BMW 507 Cabrio 1957 - Elvis Presley's one - Revell old kit 1:24

[NOBLNG]

Wow Thierry! Amazing attention to detail you demonstrate! Your scratch building skills are impressive too. I just found this thread while searching this car and only skimmed it. Now I’m going back to read every word and study the pics. Thanks for documenting this beautiful build!?

[absmiami]

Tres bien …

[CrazyCrank]

Evening gentlemen 

Improvement of the water expansion tank

The kit part:

 

Mine, after having added a few bits of thin styrene sheet and after priming :

- 1 superior strip (0.5 mm wide)  to increase the diameter of the lid
- 2 strips(0.6 mm) on the middle of the tank, which simulate the routing collars
- 1 plate to close the tank at the bottom

 

   

 

Obviously, an expansion tank has 2 hoses,for entry and exit, one at the top, and the other at the bottom.

I've taken inspiration of these pictures, the left one from Elvis restored car, and the right one from another one:

 

   

 

And have machined the superior and inferior hoses and connectors, using:

- 0.5/0.3 mm diameter brass tube .
- 0.3 mm steel wire
- Two micro-bolts: 1.0 mm head, and 0.6 mm thread, that I've re-drilled to 0.6 mm
- some 0.8/0.6 mm aluminium tube
- 0.5 mm electrical cable of which I only kept the plastic sheath

 

I proceeded as follows:
- bended a short section of brass tube, 
- threaded and glued two bolts on it, 
- inserted a short section of 0.3 mm steel wire at one end,
- threaded the plastic sheath on the steel wire
- inserted the free end of this set into the hole of the aluminium tube

 

   

 

   

 

   

 

And hereunder is a close view of water lines

 

 

After painting: 

   

 

While the paint of the the expansion tank was drying, I've fabricated the file supply line which comes from the rear of the car and is visible in the engine bay

Ì used:

- 0.4 mm Ni-Cr wire

-3 brass bolts 0.6 mm as previously

- a short section of 0.6 mm brass tube

- A thin strip of Hasegawa Mirror Finish for simulate the collar

- And after market silver braided line 0.8 mm (0.6 mm would have been more adequate butI didn't have it, so...)
 

I took inspiration of this picture:

 

My interpretation:

 

   

 

Fuel supply  and expansion tank installed in the engine bay

 

   

 

 

It is now time to move on to more serious matters, so, stay connected  ?

 

[CrazyCrank]

Hi guys

My apologies for not posting for a long time.

This build is finished and already posted in the "Under Glass" section.

However, I'm going to complete the WIP section of this charismatic car and share my tips and tricks with you.

 

 

Wheels:

This BMW 507 was equipped with Rudge wheels, which are not supplied in the kit.

I spent some hours on Fusion 360 to draw the Rudge wheels, and the hubcaps.

In fact, I drew only the outer part of the rim, the inner part of the kit beeing correct.

 

Below the photos of the drawings

 

   

 

   

 

   

 

   

 

As you can see on the drawings, I've separated the rim in two sections, the peripheral, which is chromed, and the central section, which I've colored red for a better rendering (but will be Pearl white on the model, as on the real car)

And It's obviously possible to 3D print the two sections separately, and to reassemble them later.

 

   

 

This tip will allow to paint easily the 2 sections of each rim.

 

And here's the result after the second print attempt, and a tyre mounted on the rim.

 

 

The fitting with inner part of the rim and the wheel locker was excellent, so I printed separately 10 peripheral and 10 central parts of the outer rim

My workbench  turned into a wheel factory :

 

 

I painted the two parts of the outer half-wheel:
- Primer and 3 coats of Pearl White for the central part
- Primer, 2 layers of Alclad gloss black base, and 3 thin coats of Alclad Chrome for the peripheral parts.

I also painted Alclad Chrome, the same way, my dozen of knock-off nuts.

And painted Pearl white 2 copies of the dashboard .

