Airfix kits were sold in America by a number of companies over the years. Many were re-boxed, and given new artwork, even new decals.
As soon as I saw this bonkers 1960s Airfix Jaguar XKE (E-Type) box, which was unique to the American market, I knew I just had to model the scene. Fortunately, I already had a much later boxing of the Airfix Jaguar.
The 1/32nd scale Jaguar kit goes all the way back to 1963, when it appeared as part of the Modern Cars series. It was originally numbered M5C, and was sold in a plastic bag.
According to Scalemates, this US XKE version dates from 1964, and was numbered C2-50. The US kits were sold in cardboard boxes, not plastic bags, and also seem to have contained chrome-plated parts.
My Jaguar is from a 2010 Starter Set, with acrylic paints, brush, and cement. The moulds are showing their age, and there was a fair amount of flash to clean off before assembly could begin.
Fit was also a problem, and the seats, dashboard, steering wheel, and interior tub all need care. The fit is rather loose, and it is easy to cement the parts too far forward or back, which will make installing the other parts difficult.
The Airfix Jaguar is a convertible, and can be built with the top up or down. There is no folded top for the 'down' option, just the flat deck where the raised top goes.
This meant a proper folded top had to be made from plastic card, sanded to shape. No other changes were made to the model.
The model was painted to match the car on the box top. Modern enamel paints do not cover as well as older paints, due to changes in the chemicals used, and it took eight coats of red to get even a reasonable finish.
There is no driver in the kit, so I had to find one. I ended up with a 1/35th scale WW2 US tank crewman (wearing a helmet), but he needed to be cut down considerably to fit.
The base is from the tray of a wooden jig-saw puzzle. Years ago, I found a number of these that had been thrown out by a local library, as they were missing some pieces.
Ground work was added, and it was covered in gesso primer. Then painted with Tamiya acrylics, and sprinkled with model railway turf (grass) by Woodland Scenics, sealed with diluted PVA glue.
The low barrier fence is just made from grey cardboard. The backscene is a sheet of painted cardboard.
The big problem was the running Jaguar. On the box top this is clearly out of scale with the car, being far too large.
The closest thing I could find was a toy Cheetah by Papo. This is even more out of scale, but I really needed a running pose for the scene to work.
You could also re-create the scene using a die-cast Jaguar, but since the aim is to duplicate a kit box top, you really need to use a kit model. Airfix have also done E-Type Jaguars in 1/24th and 1/43rd scales.
The photograph of the Airfix box is from Worthpoint. The other five are mine.
Paul Adams from New Zealand
That's neat!
ReplyDeleteThis is amazing! What a great idea, recreating the illustration of a model box art. That is kind of an art in itself. You’ve made a terrific diorama there! SFZ
ReplyDeleteThank you. It was a fun project.
ReplyDeleteLovely work! Recreating box art is a clever idea...
ReplyDeleteFabulous idea, really nicely executed.
ReplyDeleteWell done Paul.
Lovely work! Airfix kits are a bit of a nightmare with moulding issues, but this is a great interpretation of the box art and the kit too! Bill
ReplyDeleteSuperb job Paul. Like the Konga diorama you've nailed it. Great stuff and thanks for sharing.
ReplyDelete