Sneak into the workshop of "Kusaka Engineering" which elaborately reproduces the spirit of GT-R "RB 26 engine" on one sixth scale

The Nissan sports car "Skyline GT - R" series is one of Japan 's prestigious cars that has kept legends and is a car that has not only Japan but many fans all over the world. The so-called GT-R soul can also be said to be an in-line 6-cylinder engine passed down by successive models, which is equipped with models called so-called "Hakosuka" and "Kenmeri"S20"Type engine and the" R32 GT-R "which was revived in 1989 and was installed after" R32 GT-R "RB 26 DETT"Type engine is indispensable for talking about GT - R.

One day, manufacturers who precisely reproduce such GT-R engines on a 1/6 scale "Kusaka EngineeringGet rumor that there is Tottori prefecture. When I visited the workshop to see the real thing, I was overwhelmed by that commitment.

Engineering Modeling Division 1: 6 Engine Model
http://kusaka-eng.com/engine/

I came to Yonago city, Tottori prefecture, where there is Nikita Engineering. On the left side of the photo is the building where the company enters, beyond that the highest mountain in the Chugoku district "Oyama (Daisen)" rises.


This time, we visited Tottori Prefecture Yonago City, Japan Tottori Prefecture's local independent administrative corporation "Tottori Prefecture Industrial Technology Center Machine Materials Research Institute". Our company is headquartered in Kagoshima Engineering.


Sadako Sasaki, the company's representative director, responded to the interview. Using the experiences of manufacturing at the electrical parts production company, we will develop electric-appliance parts and various models, and in 2011 we will officially license from Nissan to develop GT-R related products and develop engine models from 2015 · It is manufactured and sold.


Even so, it is surprising that a number of engine models under construction are placed in the room. It seems that all these are assembled one by one manually by Ms. Sasaki.


A 1/6 model of "RB 26 DETT" engine which is a symbol of GT-R. Race activity and tuning with a normal engine on the left and a subsidiary of Nissan on the rightNismoBy the model of tuning engine "S2" of RB 26 by, if you like the car it should already have a smile "grin" at this stage.


The model has a total length of 130 mm and it is about this size when you take it in your hand. Resin and acrylic are used for main parts, and metal parts are used for actuators (gold parts). The routing of twin turbo which is the feature of RB 26 is reproduced splendidly.


Each part is elaborately reproduced, and the closer you see it, the more you sige as "This is a model ... ...." Especially the black dull shine around the cam cover and the plug cover thinks that "Is it really a metal part?"


Also, in actual cars, the parts manufactured by the so-called "casting" are finished in a textured texture with its surface rough as it matches the real thing. This is a reproduction of "sashimi" which is a trace of sand mold used for casting, realism is enhanced by stacking up such details.


"Intake manifold" on the intake side which takes in air to the engine and "six throttle chamber" are also reproduced in real. Even more surprising is how to reproduce it.


I used laser-cut acrylic parts at the 6 th throttle part and it was finished by painting, but this small part was made by bonding 3 parts + left and right parts. It is a place where the number of parts can be reduced if omitting the shape, but it seems to be a design that can not be omitted in order to reproduce details with an edge effect, these fine parts tickle the heart of the GT-R owner That is why.


The "crank angle sensor" around the cam cover, the generator "alternator", and "turbine blade" visible inside the turbo are precisely reproduced.


An important part around the turbo "actuator" is created by cutting brass solid wood.


The exhaust pipe "outlet pipe" after the turbine and the heat shield plate mounted there. The exhaust pipe and the heat shield plate are separately painted in different colors, and also the shape of the heat shield plate is very real, it is strange as it really seems to be made by bending the steel plate by pressing.


And here is the model of tuning engine "S2" by Nismo. In this model, the paint around the cam cover has been changed to gray, but in fact this painting is done the same "crystal painting" as the actual car.


