jwrass

I'm in on a casting!!! I own a 1983 RX-7 that I bought new that has only 20,000 on the clock, Never seen a Winter and has only been rained on a few times, Looks better than the day I brought it home that car!!!!

Mike, Be it models or 1:1 we all have difficulties with paint as their are so many variables to contend with, it's all learning process, what you learn from your experimentation and failures ultimately make you better. You said you are on your third paint job on your latest build, think back on what you did or are doing that is causing your failures and trouble shoot the process, take notes that you can refer to. I have pages of documentation of every 1:1 paint job I do. Think back on what you did on your successes and repeat the process. Keep the Faith!!!! the paint on those two builds was outstanding!!!!!!! jwrass

Chris, You are blessed my man with vision and very skilled hands. Every time I look at this build I find more and more things to be in awe over. It is off the hook!!!!! Instead of being discouraged for not being able to do what you do I choose to be inspired!!!!! thank you for sharing this awesome project!!!! jwrass

Scale Master is right on!!! I do wraps at my shop and on something that small I just don't see it! However not is all lost I cut masks for my Custom Painting and the material I use is very thin and made for the process known as cut, peel and blow. your artwork would have to be in a Vector format to cut on a plotter. Any Sign Shop could cut this for you if you bring them the files. jwrass

Dale, I do freehand pinstriping and lettering so my brush collection is quite eclectic not to mention that I'm kind of a brush freak. I use allot of my brown and grey squirrel hair brushes for modeling however these brushes can be tricky to work with. The last few years I have been using some synthetic brushes and I really like them. One brand that I really like is the American Painter Taklon line that is sold a Michaels, I use the 4050 series script in various sizes and I can write my name between double pin lines with ease. American Painter has many types and shapes of the Taklon brushes and I use them all but a script type brush is what I would use for fine detail. I got turned on to these brushes at a Panel Jam 15 years ago and all of the painters I know have these in their arsenal. I have a brother of the brush who has a signature series of brushes that are killer. His name is Alan Johnson and his signature series come in sizes 0000, 00 & 1. You can put a dot on the head of a pin with the 0000. When you store these brushes lay them flat and oiled with linseed oil or a good brush oil, I know this may sound counter intuitive because oil and paint usually equal fish eyes. You just need to make sure you double wash your brush before you dip them in paint. These brushes perform best when they are oiled when not in use, you will find that the more you use them the better they perform, then they die but treated well they last a very long time. You can buy Alan's brushes through Coast Airbrush. Do Not use any oil that has detergent in it as you will find you will only have a stick with no hair. your best bet is a good brush oil Coast has this too. I hope this helps, jwrass

Greeting to All, I have some alternatives as per Topic Title. I have used these products on 1:1 Custom Painting for years. The last few days I spent some time with these products on styrene and have found that they work GREAT!!! they are as follows: ALCLAD: House of Kolor makes a product called Kosmic Krome. It comes in five flavors (no you can't drink it lol) Aluminum Effect, Bronze Effect, Copper Effect, Gold Effect & Mirror Reflective Effect. All of these colors can be intermixed or toned to make your own custom mix or just used as they are. You can also burnish these products with Scuff pads, Velvet, Steel Wool what ever you want to use, the only limits you have with these products is your imagination. As with Alclad to get a Mirror effect you need a gloss black undercoat. Want Polished Aluminum, Bronze, Copper, Gold, Chrome? You have it here!!! Spray the color of the polished effect you want over gloss black, done deal!!!! I find the light refraction of the colors much brighter than Alclad. Recently I did a bike helmet with paneled out designs, on one part of the helmet I but Kandy blue over a mirror copper base and the effect was off the hook. It's more expensive than Alclad but I think it's worth it as is so versatile. 2oz $25 HOK vs 1oz $9 Alclad. For my money it's HOK...... great product!!!! BARE METAL FOIL: Try Composition Leaf, there are many colors to choose from. Gold, Aluminum, Multiple Variegated Colors. I think people shy away from leaf because they think it is to hard to apply, not so!!!!! let's apply some now! First you need some size, think of size as glue. You can get size in water base, oil base, and urethane based. You can brush or spray size. lets just say we are going to do a moulding around a windscreen with silver leaf to simulate chrome. (1:1 molding are typically polished stainless not chrome) You can mask the area around the windscreen and brush the size where the moulding is or you can freehand this area. Leaf comes in booklets and rolls. booklets 5.5" x 5.5" 25 leafs $7. 1/2" rolls 22 yards $15. 3/4" rolls 22 yards $19. Let the size get tacky almost dry, now take your leaf as it's placed on the tissue like paper and gently roll the leaf into the size, you will find that as the leaf gets near the size it almost gets sucked into the size. Gently burnish the leaf into the size with a Qtip. Now you are going to have this thing that looks like hot a mess, not to worry!!!!! take a cotton ball and gently burnish the area, the leaf will only stick to the sized area and the excess will just flake away. It's literally that easy and when applied right It's seamless. Now you can burnish it with a cotton ball to whatever sheen you want. It won't polish it to a high luster chrome but you can get close. The last step is to put some clear over the leaf, you can just brush the area where the leaf is or spray clear the whole body or part. Personally I think BMF most times looks phony, just like parts on a chrome tree. There is always more than one way or process to do something, give it a shot All and any questions are welcome!!!! Respectfully Submitted.... jwrass

