Alfa Romeo 8C 1933 Le Mans winner

[1959scudetto]

Pierre, your attention to the finest details comes up even in this very early stage - I'm absolutely sure that you will - again - show us a perfect model.

With your skills there is no need to be afraid of the resin challenges that might arise, you will overcome them better than most of us.

[Pierre Rivard]

8 hours ago, 1959scudetto said:

Pierre, your attention to the finest details comes up even in this very early stage - I'm absolutely sure that you will - again - show us a perfect model.

With your skills there is no need to be afraid of the resin challenges that might arise, you will overcome them better than most of us.

Thanks Helmut. It's definitely a learning process. At this point I'm mostly worried about doing a good enough job on surface preparation and paint. That stuff is not as smooth as styrene.

[Pierre Rivard]

Slow week. Did not spend mush time on the bench and most of it spent on cleaning, sanding and attempting to get parts to agree with each other. Finally I got to do a bit of rewarding work. I was not happy with the kit supplied steering components so I made my own.

 

[absmiami]

Pierre - if you’ve caught the pre-war resin kit bug - i’ve got some more bad news for you ….   My FPP ‘32 Alfa just arrived and you’ll notice that Pinto has upped his game - your Lemans kit is an earlier design - the GP kit has a better one peice engine casting and a hinged bonnett set up the looks like it should work well …. And the wheel assembly is just a little better …

[Pierre Rivard]

  I think you are right Andy. The engine looks much better on your Alfa kit. The lower part of mine is molded into the chassis pan, making cleaning and finishing quite difficult. I noticed the wheels on mine are a bit twisted and the thread pattern is uneven. 

   I'm still quite happy with the kit and excited about topic I am modeling. The long tail Alfa Le mans just looks so nice! I'll do my best to make a good model of it. Look forward to see what you do with Mr. 42 but it could take a while as you've got a lot of projects on the go.

[Pierre Rivard]

Made my own registration lighting as the kit parts were too fragile and hard to clean up of flash

 

[Pierre Rivard]

Windshield frame...can't imagine how to set that in place after paint with my shaky hands. Had to modify shape at interface for better fit and add pins for locating.

 

[Pierre Rivard]

Andy is the smarter shopper. His Alfa has a nice hinged bonnet. I'll just have to fake it...

 

[Pierre Rivard]

Added some PE fasteners here and there on frame, steering system and suspension attachments to add a bit of appeal.

Fenders are now glued permanently. Point of no return...

 

[Pierre Rivard]

Final final mockup before going to paint, under the watchful eye of Tazio.

 

[Mittagskind]

?

Tazio would be thrilled...like me.

[MarkJ]

Pierre, looking so good. Can't wait for the paint. Does Tazio come in the kit, or did you have to buy him separately? He looks like one cool dude.

[Pierre Rivard]

On 9/27/2023 at 4:36 PM, MarkJ said:

Pierre, looking so good. Can't wait for the paint. Does Tazio come in the kit, or did you have to buy him separately? He looks like one cool dude.

Thanks Mark, the figurine is from JPGModels. I bought this one of Nuvolari who won Le mans in this car as well as one of Fangio in driving position (for a future project). Not cheap but very well made.

[MarkJ]

4 minutes ago, Pierre Rivard said:

Thanks Mark, the figurine is from JPGModels. I bought this one of Nuvolari who won Le mans in this car as well as one of Fangio in driving position (for a future project). Not cheap but very well made.

Yes, I can see why they would be quite pricey, as well as they are done. So, this guy is actually Nuvolan. Can't wait to see Fangio and the car you will make for him.

[PhilX]

On 9/27/2023 at 5:28 PM, Pierre Rivard said:

 

Fenders are now glued permanently. Point of no return...

 

Are the tie rods connecting the wings strong enough to undergo wing sanding without deformation ?

 

[Pierre Rivard]

3 hours ago, PhilX said:

Are the tie rods connecting the wings strong enough to undergo wing sanding without deformation ?

 

I would think so. The rods are soft metal but having 3 of them for each fender makes things pretty solid.

[Pierre Rivard]

Primer is on. I decanted Tamiya Metal Primer and brushed on the various metal components, then sprayed Tamiya fine primer. I never had issues preparing styrene surfaces i.e minimal fixes after primer but this is a first for me dealing with resin. The primer helps reveal flaws I had not previously seen or properly addressed. Nothing major, mostly dealing with some pitting issues. Otherwise the surfaces are pretty smooth.

 I assume the best course of action is to fix the various little defects and shoot another layer of primer on the repaired areas.

 

[MarkJ]

Pierre, did I read this right. You said you sprayed the fine primer?  Did you set up a spray booth in your home? 

[absmiami]

2 hours ago, Pierre Rivard said:

 

 I assume the best course of action is to fix the various little defects and shoot another layer of primer on the repaired areas.

 

I usually have to do this two or three times …

[Pierre Rivard]

Mark, this brush painter ain't going away. There will not be a spray booth in my city condo. I did this in a cardboard box outside on my balcony on a perfect 70F day. I decided to go this way for 2 reasons. First I was unsure if my usual brushed Vallejo primer would have good enough adhesion over a resin body and second I wanted a better white primer underlay to give me a fighting chance with the brushed yellow color coat (the hardest of all colors to brush paint).

Andy, thanks for the previous advice. I am now starting to understand that resin requires fixes and re-primes. How many times I don't know yet but I now know it is not unusual.

[Pierre Rivard]

The primer looks good to the eye with a few exceptions so I took close up pictures to help me better see what needs improvement. All quite fixable with the exception of all the pits on the tires extending into the delicate rims. That I don't know how to handle.

 

[MarkJ]

Pierre, I can see why you wanted to go with the spray primer. I have noticed that the brush on Vallejo primer does not sand out as nicely as the aerosol types of primer. On this build with the resin, it's probably a good choice to use the spray. Looks like you might need to sand and reprime certain areas on the body and tire/wheel assemblies. 

[Pierre Rivard]

3 hours ago, MarkJ said:

Pierre, I can see why you wanted to go with the spray primer. I have noticed that the brush on Vallejo primer does not sand out as nicely as the aerosol types of primer. On this build with the resin, it's probably a good choice to use the spray. Looks like you might need to sand and reprime certain areas on the body and tire/wheel assemblies. 

Yup, putty, sand, re-prime...

[absmiami]

Picture 3. - good example of a need-to-sand  after guide coat of primer

pic 4 - tire casting flaws - CA and a finger (any finger) will remove some of the pits ….  but the wheel/tires in my new Alfa does not have these flaws - i do think Fernando will replace these if you want … if rim is steel or polished - consider asking for some replacements …

[Mittagskind]

Oh, that looks like a lot of work, Pierre. But every kit that requires a lot of work saves us from having to buy a new one again.