FRECCIA CELESTE 1927 Bianchi 350 cc racing motorcycle by Ras Ambrioso - FINISHED - Protar - 1:9 scale

[CDW]

8 minutes ago, yvesvidal said:

Yes, these Protar kits are amazing. I would say this kit was probably manufactured in the early 70's if not before.

 

Yves

There is an example of a Protar Bianchi 350cc on Ebay right now, but from the photographs of it does not appear to contain metal parts, just plastic.

[Ras Ambrioso]

 The kit has a mix of materials. The frame and suspension are metal. Then there is black plastic, grey plastic, chrome plastic and finally rubber plus the metal screws and nuts in 7 different sizes and a sheet of decals. A little bit of everything.  The first kit I bought in the 90’s was new but this one was bought from a modeler that probably got frustrated at the difficult assembly. I will check the box and the literature to see if there is any information on the date of the kit. 

[Ras Ambrioso]

This motorcycle engine is a jewel of details. It has 52 pieces and puts it together in 6 sub-assemblies provided with holes, matching pins or mini-screws. It was a real challenge trying hold these separate pieces while using the superglue or the screwdriver or both. Also the pieces alignment was necessary but, the kit itself was, in some places, was inaccurate. So there was a lot of filing and cussing. Finally it all came together ,I think, in a nice way. The photos are not of the best quality because, by the time I took the pictures I was exhausted .

And there is still more to go in this engine so I will keep you all informed

[shipman]

Watching with interest

 

My pal built a fully functional 1:1 Brough Superior ss100 from scratch, only buying bare engine castings, wheel rims, spokes and levers. Took him 10 years. The 11-50 is his too.

 

 

 

Edited March 16, 2023 by shipman
new copy and photo

[Ras Ambrioso]

Shipman, those bikes are gorgeous.

[shipman]

Aren't they.

 

Like others here, I too built several Protar kits back in the seventies, when they were much cheaper.

 

Unfortunately their kits are a bit clunky compared with, say, Tamiya's offerings of today, yet many of those date back 40 years now.

 

I have seen some splendid renditions of the Bianchi, but unless you are kidding yourself, the kit out of the box, compared to photo's of the real thing, isn't very accurate at all and don't justify the cost.

Sad but true.

 

However, I'm sure you'll have hours of pleasure building it and I look forward to the rest of your build.

[Ras Ambrioso]

Hours of pleasure yes but, you are right, the kit parts are not as accurate as they should be and that is creating problems in the assembly. The engine assembly was in three parts,: the cylinder, the head and the overhead cams enclosure. When assembled (see post #33)the total height of the engine was off by close to 1.5 mm of the required height to fit between the mounting bolts and the the bottom of the gas tank support bar in the frame. My solution was to file off one of the cooling fins lowering the head. Now I need to counter sink the cylinder bolts so that the head sits flat over the cylinder. Hopeful that will work. Will keep you all posted.

[Keith Black]

 So, you're going for the high compression engine, that bike is gonna scream across the bookshelf. 

[Ras Ambrioso]

Keith, I had the same thought while sawing off the “extra” fin.

[CDW]

49 minutes ago, Ras Ambrioso said:

Keith, I had the same thought while sawing off the “extra” fin.

My brother and I both owned Panhead Harley Davidson motorcycles in the early '70's. Mine was a 1964 FLH model Duo Glide and his was a 1958 FL model Dou Glide. The FLH signified high compression versus the FL was standard compression. I can tell you for sure that the FLH was a much higher performance engine than the standard one. In the photos, his was the red 1958 Panhead. Mine was the black 1964 Panhead.

[Ras Ambrioso]

Pretty bike. I have owned three Harleys, the last one being a trike as I was getting too old and unbalanced for two wheels. I truly enjoyed riding them. However, in the Florida summer, they are hot as hell on your legs. My wife, who still rides, had two Harleys one of them was impractical jewel: a Honda Fury. I say impractical because the gas tank held less than 2 gallons that gave it a range of 10-15 miles and also there was no way I was going to ride in the back.

But, lets get back to topic. Today I reached the top of frustration. After spending close to a a week (roughly 15 man hours) with more, filing, sawing, sanding and cussing I managed to place the motor in the frame. 

So, you will say, whats wrong with ?  If you look closely, the driving sprocket is on the right side of the frame.

