spawndude

I'm looking for a tip on how to make a cars safety glass look like its be totally shattered but still be mostly in the window frame. Something like what you might get from the glass being hit by a baseball, hail, a fist, foot, etc. Also a tip how to make the itty bitty "diamond" looking pieces of glass that do fall out of a broken window. Thanks

An inexpensive source for a glass top are the glass inserts found in some coffee/end tables. I bought a set at a garage sale for $15. I kept the glass and put the rickety old tables in the dumpster. This glass is usually tempered and has finished edges. I also bought a package of those felt pads that are sticky on one side and are designed to keep things from scratching the floor or table tops. These raise the glass off the table top a wee bit and you can then slide instructions, photos, diagrams, under the glass. The glass also comes in handy as a quick paint palette. Whenever the need arises a quick spray with the water hose combined with a razor blade and you are good as new again.

I'm thinking that maybe the show itself reimburses the seller the difference between what the guys pay the seller and what the guys sell the item for. Would not be good PR for the show to have a bunch of folks start complaining they were ripped off. Most of the items the guys buy and then sell don't involve large sums of money. Yeah, there is usually one item each episode that sells for big bucks but most items price would be pocket change to a popular show like this. I do remember one episode where they bought some old circus freak show type tarps and went back to the seller to give him some extra money because what they eventually sold them for was thousands more than what they originally paid him. Seems like there was another episode where they returned to give the seller some extra cash. I'm pretty sure the sellers are well compensated in some way to ward off lawsuits. I can just imagine the headlines of "Big Bad Rich TV network takes advantage of Granma and Granpa!!!"

In the episode I watched last night the guys bought a batch of unbuilt early 60's AMT "3 in one" model car kits. $20 each. I have no idea of their value just thought it was an interesting tidbit. The guy had several shelves of kits but these were about the only ones you could get a good look at.

Look for acrylic cosmetic organizers on ebay. Lots of interesting stuff

I was at Autozone the other day to pick up a can of Duplicolor Adhesion Promoter and saw they also have Duplicolor Prep Spray Grease and Wax remover. I've never tried it. I use a product called LA's Totally Awesome Grease and Spot remover to remove paint and wash new kits and also to wash them after I do lots of handling/sanding before painting. Rinse with water. $1 for 64oz. Similar to something like Simple Green.

Thanks for the info guys. This can get me moving on with my paint job. The undercarriage color had me stalled out. I'm saving the body for last. I may go with regular white. I just don't visualize Turquiose going with a cream colored white. I will test first on an old car body.

I'm building the AMT 100th Aniv 1957 Chevy Belair. It will be done in a showroom new condition. What color should the undercarriage be? Rust, black, body color? Also I'm confused about the body color. I selected the Turquoise/India Ivory combo which is listed as one of the original color combos. India Ivory appears to be almost a beige color. I've searched the web for photos and all the Turquiose 57 Belairs are combined with a regular white. Is this just the effects of photography and screen colors?

Deluxe Materials carries some very interesting products I would like to try. Places I've checked in the US only have a handful of their products and half of those tend to be out of stock. I don't want to keep paying shipping on a product or two as they come back into stock. Anyone know of a US vendor that carries a majority of Deluxe Materials products and has a good inventory?

Here's an idea. As a gag gift for one that is fanatic about their car how about instead of using a generic picture of the car use the persons real car in front of their house (or wherever). Maybe even shots of them around/in it.

The Renwal military kits bring back pleasant memories. Many trips to Woolworths and Kress department stores just to look at the boxes. Especially the cutaway subs. I did have one of the subs but don't remember which one.

Hey, I have that amoeba kit! But not the box. Pretty simple kit. The are all flat pieces of plastic with the body parts being raised. The amoeba has a bubble top.

I do it all the time. Some have suggested letting the bottle sit for several days until the "stuff" that gives it the flat look settles at the bottom. You then pour off about 1/4 of the clear liquid at the top. Supposedly gives it an even more flat look. Either case give it a good shake before using.

The only spray paint I find necessary to heat is Testors Dull coat. If I just shake it I seem to get more of a satin finish than dull. I've heard of the coffee/candle warmer trick and know myself well enough to know there would be a 100% chance I would walk away and forget about warming the can! I've always used hot tap water. However, there was one occasion when the bottom of the can expanded out!

I'm building a car that has been abandoned and exposed to the elements. How do I give windows that dirty, gritty, mineral encrusted look?

Anyone ever buy those tools that will just randomly "vanish", "disappear" all on their own? The ones you have forever and a day kept in one coveted spot and then one day "poof", they are gone. No amount of searching results in good news. When you question other residents of the house "they haven't touched it", "no idea what you are talking about!". If you are lucky several days later you will be sitting at your bench and "WOW" there it is. It surely must have been there all this time and you just overlooked it. That is the only conceivable answer as no one in the family would dare touch your stuff!

Ahh, "B" brings back lots of memories of vacations in the 60's. We would stop at Texaco's when possible because that was the only credit card my dad had. I can almost hear the double "ding" as cars pulled up/away and ran across the black hose that alerted the attendants. The "chime" of the pump as the gallons ticked away. The "whine" of the impact wrench coming from the garage section. Inside the office area the pleasant (to me) "aroma" of new tires. You would also have to take advantage of the "free" road maps. One of each state or local region. Stations near sate borders were a bonus as they tended to have maps of several nearby states. Surprisingly I don't ever recall anyone at the station questioning why my sister, my brother, and I each needed an armful of the same selection of maps. Wish I would have kept these as some have value in the collectors market. Thanks for the memories!

I bought a few of the 18in long "magnetic" strips from Harbor Freight Tools. Works great for any hobby tool made of metal. Files, small pliers, sculpting tools, scribers, drill bits, etc. I originally used a carousel but it got to full. As fates would have it the tool I needed always required rotating the carousel to the other side and many times "stabbed" by on tools on one of the lower tiers. Now all these tools are right there in front of me.

I would like to second the idea of not tempting fate and let parts that are just fine staying glued together.

I'm currently working on a "distressed" car. I used a tea bag and applied with white glue. I then tore a few spots and let in hang down like a torn headliner. I didn't come up with this idea but I don't remember where I read it.

I occasionally buy the bulk packs of brushes at Hobby Lobby. They are like $4-$5, cheaper with coupon. These are great for cleaning, dusting, dry brushing, applying washes, applying pigments, applying glue, the larger ones can be used for painting large areas like the base for a diorama, etc. If you ruin them so what, they were cheap. Also, keep the good brushes that turn bad for doing the same thing as above. I add a bit of generic hair conditioner to my cleaning water. Finally, I keep my good brushes in a separate, nicer brush holder. The cheapies I keep in containers (candy, cracker, cookie) separated by what I use them for. Washes, pigments, glue, etc.