Aston Martin DBS Build Journal Volume 2: Murphy's Law

We were fortunate to have an easy week at work.  Our team managed to finish all our tasks before the close of business last Friday afternoon allowing us to have a worry free weekend.  I used my free time to work on my DBS kit once again.  

I started the weekend working on the brake discs.  Painted each part individually, glued them together and applied the decals as per the instructions.  This task went fairly well.

Weird, this picture made the brake discs look like they were made of stone...

I moved on to assemble the engine and front suspension next.  Once again, I painted each part prior to assembly.  I find it much easier doing this since I need not worry smearing paint on adjacent parts unnecessarily.  

This kit came with a sheet of metal transfer for the lettering on the engine.  I’ve only worked with wet decals before and it’s the first time I’ve worked with these dry transfer sheets.  Just a brief explanation on the difference between decals and transfers for those who couldn't follow:

First wet decals, you will need to dip these in water for around 10 seconds, by then they could be slid from their backing sheets and positioned into place on the model.  You will need to dab the decal with a soft cloth or paper towel to remove the excess water and air bubbles.  It should set once everything is dry.

The dry transfers on the other hand, will require you to position the sheet on the location where you want the transfer to be placed.  You will then proceed to gently rub on the transparent film that is holding the transfers.  Once the metal transfer sticks to the model part, you will need to gently peel off the film.

I’ve read several anecdotes on the internet wherein some of the transfers fail to cling to the model.  It was quite disheartening to learn about this, especially for a first-timer.  I did manage to execute my task successfully and I did learn a few things about these transfers in the process.  Peeling the transparent film takes a lot of patience; I did mine one letter at a time.  Whenever I notice the transfer fail adhere to the model part, I would reset the backing film and rub on it again.

After all the decals and transfers were applied, the only thing left was to assemble the engine and suspension. Should be pretty straight forward...

"If anything can go wrong, it will..." – Murphy’s Law

Had another mishap in the process, I might have accidentally touched one of the break caliper decals while assembling the kit. The decal probably did not set properly and was sheared off when I unconsciously made contact with it.  This is my second decal incident encountered for this build.

I guess I have to call it quits for now and continue working on this car some other time.  I'll need to think on ways to salvage this project.  Until then...

Here is what was successfully completed this weekend...