Nacho Z Posted October 21, 2021 Share Posted October 21, 2021 (edited) I have already apologized to Can-Con, Steve, for starting a build thread of the same kit he is building. Mine will be a quick build without much in the way of detailing. It is being built for a Halloween themed FB group. I started it around the end of Sept. and need to have it finished by Oct. 31st. It is not intended to be anything more than a shelf model. It is not intended to be a contest quality build. I have cut a lot of corners on this one...lol. It is refreshing to build a model and not sweat the little details. Here is what I am starting with. Here are the kit contents. I started with cleaning up the body. I removed most of the molded on features. This includes FORD and Econoline emblems, door locks, etc. The drip rail on my copy was horrible. It was uneven and dented. There was no way to paint and polish this area. It had to go. First step in removing the drip rail. Wanting to keep damage to a minimum in case I slipped with the chisel, I taped off the body. Progress! Check out the mold lines down the corner and the flash in the windows! I use a chisel made by Trumpeter. These things are amazing. It is easy to remove too much plastic and to gouge the surrounding area. You really have to be careful. I decided early that I was not going to detail the engine so I also decided to glue the hood on. At this point the body is pretty much ready to go. I rescribed the panel lines and I scribed around the windshield. This gives a nice little trough for the scalpel blade to follow when applying BMF. Edited October 21, 2021 by Nacho Z Typo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nacho Z Posted October 21, 2021 Author Share Posted October 21, 2021 Because I am shooting this in Tamiya rattle can gloss black I used Tamiya oxide red primer. The primer laid down nicely with just a few dust bunnies finding their way onto the body. I removed them and shot the Tamiya Gloss Black straight from the can. This stuff is amazing! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kool Kat Posted October 21, 2021 Share Posted October 21, 2021 Sometimes simple is the best. And always more fun!! .Will be following. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
happy grumpy Posted October 21, 2021 Share Posted October 21, 2021 Nice start. I also use Tamiya primer and lacquer paint. The primer sets fast and finishes smooth. The spray paint lays down smooth and uniform. The other thing I like is that the nozzles never clog. I almost always use the Tamiya spray for the bodies. The only negative point about them is the smell, boy is it awful. Fortunately I have a good spray booth. great work, looking forward to the finished model. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Can-Con Posted October 21, 2021 Share Posted October 21, 2021 Looks good John. Man, your paint turned out better than mine did before polishing. That would have saved me a ton of work. 😏 No need to apologies to me, I'm sure there's thousands of people building this kit and I'm sure there was more than that who built it just the same when it was first released way back in the '70s. We're just keeping up the tradition. 😉 BTW, have you ever seen a kit with so many raised ejector pin marks that have to be cleaned up? 😗 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zippi Posted October 22, 2021 Share Posted October 22, 2021 Looking pretty kewl. That black is shiny. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
espo Posted October 22, 2021 Share Posted October 22, 2021 The body looked really nice and smooth in primer. The Tamiya Gloss Black looks like it's already cleared. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nacho Z Posted October 23, 2021 Author Share Posted October 23, 2021 On 10/21/2021 at 3:50 PM, Kool Kat said: Sometimes simple is the best. And always more fun!! .Will be following. I agree, Kool Kat. I recently finished up a pretty detailed Tamiya Porsche 956 racecar, (posted here on MCM). I have over 200 hours in it. It is nice to knock out a couple of quick, low stress models in between these longer projects. On 10/21/2021 at 4:32 PM, happy grumpy said: Nice start. I also use Tamiya primer and lacquer paint. The primer sets fast and finishes smooth. The spray paint lays down smooth and uniform. The other thing I like is that the nozzles never clog. I almost always use the Tamiya spray for the bodies. The only negative point about them is the smell, boy is it awful. Fortunately I have a good spray booth. great work, looking forward to the finished model. You are absolutely spot on, Mario! I love their products. On 10/21/2021 at 8:14 PM, Zippi said: Looking pretty kewl. That black is shiny. Thank you, Zippi! On 10/22/2021 at 10:08 AM, espo said: The body looked really nice and smooth in primer. The Tamiya Gloss Black looks like it's already cleared. Yes, David, everything laid down nice and smooth. I have to be honest, I noticed some sanding marks after the primer had dried. Because of the time constraints and because this is just a shelf model, I decided not to go back and fix them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nacho Z Posted October 23, 2021 Author Share Posted October 23, 2021 On 10/21/2021 at 6:48 PM, Can-Con said: Looks good John. Man, your paint turned out better than mine did before polishing. That would have saved me a ton of work. 😏 No need to apologies to me, I'm sure there's thousands of people building this kit and I'm sure there was more than that who built it just the same when it was first released way back in the '70s. We're just keeping up the tradition. 😉 BTW, have you ever seen a kit with so many raised ejector pin marks that have to be cleaned up? 😗 Thanks, Steve! I'm not a big fan of people hijacking other's posts. This is a bigger issue on FB than here. It is a timely build for me as it is being built for a Halloween themed group build. Regarding the raised ejector pin marks, you are right, this has to be one of the worst examples. I primarily build road coarse style race cars and these tend to be from the Japanese kit manufacturers. I joked with some of my buddies, "why do I do this to myself?" meaning why do I build these old kits when I have so many quality kits...