Channeled '32 Ford 3-window

[Bernard Kron]

This is a project I started last fall when I first got back into car modeling after a very long (like several decades long) hiatus. This was the very first kit I bought. It’s the Revell Goodguys 3-window ’32. I told myself I would build it OTB but within minutes I was mocking it up w/o fenders. I didn’t like the highboy look – I thought it wasted the nice rake of the Pete & Jake’s setup they have on this model. So, within an hour I was cutting it up! Then I got sidetracked by some other builds, the first of which is will be completed this week – the ’34 5-window that’s the subject of another post.

The build is still pretty close to OTB because I’m using the kit’s suspension, engine and interior and the body, other than what it takes to channel it (which, admittedly, can be a fair amount), is stock. The hood side panels are from the Revell Goodguys ’32 Roadster. The grill shell in this rough mockup is the kit shell, but I’m using a Replic’s & Miniatures Co. of Maryland 2†chopped shell and p/e grill set which puts the bottom of the shell just in line with the front axle.

The motor is built except for wiring the distributor. The chassis is trimmed at the rear, prepped and ready for paint and the interior and firewall are cut up and fit for the channel job. The car will be fenderless and use the kit wheels and tires you see in the pictures. Paint will be a solid, very bright, red acrylic throughout. I’m not sure what I’ll do about the front radius rods because I want to keep the frame rails covered up.

All of which is by way of saying that channeling is a non-trivial exercise, certainly not on par with sectioning or chopping a roof with compound curves, but hardly a straightforward out-of-the-box paint and assembly job. But you gotta love the way a nicely channeled 32 3-window looks!

(Click on the picture for a larger view)

Edited July 14, 2008 by gbk1

[Nick F40]

Sweeeet. good so far, do you have any pics of the channel and how you did it as i'm also doing this kit?, so far I z'd the frame

[Kenny]

WOW! I loved your '34 and it looks like you have another winner. Keep up the good work and keep posting updates!

[MikeMc]

OH YEAH..........MORE!!!!!!!

[Raul_Perez]

OK, Bernard, I was a little skeptical when you told me that you were going to channel this one, only because I think that the ’32 frame rails are so nicely sculpted and it’s a bit of a shame to hide them. But, it looks GREAT!! I can’t wait to see this one finished!!

[RJWood]

The Revell 32' Ford kits are great, but it is very hard to just build it OTB. they are like a blank canvas to build any way you like. Yours has started out great, keep up the nice work. I want to see how you finish it.

Thanks for posting pic.

Ron

[Frank Steffens]

Love the stance and rake.....CHOP IT!

[Bernard Kron]

Thanx everyone for the kind comments.

Do you have any pics of the channel and how you did it as i'm also doing this kit?, so far I z'd the frame

Nick, your comment got me thinking. Channeling really is a pretty big deal, especially if your trying to maintain much of the original structure of the model, as opposed to dropping a body onto a scratch built, or totally different, frame where your options a pretty wide open. I don’t have any W.I.P. pics of the actual work I did, but all the parts I modified are still apart so I shot some quick pics and thought I’d outline the process I used for this particular model. I hope you all don’t find this too long winded but perhaps others will find it useful in their builds.

Here are the parts that are modified to accommodate the channel:

(Click on image to enlarge)

The frame, firewall, interior floor piece, seat back, seat cushion, and rear inner fender panels all had to be modified to drop the main body down over the frame rails. In addition the hood sides have had to be altered, and the grill shell and radiator will require extensive cutting.

Before I begin any extensive modification of a model I always make it a point to assemble the kit according to the instructions as much as possible without actually gluing anything together. This acquaints me not only with the fit of all the pieces, but the logic of the assembly and how the sub assemblies relate to each other.

Whenever I channel a body I always build up the frame, the basic suspension and, if possible, the wheels and tires I plan to use. I use some sort of temporary adhesive so I can disassemble the chassis afterwards. Having the actual frame, suspension and wheels to work with allows me to trial fit, eyeball, and modify as I go along to get the look I want. Obviously this pretty much means I need to do my suspension and frame modifications, and select my wheels, before I start cutting and fitting my channel job.

