58242: Wild Willy 2 from nicherotors showroom, Wild Willy 2 20th Anniversary

Model: (Click to see more) 58242: Wild Willy 2
Status: New built
Date: 29-Apr-2020
Comments: 7
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Built this to commemorate the fact that Wild Willy 2 has been in production for 20 years.

For a change from the traditional olive drab I decided to use a US Navy colour on the body; AS-19 Intermediate Blue. I made sure three new rattle cans were on hand but in the end only two were used. A light coat of white primer was used all over before masking the top of the fuel cell. Otherwise, by the time the fuel cell gets painted a separate colour there are already a few coats of paint down and the details start to get lost.

The body, grill and tailgate got a couple of light coats of the blue as individual items. Then these items were taped together and the whole lot received a consistent top coat - this ensured all the items would match when finally assembled.

All the screws were spray painted separately to get even coverage without any clogging.

The windscreen rubber, rear fenders, seat and the base to the gear lever were painted TS-82 Rubber Black. I know masking can take time but I'm not a fan of brush painting if it can be avoided so was happy to make the extra effort. The fuel cell was masked separately and painted first with TS-42 Light Gun Metal.

To further emphasise the lovely details (that are unchanged since the 35 year old original) the racing fuel filler cap was painted in my favourite shade of Tamiya silver; TS-83 Metallic Silver which is almost reflective. The instructions on the side of the cap suggest a TS-14 Black undercoat but on this occasion I skipped this step to avoid further clogging of the details.

The headlights seem nondescript but upon close inspection there are three rivets moulded into the outside ring which can be highlighted. Initially the whole item was sprayed TS-83 followed by a light coat of AS-19 for a colour coded rim. I found any remediation of the masking around the compound curves with the white flexible tape can be rectified with a sharp pencil. Both headlights were then sprayed semi-gloss clear to seal the pencil marks and any other highlights.

It would be nice to think that if Tamiya had released a 'Wild Willy 2 20th Anniversary' that it would have had a subtle bit of bling, helpful hop ups and some alternative rims. But then again, why change a winning recipe that has clearly been a commercial success for twenty years!

Let's hope we see Willy on sale for many more years to come as he continues to attract new people to the hobby and provide hours of building and driving fun.