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UPDATED 6/12 - 1968 Hemi Dart - Body Mounted, Almost Done


Quick GMC

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Haven't gotten too far on this yet. All the parts have been trimmed, cleaned up and primered.

 

I filled the holes in the hood where the kit hood pins would go so I can use some photo etch ones I have, I think they will look much better.

 

I had been thinking about doing this for a while, but user Steve_L started a thread in the tips and tricks forum. I had some parts already primered and painted with gloss black. So i followed after him and clearcoated the black parts with lacquer, then used Alclad. It works killer. More depth and reflection.

 

The headers and pipes are Alclad Stainless Steel. The wheels are Alclad Polished Aluminum. I ran out of chrome, so when I get that in I will paint the bumpers.

 

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Clearcoated

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clearcoated over Alclad black base

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Stainless Steel over the clear coat

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Edited by Quick GMC
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First off, this is looking like it's gonna be one good build. Secondly just how in the hell is this process done with the alclad?? I am sold! I would like to know every step involved with this please. I think I've got the gloss coat black with a clear coat over that and then the alclad coat. What do you use to make this stuff shine the way it does?

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First off, this is looking like it's gonna be one good build. Secondly just how in the hell is this process done with the alclad?? I am sold! I would like to know every step involved with this please. I think I've got the gloss coat black with a clear coat over that and then the alclad coat. What do you use to make this stuff shine the way it does?

Okay so it's always been Alclad over gloss black. BUT, the chrome looks dark sometimes. You can do Alcad over any surface as long as it's super smooth and glossy. Dark colors just give it more depth and actually change the finished hue.

So I have been thinking about doing gloss over the black for months, but I have little time to build and I'm too lazy to spend time doing tests. I read Steve_L's thread and said screw it, I'll try it on this build, since the parts were already in black.

The KEY is in the angle. I saw a Youtube video a long time ago, I have no idea what video or who made it, but what always stuck with me was the guy said to spray at a 45 degree angle. I took it further and sprayed directly across the surface, basically parallel to the surface. I couldn't do this on the wheels, or I wouldn't get the middle, so that's why the wheels are not quite as impressive as the exhaust pieces.

Also, the pressure was up a bit. I couldn't tell what the PSI was because I use a thumb screw right at the handle of my airbrush, the gauge doesn't give the correct reading, but it felt like 20-25-ish PSI. The difference was I had the flow turned down to almost nothing. When I filled the opening of the airbrush WITHOUT THE CUP on and held the trigger down, it took over 20 seconds for it to empty, that's how little paint was coming out.

I think I did about 20-30 passes of Alclad over each area, but they were so thin, the black showed through for most of it.

So for this stuff I did higher pressure than recommended, but with very little paint flow, at the most extreme angle possible.

Here is the same Stainless Steel directly over a plastic spoon, no primer, no base of any kind.

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You can see the reflection me taking the pictures

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Also the reflection of my fingers

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Now if you want to take it a step further, you can lightly sand and polish the clearcoat, and you should get the same results as you see on the spoon.

I will be testing some Kosutte Ginsan on a spoon next. I will post the results when I am done.

Edited by Quick GMC
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I appreciate everyone's' comments. I really wanted to paint the engine, but all I have is Chevy orange, and I know some of you would notice and I'd be in trouble. I ordered a bunch of paint from Scale Finishes yesterday, including a bottle of Hemi orange, so when that gets here, the engine pics will come.

I don't know what the color of the car will be yet. I have ruled out orange, silver and black. I'm actually not a big Mopar fan, but this looked like a nice kit. So far I like it and the fit seems to be pretty good. it was easy to prep. I usually end up making mistakes on the final assembly and making more work for myself. We'll see how this goes.

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Good job! I like the stainless steel, I'll order some for sure.

Do you feel the Alclad covered easier after clear coating? Have you ever cleared the Alclad?

Michael

Definitely covered easier. The clear coat is much smoother and less porous than the black paint. The black paint is very smooth, but there is a significant difference in shine and surface smoothness on the clear coat.

I have not cleared Alclad, but I know that you cannot and maintain the effect.

I have a theory that if you handle your Alclad parts with your bare hands, inevitably down the road somewhere, it will deteriorate and turn black. I think the oils from your skin stay on it and break it down. I say this because I have pieces that I haven't touched in over a year that were perfect when I put them in the box and I know I handled them with bare hands. The parts I know I handled with gloves, like my F40 exhaust parts are perfectly fine. So now I only use latex gloves to handle them.

Another thing about Alclad is if it's done perfectly, there will be and extremely light dusting of dried paint on the surface. Use a Kleenex (without scents or lotions if possible) or a camera lens cleaning cloth and just lightly buff it down and it will give it a little more clarity. Not like normal polishing, just let the weight of the cloth fall on it and gently buff it a couple times.

Edited by Quick GMC
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If you can't settle on a color, you could always do it in "as-delivered" form... grey primer on the steel parts, and black gelcoat on the fiberglass.

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A good 'ol check placed in the B029 box when ordering! NIce! When I was a kid I was fascinated by the Hemi Darts and Barracuda line ups with this option. At 11 years old I knew that these things were ridiculously prepared for the track from the fact....'er ...Hurst factory. Not even a window regulator and handle in those doors. Beautiful cars....even in primer!

Edited by mustang1989
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Thanks Cameron, good info.

I'm wondering about the wear of Alclad parts as time goes by. I recently did brass parts on a front suspension with Alclad Burnt Metal, then clear coated with lacquer. Other parts, wheels especially, seemed to not fare so well with much handling. The clear coated suspension parts are hold up very well.

I really like the stainless headers you've done!

Michael

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  • 2 weeks later...

This turned out to be very interesting and educational. I have had an experience using the Alcad II, from the spray can. I know it says for Lexan plastics, but after checking around, I got some great advise. Pretty much the same procedure as the air brushed method, but quite a bit more time is invested getting the similar results. I really love the way the spray can went on, as it dries to the touch almost instantly. After all is said and done, my results were nearly the same. I do need to try the stainless steel method next and check and compare. I just purchased the 68 Charger R/T a few days ago. I think I will try some engine parts using the stainless steel method. I now know why I bought the stainless steel spray can years ago. I just wasn't using it correctly. Also the advise on the handling the finished item with latex gloves, is a great tip.

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