21 replies to this topic

[MrObsessive]

So I don't suffer burnout (it's happened before), I've decided to put the '59 Chevy on hiatus for the time being, and start something much simpler. Actually, I started work on this model before I started on the Chevy, but I decided to go full speed ahead on the Chevy as I wanted to fix that wacky roof on it.

 

This is Revell's 2003 Viper in which I've had this kit since it was intro'd around 2005 or so. I don't know why I didn't build it years ago, as it's a VERY nice kit! It's also another one of those dream cars that more than likely I'll never own, but it's nice to have a decent replica of one just the same.

 

OK.........I went by the script this time (instructions), and started on the engine. I didn't want just a lump of an engine sitting in the engine bay, so I added a few details such as ignition wires, and the fuel rails that are prominent on Viper engines.

 

 

 

The intake, block, and transmission were airbrushed with Alclad Aluminum, and the valve covers were painted Viper Red which I had mixed at our local automotive paint jobber. The exhaust manifolds were painted Alclad Iron (I think).

 

The ignition wires are 30 gauge kynar wire and the tiny wires below the fuel rails are Detail Masters. The fuel rails are stainless steel tubing, and I used references and pics off the 'net to place 'em as best I could where they belong.

 

Moving on to the chassis, this is one area which gave me no trouble at all! Everything went together well, and it looks realistic enough to me without having a thousand and one pieces to get together.

 

 

Like the engine, the suspension arms were painted with Aclad Aluminum, and the exhaust was painted with their steel for contrast. The brake discs I'll add later after they're painted, and the wheels will eventually be dechromed and repainted in a similar fashion.

 

Usually I have the interior painted and together before I start to paint the body, I strayed away from my routine this time, and prepped and painted the body. The interior tub fits well inside the chassis, and I did test fit the body to avoid any surprises..........so far so good so on to the paint work.

 

One thing I did first after getting rid of the mold lines and such was give the body parts a light coat of Plastikote Gray primer. I got this trick from Bob Downie (aka Zoom-Zoom) as I wanted to add a good coat of BIN Zinser sealer. This strays away from my usual spraying of Future, as I wanted something that was not quite so runny, and would not give me much fuss to deal with. Future is good stuff, but I didn't want to have to deal with runs around the edges, and the fast buildup of the stuff if you leave your airbrush in one spot for more than a millisecond!

 

Here's the body after the BIN was airbrushed on...............

 

 

I have to say I REALLY like this stuff as it went on VERY smoothly, and since I wanted a white undercoat, I'd say this is darn near perfect! One reason I'm going to stress a barrier coat on kits of late------and this may be helpful to newbies. Since the middle of the last decade or so, the model manufacturers have switched to a newer, "softer" plastic.

 

Regular paints which did not craze the plastic before, can do so in a heartbeat. It's a good idea to take the extra time and add a barrier coat-------this will save you a lot of headaches (and heartaches) by doing so. I remember a thread on another message board where it was stated that Revell couldn't duplicate the problem as there were LOTS of complaints. Well I can tell you that just the appearance of the plastic alone said enough for me that some sort of barrier coat was MANDATORY!

 

Well here she is all nice and painted up. I thought I asked the paint jobber for a single stage paint, but it appears as though this may be a two stage. Just the same, I'm going to rub out and polish what I have as I really hate to clearcoat solid colors. It's wholly unnecessary in my opinion and experience.

 

 

I have a bit more, but I'm at my pic limit so stay tuned!

 

 

 

Edited by MrObsessive, 10 March 2013 - 07:52 AM.

[Dr. Cranky]

Loving that chassis, the color and the details.

[MrObsessive]

Just a quick follow-up as to how I want my interior to appear. '03 Vipers came with a somewhat basic black for an interior color. Well, that's all well and good but if I'm paying what for what was an $86,000 car in 2003, I'd want something that has a bit more expressiveness to it. I have these pics among my references which I think will totally compliment the red exterior.................

 

 

Now that certainly looks better than just basic black! Dontcha think??

 

Thanks for tuning in!

Edited by MrObsessive, 27 December 2012 - 08:25 AM.

[cobraman]

Looking very good.

[Joe Handley]

Looks good so far!

 

 

 

I'm curious though, what did you use for the injectors and rails?

[Custom Mike]

Great start Bill, but we expect that from you. Now about the BIN Sealer, I bought a spray can, decanted it and sprayed it through my airbrush and hated it, it came out with severe orange peel. How did you get around that?

[scalemodelworld]

Gorgeous looking build so far. Just when I thought I had my body-painting sorted, you tell me about barrier coats! 

[MrObsessive]

Looks good so far!

 

 

 

I'm curious though, what did you use for the injectors and rails?

 

Joe, I used MAS's stainless steel tubing to replicate the rails. The "injectors" are just little cut pieces of Detail Master's thinnest "ignition" wires. The wires are of such a tiny diameter though, there's no way I'd ever use them for engine wiring in this scale as far as plug wires. They're better suited for firewall wires, or wiring under your dash such as might be exposed in a race car for instance.

 

Great start Bill, but we expect that from you. Now about the BIN Sealer, I bought a spray can, decanted it and sprayed it through my airbrush and hated it, it came out with severe orange peel. How did you get around that?

