Modeling diary >> Ferrari 156/85

I really wanted to finish up my contract with Model Graphix by featuring a Bosica modelkit. The Ferrari 156/85 was first released in 1987, but it vanished from the market formore than a decade until it was finally re-issued in1998. I could have built it straight outof the box out of respect for Mr. Bosica who is indeed a great master. However, it wouldbe more interesting to feature an article like "A Young Japanese Modeler Takes onBosica!" or "Taking Such Liberties with A 70,000 yen* Kit!" So I apologize in advance to allthe purists who may be offended with what I do!

*Approx. 500 USD

May 1, 1999

It is amazing that this was traded for morethan 150,000 yen among the collectors inJapan before last year.

I would like to review the kit piece by piecebefore I start.

The upper chassis is cast in white metal.There are sanding marks indicating thatMr. Bosica himself had machined eachpiece.

The underbody trays were made with apressed photo-etched brass sheet. It wasalready painted with a special metallic blackpaint that is resistance to chipping.

The lower chassis, the front wings, and theend plates are already soldered into onepiece!

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I assume that the front wings and the endplates are made with nickel silver plate.They were etched with the carbon textureand then pressed into the shape.

The engine, the gearbox, and the rearsuspensions were already assembled.

They were put together with tiny screwsand rivets. Unfortunately, the suspensionparts were not assembled straight. I willtake everything apart and paint them againbefore re-assembling them.

The rear wing was already assembled, too.Its finish is similar to that of the frontwing. I was impressed by how carefully itwas packaged in foam.

The Goodyear logo on tire's side wall wasalready sprayed on. A thread was cut onthe center hub of the wheel so the wheelcan be locked by a hex nut using a tinywrench.

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The leather driver seat feels good to myfinger when I touch it, although the textureis too coarse for a model car in this scale.

The package was heat-sealed and all theparts inside were well organized.

I almost hesitated to break the package...

May 3, 1999

The 156/85 has been a popular modeling subject, featured in many magazine articles. Itook a note while comparing the kit to the pictures of the real 156/85.

I. Complex yet neat

The complex engine compartment will be detailed neatly.The underbody tray will be remade with a nickel silver sheet.The recessed line for the brake inspection panel is too thick, so I willfill it with solder.The texture on the wings will be expressed with carbon fiber decals.The front suspension will be modified according to the scale, but thesteering will be workable.I will paint the seat after peeling the leatherette and drill holes for theharnesses.

II. More accuracy in the overall shape of the car

The line from the nose to the cockpit will be modified.The opening line of the cockpit will be corrected.The side pods will be lower, yet longer on both directions.The engine cover will be longer, too.

III. A tight fit between the elements

The engine cover and the side pods should fit tightly with minimum ofgaps.I have to figure out how they will be fixed to the chassis.

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May 4, 1999

I assembled the Protar's 156/85 so I cangrasp the layout of the engine and thecompartment.

All the parts could be just snapped on. Thiskit was very well engineered in that regard.

May 5, 1999

I bought a set of the 156/85 pictures and the book Ferrari Formula 1 at Mr.Craft. I alsobought Fujiya's tire set.

May 7, 1999

I've been writing the article of the Daytona for Model Graphix, or more accurately, staringat the computer screen for last three days. I finally finished it around noon today and Isent it by e-mail.

Now, I am ready for the 156/85. I talked with Mr. Goto who is a modeler and an authorityon the 156/85.

May 8, 1999

I took a note about what I would do to improve the kit while I compared it with pictures ofthe real one.

I decided to use Make-up's tires after I compared Fujiya's and Make-up's. Since I didn'town the one, I put a wanted ad in my site. Just thirty minutes later, I received a phone callfrom a friend saying that he could sell me four sets. Thanks a million!

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May 9, 1999

Let's start modeling. Are you ready?

I started with the main chassis. Therecessed line for the brake inspection panelwas too thick, so I filled it with solder.

I opened the NACA duct and replaced theedge with a 0.1-mm nickel silver plate.

I decided to leave the dividing line for thenose cone. I only scraped it deeper.

I applied the decal to check the area that Ialready fixed. I will use the decal fromTameo's Ferrari kits for the finished model.

I cut the top of the cockpit where the bluewindshield would fit.

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Hey, what are you doing?