To all: After a 35 year Hiatus from modeling I'm back at the bench (as of the first of the year) I have registered and follow most of the Forums out there. I don't know if its just me but I find this one to be the most friendly out there. I have had many questions as I am trying to get up to speed and everyone has been so helpful. I have contributed were I can and will continue to. I made a huge mistake when I jumped back in and that is I have six kits in various of stages with none complete. Yesterday I boxed up all but two so I can get at least one done. I will be posting some Pics although I don't know if I'm ready as there are so many outstanding builders here!!! Again, Thank You all for sharing, this site has a first class group of people!!!! Respectfully Submitted, jwrass, James Rasmussen

Alan, Great build!!!! Always loved the 65 body style. Awesome stance, the period correct treatment on the velocity stacks,,,, Super. That body was a train wreck you did a outstanding job on the resto jwrass

Ace-Garageguy, Bill, I want to try the Microballoon thing as it sounds interesting, any brand you prefer? any ratios you like? I have been reading many of your posts and you give some great advice. I can tell you do your homework!!!! Thank You and keep them coming. Respectfully jwrass

Marcos, I use House Of Kolor and PPG products exclusively (I have been doing 1:1 custom paint for 35+ years) Ace-Garageguy (Bill) is spot on!!!! this stuff can be nasty. When Imron first came out in the 70s I had a friend almost die from Iso poisoning. A couple of things! I always stick with one system. Paint, Reducers, Hardeners or other additives, never cross mix. If I use PPG as a base I use PPG clear. Obviously this is not as critical on a Model as 1:1. I can't afford to redo a 1:1 $10,000 paint job. I have never used Bloxygen, I have used Argon in the past but don't anymore, I personally don't think any of the purge methods work, the only way you could insure a fool proof seal would be to pull the container into a vacuum, I feel that once you break the seal the cats out of the bag. I and all the custom painters I know do store their hardener in the refrigerator, this does extend the shelf life. Make sure you have the hardener at room temperature when you mix. Once you mix you have a pot life, DO NOT put that mix back in the original can it came from. I get most of my materials from my local jobber although I do use Coast AirBrush, they are a great resource for large and small quantities of House of Kolor products. I do use some Dupont Hot Hues striping urethanes, it's a great product for Lettering, Pinstriping and some Airbrushing, you could use it as a color coat for models with great results. I have used Dupont and I am not a fan of the rest of their product line. I don't use any modeling paint for body color coats, I do use various modeling paints for brushing and detail. As far as the dipped in plastic look go's that's a bunch of hooey!!!! Chances are you are going to scuff and buff and that takes care of that look. At least 90% of the 1:1 Customs and Restorations have a Urethane clear coat and what are we trying to duplicate with our Models 1:1. Look at Custom Mikes finishes they are realistic facsimiles of 1:1 (nice work Mike) Give it a try, but please read Bills information!!! (Thanks Bill) this stuff can hurt you!!!! I have way to many guns to list, However I just purchased a Iwata HP/TH Airbrush, It has interchangeable nozzles, it can spray a fan pattern or a conventional airbrush conical pattern. I don't have allot of time with this one in my hand but this thing rocks!!!!! I hope this helps, jwrass

Dave, I forgot this in my other post. On the floor pan you have offset, joggle, blister What ever you want to call it, is that hand made? if so how did you make the impression. The more I look at this thing the more I likeeeeee. Great job man!!!!

