yvesvidal

Looking really good Kevin. Yves

I realized that I have not posted any progress for a while. Did not make much progress, but here you go: The finished painting of the various parts. Not an easy task and rather time consuming and expensive. I am using these Inspire paints which are offering a close rendering of the original Candy Gold color seen on the early CB750. These paints are from British origins (if I am not mistaken) but are available in the USA. They are expensive ($14 a bottle) and are designed for airbrush exclusively. They also require alcohol or some paint thinner to clean all your gears. First, you must apply a coat of Silver Fine with an airbrush. Once, you are satisfied with the silver coating, you start applying the Candy Fools gold which is almost transparent. Then you have to build up layers: at first it becomes yellowish to turn reddish after 6 or 7 coats. Take your time and be patient. My results are far from being perfect and truly, I should have practiced on spare parts, before doing the motorcycles. After letting the whole set dry for a day or two, you need to apply the clearcoat. Here again, I ordered 2K clearcoat from the Inspire company. At $20 a can (can only be used once or twice), it quickly becomes an expensive model. The clearcoat is highly dangerous (similar to MaxSpray 2k) and comes in a special can with two tanks. By perforating the internal bottom of the can with a pin, you are mixing the two components of the clearcoat. This stuff is identical to what is being sprayed on real automobiles and you need a mask and goggles to apply it. The clearcoat in its liquid form is not really toxic, but once pulverized, the molecules of clearcoat have a strong affinity for moisture and will try their best to reach your eyes and the inside of your lungs. So, Mask with dual cartridges and fully enclose goggles. The result is quite nice and renders the metallic paint of the Honda of early 70's. The clearcoat can be polished to a perfect finish with the polish and buffing products that you use for your car. The can only be used once or twice and its shelf life (once punctured and mixed) can be extended to a couple of days, by keeping it in the fridge with your favorite beers. The first thing was to assemble the front forks: And their headlight: The engines have also got some attention: Carburetors and air box: Notice on the Tamiya kit (picture above) how I have tried to align the engine fins. The mis-alignment is something you see in a lot of models assembled from the Tamiya kit. It is worth spending some time gluing them closely and then filing each fin so that it aligns perfectly. On the Tamiya kit, you can see how I screwed up the top and bottom of the airbox, by not laying exactly the same amount of coats. Damn it!! Finally, the frames, still trying to build in parallel as much as possible: Yves

My favorite is Araldite (In Europe). It comes in two flavors: slow curing (24 hours) and fast curing (5 minutes). The slow curing is the only one to consider. I have tried various brands in the USA, but never found one that came close to Araldite. Yves

Magnifique !! How about the colors of the wires? Is that the original way, Alfa Romeo wired their cars? Yves

Indeed. Not an easy one. Yves

Superb KPNuts. What a resurrection... I am happy that you could get your model back and turn it into this very unique piece of art. Yves

Very nice. It has an incredible look, as if it had a long existence on the seas and a soul! Very nice model. Yves

I realized I had not posted any updates, recently. Reasons were multiple: - Waiting for parts and materials to finish the submersible. - Started the construction of two motorcycles Honda CB750 at the same time (what was I thinking...?) - Started restoring another pinball machine.... Bally Playboy 1978 Anyway, a major milestone was achieved recently with the gluing of the conning tower on the deck: It is starting to look like a Type-VIIc now: Next will be the rigging, that I have been preparing, while waiting for some elastic thread. Yves

There are multiple beautiful Build logs in the https://modelshipworld.com/forum/10-build-logs-for-ship-model-kits/ With a little search you will find them. Yves

Superb. Your explanations will come handy, when I resume the building of my Alfa Romeo. Yves

Working on the carburetor ramp, on the Tamiya kit: very nice set, realistically molded although quite complex to assemble. Parts need to be filed to allow for the glue to grip: And finally, some thin bands of soldering wire to simulate the clamp rings. Their respective position will be refined, once I glued the carburetor ramp to the engine. Here is a picture depicting the typical 4 carburetors of a 4 in-line motorcycle engine (not for a CB750). TAMIYA has correctly recreated on their kit, the cold-start operating lever. The other picture shows the main components of a traditional motorcycle carburetor. I suspect that the majority of the readers of MSW, have at least once taken apart a carburetor and perhaps try to put it back together.... 😉 As a kid, I remember filing and polishing the intake manifold of my 50 CC Derbi to increase its performance. I was then able to reach 75 KM/H, instead of the 45 KM/H authorized by law. Another aspect of the French law on Mopeds was that the diameter of the carburetor funnel could not go above 14 mm. All the young people were modifying their DellOrto carburetors with a 19 mm retrofit kit, from Italy. Highly illegal, but so exciting..... Anything was good to get a few more KM/H of top speed.... Yves

Beautiful 2nd planking. You are right, that hull can remain as it is without painting. Yves

This is a beautifully planked deck Jolene. Very nice work. Yves

Really nice Kevin, very realistic and beautiful. Yves

Very nice. I love these Circus trains. Yves

Not much progress on the bikes, but I finished the seats. The seat of the CB750 is quite unique and very comfortable, for an early 70's bike: None of the manufacturers provided the metal decoration that goes all around the vinyl seats. I added these with a thick piece of solder, glued with Cyano-Acrylate. The MPC seat, simpler in its representation, was enhanced with two little screws of 1.8 mm to simulate the anchors of the passenger handle. The Tamiya seat provides a real handle for the passenger, made of some kind of rubbery plastic. The Tamiya seat has a shell underneath and will open on the frame, whereas the MPC is just an hollow shell, glued to the frame. Yves

I fully agree with your assessment of the deck situation. I understand why Chris would provide a "perfect" deck in the kit, as most builders will want their model to look perfect. However, for a fishing boat, the reality is somewhat different. Yves

That is amazing. Such perfection on a small boat.... Pure jewel. Yves

Beautiful. I love the race cars of that era.... No computer or sophisticated technology.... Just pure driving abilities and guts. Yves

What? A Ducati which is not red? Sacrilege.... Yves

Quick update on the MPC kit. Assembly of the Mikuni carburetors. Quite simplistic on the MPC kit, and I added some collars, using very fine soldering wires: The air box is clearly reminiscent of the K0 model, the early CB750 Four motorcycles. On the K1 and later models, Honda replaced that painted box with a black ribbed and less angular box: K0 airbox on the left and K1-K4 airbox to the right To simplify, MPC does not provide different size rubber hoses, as does Italeri and before them Protar. So, throttle controls and fuel hoses all look the same. Yves

We will be following you, no doubt. Yves

You did a great job with this vessel. I built mine 35 years ago and I think it needs a little refresh. The exact helicopter is not yet available in 1/48, but you can find approaching models. Maybe some parts of the existing kits can be used to improve on the Billing Boats helicopter. Yves

Yes, those guys were true heroes and aces. Yves

Okay, then you need to provide us with a Build log. This is such a rare and enormous piece that you have to share it with us. Please...please....Please. Yves