FULL-BUILD: MOTORCYCLE MODELLING
TAMIYA 1:12 HONDA RC166 ● KIT NO.1411332 September 2019 TMMI 287WORKING ON THE WHEELS
I used the Tamiya 'Detail-Up Parts
Series' Wheel Set, which includes all
the parts to make two aluminium
wheels, this is a huge visual upgrade
from the kit wheels which are moulded
in plastic. The wheels are very well
engineered and go together pretty
easily but there are a few points to keep
in mind to ensure a smooth building
process. First of all, double check all the
spokes and their positioning because it’s
easy to put them in the wrong way.
Secondly, you are supplied a jig to
build the rims and to hold the outer
rim in place you are given double sidedtape to stick it down in place. It is very
important to ensure that the rim is
sitting flat in the jig, as the padding
of the double sided tape can cause the
rim to not sit flush and as a result you
will get a warped-looking wheel rim.
One handy tip is to use some PVC glue
to temporarily hold the spokes in place
until they are joined to
the rim.
Once the rims were built,
I moved on to assembling
the brake drums. The kit
parts are great but can be
enhanced by using some
0.2mm braided cable toreplicate the actual cable on the 1:1
version which requires a fair bit of
cutting and drilling to accommodate the
enhancements. The kit tubing for the
brake lines were replaced with 0.6mm
tubing. I also used various turned bolts.
Some were painted with Alclad Copper
as per my reference photos.Assembling Tamiya's Detail-Up Parts Series Wheel Set (12631)
The author used Tamiya's 'Detail-Up Parts
Series' Wheel Set, which includes all the
parts to make two aluminium-rimmed wheelsDouble check all the spokes and their
positioning because it’s easy to put
them in the wrong wayThe detail set includes a jig to build the rims and to hold the outer
rim in place you are given double sided tape to stick it down in placeThe finished wheels make a huge visual upgrade
from the kit wheels which are moulded in plasticV