yvesvidal

Talking about the 2CV, it was notorious for a very nasty leak of fuel, on its cylinders. My brother used to have one and the end of the car was pretty dramatic. The car stalled at a Stop sign (the issue was always happening at low speed or while idling) and while trying to crank it up again, he noticed a very bad burning smell. He had just enough time to grab his wallet in the glove box, open the door and escape the car, as it started burning on the road, near the junction. He watched it completely surrounded by flames, from a safe distance. That was his last attempt at owning a 2 CV. He owns two Traction Avant 11 CV and 15 CV and a CX). The 2 CV could be a romantic car, but you had to make sure that piece of fuel hose above the engine was changed on a regular basis. Yves

Bob, this has been discussed further up, in this thread. E-Bay is an option (expensive) but there are other more affordable ways to get them. Yves

As you probably know, Model Motorcars just came up with a set of real steel leaf springs for the Alfa Romeo kit. They are superb but their price is a strong repellent to say the least... Yves

The Dutch people (as you most likely know) have a passion for all old Citroen cars, including the Traction, 2CV, DS and CX. It is not surprising that this old French commercial would be sub-titled in Dutch language. Yves

What a lovely boat. I hope you make the kit available to USA customers in the coming months. Yves

Folks, The project is still going on. Because of other side activities, I have not been able to dedicate much time for it. I am working on the rigging and will then move to the guns. After that, a few more details inside and we can call it done. Yves

Your story sounds like a fairy tale. This is so great, that you would first find the skeleton of the kit and later on the original box with all the missing parts. Great build so far. I am following with interest. Yves

Bill, Welcome to the craziness (some call it art or passion...) of plastic scale ship modeling. I built that Revell model some 50 years ago (when I was still a little kid) and it is not an easy model to go back into plastic modeling, after a long stop. After finishing that kit, you may be tempted to acquire a Tamiya kit of the USS Missouri for a more realistic and easier model to build. I have posted a picture of the Revell kit I built, same model, different artwork: Yves

Very interesting solution for actuating the rudder. I hope the rudder on your model will work like the actual boat. Yves

You did a fantastic job at recreating the specific look of the alloy on the gearbox. It is so realistic. You truly are an artist. Yves

Congratulations, you have made some incredible progress. The boat is almost ready. Yves

Great build log. I cannot believe I missed it until today.... Great idea to re-use some of the Bismarck parts to detail your model, too. And, welcome to Asheville, NC. It is a great place to be (New Age mecca of the East Coast) and I go there quite often. Yves

Fascinating subject that you are building. And I love the fact that you are building it at the same scale than your previous model. This is going to be a wonderful fleet. Yves

Interesting how the Bentley seems small compared to the Porsche. It could be an optical illusion due to the angle of the picture. Porsche Carrera are tiny cars and in no way can compare with the incredible size of these early 20th century monsters. Yves

Especially when you add Sales Tax on "used" items and the shipping which is traditionally plain ridiculous. E-Bay is a lost cause, even though I loved it and it has served me so many times. Yves

Fantastic work KPNuts. What a departure from the original model that you got back from your friend. I have to say, I like your latest version a hundred times more that the original kit. Is the 1976 Porsche your next model? Yves

The Masterpiece continues.... It is simply amazing of perfection, precision and beauty. Yves

What a fantastic project !!! Yves

Very nice gift from MSW. Happy building ! Yves

Kevin, this is my favorite yawl, of all times. I will be following with passion, your upcoming build log. Yves

I was visiting the Ducati dealership this morning and they had a 1299 (or something comparable) at more than $30K with lots of options. The kit is only a fraction of that price.... 😉 Yves

Superb model Kevin. Extremely realistic and a wonderful work on the lighting. Now, what is the next model? Yves

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