B.S.A. Gold Star, 1/12 Gunze Sangyo

[Fastcat]

This is from around '93/ '94. Whilst I enjoyed the build and the new challenges a mixed media kit introduced, some of the choice of materials were to say the least mystifying. Much of the kit was diecast metal and very hard to clean up. This was OK for the engine but useless for the frame, the slightest attempt to straighten it ending up in a breakage - and the frame was very distorted. After it ended up in an extra four or five pieces, I gave up and fabricated most of it in brass tube, using the original as a template. Flexible plastic was used for a seat - no idea why, but as I decided not to use it, it wasn't a problem.

 

My immediate thought was to make a racer and use the alternative fuel tank provided, scratch building any other parts required. This was to prove difficult but necessity helped to keep a focus!

I found a perfect illustration in a book and began.................

 

 

 

 

Changing the kit to represent a race bike wasn't just a matter of leaving off the road bits. I had to make the seat and tank pad from scratch. Also the number plates, brackets, fly-screen and various extra details. The bike already had an Amal GP carburettor so that just required detail adding. The biggest challenge was the reverse cone megaphone exhaust. In the end, I made this from the standard Goldie silencer provided. This was an aluminium turning. As I didn't possess a lathe, I used a standard Black & Decker DIY drill - I don't recommend this but it worked! I sawed off the tailpipe and the back section, hollowed the rear section out and reattached it to the remaining body of the silencer with adhesive - one reverse cone megga! The rest of the exhaust pipe was made from polished aluminium tube.

The Dow front brake was turned in the same way using files and abrasive paper and a metal backplate as a stiffener.

The wheels were spoked with a thinner gauge wire instead of the insect pins provided. I think I read an article by a wheel builder that said 3mm spokes were used on bikes while 4mm/5mm spokes were used on cars and I've used that as a rough guide ever since.

Overall, I very much enjoyed the build and the choice of subject and scale is second to none.

 

Dave   

[JeroenS]

That's awesome, especially with you scratching all these different parts!! 

[Fastcat]

Hi Jeroen,

It helps when you like the subject. And who doesn't like a Goldie? I don't always know how to scratch things but a half built kit helps to sharpen the mind.

 

Dave

[Bengalensis]

What a lovely model! Fantastic finish and very inspiring. Execellent choice on doing the racing bike.

I have studied some of these Gunze bike kits in a good friends stash, and they do seem challenging. But tempting...

[Pete Robin]

That's beautiful and has triggered bucketfuls of nostalgia.

My ride was a late 50s/early 60s (very beaten up) Matchless 250 single. Loved it to bits apart from being covered in oil on the lower legs every time it was ridden. 

Regards

Pete

[Vesa Jussila]

This is really nice. Really beautiful bild.

[Fastcat]

Hi Jorgen,

Yes, challenging but ultimately good and well worth the effort.

 

 

Hi Pete,

I used to have a Matchless 250 too but eventually it gave way to a Norton Dominator 600 SS. Glad it reminded you of early days.

 

Hi Vesa,

Many thanks.

 

 

Dave

[keefr22]

Stunning work, really lovely model!

 

Keith

[Spiny]

That's a lovely looking model, and from lookign at it you wouldn't guess it had disintegrated itself while you were building it. Excellent scratchbuilding to knock it back into shape.

[Kiwidave4]

What a lovely Goldie! Opting for a race bike was a good decision, you have really captured the look of a typical 'Clubmans' machine from the period.

[Fastcat]

Hi Spiny,

                     Sadly that's one of the properties of a diecasting. It's very brittle and not at all suited to thin, round sections that may distort and require corrective action. Nothing like the white metal used in limited run cars which bends easily because of the lead content.

 

Hi Dave,

                     One of the beauties of the Goldie (apart from being a Goldie, of course) is that almost any configuration was used on race bikes - from full race configuration to virtually standard form as in Production races. So almost anything to suit different modelling skills can be built. And it is a handsome machine!