I use a saw to separate the side of thechassis so I could modify the proportion.

I cut into the chassis diagonally, and I liftedthe rear upward so the line of the cockpitwas almost horizontal to the ground whenit is seen from the side.

I filled the gap with solder and sanded theexcess afterward.

May 10, 1999

There was a gap between the upper andthe lower chassis, so I filled the gap with a1-mm brass rod.

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I was not satisfied with the placement,specifically the balance, of the front tireand the side pods.

I cut the underbody tray with 0.3-mmnickel silver sheet, and I set the side podscloser to the front tires.

I fixed the chassis and the underbody traywith a screw. I extended the front edge ofthe side pods forward by 3mm.

May 11, 1999

The part on the left in the picture isoriginal, and the one on the right has beenmodified, as I made it a little lower.

I hope the model now is closer to the realthing...

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May 12, 1999

In order to determine the proportion, I hadto adjust and set the location of the engineand the transmission.

I disassembled and stripped all the paintoff the engine and the transmission.

Although Mr. Bosica assembled eachengine and transmission, the parts werenot assembled to the standard I would like.I sanded and fitted the parts together.

I checked the relationship between theparts.

When compared with the real thing, theturbochargers are located too far back.Also, the ducts for the turbochargers aretoo narrow, yet too high.

May 13, 1999

Each intercooler is made of three separateparts. The top of the core (marked in redin the picture) had to be sanded before Ifitted the cover.

It was instructed that the intercoolers arefixed to the underbody tray with a screw,but I feel that it is better to be glued in theend.

I could not use the water radiators in thekit, because I lowered the side pods. Imade the radiator with Tameo's photo-etched sheet and a 1-mm brass sheet.

I set the ducts for the turbochargersforward, and I made it a little wider. Iseparated the part into two so I couldeasily detach the side pods.

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May 16, 1999

The work so far has been driving me nuts.So for a change of the pace I startedworking with the wheels.

I feel so refreshed while I was working withthe wheels...

The instruction said that a ring was to beinserted into the wheel rim, but the ring ismuch bigger than the rim!

I separated the rim into two separateparts, and I sanded inside of the rim toincrease the diameter.

I sanded only on the edge of the rim, sothe ring would fit there.

I sandwiched the tire with the two rims.

To give you the detail of the Make-up tirepart, it is called MP-23 and it is perfect forthe Formula 1 cars in the eighties.

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I worked on the front wheels, too. I willpaint the big rivet black later.

* This original wheel is very fragile! Pleasebe very careful if you would ever want tomodify the wheel like I did.

I set the wheelbase at 64.2 mm. I cut theunderbody tray around the rear tires.

I annealed the rear end of the tray with agas burner, and I curved the part upward.

As you can see in the picture, the sidepods are obviously too short after I set theside pods forward.

May 17, 1999

It is true that you are able to grasp thetruth of the matter in a moment after youhave been working with one object for acouple of weeks. (You don't know what Iam talking about?)

If you have a soldering iron in your hand atthe moment of truth, this is what happens.(Now you know!)

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I used the rotary tool to sand the solder.The round bur in the picture is perfect tocut soft metals because it doesn't clog upwith melted metal.

I increased the volume around the cockpit,and then widened the side of the cockpit.

Fixing the shape of the chassis withsoldering is so convenient because I canwork immediately after soldering. It doesn'tshrink like putty, too. However, the fume ishighly toxic, and the air in the room has tobe circulated all the time. It is also betterto wear an air respirator, too.

May 18, 1999

I applied the decal to check the new noseshape.

Compared with the original kit, as you cansee, it is more square on the shoulder sothere is a clear highlight.

I made a recess and drilled three holes forthe blue windshield.

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May 20, 1999

It took courage to cut the side pod in two.

I've reached the point of no return!

The original is shown on the right in thepicture, and the extended one is on theleft.

I cut the parts into two, and then I fixedthe two with a styrene sheet. I filled thegap with solder on the top first, and thenremoved the sheet and filled the gap on theside.

I ground off the excess solder with therotary tool first, and then with a metal file.

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The upper air vent is a thin brass photo-etched part, so I carefully soldered it to theside pod.

I extended the rear edge with solder. It isthe most difficult part of soldering,because you could melt the metal with thesoldering iron and "condense" the partinstead!

