1/8 Yamaha Trials TY 125.

[hot ford coupe]

I would go ahead and put in into large scale bikes. I think 1/12 is still big enough. Just take big pictures. ;';;';

[Harleybuilder]

I like the details you put on your bike. It´s a lot of inspiation to me. One more question about the spoked wheels. How do you produce the heads on the spokes?

[Dr Dave]

Thanks Harleybuilder. I really like the way we can all help each other on this site. All the different ideas and tips can be adapted to all types of model building.

I'll get around to doing that tutorial on spoking the wheels soon.

My spoke heads in the hubs are pin heads glued into countersunk holes, and the yellow spoke tensioning nuts in the rims are .9mm wire insulation with the copper wire removed. Since finishing the model I have discovered that hypodermic needles cut into small pieces would make good spoke ends in the rim (too late now), and maybe even the spokes themselves. Some needles fit snugly inside each other and some don't. I got an assortment of needles from my local vet last weekend (after having my dog micro chipped) and can see the potential for so many uses. Hope this helps.

[Dr Dave]

I used to own and ride a TY175 when I was in my teens and it was a great bike. At this stage of the build it's starting to look like a bike and I'm getting excited. I'm also thinking about how I should display the finished model. A few ideas rolled around and I decided on something like you might see when you walk into a motorbike shop/showroom.

A polished wooden floor with the bike on some nice white gravel should do the trick. So its out to the shed to cut a piece of ply, sand it clean and smooth, and apply 5 coats of gloss varnish. Between coats of drying varnish I went to the landscaping supplies for some gravel. It’s way too large, but that can be fixed with a hammer. After crushing it down to the right size it is washed. Now for some logs to keep it from spreading across the floor when people walk on it. The trees in the back yard prove rather productive. Spot on.

The sticks are trimmed to the required length and glued to the shinny board. I then glued some white sand down as a base. To keep the gravel in place I watered down some PVA glue and mixed it through like I was making a cake (a very crunchy cake), drained off the excess glue and proceeded to spread the gravel between the logs. Not bad so far, the glue seems to be holding everything in place. While preparing the base in the shed I found some aluminium angle, so I polished it up and screwed it on from underneath to hide the edge of the ply.

Quite often pot plants are placed around showrooms, so this would also be a good little highlight. A drink bottle lid is used for the pot, with some plaster in it and a bit of dirt on top before it dries, holds the plastic plant in place and provides ballast. I'm still thinking about adding a shopfront window with YAMAHA stickers and other advertising.

[hot ford coupe]

Cool display stand, Dave. I may try the same thing with one of my deuces (if I ever get one finished, dang it!)

[Dr Dave]

By now not much more needs to be done. It has, at (many) times been quite a handful to try to hold the model while adding small parts. After a few crashes on the workbench I realized I could put an ice cream stick in between the frame and engine and use a rubber band to hold it to a piece of board.

The foot pegs are hollowed out from the solid ones in the kit, then drilled and pinned so they fold up like the real thing. Clear vinyl tube is used for the fuel line from tank to carby, and to look like fuel in the line I first tried red and green food colouring. The water evaporated over a few days so a new approach had to be found. A tiny bit of red and green paint mixed with some clear is then put in the tube, but this too evaporates leaving bubbles in the line. Hmm, what next? A piece of red thread, not as effective as I would like, but at least it stays put. Anybody have any thoughts on this one?

The seat goes on and doesn’t cover any detail. The fuel tank goes on but is not glued so it can be lifted off to show the bits that it hides. The decals from the kit were used successfully, and with clear sprayed over them, look just right. Oh, nearly forgot, the wire to the tail light has to go on under the rear guard, it’s hidden but it’s there.

[RC-Archer]

Nice detail, Dr Dave.

As for your fuel line, see if you can find some red automatic transmission oil and trap the oil in your line by heat sealing the ends of your tubing.

[Dr Dave]

Thanks for that idea RC-Archer, I'll try it and let you know what happens.

At last, the finished model I don't know what year the Heller kit was produced but I do know the quality is pretty good. All the parts are well made with almost no flashing and fitted together properly. It's a very easy kit to build (there's not a lot of parts) and so it was easy to add extra detail as the older TY is a pretty basic little bike. (And they sure are a whole lot of fun to ride).

Additional extras such as: hose clamps with a tiny screw, cutting out the slots in the fork clamps and adding real scale nuts and bolts, replacing the wiring supplied in the kit with various vinyl tube and wire, and a bit of fuel in the line, have made such a difference to the finished treasure. Along with the spoking of the wheels and a few other things (which took a whole lot more effort) I'm happy with what I've got out of this build for the amount of time I've put into it. How many hours? Don't know, don't care. It's the pleasure factor that matters

I hope you have enjoyed this as much as I have. I might go and do a bit on that Ducati 900 SS now.

[hot ford coupe]

I really like it. Great photography. It looks real to me.

[RC-Archer]

That looks incredible!! Looks like it rolled right off the dealer floor. None of my 1:1 dirt bikes looked that good.

[gbritnell]

There's not much to say except excellent job. Your attention to detail is first rate. Being a motorcyclist and modeler I can appreciate everything you've put into this bike.
gbritnell

[Harleybuilder]

And again:
RESPECT for this detailed model. First it´s hard to belive that´s "only" a scale model. When you see it on the photos it looks 1:1 from every perspective.
How about to put Tamiya clear yellow or orange in the fuelline?
We all like to see your next project with the DUC 900 SS, but what is with YOUR tutorial in spooking wheels?

I wish you a nice X-mas season.

[crawler07]

Insane from start to finish!Your time was well spent and the talent you possess is evident in your work. Top notch!!!!!!!!

[Viking]

I can't write what I'm thinking, as I'd get myself banned from the forum.

That's one amazing piece of work. It must have taken you hours and hours to do all that.