epi4561

I appreciate the kind words guys. I seem to be putting alot of time in to it and while not seeing many immediate results. Which I suppose every build has these moments. But, nonetheless, I'm sputtering right along. thanks for looking. thanks-epi

It's been a while, but I've managed to make a little progress. I experimented with using graphite powder to enhance the appearance of the shocks. Here is a before and after pic I also have pretty much everything attached to the chassis at this point. More to come..... thanks-epi

So do you think I should just use the optional molded plastic hinges instead?

I have a trumpeter 60 Bonnie conv. that I am working on.. i know there are several of you guys out there that have done this kit and I am hoping that you can lend me a hand. I have a question regarding the PE, that comes with the kit, for making the hood hinges. According to the instructions. it says to join the two parts (or three...) with the brass wire provided. Then, to lock the pieces together, you are supposed to mash the ends of the wire . My question is... How do I mash the ends of the wire? Or are there any alternatives to this method? Any advice would be very appreciated. I'm trying to get this done for my Dad by Christmas, and I am quickly running short on time.. thanks-epi

what kind of putty are you using? (brand, where you got it, etc...) What is the working time you get from it? Going back to my days of customizing hot wheels, I've been using a 2-part marine epoxy putty. ( Marine meaning it can be used and can even cure while submersed in water.) But if you don't have it mixed and in place within 5 minutes, all you'll have is a big chunk of wasted putty.

As you can see above, I had no idea what they were called either. fishmouth.... Good to know. Oh and very nice and simple tool that seems to make a world of difference.

Cool idea... Maybe next you can show us your technique for getting the cross-brace ends to meet up perfectly with the rounded tubing..

I can only find online instructions for the Tamiya Ferrari FXX. but I don't see anything like what you are talking about. Which kit are you using? can you post a pic of the instructions that are confusing you?

You could even insert your straight pins, sewing needles, toothpicks, etc. into your pin vise for even better grip..

Thanks Ron, I think I'm gonna stick with my original thought. A while ago, I bought some Auto Air paint and they sent some sample sizes of their Water-borne paints. I was able to get a really decent burgandy/maroon by mixing a little blue with some red. And I'll lighten/darken to meet the other colors. I'm curently in the process of reworking those atrocious things they called seats. I'm sure you are well aware of Trumpeters pitiful excuse for replica seats, but for you who aren't, this is how the seats looked out of the box. Rolled Pleats...... Really? Not that there's anything wrong with rolled pleats. Just not for this car. And, as if that wasn't bad enough, If you look closely at the front seat (left), you can see that the seams on the seat bottoms do not line up with the seams on the seat backs. What's that all about? So now I'm tackling the job of transforming those seats into the proper tri-color design, which they apparently had no problem making for the hard top version. thanks-epi

Here are some pics of the engine so far. and a couple shots of the chassis I know, they still need a bit of touching up. More to come soon. I hope you enjoy. thanks-epi

Looks very clean and sharp. All the extra time and care you took in masking the windows sure does show. What are your plans (if any) for detailing the roof scoop opening?

Wow, That engine is Gorgeous!!!!!! Everything else is outstanding as well. I love it. That's my sons favorite car (one of mine as well).

Hi, I'm relatively new to modeling, and I've never worked with PE pieces before. So I am here seeking some advice. I was wondering if anyone has any experience with the PE set for the Trumpeter 60 Bonneville. If so I have a couple of questions... the dash trim... the piece that has PONTIAC printed out across the passenger side. Do I sand off the detail on the plastic kit piece and place the PE part over it, or do I bypass the plastic kit piece all together? There are a bunch of pieces for knobs.. something like type A and type B. How do I use them? they don't look anything like knobs, just TINY circles. I just don't want to do something the wrong way and mess up the PE pieces. I appreciate any and all help. thanks-epi

Is this quick enough? lol Sent a PM.