This is the side pod after all the work. Theside pod is extended so its edge is closewith the rear suspension arm.

May 23, 1999

After I finished the modification of the sidepods, I began to work with the front wing.

I wanted to detach the wing from the lowerchassis part, but they were solderedtogether so rigidly that I just couldn'tseparate them.

So I did the unthinkable. I just used mybrute force to bend and separate the two!

I modified the tip of the nose with solder.

I closed the recess for the lower frontsuspension arms with nickel silver rods(pointed by the needle in the picture).

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May 24, 1999

Instead of using the original part, I decidedto use the front wing assembly from theTameo kit.

I cut the gutter on the backside of thefront wing. Then I inserted a 1-mm brasstube (0.8 mm inside) and covered it withsolder.

After I sanded off the excess solder, I cutthe front wing into two and removed thetube. Now, you have the front wings withthe hole which is perfectly straight!

My plan is that the two front wings will befixed with a 0.8-mm nickel silver rod, andthe rod will be fixed to the chassis with the1-mm brass tube.

As you can see picture on the left, my planworked perfectly .

I used a grid paper to locate the frontwing.

I temporarily fixed the front wing withsuper glue. I turn the chassis upside downand I carefully soldered the tube to thechassis.

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After checking whether the tube wasattached rigidly to the chassis, I detachedthe front wing and made the base for thefront wing.

May 25, 1999

The side plates for the front wing weremade with a 0.15-mm nickel silver sheet. Itransfered the shape and the location ofthe rivets from the Bosica part.

I plan to apply the carbon fiber decal later.I wished I could use a 0.1-mm sheet, but itis too thin to be cut by a saw.

I remade the underbody tray with a newdimension.

May 26, 1999

I annealed the rear end of the tray with agas burner, and I curved the part upward. Isoldered two 0.2-mm brass plates on theside, and shaped them with the rotary tool.

Since I use this burr so often, it doesn'tcut it like it used to.

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I sanded the edges to round them off.

I soldered a 0.5-mm nickel silver rod to theedge. It turned out to be better than Iexpected!

I checked the engine and the transmissionto see the visual balance .

I moved the chrome-plated air chamberson the top of the engine forward by 2mm. Iremade the connector between thechambers and the intercoolers with a brasstube instead of the rubber part in the kit.

May 27, 1999

I was asked by Model Graphix to have the progression of my work photographed for thearticle. So I took the model and the tools into the studio in Waseda. I think the pictures forthe cover page will be chosen from this photo session.

I went to Yellow Submarine (the biggest hobby shop in Tokyo) and I purchased thephoto-etched detail parts.

May 28, 1999

There is a radiator cap behind the chassis.I made the plumbing with brass tubes.

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I temporarily fixed the engine cover and thechassis with super glue and checkedwhether all the elements would form aflowing line.

I sprayed the side pods primer andchecked with the rest of the parts.

It is difficult to tell from the picture, butthere was a little gap between the enginecovers and the rest of the parts.

I soldered a 0.5-mm brass rod to the edgeof the cover.

I used a 15W soldering iron so the heatdoes not transmit too quickly.

If you use acid flux, you have to wash thepart immediately after work so it wouldn'trust

May 29, 1999

Today is the last day for my model making class at Fujiya. Of four students, only onecould finish the project. I wanted to follow them up after the class, but I just don't havetime right now, so I gave them my contact information and wished them well.

There is only a month left until the deadline...

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May 30, 1999

I continued with fitting the engine coverand the side pods together more tightly.

The NACA ducts on the engine coverseemed to be placed too far back.

I cut the bottom of the ducts, and I movedthe duct forward by 2 mm.

I replaced the edge of the duct with anickel silver sheet.

May 31, 1999

It's finally come - the slump. As I repeat the same things day in and day out, I fall into afunk.

I usually move away from modeling for a couple of days and am automatically cured, but Idon't have the luxury of doing that, so I have to force myself to do the work.

There is an engine control box behind thecockpit. I combined the photo-etched partwith the brass block.

I had to use a minimum amount of solder. Iprevented the overflowing of solder bymarking the area with a black marker.

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I found that making a perfect box out ofthe brass sheet was a difficult task.

I will think about the wiring later on.

