TOPIC:

Quick update decided to keep the bodyshell original i am going to back the small areas where the paint has rubbed off with paint i will match up from Tamiya's range hopefully i will find a close match as the areas to be touched up are tiny hopefully it wont be noticeable. I followed your advice JR with the worst part the undertray. I decided to wet and dry the whole thing which sanded 90% of the scratches out apart from one or two that where very deep. I was going to paint it black using polycarbonate paint but thought the gunmetal would suit the original blue shell well and it makes the chassis look nice when fitted. Im surprised it turned out ok and dried great. I have also refitted the velcro panels to the undersides of the shell to attach the undertray. It looks ok now all i need to finish off are to paint the driver and replace the side avante decals Ill have a very tidy runner then that i can use and not worry too much about marking it.

Pics up to now :

Looks great!

That's acutally not a bad colour for that shell

Cheers JR Keep following the thread as ill need to pick your brains for painting the driver

Included inside the kit box along with the missing decals:




At least they where still with the kit and not lost also came with all the spare screws and fixings so i have some spares

Painted the drivers helmet last night and started to apply some of the decals tonight but they just dont want to stick properly. They are peeling at the corners and i tried using a hairdryer to heat them bu tthey keep peeling back up and are starting to crease? might have to go back to the drawing board on this one. May be the glue due to age?? might order some re release decals use the driver decals and sell the remaining 95% on ebay

tamiya wrote:

Painted the drivers helmet last night and started to apply some of the decals tonight but they just dont want to stick properly. They are peeling at the corners and i tried using a hairdryer to heat them bu tthey keep peeling back up and are starting to crease? might have to go back to the drawing board on this one. May be the glue due to age?? might order some re release decals use the driver decals and sell the remaining 95% on ebay

...

Oily contamination from fingers, tools or the paint is a possibility - but the biggest bar to adhesion is the fact your helmet is a curved surface & decals will be reluctant to stick to that - my Williams helmet was a nightmare & ended up being a mix of waterslide transfers, self adhesive vinyl, and paint.


I wouldn't want to guarantee that new decals will do a better job than the original ones - I'd keep trying with pushing the originals back down for a while before you commit to anything. It might be worth trying rubber bands on your helmet to keep the decals down, it can take a while for them to stick properly.