StevenGuthmiller

Yeah, this is part of the reason why I've stayed off of the 2K bandwagon. Nothing I hate more than waiting for weeks and months for paint to dry. Steve

What Urethane would you recommend Joe? I'm completely unfamiliar with the use of urethane as a spray can or airbrush material, but I think that it may be about time to pull the trigger on the ALSA system. I have no time for all of the "chrome paints" that everyone is using these days, but if this stuff is as durable as advertised, I'm in. Steve

I’m sorry. Seems I read your post a bit wrong. Yes, I would most likely do it this way, and possibly even permanently install the bumpers if the chassis installation would permit. Steve

Or, at the very least, temporarily attach the bumpers to the body to be certain that you’re masked lines match up, and then disassemble and paint separately. I guess a lot depends on the assembly process required for the particular model. You might possibly not be able to get the chassis into the model with the bumpers permanently installed. These are things that a seasoned builder will investigate before he gets in too deep. By the way, personally, I would paint the silver first, followed by the black for a couple of reasons. #1: it’s easier to cover silver paint with black, than it is to cover black with silver. #2: Masking the smaller silver portion of the body in preparation for the black will be a lot easier, and require a lot less masking material than masking the entire body just to spray the silver on the bottom. Steve

That is most certainly true! I guess that I still operate on the philosophy that every sub-assembly of a model is a model unto itself, so when I’m building an interior, I build it as if it were going to be displayed all by itself. Steve

It started as the center carb from the Revell ‘66 GTO’s tri-power set up. Steve

Of course, but to some of us, there’s more to model building than just “what will be seen”. For me, it’s more about the progression of the project than it is the finished object. I do a lot of things on most builds that will likely never be seen because it’s fun. Steve

Thanks everyone, for your encouragement! Finally getting back on this project a little since sitting for 6 weeks or more After getting some feed back, and a little parts help from some of the members, I've decided to go with a 326 2 bbl in this model. As I am not aware of any aftermarket 2 bbl Rochester carbs available, it fell on me to try to dress up a kit 2 bbl. This started as the center carb from the Revell '66 GTO kit, with a little bit of added detail. Pay no mind to the attached rear carb as that will eventually be removed. Just left it there for the time being as a "handle". Still have some linkage to add, but I believe that it will be at least a bit of an improvement over the kit parts. Steve

Sorry, You're both correct. That's what I'm shooting for. Pay no mind to the carb still attached to the back. I just left that for the time being for something to grab onto while I work on it. Still have some of the linkage to do, but I think it will be at least a little bit of an improvement from the kit part. Steve

Anybody know if Testors still makes this particular paint? I still have a couple of cans of this, and it's one of the few Testors paints that I swear by, although I don't use it often. Just spray a light coat onto the inside of the glass and your done. Unfortunately, my guess is that it's no longer produced as the Model Master line is now defunct. Steve

I can almost hear the first guy's buddies. "Why in the h*ll do you want your car to look like it's on fire?" Steve

I suppose if anybody is really worried about this kind of thing, you probably shouldn't be posting photos anywhere on the net. Personally, I know that once it's out there, it's out there forever, and I can't control what anyone else does with it, and in all honesty, I don't really care. I've had photos of some of my models show up in magazines with no prior authorization, and without my knowledge, and the magazine is making money off of those photos, but somehow I get the feeling that none of us have an issue with that. At least I know it doesn't bother me, except for the fact that it would be nice to know when one of your projects is chosen to be used in a mag. Pictures are just pictures, and I made the decision to share them, so if it bugs me if some goof wants to use them for whatever nefarious purpose, it's completely out of my hands. I have many more important things to worry about in my life. Steve

Yes, I used one of Fireball Modelwork's carbs on my '64 Bonneville. However, I'm not aware of any aftermarket Carter 2 bbl's being offered, so I'm on my way to making one. Steve

