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Tamiya Sand Scorcher

Restoration account of this much-loved SRB
- page 3, bodyshell detail

Having got the Sand Scorcher's chassis pretty much up together, the next step is to give the bodyshell its makeover (click on an image to view it larger)...


Sand Scorcher bodyshell - before


Just a reminder, this is the Sand Scorcher bodyshell before its makeover. Not a bad colour scheme I suppose, but I want mine to resemble the one on the box!
Let's begin!...



Prising out the window piece
As with many old Sand Scorchers, sunlight has badly effected the windows. This is a chemical reaction to the ultraviolet rays of sunlight, and slight yellowing can be dealt with by carefully polishing away the top layer of plastic - big job!
This one is too yellow to do anything with, so another original window piece will be replacing this one.
This one had been glued in place, and needed carefully prising out.



Caustic soda bath


A long soak in caustic soda usually strips old paint jobs... The red came off quickly, but the black proved to be more stubborn! Brake fluid and even thinners had no effect on the black, so I reluctantly opted to use the black as a base to prime onto.
Bare plastic would have been better, but it wasn't to be this time!



Cleaned and filled bodyshell


As with all well-enjoyed Sand Scorchers, this one had spent plenty of time on its roof!
At this stage, the bodyshell has been cleaned up and all the scratches filled, and any cracks repaired with epoxy resin and superglue.



Bodyshell oven
All rubbed down and waiting to be primed!
This is my homemade paint-baking oven, a clear plastic storage box outside on our warm and sunny balcony. Here, bodyshell and primer warm up nicely before the first coat goes on.
My intention was to bake the paint like this after every coat, but unfortunately I discovered that when masking tape warms up too much, it peels off! After nearly losing 3 hours work, I realised that I couldn't use the oven if there was tape on the bodyshell (see last pic).



First coat of primer on


Here's the bodyshell in the homemade spray booth, with its first coat of primer. It went on well and thankfully didn't react adversely to the existing black paint (phew!). All parts of the kit were primed together, at this stage.
Top coats next!



Masked up and awaiting top coats


The bodyshell masked up and awaiting its first top coat of blue.
The masking was a major job, and this is the tape that started to peel off after I left the bodyshell in the oven, after spraying the first coat of blue on. A valuable lesson learned!



Page 4, next stages of the Sand Scorcher bodyshell makeover.



Related pages and resources

First page of the Tamiya Sand Scorcher rebuild

Second page of the Tamiya Sand Scorcher rebuild (chassis details)

The first stages of the Sand Scorcher bodyshell makeover

Tamiya Rough Rider - my Rough Rider restoration project (future page).

Tamiya SRB series - the rc cars that made history.

Tamiya Club - for vintage and modern day Tamiya lovers.