Horror 🤢🤢🤢

So, is back to bench to an easy fix since the engine is supported with screws. Thanks God. Previous to this, I had installed the oil tank in the frame. It came loose while doing the motor installation. Following is how that looked.

You can notice how my pre-painted frame has suffered all this handling. Touch up will be required but the bike now looks "weathered". LOL

 

[shipman]

AAAARG! Engine in frame BACKWARDS!

[Montaigne]

But that’s actually a good thing: it will be the worlds fastest racing motorcycle in reverse!

[yvesvidal]

Ras,

 

do not feel bad about some mistakes. We all do them.

 

Now, for the ultimate perfection in building these difficult kits, a Japanese modeler Kim, is in my humble opinion the BEST motorcycle modeler on the planet. Take a look at his web site: 

 

http://kimshouse7015.com/

 

In Garage 2, near the bottom of the page, the Freccia Celeste kit is built and presented: 

 

I have drooled over Kim's pictures so many times.... 

 

Ras, I am presenting this work as a reference of what can be achieved with these kits and a lot of extra parts. I still admire your work and sympathize with your struggles in trying to put together these very old Protar kits.

 

Yves

[Egilman]

Ras, I've owned and rode two cycles in my younger days, the first was a Harley M-50, loved that motorcycle... from back in the days when Harley made some of the best dirt/trail bikes around...

 

Got a little older and built a 650 Triumph Bonneville, tuned engine, extended springer fork etc. etc... Had a very distinctive sound.... Classic chopper when building a harley chopper was way to expensive for a teenager and Triumphs were cheap and easy to work on....

 

My brother still has his 650 Maico Modena.... (and will never part with it)....

 

Wish I still had either of mine today..... I don't have any pics of it wish I did...

 

Your classic is going to turn out beautiful.... Early Protar kits had their issues just like any of the early manufacturers...

 

You will do this one justice I think my friend....

Edited March 23, 2023 by Egilman

[Ras Ambrioso]

Well guys, thanks a lot for your comments and support. Today I went back, after a good night's sleep, and turned the engine around. It was much easier than I thought thanks, in part, to the fact that the sides of the frame were not yet glued, only screwed.

Yves, the picture you posted made me cry. Kim is definitely a master modeler comparable to Valeriy or Wefalk in our ship modeling. I hope my Bianchi comes out as pretty. In looking at Kim's Bianchi, I can see how tight the engine fits in the frame.

Following is the result of todays work.

I took the picture over the instruction sheet to show you how easy it looked in the print. Next time I will be a little more careful in analyzing the kit parts before blindly starting the assembly thinking it will all fit. More details have to be added to complete the engine. To make me feel better, I went ahead and assembled the rear fender.

Again the little pins to secure the rear seat (????) were too short and I ended having to glue each strap to the pin stub.

[Ras Ambrioso]

The Bianchi is starting to look like a motorcycle.

The bike has two fuel tanks that straddle the bike's frame. The separation of the fuel tanks was done to  prevent the fuel from shifting to one side on curves, thus affecting the bike's stability.

The third little tank on top of the fuel tanks is, supposedly, another oil tank that is to be piped to the cylinder double overhead camshaft (DOHC)and is used for "drop oil lubrication" (as per Wikipedia). I am interested in your comments about this tank. 

Next I will be installing all this equipment in the frame and touch up some of the damage that resulted from the assembly. And then I will go to real challenge of this project : the spoke wheels. And after that I will add the piping and wiring. The kit furnishes black rubber material but I think I will use electric wire with different color of insulation to identify their purpose. And that will be the last challenge.

 

[Keith Black]

5 minutes ago, Ras Ambrioso said:

I am interested in your comments about this tank. 

 Cute little tank, Ras.

 

 Lubrication design was a bit dodgy in the early transpiration years. Like Chevrolets early 235 six cylinder engine with 'splash' rod bearing lubrication system. The oil pressure from the mains entered the oil pan via a tube and connected to a bank of six tubes, one for each rod bearing. As each rod rode upward oil squirted out the tubes and hit a open slotted cover that connected over each rod. The pan's oil tubes had to be targeted using a designed jig that fit on the pan and over the tubes where they could be accurately adjusted where they would shoot straight into the rod cover openings. As  I said, dodgy but compared to some British sports cars.......... 

