Alfa Romeo TZ1: finishing touches and final assembly

Decals and some trim have been put on, followed by a couple of coats of Tamiya clear.



Car #57 came in 13th overall, and first in the GT 1.6 litre class, in the 1964 Le Mans. A second TZ1 was 15th, with an Iso Grifo A3C, running a 327 Corvette engine in the over 5.0 litre prototype class, splitting the two Alfas. Drivers were Roberto Businello and Bruno Deserti, for Scuderia St. Ambroeus. An excellent result! Especially since the preceding SZ did poorly in 1963.



I gave the whole car a light wet sanding, from about 4,000 to 12,000 grit, followed by LMG Micro-Gloss Polish. I didn't overdo it, for two reasons: I don't want to cut through the paint on edges, and I also don't believe that these cars were as glossy as a new car today. The shine is decent and the orange peel minimal.



There is a bit of cleanup required around the blue paint in the tail. Overall a lovely shape from the pen of Elio Zagato and colleagues, missing only the trademark double bubble roof line.



A trial fit shows it is all pretty reasonable. The stance is perhaps a tad high in front, but I'll let that go. The hood now closes properly after I removed excess material from the underside of the hood to clear the cam cover.



There is some touch up to do before the windows go in. So far so good!