Ferrari 512BBLM "Bubble Car"

Since my 250LM is almost completed i had to start a new one. This time it is something less known, the Scuderia Bellancauto 512BBLM from 1984 Le Mans. I bought this kit from ebay thinking that it is the LMP kit, but i'm quite sure that it is something else. I have no idea who is the manufacturer, but it seems to me that it must be the famous italian company called Carlo Copieri :) . All the parts in the kit look exactly like LMP parts, but most white metal parts are substituted with resin ones. Decal sheet is different from the LMP one (luckily it seems to be printed by some good quality manufacturer) and also the PE sheet is different.

Those who are interested to see what the 1:1 looks like, take a look here.

http://www.racingsportscars.com/photo/1984/Le_Mans-1984-06-17-027.jpg

Enough with words; ive already painted and mostly polished the body:

http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b248/nniemi/512BBLM%20Bellancauto/IMG_0599.jpg

http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b248/nniemi/512BBLM%20Bellancauto/IMG_0600.jpg

-Niko

I'm suprised that MFH didn't do one of these since the front and rear are about the only main differences.
Nic

Super subject, Niko :thumbsup:
Really looking forward to following this :)

That's one kit I wish I had gotten before they were gone.

Looking forward to the build!

That's one kit I wish I had gotten before they were gone.



... just like me ...



looks good so far, may you should close the hole in the upper window frame

Holes in window trim are filled, black trim masked and painted. I also polished the front again. It looks a little better now.

http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b248/nniemi/512BBLM%20Bellancauto/IMG_0609.jpg

http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b248/nniemi/512BBLM%20Bellancauto/IMG_0610.jpg

I also started decaling of the body. Decals supplied with the kit look a lot like Profil24 and Renaissance Decals.

http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b248/nniemi/512BBLM%20Bellancauto/IMG_0611.jpg

Bubble decals come in several big decals, this is the roof decal

http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b248/nniemi/512BBLM%20Bellancauto/IMG_0612.jpg

I didn't want to cover half of the car with clear decal film, so i decided to cut each bubble out of the decal and attach them separately. Here is the roof after first half an hour.

http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b248/nniemi/512BBLM%20Bellancauto/IMG_0614.jpg

-Niko

Great work Niko :thumbsup:

This is just for you (http://youtube.com/watch?v=RDcPFxKhz14) ;) :evillol:

that body looks great!

Thanks klutz :wink:

It didn't take forever though, only around seven hours. But i've sure had enough of bubbles for a while now.

http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b248/nniemi/512BBLM%20Bellancauto/IMG_0615.jpg

http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b248/nniemi/512BBLM%20Bellancauto/IMG_0616.jpg

http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b248/nniemi/512BBLM%20Bellancauto/IMG_0617.jpg

http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b248/nniemi/512BBLM%20Bellancauto/IMG_0618.jpg

-Niko

Nice Mac :)

Oh, and the model rocks too :-D

Terrific start Niko. Looks like a lot of work cutting and applying every bubble! Decals look great though.
Do you have a picture of the kit before you started with it? I wonder if it is a copy or not - I have an original LMP kit and wanted to see if it is indeed a copy. If it is, I probably should include that in my DB. Let me know.

Wheels and tires are done. They are very nice four piece assemblies that include turned aluminium rim, rubber tire, white metal centerpiece and PE "bolt ring". My poor references didn't show clearly what colour the wheels should be so i just believed most of the 1/43 modelmakers that have painted those in yellow.

http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b248/nniemi/512BBLM%20Bellancauto/IMG_0624.jpg

http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b248/nniemi/512BBLM%20Bellancauto/IMG_0625.jpg

Thanks for your nice comments,
Niko

SUPERJOB!!

Very nice work of a unique 512BB variant. Interestingly, it was designed by a man named Armando Pallanca who was 79 at the time! this car has a special meaning for me as 'Ferrarelle' is an Italian mineral water bottler that is about 8km's from where I was born before my family, including a 'mini-me' ,moved to Canada. My uncle, actually, worked at the plant (quality analyst) for many years before he retired.
And yes, I am fortunate to have the 1/24 LMP kit in my stash!
Thx for the tip about separating the bubbles. I think that is very intelligent and though rather painstaking, it will reduce the carrier film.
Please continue on as many of us will be paying very close attention to your build of this unique car.
Off to work on my 512BB: MFH 3M 'cloud' car!
Michael

I was in abit of a hurry to finish this for local contest, so not much of in progress pics to show, actually these are the last ones. I used some earlier model BBLM pictures as a reference, so i'm not sure if the interior is correct.

http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b248/nniemi/512BBLM%20Bellancauto/IMG_0629.jpg

http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b248/nniemi/512BBLM%20Bellancauto/IMG_0627.jpg

Top of the engine is clearly visible trough rear window so i added some detailing to engine also:

http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b248/nniemi/512BBLM%20Bellancauto/IMG_0626.jpg

Finished model can be seen here:

http://www.automotiveforums.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=771680

-Niko

Looks brilliant, a great subject and awesome detailing, can't believe it's 1:43!

I saw a very nice built 1/24 model at a recent fair in Germany. Conversion kits (maybe partially copied from LMP) are produced in Italy and are of very nice quality.

Just found on ebay:
http://cgi.ebay.com/FERRARI-512-BB-BELLANCAUTO-LE-MANS-1984-1-24-KIT_W0QQitemZ150196614129QQihZ005QQcategoryZ145974 QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
http://cgi.ebay.com/512-BB-BELLANCAUTO-FERRARELLE-N-27-LE-MANS-1984-1-24_W0QQitemZ150196614556QQihZ005QQcategoryZ9118QQs sPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

Looks brilliant, a great subject and awesome detailing, can't believe it's 1:43!

I hate to disappoint you but this is 1/24. Actually from the same ebay seller that is mentioned above.

-Niko

I saw a very nice built 1/24 model at a recent fair in Germany. Conversion kits (maybe partially copied from LMP) are produced in Italy and are of very nice quality.

Just found on ebay:
http://cgi.ebay.com/FERRARI-512-BB-BELLANCAUTO-LE-MANS-1984-1-24-KIT_W0QQitemZ150196614129QQihZ005QQcategoryZ145974 QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
http://cgi.ebay.com/512-BB-BELLANCAUTO-FERRARELLE-N-27-LE-MANS-1984-1-24_W0QQitemZ150196614556QQihZ005QQcategoryZ9118QQs sPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem


Here's a bunch of pics of the entire kit. It looks like the LMP kit with the exception of the decals and many items that were in white metal are now in resin. The resin is very similar to the early Fisher resins. Also, it is molded very similar to the way armor kits are molded with the large sprue blocks. The very last pic is one from islandcollectibles of the LMP kit. You can get these kits off of ebay or directly. I hope someone here in the states might be able to pick up the line as I see he is doing the 550LM, too.
Nic

http://public.fotki.com/scalecentral/racing_models/lmplittle-garage-fe/

does anyone knows where I can buy this kit ?
thanks

Unfortunately this kit is long out of production. I'm dying to have one too. I recently came across one on ebay with a buy-it-now price of ~ US$400 plus another $25 for shipping from Taiwan. The price is just too steep for me. Hopefully I'd live long enough to see a new kit made by some other manufacturers.

There is a 1/18 kit from MG model: http://www.mgmodelshop.com/garage_08.html

Guess what I found on ebay today

http://cgi.ebay.com/1-24-Little-Garage-Ferrari-512LM-Resin-Metal-Kit-RARE-/270658436939?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item3f047fff4b#ht_500wt_1156