Bugatti P-100 Racer
Motivated by Rolands 1:48 build of the same plane I decided to show the state my racer has advanced to so far.
Being one of Special Hobbys newer kits, the Racer has quite a good fit. I want to show the plane unpainted, so no "color" at the cockpit, just "wood" and "metal".
The wing roots require some trimming and dry fitting.
I cut out the control surfaces.
The resin vents at the edges of the three part stabilizer have to be carefully blended in.
It does look fast, doesn't it?
The supports were fashioned after pictures showing the plane under construction in a workshop.
The wheel well covers at the landing gear are a bit coarse; so I did new ones from 0.2mm sheet.
Trailing edge of the wings and a new air vent above the cockpit done.
The canopy frame was flush with the clear parts. So the protuding frame of the kit part had to go.
Trimming the edges for a flush fit with the fuselage
Finally I found my motivation to finish the instrument panel.
To add a dash of color, I opted for blue saftey belts. I suppose that this would be unusual for that time frame, but - Hey - Bugatti himself build that plane. Unusual stuff was the rule.
Time to close the chapter Cockpit.
Literally. The gaps were filled with highly diluted sprue gue.
Here my preliminary idea of how to color this bird
Build a few items for the workshop
I struggled to find workshop equipment in scale 1:72. Here the polish company EMP3D came to my help. I ordered via superhobby.de and the stuff was produced on my demand. Yesterday it arrived and I am very pleased with the quality and the ease the parts can be separated with from the printing supports.
The workshop equipment received some color. The workbench is scratched and crate, chair and gas trolley are from Hauler-sets.
The EMP3D-parts really add to it. The orange plastic crate is only a guest from another project. 😉
Finally the beautiful figure set "Painting Soldiers" from Royal Model arrived. They are beautifully sculpted but not without casting flaws. Some superglue should fix that. That they are supplied with three heads, two without military insignia was a nice surprise. The added compressor is a great addition.
No, this build is not forgotten. Two further additions to the planned dio.
Bottom with first basecoat with Mr Hobbycolor 313. I'd be surprised if it wouldn't show me some spots where some more filling and sanding is needed.
As I sanded off all the canopy frame, placement of the masks was a bit tricky. But the frame of the original was flush. Thats why it had to go on the model too.
Three colors had to be replicated. Stainless steel for the rear canopy part first.
Dull aluminum on the two horizontal struts followed.
The other 'frame' parts were just contact areas where the different pieces of the canopy were glued together. I tried to replicate that with matt coat with a little bit of matt white.
And here we are.
I am quite happy with it.
The polished canopy allows quite a decent view into the cockpit.
When everything is properly cured it will be masked it off again. Time to switch to the paint job of the body.
Continued on the base. I used UvdR Workshop set as a starting point. The set is grossly disappointing as its layout is quite ridiculous. Some pieces were cut out and glued on cardboard.
The painting workers were prepared, base coated and highlighted with white.
Still quite a few areas to address.
After sanding almost everything down I finally added another base color again. XF55 and XF59 were sprayed through a sanding sponge onto the base layer of XF57 to give it a bit of variation.
Let the masking beginn...
First steps with oils to create some wood.
Second masking round
Result after the third masking round.
Ailerons and rudders, which are fabric covered, will be sanded carefully to show the structure of the internal frame. Then a few light passes with fabric color are planned. Let's see.
Little by little. Taking care of the control surfaces. Modifying the technique Roland demonstrated at his SG-38 build.
SG 38 album | Album by Roland (1:48)
After a beige base coat I carefully sanded the Ailerons again to bring out the rib structure. Then the fields in between were irregularly painted with highly diluted light buff to enhance the (hopefully) semitransparent effect. Next will be a light buff coat to simulate the fabric.
SG 38 album | Album by Roland (1:48)
After a beige base coat I carefully sanded the Ailerons again to bring out the rib structure. Then the fields in between were irregularly painted with highly diluted light buff to enhance the (hopefully) semitransparent effect. Next will be a light buff coat to simulate the fabric.
Maybe a little bit too much coverage but bottomline I am quite happy with the effect.
Love this technique.
The last wooden panels were masked and painted. To paint wood in the small scale I like to use oils on an acrylic base. Various colors are put on a piece of cardboard so that the oil gets soaked up a bit. As a palette I use a small white tile.
The basic tone of the wood grain is then stippled onto the panel. Tiny dots of other colors, usually darker ones are added randomly.
