After doing the Aston Martin DBR9, I decided to do an older racecar...something powerful but not as "high tech" as the Aston, so, out of the storage room came the kit of the Peugeot 405T 16GR. The Camel sponsored vehicle drove to victory by Ari Vatanen in the 1990 edition of the Paris-Dakar rally.
This is one of my all time favorite kits, in fact, I think this one made me a full time (so to speak) modeler.
I was lucky enough to buy 3 boxes of this kit when it was originally issued. Lucky because this kit is getting harder and harder to find, not to mention itīs rising cost.
A note for all kit collectors out there: There are 2 versions of the kit box, one in english and another with only japanese text. I was told by a Tamiya representative that the japanese box kit is very rare now, and itīs collectible cost is almost twice than the english box version.
When you open the box, you get the feeling that you are seeing parts of a recent Tamiya kit, even when the kit is 18 years old. The detail is absolutely gorgeous and the engineering of the kit is flawless. There are some sink marks but all of them are hidden in places you wonīt see in the finished model.
A special note for all young modelers out there...Inlcuded in this Kit is the 1990 Tamiya catalog. It is really interesting to compare this little list to the beautifully printed catalogs we see today.
This racecar uses very basic technology, so you wont see any sensors or complicated computers. I will try to replicate the basic elements used in the real car, so research is a HUGE step here.
You wonīt find any detailed schematics or photos in the internet. I spent almost 2 weeks looking for decent photos without success, so I sent a mail to the recent home of this racecar, the Peugeot Museum in France (Musée de L'Aventure PEUGEOT) asking for some photos or info that I could use.
After a couple days, I was delighted to receive a mail from Jean-Louis Laine, who is responsible of Peugeotīs Historic Documents. The mail contained a lot of GREAT photos of the real car!!! I got magnificent body, cockpit and engine details!!! I burned this photos and the ones I could find myself in a reference CD. (Thanks Jean_Louis!!!)
I bought old carbon fiber material decals to use in the engine compartment and seats, and this will be my first attempt to do a race worn vehicle, so I ordered sand pigments from Tamiya and MIG.
All pulley/belts are molded in one single part, so I decided to sand off the belts and use hair rubber rings instead. My wife had a box of this rubber bands and I found out that they have the right texture and width to use with the pulleys!
Originally Posted by :
Erm..what about the "dromedary" logos?
You are right!! I forgot to tell you guys about this!
All CAMEL logos are included in the kit decals!! The illustration in the box cover doesnīt show those markings, but they are inlcuded in the decal sheet.
I have this great desert lion to build too (and 1989 Pionner one too).
I have the chance to live not too far from Peugeot museum and have taken a lot of pics with special authorization of the museum (which allowed me to open the cars to take pics of the inside and the engine bay on several cars shown in the museum).
I also plan to build this great tamiya kit with a lot of details...
When I will have my exclusive modeling room with computer, books, desk... and everything needed in the same place. Soon I hope (well I say that every new year, "this year I move to a new home "! :-) but... maybe...:-) )
So no need to say I will watch your build line by line and pic by pic !! :-)
This kit is one of the best tamiya kit which can moreover easily be improved with a lot of details...
This must be a really nice model and give an awesome result !
all my encouragements for the build ! :-)!
Let me know if you miss some pic, I took all details I could, from inside net to brake cooling tubes... :-) [Reply]
Great start Sam. You post is very well laid out and the photographs a excellent too. Great idea with the belts too. I cannot wait to see this WIP unfold. Regards, Bill. [Reply]
hi good start.
I have this model too, but not the camel decal (italy).
I had make a the custon decal sheet , but I problem to find a typographer. [Reply]
Where are you located? I'd love to get my hands on a package of those "belts".:-)
I built this kit a couple of years after it was issued (actually I received the Pioneer version as a gift and ordered the Camel decals from Tamiya since I preferred that version more), and it's still one of my favorites in my collection.
Just beware of the sand ladders mounted below the rear wing. They are the only area that really needs improvement. Of course when I built it back then, I didn't even know what sand ladders were!:-)
I will follow this WIP with very attention, because i will receive a 405T16 next week. Im curiouse about how to use the weathering by tamiya. I want to do mine with desert dust. Keep going with that great work.
Originally Posted by :
Where are you located? I'd love to get my hands on a package of those "belts".
I live in Mexico City, but the rubber rings are a US made product, I am sure you can find them up there. If not, let me know.
Originally Posted by :
Just beware of the sand ladders mounted below the rear wing. They are the only area that really needs improvement. Of course when I built it back then, I didn't even know what sand ladders were!
I will sand off the molded sand ladders and build new ones with sheet styrene. I will add scratchbuilt retaining belts.:-)
Originally Posted by :
Im curiouse about how to use the weathering by tamiya. I want to do mine with desert dust.
That's the look I am looking for...An "after a dry, desert stage" look. In fact, I will do a base with some sand to show the model "in action". Hope it turns out nice :-) [Reply]
