"Le Chaton"... Barn Find Bugatti 35B

[jaymcminn]

This is Italeri's new 1/12 scale Bugatti 35B. My vision for this car is a car actively raced before WWII that was hidden in a barn when Germany occupied France... maybe a little too well. Rediscovered 80 years later, the brief by the new owner was simple... restore the mechanicals, upholster the seat, and wipe the rest down with an oily rag. 

I should have taken WIP pics of the "salt weathering" technique used on the body. I haven't touched the chassis yet, so I'll try to get some pics of the same technique when I get to that part. Basically, you prime and then paint your base coat (here a mix of Vallejo Metal Air Duralumin and Flat Aluminum). After the base dries, wet it lightly using water with a tiny drop of dish soap to break the surface tension. Then sprinkle on sea salt (I used Alessi fine grain) and let it dry. You can control where you want more of the base to show through by applying more salt. Once your salt is dry and stable, apply your top coat... in this case Vallejo Model Air Sky Blue. Over that I applied a light coat of Tamiya TS79 Semi-Gloss clear.

Finally, once that's dry, brush off your salt mask to reveal your base color underneath. It's a really effective technique. I hit the body with a light polish after this to give it a nice light "oily rag" sheen. 

Weathering was done with Vallejo acrylic washes. The extra grunge around the seam between the body and undertray is where the locking wire bolts from Unobtanium will go. Most unrestored vintage Bugattis get extra grungy around there because you can't really access that area to clean without removing the wire. 

The number is a stencil by Orlee, sprayed in Vallejo Model Air White. The cracking was done in the fresh paint with the backside of a #11 blade. This is a nerve-wracking technique I've used before to good advantage. 

Finally, the seat has been upholstered in thin (1.5 oz) distressed Cognac calfskin bought on Ebay. I separated the seat base from the back to make it easier to work with. Heating the seat parts CAREFULLY over a candle allowed me to introduce some sag to them, necessary as the kit parts bear no resemblance to actual automotive upholstery.

Next up will be the wheels and the engine. The engine will be oily but not especially grungy, as befitting a car that's been given a little TLC since being rescued from the barn. Anyway, on to the pics!

"Le Chaton", BTW,  is French for "Kitten", which kind of suits a baby-blue Bugatti. I'm tempted to hand paint it on the driver's side ahead of the handbrake. 

Edited May 29, 2023 by jaymcminn

[maysula]

Wow! Like this very much ? Looking forward to more pictures ?

[jaymcminn]

Thanks Thomas. Your build of this kit was fantasic!

[absmiami]

Excellent

[Bugatti Fan]

Looks like a very interesting build going to take shape here, and I will be following this one. Attempting to emulate a barn find is quite a challenge.

There is a guy in the UK who has also done a model of a very hard raced version on YouTube with a lot of stains and grime on the car.

[jaymcminn]

10 hours ago, Bugatti Fan said:

Looks like a very interesting build going to take shape here, and I will be following this one. Attempting to emulate a barn find is quite a challenge.

There is a guy in the UK who has also done a model of a very hard raced version on YouTube with a lot of stains and grime on the car.

I've seen that build, it's nice. When I saw that Italeri was releasing the 35b, I knew immediately that I was going for the unrestored/barn find look. Bugatti 35's look best when they're properly "broken in". 

The challenge of building a weathered vehicle is that you have to take every part into consideration. You can't really do a body with flaking paint and a spotless chassis or polished wheels unless you're doing a "patina rod" or something similar. The engine, as I said earlier, won't be as rough as the body due to my idea of the car being recently recommissioned but it can't look brand new either. Fortunately I have the excellent 35B local to me in the Revs Institute for reference. There is also no shortage of pics of weatherbeaten, crusty 35b's online. The owners seem to take a lot of pleasure in keeping them as authentically grungy as possible.

If/when Italeri releases the inevitable fenders/headlights version I'm going to build it as a pristine restored example. It'll make for a nice contrast!

 

[Bugatti Fan]

That's the nice thing about the 35B, plenty of options of how to depict the car from well used or neglected to pristine. Not sure how I will build mine when I start it. Got something else on the go at present, so.plenty of time to think about it.

[Phildaupho]

I recently visited the Mullin Museum which renewed my interest in Bugatti. I really like how you are building yours and look forward to following.