In the case of the Revell ’32 3-Window the position of the body in relation to the frame rails is primarily determined by the firewall, interior floor piece, and the rear frame horns. The model assumes you will build it as a highboy and that you will retain the stock gas tank. Obviously, if you channel the body you’ll have to ditch the tank and cut the rear of the frame. In my case I decided to leave the rear of the frame showing just under the body shell. I cut the frame back and reshaped the ends as shown. I also flattened and filled the little indentation in the rear valence for the fuel filler.

Also it’s critical NOT to glue in the inner fender pieces into the rear wheel wells. These are specifically designed for a highboy and will make it impossible to channel the body. Later you will have to make new inner fender pieces once the rest of you channel is finalized.

(Click on image to enlarge)

The angle of the channel is determined by the length of the lower ends of the firewall. You can drop the body down over the frame so that it is lowered over the frame rails the same amount front to rear, or, as in this case, so that the front is channeled a little more than the rear. If I had wanted to channel the whole body the same amount as the front (no rake) then I would have had to shorten the rear frame ends in some more to tuck the rear of the frame up into the body. In this case I removed a small amount from the ends of the firewall to achieve the rake I wanted.

(Click on image to enlarge)

Once I determined the rake, this determined the modifications I would have to make to the interior. The back of the interior floor piece has a large tab which nestles up into the leading edge of the trunk panel and thus determines the height of the body relative to the chassis at that point. This meant that I would have to cut down the back panel of the interior floor piece. In the picture below I indicated the place where I made the cut. The interior has a grainy texture for the carpeting on the floor and Revell extends this upwards a ways on the back panel. This creates a nice straight line where you can place your saw and make your initial cut. The floor piece is located to the chassis with two small pins as reference. It's important to use these each time you trial fit the interior. I temporarily glued the floor piece to the chassis using those pins. This located the firewall (via the tabs circled in the picture below). Then I fastened the cut piece to the rear of the floor assembly using masking tape and dropped the body onto the frame. I did this repeatedly until the back piece was properly located up against the leading edge of the trunk lid with the body sitting the way I wanted it to, including resting on the rear frame ends properly. . I then marked the overlap of the cut piece and the rest of the floor piece. The amount of the overlap is what I removed from the cut piece, thus lowering the overall height of the interior. It’s important NOT to cut the back of the floor piece at the base (see arrow) because it’s virtually impossible to create a strong glue bond of a simple butt joint, and this is a piece that you’ll be handling a lot, and inserting and removing from the body at various points quite frequently. For this reason when I glued the cut piece back to the rest of the floor piece I used plastic strips to reinforce the joint and used super-glue.

(Click on image to enlarge)

I am using as much of the stock kit as possible and I am using the stock seats. This meant I had to cut the seat down so it didn’t stick up into the rear window. The seat in this model is a single piece. From bitter experience I’ve learned to avoid cutting into any pleated or tuck and roll surface if possible. It’s very hard to fill and sand the cut so it doesn’t show (at least for me). I’ve also learned to distribute the height reduction between both cushions so that the seat remains well proportioned. For this reason I made two small cuts along the seat frame at the back of the lower cushion, and then made a diagonal cut at the base of the seat back to separate the two halves of the seat. Then I removed a small amount of material from the seat base and made a semi-circular cut into the center of the front of the seat base to make room for the transmission tunnel. Then I test fit the complete seat assembly including the back inside the body and measured the amount the seat stuck up into the window. This is the amount I cut from the bottom of the seat back. The seat back still stuck up a bit so I carefully sanded the lower edge of the seat back until it fit correctly.

(Click on image to enlarge)

Once you’ve constructed the main interior assembly, you will have to cut down the stock door panels so they fit. Or, in some cases you may want to make you own door panels. In either case it is best to modify the kit panels first, even If they just land up being templates for you new scratch built items. In my case I cut them along the bottom until I was able to properly fit them to the interior assembly in the manner shown in the kit instructions. In this build the door panels remain stock so I was lucky that I didn’t need to cut into the pattern of the interior along the bottom. If you have a lot of rake in your channel you will have to make a diagonal cut because the door panel will narrow towards the front. The best way to trim the door panels that I have found is to make a template out of card stock by inserting the card stock in the space between the frame and the body and mark the floor line and window sill. This will give you the basic shape of your taper. Then align the template on the door panel along the window sill and make your cut along the bottom.