With a dry brush I brush the oils in the direction of the intended wood grain.
This is done until I am happy with the result. For a stronger grain texture I repeat the step with the tiny dots another time.
The wood painting was quite elaborate. So time for some motivational shots before I switch to more masking and the metals.
30 min masking for half a minute spray. 🙂
Hope that the clear coat protects my "wood" sufficiently and doesn't get ruined when demasked.
Demasking is always exciting. So here is the little bird with the metal parts sprayed.
Detail painting will be the next step.
I triple checked my masking but obviously missed a spot. I hope I can polish it out.
I did not like the dark metal color at the exhausts at the wings. So I decided to modify them and to fix two more panels I messed when I tried to improve looks.
well, that is more to my liking.
took me a while to find a suitable technique to build the exhausts of the engines. The kit provides the shrouds only, but with the engines installed the exhaust tubes protude through the shroud. I tried canules of syringes first but handling them with grinding tools proofed too fiddly. Brass did not look good but then I recalled that I have aluminum tubes slide-to-fit it my stash. The 0.9 mm ones had a nice big inner diameter and were easy to handle with saw and file and superglue. Now it looks the part.
Final masking session (at least I hope so) to go for some shading
Demasking after mottling the metal parts with Alclad dull aluminum and steel. Looks much better IMHO.
A panelline wash enhanced depth. Dark brown was used for the wooden parts, black for the metal ones.
Another varnish to protect the effects to follow.
Fed up with the crappy Uschi von der Rosten paper workshop I decided with a heavy heart to do things myself. Glueing the paper on cardboard resulted in some warp, so I tried a different technique.
Modelling clay rolled over sheet, trimmed and scribed.
Modelling clay rolled over sheet, trimmed and scribed.
Layout of the wall corner.
Base plate advanced. The panel lines will be emphasized and the floor will get more dirty.
Progress on the first wall. Base colored concrete, the bricks in H47, the iron beams received anticorrosion red (masked) and some bricks were picked out with various colors.
Next steps are plaster of paris as mortar and some washes to blend the bricks.
Next steps are plaster of paris as mortar and some washes to blend the bricks.
Hm. You don´t see nottin. So let me tell you: I matt varnished half the wooden part of the plane to have a difference in shine. Here is the idea: the painting guy (see pic 36) will stand and coat the wooden parts with a wood protection varnish. So the left part of the plane is shiny (coated) and the right is matt. Well - let´s say: I didn´t ruin the build. But - honestly - you probably won´t realise it if it is not pointed out. I thought the effect would be more prominent.
But hey, the AK Ultramatt varnish is good stuff and eats up any shine there is.
But hey, the AK Ultramatt varnish is good stuff and eats up any shine there is.
Further progress on my first wall. The preliminary result after adding the plaster, removing most of it again and blending everything together with some washes.
Calling the first wall done. Lamp and radiators come from EMP3d, the other details are scratched.
Finally got the scribing done on the second wall, glued the panels and fashioned the window. A varnish sealed the plaster parts.
Ready for primer.
Ready for primer.
First of the two figures done
Pain-twork done on the second wall.
A couple of washes later. Unfortunately not quite the same as the other wall. Will have to get this one closer...
The little racer is ready.
I redid the canopy frame as the original one suffered from handling.
Actually there were four access panels on the backbone which I tried to replicate. But it took three attempts with different materials to build them. When finally mounted they looked pretty much out of place. So they were removed again.
Props are now glued for good.
Now the little bird needs a home.
Stay with me
Stay with me
I inch myself forward. Window installed, wall tweaked, handels on the drawers of the workdesk attached.
Some more stuff ready for paint.
Setback. Masked the inside to paint the edges. When removing the tape some of the groundwork peeled off too.
Filled the defects with acrylic plaster. Impossible to achieve the same look like the surrounding. But, hey, any workshop floor repair might look similar. So I call it a feature, not a bug.
Motivational shot.
Floor fixed. Walls further detailled. Main components of the workshop placed.
Paint on o few detail will be next.
Floor fixed. Walls further detailled. Main components of the workshop placed.
Paint on o few detail will be next.
Thought I messed it but the repair turned out ok.
Will have to reattach the brush which broke off.
The walls finally done and assembled.
Was looking for french adds of the thirties, printed them on decal paper and stuck them to styrene sheet.
The radiators received their plumbing anew after I lost three of them during handling
Chose to put the plane off its supports and onto its wheels
Calling this one done.
