Mike Hailwood’s MV Augusta 4 cylinder 500
The box
… and what’s in it.
Oh dear! The plastic is horrible, flash a plenty!
And the seam lines. Well not so much seam lines as two halves of the part not meeting straight.
It all looks pretty chunky but there isn’t many parts.
The ‘chrome’ is flat and dull.
Air bubbles in the clear parts.
This should be a challenge! I used to get depressed with poor quality kits but now it is a challenge.
Sir Sandalot? Are you there? The “Raser” is a glass sanding aid that gets rid of sprue gates without trace.
The top of the engine does not fit anyway it is placed. I resolved to do the best I could by centralising the rocker cover and manually aligning the cooling fins with a file, panel line scraper, ceramic scraper and Tamiya extra thin to soften the plastic and capture any plastic dust not brushed away.
First step is to sand the high points down level with the low points.
Ok, it looks rough at the moment but it will get better. Trust me!
Starting to get there!
You can see just how far out of alignment the parts are.
The outside cylinders will get a similar treatment.
Halfway there.
The gap in the sump is horrendous!
The head is done. Both of the panel line scrapers were used in remaking the cooling fins.
I am not Harry Potter so no magic will help. How the hell did this get through quality control?
That’s about as good as I can get it at the moment.
Right side fairing. This would have been sheet aluminium not fibreglass and definitely not carbon fibre!
Large sprue gate at the bottom of the fairing. It will be removed with the glass sanding tool.
Gone! Love this Raser!
So, the saddle. I have in stock two potential seat coverings. On the left is black vinyl or on the right is tanned leather. The box art indicates a red seat covering but an internet search reveals plenty of pics of black seats.
Went with the black! Before starting to fit the cover I sanded down the back of the seat so it should still fit the bike.
All done.
The frame has to be in seperate pieces to fit the engine so painting would either be before fitting or after in a mess of masking tape. I have used a tacky Microscale glue that doesn’t make a permanent bond. I will paint it like this then pull it apart to fit the engine. The swing are is held in place by a tooth pic.
The Italari chrome just looked awful. I don’t like removing it because they use a bonding agent that doesn’t like to come off with bleach. I have had part of a lung removed so I try to avoid oven cleaner if I can. 36 hours in the bleach and the silver comes off, mostly. The bonding agent is removed using an SMS ceramic scraper.
The second wheel went in today so it should be ready next year sometime!p
Fairing edges are rough and in some places sharp edged.
This is a profiler used to shape styrene and put to good use on the fairing.
A bit of sprue glue used to close the gaps under the fuel tank. Some sanding ahead and again I will use a profiler to form a rounded bottom edge around the tank.
The gaps between the engine and transmission were wide. I have used sprue glue to fill the yarning gaps.
Under the transmission was sorta kinda a little bit ribbed to indicate cooling finning but it looked awful so I have used more sprue glue and Mr Liquid Putty to smooth it out.
Ignition wiring is red so I have used SMS Wine Red Lacquer to keep the period look about the electrics.
Four carbies done with bmf.
Some details to simulate bolt heads.
The engine still has the chromed intake trumpets to add but otherwise completed.
Italari chrome is difficult to remove!
This is a fully restored version of a later machine. I hope I can get that shine!
Fuel tank with SMS 2k clear over SMS Italian Red.
The four pipes with a heat signature added
Fairing primed
Test fit of the finished exhaust pipes
Mock up
I had four goes at painting the fairing. This one was a complete disaster
Getting the decal to form to the curved fairing. UMP standard decal solution used to get the decal positioned and start conforming.
I have used UMP strong to get the decal to the next stage.
UMP Very Strong starting to have an effect
Not quite perfect but I got called away for an hour and when I got back it had adhered.
Happy with the numbers sitting parallel with the floor.
2k airbrushed on and left for 4 days to make sure it is hard before sanding and polishing.
I had a try at trying to get the inside of the fairing to look like fibreglass.
Tried to get a rough and ready look as that is what they looked like inside!
