour cleanup.



Gonna try and get the decals done over the weekend. (Do, there is no try.)
And then move on to the interior.
Just really enjoyed painting, trimming, masking, and generally just making a mess in my room again.

[barryf1fan]

And yes, a weekend goal is a new filter for the spray booth.

[Gary30]

I'll wait two years for updates, I'm not even mad about it!

Tamiya LP5 is the best SGB I've used, the mr color 92 one is nice too, thinned at least 50/50 with levelling thinner and it goes down smoooooooooth!

Good luck with the decals, the hardest ones were the number boards on the doors as they have to go into the creases of the door panel, plain sailing apart from those

[barryf1fan]

I'll wait two years for updates, I'm not even mad about it!

Nice!!
Literally gave me a 'laugh out loud'.

[barryf1fan]

Got some time to get stuck in... paint job is a little lacking, but I feel okay with it seeing as I haven't painted anything in almost two years.

Putting the decals on is always the best part though - it becomes a race car at this point.







You can see a little orange peel on there, or roughness. Gonna let it slide as I don't think I had thinned the paint enough...And, I had decanted the paint almost 4 1/2 years ago. Any-hoo, gonna let the decals dry for a couple days and shoot some clear on there - whilst gonna go ahead and start on the interior & chassis.

[barryf1fan]

Did a bunch of little stuff on the car today - got down to the belts. The PE kit came with belts and photo-etch stuff, and seeing as I've never attempted them, I thought to myself, 'how hard can it be"??

Turns out, much harder when you don't have the right stuff. I tried all kinds of glue and stuff.... only to watch Pauls tutorial on interior Part 2.... DUH! Double-sided tape.

Ordered and should be here Tuesday'ish. Looking forward to doing "real" belts on this one.
'Til then . . . .

[Gary30]

Loveyl decal work Baz! That slight orange peel will completely dissapear once you get your clear on there and sand/polish

[cor]

Looking good. Yes, clear over the orangepeel, sand, polish. Should be easy.
They always take on a new dimension with the decals and panel lines.

[digger303]

Now if only there were a few Jager bombs to go with it.

[Twokidsnosleep]

Awesome to see you posting again
No issues here from having a big hiatus break from things...lots of projects have that happen for various reasons

[barryf1fan]

Looking good. Yes, clear over the orangepeel, sand, polish. Should be easy.
They always take on a new dimension with the decals and panel lines.

Shot it with some Alclad Aqua Gloss - looks pretty good, but I think will need another round of clear...

Loveyl decal work Baz! That slight orange peel will completely dissapear once you get your clear on there and sand/polish

Thank you, sir!! I've never been one to sand and polish - I've always used rattle can Tamiya clear until just the last few models I've done... old habits are hard to break. I did, however, order some Zero Paints 2K Clear from Spot Model a couple months ago and just need to grow, ahem. 'coconuts' to actually use it...

Now if only there were a few Jager bombs to go with it.

Oh my... I have a (really bad) memory of a night about 26 years ago that went horribly wrong involving aforementioned libation...

Awesome to see you posting again
No issues here from having a big hiatus break from things...lots of projects have that happen for various reasons

Thanks man!! I've lurked here and there but just wasn't "in the game" and didn't post much at all. I've missed working on stuff and need to get back in a routine of just doing, not worrying about "life" stuff.
And yes, nice to be back...

[barryf1fan]

Tried my hand at doing actual seat belts, or race belts, and after watching Paul's interior tutorial on belts about 72 and a half times... Finally did it, aaaaaaannnnddd turned out, meh. I know, I know, we're our own worst critics, but just had trial after trial (can't tell how many pieces end up shot out of the tweezers and in the carpet black hole...) but feel like I learned a lot and realized a couple of things that will be done differently next time... but here it is (waiting on the race belt brands to finish, and paint the lap latch...)

[Kevthemodeller]

Late to the party but I'm here now

[cor]

they look all right. wont see much of them once the body is on anyway

[barryf1fan]

they look all right. wont see much of them once the body is on anyway

That's kinda what I was thinking as I was looking for one of the tiny PE bits in the carpet (with two pair of glasses and my phone flashlight... ).
The latch has been painted and once the seat belt 'brand' decals get in, and placed, they'll look okay.

Thanks guys!!

[barryf1fan]

Sat down tonight with a nice drink and a thought of just getting a little bit of whatever done... no real rush on anything in particular, and ended up doing quite a bit. First off, got the seat almost done, and then tried to do some interior wiring on the car - and as I've never done it before, and it shows, was just trying to "do it" and see what it looked like.

Realized that I really don't have the right kind of wiring (thickness wise), as mine is either too thin, like ignition wire - or too think like stuff for hoses. Now, having done it, I definitely was looking at it and thinking about how it will be done differently next time. Anyway, here's a couple shots of it, and on a side note: did that trick of using the MLT as Paul suggested on his instructional video on belts, and man, he wasn't kidding about just touching it one time. I was very conscious of just a touch with the brush and 'let it be', but dang, one of the SABELT decals completely faded into the fabric (well, ribbon). Lesson learned, be cautious with how much of the MLT you have on the brush.

[digger303]

[Kevthemodeller]

[cor]

Looks good. I make an effort to look for and collect a heap of wires and threads of different thicknesses that I use for that sort of thing. Once again, will be invisible with the body on,

[Twokidsnosleep]

She is coming together
Super interior wiring and details
I like the decal stage too and those look great

[barryf1fan]

Thanks guys, for posting and keeping me motivated... Have finally kicked this one over the finish line.
Lots of little mistakes, again (seems to be a theme )

Will say that I have got to learn how to do clear coating properly. Went to mask a part of the car, thinking that the clear was 'all good' and pulled a decal right off with the tape - ripping it in half.

After spending two nights fixing that ignoramus move, and "hand" painting the 'window rubbers', was finally able to complete it.





On to a Subaru WRC for a buddy (and then a dual McLaren MP4/6 F1 build )

[digger303]

Wonderful save I can't spot the fix at all.
Great looking car.

[DRUMS01]

I have this car in a different sponsor, but I really like your build.

[Kevthemodeller]

Very nice