Detail shot of the Carpentry.
Saw dust done with light pigments.
A word or two concerning the shades of blue. A lot of people- me included - would have expected a french Bugatti to appear in French Racing Blue. But the color the prototype was colored with, was a much darker blue. So, the builder of the replica opted for this dark shade for his plane. I found the argument that the dark blue color might have been a mere primer and was to be painted over with the Bugatti blue later on. I burrowed this concept. So, this is what you see here. Parts of the wheel well covers primed in dark blue in the process of receiving the final coat of French Racing Blue.
Comments
167 9 February 2023, 19:55
Robert PodkońskiSo cool! Even though I got the finished model of this plane in 1:48, I bought this kit - and I have some idea with respect to it 😉 Watching with interest and pleasure!
9 February 2023, 20:30
Alex KOh! A Bugatti group-build! The "unpainted during construction" finish idea is great!
10 February 2023, 03:56
Michael KohlNice to have you on board mates and thanks too for all the likes.
12 February 2023, 21:52
Roland SachsenhoferOnly just seen it and already impressed! This looks captivatingly beautiful, very good work! I can only congratulate you on the idea of the unpainted version, it will be an eye-catcher!
13 February 2023, 06:33
MikelWow. Very neat and detailed build. I ditched mine, too small for me in 72 scale.....
13 February 2023, 06:56
Dominik Weitzerlike the idea as a unpainted version. looks lke it is fitting well?
13 February 2023, 15:13
Michael KohlHi friends. Welcome.
@ Dominic: the fit is fair but not excellent. You have to be careful at the cockpit to make everything fit. The resin intakes at the stabilizer are a nice feature but require patience to blend in. Another challenge are the wing edges with the protuding round part at the inner side. This will need another session of careful sanding.
@Mikel: then go for 1:48. 🙂 it is a small plane indeed.
14 February 2023, 08:45
Michael Kohl@S M: bughunter pointed out a build on britmodeller to me that you might like too:
britmodeller.com/for..p-special-hobby-148/
29 March 2023, 07:12
Michael Kohl@Skywalker: yeah, the design is still spectacular after all those years.
29 March 2023, 07:13
Roland SachsenhoferWell.... that's a whole other dimension. that's pure eye candy, it's hard to believe what's possible- and you succeed!
1 April 2023, 16:26
Michael KohlThank you all for your encouraging comments. Those parts by EMP are really nice and good value for the money. You only need patience, as the are printed on demand - most of them at least so far.
4 April 2023, 16:22
Michael KohlHi Dean and Greg, nice to have you around and thanks for the encouragement.
10 April 2023, 19:20
Michael KohlOh boy! Some sanding dust found its way into the cockpit and stuck at the canopy unimpressed by any tapping and rinsing from my side. So I tried to brush it out with an airbrush cleaning brush. I partially succeeded- for the price of a dislocated instrument panel. This of cause refused to budge into its former position. So I had to pry open the canopy. Washing, rinsing, sanding and final polishing resulted in a nice and clean canopy, but frustratingly with stress marks at one side.
It will be fitted anyway but its a bit annoying.
26 May 2023, 07:45
Greg BakerIf it was easy... anyone could do it. 🙂
Don't worry, I'm sure you wont even notice it in the final product!
27 May 2023, 16:25
Jennifer FranklinI bet only you will ever notice the stress marks, no one else can probably even see them. This is looking amazing. I love the scene you are building with the tools and furniture.
29 May 2023, 02:51
Michael KohlThanks Jennifer and Greg for the heads up and the lovely feedback.
Now been back from some real life events I should be able to proceed again. 🙂
30 May 2023, 13:56
Michael KohlQuite a bit of the trusted Mr. Surfacer 1200 was used to fill in some imperfections.
12 June 2023, 11:16
Michael KohlRescribing of lost panel lines resulted in the need for some more workup. So - in for another round.
20 June 2023, 08:06
bughunterNow it will be really interesting - good preparations for the wood so far 👍
5 October 2023, 06:21
Roland SachsenhoferYou have my interest as well - and my admiration for the progress - an inspiring pleasure to watch!
7 October 2023, 09:46
Michael KohlSlow progress but progress. The control panels are prepared for a semitransparent fabric like appearance.
23 October 2023, 15:06
Michael KohlHi gorby and Shar. Nice to have you around. Mates, I am happy about your likes too.
