Corvette Model Gallery
The Sebring 12 Hour Race
This is a diorama about two muscle cars, a Corvette Grand Sport Roadster and a Shelby Mustang GT350R, in a practice tour at Sebring, some time before the 12-hour race on March 26th, 1966. The composition theme is that the two cars are in a curve and about to get out of it. The Corvette is at the inside, has some oversteering which is countersteered by the driver. So it occupies the majority of the curve and the Mustang driver at his back right has gone towards the right edge of the track and trying to steer more into the curve. The Mustang has suffered some body damage some time ago, a slight crash at its right door which still carries signs of. Meanwhile, a photographer is shooting, most probably trying to get a good shot of the Corvette's driver at that close distance. (Or else the diorama would have to be twice as big...)
The diorama was made for a contest , but the history began long ago when I was building my Corvette Roadster. While surfing, I met the picture of Roger Penske's Grand Sport Roadster and immediately fell in love with the looks. I had no knowledge of what the Grand Sport was at that time. Surfing more, and communicating with fans, I got into more detail and getting to know that Accurate Miniatures had two models of Grand Sport was a joy. What was more joy was that they were both coupes and I had to do some scratchbuilding to replicate this car.
The diorama
When I read that the subject of the first quarter's contest was "60's muscle cars" , I said to myself that the Grand Sport was the subject I would used. Then I thought that a diorama in a race would be much more appealing than a single car. I began searching where this car raced and in the end came up with the information that the car I was building had raced only once in March 1966, Sebring and retired in lap 65 due to a crankcase failure. But I also learned that when racing, the hood was different, much like a normal Corvette, the headlamps were covered, the A-posts being still unequal lengths left+right but a full windshield was installed between them instead of the unequally halfway-cut windshield. The headrest bulge on the boot was missing as well, so the car did not look as sexy to me. So I decided not to be authentic about the race, but rather make a diorama about a practice some time before the race. I love modeling because you learn so many small details that so few people in the world know about.
I planned the diorama as the Grand Sport to be in the lead, outgoing a left-bend and having some oversteer which is countersteered by the driver. So, the car has leaned to its right. To give this motion effect, the suspension was altered. The left-hand side suspension elements were stretched whereas the right-hand side ones compressed to give the car a lean of about 3 degrees. The roof and boot were cut to form a roadster version. The same suspension altering was made for the Mustang as well.
It took a enormously long time to match the color. I even asked Sunoco their code for blue but no reply came. I got the answer from Pete (he did not mention his last name), saying that Roger Penske had ordered one of his crew to mix colors to suit Sunoco blue for sponsorship, and so the paint never had a code number. I downloaded enough Sunoco emblems and blue tones from their WebPages and I got a sense of their blue. The next thing was to mix blue paints to reach it and the result came from an acrylic spray paint of Dupli-color (German paint) which has no codes but the colored cap as reference. I applied Tamiya's clear blue X-23 over that paint and got an excellent result.
The second car I chose was a 1966 Shelby Mustang
GT 350R. In my searches, I was able to get the entry list of
the March 26, 1966 Sebring 12-hour race. There seemed to be
3 Shelby GT350 entries, two did not start, and the only one left
being #82 , driver Terry Kohler. ( It retired in lap 71 due to
transmission failure). I got the Revell-Monogram kit #2482
Shelby Mustang GT350 Hertz. The Mustang also had to undergo some
scratchbuilding since it was to represent a GT 350 R (R=racing)
which had no bumpers but body protrusions instead. The
Mustang's door carries the traces of a unidirectional crash. The
door is made from aluminum sheet and treated the same way as in
an accident. The border cones are made of lead sheet formed to
the shape. The body had to go under some scratchbuilding for
conversion to the "R" version. The front bumper region
was reformed, the back seats removed from the internal
"tub", a roll-bar added and bucket seats put in. The
Mustang has "Torque Thrust" wheels from my parts box.
The main stripes are painted with masking and the side stripes
and other decals are computer-generated and printed on decal
paper. The engine is ignition-wired, with the air filter removed
and a scratchbuilt induction cone put instead. All the window
contours, door handles and wiper blades are Bare Metal Foil
treated. The driver is secured to his bucket seat with a
scratchbuilt seat-belt. The tires on the track border are
hollow inside for realistic looks.
For more information please go to Korkut's web page: Corvette Grand Sport and Mustang Shelby diorama
If you would like to contact Korkut on this model his e-mail address is: Kvarol@superonline.com
Page updated 11/19/99