Rudy, Art makes a great point with regard to dish washing soaps, they put perfumes in the soap and they are typically oil based. Oil on the surface equals poor adhesion and fish eyes. There is one dish washing soap that has been a standard on 1:1 Custom Paint for as long as I have been doing Custom Paint (35+ years) for wet sanding between coats (used as a lubricant, also prevents paper clogging) it is Ivory!!! but it has to be the Original Classic Scent. It's the original formula, it does have a scent but it is not oil based. A typical paint job in my shop is on average $10,000 that is just paint. I can't afford to have any failures so I always use best practices. I would stay away from any dish soap other than the Original Ivory, We use Ivory every day and have never had a failure. We do however use a good pre cleaner before we lay down any color, We use a solvent based pre cleaner on metal items. We use Rapid Tac or the iso/water formula that I posted for plastic items, I.E. Fiberglass, Helmets, Carbon Fiber, anything that is not metal. Again this prep process negates the inherent static problems associated with anything of a plastic nature. Good call Art!!!! Rudy let us know how these procedures work. Again if you are in doubt do a practice panel before you commit to your Model. I don't know anyone who enjoys stripping paint. jwrass

I prime everything. I do 1:1 custom paint (35+ years) I have tried all of the primers listed (on models) and really don't care for any of them. I use all 1:1 materials for everything. The reason I don't care for any of the primers listed is they contain to much plasticizer and not enough filler material, they easily clog paper and dry times are to long for me. I use HOK, PPG and some AutoAir on 1:1 in my shop. I helped with the development of House of Kolors striping urethane 30 years ago as a beta site. I was (Am) very fortunate to have been part of this process as I learned allot about paint chemistry. HOK and PPG don't offer primer surfacer in rattle cans (PPG used to) However all is not lost! Listed are some products that will make your life easier and your builds better. These can be purchased at NAPA and are branded as Martin Senour. They are Lacquer based products, they are not cheep( $13 for a 15oz can) but they make things so much easier, they are as follows: #7284 Hot Rod Grey (this is very dark) #7283 Red Primer Surfacer, I believe they make a light grey but my jobber doesn't carry it. The spray head is a fan pattern vs a conical so you have great control and the material lays down very nice. The biggest advantage of these primers is their filling properties and sandability, when sanding they powder up very nice and don't clog your sandpaper. I highly recommend these products. I take one more step before I primer anything to ensure a good bite to the substrate. I use adhesion promoter, NAPA Martin Senour #7223 or Bull Dog which makes a great product. These products were designed for plastic to primer or plastic to paint, this step may be overkill for models but I don't skip this step because I believe it's best practice. I treat my Models as if they are 1:1 Give it a try! If you don't like it go back to what you were using, It's my guess is that if you try these products you will save those other primers for your Garden Equipment. Respectfully Submitted, jwrass

Super Clean period correct. Great build!!!! love the treatment on the injector hat. Is the scoop removable? I would love to see a picture without the scoop. Again AWESOME build!!!! jwrass

