Alfa Romeo Giulia Sprint GTA: Complete (#10 for 2018)

The GTA is essentially complete, barring door handles which broke, and windshield trim which I will describe a little further down. It's a very nice kit of a very nice car, and well recommended if you can find one, although note the decal sheet in mine was not useable due to age, and the metal transfers wouldn't stick without some clear gloss to assist.

I recently discovered Testor's enamel pens at a local arts and crafts shop; I assume this is similar to the Molotow pens I have heard of in online forums but not yet seen. I did the side windows with one and I like the result.



Final assembly went as well as it always does, meaning there were some heart stoppers, but nothing major went wrong. It's even got a bit of that tail-dragging stance that Giulias used to get as the rear springs sagged.



The red plastic is excellent on this Tamiya kit, so I polished and put on a coat of clear, which looks great except for a few specs of dust. 



I used Bare Metal Foil for the front and rear windscreen surrounds, and have since decided they don't work. First, the windows seem to stand proud, and I am guessing the thin layer of BMF between glass and post is contributing here. Second, the pen makes a much smoother surface. Of course it's paint, so a slip could be catastrophic... Anyway, after taking these pictures, I popped the windows out and scraped off the BMF; the enamel from the pen is presently drying and the glass will go back in tomorrow.



Here is the Alfa posed with an obvious competitor from the late '60s: Lotus Europa Twin Cam. They would have been relatively well matched in terms of handling or horsepower per tonne, and a buyer might have considered both at the time; the main difference being the Lotus is strictly a two-seater and really compares better to the Alfa Spider.



I had one encounter with a Europa in my days as a mechanic; the cockpit was too small for me to get into easily, and once in I couldn't get my big feet to differentiate between pedals, so I never drove it. I did manage to drive a range of Elans, as long as the top was down, and so I don't doubt the Europa was a fine handling little go-cart; it's just I am about 6" taller than Colin Chapman, with shoes at least three sizes bigger, so I'm definitely not the customer he was thinking of when he designed it.



The Alfa, on the other hand, was nice and roomy, but had the driving position so typical of other Italian sports cars like the Fiat 124: pedals up close and the wheel a long ways away, so my long legs wound up folded in half with my left knee banging on the window winder, while I had to hunch forward to reach the wheel and shifter. I fit much better in E-Types and 911s... I always had expensive tastes.



All in all a fine addition to the shelf, and it is reassuring to see that the level of finish I can muster continues to improve.