June 1, 1999

I sprayed primer to all the parts I hadfinished. I sanded them with #600sandpaper.

I didn't mind even if the metal surface wasexposed in this process, because it is moreimportant to have a smooth surface. Then Isprayed the second coat of primer.

I glued the bottom of the NACA ducts onthe backside of the engine cover.

June 2, 1999

I couldn't use the suspension arm in the kitbecause they are too thin. I had to remakethem from scratch.

I started with the rear lower suspensionarm. I used Make-up's suspension upgradekit. I inserted a 0.5-mm brass tube to theend of the arm so I could fix the arm withthe transmission box rigidly.

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I pre-assembled the wheels and the hubsusing the original rear upper arms. Iadjusted the lower arms so that the wheelswill be placed correctly.

A friend told me that the 156/85'sunderbody tray sloped higher toward therear.

I adjusted the ride height of the rearwheels to be a little higher (0.7 mm) thanthat of the front wheels.

I pre-assembled the side pods and theengine cover to the underbody tray.

Then, I assembled the engine and thetransmission to see if the engine coverwould fit over the engine.

As expected, the cylindrical oil tank wastoo high. I carefully sanded inside of theengine cover instead.

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June 3, 1999

I remade the front lower suspension armswith the Make-up parts. It is a nickel silverphoto-etched part, and it is very useful toupdate old Formula 1 kits.

I inserted a brass tube (0.7mm/0.5mminside) so it could be detachable.

June 4, 1999

I sanded off the parting line in the middleof the tires. I rotated the tire slowly andsanded it with #240 sandpaper while Idipped the sandpaper in water.

After the tread is smoothed out, I used#400 sandpaper to polish it out.

I assembled the wheels and tire to see howthe lower suspension arms would fit intothe main chassis.

A screw connects the arms and theupright, but I shaved the head of the screwso it would not intrude with the wheel.

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I check the balance between the lowersuspension arms and the rest of theelements. There was no problem.

Now, I have to make the upper suspensionarm, the last major piece I have yet tomake, before I could prime the chassis.

June 5, 1999

The endplate of the front wing is veryclose to the front tire, so it needs a preciselocation of the both parts.

I calculated the distance between the tireand the endplate on a grid.

I pre-assembled the major parts togetherfor the first time. Even though I modifiedthe chassis extensively, I don't see muchdifference between the chassis now andbefore.

I wish I could lower the side pods a littleand make the engine cover more rounded,but I don't have enough time for anyadditional modification. I think that the tireconversion is very successful.

I really want to make the steering of thefront wheels to be workable.

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June 6, 1999

I have to tackle the making of the frontsuspension arms.

The part in the kit is shown on upper rightin the picture. The Tameo part is alsoshown on lower right corner. I twisted anickel silver rod like the one on lower left,but it was not the way to go.

I cut the rod into two pieces and solderedthem together.

I machined the arms to be tapered.

I fitted the arms to see the balancebetween the front suspension and the fronttire.

I still have to tweak and fix the parts, but Ican now locate the arms to the mainchassis.

I filled all the holes on the chassis anddrilled new holes for the suspension parts.

I referred to the picture of the real car tolocate and drill the holes.

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June 7, 1999

I drilled the holes for the rivets and theside rearview mirror.

I polished the chassis with #320sandpaper, and then washed with water. Isprayed primer on the chassis, and dried itin the dishdryer.

While I waited the chassis to be dried, Imade the driver seat. I peeled theleatherette from the seat and drilled theholes for the harness. I modified the shapeby adding the lateral support for theshoulders.

I sanded off the texture on the inside ofthe chassis and smoothed it out.

June 8, 1999

Like the front wing, I modified the rearwing from the Tameo kit. I made theendplates from scratch with a 0.15-mmnickel silver sheet.

There are two main wings and a flap in therear wing assembly, but they are all castinto one piece in the Tameo kit.

It is very difficult to sand and polish it, so Iseparated the flap from the rest.

To be continued..

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June 9, 1999

I adjusted the engine cover and the chassisso that the thickness of the primer wouldnot affect the fit. What a tedious job!

The disk wheel was loosening from its hub,so I made the center hole on the wheelsmaller. I soldered a 2.0-mm brass tubeinside of the hole and sanded it flat.