Somes pictures of all that stuffs:

 

 

   

 

 

`   

 

 

Clear coating stage:

I've had to test various varnishes over the Alclad Chrome I sprayed over the inner and outer half-rims and on the nuts, to check whether Alclad Aqua Gloss Clear ALC600 was effectively the one which keeps the best shine .

Unsurprisingly, it is the winner 

The best 4 knock-off nuts have been chosen  and the BMW logo decals applied on them before clear coating.

For the rims, I've used Mr Super Clear Gloss Clear, decanted from the spray can, and then airbrushed. It's perfect for small parts and dries very quickly !

And then, I had to select among 12 sets of 3 pieces, which ones I will keep to assemble 5 rims (4 wheels on axles and 1 spare), each composed of 3 elements.

Not any one is perfect under magnifying glasses, but I manage to find good enough parts for my goal.

Hereunder some pictures of sets , before assembly:

 

   

 

   

 

   

 

 

And I finished then  to improve 1 wheel !

I made the inflation valve using:

- a short section of black electrical  wire sheath of 0.6 mm outer diameter and 0.4 inner one, that I threaded over

- A short section of 0.37 mm brass wire

- A micro touch-up of the valve's top with Tamiya Rubber Black

The whole set glued in a 0.6 mm hole drilled on the outer half-rim's periphery.

I was inspired by this picture of Elvis' restored BMW:

 

 

And my interpretation:

 

   

 

   

 

The knock-off nut hadn't been glued yet. This would be done at the very end, and a drop of UV clear resin would be added to the BMW emblem to enhance its shine. 

Wheels now achieved ?

 

 

I will now continue with the dashboard and the varnishing of the body parts... stay tuned if you like ?

[Misha]

Amazing progress! The thought and focus combined with imagination and artistry with the technical building skills is exceptional!

Thank you for your detailed descriptions and photos; there is so much useful information for all of us. 
 

Congratulations & cheers, Misha 

[CrazyCrank]

3 hours ago, Misha said:

Amazing progress! The thought and focus combined with imagination and artistry with the technical building skills is exceptional!

Thank you for your detailed descriptions and photos; there is so much useful information for all of us. 
 

Congratulations & cheers, Misha 

Wow, what a lot of praise! Thank you very much, but I'm not sure I deserve it. ?

[TopherMcGinnis]

AAAAAAMAZING!!!!!!

[NOBLNG]

56 minutes ago, CrazyCrank said:

Wow, what a lot of praise! Thank you very much, but I'm not sure I deserve it. ?

Believe me, it is well deserved! I also thank you for posting the techniques you’ve used. Outstanding results!??

[Justin Porter]

Really some seriously good improvements to what is not a bad kit, but one that does show its age in places. 

[CrazyCrank]

1 hour ago, NOBLNG said:

Believe me, it is well deserved! I also thank you for posting the techniques you’ve used. Outstanding results!??

Thanks a lot NOBNLG ?

If you are interested in scale modelling videos, you can subscribe to My YouTube channel

Most of my videos have English subtitles.

21 minutes ago, Justin Porter said:

Really some seriously good improvements to what is not a bad kit, but one that does show its age in places. 

Thank you very much ? 

It's not a bad kit, but it's a very difficult one, due to the terrible fittings, the amount of flash, the poor quality of the plastic, which is either too hard, or too brittle, or too soft, and does not accept the paint easily!

 

[CrazyCrank]

Morning guys

Clear coating of the body parts:

Some pics under artificial light 

   

   

   

 

And under natural light during a cloudy weather

 

 

Trunk lid and trunk modifications:

Trunk lid:

I was inspired by this photo:

 

I've scratched, using 0.4 mm thick plastic plate, the panel which covers the inner side of the trunk lid, and drilled on it some 0.3 mm holes to  simulate  its screws fastening.
Later on, I'll thread into the holes some small sections of 0.3 mm steel rod, to simulate the screws.

