Lotus 6

Lotus 6 by SMTS

Hand built available RL109M
The was hugely significant in the history of Colin Chapman’s company as it was the first production model available and this very welcome release from SMTS is equally important as the car is a subject which has been neglected by model makers for decades. The main body parts are very crisply moulded with precise panel lines and an excellent dry fit of the chassis to body and the seat into the cockpit. The smaller parts are also nice and clean and the wheels are particularly impressive. Photo-etch is provided for the windscreen frame, dashboard, grille and various fasteners and also for the front mudguards which were made from simple flat aluminium on the real thing and will need carefully rolling to shape here. The decal sheet includes number plates for the first two works cars built along with one of the more successful early customer cars and there are also numerous race numbers to choose from, but you will need to work from photos as there are no placement drawings in the instructions, just a clear exploded assembly diagram and some colour suggestions. The hand built is cleanly finished and is modelled on the original car ‘XML 6’ as raced by Hazel Williams (later Mrs Chapman) at Silverstone. The car actually ran in bare aluminium but is painted a very fine silver rather than polished as the instructions suggest, which is a practical solution for production. If the pre-orders were anything to go by, this should be a great success.