Improving the engine on the AA Wangan Devil Z
Posted: Mon Dec 26, 2016 10:36 pm
Alright so almost everyone loves this model, but you gotta admit, the engine is kinda sad. So from the moment this model was announced, I planned to buy one and upgrade it. I think I got it a couple months ago, took it apart, and since then it's been waiting its turn.
I took the entire day today, and even skipped gym, to pretty this baby up. I only focused on the engine cause that's all I care about lol. I am annoyed with the steering wheel and the plastic seatbelts, but not enough to go to work on them.
First things first, here are some before pics. It lacks colour and texture almost completely.
So let's begin...
First things first, we apply some Nuln Oil for that weathered look.
After that we use a pin vise to drill some holes in the carburetors for the rivets.
Then we use some brass paint to add accents to the parts of the carbs that won't be drilled out. Hard to see here, but it is quite nice in person.
Then we install 12 brass rivets using either forceps or cuticle nippers (I prefer the latter).
The I applied a layer of Tamiya Clear X-22 to the air intake and the battery, and used a radiator cap from the Nissan R390.
The strut brace looks kinda crappy so I decided to add 8 rivets to that.
Looks a tad better now.
Then I scratch built some parts like the throttle linkage, using the usual steel tube, shrink tubes, and some old cell phone parts, which had to be Dremeled into shape. Some radiator tubing and the two sad hoses on the right side were replaced with braided wire.
Then the radiators received some mesh.
Then I glued those parts on, applied some more Nuln Oil to the auxiliary bottles, added a couple more rivets here and there, painted the lids on some things, colour coded the battery a bit, and created a metal shield for the yellow bottle thing.
Gotta get more slender braided wire next time.
Then I added the strut brace and used an insulated wire and a random reservoir lid from the Nissan R390 (again) to connect to the valve cover.
Then I reassembled the model.
The whole process took about 8 hours. I'm pretty satisfied with the result. Thanks for looking!
I took the entire day today, and even skipped gym, to pretty this baby up. I only focused on the engine cause that's all I care about lol. I am annoyed with the steering wheel and the plastic seatbelts, but not enough to go to work on them.
First things first, here are some before pics. It lacks colour and texture almost completely.
So let's begin...
First things first, we apply some Nuln Oil for that weathered look.
After that we use a pin vise to drill some holes in the carburetors for the rivets.
Then we use some brass paint to add accents to the parts of the carbs that won't be drilled out. Hard to see here, but it is quite nice in person.
Then we install 12 brass rivets using either forceps or cuticle nippers (I prefer the latter).
The I applied a layer of Tamiya Clear X-22 to the air intake and the battery, and used a radiator cap from the Nissan R390.
The strut brace looks kinda crappy so I decided to add 8 rivets to that.
Looks a tad better now.
Then I scratch built some parts like the throttle linkage, using the usual steel tube, shrink tubes, and some old cell phone parts, which had to be Dremeled into shape. Some radiator tubing and the two sad hoses on the right side were replaced with braided wire.
Then the radiators received some mesh.
Then I glued those parts on, applied some more Nuln Oil to the auxiliary bottles, added a couple more rivets here and there, painted the lids on some things, colour coded the battery a bit, and created a metal shield for the yellow bottle thing.
Gotta get more slender braided wire next time.
Then I added the strut brace and used an insulated wire and a random reservoir lid from the Nissan R390 (again) to connect to the valve cover.
Then I reassembled the model.
The whole process took about 8 hours. I'm pretty satisfied with the result. Thanks for looking!