The rollover bar in the kit was too narrowat the bottom, so I tried to stretch itapart... and broke it.

I had no choice but remade it with a 0.9-mm nickel silver rod, and then soldered itthe triangle pieces from the original part.

June 10, 1999

I sanded the part with various grades ofsandpaper (from #400 to #1500), andthen polished it with a buff.

It is too low!I have to do it all over again...

I failed once more; as they say - threetimes a charm.

I made the flap on the rear wing with abrass sheet. I soldered a little handle onthe side so I can grab the wing duringpainting.

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June 11, 1999

There are little plates on each side of themain chassis.

I soldered a rod to connect them togetherso it will be easy to paint and install itlater.

There are two bulges on the engine cover.When I made a Ferrari F310B last year, Imade similar bulges with a tip of toothpick,but I made the bulges from the polyesterfiller solid.

I used to struggle in making a part like thisa year ago. I am quite happy to notice theprogress in my skill.

I wish I could spray the undercoat paint ofpink today, but it was too dark outsideafter I added the brass mount point for thefront suspension on the chassis.

Unfortunately, my paint booth is locatedoutside of the house, and I can't workduring night.

The mounting piece for the rear wing is atube. I soldered a 1.2-mm nickel silver rodto the end sheet so I can insert themounted piece later for easy assembly.

However, the endplates deformed from theheat of soldering. I must remake theendplate with a little sturdier brass sheet.

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June 12, 1999

I sprayed the chassis pink in the morning.

I dried it for half a day, and then polishedthe chassis with #1500 sandpaper.

I painted the chassis Ferrari Red andstarted the application of the decal in thesame night. I am moving at the speed oflight tonight!

I already noted this in my diary for theDaytona, but it is important to wipe thedecal solution immediately afterwardbecause it could stain the red paint.

June 13, 1999

I was expecting the application of the decalwould be easy on this Ferrari. Not so!

There are various sponsor logos printed inone strip, but the order of the logos on theright side pod is reversed! I had to cut andseparate the logos in the strip, and thenapplied each one individually.

I finished the application of all the decalson the chassis.

I must note that I used the decals fromvarious Tameo Ferrari kits (the 156/85, the187/88C, and the F92A).

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June 14, 1999

I washed the chassis with a brush in soapwater. Are you fearful that it could damagethe paint and the decal? Actually, decalsthat are applied properly should be tougherthan you think, and I can check whethereach decal can withstand clear coating bythis way.

I will not explain how to clear-coat becauseI didn't do anything unusual.

I remade the endplates with a 0.2-mmnickel silver sheet. There is only 0.05-mmdifference between the old one and thenew one, but it is so much sturdier now.

I primed the whole rear wing assembly, andI applied it a carbon fiber texture decal andthe sponsor logos.

I also applied the decal to the front wing,but soon I ran out of the decal.

By the way, this carbon decal is from aTameo Jordan 197 kit.

June 15, 1999

I had to remake the underbody tray onceagain with a 0.3-mm nickel silver sheet.

This time, I had to make the rear end widerto accommodate the Tameo rear wingassembly.

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Before I rolled the rear end upward, I madesure that it would fit around the exhaustpipes and the turbochargers.

I remade the end piece of the exhaustpipes with a 1.2-mm nickel silver rod.

June 16, 1999

I rolled the end of the underbody tray andsoldered the end sheets.

I checked the part with the rest of the carand adjusted it until I was satisfied.

I made the air inlet duct for theturbochargers with the Tameo part.

I scooped the inside with the rotary tool,and I shaved the edge to be paper-thin. Isoldered a 0.15-mm nickel silver sheet onthe bottom.

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June 17, 1999

I continued with the air inlet duct. I shapedthe part with the files and primed it.

I had to go to Make-up in Aohama to buy some supplies. I encountered the notoriousJapanese rush hour on the train in the afternoon, so I was exhausted when I got home.

June 18, 1999

I separated the mount and the duct so Icould attach the duct at the end.

I wish that I didn't have to spend the lastthree days making such a small part...

June 19, 1999

The side rearview mirrors didn't requireany extensive sanding and polishing. Asusual, I made a mirror surface with a nickelsilver sheet and the stays with a brasstube.

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There are numerous fasteners on thechassis. I cut a brass tube, and thensanded, polished, and chrome-plated thepiece individually.

