Chariots of Fire

Clean and neat! Very nicely done! Colors are great!

Now I hear that AMT may be bringing out a B-65 next year. Could it be?? Oh, the joy!!

Similar to that is Bob Smith Industries two part epoxy. Quick cure as well and good stuff.

The "decals" were unbelievably hard to remove. I finally did bite the bullet and sanded them off but it cut through the white paint of the door. So I smoothed it out, primed it with Duplicolor light gray and repainted with Tamiya bright white. So far so good!

Locktite for me also. Solid bond for resin to plastic. Make sure there are no solvents on the resin, though. Use the CA sparingly so it does not ooze out of the joint. You can't really clean it off a painted surface. If the plastic is unpainted you can wipe off the excess and then sand lightly to get rid of the residue. I've done this many times with good results. I've even bonded plastic to white metal with CA. Solid as a rock.

I even tried a very fine sand paper and that won't cut it either without ruining the white paint underneath. I had some success, though limited, using Novus 3 but it takes a lot even with that. It may come to a repaint of the white!😬

Hi, Guys. I have a Motormax Diecast PD vehicle that I have been asked to repaint and re-decal. Nothing seems to take off the imprinted lettering on the doors. Tried Novus polish, alcohol and light paint thinner. Nothing seems to work. Any ideas out there as to how to get them off?

Maybe not so much. Things like hydraulic fluid around pistons, grease drippings around articulation points, etc. bright shiny bare metal for the grabber surface and blade on the rear, dusty but not muddy tires, slightly worn tire contact surfaces. Even worn off paint where the operator walks and grab handles, door edges where constant contact wears the paint off. These kinds of things are easy to do with light washes, weathering powders and the like and they don't take away from the details of the piece. They just enhance without making it look like a muddy mess.

No mud. Just a little wear at typical places where the paint would rub off.😃

That's really something! However, I have never seen one quite so clean and neat! Time to get it just a little bit dirty and with the paint taken off the claw and plow! 😎

No. I gotta go upstairs for a couple of minutes!

Agreed. Rustoleum paint is without a doubt the worst paint for model work. It's thick, Does not spray cleanly and remains tacky for days. It also is worthless after the first two or three uses. The nozzle cloggs and cannot be cleaned. The paint in a can might be ok for outside house paint but that is about it. Tamiya and Testors have some great colors that are rattle can ready. Not a bad way to paint in some ways.

Hi, Mike. Check out the IPMS (International Plastic Modelers Society) forum or Military Modelers Forum. Either place deals a lot with military aircraft builds and modeling. They might even be able to offer some advice on the ordnance the F-18 carries. I do military softskin models as well as civilian pieces and have found that more than one forum helps when I need advice. BTW. You are still welcome here, for sure!👍😉

Back into it, I think! A few months back I had set this build aside for lack of enthusiasm in getting involved in the details of the body. In the process of doing other things one day, I knocked the box with the truck inside onto the floor. The officer side front door came off, the frame was snapped in two along with the underpinning of the rear tandems. It immediately went back in the box and was left that way until a few days ago. After taking another look at the damage I decided to see about fixing it. The door went back almost immediately and with only slight evidence of it having been broken clean off. It took a bit more to reassemble and reinforce the frame where it broke and even more to put the tandems back together. I had to pop off the center hubs of the rear tires to remove them but fortunately I had used CA sparingly for just that purpose. So here is where it is now and with additional study and a few photos of the real rig I just may get back into it and "get 'er done!"!!

Welcome, Kat. I have a friend who is from the UK and is a modeler. I'll ask him where the better hobby shops are that might have a good selection of what you are looking for. You'll find plenty of encouragement here with lots of ideas that you can try out.

Welcome to the site, Beckham. Can I make a suggestion? Start small with just a tiny part of the diorama you plan on building. Don't think of the overall project that you have to get done all at once. It will try your patience and that is something you will have to get used to. Looking forward to seeing what you do.

Welcome to the MCM Forum, Wan. Looking forward to seeing your work. We are here to help if you have any modeling questions.

Got a piece of window glass from local hardware store. It sits on a wood cutting board that we discarded from the kitchen. I tape the edges with masking tape to protect fingers from getting cut. A perfectly flat surface for making frames or preparing squared up corners.

Carbide drills are my favorite also. I found a good source when I need to replace them. Toolbits Unlimited has all kinds at reasonable prices. I buy #74's in sets of 10 and the cost is only about $6. Also have a variety similar to Peteski.

Hi, Greg. Has 5 holes just like the mounted ones. The outside ring with 12 bolts is separate.

After a bunch of fiddly stuff finally was figured out and completed, the ambulance went to the paint shop and to the sign shop for the decals. Finished it up with a completed interior, GI gas can and pioneer kit for the passenger side. Not sure what will be next. A few days off from an intense work week and a clean work bench may lead to something. We'll see.

Hey, Peter. I bought some of the FF chrome and it is really nice. The great part about it is that it can be brushed on so that it floods the area whereas Molotow and other pens are very restricted in the surface area they can cover. It appears to be very durable. Bright is ok with me. Certain details just cry out for a nice shiny surface. See you at CP!

Got a bit more done on the build. Rear doors are done and top has been secured to the body. The bumper is made of brass and has been mounted to the frame. Got some tow hooks to add.

Got the hood done after a lot of trial and error. Headlights are in place temporarily and the fuel filler has been added to the left rear. The hood will sit flat when I get some pins mounted to hold it down. Two different curves make it hard to bend in two directions at once. But it's coming.

Yup! Getting there!