Dave, I never have been to Bruce's or Dragfest (It's not men dressed like women is it, YIKES lol) I have been to Big Daddy's in Ocala a few times and the Pomona museum, those places are like catnip for Drag Race Fans. One of the displays at Bigs gets me choked up. I come from a typical middle class family of the 60s and 70s, my parents did not have allot of extra $$$$$. When I was 15 one of my friends got a Honda Mini Trail 50, I wanted one so bad, however Dad and Mon said I had to buy it myself as it was not in the cards financially, A few days latter Dad said that I could get one but I had to come up with half of the cost of the bike ( at that time I think they were about $400) with my paper route, garage band, mowing lawns, collecting bottles, robbing banks (my picture is still in post offices in 50 states) After some time I came up with my half, in Jan of 1971 I approached my parents and they said no can do now, bummer!!!!! On a Sat In Feb (the month I was born) my dad said lets go to the hobby shop and race our slot cars, we went, had a great time!!!! So on the way home my Dad stops at our local Honda dealer and there sits a beautiful blue mini trail 70 with a sign on it Happy Birthday Jim, my parent punked me!!! The display at Big Daddy's is of pit bikes, Honda supplied him with pit bikes, Mini Trail 50s and 70s and some on display are brand new they still have the knobbies on the tires. If you ever get a chance go to Bigs museum. I have been watching your build and Chris Sobaks, you two guys are very creative and talented!!!! Keep us posted, can't get enough. Cheers, Jimmy "Rass"

I have looked at Tamiya tapes and they are not for me! I agree no name tapes are a waste of money (so is Tamiya quantity vs cost) 3M or FBS for me. FBS has only been around for a few years, however they cater to the 1:1 custom paint market, Once you use this stuff you will ween yourself from all other tapes including 3M. I do all my tape outs with FBS. I still use 3M on the masking machine but for all my custom work it's FBS. I get mine from my jobber but it can be purchased through Coast Air Brush. This product is the best I have seen in 35+ years of custom painting. Give it a try!!!! you won't be disappointed. jwrass

Chuck, I got my body, thanks for the tip!!!! Are you going to use the paint scheme as shown on your pictures? Are you going to use decals? I can't find any like that scheme. I have been doing 1:1 Custom Painting for some 35+ years and I have already looked at color chips and have a good handle on what and how it was applied. I own a small sign shop with vinyl cutters and printers. I plan on taking reference material scaling it to 1:25, do a tape out on the body make a Vector image and cut masking material to do the graphics in paint. if you already have those measurements I will cut you masks in exchange. I don't want to be a copy cat but of all the funnies she drove I always liked that paint scheme the best. Let me know your thoughts! jwrass

Seth, You are very welcome!!! There is one thing I forgot to mention about the paint. You mentioned that the color looked to have a slight orange cast. Back in the day we used to use a pearl that was called Murano Pearl and their were several shades of Murano. At the time (70s) this was the closest we had to a color shift type effect. Murano had a very HIGH content of lead and was banned by the end that era. It came in a paste form. I still have a jar of Silver and Gold and it's worth it's weight in gold, very rare. I do use HOK, AutoAir and PPG pearls, however there is a brand I use that is sold in big box Hobby Stores made by the Jacquard Co under the name Pearl Ex. It's inexpensive has many colors to choose from and works with all types of paint (powder form) If you want a slight orange cast to go with what I recommended Pearl Ex would be a good product. I use it all the time and have never had a problem!! It is pretty concentrated so a little go's along way!!!! Again test panels are your best friend. I use powder coated license plate blanks for test panels, you can get them from most sign supply houses. Coast Air Brush has them and I find them a great source, I buy from them on a regular basis. The owner Dave Monning is a great guy and most of the people who work for him are air brush artists of some description and are very knowledgeable. I am looking so forward to watching this build as you progress!!! If you have any questions feel free to contact me. You have great skills!!! I know you are going to knock that paint job out of the park!!! Jimmy "RASS"

Kurt, Great looking build, love the detail!!!! I have the kit but have not opened it. How is fit, flash, chrome, etc. Thanks jwrass

Cube Man, You beat me to the punch. Kudo's to cube man for posting the link!!! Thank You!!!! jwrass

Sorry gang, I don't mean to be a dick tease! For some reason I can't get the links to post!!! if you can't wait just google Thomas Naccarato or use the search engine in youtube to find the Videos. I will try tomorrow, I don't know what's going on. My apologies jwrass

Rudy, If you have any questions give me a shout, I have learned so much from so many over the years it's a joy to give back and share as much as I can!!!! Oh!!!! On those transition lines, bring the color on slow, and not too many coats just enough to get the coverage you want, unmask and bury in in clear!!! Good luck on those panels this weekend!!! I know you will do fine jwrass

