1:35 Citroen 11CV Staff Car - Tamiya

Quickwheel Citroën 11CV Staff Car wheel masks 1:35

A masking set for painting the wheels of the French Citroën 11CV passenger car, used during the Second World War as a staff car. This is not a model or resin wheels — the masks cover the rim of the wheel so the tire can be sprayed in a shade of its own. The set is cut for the kit from Tamiya.

What makes the wheels of this car special

Unlike tracked equipment, there are no two rows of rollers here but four large wheels of a front-wheel-drive car, a design of the 1930s with tall, fairly narrow tires on small rims. The ratio is exactly the opposite of a tank: the tire takes up most of the area and the polished, smooth center of the rim is only a small circle in the middle. That is precisely why painting this subject by hand so often fails — the circular border is long and smooth, with not a single scribed line to rest a brush against, and any irregularity is visible on a large wheel at first glance. A passenger car is also usually built with a smooth, clean finish and no heavy weathering, so a mistake has nothing to hide behind.

When the wheels come up in the build

With a car the order is different from a tank. The body is sprayed first, varnished over in a gloss version, possibly given its decals — and only after all that are the wheels fitted, because otherwise they would be in the way during polishing and handling. Place the masking step almost at the end of the build, therefore: paint the wheels as a separate group of parts alongside the body, fit the masks once the paint has cured, finish spraying the tires and fit the finished wheels to the axles as one of the last operations. The advantage is that you hold the wheels in your hand and turn them as you need.

Who the set is for

• Builders of the Citroën 11CV staff car in 1:35 scale
• Modelers who want a sharp tire edge on wheeled vehicles
• Builders of dioramas with civilian and military-used equipment
• Those who do not want to line a large circle freehand with a brush

This is a masking accessory, not a kit. The model, paints and glue are not included in the package.