Delayar Posted September 13, 2019 Share Posted September 13, 2019 Hi Folks, I recently finished the Tamiya Harley Davidson Fat Boy in the silver-gray paint, which was available in the first production year 1990. It is the older Tamiya kit from 1996. I didn't build it new, but rather tore apart a kit I built about 20 years ago. The parts were stripped from their old paint, chrome parts were cleaned. Covers of the gearboxes and brake disks were cut from acrylic sheet with a laser cutter. Rims, exhaust and speedometer were stripped of their plating and rechromed with Alclad. For the body and frame colour I used Tamiya Mica Silver from the rattle can, coated with a very thin layer of clear yellow to give it a warmer sheen. The WIP can be found here: Cheers, Markus 12 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
krow113 Posted September 14, 2019 Share Posted September 14, 2019 Very well re-done! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Delayar Posted September 14, 2019 Author Share Posted September 14, 2019 thank you! Cheers, Markus Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy J Posted September 14, 2019 Share Posted September 14, 2019 Wow that is superb. May I ask how do you achieve such a great chrome finish and what products do you use ? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Delayar Posted September 14, 2019 Author Share Posted September 14, 2019 8 minutes ago, Andy J said: Wow that is superb. May I ask how do you achieve such a great chrome finish and what products do you use ? Thank you for your praise. To get a nice chrome surface, the plastic part should be really smooth. Then there should be a very glossy black coat. I used Tamiya spray paint. I let it cure for a few days. If it is not absolutely glossy, you should polish it, because the glossyness of the black is the basis for the reflectiveness of the following chrome paint. The final step is the Alclad Chrome paint. Apply it with low pressure in multiple light passe. However, the chrome coat is very delicate. Fingerprints can remove the chrome, and masking tape will peel it off as well. Furthermore, if you clearcote it, it will loose its shine. So I handled the rims and the exhaust with cotton gloves to prevent them from damage 😉 For the speedometer, I ended up clearcoating it and using Bare Metal Foil for the sides. Cheers, Markus 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy J Posted September 14, 2019 Share Posted September 14, 2019 12 minutes ago, Delayar said: Thank you for your praise. To get a nice chrome surface, the plastic part should be really smooth. Then there should be a very glossy black coat. I used Tamiya spray paint. I let it cure for a few days. If it is not absolutely glossy, you should polish it, because the glossyness of the black is the basis for the reflectiveness of the following chrome paint. The final step is the Alclad Chrome paint. Apply it with low pressure in multiple light passe. However, the chrome coat is very delicate. Fingerprints can remove the chrome, and masking tape will peel it off as well. Furthermore, if you clearcote it, it will loose its shine. So I handled the rims and the exhaust with cotton gloves to prevent them from damage 😉 For the speedometer, I ended up clearcoating it and using Bare Metal Foil for the sides. Cheers, Markus Thank you for the tips much appreciated I will try your method on my next build. Once again congratulations on an excellent build infact I would go as far as to say the most realistic bike build I've seen. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Delayar Posted September 14, 2019 Author Share Posted September 14, 2019 29 minutes ago, Andy J said: Once again congratulations on an excellent build infact I would go as far as to say the most realistic bike build I've seen. Thanks again. Cheers, Markus Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harley John Posted September 14, 2019 Share Posted September 14, 2019 Very nice. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Natter Posted September 14, 2019 Share Posted September 14, 2019 Just want to get on, fire it up and cruise. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
activexp Posted September 19, 2019 Share Posted September 19, 2019 Superb! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Delayar Posted September 19, 2019 Author Share Posted September 19, 2019 Thanks! Cheers, Markus Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roberto Posted September 19, 2019 Share Posted September 19, 2019 A real beauty! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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