Jump to content
Model Cars Magazine Forum

64 Chevy II Nova


Cool Hand

Recommended Posts

Purchased this kit with the intention for it to be built in my favorite style I have done on many builds.

ONBAO8H.jpg

idR2Ftw.jpg

q8nfFiV.jpg

 

Over the years many people have questioned how I achieve my black paint jobs, so in this thread I will do my best to explain the process I use. This is the paint that is always used.

76BywaP.jpg

 

But first things first with this type of build, the wheels.

cDaT2QF.jpg

 

After that its usually get the body out of the box and mock up trying to figure out where I want the ride height. Might not be practical or even possible in the real world but Im okay with that, as I like my builds low as possible and hope it wont involve too much work achieving a super low stance.

 vqoS7LE.jpg

 

Now on to the start of preparing the body.

bCl3nRZ.jpg

 

Wash the body.
I place about 1/2 a teaspoon of dishwashing liquid into my ultra sonic cleaner and put the body in for a 5 minute cycle. Could soak and wash in a container or sink with a toothbrush or small scrubbing brush. Either way give it a good clean and rinse with water after. bGgcwPu.jpg

I use a chamois cloth to wipe away excess water and airbrush to blow dry the body. Then set it aside while preparing the surfacer.

 

Check coat using Surfacer.

Instead of using spray can primer, I prefer to use this. 

zSo4P7q.jpg

And here is a quick video I found to show the ratio and technique for pre thinning.

 

Using an Iwata HP-TH .5, with the trigger set at 2 turns and the psi @18-20, I apply 1 wet but light coat. Preferably a .3 to .5 needle size is best for applying primers and surfacers. 

SIME4hf.jpg

 

This is what I call the check coat, I find using black helps to see all the mould lines and others areas and spots that usually need to be sorted and fixed.  And once you start sanding and scribing you can see what areas you have worked on. I learnt this technique from Japanese and Korean model car and Gundam builders.

Another purpose for airbrushing a check coat of the 1500 surfacer is so it can be easily removed with the MLT which will be shown further along in the prep process.

aIEafOU.jpg

vg9aX6A.jpg

hjhF0s1.jpg

FSj02A0.jpg

 

 Set aside overnight to dry.

 

How can I not resist another wheel mock.

19KGQCl.jpg

 

jx1DXr4.jpg

 

Back to tomorrow with the next part of the prep work.

 

 

 

Edited by Cool Hand
  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

How low can you go… Hi Luke! Well I’m definitely going to follow this one mate,  I just ordered my ‘64 Nova and ‘65 gasser kits and should have them in about a week. Thanks for sharing more details on your painting process. Your paint jobs are always flawless, I figured I just needed to move to Australia…. turns out there’s some skill involved.😜 Hoping you will include your final polish/wax secrets as the build progresses. Will this one stay black? You seem to be in a colour shift mood…

 cheers, Steve

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 3 weeks later...

Well its been a minute, I finally decided to get back to this build.

First part of prep work I like to do is to scribe and deepen the door lines and trunk lines. Also I like to scribe around the window trims.

I use a 0.15mm scribe for the doors and trunk and 0.1mm for around trim

d38XP51.jpg

The benefit of applying a check coat of black surfacer is that you can see whats been done as you are doing prep work. 

s095kL8.jpg

Few slips here and there, but no big deal. Easy to fix the deeper gouges by filling with some CA glue before moving on to next step.

Also you might notice the inside of the wheel arch's have been thinned with a Dremel drum sander. And the door handle locating holes have been filled with styrene rod.

M71RWIZ.jpg

Using 400 grit wet on a rubber block, the rocker panel trim, peak moulding, rear wheel arch and door moulding trim was all removed. Also removed the scripts on the front guard.

c49DTSb.jpg

 

fN1V19M.jpg

And obviously the mould lines on the roof etc are also removed during this first round of sanding

PXTQHlX.jpg

 

U7R9LQu.jpg

Next step will be to block sand the remaining parts of the body with 600 grit wet.

 

 

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Pretty much got all the sanding prep work done, applied another check coat of surfacer.

pVmSQgN.jpg

 

Showed up a few small spots that will need sorting out. But overall not bad for the first go around.

Wv6IOnI.jpg

p0W2IN3.jpg

 

To do the first round of block sanding, 600 wet and dry paper is used wrapped over a rubber block which is a cut down eraser. Using a firm block helps flatten the surface without creating troughs .

EPgbe7A.jpg

On panels that have a curved surfaces, a closed cell foam block is used. Its firm but will conform to the shape of the surface.

qULhR5h.jpg

After the block sanding is done on the larger surfaces, I change over to foam backed sanding sticks by Dspiae to get into the nooks and crannies.

aisnIdp.jpg

Dspiae have some excellent sets available.

hvxxuCo.jpg

Variety of thickness, thin can be folded over to get into corners and thick can be used on larger surfacers.

HQyiPqz.jpg

wcvONNt.jpg

 

Also use Infini sanding sponges for final finish wet sanding,

eGGWliK.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 weeks later...

Applied the Tamiya TS-14 black.

r8r7oGR.jpg

fSi2IDB.jpg

KvUPjGs.jpg

41zopG7.jpg

Please bare with me as I try to explain and hope it makes sense. Sorry for it being so long and wordy with no pics.

I like to paint when the temp is around 86f, a slight bit of humidity is helpful. I wet down the area where I paint. 

For this build I did not wet sand the surfacer as there was no need. It was very smooth and was a good enough foundation for the black.

I start of with what people call a mist coat. On the surface it looks like that, but in reality it is a very thin light wet coat.