The final step to completing the channeling of the main body is to make a pair of new rear inner fender panels. I don’t suggest cutting down the original ones because the plastic is quite thick and difficult to handle. It’s much simpler to use the lower edges of the original panels as templates for the shape of the lower edge of you new panel and build one from scratch out of plastic sheet. Glue the new panels into place into the body at whatever point in your build you find appropriate.

(Click on image to enlarge)

This completes everything you need to do to channel the main body. Obviously, if you're using bucket seats you can omit the process of cutting down a bench seat, However, you will have to carefully fill and finish the cut line on the back of the floor piece, since it will show. In my build the line is hidden.

If you are leaving the motor completely exposed this is about it. other than locating the grill.

I’m using a complete engine cover so I have had to modify the engine cover side panels so they drop over the frame rails and taper inwards to align with the grill shell. I made a template out of thin plastic sheet and cut a shaped it until it fit correctly, I then cut a side panel from the Revell ’32 Highboy kit. Then I reversed the template for the other side and cut the other side panel.

(Click on image to enlarge)

Lastly, the grill shell needs to be positioned and sized to look right on your build. I am using a Replicas and Miniatures of Maryland 2†chop shell because the stock shell hangs down too low and I want to use a p/e grill, which the RMCM piece includes. Even with the chop, I will still have to remove material from the base of the shell and from the radiator so that I get a proper hood line.

Edited April 29, 2008 by gbk1

[CB]

Great tutorial Bernard. Thanx. Just got me a '51 Chevy, (and a '34 Ford, a '32 Phaeton, a '28 Lincoln, & a '65 Pony-ack ) and it occurred to me, as I studied the instructions whilst on the throne, that it would be a purty good idea to build up the frame and wheels, if only temporary, so as to help with the body fittings. I'm digging the imagining that I'm working on a 1;1 and try to work the model the same way. Looks & sounds like you'd build some kool 1:1s. Spent some time in 'Rants & Raves' and lotsa dudes are dissin' Boyd Coddington, so anytime you wanna start buildin' them 1:1 wonder rods... Later, ######'n

[Don Banes]

Thanx everyone for the kind comments.

Nick, your comment got me thinking. Channeling really is a pretty big deal, especially if your trying to maintain much of the original structure of the model, as opposed to dropping a body onto a scratch built, or totally different, frame where your options a pretty wide open. I don’t have any W.I.P. pics of the actual work I did, but all the parts I modified are still apart so I shot some quick pics and thought I’d outline the process I used for this particular model. I hope you all don’t find this too long winded but perhaps others will find it useful in their builds.

Here are the parts that are modified to accommodate the channel:

(Click on image to enlarge)

The frame, firewall, interior floor piece, seat back, seat cushion, and rear inner fender panels all had to be modified to drop the main body down over the frame rails. In addition the hood sides have had to be altered, and the grill shell and radiator will require extensive cutting.

Before I begin any extensive modification of a model I always make it a point to assemble the kit according to the instructions as much as possible without actually gluing anything together. This acquaints me not only with the fit of all the pieces, but the logic of the assembly and how the sub assemblies relate to each other.

Whenever I channel a body I always build up the frame, the basic suspension and, if possible, the wheels and tires I plan to use. I use some sort of temporary adhesive so I can disassemble the chassis afterwards. Having the actual frame, suspension and wheels to work with allows me to trial fit, eyeball, and modify as I go along to get the look I want. Obviously this pretty much means I need to do my suspension and frame modifications, and select my wheels, before I start cutting and fitting my channel job.

In the case of the Revell ’32 3-Window the position of the body in relation to the frame rails is primarily determined by the firewall, interior floor piece, and the rear frame horns. The model assumes you will build it as a highboy and that you will retain the stock gas tank. Obviously, if you channel the body you’ll have to ditch the tank and cut the rear of the frame. In my case I decided to leave the rear of the frame showing just under the body shell. I cut the frame back and reshaped the ends as shown. I also flattened and filled the little indentation in the rear valence for the fuel filler.

Also it’s critical NOT to glue in the inner fender pieces into the rear wheel wells. These are specifically designed for a highboy and will make it impossible to channel the body. Later you will have to make new inner fender pieces once the rest of you channel is finalized.