Hey Ron, My dads bonnie was white, but also had the maroon/ burgundy interior like your model. What paint(s) did you use for the tri-color seats? I was planning on just finding a real decent burgundy and then adding black /white to create the darker/lighter shades. thanks-epi

Ya.... I noticed that about the seats... still debating on which direction I'm wanting to go with that one.. I'm just real pumped, yet totally scared to do this one. I mean, I really want to see the look on my dad's face when he opens it up on Christmas.. But that is also, making me put some unnecessary pressure on myself to "not screw it up". Who am I kidding though... I'm never satisfied with anything I've ever built. I always nitpick it to death... anyway... think positive... @Deathgoblin... Looked everywhere... nowhere to be found. pm sent your way... thanks..

I'm attempting to build a model of my Dad's first and favorite care he ever owned. It was, of course, a 1960 Pontiac Bonneville Convertible. Since this is going to be a surprise, I can't ask him too many detailed questions about it or he will get suspicious. To further complicate this project, there are absolutely no pics to use as a reference. So I got the Trumpeter kit and opened it up: ***Bottom pic - you can see the Photo-Etch kit I purchased from Model Car Garage on the right*** Upon further inspection, I noticed that one of the wheels is missing. If anyone has any idea where I can get an extra one of these, I would greatly appreciate the help. actual progress coming soon......

I wasn't able to find any place that actually had wheels. But this place had sets of tires. http://www.hiroboy.com/catalog/advanced_search_result.php?keywords=bike+wheel&search_in_description=1 sorry..

Wouldn't a foam paint brush trimmed down do the same thing? No offense intended by what I am about to say and I apologize if I do offend, but that doesn't seem to deliver the cleanest end result. The CD technique sounds like it would deliver a very clean looking end result, but seems like it would also be very frustrating not being able to see what you are trying to paint. So what if you combined the two..... I can't say for sure because I haven't tried it, but in theory, I would think that using this setup without the foam piece on the end would give you the best of both worlds. The same smooth, clean application of paint as the with the CD, but with the ability to see and control where the paint goes. I'm anxious to see how this idea would work. Who knows, it could be total garbage... lol thanks-epi

thanks for the info guys... much appreciated.

I am going to be starting the Trumpeter '60 Bonneville conv. soon and I was looking over the directions. Now I know that the suggested colors need to be taken with a grain of salt. But there are some colors that I am not totally sure about. Namely the ones listed below: Metal Black Burnt Iron Tire Black Wood Brown After doing a little research on this site, I've discovered that "tire black" can be substituted with semi-gloss black. and burnt iron can be any dark metallic mixed with silver, aluminum, bronze, or gold etc... to achieve any number of "metalized" looking colors. And I'm assuming that Wood Brown is a slightly different (lighter) shade of regular brown. I know there are many techniques one can use to achieve a similar looking end results to the colors listed above. I'm more interested in knowing what the directions mean when they say "Metal Black". Do they mean something like a black chrome, or metallic black, or something completely different? However, please feel free to add any of your techniques though. don't let me stop you. lol. Oh... one more thing, the directions say that the modern equivalent to "Shelltone Ivory" (60's factory color I'm looking for) is Testors/MM Classic White, but I don't think they look very similar. Any suggestions on achieving something close to the shellton Ivory is appreciated. Can't seem to get an accurate link to the paint color chip from paintscratch.com but the internet color code is #E7E7EA thanks-epi

On to the interior. Nothing much here, just painted and detailed a bit, but the floor area was messed up . I wanted to try flocking, but I didn't have any. So I improvised. Here is my "not-so-good" attempt at flocking using my homemade dried "wood putty" powder: Ok, the engine was just a mess, and terribly frustrating to take apart and reassemble with the parts I wanted to use. Again, nothing spectacular, not plummed or anything, I just wanted to get something semi-decent looking using the parts I had available: And finally, a shot of the undercarriage: Well, I hope you guys like it. I know its not up to most of your abilities, but, considering all of the glue that this thing had on it, I'm rather happy with it so far. thanks-epi

Ok, been doing some work on this glue bomb.. And I finally got some better pics. Keep in mind it's still a WIP... First off, My boy didn't want the T-Tops, so I filled them in: There's quite a bit of progress missing between these shots, but here is the body with filled in T-Tops and paint. Lime green pearl covered with a couple layers of Pthalo green (both Auto Air) and a light clear.. Still need to apply homemade decals and finsh clear and buff etc... More to come.....

I appreciate all of your suggestions... seems like my best bet would be opening up the grill to let actual light shine through. thanks-epi