Pocher Bugatti 1933 50T

[Aeneiad]

Way back in the 1980’s, my dad purchased a Pocher Bugatti 1933 50 T to assemble.  He promptly took over the dining room table for about a week before he put everything in a box and moved the box into the basement storage storage room.  It sat in basement for until he moved out a couple of years ago when he gave it to me to throw away.  I moved it to my basement and now I’ve come full circle.  I’ve taken over the dining room table and I’m trying to make sense of his organization system and yellowed instructions that are at least 40 years old.  This is the first model I’ve ever assembled and I’m hoping to finish it before Christmas and then giving it to him.

With all of that being said, does anyone have any tips or tricks for assembling this?  I’ve assembled a few of the parts and the screws seem difficult to screw in.  Do I need to thread the holes before putting the screws in?  Anything special I need to do for the brass gears?

[NOBLNG]

Hello Jason. I can’t help you with the model itself, but here is a link to a search of this site.

https://www.google.com/search?q=site%3Amodelcarsmag.com+pocher+bugatti+50t+1933&ei=uniWY

[Kit Basher]

Long time forum member and all round great guy Harry P was the master of Pocher kits. Here is a link to his Bugatti 50T:

If that thread doesn't have what you need, search for some of his other topics. His WIPs give a lot of great info about working with Pocher.

[NOBLNG]

12 hours ago, Aeneiad said:

This is the first model I’ve ever assembled and I’m hoping to finish it before Christmas and then giving it to him.

Hi Terry. I have no experience with this kit but I have to say that assembling it by Christmas would likely be a challenge for a very experienced modeler. I would suggest being very careful and taking your time with it. You can always present it to him later…maybe his birthday or something? It does look like a fantastic kit. Best of luck with it.  Greg.

Edit: On page two of the Harry P thread, he talks about methods of putting the screws in.

Edited December 12, 2022 by NOBLNG

[stavanzer]

Pocher kits are legendary for the sheer amounts of both parts in the kit, and time needed to build them.

And, despite how well detailed they look at first glance, there is a LOT of "Model Building" involved in getting one built.

Give Yourself plenty of time and join an On-Line Pocher Group ti get tips on building your exact kit. There are tricks you need to know to get a smooth build, and talking with someone who has built your Bugatti will wind up being a life saver.

There are tons of Half Built Pocher Kits out there. 6 Months into assembly, you'll know why.

Don't let that upset you. You can build it. But, it is journey to Completion.

Best Of Luck!

[peteski]

Welcome to the forum Jason!

Many years ago I have built my one and only Pocher kit: 1935 Mercedes 500K sports roadster. I even had my grandfather build a glass display case for it. I Still have it.  It took me much longer than a month to build. I wouldn't expect you to have finish it by Christmas (especially if you are not an experienced kit builder).  As others mentioned, these kits require quite a bit of "massaging" to but them together correctly.
Do you have any model building experience?  This would not be my choice for a first build, but have fun with it, and take your time.  These kits (even partially assembled) fetch amazing prices on eBay.

Also, if you want to see some amazing Pochers and aftermarket accessories, along with amazing prices, check out https://www.modelmotorcars.com/

As for the screws, those are usually brass and while they can form threads in plastic, they can also snap while doing that.  I seem to recall that I might have used one of the screws as a tap by grinding it into a tap-like end.

Edited December 14, 2022 by peteski

[Bugatti Fan]

Check the screw thread sizes and invest in some like sized taps and small tap wrench to suit. It will save a real amount of heartache of you tap all the holes requiring the screws.

Model Motorcars who Pete recommended has them and can advise on what you will need. My own experience of Pocher brass screws is that they can shear off easily so tapping the holes will be the way to go. It may be worth looking to replace them with steel screws instead for more strength.

Edited December 15, 2022 by Bugatti Fan

[Glennb2]

I am in the initial phases of a Pocher Mercedes…I have researched this problem with the screws and have the following info.   It is advisable to run a thread cutting tap through the hole prior to screwing in the screw.    Apparently the thread size is a unique thread from England used back in the 1950’s, 60’s.      The thread size is a 1/16 British Whitworth Thread (BSW thread.)  

While they may be difficult to find I did find a supplier in England who sells watch repair tools. (Google is a great thing)  It was not expensive.    This was a while back. I forget the name but if you google 1/16” BSW Tap you may find something.

Otherwise I was told to heat the screw prior to screwing it in but the screws are so tiny I think it would be difficult

[peteski]

6 hours ago, Glennb2 said:

Otherwise I was told to heat the screw prior to screwing it in but the screws are so tiny I think it would be difficult

While I built mine about 25 years ago (and didn't  take any notes back then -  this was before Internet groups ) I seem to recall that I screwed the screws into their "sockets" before assembly, then once they were screwed in I would heat the screw head with a soldering iron to create the threads in plastic.  By pushing on the screw gently with the iron's tip you can tell when the plastic starts to soften.  Of course try one first and see how the screw comes out when it cools.  I might have pre-drilled the holes using drill bit tiny bit larger than the hole to make threading the screw easier.  It was long time ago . . .

[jomartin]

I made a tap/thread chaser from  one of the long screws, soft soldered to a piece of brass tubing, with three slots cut longitudinally. I wish I could have found a tap! Buy the tap. it saves lots of grief, the screws are nickel plated which embrittles the brass and makes the screws easy to shear.

[NOBLNG]

I hope the OP either passed the kit on to someone who can do it justice, or decided to take his time and gain some skills before attempting to build it…I guess we’ll never know.?

[Brizio]

The "easy and fast way", if you can say, is to build it following the instructions and the parts that cam with the kit. If you want to upgrade it, there are few place to look. But also it depand how much money you want to spend. They can get quite expensive. I'm ongoing building an Alfa, A lot of upgrade parts and scratch build one. Probably I'm going to finish it in the next 5 years.