To All : This is one of the men who inspired me to do Custom Painting back in the Day!! Watch as the BLOOD Air Brushes the Grille, Lights and Emblems on a Nostalgia Mach I Funny Car like back in the day before stickers. Kenny and a few of my friends on the east coast perfected these techniques when all the cars were painted not wrapped. This is a three part series filmed by Thomas Naccarato and is on You Tube. Watch in amazement as Kenny does his thing. This is a must see for all you Old School Funny Car Historians. Enjoy, Jimmy 'RASS"

Rudy, I have the same question as Mark. However I still will address some potential problems. I have been professional 1:1 custom painter for some 35+ years. Some of the theories here with regard to dry times have their merit however I do multiple tape outs on a daily basis with no problems (and have done so on all types of paint) the worst problem you should ever have with tape outs is tape tracks due to the paint being to soft.... never paint peeling if the substrate is properly pre paired. One of the problems I see in the modeling community is the grit of sand paper they use it is way to fine, as Mark stated you need BITE. It is my opinion that if modelers would use more 1:1 practices their builds would be much better. I could go into priming and block sanding etc but I will stick (sorry for the pun) to the subject. The final grit of sand paper that I think should be used is 600 to 800 followed with a grey scuff pad. Any type of plastic (styrene, fiberglass, carbon fiber) all have a affinity to hold a static electricity charge thus dust and nuggies are drawn to the surface and the more you rub it the most static is produced. A product that is commonly used on 1:1 to nullify this problem is called Rapid Tac which was invented for the sign industry. Before Rapid Tac came along we used to mix our own anti static juice it is 20% Isopropyl Alcohol and 80% Distilled Water (by volume) just before you apply your top coat mist this solution on, wipe it dry, tack it and apply your top coat. You will be amazed at how much cleaner you paint jobs will be. I use 3M and FBS tapes with few failures, some times the tape my be a bit to sticky, to dull the tape run it over clean very tight cotton fabric One more tip..... on tape outs a common problem can be bleed through, to combat this I take the color that has been taped off and lightly dust the tape line with this color, this will seal the tape and make for a crisp line definition. With candies or exotic colors I use clear for this process. When pulling the mask line try to pull the tape at a 180 angle to the surface, many times I pull the tape while the paint is tacky but this is a high wire act and I hold my breath when ever I do this. I know this is a windy response,,, but it's not easy to explain in a few words. Bottom line I believe you have a adhesion problem due to lack of bite. 1500-2000 grit is what we use to cut and buff, it does not give you much tooth for your paint to hang on to! Respectfully Submitted, jwrass

Seth, Many of the Revell cars had a contract with Bob Gerdes Circus Paint in N.J. All of the Revell cars on the east coast were painted at Gerdes shop. However many of the cars on the west coast that were sponsored by Revell were shipped to the east coast for paint due to the relationship Circus had with Revell, with the possible exception of arraignments that my have been made with Don Kirby on the west coast due to match race schedules. I have two friends who worked for Bob during the Hey Day. Nothing that was sprayed on any of those cars was conventional. Candies and Pearls were their flavor. Being a custom painter myself of some 35+ years this is how I see it, (I have the same kit waiting in the vault to be built) all the cars back in the day were Lacquer Based which is hard to find let alone in any type of custom paint format. I have two options you could try: 1) House of Kolor Lime Gold over White Pearl. This would be the closest 1:1 match. Bring the Lime Gold on slow ( very lite coats) I know the Lime Gold sounds strange, however when this is applies over Pearl White it looks Yellow. Again bring the color on slow. I did a crotch rocket a few years ago with this as the main color with candy overlays and it looked awesome. 2) I don't have much experience with Auto Air Colors (although some) they have a Wicked line of paint and I would try their Wicked Yellow W011 over White Pearl. Auto Air has a extender that will make any of their products more transparent (Candy like) About Auto Air: I have been experimenting with their products ( I get free samples as they would like me to convert) and I like them allot and may convert at sometime. The only problem with Auto Air on 1:1 that I have found is tape tracks and edge peeling at graphic lines, they are getting better but I use caution when I do this type of work with their paints. As always use test panels for colors. Document your coats, flash times and techniques. I still do this and I have been painting for a long time. I hope this helps!!! if you have any questions give me a shout!!!! JW "RASS"