24 October 2023, 07:29
Oleg SmilykA very interesting project.Michael, excellent implementation and presentation, I'm looking forward to its completion.
25 October 2023, 17:35
Michael KohlHi Oleg. I am anxious about the final result too. 🙂
Hi Frank. Yesterday I just didn't get your comment. 🙈
A good nights sleep obviously helped.
I think I will add a bit of blue nevertheless - not least to emphasize my interpretation that the dark blue the plane was painted with when stored away and that what the replica received was merely a primer and the French Racing Blue was the one and only imaginable final color possible. 🙂
26 October 2023, 11:14
bughunterAll the other models of this plane are painted blue. But you are so brave (even if it means a lot more work) to show what the plane looks like _before_ it was painted blue. At that looks fantastic 👍
26 October 2023, 11:19
Shar DipreeI am of that opinion too. I think the plane looks much better and more interesting without the paint. You really nailed the wood look. *loveit*
28 October 2023, 18:25
Michael KohlI could polish out the overspray but this left marks nevertheless. Maybe I will be able to fix that with oils, but it will be difficult to make this unseen. If I will be too annoyed by it a rag will cover it. 😉
2 November 2023, 14:09
Michael KohlThanks Villiers. I ruined one of the metal panels with my attempt to improve looks. So I need to fix this. Then the details will be added. I have a bit of trouble to get the exhaust stacks into the shrouds. This will be a bit fumbly. Stay tuned.
6 November 2023, 12:05
Michael KohlThanks Frank and Pietro. I never masked and demasked and remasked a model as often as this one.
Now the metals are done and sealed. Washing will follow and a final coat of varnish - but for the wooden parts only. Uh, that does sound like masking again, doesn't it?
24 November 2023, 16:15
bughunterAt the end you will be so well trained in masking that you will like it 😉
24 November 2023, 18:13
Roland SachsenhoferA stunning piece of work - soon to be unmasked for the last time, I'm sure!
24 November 2023, 18:59
Michael KohlYeah Frank, that might actually happen.
Thanks Roland. And Yes, that one last time masking to go for an effect I envision. Cross your fingers. Never used that stuff before.
25 November 2023, 20:16
Michael KohlI made up my mind. The Uschi van der Rosten-workshop is really no good and all my attempts to make it work for me didn't lead to a satisfactorily result. So I will create the stuff myself. Some hurdles had to be overcome though. The AK concrete stuff I used for the floor was a disappointment. It's sand texture is much too coarse for a small scale dio and it shrank considerably. So I covered it with good ol wall plaster, sanded and engraved it. Now it is much more to my liking.
For the walls I fashioned panels from plastic card and covered them with DasPronto modelling clay. After trimming I they are to be scribed. One panel is done (the masons among you might have noticed, that this wall even has a proper bond)
4 December 2023, 19:56
Mirko RömerIncredible work so far! Don't give up and you'll have a masterpiece.
12 December 2023, 17:31
Michael KohlThanks Mirko for the heads up. I am still on it. Some progress will be shown soon.
13 December 2023, 23:14
Michael KohlQuite happy with the outcome of the first wall. Dread the second one. That brick carving and painting job is quite a bit of a pain.
28 December 2023, 16:06
Bart Goesaertlooks great. nice work on the wooden panels. The brick walls are stunning...
5 January, 15:05
AndreasKTruly amazing. Somehow I missed this built, but will definitely follow the final steps 👍🏻
7 January, 15:57
Michael KohlThanks Jennifer for the warm feedback. I finally pulled myself together and scribed the second wall. Let's paint now.
16 January, 21:40
Michael KohlSecond wall received the first coats of paint and in a nice session with friends the first figure was painted.
27 January, 18:29
Michael KohlThanks mates for your very nice feedback. Step by step I inch myself forward. But getting it ready for Moson in April still seems feasible.
30 January, 10:20
Jennifer FranklinThis is an impressive undertaking, the difference in varnish is a neat idea.
2 February, 02:42
Michael KohlThanks Jennifer for your continued interest. Meanwhile I matt varnished most of the wooden parts and only a small portion at the rear is still shiny. Now it is much more to my liking. Dead matt the wood looks even better - and the canvas at the control surfaces too.
Although I thought I am done with masking, I am in for another round at the canopy to restore some of the frame that got impaired during handling.