 

Mike, I used BIN's product out of the regular can and not the aerosol. It took quite a bit of mixing before I was able to use it, but I thinned it out with isopropyl alcohol remembering the consistency of milk rule. They recommend denatured alcohol, but I had none of that around. There was some slight orange peel after I airbrushed it on, but I did rub the surface out lightly with 600 grit sandpaper before putting on the color coats.

 

BTW, it cleans up nicely with acetone, as this is what I used to get the airbrush cleaned out (an old Badger Crescendo). I figure lacquer thinner would do the same job, as well as either of the two alcohols I mentioned.

[MrObsessive]

Mike, here's the can I used........I'm sure it's similar in other areas, although I have to admit------this is the first time I've tried it on a project (after testing of course), and I'm completely sold on it!

 

 

I do recommend using an older airbrush----I have an old Badger Crescendo which I used to spray it. It's a bit tired, but after nearly 20 years of use, it still does the job. The color coats were sprayed with a new Badger Patriot (Model 105), which does an excellent job for what I need!

[brodie_83]

Love it...love the SRT Vipers!

[wraith]

Looks good so far!

I also LOVE Vipers!

[Custom Mike]

Thanks for the information Bill, I think I'll ditch the rattle can and get a quart! 

[lanesteele240]

wow. i love Mr Obsessive's post. thanks for all the info you include on your builds.

[whale392]

Nice looking Viper so far, Bill. I like the fuel system detailing.

 

On your reference pics; those are of the 'Mamba' edition Viper (white exterior with the red/black interior combo). Rare car indeed (dad worked for a Dodge dealer and is/was Viper/Viper Coupe certified, so he was the one responsible for the dealership having their Viper dealer authorization and did all of the pre-delivery and post-sales Viper work).

[Kennyboy]

That engine is just beautiful! I really love what you are going to do with the interior too.

[MrObsessive]

Nice looking Viper so far, Bill. I like the fuel system detailing.

 

On your reference pics; those are of the 'Mamba' edition Viper (white exterior with the red/black interior combo). Rare car indeed (dad worked for a Dodge dealer and is/was Viper/Viper Coupe certified, so he was the one responsible for the dealership having their Viper dealer authorization and did all of the pre-delivery and post-sales Viper work).

 

 

Thanks for the info Marty! I never knew that particular edition ever existed. I just thought it looked pretty cool with the two toned red/black combo instead of the plain basic black. I had to repaint the body the other day as I burned through the color coat with wet sanding/polishing. The repaint came out great---------I'll try to get some pics together later on if I can.

 

Between work, and now getting rid of stuff on eBay------not much time for model building these days.

[MrObsessive]

Just a small update to show where I'm heading with this one. I don't care at all for the stock wheels that come in the kit. This is one of the few times that when I've done "replica stock" I don't stick to the script and build it as it came out of the showroom. Instead, I decided to go for an All American look, by mocking up some modern Cragars to suit the low profile tires.

 

As you'll see in the following pics, the body is about half rubbed out and polished, and see how it looks with those Cragars. BTW, the wheels came from Revell's '69 Shelby GT500 kit that was reissued maybe 10 years ago. I knew that I would never use those wheels on that kit, so here's the perfect opportunity to use 'em on something really nice.

 

As I mentioned in another post, I had to repaint it due to some overzealous rubbing out with the polishing cloths! I didn't strip it, I just added a few more coats to compensate for what was rubbed through. Just the same, the repaint was worth it as I think the paint looks richer and deeper the second time around, and now it's just a matter of spending some time and (carefully) rubbing it all out and polishing it with Zymol.

 

Here she is so far........................

 

 

That won't be the final stance of the car when it's all done......sits just a bit too low for me, and I'd like to keep the original ride height for it.

 

I've also been doing some work on the interior as well. Not wanting to leave well enough alone, I've decided to do a little extra with the dash, along with painting it the two-toned red/black per the pics as seen above.

 

I got out my pin vise and round file and hollowed out the gauges as you see here. Since Revell gives you all of the gauge faces as decals, I figured they would look better over a nice flat surface, rather than simply putting them over the existing gauge faces.

 

 

From the pics I have of the 1:1's dash, I was able to judge the "depth" of the gauge in each pod, and use some appropriate round rod stock to give me the depth I would need.

 

Also, trying to keep everything symmetrical to each gauge I needed to do. Once the decal faces are put in (with clear paint or Future----I don't want to water slide them), I have some small diameter punches that can punch out some tiny "glass" covers to put over the faces, to replicate those seen in the 1:1. I'm going to use clear stencil sheet (acetate) to do this.

 

 

Well, that's about it for now. If time allows, I'd like to get the rest of the body rubbed out and polished this week, and then get the interior done. I do have the lower half of the dash painted red, as well as the door panels, now it's just a matter of getting the seats painted, "flocking" (actually embossing powder) for the carpeting, and other little details done to get 'er all finished.

 

Thanks for looking!

 

[Custom Mike]

I like the rim change Bill, it give it a different look. The paint looks great, and i'm waiting for the update with the dash completed, I'm sure it's going to be a stunner!

[Duntov]

Nice work... keep it going.... looking very good so far!!!

[Johnny1973]

Looking good Bill,thank you for the tip on the sealer