MPC Honda Super Hawk

[cobraman]

Starting this kit . 1/16 scale .

[Mike999]

Looking forward to it!  I picked up one of these at Hobby Lobby and wondered how it goes together.  As discussed on another thread, it's really a Lindberg kit dating back to 1973.  Not a knock against it.  I have several original Lindberg 1/16 motorcycles and they all look good in the box. Lindberg managed to do wire wheels way back then that look pretty close to scale thickness.  At least closer than the clunky wheels in Airfix, Matchbox and Revell bike kits.

Here's the Scalemates timeline for the kit. The 1975 Lindberg box art is really close to that latest "MPC" re-issue:

https://www.scalemates.com/kits/181037-lindberg-honda-super-hawk

 

Edited September 5, 2018 by Mike999

[cobraman]

Just assembled the tires/wheels so far. The kit doesn't seem to bad but we shall see.

[Jim B]

Have also considered picking up this kit.  Will be watching your progress with interest.

[64Comet404]

On 2018-09-04 at 6:53 PM, Mike999 said:

Looking forward to it!  I picked up one of these at Hobby Lobby and wondered how it goes together.  As discussed on another thread, it's really a Lindberg kit dating back to 1973.  Not a knock against it.  I have several original Lindberg 1/16 motorcycles and they all look good in the box. Lindberg managed to do wire wheels way back then that look pretty close to scale thickness.  At least closer than the clunky wheels in Airfix, Matchbox and Revell bike kits.

Here's the Scalemates timeline for the kit. The 1975 Lindberg box art is really close to that latest "MPC" re-issue:

https://www.scalemates.com/kits/181037-lindberg-honda-super-hawk

 

The kit was originally tooled by Pyro back in the mid-1960s. I have owned some of the other 1/16 motorcycles in this series (Yamaha, BMW, and BSA), and they have all been nice models for the era.

[cobraman]

It doesn't seem bad at all. Due to some small pieces I am having some trouble but that is me and not the kit.

[Mike999]

1 hour ago, 64Comet404 said:

The kit was originally tooled by Pyro back in the mid-1960s. I have owned some of the other 1/16 motorcycles in this series (Yamaha, BMW, and BSA), and they have all been nice models for the era.

I thought all the Lindberg motorcycles were Pyro re-pops, but after poking around the internet, I'm not sure. 

I've never seen a Pyro Honda, BMW or Triumph Tiger 100 kit, and Lindberg issued all those in 1/16 scale.  I have the Pyro Harley Police Trike and Vespa scooter. Never compared a Pyro and Lindberg Harley to see if they look the same.  Maybe I'll get ambitious and do that.  I recently won a Lindberg V-1200 Harley from 1982 on eBay for a low price. It's shrink-wrapped and I'm not sure I want to rip into it yet.

The Old Model Kits site has a long article about Pyro, with color box-art for many of their kits. FWIW, here's their list of Pyro 1/16 motorcycle kits: "1966 BSA, 1966 Yamaha, BSA Racing Cycle, Yamaha Racer, Lambretta Motorscooter, Vespa Scooter, Harley Davidson Electraglide, Harley Sho-Go, Harley Police Cycle, “Der Baron” Harley Custom Cycle, “Ghost Rider” Harley Custom Cycle, “Lil’ Corporal” Harley  Sho  Cycle, “The General” Lambretta Scooter, “The Diplomat”  Vespa Scooter, “The Gladiator” 3 Wheel Show Bike, “Surfs Up” Bike With Trailer, “The Curler” Super Surfer Tricycle."

https://www.oldmodelkits.com/blog/plastic-model-kit-history/the-kits-of-pyro-plastic-company-an-illustrated-guide/

Bummer: some time ago I bought a Pyro '66 BSA box at a flea market. Took a quick look inside, so I knew it was sort of a glue-bomb with one wheel missing. But I often buy these kits just for parts. Took a closer look when I got it home.  It's a glue-bomb Yamaha, not a BSA. With BSA instructions. Oh well. It has a good windshield, hard saddlebags and some other useable parts.   OTOH, I once got a Lindberg BMW-75 at the same flea market.  It had 1 and a half kits, at least, stuffed in the box. In 2 different colors.

[cobraman]

Well , this did not go as planned . The more I worked on it the harder it got . I’m sure others could do a better job . Too many tiny pieces for me to dona good job . I was happy just to finish it as good as it is . The fender braces are out of scale and did not fit well . If I did it over I would maybe use a small paperclip ??? Painted it Mango Orange . 

[Jim B]

Nicely done.  Sort of has a UJM/Café Racer look to it.  I like it.

[1930fordpickup]

Not bad at all Ray. 

[cobraman]

Thanks guys.

[Mike999]

You did a great job with what you had.  A clean build with nice paint. And thanks for the warnings. You're right, those front fender braces are seriously out of scale. Usually I would try sanding them down to a more scale thickness.  But doing that would make them very fragile and I'd probably end up doing your paper-clip trick. 

[cobraman]

Thanks Mike.

[samdiego]

I just left the fender braces off of mine. If you're burning for a great Jap bike build, try the Hasegawa '74 Honda CB400F Super Sport. It's a new tool and it's awesome. More tiny parts though.

 

[Classicgas]

That's cool. May have to get that.

[cobraman]

Not a bad kit except for the front fender braces.

[unclescott58]

Very nice. I need to pick one of these up. 

[carmad1957]

That's a nice looking bike. Saw that kit at BNA, thinking It would be fun!

even with the troubles and issues you had with it.....sure looks good to me!

[cobraman]

Thank you Kevin.

[Dave Toups]

On 9/6/2018 at 5:50 PM, 64Comet404 said:

The kit was originally tooled by Pyro back in the mid-1960s. I have owned some of the other 1/16 motorcycles in this series (Yamaha, BMW, and BSA), and they have all been nice models for the era.

Although Lindberg ended up with all the Pyro tooling, I'm not aware of them ever reissuing any of the Pyro bikes, like the Yamaha and BSA. The Lindberg BMW, Harley, Triumph and Honda were not made from Pyro tools, they were tooled up by Lindberg themselves. It's interesting that these 4 bikes were also made in 1/8 scale by Revell. I've always suspected that Lindberg simply copied and scaled down the Revell kits to make them.