Alfa Romeo 8 C 2300 - 1/12 - Italieri

[bosscat]

hello guys!!

 

Thanks all for the support!!

 

I've almost finished the engine. Several different paints and I've put the decals. Here the result, the engine isn't glued!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I've replace the distributor by a 3d printed part. I've designed it and a friend of mine printed it with his Saturn 3D printer.

 

The result in 3D and after the printing:

 

 

 

 

 

Other modification, the radiator. Bengalensis inspired me, I've replace the molded grid by a generic PE grid but just the front one. The other one is hided by the engine and just in front of it. We don't see it, then...

 

 

the modified kit part 

 

 

 

A piece of card plastic to support the PE grid:

 

 

 

 

the cuted piece of PE grid:

 

 

 

All the parts assembled ready to paint

 

 

 

 

 

For the spark plugs, I've choose to do like those we can see in this picture instead the kit's parts:

 

 

I've made another 3D drawing to be able to ask to my friend if he can printed them too. But I added the sockets at the end of the spark plugs to be able to glue the cables into them.

Here is the drawing:

 

 

 

 

to be continued in the next episode!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Bengalensis]

Excellent progress Bernard! It's looking very promising.

 

Edit:

Sorry, Fred it is.

I hope Bernard is also making good progress with his build 😎

[bosscat]

Me it's Fred, not Bernard 😄 No problem, thanks a lot!

 

A little picture to make you wait, the first line of the grid of the Grand Prix de l'ACF 1932 which takes place in Gueux. The 2 Bugattis of Fourny and Gaupillat and Etancelin's Alfa, he's already won twice in the past on this track. At the time, no qualification, the starting grid was established by drawing lots. We had to wait for the Monaco GP the following year to see a grid established at the end of the practice times. This year, the opposing forces essentially boiled down to a Bugatti versus Alfa Romeo duel divided between team drivers and independents. Nuvolari on the 2nd row will win the race after 5 hours of racing!!! He was part of Scuderia Ferrari along with Borzachinni as well as the addition of German Caracciola. At Bugatti, the factory pilots are Varzi and Divo as well as Chiron. To give you an idea of the performance of the pilots, despite the low power (between 150 and 300 HP for weights between 750 and 1100kg), they were obliged to relieve the accelerator in the straight lines to succeed in staying on Track! The handling due to the perfs of the more than narrow tires and the sophistication of the suspensions still limits things a lot. Despite everything, the Italian driver achieved the fastest lap in the race at an average of 156 km/h!

 

[Bengalensis]

19 minutes ago, bosscat said:

Me it's Fred, not Bernard 😄 No problem, thanks a lot!

You're absolutely right Fred, I'm mixing up the names of the Alfa builders I'm in contact with at the moment, I'm very sorry. 🙂 It's amazing what a file a 3D wire locking bolts can do 😎

 

That's another lovely photo, the commercial boards alone are worth an extra look, so good looking.

[bosscat]

yes, i've a few pictures like that with very nice quality!

[Toftdale]

Good call on the ignition leads,  I never understood how on such a beautifully engineered and aesthetically pleasing vehicle they wired it up like that.  Its almost as if they forgot to install them and entrusted the job to a first year apprentice - Andy 

[Vesa Jussila]

Impressive details there.

[bosscat]

 

 

small progress!

 

I've decided to design the fuse box with sketchup. So I removed the original fuse / relay boxes which were only marked by extra thickness. Surprisingly, we were not a few parts more on the large sprue. Removing and sanding to accommodate the printed parts. I completed with small brass wires of 0.3mm. Everything is then primed and painted. I also painted the radiator and added the 3D printed distributor too.

Here are the result!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Hopsing]

Small progress and beautiful details, you can look forward to more.

[Wouter1981]

That is starting to look very nice!

[bosscat]

hello guys, hope you start a nice week end!!

 

Thx for the comments and reaction! Please correct me if i've made mistake with technical words.

