1:24 Cromodora CD30 13 + tires

When the tires come with the set

A complete wheel saves the most time exactly where searching would otherwise swallow it. The diameter of the rim, the inner edge and the height of the sidewall are matched to one another, so there is no trying out whether a tire from the spares box will stretch on at all. At the thirteen-inch size that is particularly practical, because the differences between individual tires are barely half a millimeter in this scale and yet they decide how the car sits.

The effect on how the body sits

The finished assembly has a fixed outer diameter and that determines the ride height. It is therefore advisable to stand the car on all four wheels dry first, look at it from the side at eye level and only then decide on any work on the suspension. Shortening a stub or packing an axle by a tenth of a millimeter is a simple operation, yet it changes the character of a model more than an hour of work on the body. The toe has to be matched as well, so that the front wheels do not each point somewhere different.

Working with the paint

The safest sequence is to spray the rim on its own, the tire separately, and to join them only at the end. The side of the tire looks better in a dark gray shade than in pure black, while the tread takes a somewhat lighter touch with a hint of dust. The rim flange repays fine scratching, because that is what scrapes along curbs. Let the hubcap stay glossy, so that it makes a point of contrast against the matte surroundings. Finally the whole wheel is unified with a light matte coat, which wipes away the difference in reflectivity between the two parts.