[jaymcminn]

Wheels are a go... The Bugatti 35 series were the first cars to use aluminum alloy wheels. These were multi-piece cast-alloy units with integrated brake drums. Some restored cars show nicely polished wheels but they were rough-cast from the factory. The kit wheels are nicely molded in five pieces including valve stems. They're satin chrome plated, which I stripped using Easy-Off. It took longer than usual and I was left with white residue on the parts which came off after a soak in 91% Isopropyl alcohol. I painted the wheels in Vallejo Duralumin with mist coats of Vallejo Matt Aluminum and Gunmetal followed by a coat of Mr. Clear flat. Next was dry brushing with Matt Aluminum and a dark grey acrylic wash. Below is a wheel before and after the weathering process.

Four finished wheels...

they all look a bit different, which was the idea. Once the tires are given a nice application of dirt and grime they'll look the business.

[jaymcminn]

A few inspirational pics I just took of the ex-Louis Chiron Bugatti 35B barn find in the Revs Institute. I wanted to make sure I had good pics of the front suspension, brake cable configuration, radiator minus its nickel plating, etc.

 

 

[Bainford]

Stellar work! Top notch weathering, very authentic looking. Looking forward to seeing more of this. 

[absmiami]

do you know what fusee chain is ??

[jaymcminn]

24 minutes ago, absmiami said:

do you know what fusee chain is ??

Yes, I've seen it used in some builds on here for hinges. How do you think I could incorporate it here? Possibly the chain tensioner for the brake lines?

[absmiami]

Bingo!  Take a close look at the brake lines in the driving compartment - left and right …

[jaymcminn]

48 minutes ago, absmiami said:

Bingo!  Take a close look at the brake lines in the driving compartment - left and right …

Italeri includes some reasonably nice parts for these that would look good with some drybrushing and washes. The fusee chain is a good idea though. I'm already using thin stainless braided wire for the brake cables instead of Italeri's black rubber tubing.

[absmiami]

sorry  -  I'm really good at building other people's models ...

seriously, though - what you've done so far makes me think you mite want to find some fusee chain - 

just sayin"

By the way - the chain has a size range - get the "larger"  chain  for 12th sc  -  if you can find it 

I'm going to use you techniques for an unrestored 24th sc  pre-war Alfa that is moving steadily up my to-build list

looking forward to seeing your technique to finish the engine ...

[absmiami]

will you be returning to Rev's this summer for the "hoods up" display ??

See you there ....

 

[jaymcminn]

Lol, no worries about "building other people's models", I think all talented builders do that to some extent. That salt weathering technique is magic... just proof that spending some time seeing how the other modeling disciplines do things can pay off. I can't wait to see your Alfa, with your skills it's going to be a good one.

 

Definitely going back for the hoods up display. Did the workshop tour this time as well. I was a bit disappointed that the Ferrari 250LM wasn't on display in the collection until I walked into the workshop and saw this...

 

[absmiami]

Ding ding ding

[jaymcminn]

Well, I haven't gotten around to the engine yet. I decided to tackle the bolts and safety wire on the body and undertray as well as some simple leatherwork. This stuff needed to go on before final assembly anyway.

The wire lock bolts are from Unobtanium in the UK and are designed for the Italeri Alfa 8c kit. They're the wrong style for the Bugatti but they work well. Unobtanium includes a jig that allows you to drill precisely through the bolts to insert the wire. I used 30-gauge soft beading wire, which forms to exactly the shape you need and holds the shape perfectly. Every Bugatti 35 seems to have a slightly different pattern to the safety wire, I just went with something that looks good. 

I used the same thin leather as on the seats for the leather gaiter on the driver's side as well as the top belt for the spare tire carrier on the passenger side. Simple enough, and good practice for the more complicated hood straps to come. I went ahead and glued the seat back to the bodyshell at this point. 

These pics have the partial chassis mocked up with the seat bases in place while checking clearances. Today I'm going to fire up the airbrush and start on the small mountain of engine and chassis parts that I've gotten cleaned up and mounted for painting. On to the pics!

[cifenet]

Superb!  And the realism is at its best! 

[Bugatti Fan]

This model is starting to come to life now and looking good.

Jason, I think fusee chain is a special chain used by horology specialists for restoring clocks.

Not sure, but it might possibly look like a bicycle chain in appearance. A look at horologist or jewellery suppliers on the web will be the best way to source it.

Nick at Unobtainium has recently been developing a number of very interesting items for the 35B kit, and also for the big Airfix Bentley. More info appears over on the Britmodeller forum showing what he is up to making for both kits.

Edited June 11, 2023 by Bugatti Fan

[Jonathan]

Nice work - it really looks "real"!

I really like the technique to make the paint for the number look cracked; a great detail often overlooked.

[Bainford]

Lovely work, here. This is a fun build to watch.

[Bugatti Fan]

Jason

Forgot to ask in my last post. How many hundreds of Photos did you take of the 250LM in the workshop?   Fantastic reference pics opportunity with a load of the bodywork removed.