[CDW]

38 minutes ago, Keith Black said:

 Cute little tank, Ras.

 

 Lubrication design was a bit dodgy in the early transpiration years. Like Chevrolets early 235 six cylinder engine with 'splash' rod bearing lubrication system. The oil pressure from the mains entered the oil pan via a tube and connected to a bank of six tubes, one for each rod bearing. As each rod rode upward oil squirted out the tubes and hit a open slotted cover that connected over each rod. The pan's oil tubes had to be targeted using a designed jig that fit on the pan and over the tubes where they could be accurately adjusted where they would shoot straight into the rod cover openings. As  I said, dodgy but compared to some British sports cars.......... 

My old '51 Chevy had those splash rods you described.

[Ras Ambrioso]

I have been scratching my head about the little blue tank on top of the gas tank. I have thought that it was part of an oil drop lubrication system. But, today, I looked again at the piping diagram in the instructions and saw that the hose from this tank was going directly to the carburetor. Then I remembered that, in my engineering days, I did a project in Venezuela building an MTBE plant in one of their refineries. MTBE was used as an additive to gasoline to improve the octane which is adding oxygen to the fuel. This chemical was popular for a time( the 70's) but was a dangerous and expensive process and it was substituted by ethanol, not as effective but much cheaper and abundant. I can imagine that during the 20's racers were always looking how to improve the efficiency of their machines and used these kind of additives. So, I think that little blue tank was feeding some additive to the combustion to improve the performance of the engine. Also, since I already increased compression by reducing the cylinder height, I am sure that the bike could really use another little boost and Freccia Celeste will be as fast as a "bat out of hell. LOL😂😂😂

 

Any comments?

[CDW]

I suppose the tank could have been used to introduce a lead additive to the fuel mixture but then I wonder why it was not simply mixed in the main fuel tank. Pretty sure lead additives were developed as early as WW1 for aircraft engines, to prevent knock/pre ignition. Greatly improved engine performance. 

[mtaylor]

I'm just curious.. was that engine a 2 cycle or 4 cycle?   If a 2 cycle, might it have been to inject oil into the cylinders???

[Keith Black]

 Ras, If it feeds directly to the carburetor I'm inclined to believe it's a reserve gas tank.  

[Montaigne]

15 minutes ago, Keith Black said:

 Ras, If it feeds directly to the carburetor I'm inclined to believe it's a reserve gas tank.  

I would think so too, also considering that it looks as if it has a valve. 

[CDW]

Those early engines were not fuel efficient, so I agree, it's probably a reserve tank.

 

[shipman]

I don't believe one of these machines survives.

However an excellent picture of this model, previously shown here, makes the function of this small tank obvious, at least to the that builder, and makes sense to me.

It is a separate oil tank, feeding the valve gear in the head, by gravity. In those days lubrication was primitive, being total loss systems. The head is above the main oil tank outlet, hence the higher supplementary tank.

That model......the oil line is clearly evident.....the 'valve' on the little tank is actually a hand operated injection pump, again a common period feature.

 

Edited March 29, 2023 by shipman
Addition

[shipman]

Oh, Mark, how many two stroke engines had such obvious double overhead camshafts?

[Keith Black]

 Shipman, in post #50 Ras said the instructions show the piping from the little tank going directly to the carburetor. I think what you're seeing as a hand pump is actually a shutoff valve that can be opened if and when the main gas tanks were to run dry and closed when the main tanks are filled, IMHO.  

[Ras Ambrioso]

This what I enjoy this forum. After reading your responses I believe the little tank serves as a reserve tank. The engine is a four stroke and, if you look at the photos below, you will see that the oil pump feeds the OHCS and that the tank feed the carburetor.

Thanks a lot for your likes and responses. Like I said before this is a complicated build.

[CDW]

Way back in the day when I first bought my Panhead, my engine stopped abruptly while riding down the highway in the dark of night. I kicked and kicked trying to restart it. My brother asked, are you out of gas? I replied that was unlikely as I had just put .50 cents worth in that day (gas was .25 a gallon then). To my dismay, I learned my avg fuel consumption was 25 miles per gallon. The fuel tanks only held 3.5 gallons, so my range was just 90 miles, max. Racing bikes probably sucked down fuel like mad.