Porsche 962 on a 1/8 GT. Finally finished! (Mostly…)

[Dan B.]

I was going to wait until I was finished with this before posting it, but the more time I spend on it the more it‘s starting to look like a build thread for the body!
I got one of the Delta 962 bodies, and like most of the larger bodies it’s not very “scale” in appearance at all. The proportions are not quite right, and the arse is basically nonexistent. This is the body I got from Delta (This is a pic from their site.)

I finally got it fit and trimmed somewhat to my liking. Final finishing, sanding the cuts and wheel arches, etc. isn’t done yet.

This is the shape I’ll be trying to emulate, and the more I get into it the more I realize how much more I have to do to get it even close to actually resembling a 962. Here‘s my motivation—

Obviously, the entire tail doesn’t exist on the Delta shell so I’ll be building that from scratch. The shape of the nose is quite different as well, but I’m going to have to live with a too-tall front fascia. I also will have to live with the “fins” on the Delta body that run along the upper edges of the sides of the body, which the 1:1 Porsche doesn’t have. Those raised edges are going to make it a lot more difficult to mask, tape, and paint because my fat fingers don’t fit up inside that 10mm wide internal gap, which is precisely where i need to mask and tape the color transitions and the red and gold accent stripes between the colors. Going to be a tedious PITA for sure, and I am NOT looking for paint bleeds on this thing, so the taping is going to have to be done well.
I made cardboard templates for the vertical stabilizers on the rear of the tail, and will be cutting them from some 3.0mm Kydex when I get the shape just right. My thought here is that Kydex remains a bit flexible which could help the tail survive in a shunt. The horizontal spoiler blade will be carbon fibre to add rigidity. They’ll be joined by those really nice billet Scorched wing mounting brackets.

I did most of what you see for final fitting and the templates last night, and I’ll add to this thread as I’m able to continue.
I’m really looking forward to the finished product, while simultaneously acknowledging that the final product will almost certainly not be totally satisfactory, but I’ll be trying hard to make it as good as possible. If it ends up actually looking something like a 962 I guess I’ll be happy, even if I have to squint my eyes from 3 feet away to overlook a few flaws.

 

[Xjeepguy]

Nice project! I’m definitely following this build.

 

[LibertyMKiii]

Knowing your attention to details I bet it will turn out fantastic.
Looking forward to seeing it!

 

[Dan B.]

Knowing your attention to details I bet it will turn out fantastic.
Looking forward to seeing it!

Thank you sir, coming from you that’s a compliment!

 

[Dan B.]

Pro-Tip:
Actually, I’m not a pro. But I thought this might be helpful to those who’ve never done it.
When cutting two of the same dimensional parts, one right and one left (like these vertical stabilizers) it’s helpful to join them together before cutting in a sandwich kind of arrangement. In this case, I transferred the mounting holes from the template and drilled them out after clamping both sides together. Then you can bolt them together so they don’t move while cutting.

In this case, I used Kydex that had one smooth side and one textured side, so I flipped them when I screwed them together before drilling so each would be a “negative“ of the other. You can see the difference in textures in the picture. If using carbon fibre, that wouldn’t be necessary as both sides of the stock would have the same texture and could be used for either side.
Then, just cut on the lines and you get two identical pieces.

Here are both sides after cutting to shape. You can now (leaving them screwed together) finish, shape, and sand the edges while keeping both plates identical.

I then dry fit the sandwiched sides on the body and arrived at the angle for the horizontal spoiler blade and drilled for the brackets with both plates still bolted together. The plates have still not been separated at this point. This ensures that everything is absolutely consistent on both plates.
At this point, separate the plates and install the spoiler bracket on the opposite side.
I used a micrometer to measure the horizontal stabilizer bracket holes on the second side while the assembly was centered on the lines of a cutting mat. Definitely the most tedious and precise part of the assembly.

After drilling the second set of bracket holes on the horizontal blade, it’s finally screwed together.

Using this method, you can achieve a really square assembly. The body is now ready for the ass it always needed.
Hopefully I’ll have time to final fit it tomorrow.

 

[Dan B.]

Well, the third time‘s the charm… After much fussing about, the tail is shaped and fit. I need to finish all the edges and it’s time to mask for paint.

 

[Doom!]

Lookin' good!

 

[Diem Turner]

Awesome work my brother! When's the due date? Can't wait to see it finished!

 

[Dan B.]

Awesome work my brother! When's the due date? Can't wait to see it finished!

Thank you, sir! I should get some more time for it today, and it should go fairly quickly at this point. And yo, welcome back brother!

 

[Diem Turner]

Thank you, sir! I should get some more time for it today, and it should go fairly quickly at this point. And yo, welcome back brother!

Tank you mi breddah, good tae be bahck!

 

[Dan B.]

Well, I finished the masking and started shooting the blue. I’m seriously crossing my fingers as to how the edges will come out. There was just simply no room in those upper body ridges to properly burnish the tape. I hope I don’t end up with terrible bleed lines.
I should be able to post some pics either this evening or tomorrow.

 

[LibertyMKiii]

Well, I finished the masking and started shooting the blue. I’m seriously crossing my fingers as to how the edges will come out. There was just simply no room in those upper body ridges to properly burnish the tape. I hope I don’t end up with terrible bleed lines.
I should be able to post some pics either this evening or tomorrow.

It seems like some bleeding always happens unless you go with a liquid mask application.
I hope it turns out good for you. Graphic painting & taping is not one of my strong skills

 

[Dan B.]

It seems like some bleeding always happens unless you go with a liquid mask application.
I hope it turns out good for you. Graphic painting & taping is not one of my strong skills

Yeah, I actually got a pint of Bitty Design liquid mask, but I do not yet have a sprayer. Although it says it can be applied with a brush, I’ve heard so many people say don’t bother with a brush because good results are difficult to achieve.
Hopefully it won’t be too crappy!

 

[Dan B.]

Well, there was some paint bleed but I’ll be able to fix it for the most part from the outside when I get picky with it. The proportions of that Delta body weren’t exactly spot on, but overall it looks like a 962 (that shrank a little and needs to go on a diet) and the tail turned out pretty good. When it’s done, I think I’ll be loving it! I’ll post some better pics at some point.

 

[Dan B.]

I meant to add that the windshield and side windows give a nice view of the build that lies within. It doesn’t photograph very well, but the view into the car looks really groovy. You can see Scorched, Vitavon, ProModeler, BasherQueen, etc.

 

[Doom!]

She's a Beauty !

 

[305HemiGuy]

Holy crap, that came out great! And here I am thinking about finally taking the plunge and using 2 colors on my next build

 

[Xjeepguy]

That’s so sick!!!

 

[Luke66]

i need you to build me something, anything! my paint could never come out like that...

 

[ARA8611V5]

lookin good