Harry P. Posted June 22, 2011 Share Posted June 22, 2011 I'm just getting started with this kit... it's the MPC release of the old Airfix kit, 1/12 scale. The model is very simplified; a lot of detail is missing, and what is there is in many instances flat-out wrong. I'm not going to go crazy with this one... I'll fix a few things, add some missing details, but it won't be a full-blown superdetail job. Anyway... I have most of the engine pretty much done and installed in the chassis. The biggest problem with the kit engine is that much of what should have been separate pieces, like the intake manifold, for instance, are molded in place, making detail painting a nightmare. Here on the right side you can see how the supercharger is mounted way up front, it actually sits out in front of the radiator. The carbs are mounted on the left side of the supercharger, so where the carbs on the non-blown engine would normally mount, there are a pair of supercharger relief valves instead (thanks to Skip for that info...)... Over on the other side, the ignition wires are routed through a metal loom to keep them protected from the exhaust manifold. That loom is completely missing in the kit, so I scratchbuilt it from aluminum tube and wire insulation, then painted it copper per reference photos. The loom's mounting brackets are made of strips of sheet aluminum (cut from a pie pan!) and the "bolts" are pinheads: On the real car the leaf springs are wound with cord (to keep road grit from getting between the spring leaves, I suppose). The kit springs have this detail molded in place, but there are two problems: the cord detail is very shallow and indistinct, and there is a prominent mold seam line running along the springs lengthwise. Obviously if I removed that seam line I'd wind up ruining the molded-in cord detail... so I decided to actually wrap the springs. I used plain old white cotton sewing thread, and once the wrappings were done I painted the thread with a thinned mix of acrylic craft paints (green and black): The gas tank is a real problem. On the real car the tank is covered by wire mesh, probably to protect the tank from rocks and stuff. The external fuel lines running from the tank are very obvious on the real car, too. On the kit, the wire mesh and fuel lines are all molded in place. Not good, especially the fuel lines, which in real life are actually away from the tank's surface by several inches. So I assembled the tank, then used a razor saw to cut off the molded-in fuel lines and sandpaper to remove all the molded-in wire mesh detail. Once I had the tank completely smoothed out, I started the process of recreating the external details. I'm just getting started... I installed new "wire mesh," which is actually fiberglass window screen, and the metal "edges" of the mesh is aluminum wire. The raised straps around the left and right side walls of the tank are strip styrene, the flange around the filler neck is sheet styrene and the filler neck itself is a piece cut from the body of a Bic pen! I still need to add a few more straps that wrap around the tank over the mesh panels, and recreate the tank mounting straps on the left and right side walls of the tank (they were also molded in place and were lost when I sanded the tank smooth). Once finished this whole assembly will be painted green, as on the real car: More photos as they become available... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DiscoSpud Posted June 22, 2011 Share Posted June 22, 2011 I'm definately watching this! I love the Old blown Bentleys. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
comp1839 Posted June 22, 2011 Share Posted June 22, 2011 for "not" being a full blown super detail job. it certainly looks pretty spectacular to me! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cato Posted June 22, 2011 Share Posted June 22, 2011 For "not going crazy" - you're going crazy! Great to see your work and I know you've got great references to work from. Now make sure you photo this one when finished and put it on the magazine's cover with the full build inside! So we can always look back on it and enjoy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harry P. Posted June 22, 2011 Author Share Posted June 22, 2011 For "not going crazy" - you're going crazy! Great to see your work and I know you've got great references to work from. Now make sure you photo this one when finished and put it on the magazine's cover with the full build inside! So we can always look back on it and enjoy. Actually I'm slacking off on this one. All of the missing oil lines, distributor linkages, etc. that are on the real car... fuggetaboutit! I'm not going to bother... the engine as you see it here is pretty much as detailed as I'm going to go with it. If this was a 1/8 Pocher I would definitely "go the extra mile," but on this one I think I'll cut a few corners. Besides, once it's finished and sitting on the shelf, the hood will rarely, if ever, be raised... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zoom Zoom Posted June 23, 2011 Share Posted June 23, 2011 I have a few friends who have this model with full intentions on building, but...never happens. Finally I get to see one built. I have several of the 1/24 version; something tells me the 1/12 kit is based on the 1/24, just larger. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Teresi Posted June 23, 2011 Share Posted June 23, 2011 Harry.......sure is some MIGHTY FINE work you got going on........VERYV NICE!!!!!!!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cato Posted June 23, 2011 Share Posted June 23, 2011 (edited) Besides, once it's finished and sitting on the shelf, the hood will rarely, if ever, be raised... Ya mean you ain't gonna hinge it and display half open???? BOooooooooo... Edited June 23, 2011 by Cato Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GTMust Posted June 23, 2011 Share Posted June 23, 2011 I have several of the 1/24 version; something tells me the 1/12 kit is based on the 1/24, just larger. I think the 1/24 scale Bentley you refer to is a Heller kit. Although Heller and Airfix did combine resources at one time, the 1/24 kit and the 1/12 kit aren't related.... to my knowledge. I have both kits and they bear no resemblance to each other. In fact the Heller kit is pretty much a joke! I built the Airfix kit when it first was issued and still have it today. I wish I'd taken the time to research it and give it the attention you are Harry. In fact, it is the basis for an extremely nice model, so I really hope you continue on with the kind of build you have started. So far your attention to detail is inspiring! Tony Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Foxer Posted June 23, 2011 Share Posted June 23, 2011 This is looking extremely well! I am overjoyed to see Mom's sewing thread (spring wraps) still has a use in this day and age. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MonoPed Posted June 23, 2011 Share Posted June 23, 2011 Nice work - the spring wraps are a great little detail! