Cobra 427 S/C: Polish versus paint

The engines in the last three kits I've completed, combined, add up to 7.5 litres displacement. Enough little tiddlers, time for a 7-litre, ground-pounding, pavement-ripping big block motor as installed in the iconic and much copied Cobra.



The quality of the body in this Fujimi kit is superb: no sinkholes, and only minor mould separation lines. I was able to take the mould lines down with fine sanding sticks, and to polish it all out with Tamiya Fine and Finish pastes (the Coarse paste is very coarse), followed by these two L&M polishes which I am about to run out of.



Photos below were taken after using the L&M Micro Finish Haze and Swirl Remover but before the Micro Gloss Polish. The very fine pattern of scratches on the cowl and rear deck are now essentially gone; these will be covered in black decals in any case. The fender tops, where the mould separation lines were removed, all look fine.



So essentially I am going to save myself the hassle of primer and paint, and go straight to clear once the decals are on. I've done this once or twice in the past (Fujimi kit of the 356; Tamiya kit of the Giulia Sprint GTA) with excellent results. It might not be 2020-vintage show-stopping paint, but then the original paint in 1965 would not have been 2020 show-stopping either.



Stay tuned!