(Click on image to enlarge)

The angle of the channel is determined by the length of the lower ends of the firewall. You can drop the body down over the frame so that it is lowered over the frame rails the same amount front to rear, or, as in this case, so that the front is channeled a little more than the rear. If I had wanted to channel the whole body the same amount as the front (no rake) then I would have had to shorten the rear frame ends in some more to tuck the rear of the frame up into the body. In this case I removed a small amount from the ends of the firewall to achieve the rake I wanted.

(Click on image to enlarge)

Once I determined the rake, this determined the modifications I would have to make to the interior. The back of the interior floor piece has a large tab which nestles up into the leading edge of the trunk panel and thus determines the height of the body relative to the chassis at that point. This meant that I would have to cut down the back panel of the interior floor piece. In the picture below I indicated the place where I made the cut. The interior has a grainy texture for the carpeting on the floor and Revell extends this upwards a ways on the back panel. This creates a nice straight line where you can place your saw and make your initial cut. The floor piece is located to the chassis with two small pins as reference. It's important to use these each time you trial fit the interior. I temporarily glued the floor piece to the chassis using those pins. This located the firewall (via the tabs circled in the picture below). Then I fastened the cut piece to the rear of the floor assembly using masking tape and dropped the body onto the frame. I did this repeatedly until the back piece was properly located up against the leading edge of the trunk lid with the body sitting the way I wanted it to, including resting on the rear frame ends properly. . I then marked the overlap of the cut piece and the rest of the floor piece. The amount of the overlap is what I removed from the cut piece, thus lowering the overall height of the interior. It’s important NOT to cut the back of the floor piece at the base (see arrow) because it’s virtually impossible to create a strong glue bond of a simple butt joint, and this is a piece that you’ll be handling a lot, and inserting and removing from the body at various points quite frequently. For this reason when I glued the cut piece back to the rest of the floor piece I used plastic strips to reinforce the joint and used super-glue.

(Click on image to enlarge)

I am using as much of the stock kit as possible and I am using the stock seats. This meant I had to cut the seat down so it didn’t stick up into the rear window. The seat in this model is a single piece. From bitter experience I’ve learned to avoid cutting into any pleated or tuck and roll surface if possible. It’s very hard to fill and sand the cut so it doesn’t show (at least for me). I’ve also learned to distribute the height reduction between both cushions so that the seat remains well proportioned. For this reason I made two small cuts along the seat frame at the back of the lower cushion, and then made a diagonal cut at the base of the seat back to separate the two halves of the seat. Then I removed a small amount of material from the seat base and made a semi-circular cut into the center of the front of the seat base to make room for the transmission tunnel. Then I test fit the complete seat assembly including the back inside the body and measured the amount the seat stuck up into the window. This is the amount I cut from the bottom of the seat back. The seat back still stuck up a bit so I carefully sanded the lower edge of the seat back until it fit correctly.

(Click on image to enlarge)

Once you’ve constructed the main interior assembly, you will have to cut down the stock door panels so they fit. Or, in some cases you may want to make you own door panels. In either case it is best to modify the kit panels first, even If they just land up being templates for you new scratch built items. In my case I cut them along the bottom until I was able to properly fit them to the interior assembly in the manner shown in the kit instructions. In this build the door panels remain stock so I was lucky that I didn’t need to cut into the pattern of the interior along the bottom. If you have a lot of rake in your channel you will have to make a diagonal cut because the door panel will narrow towards the front. The best way to trim the door panels that I have found is to make a template out of card stock by inserting the card stock in the space between the frame and the body and mark the floor line and window sill. This will give you the basic shape of your taper. Then align the template on the door panel along the window sill and make your cut along the bottom.

The final step to completing the channeling of the main body is to make a pair of new rear inner fender panels. I don’t suggest cutting down the original ones because the plastic is quite thick and difficult to handle. It’s much simpler to use the lower edges of the original panels as templates for the shape of the lower edge of you new panel and build one from scratch out of plastic sheet. Glue the new panels into place into the body at whatever point in your build you find appropriate.

(Click on image to enlarge)

This completes everything you need to do to channel the main body. Obviously, if you're using bucket seats you can omit the process of cutting down a bench seat, However, you will have to carefully fill and finish the cut line on the back of the floor piece, since it will show. In my build the line is hidden.

If you are leaving the motor completely exposed this is about it. other than locating the grill.