 

   

 

Trunk panels:

I've painted semi-gloss black the interior panels of the trunk, using a new method (for me at least) in order to get a grainy aspect which simulate, at this scale, a felt lining.
To do that, I used Tamiya Lacquer Semi Gloss Black LP 8, without thinning it, sprayed at 20 psi, with a very low paint flow, in several layers.
The rendering, at this scale, is far better than what I would have obtained If I had used flocking powder or thin adhesive velvet.

 

   

   

   

 

Invisible parts :

I've finished to scratch the fuel primary pump, adding two copper lines on my 3D printed part, after having painted it silver.
The part has been glued in place.
The same way, I've finished to scratch the fuel gauge, painted it silver and adding the electrical cables

   

 

Spare wheel:

At least, I've installed the spare wheel straps in the trunk and placed the wheel in its housing.

   

 

That's all for now, guys 

 

[CrazyCrank]

Hi guys

The dashboard I showed you painted with the new wheels isn't the kit part.

In fact the kit represent a BMW 507 Series I when Elvis's one was a Series II, which has a different dashboard, amongst many other features.

So, I hadn't any other option than make a new one...and what's more appropriate to do this job than 3D design and printing ?

 

Hereunder the kit dashboard, and a picture of a series II dash:

 

My drawing in Autodesk Fusion 360

 

   

 

   

 

All that stuff has been sliced, 3 pieces in 103% and 3 in 104% ( @Spiny ? )

 

 

And the 3D printed final part:

 

I presented it on the windscreen, because it's no impossible to follow the assembly instructions which ask to fix the dash on the cabin.

The new part will be attached to the windscreen frame:

   

 

[CrazyCrank]

Hello everybody

Today, I'll show you how I made and assembled all the dashboard components - part 1

- The dash was semi-gloss clear coated
- The decals have been placed, not without difficulty because those ones were very fragil.  Used a lot of Microscale Microsol to soften them, but damaged a little bit the central one (not visible at the naked eye)
- Once dried, I sprayed a finale layer of 1K Gravity clear over the decals .... et voilà !
 

 

     

 

 

Next I 3-D drawn and printed a new handle for the handbrake (the lever I thought it was a starter, placed under the dash on the left side)

It will be painted with Molotov Chrome

 

   

 

   

 

 

I 3-D drawn and printed the different knobs of the dash and radio

They will be painted ivory.

 

   

 

 

I 3-D drawn and printed a new passenger handle (placed on the right side of the dash, on the right of the glove box).

It will be painted matt black

 

   

 

   

 

 

The meter's glasses have been improved using drops of Gauzy agent put on the decals. Once dried, it's fully transparent and shiny

 

   

 

I've scratched the gauge's bezels, the elements of the fake glove box hinge,  and the chrome frame of the speaker and radio with Nickel-Chrome 0.25 mm wire

 

   

 

   

 

 

I've already glued the bezels of the 3 meters and fabricated the fake hinge for the glove box.

 

 

All those little bits of Nickel-Chrome 0.25 mm rod have been glued using Gauzy agent (from AK), instead of Micro Liquid Tape, because it's much less thick, dries faster and if much more transparent.

 

The thin mesh of the radio speaker, at the top center of the dash, was simulated inserting in the hole a rectangular piece of thin mesh (0.1 mm

 

 

It has not the right number of rows (30 would be needed to be accurate) but looks good imho.

 

The grill is in place, and the meters's bezels as well:

 

Then, I painted chrome all the dash knobs that I'd resin printed.

And next, I brush painted ivory the buttons, under magnifying glasses

 

  

 

I had also painted chrome he passenger handle, because on its top end, there is as well a chrome bezel, and I've painted the handle Nato Black (AK 11360), which looks like a black leather.

The result is really nice :

 

 

 

The dash knobs an radio buttons were placed on the dash.

To highlight them, they have been painted light ivory instead of Pearl white, as the body.

We can see, on the closest photo, their chromed bezels

 

   

 

 

The handbrake handle was painted chrome and put in place:

 

 

Stay tuned if you like, and thanks for watching and criticising.  ?