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What's your opinion on clearcoating over decals?


Terry Sumner

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Had that car been repaired after a practice brush with the wall and was getting new vinyl?

I don't think so. Look at the first photo, the '22' on the door is undamaged and is starting to peel off. The other guy has a new '22" decal. In the second photo the old '22' is just about all peeled off and I can't see any damage. I don't remember why they were doing this work, but the key point is, if the car was clear coated they couldn't peel those numbers off like that.

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Guest Johnny

I don't think so. Look at the first photo, the '22' on the door is undamaged and is starting to peel off. The other guy has a new '22" decal. In the second photo the old '22' is just about all peeled off and I can't see any damage. I don't remember why they were doing this work, but the key point is, if the car was clear coated they couldn't peel those numbers off like that.

Oh but you can and I have! You just need a brand new razor blade! ;)

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This talk of matte finishes against gloss (paint vs. vinyl) raises another accuracy issue I keep seeing with NASCAR stock car models.

I've seen more than enough Cup cars in my time, and none of them have what you'd call a mirror-gloss finish. Shiny? Yes, but not like what I see in some stock car models. Cleared decals or not, there's just something weird about a stock car model with a high-gloss finish. Again, the painted areas on a 1:1 stock car are somewhat glossy, but I'm talking about eleven coats of hand-buffed lacquer that would look more at home on a Ridler contender than a roundy-rounder. No real stock car is that glossy, but you see models of same done that way all the time.

Chuck is right, race cars are not 'high gloss' hand-rubbed showroom shiny. They are just shiny enough to gleam on the racetrack ;)

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since it is just an opinion , I prefer to clear mine to give that high gloss look like a show car, when I show off my models to others , i like them to pop or stand out, this doent mean it is right or wrong it is just a personal prefernce, sorry if i ruffled feathers.

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Well you guys have me convinced, I won't post another build here. Between having my last build thread actually locked, because I was accused of it being a die cast and having to post pics to prove myself, and basically being told here that my builds really are not worth posting here because they're all wrong by being clear coated, really doesn't do much for the support and enjoyment of the hobby to me here any more.

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Well you guys have me convinced, I won't post another build here. Between having my last build thread actually locked, because I was accused of it being a die cast and having to post pics to prove myself, and basically being told here that my builds really are not worth posting here because they're all wrong by being clear coated, really doesn't do much for the support and enjoyment of the hobby to me here any more.

Hey Shawn, nobody here is saying your builds are wrong. The OP asked for opinions and that's what he got. I thought your #11 Fedex car was really great, no matter the material its made of.

P.S. if you think this is a tough crowd try posting over at Randy Ayers site! I love to lurk there, however.

Edited by bbowser
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You know this is a hobby right? To Drew, do you know what wins contests? I can bet you dollars to donuts that nice and shiney NASCAR model with the tire decals with flat clear over them will win out over a car that has some slight orange peel with with painted raised "Goodyear" or even steciled tires. The stencils are inaccurate and to small. The decals are scaled alot closer to what the tire markings should be per era. I myself prefer a nice and shiney paint job with out the decals cleaed over to be a bit more accurate. But it is a hobby,so it is what it is and opinions will vary.

I say go to a contest where either one of the magazines is covering it and see if you get it photographed. That Fed Ex car is sweet and clean. Don't let tyrants run out of a hobby or keep you from posting. This reminds me of why this board got stale to me. The way people interject their opinion just rubs me wrong. I do understand constructive criticism, but not quit sure that was this is. Keep building and have fun. The car looks good and you should be proud.

One more thing, for those who questioned your abilities as to if this was a model or a diecast would be able to tell the differences if they knew what they were looking at. Have fun and I'm out

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To Drew, do you know what wins contests?

Yes, I do. And it has been my experience that, in many cases, the so called "judges" knew less about the 1:1 subject than did the builder. I could site many cases of models of "NASCAR race cars" winning contests with the most bizarre features and details that never would have passed the most basic NASCAR tech inspection. :lol:

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Yes, I do. And it has been my experience that, in many cases, the so called "judges" knew less about the 1:1 subject than did the builder. I could site many cases of models of "NASCAR race cars" winning contests with the most bizarre features and details that never would have passed the most basic NASCAR tech inspection. :lol:

Well then you used the most important word "judges". They dictate who wins a contest not your "accuracy" so to speak. This is a hobby, remember? Your not bitter are you? You seem to come off that way. Perhaps your relevance may be in question? I have seen your build in books and magazines and seems as though your builds lack "accuracy as well. But again this is a hobby!

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Well then you used the most important word "judges". They dictate who wins a contest not your "accuracy" so to speak. This is a hobby, remember? Your not bitter are you? You seem to come off that way. Perhaps your relevance may be in question? I have seen your build in books and magazines and seems as though your builds lack "accuracy as well. . . .

Really?

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most of the top cars are fully cleared and polished out for the Daytona 500... they even made a big pre race show stating the fact and showing the cars and how the clear coating takes away all the edges of the vinyl decals. sure they don't do this for every race but they do it for that one.

so to say that clearing the car is wrong is just stupid. I would clear it myself also because when the time comes that you wanna dust off your model you aint gonna wreck it if its clear coated!

Edited by gluebomb1
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While this is a HOBBY and I respect everybody's opinion on the matter, I do have to side with Chris on this one. Right or wrong, my personal experience with Nascar models at contests is that the shiny cars fare better. I just recently built a Fina/Lance T-Bird box-stock for local shows here in the Carolinas. The finish on this one was more of a polished sheen than out right shiny. That model was a better build than my other "full gloss shiny" cars. My shiny cars consistently beat it at IPMS judged and crowd vote type events. Again, I am here in the heart of Nascar country and stating personal experience!

On this issue, if you like em shiny with tire decals, do it! If you like them with tire stencils and no clear coats, do it! I love looking at the builds of others, no matter how they do them. I build mine both ways and have alot of fun!

Edited by Kmidd65
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