Ducati Panigale S - Italian Speedster - Tamiya 1/12

[DocRob]

Buon Giorno Amici, I have a Tamiya run lately for no special reason and this time I go LS. The Tamiya kit rpresents the Ducati 1199 Panigale and will be finished in the Tricolore design.
You have to love European motorcycles for being only half the weight of the average American bike with at least double the acceleration and real handling. I know a bit provocative, but there are other reasons to love them. As they are high tech products, you will have to replicate dozens of different metal correctly, which attracted this project to me. When I lived in Berlin I had a KTM 950 SM, which drove like a sharp blade through the heavy traffic in Berlin. I loved this bike, but left it in Berlin and promise my wife not to buy one for my tiny island.

This is the kit:

I opted for the metal fork set.

 

The plastic looks very nicely casted with the exception of the clear canopy dome, which is quite distorted. As it's very prominent, I will buy a vac-formed substitute. 

One other irritating thing is the color call outs in the manual. For the engine you need to paint single parts in different, mostly metal colors. I haven't counted, but already used more than ten different metal colors and some of them has to be mixed, which makes it quite confusing to follow the steps, without forgetting to paint some detail this way or another.

Cheers Rob

[DocRob]

My first contact with the kit was, like with most of my kits, to search for the hard edges of the built. I immediately found the braking discs a place, where some extra effort would be well spent and drilled out what felt like a thousand holes. The type of plastic Tamiya uses here, the silver grey type, is prone to form burrs, which hare very hard to clean off.
This is the unpainted result:

Cheers Rob

 

[Bomber_County]

Rob, another genre busting project, really looking forward to this as it’s been on my radar for awhile but probably a step to far…….

[DocRob]

On to the engine, a masterpiece of engineering, light, compact and high powered, which means complex, the way it's constructed. It really pays to study the manual and work methodical. Normally I prepare most components of a kit for one or two long painting sessions, but not with the Ducati. There are so many different colors involved, that I prepared only the engine with exhausts and some parts of the frame / air duct.
To get the multiple metals right, there was a lot of complicated masking involved

I used Tamiya lacquer colors and AK Extreme Metal colors for all the different metal shades. The engine was painted with dark aluminum and was then treated with some steel pigments for emphasis.
The Cylinder heads and clutch were painted in a mix from titanium gold, a bit of bronze and some metallic gray. The exhaust ends received a coat of dur aluminum and a mix of titanium silver and gun metal.
The same mix in a slightly lighter shade was used for the exhaust tubing, which then was added with translucent yellow, red and blue on the heat stressed parts.
The black frame was painted with the formidable Tamiya LP semi gloss black, which has exactly the right shine.

The engine:

 

Some of the subassemblies are screwed together. The air duct and frame parts were added this way. They received decals for the serial number and some tubing for the cooling fluids.
The tubes were sprayed matte black and the masked for painting the steel colored fixing fittings.

Which now starts to look very busy:

That's where I am with the build and I have to say, I absolutely love the kit. It's a canvas to test material replicating skills and that was, what I was hoping for.

Cheers Rob

 

[Bomber_County]

Have you tried the AK True Metal paste tubes……..the engine looks stunning…

[Spitfire]

That looks really good, but then again Ducati's do look like works of art like most Italian bikes, my favourite is the MV F4.

Cheers

Dennis

[DocRob]

3 hours ago, Bomber_County said:

Rob, another genre busting project, really looking forward to this as it’s been on my radar for awhile but probably a step to far…….

Thank you Phil, it is indeed genre busting, as there is no correct way to display the finished Ducati here, but what the heck, when ready, I will put it into the finished aircraft section as it is fast and light .
it's my first bike build, but I love to try new things and I'm sure you could do as well.

2 hours ago, Bomber_County said:

Have you tried the AK True Metal paste tubes……..the engine looks stunning…

I've tried the AK metal waxes and I do like them, when used to their purpose. Lately, I used them to repair the NMF on my KI-61, where I had a tacky spot, rubbed away with alcohol and removed some sprayed paint, which I remade with a mix of the waxes, much easier than to respray. They do look very metal like and are easy to apply.
I've used the metal waxes on different occasions, but when masking, decaling or varnishing comes into into play, I do not trust them. Extreme Metals and Tamiya LP paints are perfect for the job accompanied with Uschi pigments, which are the best in business.

