TAMIYA Ducati 1199 Panigale (Super Detailed)
Discussion
The last time I built a bike was back as a teenager in something like 1992, and it was Wayne Gardner's Rothmans Honda. I absolutely loved it and have great memories, so when lockdown started driving me insane I decided therapy would come in the form of another bike build.
The fun of 1/12 scale as it's big enough to replicate pretty much every part if you wish, and it all goes together with screws, not just glue.
Though I've built up experience over the years it's been a decade since I built a plastic kit and paints have changed since so it was a chance to catch up with all the options available nowadays.
As I'm a bit of a detail freak I was smitten by the add on sets available for these bikes so purchased both the Top Studio & Hobby Design detail kits, both had something I wanted to detail the bike with. More detail on that to come...
The fun of 1/12 scale as it's big enough to replicate pretty much every part if you wish, and it all goes together with screws, not just glue.
Though I've built up experience over the years it's been a decade since I built a plastic kit and paints have changed since so it was a chance to catch up with all the options available nowadays.
As I'm a bit of a detail freak I was smitten by the add on sets available for these bikes so purchased both the Top Studio & Hobby Design detail kits, both had something I wanted to detail the bike with. More detail on that to come...
Edited by Guiddy on Wednesday 2nd December 09:35
I'll miss all the filing and fitting parts and jump straight into the juicy bits.
All the paints here are Alclad, mostly white aluminum and pale burnt metal which is the gold on the clutch cover etc. The black is Tamiya LP-5 Semi Gloss Black through an airbrush with Retarder added.
A big part of the fun of bikes is the exhaust and creating a heat stained look. The standard Panigale exhaust isn't the usual glossy stainless steel and more of a gold colour so a mix of gold, burnt iron and burnt manifold were used to create the look. The exhaust springs are from the Hobby Design detail kit.
I decided to use the photo etch clutch cover from the HD (Hobby Design) detail kit but it was a real pain to blend the edge of the flat metal part into the plastic kit part. I wish I hadn't bothered TBH!
I used Alclad Chrome over semi gloss black on the radiator. Bad move as it's rubbing off when I handle the model!
The jubilee clamps are beautiful and from Crazy Modeller. They require some patience to assemble though!!!
All the paints here are Alclad, mostly white aluminum and pale burnt metal which is the gold on the clutch cover etc. The black is Tamiya LP-5 Semi Gloss Black through an airbrush with Retarder added.
A big part of the fun of bikes is the exhaust and creating a heat stained look. The standard Panigale exhaust isn't the usual glossy stainless steel and more of a gold colour so a mix of gold, burnt iron and burnt manifold were used to create the look. The exhaust springs are from the Hobby Design detail kit.
I decided to use the photo etch clutch cover from the HD (Hobby Design) detail kit but it was a real pain to blend the edge of the flat metal part into the plastic kit part. I wish I hadn't bothered TBH!
I used Alclad Chrome over semi gloss black on the radiator. Bad move as it's rubbing off when I handle the model!
The jubilee clamps are beautiful and from Crazy Modeller. They require some patience to assemble though!!!
I did buy the paints to spray the forks but once I saw the fork kit comes with spun aluminium reservoirs as well as the forks, I was hooked.
I ordered mine from Japan as the were a good £7 cheaper and they came in about 3 weeks.
They look gorgeous on and actually save about a day of spraying and painting as everything is coated already!
What you see added here is the beautiful Top Sudio Shock absorber. Annoyingly screwing it in place has pulled the top away, so I'll have to address that. A lot of building these is learning as you go along, so sometimes it has to be taken apart again and adjusted, which is possible because it's screwed together.
The silver shock reservoirs are Top Studio, the gold one is Tamiya.
All the bolt heads are from the Top Studio set.
I've gone for the kit chain for the moment as the Hobby Design kit has a chain made of individual parts, but it looks way too scary!
I ordered mine from Japan as the were a good £7 cheaper and they came in about 3 weeks.
They look gorgeous on and actually save about a day of spraying and painting as everything is coated already!
What you see added here is the beautiful Top Sudio Shock absorber. Annoyingly screwing it in place has pulled the top away, so I'll have to address that. A lot of building these is learning as you go along, so sometimes it has to be taken apart again and adjusted, which is possible because it's screwed together.
The silver shock reservoirs are Top Studio, the gold one is Tamiya.
All the bolt heads are from the Top Studio set.
I've gone for the kit chain for the moment as the Hobby Design kit has a chain made of individual parts, but it looks way too scary!
The HD instructions are wrong for the rear brake ABS ring! They say put it on the wrong side of the disc, and the hole isn't big enough for the wheel to sit far enough in, so I had to take it all apart again. I ended up redoing the brake hose with better detail at the top whilst I was at it.
While I was at it I added an ABS sensor using parts from the spares box. I like to build up widgets which always come in handy!
The photo etch disc was stuck to a Dremel wheel with double sided tape and spun whilst holding some 800 grade wet & dry paper against it's face.
It gives it a nice used look.
The brake hose and bleed nibble are Top Studio and don't come with the detail kit unfortunately. Colour is AK paints medium aluminium.
While I was at it I added an ABS sensor using parts from the spares box. I like to build up widgets which always come in handy!
The photo etch disc was stuck to a Dremel wheel with double sided tape and spun whilst holding some 800 grade wet & dry paper against it's face.
