Pocher 1/8 Lamborghini Huracan LP-610 conversion LP-580 Spyder

[kon_gee]

Moving along with the spyder.....The headlights in this kit are very good but they still needed some details to bring them to life. First the 4 projectors needed to be darkened and this was achieved using a black sharpie marker under the clear lens on the chromed pieces. Next up I used a Molatow 1mm chroming pen to accent under the LED running light strips which really brought them alive. Pretty simple details but without it the headlights would look dull.
The list of spyder specific hand fabricated parts is getting smaller! The interior side of the firewall is much different in the spyder than in the coupe as the storage space behind the seats of the coupe is eliminated to allow for space to stow the top. While the panel itself basically flat it does have quite a bit of shape to it. For this application I wanted to use .040" thick styrene sheet material and heat form it so it could remain thin and a little bit flexible. This is a very crude version of vacuum molding but it worked quite well for this part! After making a template I made the negative side of the shape because being the male side it made it much easier to shape things. Then I waxed the male and I made a simple female mold of it literally by squishing Bondo between it and another flat piece of stock. Once I had the female shape I cleaned it up and drilled some small .060 holes right through it. Then I taped a piece of .040 styrene sheet to the form making sure it was sealed completely around the perimeter. Then on the back of the form I covered it with a piece of an old towel (as a breather layer) and then I used another sheet of plastic with a hole in the middle and my shop vac hose attachment taped and sealed to it. I then sealed 100% of the perimeter of that sheet with masking tape too. I ran a quick test with the shop vac and you could see it pulling the .040" sheet a little bit onto the form! Now it just needs some heat! With the vacuum running I heated the plastic with my heat gun and the styrene began to take shape. I kept the vacuum running for a few minutes until the plastic was cooled down The plastic not only took the shape very well but it didn't have any spring back. Then after bit of trimming I glued on a few layers of styrene at the top to thicken it up so I could shape it as needed. I was able to used the CD player from the coupe as it is the same but I needed to make the Sensonum speaker between the seats much like the speakers on the doors. Then I added a few more details on the sides where the seat belts will go and added the small vents that go under the exterior black triangular trim pieces.

[kon_gee]

The interior firewall trim is completed and installed. This includes the two airflow vents near the headrests as well as the new seat belt locations and the rear window (which is positioned in its upmost position to reduce turbulence for when the top is down). I received the vinyl clear dull coat spray and I have to say I am very pleased with the results. This spray completely removed the sheen from the red vinyl material that I used to make Q-Citura pattern on the seats! The red matches very closely to the flat red Testors paint I used elsewhere in the interior too and it also duplicates the real deal pretty well. I guess I got lucky on this one!! I also completed the windscreen trim over the top of the sun visors which includes the folding top's anchor points. I finished this part in flat black like the real car and I used clearcoat sprayed over vinyl sheet I used for masking . I cut the vinyl with my Cricut machine after making the layouts it required in order to make the Huracan logo and its accents. Details at the back end of the car will next as I near completion of my LP-580 spyder conversion.

[kon_gee]

Like most other cosmetic parts that delineate between the LP-610 and LP-580, the rear bumper is pretty much the same at a glance, but it drastically different when you dig into it. I was determined to salvage as much of the LP-610 bumper as possible so that the mounting points and some structure remain intact. It is safe to say that 2/3 of the perimeter of the bumper between the two styles is the same but everything else is changed.
I put my first coat of flat black paint on the bumper in order to help find imperfections and to see how the new shape holds up in one color. A few minor tweaks are needed and then it will be good to go!
Gary

[kon_gee]

Decals! After seeing that others here on this forum make their own decals I did a little online research and found some inkjet printable waterslide sheets in white and clear. I had had seen these printable sheets on the shelf years ago but I also had completely forgotten that they are available. This is the perfect solution to create license plates for this build. Here in NH license plates are a printed design vs. solid colors used in many other states. The only raised lettering is your own specific plate number and the rest of the plate is flat except for a small joggle around the edge to help stiffen the plate. In my case the edge detail part of the plates are covered by framing the plates. Also as done on the real car the front plate is curved to fit into the small space of front bumper's air flow opening. The front plate is edged with some black channel trim where as the back has a stamped metal frame.
After scanning the plate I photoshopped all of the details out minus the raised lettering and the perimeter of the plate. The new image was used to cut adhesive vinyl sheet for the raised lettering. I then applied double sided adhesive tape to some standard aluminum foil and pressed it into the vinyl lettering to create a good base for the decal image of the plate. I printed a bunch of plates messing with the color until it matched beautifully with the real plate and then I sprayed the plate images with acrylic gloss coat to seal them. Once applied the effect of the 3D decal duplicates the real plate very well. For the front plate I made a quick J channel strip by folding a sheet of .015 styrene over the edge of a .020 sheet of brass and taped it as tight as I could then I hit it with my heat gun to get the styrene to hold the J channel shape. A little trimming, some black paint and I applied the edging to the front plate. For the rear I drew up the frame on the computer and cut it out of chrome foil vinyl just as I did for the brake rotors. I applied the frame to some .015 styrene and carefully trimmed out the center. This was then glued to a .040" thick sheet of styrene which I had already trimmed out a hole for the plate. This process gave the edge of the frame the same appearance of the real frame as its stamped shape wraps around hiding the edge of the plate. Then a little chroming of the edge with a molatow pen and adding the black plastic screw cover caps completed the frame.
Also while in decal mode among making several other decals of stickers I printed some Lamborghini badges on clear decal sheet and applied it to some polished .010 sheet brass. After trimming I applied another coat of acrylic gloss to hopefully keep the brass from tarnishing over time.

Gary

[MODEL A MODEL]

Nice touch! Worth the effort.

[kon_gee]

Thank You!

