Thursday, April 5, 2018

Honda S600 for TNMC build-off

The New Modelers Club, a closed Facebook group that is well worth joining, is running a build-off with the only stipulation being that the result be a convertible.

So I've got Tamiya's Honda S600, suspension components from an S2000, and a box of aftermarket bits that turned up in the mail this morning from Hobby Design.



This Chinese outfit can be found online if you are willing to order from Thailand or elsewhere in the Far East. Sometimes items turn up on eBay as well. Using Paypal makes it safer as you can always claim through Paypal if the vendor doesn't deliver. It's worth it, though; detail level is very high; for instance, the rims include a little baggie with microscopic tire valves. And the engine has a PE sheet and very detailed instruction sheet.

The tires will be welcome as the ones from Tamiya's S2000 kit are way too big.



Width of the S2000, rim to rim, is 70" at scale while the S600 body shell is only 56". Seven inch flares are a bit excessive in my view, and I am aiming to keep them to 4" if I can.



This next picture looks sweet but would require narrowing the front and rear subframes considerably. So it will need fender wells hogged out, and some delicate flares, but it won't look like one of those gangsta monstrosities mounted on 22" rims. These are nominally 16" (actually 16.8") at scale while the S2000 units are 18" (actual measurement 18.5"), at 1/24.



The Yokohamas mounted on the S2000 axle come in at 67" wide, but that is before trimming the wheels down to 9.5" width from the current 12". (The S2000 rims are also 12" wide). It may be possible to get another 1" or so, meaning I'll need about 5" flares. Plan B, a lot more work, will be to narrow the rear end by a couple of inches. To be decided.



It will of course sit a lot lower than this!





Next will be building up the motor. Getting it to fit inside the S600 engine bay could be interesting and I am predicting a fat little pipe sticking out under the right side door.

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