Author: LUWerner

New photos

From time to time, I redo some of my older photos. Well, at least after July 2020. That’s when I got my Sony A7 III, replacing my old Nikon D70. Since the A7 III was a HUGE upgrade, I could do a much better job in showing my models. Besides, this year I made three new dioramas, two race tracks and one “parking lot”. With the better camera and better scenery, I could do better shots. That being so, once in a while I will re-shoot some of my older cars.

Such a gorgeous model deserved better photographs.

And this time I photographed the coolest MacF1 of all times, the 1995 BBA Compétition #42 art car. I recently made a new guardrail, and I thought #42 would look good with it as a backdrop. Without a doubt, the new photos came out much nicer than the previous ones.

Shop upgrade: will it ever end?

In August I finally got a proper shop. After nine years since we moved to our new house, I now have a decent workplace. And as expected, it wasn’t 100% done (will it ever be?). Courtesy of my dad, I now have a bench vise, something that I consider fundamental in any shop.

I also installed a curtain beneath the work bench. I would rather have the shelf below exposed, however I quickly realized that was not good. Every time I drilled, sanded or worked on wood, it was a pain to clean the wood chips and dust below the workbench. So I installed one of those plastic bathroom curtains on a rail below the bench. Not exactly handsome but saves me a lot of work during cleanups.

And as you can see, there are new tools 😊. Oh come on, don’t give me the same look my wife gives me… Of course I had to get more tools. Of special note are two Japanese saws (a Ryoba and a Kataba), which made me think about why I ever used Occidental saws before. And a new (and better) jigsaw and a nail gun, both battery-powered. Unless it’s some sort of bench-top tool, I’m going cordless 100%. Next on the list is a random orbit sander and a (plunge?) router, cordless of course.

And this is the first diorama project I made in my new shop. A couple of years ago I bought a guardrail like this, though it was shorter and frankly poorly made. So using chopsticks, a strip of MDF as base, water-based paint, wood glue and LOTS of sanding and cutting, I made another one. I already made some photos using it, and it turned out pretty good. I think.

Three little piglets…

Spark × Minichamps × Highspeed, from left to right.

With my new Pink Pig from Spark, I was able to do this small comparo. On the left you see the new Spark, and in the middle is my old Minichamps. And on the right is my daughter’s Highspeed model. She’s 11 and according to her, the Pink Pig is the coolest Porsche. Ever 😁.

Same order, from the rear.

The biggest difference between the Spark and the Minichamps is the black tape. During the race, car #23 had black tape around the door and engine cowl. I think Minichamps used the car as it sits at Porsche’s museum as the base for their model. In fact, I have the impression that most of their models are based on the cars as they look today. Spark, on the other hand, replicated the model as it was on race day. And for me, at least, that’s a BIG plus.

Spark on the left, Minichamps on the right and Highspeed at the bottom.

In terms of overall detail the Spark model has the edge, being it little more refined then the Minichamps. And as expected, the Highspeed version is much simpler. Nonetheless, it is NOT terrible – far from it, in fact. Therefore, it comes down to how much you want to spend and/or how important the Pink Pig is to your collection.