😂 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nacho Z Posted October 24, 2021 Author Share Posted October 24, 2021 In between body work, priming and painting, I worked on the chassis and interior. To reiterate, this is going to be a shelf queen and I have a timeline to keep. There is a ton of raised ejector pin marks and flash. There are a number of very random "bumps" on my model. I did remove the most obvious ones. After a good bit of time spent cleaning up the parts I shot them in primer. Everything fit together just like I expected...🤣 I did minimal detailing on the chassis, interior and engine. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Can-Con Posted October 24, 2021 Share Posted October 24, 2021 Yours looks like it has more flash on it than mine, John. I'm also taking the less added detail route with mine. Just a simple build to replicate the one I built back in the '80s. I think I'm gonna leave the rear axle loose on mine as the mounting area is a bit vague so I'll be able to make sure the tires are centered in the openings when it's all glued together. Even before I modded the rear spring mounts for lowering, there was a good 2/3 scale inch vagueness to where it could end up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nacho Z Posted October 25, 2021 Author Share Posted October 25, 2021 On 10/24/2021 at 12:14 PM, Can-Con said: Yours looks like it has more flash on it than mine, John. I'm also taking the less added detail route with mine. Just a simple build to replicate the one I built back in the '80s. I think I'm gonna leave the rear axle loose on mine as the mounting area is a bit vague so I'll be able to make sure the tires are centered in the openings when it's all glued together. Even before I modded the rear spring mounts for lowering, there was a good 2/3 scale inch vagueness to where it could end up. Yes, Steve, this one has been something else. I haven't even tried to clean up and/or fill all of the ejector marks and flash. I am mostly concentrating on the body. I have seen your work for quite a few years now and I know you will knock this one out of the park. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nacho Z Posted October 26, 2021 Author Share Posted October 26, 2021 I did one of those "poll the audience" stunts and asked guys which wheel set looked better. I was leaning towards the one in the first picture and that was what won out in the poll. Time to lay down those big 'ol decals. I couldn't help myself and added this little guy to the back door. Pretty cool seeing him when you roll up at a stop light. After the decals dried I laid down some clear. In the following pictures it looks decent but I had some issues. I'll share that on the next update. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Can-Con Posted October 26, 2021 Share Posted October 26, 2021 13 hours ago, Nacho Z said: Yes, Steve, this one has been something else. I haven't even tried to clean up and/or fill all of the ejector marks and flash. I am mostly concentrating on the body. I have seen your work for quite a few years now and I know you will knock this one out of the park. Actually, I was planning just a quick build on this one. Not even gonna do plug wires on the engine as it mostly won't be seen, might even glue the hood closed too. 😉 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nacho Z Posted October 29, 2021 Author Share Posted October 29, 2021 This is the last update. Even seasoned modelers make dumb mistakes. In the last post I showed the clear right after I shot it. Like an idiot I laid it down to heavily. It bubbled and wrinkled as it cured. I will go ahead and share the photos of how bad it looked. The good news is I was able to save most of the body. The roof could not be totally repaired without actually taking it down to the plastic and redoing it. It was not worth the effort to me. I did not spend much time on the interior as it really can't be seen on the completed model. And here is what a healthy dose of stupidity will get you. I had to do a heck of a lot of work to fix my mistake. I used Micro Mesh cloths and Tamiya polishing compounds to get to this point. I will post the finished model in the Under Glass section. Thanks for taking a look. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slusher Posted October 30, 2021 Share Posted October 30, 2021 We all get bit by bad luck sometimes but you did an awesome job.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oldcarfan27 Posted November 8, 2021 Share Posted November 8, 2021 Looks like you fixed the goof without having to start over, good job! What kind of clear did you use? Seems weird that Tamiya clear wouldn't be compatible with their own paints. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nacho Z Posted November 9, 2021 Author Share Posted November 9, 2021 Thanks, Patrick. I'll answer your question but want to give a little "method to my madness". This was going to be a quick, fun, stress free build. Nothing more than a shelf model. For me, these are the types of builds that I will experiment on. If they go South, I don't really mind. Kind of a lesson learned thing. With that being said, I wanted to try UPOL rattle can clear. I did in fact test it first of some spoons I had shot with fingernail polish. The UPOL looked good. To your point about Tamiya TS-13 over their paint, you are right, no issues at all. But I had those big decals and in the past I have had TS-13 mess up my decals. So UPOL it is...lol. I flat out, 100% put the UPOL on too doggone heavy. My brain kept saying stop but my finger would not let off of the nozzle. I've never been accused of being too bright. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nacho Z Posted November 9, 2021 Author Share Posted November 9, 2021 8 hours ago, Oldcarfan27 said: Looks like you fixed the goof without having to start over, good job! What kind of clear did you use? Seems weird that Tamiya clear wouldn't be compatible with their own paints. Sorry, forgot to quote you so you would see my reply, which is above this post. See, not too bright...lol. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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