 

I found it longer and more painful or even boring than mounting tank's tracks ! And more difficult to top it off. Wanting to have a nicer level of detail on the wheels and as I found that the spokes of the rims of the kit had too large a diameter, I started looking for upgrades. I found 2 manufacturers, one who sells ready-made rims (the wheels who choose Bengalensis)  and another who does it as a kit. Wanting to see what mounting rims of the same type as what Model Factory Hiro would do, I motivated myself to take those in kit form. I have to say that, considering the size of the rooms, the guy did a hell of a job. This is how the kit looks when you receive the box, well packaged with a QR code to download the relatively well-made instructions. I'll link it to give you an idea.

 

 

Manual: https://unobtainium.digital/manuals/alfa.pdf

 

So we have the outer part of the rims with an incorporated jig to be removed at the end, the hubs and a bundle of 0.3mm steel rods. In the bags, these are the spoke nipples... as well as the valves and the balancing weights. It's printed in resin, it's pretty thin and I'm impressed with the size of some things like the spoke nipples. A 0.3 hole is present to pass the spokes through and they must be 0.5 to 0.6mm in diameter.... It is therefore quite fragile, we tend to damage them because it is like threading a wire through an eye. of a needle. Except that you have to do it for the ton of spokes... Your eyes meet after a while, even with magnifying glasses, essential.

There are 5 rows of spokes, 3 on the inner sail side and 2 on the outer side. If you follow the instructions carefully and understand the jig well, no assembly problems, although you feel a little worried at first.

I put you several photos of the first rim step by step but I did not put you everything, the photos of the manual are better than mine. I show you the difference with the rim of the kit for comparison. It is not yet painted, it distorts things a bit but you can see the difference between the 2.

Tool level, essential and quality tweezers, cyano, cutting pliers to cut the spokes, flat pliers to bend them for specific tools.

 

first row:

 

 

 

second row with nipples:

 

 

 

The outer rows are easier to assemble. The finished result of the assembly:

 

 

 

 

I don't hide from you that you have to find a bit of the rhythm and the way of doing it, It's by doing that you can see how to do it even if the instructions are good. So it's super long (60 spokes + 60 spoke nipples all for a single rim....), we're a little stressed but now that I've done the first one, it's going to be better after the others ones werre easier et quicker to build. But the first one took me 2 long evenings to edit... I don't recommend it to beginners or impatient people. Or you have to buy the rims all mounted who choose Bengalensis but which cost 110 € for 4 instead of the 40 in my kit. Warning, it's English, for foreign customers, in addition to the port, you have to add 13€ customs tax. Thank you Brexit 😉

 

In conclusion,  happy with the result! I still have to tweak all that, glue the valves and the balancing weights provided in the kit.

I find the result convincing, I can't wait to see everything painted. I also have to take care of the tires.

What do you think guys?

Edited December 3, 2022 by bosscat

[Wouter1981]

Nice improvement over the kit wheels. I have the roadster version but I will use the kit rims. They are good enough for me...

[Hopsing]

Yes, that was certainly a nerve-racking work, I have already noticed in my construction, but the result speaks for itself, wonderful work.

[bosscat]

thx all!!

 

Yesterday, a few modifications and paintjob between rim's building.

 

First, modification and detailing of the chassis. The rivets were represented only by simple cylindrical extra thickness. We remove that and replace with 3D printed rivets  . It's a little weird on the picture because the resin is translucent black. About twenty rivets later, a bit of primer and it's ok.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Then, small modification on the floor where I added holes on the sides of the rails, photo a little blurry but we can see enough. A shot of primer and a little aluminum on it and it's close. I also removed the texture that covered the floor, too out of scale.