Crystal painting is also called "ajizi paint", a method of applying paint, applying a heat of 140 degrees to "paint" the paint and bake it. The fine unevenness that appeared on the surface is just like an actual car, but it seems that trial and error has been made of paint formulation many times to reproduce the same texture on this scale.


By doing baked painting, it is impossible to perform crystal painting with resin that is sensitive to heat. So in Kusaka Engineering, it seems that realizing crystal painting just like an actual car by recreating the cam cover with a new metal part. It is said that manufacturing of this part is entrusted to a professional contractor, and it is said that monozukuri is realized that realizes both realism and cost.


The point that the exclusive nameplate is attached also points to the model of the Nismo specification. It is also possible to order a 1/6 model with the same specification as GT-R owned by him, and the voice of joy called "It is exactly the same as your own GT-R engine!" According to the specification, the shape of the "crank angle sensor" next to the nameplate is reproduced finely.


It also reproduces the "flywheel" around the engine. There is an extraordinary commitment on this flywheel.


The flywheel is made of painted finish by cutting the acrylic plate with laser. However, it is impossible to cut out this shape from one acrylic plate, of course ....


In fact it seems to cut out multiple parts and paste them at the end to reproduce the shape. The transparent part on the right is the material of the acrylic board, but in fact it is already in the state that several parts are already assembled at this stage.


A part of the parts that make up the RB 26 model that many clogged stuck. A major manufacturer can not deal with it, detailed fineness (too fine?) Is being built, but it will be transmitted even if this model is in front of the actual model.


Main parts such as engine block are made with "Resin cast" which pours resin into silicon type.


In the case of Kusaka Engineering, it seems that mass production is being carried out by creating 3D data from three dimensional measurement of the real RB 26 engine, creating silicon type from original size of 1/6 scale output using 3D printer . Incidentally, the GT-R emblem mat with silicon type is also one of the products of Kusaka Engineering.


Mr. Sasaki talks in front of part racks categorized by type. He seems to have been good at model making since a long time ago, but he still seems to have 100 or more plastic models stacked in his box still at home. Although he seems to be engaged in manufacturing engine models making full use of that technique, I aim to establish a sixth scale engine model as one business model, not activities in a purely hobbyist world It is said that there is. In a form involving surrounding suppliers, we are aiming to deliver new business from Tottori that is not a big city like Tokyo or Osaka, and to provide more detailed customer service that major manufacturers can not deal with.


Such a commitment also appears in the model of "S20 type engine" which was installed in the original GT - R and Fairlady Z etc. The model is set on a wooden table with the plate, but this table was ordered from a furniture maker in Shimane prefecture and it was cut out from solid walnut material of 20 mm thickness. In addition, letters can be put on the plate according to the customer's request, and you can feel detailed customer correspondence around here.


Six exhaust pipes "Equal length exhaust manifold" draw beautiful lines. This model is an engine model installed in "Fairlady Z432", it seems that the dual muffler specification which will be two mufflers will be reproduced.


6 plug cables are crawled beautifully in the upper part of the engine. Of course this is finished manually.


6-cylinder carburetor is installed on the intake side


The funnel part of the carburetor said that it is made by scraping aluminum material.


I saw side by side with the actual shape of the funnel of the S20 type engine which became the original form.


The funnel part of the model is surprising since it is said that it is reproduced by two parts, aluminum shaving out parts and parts cut out with acrylic laser cut. It seems that it can be said that it is a built-in that can not be handled by a very large manufacturer.


It is really felt that the carburetor where such built-in was done is wearing an air cleaner and making it invisible.


This model also uses metal parts for cam cover. When the painting is completed, the paint is on the whole surface, but ......


Push the paper file with the sense of the fingertip, cut the part of the character and the line and process it so that the metal ingot comes out.


In this way, the cam cover which character emerges is reproduced. It seems that some experience is necessary to process beautiful hair line so that a fine feeling is required also in the scraping condition at this time.


