Transformers: G2 Gearhead

       
 
 
Transformers Generation 2 Gearhead Gobot
Generation 2 Gearhead Gobot hood detail Generation 2 Gearhead Gobot rear detail

 
Buy this kit at eBay

After my Optimus Prime wheel swap, I ended up with a spare set of Lamborghini wheels. Since my mind was already on the G2 Go-Bots, the wheels were barely off the Lambo before I was planning on how to use them to represent the 5-hole design used with the NASCAR Thunderbird. Gearhead was the first use of this casting, and so seemed like a fitting candidate to try my idea.

I disassembled the T-Bird and stripped the body, then repainted it Krylon Sunrise Yellow. The windows, chassis, and interior were almost painfully simplified, but adequate for what I needed - so I cleaned them but otherwise made no changes here. I then painted the inside of the body black, and reassembled everything.

I had to get a little creative with his markings: without a solid base color, ink is actually somewhat transparent. So if I had made his markings in red, they would have looked fine on the page but orange once they were on the car and the yellow base coat bled through. Instead, I made the decals magenta, since in the 4-color printing world yellow + magenta = red. It looked a bit silly on the sheet, but the results were exactly what I was hoping for. I used a combination of paint and pinstriping tape for the skirting, spoiler, hood/trunk pins, grilles, and fuel fill, and the original tires were mounted on the Lamborghini wheels to complete the look.

 

Have a question, comment, or criticism about this model?
Send me an e-mail or leave a comment here!