MP4/6 Yet another technique for that wrinkled carbon effect

[plastiksurgeon]

I wanted to share yet another technique for that wrinkled carbon effect on the MP4/6 monocoque. My friend Jim Petersen and I are each building this car and we struggled with the tissue paper idea and others before coming up with this one.

What we ended up settling on was a three inch wide roll of normal tan masking tape. We covered the tub with it and painted it flat black. It of course had it's own perfect adhesion to the tub and left us with a wrinkle effect that did the job. It looks better in the flesh than in photographs, but you can get the idea. It turned out to be a very forgiving surface, easy to touch up, and very resilient to handling. After details started to build up on this surface, it really blends in nicely. We are very happy. We did not implement the gold treatment that seems customary on models of this car, as the chassis of the real car was flat black, not gold. Both Jim and I have been in the room with this car at the track. Photography creates colors from the color of the light shed on the subject that are not really there, and it's easy to be fooled.

Just wanted to share this idea to anyone still searching for a method. Easy and inexpensive to take a strip of masking tape and paint it flat black to see what you think....

Cheers,
Steve Mohlenkamp

This shot shows the masking tape technique with some details starting to enmass.

The first piece applied to get rolling.

Tub is covered with multiple pieces, ready for flat black paint.

A fresh coat of flat black brings out the texture.

Closeup of wrinkled surface on tub.

[racingkars]

Superb!

[steinietrabi]

Looks realy not bad.
The challenge is to stick the individual segments together without separation or overlap.

[dr_gn]

It looks excellent - I'm building an MP4/6 now, and still haven't figured out what to do with the tub.

What make of masking tape is it?

Is it sealed at the edges?

My worry about tape methods is that it might lift when the adhesive dries out in a few years' time.

I agree about the colour being black - I've seen these cars in 1991 in the flesh - there was no hint of other metallic colours. I think that the combination of flash photography, and ageing (yellowing) of resin on museum examples fools a lot of people.

Cheers.

[Mr.Grumpy]

My worry about tape methods is that it might lift when the adhesive dries out in a few years' time.

was thinking the same thing. if it’s just regular masking tape this will be a problem for sure.

[MoFo]

Thirded. I don't think this will be a permanent solution.

[AJP01]

I think it will work based on my experience; although I have not used this on a large area I have used it on a small one, and the tape is still looking exactly as it did when the build finished in 2005. My theory is - the tape adhesive essentially doesn't dry out because the paint acts as a sealer and keeps everything as-is into the future. I could be wrong, but this has been the case for me...

Cheers,
AJ

[upnorth]

I wonder what it would do if you applied some glue and then masking tape?

[viperdoug]

I used tape for a vinyl top about 15 years ago, after the car was finished we did some remodeling of the house and my models where put in boxes. Anyway about 10 years later I pulled out that car and the tape had dried up and was lifting off the plastic. So that model was in the house in a box and never saw light or really any heat.

[Flemming]

We did not implement the gold treatment that seems customary on models of this car, as the chassis of the real car was flat black, not gold. Both Jim and I have been in the room with this car at the track. Photography creates colors from the color of the light shed on the subject that are not really there, and it's easy to be fooled.

Just wanted to share this idea to anyone still searching for a method. Easy and inexpensive to take a strip of masking tape and paint it flat black to see what you think....

Cheers,
Steve Mohlenkamp

Hi

I agree that the effect look spot on - very very realistic - but your observation about the colour as flat black? I'll say that you can paint it precisely the colour you like, but in real life it has never been flat black. Colour pictures - these has been taken myself at Goodwood Festival of speed - can not correctly show the colour. But compare the chassis colour to the aluminium fittings painted semi gloss black. The difference is clear. The colour when standing in front of MP4/4 chassis from the first 1981 one to the MP4/7 is a lurid olive green with a slight goldish hue varyiing from clearly seen or nothing at all like on the MP4/1. But black? Nope.

mp4-6tankarea by Flemming Hansen, on Flickr

mp4-6_8 by Flemming Hansen, on Flickr

mp4-6_16 by Flemming Hansen, on Flickr

Best regards

Flemming