peteski

Back 30 or 40 years ago most modelers used enamel paints formulated for models (plastic safe). Now there are dozens of brands (with all sorts of chemistries) which are sold for painting plastic models. Mixing brands or even chemistries often results in incompatibility, resulting in ruined paint job. Often touted recommendation on the forums is that wherever you try some new painting method or paint combination, a test should be made on some unimportant plastic item (like a polystyrene disposable spoon) to make sure there are no adverse reactions. And as johnyrotten mentioned, the paint terminology that has crept into the modeling world is often inaccurate and vague. I cringe when modelers use blanket statements as "acrylics" to describe a wide range of paints with different chemistries. There is unfortunately no easy fix for that, but understanding the basics of paint chemistry makes us better modelers.

For plastics I actually hold the drill's 1/8" shank directly in my fingers, but I don't have BFFs. For soft metals yes, I do put them in a pin vise with the free spinning back that rests in the palm of my hand. As for #80 size I suspect you made a typo. It is 0.013" or 0.33mm. Just slightly larger than #85.

Here are my smallest PC board drill bits. I have no problem hand-drilling using #80 and #85 bits in plastic (I do occasionally break a bit), but I only used the #96 bit in my miniature drill press (and broke few even then). When I use a drill press, I can drill #80 and #85 holes in metal. The dimensions in my drill index are in inches. The #96 bit is protected by plastic tube because it will break pretty much even if you gently brush against it.

Mark, chromed parts on 1:1 cars get their mirror-like finish because their surface is glass-smooth. That prevents the reflected light from scattering, resulting in mirror-like reflectivity. Before the chrome layer 1:1 automotive parts are first plated with other metals (like copper) which produce that very smooth surface for the final plating of Chromium. Alclad II Chrome paint (just like 1:1 chrome layer) requires the painted surface to be glass-smooth for the mirror-like effect. You can apply that paint to any surface (without a glossy base coat) and it will end up looking silver, but since the surface is rough, the reflected light will be scattered it will look like silver paint instead of chrome. Your bare 3-D printed parts are already not smooth because unlike injection-molder parts, they are printed in very thin layers which are visible. Alclad II metallic paints go on very thin, so the 3-D painted surface will result in rough finish, making the chrome paint look like silver paint. So yes, you can paint those bare wheels with any Alclad metallic paints, but the result will look like unpolished silver metal. Using the chrome paint might give a slightly brighter finish than just using Alclad aluminum or other metallic paints. It seems like you are ok with that.

If you will be taking the model as a carry-on, make sure it can be easily opened and examined by TSA agents screening you. There is a good chance they will ask you to open the box and examine it. You don't want to stand there in line fumbling to show them your possible "terrorist weapon" inside.

Funny that they (Firehouse, Firestorm or whatever Media) still calls it "Scale Auto's" since that magazine was killed several years ago. But at least they still publish photos from my club's annual contest.

Craig, as mentioned in your other intro post, I suspect that a better place for this request would be in the "wanted" section of the forum. Also, If I may offer a suggestion, using a more informative subject line might be helpful. Something like "Looking for 1:24 '78 Camaro wheels" instead of just "Searching" could give better responses. Subject line is what we all see first when browsing the forum.

In an earlier post Frank mentioned "Theyre only being used for special events 3 of them already got damaged due to lack of experience by their officers", so I don't expect them involved in any high-speed maneuvers.

You probably remember that we had that before the last major reshuffle of the forum. I liked it being separate, but I somehow doubt it will be brought back.

It is not about offense words - those get automatically censored, replaced with "blah, blah, blah". It is about what in my opinion is terrible software design where including words which can be used as a database command language will cause that weird effect you experienced. Instead of giving an informative error about the forbidden words, the forum software just pukes. There are multiple threads in this section of the forum. with more details about this "problem" . EDIT: actually I was going to post few links to those threads related to the problem (some were fairly recent) but they all seem to have disappeared. I found some older thread and here is some useful info from Dave:

Why not just file either the offending edges on the lid or the body openings in those areas? The change in size of the lids or the openings will be tiny - probably not noticeable. I would have to find and dig out my models to see what this is all about. It just looks odd for Tamiya. EDIT: Mike just posted what he found. I guess even Tamiya can have fitment problems like this.

