Whenever a contest build comes up, I often end up with two good ideas that are completely different and I have to choose one direction or another. Such is the case with the HBS Creatin’ Contest this year. I bought the kit for Denise’s City Cottage and have been working behind the scenes on my contest entry following one of my two ideas.
But, the other idea will now see the light of day thanks to HBS! They’ve kindly offered to send me a kit so I can blog publicly about my build. Now, this public build using the free kit won’t be entered into the contest to keep it fair to those who have purchased the kit to enter. But, my secret build will still be entered since it has already been started from the kit I purchased at the beginning of the year.
So, what’s the idea? A barn find! Here are two great examples of the look I’m going for: a 1961 Jaguar E-type and a 1952 Barn Find Cunningham C-3 Coupe #5209. Barn finds can be quite sad looking at first sight but turn into cash cows and museum gems.
I’ve named this build Milo Valley Farm after my current hamster friend.
I found a great deal on a 1:16 scale Karmann Ghia, but it was in the UK. Pepper was kind enough to help me out, and the kit arrived in quick fashion.
As big as the box is, the car itself is just a bit too small for the building. It leaves too much space to fill. I don’t want the barn to look like a flea market…the car should take center stage for the interior.
In truth, a 1:12 scale car works best inside a 1:12 scale garage. Makes sense, no? To that end, I chose a Datsun 240ZG. This is a 1:12 scale kit by Tamiya, and they can be pricey. I wouldn’t say the kit was cheap, but VRC Hobbies had a non-scalping price for it.
The 1:12 Datsun will be roughly 14.25″ long according to the info I’ve been able to find online. The interior depth of the kit is roughly 15.25″, which is not a lot of wiggle room. It looks fine here because the front end isn’t attached to the model yet.
The 1:16 Karmann Ghia is better for depth with the side wall, though not necessarily for height.
Once you add 1:12 scale items next to it, it fails the test completely. I don’t want to make everything else in 1:16 scale when I can just add a little depth to the kit.
Better.
Looks like the 1:14 scale Audi TT would be a great happy medium, but it’s not a kit, too new to be a barn find and not something I want to wreck besides. As far as I know, there are no 1:14 scale model kits.
So, the Datsun wins! :D Friedrich approves.
I also picked up a 1:12 scale Tamiya kit with various tools on eBay.
Is it wrong that I got all giggly about having an oxy-acetylene torch in miniature? :D