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sjordan2 Posted June 23, 2011 Share Posted June 23, 2011 Looking great, hang in there. This information is courtesy of Geoff Spencely from the Rolls-Royce Owners Club. "Those dash lights on the Blowers were pretty standard, and some of them were seen on other models of Vintage Bentley. These were all external lights: Howard is correct that most instruments in the '20s did not have internal lighting. The two tubular lights on the top roll of the dash shone down on the instruments, and as I recall had covers that could be rotated somewhat so you could use them as map lights." Phil Brooks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harry P. Posted June 23, 2011 Author Share Posted June 23, 2011 The dash has a machine-turned pattern molded in, which looks good... and it has a sort of satin finish plating, which looks pretty close to the real thing... BUT... The gauge bezels and toggle switch bases are all molded in place, which means they have to be brush-painted black. It's almost impossible to get a sharp, clean edge all the way around each bezel; my hands just aren't that steady. I got it pretty good, but not perfect. (The alternative would have been to drill out each bezel and make new ones from slices of appropriate-diameter aluminum tubing. Way too much trouble! ) There are several details missing on the kit dash. I made "toggle switches" from lengths of copper wire, and I added the missing fuel pressure pump knob, which is a round-headed map pin with the head painted "wood." The kit-supplied gauge "glass" pieces were unusable. There was a giant sink mark right in the center of each gauge face, so I threw them out and made new "glass" from a piece of clear acetate. The gauge faces themselves are decals from the kit. They are actually done very cleverly: they're printed face down on the decal sheet, and are meant to be applied to the back side of the glass. Nice touch! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sjordan2 Posted June 23, 2011 Share Posted June 23, 2011 (edited) The dash has a machine-turned pattern molded in, which looks good... and it has a sort of satin finish plating, which looks pretty close to the real thing... BUT... The gauge bezels and toggle switch bases are all molded in place, which means they have to be brush-painted black. It's almost impossible to get a sharp, clean edge all the way around each bezel; my hands just aren't that steady. I got it pretty good, but not perfect. (The alternative would have been to drill out each bezel and make new ones from slices of appropriate-diameter aluminum tubing. Way too much trouble! ) There are several details missing on the kit dash. I made "toggle switches" from lengths of copper wire, and I added the missing fuel pressure pump knob, which is a round-headed map pin with the head painted "wood." The kit-supplied gauge "glass" pieces were unusable. There was a giant sink mark right in the center of each gauge face, so I threw them out and made new "glass" from a piece of clear acetate. The gauge faces themselves are decals from the kit. They are actually done very cleverly: they're printed face down on the decal sheet, and are meant to be applied to the back side of the glass. Nice touch! Yes, the gauge decals are very clever and I recommend this process to anyone making their own gauges: print your decal backward on clear decal paper and apply it onto clear styrene. Drill out the gauge openings on the dash, then cover the back of the gauge decals with the appropriate color paint. Depending on the kit, you may want to sand down the back of the instrument panel to make a shorter distance from the dash bezels to the gauge faces. Like you, I made the fuel pressure pump handle from scratch, though I had no idea what it was. It was just there on my 1974 reference material, and I also used a round-headed pin. May I suggest that you fill in the background of the Bentley nameplate on the valve cover? Very easy to do when you wipe off the Bentley name in relief. Edited June 23, 2011 by sjordan2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harry P. Posted June 23, 2011 Author Share Posted June 23, 2011 May I suggest that you fill in the background of the Bentley nameplate on the valve cover? Very easy to do when you wipe off the Bentley name in relief. Yeah, I might go back and do that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sjordan2 Posted June 24, 2011 Share Posted June 24, 2011 Keep on rollin'. This kit may not be up to your Pocher standards, but so far it's the best build I've ever seen of a kit that I know very well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harry P. Posted June 24, 2011 Author Share Posted June 24, 2011 Keep on rollin'. This kit may not be up to your Pocher standards, but so far it's the best build I've ever seen of a kit that I know very well. Thanks, Skip! More progress made today... I got the external gas tank details finished, tank painted and attached to the chassis, front axle and shocks assembled. New photos will be posted tomorrow (Saturday). Stay tuned... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Teresi Posted June 25, 2011 Share Posted June 25, 2011 Harry.......look`s GREAT!!!!!........I`m so glad that you have time to do what you love,building models........especially while working on the mag. and keeping us all in line here on the forum.......man,you must be near a nervous break down? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harry P. Posted June 25, 2011 Author Share Posted June 25, 2011 Harry.......look`s GREAT!!!!!........I`m so glad that you have time to do what you love,building models........especially while working on the mag. and keeping us all in line here on the forum.......man,you must be near a nervous break down? Nah... not even close! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scalper Posted June 25, 2011 Share Posted June 25, 2011 Great Detail. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
semijoe Posted June 25, 2011 Share Posted June 25, 2011 detail to me looks flawless outstanding job Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
monkeyclaw Posted June 25, 2011 Share Posted June 25, 2011 Harry; Nice work! I got one of these years ago at a model show...the kit was so badly warped I just used for parts... I really like the way you wrapped the springs; GOOD Thinking........Matt Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harry P. Posted June 26, 2011 Author Share Posted June 26, 2011 I was going to post new photos today but the model is currently propped up in a sort of "unphotographable" position while certain parts dry. New photos tomorrow for sure! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Teresi Posted June 26, 2011 Share Posted June 26, 2011 Harry.......looking forward to it.........same bat time .......same bat channel. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Danno Posted June 26, 2011 Share Posted June 26, 2011 I was going to post new photos today but the model is currently propped up in a sort of "unphotographable" position while certain parts dry. New photos tomorrow for sure! Just take your time ... be careful not to blow your Bentley! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.