I have couple of those kits but haven't tried to build them yet. That doesn't look like a typical Tamiya kit fitment problem. Is this the original release of that kit, or a newer release (assuming there were multiple runs)? The gaps seem uneven, almost as of there was flash in the openings. Have you done anything to either the hood/trunk or to the body openings, or all the parts are untouched kit parts?

That thing belongs in the "Blade Runner" movie. The paint job also makes it look less like a dumpster.

The PerlEx powders I have seen are not pigments which dissolve in paint but metallic or pearl particles. They will be similar to what is in any metallic or mica paints.

Thanks chaves pah! What had me worried was his apparent lack of replies to emails. Good to know he is still around producing all those very nice 3-D printed parts. I'm also curious if you are located in USA or elsewhere.

That Tamiya kit is plastic - not diecast metal.

Aren't emergency channels scrambled nowadays? Is all the nasty stuff happening at the "new" supposedly serene place you moved to recently? Or are you still ad the "old" location?

That came out quite well Dom. The black master tire appears to be 3D printed. Couldn't you just print or buy more of them instead of going through the complication and hassle of casting them out or urethane resin?

You did say "rod". Unlike metal (aluminum copper or tin) rods , polystyrene rod when bent will not retain the formed shape. It will try to flex back to its original shape. A "rod" by definition is solid material(not a hollow tube). But a polystyrene tube with a metal rod inserted in it would retain its formed shape much better.

As far as solder being "saggy", if using solid core solder (no flux) and at a diameter large enough for 1:24 exhaust headers, the solder wire will be more than stiff enough to hold its shape, especially the more recent lead-free plumber's solder.

Directly pasted links will display differently depending on what the link points to. If it is an image or a MCM forum thread, it will get expanded. If not, it will just be a clickable text link. If you use the "insert link" button, those will always show up only as clickable text link, regardless where they point (images or MCM forum threads). Again, this is on a computer, not on a smart phone.

What I should have also mentioned to Momin, is that on his first model forget things like clear coats (and if using plastic compatible paints), you can forget primer too. Just prep (sand) the bare plastic and spray some glossy paint of your choice, It will be more than sufficient for a first model. Primers and clear coats are for when you get into more advanced modeling. As a kid I used to brush-paint my models. Then, as an adult I got back into models I started with spray paints (those Testors enamels) on bare plastic. You don't need any advanced modeling tools or finishes to build decent models. Some of my early models (enamels over bare plastic and no clear, no sanding, polishing or waxing) look like this: These are all 1:32 scale models. Photos taken over 30 years ago with my Nikon 35mm SLR camera (and more recently the 4x6 prints were scanned on my computer)

Yes, this very simple and basic question has turned into overabundance of of hints/ideas (for becoming an instant master modeler). Didn't we all start small with very basic set of tools and materials? All the other stuff comes later with experience. What if Momin realizes that model building is not for him. What will he do with his hobby-shop-size amount of tools/materials? Yes, I'm exaggerating, but I think his idea to just start with some basic tools/supplies makes the most sense. All the other fancy stuff can come later. That's how I see it.

I don't know how you are doing it but I always use the "link" icon at the top of the compose window. That opens up a popup where I copy or type in a link, and it also allows you to type in the alternate text to show up in the message. I also use Windows ^C and ^V to copy/paste the link text (not the copy/paste pulldown menus). You didn't mention, but if this is on a smart phone, I have no idea. If one copies a link directly into the message compose area, depending on the link, it might expand automatically (if it is a link to a photo), or post the alphanumeric representation of link itself. But for links which can't expand to a photo, I prefer using the method above. https://www.modelcarsmag.com Above I just copied the MCM URL directly into the compose area and it did remain a clickable link. So it works for me.

To each his own. I didn't find that to be a problem for me, but it seems we now live in instant gratification times. We want it ready yesterday. Actually Testors enameled didn't take very logn to dry for handling, but as with any other enamel paint, they take much longer time to fully cure hard. That is how enamel paints work. I don't sand or polish my models, so I have no issues with the paint taking longer to harden. If you are old enough, all we (the modelers) had back in the day were plastic compatible hobby enamels from Testors and Pactra. We all dealt with them without complaints about the hardening times. Momin is a new modeler. I think he would be ok going with the the basics before doing any advanced modeling. As I see it, none of us started as (or ever became) instant award-wining modelers.