customline

Thanks all! ?

Well, Sam, I hope you have as much fun with yours ?

Yeah, yeah....I know. It needs more paint on it to even it out, though. Color sand and more blue. No sweat.

Betcha thought you'd seen the last of this one....? first coat will be wet-sanded when I feel ? like it..........but here's where we're going.

You missed the part about the "inclusions" ?. it's death for a candy paint job. Fatal. No-can- fix. Never should have done it. Big waste of pricey paint. I had one shot and I freaking blew it. I need a beer to cry in. Thanks for looking! Nice color, huh? ?

Thanks, Steve, I'm just wondering if theres a better way for me.

Yesterday I shot some TS-45 white pearl on my ready-for-paint Impala. The humidity was a nice dry 47%. This morning I wet-sanded it with 2000 and put it in the sun to dry so far-so good. When it was good and dry a couple of hours later I shot a second coat and it came out flawless. Didn't get pictures so you'll have to trust me. Then I drove my old Ranger to Hobby Town and picked up a can of clear blue, TS-72. The RH today is a really nice 39% so I figured I would go for it. The white pearl, I'm told, is a good base for candy. So off I go with my perfect white pearl Impala and (I spray outside, folks) guess what? Three "inclusions" in my candy blue paint. And....and the panel line edges are white. Great. ?.

Just a little update. Those L60 15s are a wheel well full. Had to make room in the rear and since I will be making the skirts permanent, it would be nice to have a little clearance. I've been working on the roof seam at the rear deck trying to make it look like it is actually part of the body. Sprayed the chassis again, this time the RH was around 47%- no blush this time. It's getting there. I got a few pix. I also put a coat of Tamiya TS45 white pearl on the Chevy yesterday. Heading to Hobby Town today for some Tamiya transparent color yet to be determined. Of course I will check for clearance items. ?

Steve, how do you black out grilles like the one here? Your method? Materials? Just curious. ?

That coupe looks absolutely real. Great rust on the welds! Love it, love it, love it.

The custom backlight piece is too short for the T-bird roof. The windshield frame is molded with the body. In a perfect world, the top should be chopped but I wanted to avoid cutting those A-pillars so I "adjusted" the Cs so I could get the backlight more or less centered, top to bottom. The result is a sloped back roof. It's a compromise. The custom backlight piece also needed to be set at an angle I could not give it without a real chop. Compromise. When viewed from the rear, the backlight looks "humped" in the middle. Hey, it's an experiment. The next guy to take this one on will look at mine and say "Oh he'll no" ? . Your assessment is spot on, Steve...and I liked Rusty's idea too. I looked for a bumper that would work (to wrap around the lip - his illustration didn't include a bumper but the look suggested it to me). It's hard to describe my thought process ?. I got to finish up the body tweeks and as soon as the "smoke from a distant fire" goes away, get another primer coat on it. I thought about painting this one with Createx iridescent dark blue. Then I watched some videos on you tube...... Nope. Not doing that.

Oh they're welcome if not needed, David. A comment or suggestion may not work out in the current context but those ideas add to the overall base of thought for everyone to draw from. If I don't use an idea as presented, I may find something in it and apply it in another project or someone else will. Feel free to empty your bucket! Actually, Dave, what I had in mind was drilling the pan below the grille opening on each side and inserting a piece of tube for a Frenched-in look but it might detract from the smooth, clean look. I think I will just pretend that they lie behind the grille out of sight. I appreciate your thoughtful input and that goes for everyone.

Steve, your stance is perfect for a "street machine" of the time. The trend was getting some 60 series wide ovals and deep dish mags which usually caused clearance issues. It was easy to get a Mopar up on all fours. Love that look.

It's a process.....? Hang in there, friends...Rusty, I will look at the hoods and listen to what the voices tell me to do. Charlie, it was not intended as a pun. I'm not that clever ?. Thank you both for hangin'.

Update: The bumper thing didn't pan out. I noticed that the "lip" , if viewed from above, matches the shape of the nose (duh...) . The lip must remain unaltered. The solution to my quandary is to add more Bondo ☺️. The bottom corners of the grille surround needed re-contouring. Did that and opened the Bondo. The results, I believe are an improvement. The only question now is weather or not adding parking lights would be a good move. And what about skirts? My wheel/tire situation is unresolved, I'm told. Thanks for looking ?

Great idea, Bob. Thanks! But I'm afraid I don't have that kit in stock. And my birthday has gone by......wait.......FATHER'S DAY!

Thanks, Rick, I keep forgetting about those cute little dimples. You should see my '50 convertible disaster ?

That's got me thinking "bumper". I have an extensive collection of bumpers. You have just opened Pandora's box, Rusty. The right bumper would be welcome, certainly. Good work, Thank you, sir! A set of lakes pipes are in order too, by the way. Gotta look for those.....same box ?.

This is bothering me now. I need to rework these areas for a cleaner look. Not happy yet.

Thanks, Rusty. I'm going to try a front-hinge hood. It's that or it's magnets. Lots of fussing with cleaning up the body. Lots of boring stuff to deal with now. This is where some projects die on the vine. I'm thinking Testors Extreme Lacquer in turquoise or ? orange? emerald? Wherever the spirit shoves me. Hey, how about that lip that sticks out under the grille? Is it me or does it need to be trimmed back?

Thanks, Charles. It isn't as clean as it may look. I'm hoping for a really good paint job to bring this one home.

Another quick mock-up . Now I need to fill the gap below the backlight and some other minor defects with some Mr. Hobby. Comments always welcome.

That thing is beyond awesome. If Ford had thought of that, they'd have sold a million more.

Thanks for your interest, Robert. My stuff is old school because I am, in fact, old. ?.

I decided to just go ahead and add in the rain gutters before I prime. I cut a backlight pattern too. Neither the color of the "glass" nor the color of the sheet metal is decided yet. More later.....