Personally I got stuck in the part of this black rubber tube. I was surprised that "Do you reproduce so far!?"


It is a part made by winding a thin iron wire around a rubber tube with a diameter of several millimeters, but with this there is a difference in cloudiness in finish.


When the actual owner sees this state, it is a part that is surprised uniformly, "The feeling of this golden fixed belt is well reproduced ~". It differs from the actual shape, but by reproducing similar parts in the same color shade, the fact that the owner of the real machine only knows the point of "this! did.


It was the goods such as GT-R objet made of this acrylic which became the origin of the engine model of Kusaka engineering. It was lighted up from the inside with LED, and furthermore it was a product that used GT-R's genuine emblem which was "out of door", and was produced under license from Nissan officially.


And a book shelf (bookshelf) that became a topic between GT-R rides. It is a luxurious construction made of solid wood using a meeting with the furniture maker in the prefecture, and it is made of synthetic leather used for automobile seat around which GT-R embroidery is applied It is wrapped. The same product collaborated with the magazine "GT-R Magazine", and he said that despite the price of about 40,000 yen, it recorded strong sales. You can store 40 GT-R Magazines on the main body, and you can use it as a small chair with casters attached at the bottom.


The handle of the drawer to be combined is also reproduced with the silhouette of GT - R. In addition, this part not only cut out the metal, but also realized the quality and handiness by plating finish. There is not a half way to stick to it.


We are making products sticking to this kind. In addition to the genuine Nissan and Nismo engines, we have a lineup of RB 26 complete engine models by tune-up manufacturers such as Mine's (Mines) and Tomei Powered. Both have reproduced differences in detailed specifications and that brands and types will be expanded in the future. The price of the model varies depending on the specification, but it is from the tax exclusion price of 30,000 yen.


In addition, models of 'phantom engines' that you can not see usually are also planned. This mockup is a model that reproduced "TC24-B1Z" which OS Giken succeeded in making the twin cam of the engine for the first time in the world based on Nissan's L28 type engine. It is modeled by measuring the real thing of the engine which only a few units exist in the world.

At that time it was an age when the SOHC type was common even in the so-called "high performance engine", but OS Giken succeeded in developing the DOHC type engine ahead of the manufacturer. That legendary engine is modeled like this.


On the day of the interview, I had the actual development site showed a little bit. In the warehouse, cylinder blocks used for 3D measurements etc were placed.


A flywheel fitted with a clutch and an exhaust manifold (exhaust pipe) etc were also placed. Although we do the work of measuring these parts with the 3D scanner and converting it to data, the scenery of the actual processing etc. was indeed a shooting filming indeed.


For 3D data conversion, a high-performance three-dimensional digitizer capable of non-contact measurement in micron units is used.


In the case of Kusaka Engineering, models have been lineup mainly on 6-cylinder engines, but the other day, the first four-cylinder model "FJ20ET" has been added. This engine was mounted on the 6th Skyline (DR 30 type), also known as "iron mask", and was called "the strongest skyline in history"Skyline 2000 RS - TURBOIt is the world's first engine with a 4-cylinder DOHC turbocharger for mass-produced vehicles mounted on the vehicle.


In making engine models, we measured data from the actual machine of FJ20ET and created 3D data, and said that they are performing prototype molding with the latest 3D printers. In addition, head covers and surge tanks in particular are made of metal white metal to reproduce the crystal paint, and it is said that all of the paintings from assembly are done manually by our company and cooperating partners.


When I visited the interview, I was amazed by the elaborate reproduction condition by handmade and it was a point of extraordinary commitment. This time I watched the pictures of the model and covered the things that I thought as "hoops", but when I saw the real thing, that surprise is further up. GT-R is a car that is also popular overseas, according to what I heard, it seems that inquiries from Dubai and Europe have also arrived. In the future it seems that the model expansion including the brand other than Nissan is also in view, so I'd like to pay attention to what kind of model will come out from the brand from Tottori prefecture.