I’m using a complete engine cover so I have had to modify the engine cover side panels so they drop over the frame rails and taper inwards to align with the grill shell. I made a template out of thin plastic sheet and cut a shaped it until it fit correctly, I then cut a side panel from the Revell ’32 Highboy kit. Then I reversed the template for the other side and cut the other side panel.

(Click on image to enlarge)

Lastly, the grill shell needs to be positioned and sized to look right on your build. I am using a Replicas and Miniatures of Maryland 2†chop shell because the stock shell hangs down too low and I want to use a p/e grill, which the RMCM piece includes. Even with the chop, I will still have to remove material from the base of the shell and from the radiator so that I get a proper hood line.

Excellent tutorial! I'm fooling around with a severely channeled '34 five window (AMT) kit, inspired by your raked '34. I originally set it up as a highboy, and then started to channel it after you posted your excellent '34 five window build. Like you said, dropping the body down over the frame is a LOT of work!

[Nick F40]

THANKS a TON!

[theflame]

Wow, I only just saw this build Bernard - I was checking all your threads out when I was writing the blog tonight. Think this one might have to get a feature too! 32s are my favourites!

[Bernard Kron]

Wow, I only just saw this build Bernard - I was checking all your threads out when I was writing the blog tonight. Think this one might have to get a feature too! 32s are my favourites!

Thanx James but wait a while until I solve the mystery of getting the hood, cowl and grill to mate up correctly. Also, it's gonna be BRIGHT RED if I can get past the current battle.

[MikeMc]

http://i16.photobucket.com/albums/b18/gbk1...SCF0070-web.jpg

Thanx James but wait a while until I solve the mystery of getting the hood, cowl and grill to mate up correctly. Also, it's gonna be BRIGHT RED if I can get past the current battle.

Are you seeing the dip at the cowl??? You might add a smidge to the fire wall

[Bernard Kron]

http://i16.photobucket.com/albums/b18/gbk1...SCF0070-web.jpg

Are you seeing the dip at the cowl??? You might add a smidge to the fire wall

No, I can get the hood to extend straight out from the cowl, no problem, The battle is in two other areas.

One is the height of the grill shell so that the hood does extend straight out. It involves some cutting. As we all know, there's no turning back, especially with expensive p/e and resin parts. Among other things I have to cut down the nicely detailed radiator that comes with the RMCM set. This is always a little scary since it determines the mounting and height of the shell itself. I also have to cut reliefs in the bottom of the grill shell itself so that it sits properly over the front crossmember. I did this successfully in the mockup, but there’s a lot of material to remove and I have concerns about the integrity of the thin resin.

I just received a second chopped grill set from RMCM so now I’m covered and it’s time to cut!

The second area is the hood side panels. They have to be relieved at the bottom on the inside so they can angle inwards over the frame rails to meet up properly with the grill sides. I have those reliefs roughed in, but until I get the grill shell mounting finalized I can’t complete this work.

After that I have to devise some mounting pins for the side panels so that they are removable and yet correctly mate to the grill shell, cowl sides and hood.

If you ever have wondered why so many rods have exposed engines, well,,,

Once these things are done the rest of the build is pretty straight forward. I can’t wait to get past this so I can lay down some BRIGHT RED PAINT!

[Bernard Kron]

I’m finally getting back to this build after concentrating on completing the “Lil’ Beggarâ€, my ’34 Ford 5-window early 60’s gas coupe in red oxide primer. To get the juices flowing again I finished the interior which is mainly stock from the kit except for the cutting necessary to deal with the channel job. The only fancy touch is that I drilled out the buttons on the seat back and substituted small pin heads. The Signal Red acrylic paint on the seat is burnished with tissue paper to simulate worn leather.

(Click on image to enlarge)

The other part of the project that I completed was running a test panel of various primer and paint combinations to get really BRIGHT RED PAINT on the car. Following the description of how to get that extremely bright red paint that was seen on Ferrari F1 cars in the late 90’s and early 2000’s that was posted on the MCM board a while back, I determined that I could get the desired result by spraying a base coat of white primer followed by two coats of fluorescent (Day Glo!) red and then two coats of Duplicolor Super Red. Here’s a test picture I ran of the interior colors against a sample of the final color. I corrected the picture to accurately represent the final colors on my computer monitor, but I don’t know how well it will reproduce anywhere else. Trust me, it’s REALLY bright red paint!