 

Dave

[klubman01]

That looks really fabulous.  Love the worn effect on the seat leather.

Trevor

[roginoz]

My goodness !! Shades of the Busy Bee and the Ace caff !

 

I can almost smell the Castrol-R !

 

One beautiful and impressive build, well done with a challenging mixed media kit.

 

Rog

[Fastcat]

Thanks Rog,

                          Great that it brings back so many memories. It's hard to explain but it makes my day.

 

Dave

[OWL1975]

Fantastic modelling, I have been a motorcycle fanatic for years, I feel I could just throw my leg over it and race the iom classic races.

 

Jerry. 

[Fastcat]

Thanks Jerry,

                    Glad you liked it. Wish we'd had more classic bike kits to work on. It's a shame none of the major kit manufacturers took it on. Pity but you never know - when they run out of mainstream stuff and 3D printing becomes more widespread..........................but maybe not in my lifetime.

 

Dave

[OWL1975]

Hi Dave.

 

As you might already know there a few classic bike kits out there in plastic and a few in metal but your right, not many.

 

One of my favourites was agostini's mv agusta rocket 3 I think it was and the Manx Nortons.

 

Jerry. 

[Fastcat]

Hi Jerry,

                    Yes, I'm guessing you are referring to the Protar kits, now marketed by Italeri. Protar made some great subjects but lacked refinement. It's hardly surprising when you think that some of them date back to the '70s. I prefer the size of 1/12th mainly because I think they offer the best compromise of detail, size and cost. MFH and several others make some big mixed media kits but the cost is just plain scary.

Maybe that's the way bikes will go in future - more eclectic but also more expensive - a bit like aircraft.

 

Dave

[bigbadbadge]

Oh wow that's a real beauty,  great work on the scratch built additions.   

Looks fantastic. 

Chris 

[Fastcat]

Thank you Chris, glad you like it.

I'm pleased with how it turned out. Sometimes it can help when you don't know how to deal with a problem. There's nothing like a half finished model to help to focus the mind!

 

Dave

[OWL1975]

Hi Fastcat, 

 

Yes, I was referring to the Protar kits, they are good and are heavy with the frames being made out of metal but yes, getting expensive. 

 

It's a shame company's like tamiya don't make many if any classic bikes before the 70s, it seems to be more modern superbikes and the like. 

 

Jerry

[PatW]

Looks fantastic. There were a lot of these around when I was a lad in the 1960's.

[Coors54]

Oh that is lovely @Fastcat, fabulous job and just takes me back to being 17 when a Goldie was my first "proper" motorcycle after a couple of Steyr mopeds. It was a 1963 model that had languished in a coal shed for several years after its owner had died. I paid very little for it and had to restore it with lots of repaint and rechroming.

 I do remember you could hardly see anything at seventy mph because of the vibrations!

 I loved that bike but it got written off when a Mini pulled out in front of me and it got planted into the Minis front wing. I was very lucky to only suffer cut legs and a broken wrist.

Memories eh? And thank you for resurrecting them with your model.

 

Dave

[Fastcat]

Hi Jerry,

                     Yes, in spite of their obvious faults Protar had a great range of unique subjects and slowly got better. Most of the early kits were all plastic but later they turned to some diecast parts which were heavier but because of the thicker sections that the larger scale allowed, they tended to avoid so much distortion. The main trouble for modellers was the difficulty in cleaning up the diecast metal. They also didn't quite identify their market, wasting time and money on moving parts which ended up being over scale. Do you really need to prove that the suspension works by pushing it up and down? A sure fire way of being in need of a repair kit.

Nonetheless, I've still got a sneaking regard for Protar. Where else would you find a Moto Guzzi V8, or a Manx or an AJS 7R/ Matchless G50. And with a lot of hard work they could be made into beautiful models.............

 

Dave     

[Fastcat]

Thanks Pat,

                     Yes, BSA got it right with the Goldie but a bit too late for a big single. But it was a handsome bike and so near to an over-the counter racer for road use.

 

Dave