The work really strained my eyes.(Translator's comment: No wonder! I urgeyou to just imagine how tiny each piece isby comparing it with the tip of his finger inthe picture!)

June 20, 1999

I nearly gave up on making the upper frontsuspension arms last week, but I tried itagain today. I soldered a 6-mm brasssquare rod.

However, I couldn't make one I could besatisfied with. I really wanted to make thefront steering workable, so the suspensionarm remains a major headache.

I decided to move on. I made a metal plateon the chassis for the pull rod.

I aligned two 0.8-mm brass rods with alittle gap, and I soldered the two on thespot.

I cut a part of the rods, and as you cansee in the picture (The silver part), I have ametal plate with a long hole.

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I clear-coated the rear wings. I repeatedthe process five times.

I planned to clear-coat the chassistomorrow. However, I have to come upwith a solution for the upper frontsuspension arms quickly.

June 21, 1999

I polished the major parts painted in redwith #1500 sandpaper.

I handled the parts very carefully. Iattached a flat plate to the sandpaper soeach part could be polished evenly.

After polishing, I glued the rivets to thebody with epoxy glue.

I normally make a few spares for such tinyparts, because you will surely lose one ortwo.

After spraying the clear coat, I put theparts on a clean area to be dried.

I am beginning to make progress onpainting too, as I am now able to observethe movement of the spray gun and howthe paint is distributed by its "mist."

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After painting, I went back to making therear suspension parts, but nothing turnedout well. After I experienced a highmoment, I hit rock bottom.

June 22, 1999

I have to move away from the area I havebeen working on. I decided to make aseatbelt.

I modified a Tameo photo-etched part withthe harnesses from Hasagawa's 1/24thrally car kits.

I sprayed the driver seat dark brown first,and then Humbrol Leather (I somehowdissolved the enamel paint by lacquerthinner so it will dry out quicker!). I wasvery impressed with the paint.

I sprayed the belt white first and then blue,and the harnesses black (not silver!). Thebuckle is clear blue. After all the painting isdone, I glue them together with epoxy glueand applied the decals.

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June 23, 1999

I must note that I also made the shift leverand the steering wheel last night.

There is nothing wrong with the steeringwheel in the kit, but my old habit was hardto break, so I rolled a brass rod and madea new one. (Please refer to the diary of theStratos on the process)

I am now able to handle all the parts Ipainted over the last few days, so I pre-assembled the parts and made sure thatthe steering would work.

The instrument panel was already paintedand very well done, so I only made theupper part thicker with a styrene sheet(the white part in the picture).

I have been failing to make the rear uppersuspension parts over last a few days.Today, I came up with a solution ofsoldering a 0.3-mm brass rod to the Make-up's suspension photo-etched parts.

Finally, I was able to make the suspensionparts with appropriate thickness.

I only sanded the edges off the front of thearms and left the rest of arms with shapeedges.

The toe link was made with a 0.5-mmbrass rod. It was soldered with the uppersuspension arm. The rear upright and linkin the kits were used after the tip (shapedlike a magnifying lens) was cut off so theycould be inserted into a tube.

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June 24, 1999

Finally it is completed! I must note that thedrive shaft was made with a 0.7-mm brassrod, and the pull-rod was made with 0.45-mm brass rod. I drilled a hole to the gutteron the photo-etched part which is thesupport for the shock absorber, andinserted the pull-rod. I cut the part longerthan necessary, and slowly adjusted thelength of the part after many tries.

The rear brake caliper in the kit seems tobe too big, so I used the Tameo parts.

Since I made the rear suspension armswider than before, the body had to besanded to have a proper clearance.

It is very tricky to sand the part which isalready painted. I used a Velove's #6 file,but I was very careful not to move the fileback and forth. It should be moved in onedirection.

The underbody tray and the chassis werepre-assembled now so I could take aprecise measurement of the tray. I couldn'tcut the panel until now because I couldn'testimate how thickness of the paint wouldaffect the overall dimension.

I must make the upper front suspensionarms NOW!

The upper arm and the upright wereconnected with a 0.5-mm pin underneaththe arm and the another pin which replaceda screw hole after the little bulge on thetop was sanded off. The steering would beworkable this way.