 

 

 

 

Then comes an element that I dreaded, the seat. No assembly for it, it was the rendering of the leather that worried me. Never painted such a large and regular surface in leather. Usually, it's more of a strap or other small pieces of that ilk. We have a completely different subject with a seat. Seat that looks more like a small leather sofa than anything else!! 😆

 

After doing some research, let's go! I therefore proposed as such:

 

-black primer

- sanding with 6000 to smooth a little the surface

-spray of a burnt sienna type brown (I used a vallejo german camo brown)

- spraying a light brown like sienna on the center of each bead (I used another vallejo shade)

- sanding to simulate a little wear and melt the 2 colors of brown

- glossy varnish

-I tried a filter with oil to melt even better the outfits

-black paneling in the hollows

-despite the thinner of the panel line which alters the shine of the varnish, it is still super shiny, so I applied a matte varnish sprayed precisely. We insist in the hollows because the light having difficulty reaching the bottom, the leather does not reflect it too much. We also spray all over, but in a controlled way in order to keep a reflection on the top of the beads. It also allows to keep an optical illusion of roundness of the beads.

 

It reflects less in real life, it's due to the excessive power of my light that the phone has trouble managing.

 

 

After painting the 2 different browns:

 

 

finished part!

 

 

 

 

I'll see if I still have to matify all that when it's on the car with the body.

 

Finally, I primed the rims.

 

 

 

 

 

[kiseca]

The chair is extraordinary! 

[Bengalensis]

Looking very nice indeed!

[bosscat]

thx for all nice  comments guys , really appreciate!

 

It's the end of wheels. black gloss, the valve is here and paint in brass. The central nut of the rim's kit is nicer than the original part with the "alfa" logo on it and some alu polished on it and the paint is done. I sand the tyres and this part is over. 125 parts for a complete wheel....

 

[kiseca]

2 hours ago, bosscat said:

thx for all nice  comments guys , really appreciate!

 

It's the end of wheels. black gloss, the valve is here and paint in brass. The central nut of the rim's kit is nicer than the original part with the "alfa" logo on it and some alu polished on it and the paint is done. I sand the tyres and this part is over. 125 parts for a complete wheel....

 

There are nearly as many parts in that photo as there are in a complete Airfix 1/24 Mosquito... and it used to amaze me that there were more parts in the engines of the Mosquito than in half of the 1/48 models I have in stash.

[keefr22]

Those wheels are lovely! 

 

Keith

[bosscat]

hello everyone,

I started assembling my BMW but I haven't forgotten the Alfa. Between 2 stages of the bike, I evolve the rest of the chassis. So I painted the multiple parts of the friction dampers that equip it. There are 6 in all, 2 per side at the back. On the real model, instead of being damped by the usual telescopic shock absorbers, they are friction models. No hydraulic system existed then. Damping is done through the friction of several metal plates in contact with wooden washers! We could act on the hardness of the damping by tightening more or less the wing nut at the end of the axle. 

For the assembly, nothing in particular, I will do a touch-up later to hide the screws where they are visible.

It gives this in the end:

 

 

 

 

[Noel Smith]

Nick Edwards of Unobtainium's wheel kits for this car look really impressive.

He is developing wire wheels for the big Airfix Bentley too.

 

This Alfa model is really coming on well with the extra details being added.

Nice to see some inter war racers kitted in 1/12th scale.

[bosscat]

Yes Nick has made good job with these upgrade parts. But for the wheels, it's not for beginners! 

[Toftdale]

All stunning, but I particularly like the paint effect on the seat - Andy 

[CrazyCrank]

On 1/30/2023 at 2:54 PM, Toftdale said:

All stunning, but I particularly like the paint effect on the seat - Andy 

Seconded 👍

[bosscat]

just a little progress in the middle of the assembly of the HP4 between 2 painting sessions!

I was able to fit the entire engine/gearbox block to the chassis. Contrary to the kit instructions which use screws, I preferred to abstain. Indeed, it is out of scale and the real block is not fixed like that. So I used evergreen rods that I glued, puttyed and painted.

It's giving this, it's starting to take shape!