It needs to be wet, if misted on too dry it will cause texture and added layers will not bury it. To me this is where orange peel can start.

All the coats of paint I mention are applied about three to four inches from the surface. The closer you are to the surface the wetter the coat will be. But the wetter the coat, the faster you must move the can past the surface to prevent runs and sags

I start painting the thin light wet coat along the bottom edges first. Rocker panel, wheel arches, and then front and rear.

After that, go to the top edge of front guard, door top and rear guard, then trunk, roof and cowl. Followed by going down the sides.

Once that first light wet coat has been applied to all surfaces, I continue straight away with another light wet coat in the same order as the first.

When the second light coat has been applied I set the body aside and paint 2 light wet coats to the hood and any other parts painted body colour.

Then its back to the body, this time a medium wet coat is used and applied one after the other on the surface until the surface looks fully wet. For me thats usually 3-4 passes. These coats are where the paint is built up in layers/passes to full wet look gloss.

Start on the front and rear. then do the trunk, roof and cowl, then make your way down along the sides. The trick here is to keep moving and rotating. Trying to keep it all looking wet. The medium coat is achieved by moving the can past the surface a slight bit slower than the thin light.

Once the whole body has the wet look from the medium coat, set it aside for 10-20 mins. You can tell when its ready for the next coat as the wet look will be gone and the paint has shrunk to the surface and has a very fine/micro orange peel.

Next final coats are medium and built up to the wet look again in 3-4 passes, but after the wet look is achieved one final heavy coat is applied. This is again is moving the can a slight bit slower past the surface than the medium coat. But there is a fine line between being just right and the paint running. Its all about learning how much paint can be applied before it runs on the final coat.

After being fully painted. The body stays under a container with a very small air gap for the first 24hr's to dry/cure.  Ive found if Tamiya paint gasses and dries out within the fumes of the paint, it does not shrink as quick as it would in open air. I think this prevents orange peel. So I think thats another cause for people getting orange peel with Tamiya lacquer. Dry and cure it too quick and it doesnt get a chance to shrink slow and self level. So after the first 24hrs I increase the air gap. I wait 72hrs before removing the body from the paint stand and keep it in the container with a large air gap. If the climate is around 86 it will take at least a week to fully harden.

One day I will just have to try build up the confidence to step in front of camera and show the process, because showing would explain the technique so much better.

Edited by Cool Hand
  • Thanks 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

5 hours ago, Cool Hand said:

Applied the Tamiya TS-14 black.

r8r7oGR.jpg

fSi2IDB.jpg

KvUPjGs.jpg

41zopG7.jpg

Please bare with me as I try to explain and hope it makes sense. Sorry for it being so long and wordy with no pics.

I like to paint when the temp is around 86f, a slight bit of humidity is helpful. I wet down the area where I paint. 

For this build I did not wet sand the surfacer as there was no need. It was very smooth and was a good enough foundation for the black.

I start of with what people call a mist coat. On the surface it looks like that, but in reality it is a very thin light wet coat.

It needs to be wet, if misted on too dry it will cause texture and added layers will not bury it. To me this is where orange peel can start.

All the coats of paint I mention are applied about three to four inches from the surface. The closer you are to the surface the wetter the coat will be. But the wetter the coat, the faster you must move the can past the surface to prevent runs and sags

I start painting the thin light wet coat along the bottom edges first. Rocker panel, wheel arches, and then front and rear.

After that, go to the top edge of front guard, door top and rear guard, then trunk, roof and cowl. Followed by going down the sides.

Once that first light wet coat has been applied to all surfaces, I continue straight away with another light wet coat in the same order as the first.

When the second light coat has been applied I set the body aside and paint 2 light wet coats to the hood and any other parts painted body colour.

Then its back to the body, this time a medium wet coat is used and applied one after the other on the surface until the surface looks fully wet. For me thats usually 3-4 passes. These coats are where the paint is built up in layers/passes to full wet look gloss.

Start on the front and rear. then do the trunk, roof and cowl, then make your way down along the sides. The trick here is to keep moving and rotating. Trying to keep it all looking wet. The medium coat is achieved by moving the can past the surface a slight bit slower than the thin light.

Once the whole body has the wet look from the medium coat, set it aside for 10-20 mins. You can tell when its ready for the next coat as the wet look will be gone and the paint has shrunk to the surface and has a very fine/micro orange peel.

Next final coats are medium and built up to the wet look again in 3-4 passes, but after the wet look is achieved one final heavy coat is applied. This is again is moving the can a slight bit slower past the surface than the medium coat. But there is a fine line between being just right and the paint running. Its all about learning how much paint can be applied before it runs on the final coat.

After being fully painted. The body stays under a container with a very small air gap for the first 24hr's to dry/cure.  Ive found if Tamiya paint gasses and dries out within the fumes of the paint, it does not shrink as quick as it would in open air. I think this prevents orange peel. So I think thats another cause for people getting orange peel with Tamiya lacquer. Dry and cure it too quick and it doesnt get a chance to shrink slow and self level. So after the first 24hrs I increase the air gap. I wait 72hrs before removing the body from the paint stand and keep it in the container with a large air gap. If the climate is around 86 it will take at least a week to fully harden.

One day I will just have to try build up the confidence to step in front of camera and show the process, because showing would explain the technique so much better.

Luke, you’re awesome!! So many of us are in awe, and envy of your amazing paint work. Thanks for the detailed information, this is very helpful. I also always appreciate seeing the tools you use, although you’ve cost me a bunch of money!! I see that I need even more sanding pads now… Great stuff as sir!

Cheers, Steve

  • Thanks 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...