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June 25, 1999

I continued with the front suspension arms, but I made no progress today.

I used to commission a letter transfer to an art store, but it suddenly stopped the service.I cannot find any other art store, so I begged the editor at Art Box to find a new store (helocated one in Minami-Aoyama) and deliver the letter transfer to my home.

Now, I got the Goodyear logo. Before I applied it to the tires, I have to fix a problem withthe tires, because the tread on the rear tire doesn't make contact fully with the road.

The reason for this is that the rim inside isa little bigger than the one outside. (Theone of the right in the picture)

I decided to modify the tire this time, as Ishave the inside of the tire with the rotarytool. (The one of the left).

June 26, 1999

After polishing the parts, I sprayed the finalcoat of semi-gloss clear. I have a badfeeling about it, but the pattern of thecarbon fiber decal is barely visible now.

It just looks like it was just painted in black.This is something you learn withexperiences.

The cockpit in the early 156/85 issupposed to be in yellowish beige, but Ididn't want to paint it in such a brightcolor especially when the exterior color isbright red. I painted it dark gray instead .

I had a plan to apply the kevler texturedecal inside, but I didn't think that it wasnecessary.

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I pre-assembled the parts for the last time.I was expecting to work on fitting eachpart, but it went very smoothly. Can youbelieve these covers are detachable whenyou look at the picture?

June 27, 1999

The fuel cap was pre-assembled to thechassis. The chrome-plated surface wastoo shiny, so I will spray it clear silver totone it down later.

I made the fine details on the fuel cap withvarious tubes. The clear hose was madewith a fishing line.

I made this wiring to install in the finalassembly, but I couldn't do it before thedeadline.

I shaved the head of a pin (#0) to theminimum so it could barely catch thewindshield.

I annealed the head of the pin and glued itto the chassis. This was the part thatturned out to be easier that I expected.

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At 10 in the evening, I finished the chassis.

I only have three more days to thedeadline.

I glued the "Magneti-Marelli" engine controlunit to the chassis. I was relieved to findout that the engine cover would stay inplace except when it was upside down.

I finally made the upper front suspensionarms (The ones in gray)! As you can see,there is a considerable difference.

June 28, 1999

I made a railing for the side pod on theunderbody tray by twisting a 0.8-mmnickel silver rod to S-shape, and thensoldered it to the tray.

After soldering, I pre-assembled the sidepods and the tray. I had to sand the insideof the side pod a little.

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I used a 0.8-mm soldering line for thewater hose between the engine and theradiator.

I painted the engine head mat dark red.After the paint had dried, I rubbed thehead with a wet Q-tip soaked in paintthinner to expose the details in the baremetal.

I painted the transmission case dark brownfirst, and then sprayed it a thin coat ofChampagne Gold.

I made the ignition cords with DetailMaster's white cord. After measuring thedimension, I cut each cord a little longerthan necessary, and I painted the tip of thecords in different colors so I could identifythem.

I installed the ignition cord in front of thetransmission case, as well as the dampersand the anti-sway bars.

It is important to pre-assemble the cordand the oil reserve tank on thetransmission case. Otherwise you mightcry. (I did)

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The ignition coil cap was made with 0.5-mm and 0.7-mm brass tubes. I spent aconsiderable amount of time in alwaysthinking how the wires would look whennaturally laid out.

It is a tight fit after I installed the ignitioncords so I had to shave the inside of theengine cover a little.

I located the ducts for the turbochargersand the intercoolers. I am not sure how theradiators and surrounding area will befinished. I might have to just glue the itemsdirectly to the tray.

I painted the underbody tray matt blackand scribed the location. After I set thelocation for the items, I stripped all of thepaint on the tray with thinner.

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June 29, 1999

I made the template for the heat resistantshield for the underbody tray. The shielditself was made with the paper found in acigarette pack.

I painted the flap on the rear wing mattblack green.

The rear wing is now ready to beassembled. I used 5-minute epoxy glue forthe assembly. It is important to considerhow the summer temperature will affectthe epoxy glue's ability to harden quickly,so you should assemble one piece at atime. Otherwise you will fail as I did.

June 30, 1999

It is incredible to think that I am polishingthe underbody tray the day before thedeadline and recording by taking a pictureof the process, but that's the reality!