I appreciate all of the input guys, but I Think I've decided that in order to keep it as close as possible to factory stock, I believe that I'm going to go with the 326 2 bbl. I've already been offered a 4 bbl intake from the Revell '68 Firebird kit by Gerry Paquette, (Exotics_Builder) and I'm confident it will make a good platform to convert into a 2 bbl intake. I'm excited about the prospect and have already began "gussying up" a 2bbl carb from the '66 GTO tri-power set up. I'm already having a blast with it! Started adding some detail to the carb, and just dropped it in Super Clean a few minutes ago to continue to remove the chrome. I'll post a few shots of the carb in my "1964 Pontiac Lemans Convertible" build thread when it's a little further along to see what you all think. Steve

That's the route that I've decided to take. Thanks David! Steve

That would be the "normal" circumstance, but I haven't built an engine without a removable air cleaner, (except for the tri-power 389 in my '64 Grand Prix) in several years and probably my last 5 or 6 builds. The engine I'll be using is the same Revell '66 GTO engine that I used in my '64 Bonneville project, but as has become my custom, the air cleaner will be removable, making whatever intake configuration I choose, visible. To be honest, I'm beginning to get excited about figuring out a presentable 2 bbl intake! I think it'll be a lot of fun! Steve

I appreciate you going through the work of looking through your stash to compare the parts Gerry, but if you can spare it, the intake from the '68 Firebird is exactly what I'm looking for. I also have some of the old annual kit's single carb intakes, but I find them to be pretty "Blob-ular" and devoid of any detail. The '68's intake is exactly what I used on my '64 Bonneville, and it fit very well with minimal trimming on the engine from the Revell '66 GTO kit, which is the same basic engine that I will use for this project. It has been explained to me that the 326 and 389 were basically identical externally, so I prefer to use a more detailed engine instead of the more rudimentary annual kit engines. The other part of my reasoning is that the Pontiac engine's intake manifold should be "open" to the valley pan, which will be much easier to accomplish with the Firebird's intake. I know this because I did it with the '64 Bonneville's engine. The only real modifications that would be required aside from opening it up would be a slight modification of the deck to accommodate a 2 barrel rather than a 4. Here are a few photos of what I'm talking about as far as the modifications to the '68's manifold for my Bonneville. So, if you can spare the '68 manifold, I would be eternally grateful to you Gerry! I think that would be my best starting point. Steve

No. I sometimes use it all by itself. Steve

Sandable automotive primer, and Primer Sealer. Steve

Straight from the can. Steve

Embossing powder only has a metallic finish if you use metallic powder. Steve

Thanks Gerry! Steve

Looking for an intake manifold from said kit to possibly convert into a 2 bbl for a '64 Pontiac project. Anyone? Steve

I've been trying to make a decision for the engine that I'm going to put in my '64 Pontiac Lemans convertible project, and I would like to pick all of your brains on the matter. The Lemans was available in '64 with either a 215 6 cylinder, a 326 4-bbl V-8, or a 326 2-bbl V-8. All were available with a 4 speed manual transmission, which is what I'm going to go with. My question is that in any circumstance, I'm going to have to do some parts swapping and/or modifications, and I wanted to do something a little different, so my first thought was to work towards a 326 2-bbl. That of course is going to require finding a suitable 2-bbl intake, or modifying something to represent one. The other option is a 6 cylinder, but as far as I'm aware, there are no Pontiac 6 cylinders available, except for the overhead cam version contained in the MPC '69 Firbird kit which was apparently not available until 1966. So, the question is, should I go for an accurate 2-bbl V-8, or an inaccurate 6 cylinder? The 6 Cylinder in the '69 kit is pretty cool and would look pretty boss in the Lemans. The conundrum being that I do want to keep this in the factory stock realm. What do you guys think? Steve

Thanks Steve. This is probably one of my better examples. Now, you may not like the look of the metallic embossing powder, but I feel like it helps add a little more visual texture than solid powder, although they both work equally as well in my opinion. This floor was done with embossing powder and painted over. Possibly looks more accurate than the metallic powder, but also not as pronounced in it's appearance. Steve