13 February, 15:09
Alec KA unique topic and delicate execution, I love it. The wood rendering is excellent Michael 👍
18 February, 18:17
Michael KohlThanks Neil and Alec for your motivating feedback.
And Thanks another time Neil for your ton of likes to quite a few of my other projects. 🙂
19 February, 11:08
NeilYou are more than welcome, enjoyed spending some 'phone' time investigating your build albums 🙂 Much respect 👍
19 February, 11:10
Michael KohlNow that I finished my Leo I hope that I can transfer the momentum onto the Bugatti. On it. Nice to know you watching.
21 March, 09:10
Tini HendriksAs I experienced painting wood is difficult, I see you did a beautiful job 💪🏼. Sehr schön!
22 March, 20:37
Michael KohlThank you mates for the nice words and the encouragement. I hope that I will be able to proceed this weekend. Cross fingers.
23 March, 09:07
Roland SachsenhoferI'm looking forward to new things - the pictures, I agree with all mates, are already a real splendour!
23 March, 13:23
Michael KohlThanks Roland for your continued interest and John and Ruifor the praise.
24 March, 01:19
Michael KohlI declare the little racer ready for inspection.
Actually there were four access panels on the backbone metal part which I attempted to replicate. After it took three attempts with different materials to build them, they looked pretty much out of place in the end. So they were removed again and I called it a day.
So all that was left was to touch up the canopy frame which had suffered from all the handling and to mount the props.
So let's build a nice home for the little bird.
24 March, 01:26
bughunterWhat a wonderful little scene, and great progress 👍
I hope it is not too late, but a comment regarding realism: according to Wikipedia this plane has an empty weight of 1,400 kg (3,086 lb). Assuming the engine is installed the wooden wallpapering table stand on the tail looks too filigree. It would be strong enough in metal, but in wood? You can leave it in wood, but I would add two stands (a little bit stronger) below the wings. No critics, just a thought!
3 April, 18:56
Michael KohlThank you Simon and Frank for your nice and cherished feedback.
Frank, you mention an aspect I am still pondering about. I am still swinging between three options:
- leave it like this as the lines of the plane are most visible this way and hush the mechanic in me who fully agrees with you that those two supports are insufficient.
- build two new supports as the ones I already built for that purpose (you see them at the left side of the vignette with the landing gear on top) are too low.
- mount the landing gear so that it will serve as supports. This is a configuration in which the racer is quite often seen on original workshop pics.
4 April, 07:22
Michael KohlMade up my mind. Frank, as you will be able to see soon, I put the bugger on its own wheels. Like it much better this way than bogged down on a jig. Looks more dynamic too, I think. Added the oleo struts too that Specialhobby omitted at the 1:72-kit (the 1:48-kit features them).
Fashioned the decals I needed to complete the walls.
9 April, 09:25
Michael KohlOur moddeling evening started annoyingly, but ended well.
Had ruined the face of the second mechanic. Thought I would have to repaint him bottom up. But then the touch up luckily turned out better than expected.
My home made decals for the wall advertisements and technical drawings refused to do as I intended. But here too the improvisations lead to a rather sufficient result. So I even managed to finally finish the walls for good and glue the floor onto the base.
Happy again and back on track. 😀
11 April, 08:16
Michael KohlThis night I had a pleasant flow and everything fell into place. So this project is finished at last. Some (semi-)final pics were added to the album. Maybe I will take some more later with better lighting.
Thanks to all of you for your interest, comments, suggestions. It always is a pleasure to read and quite often a boost to moral too.
Nice to have you around. Happy sunday evening.
14 April, 17:20
bughunterWith all the little things you added on the last mile (the light wooden base, the name plate the wood in the corner ...) this is now a wonderful piece of art 👍
And even it is a static scene the bird on own legs looks now very dynamic on pic 125!
14 April, 20:23
Roland SachsenhoferThis is one of the most amazing works I have ever seen. What a treasure trove of wonderfully crafted details, beautifully staged! Besides that, the Bugatti racing machine is masterful in its own right. Congratulations on this masterful depiction!
15 April, 07:09
Michael KohlThank you so much guys for your more than positive feedback and the high praise. A great pleasure to read!
16 April, 11:06
Album info
A wonderful machine with lots of interesting technical solutions. Bugattis Racer was never destined to fly and the replica was sadly lost on her third test flight at the loss of the pilots/builders life.
Build in the late thirties its sleek lines do not show her age and evoke awe to this day.
I plan to show her unpainted during construction with all the different materials used visible.