I can thank also thank this forum for the education many members provide. Seeing what is possible in such a small arena is inspiring! It seems like anything, no matter how small or difficult, is taken to the next level.
Cheers,
Gary

[kon_gee]

Finishing up the back of the spyder. The trim around the tail lights and across the back was one of those details I kept putting off until it was literally the only piece left to fabricate. I guess there has to be a last piece and this one proved to be a pretty good challenge. I started by forming a couple of pieces of .080 styrene into a very basic shape below the tail lights so I could make these elements as one piece. I used a piece of the black trim from the kit that goes directly under the tail lights and discarded the rest of it. After adding extensions to the ends of this piece the assembly proved to be very difficult as it started out very fragile. I find it interesting that the plastic cement bonds styrene sheet to itself as one piece much like the plastic from the kit does to itself but the two different types of plastic don't bond together nearly as strong. While waiting for cement to dry I tackled the tail lights. Throughout this project I have used Aluminum foil tape (same material used for duct work). This material is nice to work with because it has a pretty strong adhesive and it forms to shapes pretty well. The only downside is the thickness but it works great under light lenses and such to add realism. For the third brake light and the top row of tail lights the real car has LED’s with clear lenses which have fine horizontal reflective lines running across them. This was easy to duplicate with the foil tape by scribing the lines ahead of time and then applying strips of tape to the back of the lenses. I also applied foil to the red Y shape lenses. These parts were a little too bright as a result so I mixed some black acrylic with clear and applied that to tint the lenses down. Once in place the clear tail light covers looked like thick plastic parts (as they are) so I used a marker pen to darken the edges which was super simple but even more effective at eliminating that problem.
With the lights finished I continued with the rear trim. I also added a couple of details over the sides of the exhaust that show through the grill pieces in bright light. I believe these are nothing more than heat shields. There is also another similar piece running across between the tail lights that has two rectangular cutouts. These two openings offer the only view of the exhaust from the exterior. On the upside these extra details gave me opportunity to make the assembly stronger. For the grills I got lucky once again! I was able to use the photo etched grill that was originally for the LP-610 front end and trim it for the back of the LP-580. I glued these parts first with super glue and then I added some E6000 flexible adhesive around the backside to toughen the bond. The E6000 is available at automotive stores and it provides a tenacious bond that remains flexible.
I have a few details left to add but I am almost done! I have a couple of cool easy solutions to create some details that I plan to share before My final post on this project which will be a full reveal of my completed LP-580 Lamborghini Spyder! The separate engine build will follow at some point but I must get onto some summer projects around the house first.


Gary

[kon_gee]

Making super easy & super quick Heat shield material for added detail to exhaust systems or just about anything. I used a fair amount of household 3M aluminum foil tape to help create many details. Aluminum foil backed with super thin double sided tape can also do the same thing. As of late I don't use much bare metal foil as the adhesive seems pretty weak. The following pics represent about 1-2 minutes of my time to create. I use sheer fabric as the baseline for the grid pattern as it is readily available with all sorts of grid sizes & patterns. I simply apply the fabric to the backside of the foil tape and place it back on the backing paper to roll it with a fair amount of pressure using a wall paper seem roller and a piece of cloth. The foil quickly takes the impression! Then you have a choice to either add a second layer of double sided tape to the back of the foil tape or peel away the sheer fabric and use the foil as is. The only downside to removing the sheer cloth is that the foil can re-smooth itself if it is applied with too much pressure.
Cheers,
Gary

[MODEL A MODEL]

This is a great idea! And it is pretty easy.

You'll find yourself looking at fabric, and window screening, and wire mesh a bit differently than you used to. -and creating storage boxes of "interesting" scales and patterns!

[kon_gee]

Thank you!
Yes & fabric stores are a valuable resource for sure for model building. Back to the foil tape I have another super quick & easy way to process it into unlimited neat patterns but without fabric!

For the marker lights the Pocher kit has lenses that are smooth on both sides and clear. I have used clear red and clear orange paint with foil backing before. In the past I have even used reflective tape to add realism but this time I tried something different with foil tape and I discovered an easy way to make multiple patterns!
Place a piece of foil tape on a good smooth flat surface and using a block of wood and a little bit of pressure you can roll a threaded rod or bolt on the foil leaving perfectly spaced tracks in the foil. spin the foil 90 degrees for a pattern like a screen or a different angle for more of a diamond pattern. I did try a piece of braded cable for an interesting result. I haven't tried it but using two different thread sizes could produce interesting results too! I ran a piece of foil rolling it at 60 degree intervals with a fairly fine thread to create the foil backing on the marker lights and the results are great plus they actually reflect some light!
I am sure there are many more ways to use this process and it takes no time to try something different which makes it fun too.

Cheers,
Gary

[kon_gee]

My Pocher LP-580 Spyder conversion is finished! I may add a few small accessories at some point and I will also build the engine when my summer projects around the house are completed. in the mean time I will look for as many photos of stand alone engines that I can find.
Thanks to all for following along & looking at what I believe to be the only Pocher LP-580 Spyder in existence!
Cheers,
Gary

[kon_gee]

And a few more pics.....

[kon_gee]

Two Bulls together!

[JunkGTZ]

Stunning job. I'm guessing by the plate you modelled that your from New Hampshire. My brother in law lives there but is a Ferrari guy (also a 74' XKE Series 3 Roadster). Great work. Nice to have the real thing in your garage to enjoy as well.

[kon_gee]

Thank you & yes I am in NH. Thinking way ahead I actually purchased the Pocher model over a year before the real deal. It is amazing how much you can learn about the real car from building a model and vice versa. Ferarri's are amazing cars too and while I have never owned one I have driven a couple and they connect you to the road like no other.
Cheers,
Gary