Cheers Rob

[DocRob]

55 minutes ago, Spitfire said:

That looks really good, but then again Ducati's do look like works of art like most Italian bikes, my favourite is the MV F4.

Thanks Dennis, yes, these Ducati's are a piece of art, indeed. They are also able to give you goose bumps. I once attended a Superbike race on the Lausitzring, a bad circuit for motorcycle races, but after the first round maybe fifteen Ducati's with top speed where charging down the long straight, It was an unbelieveable sound, which I will never forget.
I loved my KTM and the Triumph Speed Triple before, but never owned a Ducati until now in 1/12 scale 

Cheers Rob

[Kaireckstadt]

What a different subject Rob and what a nice one!

Great start and the engine and brake-discs look stunning. Making all these holes in them will pay off in the end.

I will follow this closely. I build some Revell 1/12 motor-bikes when I was young and also have a 1/12 Tamiya bike on the radar. 

[DocRob]

1 hour ago, Kaireckstadt said:

What a different subject Rob and what a nice one!

Great start and the engine and brake-discs look stunning. Making all these holes in them will pay off in the end.

I will follow this closely. I build some Revell 1/12 motor-bikes when I was young and also have a 1/12 Tamiya bike on the radar. 

Muchas gracias Kai, I really like to have a broad view concerning my modelling projects, I get bored easily. 
I'm not sure about the braking disks,  I painted them with a steel color and they look better than on the pic, but maybe I will purchase PE brake disks.
You made me curious, which bike do you have in your stash?

Cheers Rob

[Kaireckstadt]

17 minutes ago, DocRob said:

You made me curious, which bike do you have in your stash?

Only on the radar not in the stash…

[Wumm]

You have a very good technique for metals Doc. I especially like the burnishing at the ends of the exhaust pipes, not an easy result to achieve. 

1 hour ago, DocRob said:

You made me curious, which bike do you have in your stash?

I have the Tamiya Desmo kit, to be used with the Studio 27 transkit to backdate for the 2003 version.

 

The only difficult choice... Whether to drill all the holes in these gorgeous resin parts for the Catalunya GP Capirossi first win bike?

S

[Peterpools]

Rob

WOW what a start to an amazing project. I'm just blown away on how you treated the engine and exhaust. A varied pallet doesn't come close.

I'll be in the front row for the entire journey

Keep 'em comin

Peter

[harv]

Wow Rob, I'm already blown away . Engine and exhaust look great. I'm surprised that the chain and sprocket are one piece on this scale. Can you get an AM chain for it ? Ducks are my most favorite bike !.....harv 

[BlrwestSiR]

Stunning engine there Rob. I love the heat staining on the exhausts. I've done the odd bike kit and have thought of doing one. I recently missed out on a Tamiya Bimota which would have been cool with its truss frame and dual swing arms. 

Carl

[DocRob]

9 hours ago, Wumm said:

You have a very good technique for metals Doc. I especially like the burnishing at the ends of the exhaust pipes, not an easy result to achieve. 

10 hours ago, DocRob said:

You made me curious, which bike do you have in your stash?

I have the Tamiya Desmo kit, to be used with the Studio 27 transkit to backdate for the 2003 version.

 

The only difficult choice... Whether to drill all the holes in these gorgeous resin parts for the Catalunya GP Capirossi first win bike?

Thank you Steve, your Desmo project sounds interesting with the conversion included. Drilling out these holes would be to much for me without a template. Only one misaligned hole and the look is gone. Aren't there any decals out. What about the thickness of the resin body parts. If it's to thick, where the holes have to be drilled, it wouldn't look right either.

Cheers Rob

[DocRob]

9 hours ago, Peterpools said:

Rob

WOW what a start to an amazing project. I'm just blown away on how you treated the engine and exhaust. A varied pallet doesn't come close.