(Click on image to enlarge)

Next on the docket is final fitting of the body parts before paint, then chassis paint and assembly and then final assembly. I’ll post pics over the next several days as I move along.

Thanx for lookin’.

Edited May 31, 2008 by gbk1

[Raul_Perez]

Oh yeah, Bernard...this one is coming along nicely!!

You just can't beat a bright "I want a #$%^ing ticket" red car when it comes to flash!!

I can't wait to see this one painted and done!!

Later,

[Bernard Kron]

Next on the docket is final fitting of the body parts before paint, then chassis paint and assembly and then final assembly. I’ll post pics over the next several days as I move along.

It all seemed so simple at the time...

We all have projects that are cursed and this is one of them. Right after I wrote this, I finalized panel fit and then shot some color and eventually clear coats as well. And I did achieve the Really Bright RED I was after. Everything seemed to be going so well...

But right after shooting clear gloss I dropped the body while it was still wet! Because the color is achieved by shooting a solid red over a fluorescent red, in order to make sure I got a match on all the pieces I landed up having to strip the whole thing. I used brake fluid and it landed up doing exactly what it should to the resin grill shell – it turned it to rubber ! I should have remembered but somehow I forgot that the shell was a resin piece! Then I noticed some pitting on the hood surfaces. So I re-cut new hood panels, re-cut a new grill shell (this was third time I worked this section over so I’ve gotten really good at it) and then waited for the unseasonably rainy and cold weather we’re having to let up (I usually shoot outdoors or with an open garage door to avoid stinking up the house). Finally last week I got to shoot color and clear and succeeded in not dropping it again!

More orange peel than I’d like but there are lots of clear coats to polish so I think I’ll be alright. I’m waiting at least a week to make sure the paint is good and hard before I polish!

At least I got the RED I was after!

Meanwhile I’ll work on the engine details and chassis bits and busy myself with other builds I’ve got going.

This is a very rough mockup with none of the pieces accurately set in place. The actual panel fit is very good. I also adjusted the rake a bit more by lowering the front end another couple of scale inches.

Thanx for lookin’.

(Click on picture for larger image)

[Raul_Perez]

WOW!! That is really RED!!!

I really like how bright it is, but then you know what I think of red cars!!

I can't wait to see this one finished!!

Later,

[Kenny]

(Click on picture for larger image)

Oooh, ooh! I've gotta do one of these next!

[Tom Kren]

Looks great!

[Bernard Kron]

This will be the last W.I.P. post on this build because at last I can put this one up on the shelf! The paint on this, as I said, was a nightmare, but after many hours of polishing I actually got it to look nice and shiny and smooth. But this is definitely not how you want to do it. The paint fought me all the way. I used Plasti-Kote white primer for the base coat and I found it tended to build up too heavily which wiped out some detail. It was bad enough that I had to re-do the hood and side pieces with new plastic. The white primer, however, was key to the Retina Searing Red I was after. It worked out in the end so I’m happy despite the drama.

I used the Replicas and Miniatures of Maryland 2†chopped grille shell and I’m very pleased. The photoetch grille and detailed radiator it comes with are gorgeous and when I put the grille on last night the front end really popped!

Here is a detail shot of the front end and engine bay as I wrapped up the build. I love the way the p/e grille shows everything underneath it. More pics are in the Under Glass section.

Thanx for following along!

B.

[CB]

This will be the last W.I.P. post on this build because at last I can put this one up on the shelf! The paint on this, as I said, was a nightmare, but after many hours of polishing I actually got it to look nice and shiny and smooth. But this is definitely not how you want to do it. The paint fought me all the way. I used Plasti-Kote white primer for the base coat and I found it tended to build up too heavily which wiped out some detail. It was bad enough that I had to re-do the hood and side pieces with new plastic. The white primer, however, was key to the Retina Searing Red I was after. It worked out in the end so I'm happy despite the drama.

I used the Replicas and Miniatures of Maryland 2" chopped grille shell and I'm very pleased. The photoetch grille and detailed radiator it comes with are gorgeous and when I put the grille on last night the front end really popped!

Here is a detail shot of the front end and engine bay as I wrapped up the build. I love the way the p/e grille shows everything underneath it. More pics are in the Under Glass section.

Thanx for following along!

B.

'Under Glass'? or 'Real or Model?'

Glad you got back into modeling Bernard, but do ya gotta use such bright colors?