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After I surfaced the suspension arms, Ipainted them purple black.

I applied the letter transfer to the tire (Youwould see the negative on the right)

It is almost midnight now...

July 1, 1999

I painted the underbody tray a mixture ofblack and blue gray. I attached the heatshield with spray glue. After I put the trayin the dishwasher so it would dry quickly, Iscrewed the chassis and the enginetogether and I glued the duct for theturbocharger and the intercoolers.

The exhaust pipe was made with the nickelsilver tube. I annealed the tube on a stove.By heating the metal pipe, I've got aninteresting effect of coloration.

I inserted the alloy rivets to the endplatesof the front wings.

After several days of working on such tinydetails, I am experiencing double vision.

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The bases for the front suspensions weremade with the Make-up's photo-etchedpart.

I needed to screw the rear wing to themount, but I couldn't tell which way thescrew would turn because of my eyestrain.

Somehow I was able to screw the rearwing into place. If the model looks like aFormula 1 car, it would be acceptable forthe photo shoot. I selectively glued theitems such as the front wing endplates, thetie-rods, the pull-rods, the side rearviewmirrors, the "silly" plates, the headrest, theradiators and the brake lamp.

It is now less than an hour before I have toleave my home to the studio...

July 25, 1999

I finally got the 156/85 back. I wanted to correct some of its shortcomings which werecaused by the extreme pressure to make the deadline.

I couldn't glue the side rearview mirrorsproperly at the last moment because thehole on the chassis was too small.

I increased the diameter of the hole withthe dentist's reamer so that I was able toglue the mirrors.

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The air chamber on the engine was gluedtemporarily, so I peeled it off.

I put a 0.5-mm styrene plate in betweenthe air chamber and the engine block sothe chamber would look higher.

July 26, 1999

I had to shave inside of the engine coververy carefully so it would not interfere withthe air chamber.

I made the wiring around the ECU with0.5-mm and 0.26-mm soldering lines. Ipainted them semi mat black and gluedthem to the ECU.

These parts are the connectors forplumbing. I made a T-shape connector witha 0.5-mm nickel silver rod and soldered itwith 0.5-mm brass tubes.

I inserted a 0.26-mm soldering line into thetube. Can you guess where this part wouldend up?

July 27, 1999

I installed a hose which connects the camcover and the oil reserve tank. I used thehose which was included in the kit. (This isone exquisite part with fine texture!)

After I installed the hose, I had to adjustthe location of the side pods again.

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July 28, 1999

The injection nozzles on bottom of the airchamber were made with Acsteon's 1/24thscale air valve kit.

I had to install two nozzles to eachcylinder.

Each injection nozzle supposed to have twocords, but I could only glue one each. Iagain used the soldering line and I sprayedthem semi-matt black.

Well, the cords are not visible in thispicture.

The mysterious plumbing I made two daysago was actually installed to the wastegates on both sides of the turbochargers. Imade a heat shield at the bottom of thecamshaft covers.

July 29, 1999

I could not finish the wiring around thecockpit before the deadline.

I have to make the triangle headrest, too.

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July 30, 1999

The steering tie-rod was also temporary.

I now have time to make a proper one withbrass tubes and nickel silver rods.

July 31, 1999

There are three supporting rods for theturbocharger on each side of the engine. Iused the #0 pin to make them.

I set the center rod first with epoxy glue,and then set two other rods with superglue.

I screwed the rear wing to the properposition. It seems to be very simple now,but I was so desperate a month ago that Icouldn't even complete the simplest oftasks!

The brake tail lamp is made with thealuminum ring and the plastic lens. It maynot be authentic, but it is just beautifullymade, so I decided not to remake it. I hadto glue it before installing the rear wing.

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August 1, 1999

I made the headrest with a 0.3-mm nickelsilver plate. I soldered a little handle on thebottom so I can grab the part duringpainting.

I sprayed it a thick coat of primer, and Ipainted it the same leather paint I used forthe seat. The brown Prancing Horse logowas taken from the Tameo's F92A kit.

There is a connector for the rear flaps, butit was not included in the kit. I made it withthe photo-etched part.

Well folks, this is the conclusion of thediary. (It was one long ride!) I could addmore details around the radiators, but I willdo so only if I wish later. Frankly, I am verysatisfied with the model now.

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