Shelby Cobra 427 S/C

Well I'm quite pleased with the way this one has turned out. It was quite a mess when I got it, you can see the original look here:

http://www.tamiyaclub.com/showroom_model.asp?cid=75151&id=2193

I repainted the body on the outside using gunmetal PS paint which came out with a very nice satin finish. I was intending on finishing it with a coat of clear to give it a gloss finish, but I really like the satin look. I did the cockpit in black, which also has a slightly glossy finish. Left the seat, dash and centre semi-gloss and painted matt black on the floors and behind the seats. Did a basic job on the driver.

These cars need the wide stripes down the centre so I had a browse through various on-line pics (including yours Chris). There was nothing that was exactly what I wanted, but I did get an idea of stripe widths and placement. I decided to go with the gold because I like the look and it matched the drivers helmet. Masked and sprayed those with Plastikote gold.

So on to finishing all the detail bits. I was very lucky that most of the original decals were unused. Only the stripes were missing. All the chrome parts are present and in good condition.

I only painted the drivers body and left his head as I found it just to retain a part of the original look. He's not too bad, but I might tidy him up later. Applied the cockpit details - these come with two different dashboard instrument layouts, which is pretty cool. The decals are all printed on chrome-foil backing, and are very crisp and clear. Added all the chrome bits, applied chrome solartrim to the windshield frame and took another look. She looked good but just needed a little something else. Ah-ha! - red pinstriping next to the gold. A quick slice with the scalpel off the edge of a sheet of red solartrim and there we go. Bootiful.

The chassis that comes with these cars is a real disappointment. It's the 'Mantis' chassis, which is a very basic 1/10 scale RWD electric. This one looked like it had never been run, and just needed a good dusting and removal of a little surface rust on a few rods and screws.

The biggest letdown with this kit however, is the wheels. Horrible white 5-spokes! And they look too small with those low-profile tyres. The body is actually 1/8.9 scale (as noted on the front of the box), but the wheelbase looks to be correct for the chassis. Anyway, I had a rummage through my spare wheels, all the time cursing that I had sold the set of Kyosho wire-wheels a year or so ago to another TC member who was restoring a Cobra (!), and the best I could do was this set of alloy Skyline wheels. They do look good, but I think the proper Kyosho Nostalgic series wheels as seen on the magnificant Scollins Cobra are what look closest to the real thing.

The chassis has full radio gear fitted and this car is a (careful) runner.


Anyway, here she is, I hope you like her as much as I do.


(After all this I should note that this lot came with a spare bodyset. Perhaps I'll do that one in the classic metallic blue as shown on the box.)