Olle F

Exactly. I have won my fair share of trophies, but have never cried when I didn't. Just look at it as a challenge instead of a failure, and come back with a vengeance.

I have a set that I dipped in Plasti-Dip. Works like a charm, you won't slip or drop anything when you use those!

That also works well with yellow, which is another color that doesn't always cover very well. I have used flat, color matched paint as primer on some models, and it builds up a solid color much quicker than using several coats of the top coat. It seems like the flat paints contain much more pigments, so they cover much better and they don't pull from the edges like high gloss paint tends to do sometimes. You can actually do the same thing when you're painting in your house: If you use tinted primer, you can often skip one top coat.

Thanks, Peter! These pictures were taken maybe a year after I built it, which was before the putty shrunk enough to show all the seams... I'm not sure if I want to show what it looks like today. Anyway, I used two '57 bodies, sliced them a bit offset and glued the wider halves together to make the body wider. Then I shortened it, grafted in the Viper hood and the section around the interior, plus some other fitting to make it look right. I think the body is made up of about 20 pieces from two '57 bodies and one Viper body. I don't think I'll do something like that again.

Alright, I don't know if it's an eyefull or not, but this is what it looks like. These pics were taken about 10-12 years ago with the first digital camera I ever laid my hands on, so the quality is pretty lousy. I think I have better pictures somewhere on my home computer though, if anyone is interested. It's just a slammer I built to see if I was capable of any major body mods, so there's no engine, opening doors or anything much exciting about it.

That's some incredible bodywork! It's always interesting to see what comes off your workbench and this is no exception, both those models are top notch. But at the same time I'm glad that you don't have the dough to do that to a real '57. BTW, the '57 sure lends itself to modifications like that and I actually built something similar many years ago, based on a shortened/widened '57 Pro Sportsman body and a Viper. I think I still got some pictures somewhere...

Not sure, but I believe this is from "The adventures of Ford Fairlane".

We bought a new computer a while back, and we went with XP. So far, I haven't heard anyone say that Vista is better, all you hear is sighs of relief, like: "Yeah, it actually does work with most of my software". IMO, Vista is an upgrade just for the sake of upgrading, and there's no need to use it as long as XP is available. My gut feeling is that Vista is a new Windows Me.

Very close, but the EPA tractors have a shorter wheelbase and no rear suspension. This looks like "the other kind", right Jaffa?

Thanks, that's an excellent description of "the milk consistency" you always hear about! I have done it exactly like that for years, but have never been able to describe it...

That's a great looking rig! Looks just like something you'll see on the roads around here. I love the details you added to the boat, they're right on the money!

I can't remember ever hearing that, but I wouldn't be surprised if it's Mad Max. That's the only "on-demand" blower I have ever seen in a movie. Here's another classic: "All right, all right, and yes-sirree! A clean hit! A perfect hit! And no pain for the target. Too bad the guy was only thirty-eight; just two years older, he'd have been worth three times the points"

As Bill said, you need more pressure. I usually run my Badger 200 at 40-45 psi, which gives me a very fine spray, which in turn makes it possible to spray very thin coats. If you run it at lower pressure, you'll get the same effect as when you're spraying with a can that's running out of pressure, i.e. a "slow" spray with larger droplets. This usually results in a coat that's too heavy, often with orange peel and runs. Crank it up to at least 30-40 psi and try again. PS: Also keep in mind that many white paints don't cover very well, so don't try to get full coverage with one coat. Just spray until you get a nice, wet coat, let it dry and give it another coat.

"Smokey and the Bandit", Buford T. Justice.

I have had plans for a bubbletop creation too, and have been eyeballing the Easter eggs they have in the grocery stores. Some of them come in something that looks like clear styrene. But it ain't Easter yet, so they are probably hard to find...

In such an important matter as "American Graffiti", we better set the record straight. I guess we are both right, kinda... Cut and paste from http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0069704/quotes :

I'm one of the dinosaurs that still use enamels, and I use it on bare plastic all the time. If you thin the enamel with lacquer thinner, it will dry quickly and stick like glue. As already mentioned, there are cases where a primer is needed (extensive bodywork, color issues etc) but on most my builds I just prep the styrene and spray the enamel straight onto it. I prefer this method as I want to keep the buildup to a minimum in order to leave trim and emblems as crisp and well-defined as possible. The most common objection to this (Hi, Bill Geary! ) is that it can leave the body slightly translucent, which will show under certain conditions. I solve this by priming or painting the inside of the body instead, and it works well for me.

It's when Toad has pulled over to talk with Debbie. Went something like this: "Is that real tuck and roll? I just love tuck n' roll upholstery"

I watched it last week... for the 15th time or so. It's a classic!

"The Big Lebowski". A movie full of memorable quotes.

Yep. At a glance, you might think that there are only 3-4 colors in an engine compartment, but there's way more than that if you really want to simulate all the different materials and finishes. The same goes for interiors: You would think that you could use the same color for everything in a color matched interior but if you look at the real car, you'll find that the color match is often so-so and that there are small but very noticeable differences in color and sheen between parts that are made of different materials. It becomes pretty obvious if you think about all the materials you'll find in an interior, like vinyl, carpet, rubber, cloth, paint, plastic etc. and trying to replicate this can be challenging, but it pays off. The funny thing about it is that it's not immediately noticeable when you look at the finished model, it just makes you think: "Why does this look so real?" I'm far from a master, but I'm sure trying. As always, knowing about it is the first step.

I remember that it was made that way on the Model A I built, but there was another one (possibly a Packard) that had some other type of arrangement. But it has been about 30 years since I built these kits and I don't have them anymore, so I'm really not sure.

Or how about a Ford Skyliner, with working top? BTW, and back to topic: I built a few Hubley metal kits many years ago and if I remember correctly, one of them came with a working steering box. Or am I totally mistaken?

1: I use Testors "Black Chrome" for this, it can be thinned with lacquer thinner, dry sprayed and so on to change the sheen and texture. This paint is one of my all-time favorites, I would be severely handicapped without it. You can also try and add some white, straight black can be a bit "too black" sometimes. This works well for rubber parts like hoses and belts. 2: I have been experimenting with this for a while, and I agree: A dull or semi-gloss engine looks far mor realistic than a glossy one. Experimenting with different sheens on different parts can add a lot of realism too. If you look at reference pictures of real cars, you'll get a good idea of what to use where. I usually add some wash to the finish, so I give it a thin mist of dullcoat when I'm done, to seal and protect the finish.

You are probably talking about the damage a vinyl tire can do to clear plastic parts. I have heard a lot about this from those who collect old kits, but hadn't seen any of this until I put a finished model in a clear display case. After a few months, there were kind of etch marks on the tires and the clear base. From what I have heard from the collectors, it happens ever so often in boxed kits when the tires and the clear parts are not separated. Not sure what causes this, but I guess it's some kind of chemical reaction.