It gives it a nice used look.
The brake hose and bleed nibble are Top Studio and don't come with the detail kit unfortunately. Colour is AK paints medium aluminium.
I never imagined the wheel decals would be such a pain! They are super thick and Micro Sol wouldn't soften them, nor a hairdryer!
I ended up ordering the strongest decal solution I could find in the UK and finally that and a hairdryer got them to stay in place. I think I'll airbrush some semi gloss clear over them to really make sure they don't come off!
The tires also pick up any dust or bits they come near, so could do with sealing also! The ABS ring on the brake disc is the right way round now!
The nut on the rear wheel is finished off with the Top Studio P/E circlip.
I ended up ordering the strongest decal solution I could find in the UK and finally that and a hairdryer got them to stay in place. I think I'll airbrush some semi gloss clear over them to really make sure they don't come off!
The tires also pick up any dust or bits they come near, so could do with sealing also! The ABS ring on the brake disc is the right way round now!
The nut on the rear wheel is finished off with the Top Studio P/E circlip.
Wheels now in place and some details added to the engine.
The harness shield for the wiring is a pain and doesn't really stay in place against the tension of the wires. I ended up removing it and pinning it into the engine with some rod.
I used the photoetched heel guards from the Top Studio set
The front discs are the Hobby Design set and made of about 30 parts each! Beautiful!
The harness shield for the wiring is a pain and doesn't really stay in place against the tension of the wires. I ended up removing it and pinning it into the engine with some rod.
I used the photoetched heel guards from the Top Studio set
The front discs are the Hobby Design set and made of about 30 parts each! Beautiful!
The front forks now fitted and wired up with Top Studio Banjos for the brake lines. Again not included on either kit so had to be bought aftermarket.
The calipers are sprayed AK Metals medium aluminum over gloss black.
The front mudguard was decaled using Tamiya's fine twill weave carbon. An evening's work there as it needed about 5 strips running across the curve to look right. Then it was clear coated and polished smooth.
Bolt heads added everywhere from the Top Studio kit and a wash added to the fork bottoms to make it look more 3D.
Radiator grilles are from the Top Studio kit, radiator cap from Hobby Design.
I realised the wheel was put in the wrong way around in this picture, the tires should be the other direction and the ABS ring on the other side! Again, glad it is held together with screws!
You can also see the clear coat on the wheels and tires in this shot. I used Tamiya X-35 clear for this.
The calipers are sprayed AK Metals medium aluminum over gloss black.
The front mudguard was decaled using Tamiya's fine twill weave carbon. An evening's work there as it needed about 5 strips running across the curve to look right. Then it was clear coated and polished smooth.
Bolt heads added everywhere from the Top Studio kit and a wash added to the fork bottoms to make it look more 3D.
Radiator grilles are from the Top Studio kit, radiator cap from Hobby Design.
I realised the wheel was put in the wrong way around in this picture, the tires should be the other direction and the ABS ring on the other side! Again, glad it is held together with screws!
You can also see the clear coat on the wheels and tires in this shot. I used Tamiya X-35 clear for this.
Rear light cluster and seat subframe now in place. Again you can see the clear coat on the tires gives it a kinda 'back to black' finish which suits a road bike.
The wiring harness and electronic boxes have been added here, as well as the battery and front light. The electronic plugs are from Top Studio, again not included in either kit, with wiring from Model Factory Hiro in 0.4mm
The wiring harness and electronic boxes have been added here, as well as the battery and front light. The electronic plugs are from Top Studio, again not included in either kit, with wiring from Model Factory Hiro in 0.4mm
This is the first time I've used Tamiya LP lacquer paints for body work.
Thinned using LP thinners and about 5 drops of retarder added it certainly goes on smooth. A bit too 'toffee apple' look but I'll probably clear coat these too so will polish the clear to make it look a bit more real.
Thinned using LP thinners and about 5 drops of retarder added it certainly goes on smooth. A bit too 'toffee apple' look but I'll probably clear coat these too so will polish the clear to make it look a bit more real.
Thanks for your kind words everyone. It's not far off completion but I'm working in real time now and the last detail work is fiddly, but I promise you'll see it completed.
I had an evening on it last night which got the handle bars in place with all they come with.
The instrument panel was something I wanted to improve on over the standard kit decals. I used the clear acetate sheet with the display printed on it that comes with the Hobby Design kit, but tried to shape it the best I could around the outer edge so that it looks like the whole thing is behind glass.
For the levers I added bleed nipples (these I'll add rubber caps to next) various rivets and the C logo that is stamped on these (no idea what that is!)
Those gorgeous anodized blue fork tops come with the Tamiya fork upgrade. They'll be wired in too.
Tonight's work will involve making a wiring harness for it all and starting on the fluid reservoirs.
I had an evening on it last night which got the handle bars in place with all they come with.
The instrument panel was something I wanted to improve on over the standard kit decals. I used the clear acetate sheet with the display printed on it that comes with the Hobby Design kit, but tried to shape it the best I could around the outer edge so that it looks like the whole thing is behind glass.
For the levers I added bleed nipples (these I'll add rubber caps to next) various rivets and the C logo that is stamped on these (no idea what that is!)
Those gorgeous anodized blue fork tops come with the Tamiya fork upgrade. They'll be wired in too.
Tonight's work will involve making a wiring harness for it all and starting on the fluid reservoirs.
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