Now that the car will remain upright for the remainder of the build, it was time to add the seat belts!
Page 30 is dedicated to the seat belts…
Page 29 had all the part numbers…so gathering the parts first…
3 different belt sizes, 10 buckles, and 1 center latch. The instructions give the lengths for each belt, but I just made them to fit, not trusting anything!
Next I made the individual belt assemblies, 2 for the waist, 2 for the shoulders, and 2 leg constraint belts (just straight belt). The leg belts wrapped around the drivers legs and were adjusted at the additional buckle on the waist belt (smaller black belt). An extra measure to keep the driver from being thrown from the car.
Next was adding the decals that simulate the extra stitching on the upper belts and the logo with scaled stitching on the edges.
Problem… decals don’t stick to ribbon, so I painted the top surface of the belt with matte polyurethane to create a surface the decals can adhere to. Next they were applied, much frustration as they are so thin it’s like picking up a wet noodle and they just fold on themselves…sigh! But I have applied tiny decals before and I persevered! Then I put a coat of polyurethane on top of them to seal them to the belts.
Then finally assembly began. I don’t like straight and perfect looking belts. The goal is to have them drape and not look stiff at scale. This required some clear PVA glue underneath to stick them down where necessary to look more natural.
I am very happy with the end result, as I think it looks very natural, not too perfect and not too stiff.
Oh and I decided to go ahead and detail the steering wheel and add it now, instead of 2 pages later.
I painted the center ring and bolts, then dry brushed the wheel lightly with grey to look a little worn and separate it from the black on the spokes. Finally the tiny Momo logo decal was added.
Well that’s it for this update! Happy modeling! Happy life!