FULL-BUILD: MOTORCYCLE MODELLING
TAMIYA 1:12 HONDA RC166 ● KIT NO.1411334 September 2019 TMMI 287Building up Tamiya’s Detail-Up Parts Metal Chain Set (12633)
MAKING THE CHAIN
I used the excellent Tamiya ‘Detail-up Parts
Series’ Metal Chain Set. Building it was pretty
straightforward, although some areas are a
little fiddly. The instructions say to use thread
lock to keep the links from falling apart. I
would suggest not to do this and instead use
some white PVA glue watered down. This will
allow the glue to seep through the links and
create a very light bond behind the links where
it matters most. The only other advice I have is
to pay special attention to the instructions and
ensure that everything is done properly before
moving on to the next step.
Overall it took around ninety minutes to two
hours to complete the chain, including waiting
for the PVA glue to dry. To begin, you put the
plastic jig together as per the instructions,
making sure that all parts are firmly placed
into position. Once the jig is done you start
placing the rollers. Make sure they have a
little bit of room to 'wiggle' as this will help
later on. Then you add the PE strips making
sure you are using the correctly instructed
strip. Ensure the strips are installed firmly
into the locating holes on the jig.WIGGLE ROOM
There are two sets of PE strips which you will
eventually sandwich together. Next you put
the pins in, this is where having that little
bit of wiggle room helps to easily slot the pins
in, also make sure that all the pins are fully
pressed in and not sticking out randomly. Once
the pins are installed you will take the other
PE strip section and sandwich it over the pins
section. Next comes the crucial part! You get
the links to connect it all up, you need to make
sure that when installing these links you use
enough firm force to ensure that all links are
correctly positioned. If you get it wrong, don’t
worry, as Tamiya supplies extra. Try not to
fiddle around too much once the links are on as
moving them could cause the links to open up
and then the chain will collapse. The next part
is pretty delicate as it involves bending off the
PE fret.
As previously said, you do not want to
disrupt the links too much while doing this as
it will open or warp the links and will cause
the chain to collapse. I found using tweezers
rather than fingers to get the PE fret off was
the best way to go. Once you have installed
all the links in then you need to use the PVA
glue on these links before removing it from the
jig. Once these steps are completed you should
have one long piece of chain. The next step is
to link the ends together.
Once again, back to the jig! Be careful with
orientation and positioning before putting
the joining links on as once you have put the
links on it will be very difficult to get them out
without causing lots of damage and possibly
breaking the chain completely. Double/triple
check everything! To finish the chain off, I
painted it with a mixture of light brown and
black and once the paint had set I used a
cotton bud with lacquer thinner on it to wipe
away the paint on the chain pins to enhance
the overall look.Tamiya's Detail-Up Parts Metal Chain
Set (12633)Heres the jig with all the rollers placed, next is to put the PE chain link strips in place.To begin you put the plastic jig together as per the
instructions, make sure that all parts are firmly
placed into position. Once the jig is done you start
placing the rollers, make sure they have a little bit
of room to “wiggle” as this will help later onAnd finally if all goes well up to this point then
when you (carefully) take the chain out of the
jig it should look something like thisAnd it’s finally complete!V
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