Porsche 906
I've got an MRRC slot car reprint of the Airfix static kit of the Porsche 906, and, given the colour of the bodyshell I have, I want to turn out something like this.....
What I want to do is to make the engine layout truer to the original i.e. mid/rear mounted ( as opposed to the inline one on the MRRC chassis shown to the left ). Hence, to the right is a section of Scalextric TVR chassis with a sidewinder motor. Using this, it will then also be possible to punch out the cockpit area of the MRRC chassis, and install a full interior, driver etc - which really is needed because the interior is highly visible through the bubble canopy. Some provisional bits for the interior are to the right of the blue bodyshell - 2 seats, driver, steering wheel. The other white bit there has a windscreen wiper on it, to replace the moulded-on one on the cockpit transparency.
Turny roundy bits - MRRC ackermann steering unit & cut down section of a Scalextric sidewinder chassis, with the axle narrowed as much as possible. The wheels are the original MRRC ones, modified - actually two sets of rear wheels ( the original fronts had a hole drilled through the centre for a screw ). The rear set have had the rims widened, and the front set have been 'reverse engineered' in terms of attachment - the screw now comes in from the inside, so as not to spoil the appearance. The wheels have been painted silver, with black details. The tyres are MRRC.
The driver has been cleaned up, and the original 'fat head' replaced; the new head consists of a Scalextric full face head cut down, plus face from an Airfix military figure, plus a scratch-built visor. The seats come from a Hornby Mustang kit ( or rather two ), and have been considerably cut down to fit. The underside of the rear deck / engine cover has been lined with copper foil to act as a heat sink, as the deck is very close to the top of the motor. Then covered with electrical insulation tape to prevent shorting. Note also the three screw holes to mount the motor pack.
Cockpit - I opened up the cockpit area on the 'flat' MRRC chassis, and then boxed it in. Note new lower body sides / sponsons ( the original ones were part of the shell, but were too flat ). I had to replace the rear deck, in order to give a bit more clearance for the motor pack. Details - note handbrake & gear lever, culled from a cheap diecast, plus a lot of detailing on the dashboard.
Glass - original behind, modded one in front. The original molded-on windscreen wiper has been shaved & polished off, then a scratch-built new wiper blade added. The windscreen has been framed with 1/32" Letraset tape. The original rear-view mirror has been added. I've attempted to represent the vent flaps in the side windows by using clear parcel tape ( template made to cut these ), plus bits of foil for the hinges, then run over with clear varnish to nail the bits down. Finally, there's a screen between the cockpit bit and the engine bit - I used black plastic strip to make the frame, then a bit of clear acetate sheet cut to fit, to make the glass.
The shell modifications in detail from nose to tail .... Front valance has been added, and the join eliminated. Front braking cooling ducts - on the front of the nose, these have been filled, redrilled & reshaped. Bonnet hatch - the radiator air intake has been opened up, and four fix-downs added. Light clusters - sidelights and indicators as supplied ( with a touch of clear orange paint ), but the headlights have been replaced with scratched items ( disc of plastic card countersunk, metal foiled, lenses are chips of polished clear sprue ). Wing mirrors - originals way soo small and flimsy, so replaced with made-up stronger posts, tops from a cheap diecast car ( Saico E-type ), the whole lot drilled through and reinforced with a bit of steel wire, all epoxied together. Extra filler cap - hole drilled for this just behind the nearest mirror. Windscreen wiper mounting stubs & screen washer - on the leading edge of the windscreen aperture in front of the steering wheel. Door catches - drilled out & detailed. Door / window and engine cover panel lines - missing above the waist line, so scribed in, and parts of the side windows framed to facilitate this. Engine cover catches - two per side, scratched up. Air intakes on rear wings - opened up & reprofiled. Rear valance added and the join filled, and wheel arch blanking inside. Finally, in front of the shell are some detail bits - from right to left, light cluster covers ( as supplied, cleaned up ), arms for the windscreen wiper ( scratched ), two filler caps ( scratched ), rear lights ( as supplied, but with orange indicators in the middle added ). Behind these are some of the discarded original bits - lower side panel, skimpy little wing mirrors, headlights.
Chassis painted up and wheels assembled to it. The lower body sides have been painted aluminium. The cockpit interior is dark primer gray, plus black / chrome details, and dark red seats. The two or three dials on the dashboard are Patto's Place decals.
Driver has been painted up with enamels, and glued in place. All the wiring has been completed, and Revell braids added, which fit nicely in to the MRRC steering unit, and to the connectors at the end of the Scalextric wires.
To the left, ride height, and height of driver in cockpit looks good. And you can see just how little clearance there is for the sidewinder motor under the rear deck !
Finished -
The shell has been smoothed and keyed with 1000-grade wet & dry, and thoroughly washed. It has then been painted with two/three diluted coats of the nearest colour I could find to the original plastic's colour - a cobalt blue acrylic from Folk Art. I then locked this with a coat of Klear acrylic floor polish, and then assembled everything. I then decalled it - slot car spare number roundels, numbers are Letraset dry tranfers, sponsor logos from various sources; the Porsche logo comes from a Porsche 911 kit. Then another couple of coats of klear to seal in the decals and provide a full gloss. I used chrome paint for the mirrors, filler caps, details.