Sanded back and polished
The fairing had to be held apart with a tooth pick to get it to match the visor Perspex
Not quite finished but nearly there.
Finished
I wonder how long I will be allowed to keep it here?
Комментарии
23 21 May 2022, 07:40
LucLuke BI'll be watching. I love those old Protar kits. They're not easy to work on like Tamiya, but they build closer to the way you assemble an actual bike. Good luck!
21 May 2022, 08:32
Peter MuldoonLooks like a challenging it. That Raser looks to be doing a good job.
21 May 2022, 13:53
Peter HardyPeter, "challenging" is underselling it I think.
Martin, place Belgian beer gently in the fridge.
Kyle, welcome along mate, pull up a pew and settle in for a long ride.
21 May 2022, 23:09
bughunterNice details in this thread here, eg. the bolt heads.
Regarding the chrome: I had also once problems with de-chroming. The problem was a clear coat on top of the chrome. After I removed the paint with thinner I was able to remove the chrome.
22 June 2022, 10:23
Martin OostromRemoving Italeri chrome: 1 brake fluid bath, 1 bleach batch and 1 brake fluid bath. Easy as 1, 2, 3!
22 June 2022, 13:21
Peter HardyBugs and Marty, thanks for the tip on removing the Italari chrome! I have 2 of Casey Stoner's Ducatis in the stash so that will be used! Thanks again.
22 June 2022, 22:47
Peter HardySorry Jv, missed your comment. The Gunprimer tools I get from Canberra Hobby. Everything else I will get from around the net. Some from Hobby Tools Australia, some from BNA and various other hobby suppliers. Was there something specific you liked the look of?
8 July 2022, 09:25
Peter HardyJonn, the seat is supposed to be red but I wanted to upholster it and only had black vinyl or actual tan leather. Yep, the kit is rubbish from start to finish, such a beautiful machine deserved better. I restrained myself from adding extra details as I wanted this over and done with. I have two of Casey Stoner's Ducati's, in the same scale and also Italari which I am now dreading!
9 July 2022, 00:30
Spanjaardpatience and craftsmanship required for this kind of results, fantastic job Peter!!!
7 October 2022, 15:27
MunkyslutThat's looks bloody brilliant mate! 👍
…….been eyeing that one up for a little while, is it really that shitty?
7 October 2022, 16:00
bughunterYou are the master of gloss coats! 👍 And a very impressive work on conforming this yellow decal!
It looks so great.
7 October 2022, 16:26
Peter MuldoonJust brilliant! Your patience really paid off on this one, it look awesome.
7 October 2022, 22:45
Peter HardyMunky, it is that bad but, to be fair, I do build mostly well crafted kits. Tamiya, ICM, Copper State, Aoshima, Fujimi ect so I suppose it's all relative. I suppose I should respond better to the challenge of a roughly moulded kit but I like the challenge of a build to be in the modifications I choose to add to it. I will start posting a build shortly of a heavily modified Model T to make it replicate a 1908 Humber. The level of difficulty in that is my choice. The Italari kit is a challenge, as most Italari kits are but it does make you a better modeller!
7 October 2022, 23:10
Peter HardyBugs, I have to thank SMS and Micromark for the gloss finishes. The rest is just labour! The landing gear on the Fokker is challenging me! I'll PM you soon!
7 October 2022, 23:12
Peter HardyMichael, Peter and Kyle. I am happy with the results. The bike is actually finished now and waiting for me to paint the stand then a nice sunny day will see the finished pics posted. Watch this space.
7 October 2022, 23:14
Peter HardyBugs, 24 scale ICM. I have been sawing, cutting and grinding all day! More sawing, cutting and grinding tomorrow!
8 October 2022, 10:07
SpanjaardSimply perfect job my friend. I hope you can keep it in the living room, it looks glorious there!
9 October 2022, 15:52
Ben MWow, I can't believe the result you got from that kit! Amazing craftsmanship. One thing you didn't show is how you dealt with the bubbles in the windscreen.
9 October 2022, 16:32
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Mike the Bike’s championship winning machine
