TMMI 287 September 2019 31Imraan Malik
returns to TMMI
with his masterful
build of Tamiya's
delicious 1:12 1966
Honda RC166
T
he RC166 was the dominant
force in the 250cc class
of Motorcycle Grand Prix
racing in 1966, winning a
staggering ten of the twelve races
that season with Mike Hailwood
on the saddle and the engine
was the main reason why. The
powerplant is an engineering
masterpiece; in just 250cc,
Honda managed to squeeze in
six tiny cylinders, four cams
and twenty-four valves the size
of pencil erasers! It revved to
18,000rpm, pushed out 60bhp
and could attain a top speed of
150mph, big numbers considering
the size of the engine and the
technology at the time.
This write-up will focus on
the detailing modifications I
made. If you want to read up
about building the kit almost
box-stock (but with the Tamiya
accessory parts) then you can
refer to the article by Marcus
Nicholls in TMMI Issue 175
(May 2010). My plan for this kit
was to make as highly detailed
a build as possible. The Tamiya
kit is superb, but there are
always little things you can do
to improve it and make it more
authentic. Tamiya also offer some
really nice additions which you
can buy separately. I have used
them in this build so you can also
judge whether or not they would
be useful to you should you
decide to build this kit.
Pretty much all parts of
this build have some form of
enhancement over the standard
kit. The engine was heavily
up-detailed with turned bolts and
additional wiring as well as the
aftermarket Tamiya clutch and
front fork set. The wheels were
replaced with the aluminium-
rimmed aftermarket versions
from Tamiya. And the plastic
kit chain was replaced with the
aftermarket version from Tamiya
too. The instrument cluster
and handlebars were heavily
detailed and modified with added
wiring, and modifications as
per reference. The frame was
enhanced with turned bolts and I
also used the Tamiya rivet detail
set for the cowlings and seat.
I also used some parts of the
Hobby Design detail up set.U