I'll be in the front row for the entire journey

Thanks Peter, it's a single seater, there is only the front row . I had nearly all my metallic colors pulled out of the shelf, shaking them up, peeking at the bottom side of the jars for the right shade or base for mixtures. I haven't mixed Xtreme metals and Tamiya LP's though .

Cheers Rob

[DocRob]

8 hours ago, harv said:

Wow Rob, I'm already blown away . Engine and exhaust look great. I'm surprised that the chain and sprocket are one piece on this scale. Can you get an AM chain for it ? Ducks are my most favorite bike !.....harv 

Thank you Harv. Yes the chain, there are different types out there AM wise. I saw one with the hole links as one etched loop with pins in between and one very great looking single link track. This is my first bike build and I want to concentrate on the materials and finish, so I stay with the kit part.

I toyed a bit with it, sprayed the whole thing in a light gun metal shade, then masked the chain and used flat aluminum for the pinions, followed by panel liner, which looks a bit oily due to it  being slightly shiny and then rubbed on some chrome pigments. I'd say, it's usable.

Cheers Rob

[DocRob]

5 hours ago, BlrwestSiR said:

Stunning engine there Rob. I love the heat staining on the exhausts. I've done the odd bike kit and have thought of doing one. I recently missed out on a Tamiya Bimota which would have been cool with its truss frame and dual swing arms. 

Thank you Carl, it helps a lot to have owned a relatively modern bike and know the shine of all the used materials.
It's my first attempt on bikes, besides a started Honda NR, more than 25 years ago. The Bimota is a strange looking beast, with interesting technical developments and would look great in the display shelf. You may should give it a try, along the bond Lotus....

Cheers Rob

[BlrwestSiR]

I missed out on the Bimota but you've got me looking at their Honda Africa Twin bike now. Will have to see if the budget allows for it.

I built the NR a few years ago. The real bike was pretty impressive with its 32 valve 4 cylinder. You know the engineers are running the company when they come out with an engine like that. 

Carl

[DocRob]

57 minutes ago, BlrwestSiR said:

I missed out on the Bimota but you've got me looking at their Honda Africa Twin bike now. Will have to see if the budget allows for it.

I built the NR a few years ago. The real bike was pretty impressive with its 32 valve 4 cylinder. You know the engineers are running the company when they come out with an engine like that. 

Ah, the Africa Twin a good bike for sure, but a bit boring too. The kit is impressive though. The NR was a bit over engineered, when I remember right. Oval pistons, what's the idea behind that?
When it comes to Honda and modelling it's maybe the RC166 with the metal wheel set or a Monkey.

Cheers Rob

[Kaireckstadt]

20 hours ago, DocRob said:

Thank you Harv. Yes the chain, there are different types out there AM wise. I saw one with the hole links as one etched loop with pins in between and one very great looking single link track. This is my first bike build and I want to concentrate on the materials and finish, so I stay with the kit part.

I toyed a bit with it, sprayed the whole thing in a light gun metal shade, then masked the chain and used flat aluminum for the pinions, followed by panel liner, which looks a bit oily due to it  being slightly shiny and then rubbed on some chrome pigments. I'd say, it's usable.

Cheers Rob

It’s more than usable Rob! Looks quite realistic ! 

[GazzaS]

Great chain and gears, Rob!

[DocRob]

7 hours ago, Kaireckstadt said:

It’s more than usable Rob! Looks quite realistic ! 

 

3 hours ago, GazzaS said:

Great chain and gears, Rob!

Mille gracie Amici, I used some more chrome pigments on the chain links and will use it now as it is.

Cheers Rob

[Peterpools]

Rob

Usable - no way - how about Incredibly usable - 'top gear' to me.

Keep 'em comin

Peter

On 9/4/2021 at 4:50 AM, DocRob said:

Thanks Peter, it's a single seater, there is only the front row . I had nearly all my metallic colors pulled out of the shelf, shaking them up, peeking at the bottom side of the jars for the right shade or base for mixtures. I haven't mixed Xtreme metals and Tamiya LP's though .

Cheers Rob