StevenGuthmiller

Thanks guys. Not the best paint job I've ever done, but it'll do. A little more trash in the paint than I would have liked, and a little bit of blush on the hood, but you have to be looking for them pretty hard. I guess they can't all be perfect. Steve

I think the polishing is finished. Now I can get ready to start painting the rear panel, vinyl top, and under coating the front fender wells. Steve

Judging by all of those funny little yellow faces that this post generated, I'm assuming that some people took this statement in a "literal" sense. I didn't think that I had to spell it out, but I'll just say, yes, I know, nothing lasts forever. I suppose that it was my mistake to expect that it would be understood what is generally meant when someone says that something "lasts forever". Apparently, from now on, I need to be more precise in my statements. At least on this forum. Steve

The big question to me is, if you can’t rely on the product to maintain its integrity while it’s still supposedly within it’s useful lifetime, (both of my pens went bad in a matter of months) can it be relied upon to maintain it’s integrity afterwards over the life time of the model. Unfortunately, I don’t think anybody can answer that. I can’t speak for other’s intentions for the legacy of their models, but when I build one, especially if it’s a vintage model, I fully intend it to last a generation, or more. Therefore, I try to do the best that I can not to use products that I feel might have the potential to fail prematurely. I don’t use paint that I feel might fade over time, or clear coat that has proven it’s potential to yellow within a couple of years. I avoid using decals that might peel and fall off or glue that could fail over time. I want my models to look as good as possible for as long as possible. That is the fear with this product that brought me to the realization that I can’t trust it. in the end, It’s not up to me to tell anybody what they should use on their own projects, but I also feel like it’s worth while to raise the red flag and get anybody that might have these same fears to think about it and consider the consequences of using something untested such as Molotow on their treasured heirlooms. I don’t mean to bust any balls, I’m just asking that people take these factors into consideration before they jump in with both feet with something that’s just as likely to be a bust as it is likely to be a triumph. Steve

I’ve been doing this a while too, and I still have Testors bottles from 30 years ago that are still usable. It will be interesting to see how Molotow holds up over that period of time. Steve

Paint will last forever if it's sealed properly. Steve

He certainly is spending money if he's throwing away half of the product that he purchases. Flushing it right down the toilet. Steve

Next time you are at your local home improvement store, stop in the painting section and pick up a roll of masking paper. That way, you can save your printing paper for your printer. Steve

There's nothing I can do to help. You just explained why it's garbage. At this point, the only way that I feel like I can help is to try to convince people not to waste their money on it in the first place. Yes, I probably do. But the products that I use work. I don't promote things that I know are problematic, unless I have a solution to that problem. There are obvious reasons not to like this product. I'm sure that I'm not the only one, and there are more and more learning about these reasons, the hard way, every day. I'm just trying to save people the hassle. That's my "advice". Steve

I'm using a set of resin tires from Fireball Modelworks on this build, so the red lines need to be painted. I picked up some white and some red acrylic at the hobby shop today and was anxious to see how it would go. I was very happy. The tires are molded with a recess for the red lines/white walls so painting was quite easy. Started with a little Mr. Hobby white, followed by a coat of red, and then cleaned off anything outside of the recess with a little bit of mineral spirits on a conical swab. A pretty easy operation, and the results are nice. Oh, I also "flat spotted" the tire by shaving and sanding a little off of the bottom, though it's really not evident in these photos. The resin in these tires is quite difficult to cut in comparison to a regular vinyl kit tire. Steve

Good question! I guess that I just take things very slowly, and maintain a picture in my head of what I need to do. As has been mentioned before, I try to treat every aspect of a model as a separate model in itself, so when I begin working on a particular part, I try to concentrate just on that part until the end. That's not always possible, but that's what I try to do. That said, in the end, when all of those "separate models" begin to come together in the final assembly phase, I do begin to keep a list of things that need to be done, and in what order. Steve

Yes. The Hobby Hut on 17th Ave, right off of 45th street. Steve

I just returned from my only small local hobby shop this afternoon after not being in for some time, and it appears that they must be doing well. Fully stocked with all kinds of models, and I was quite surprised to see that their paint section had gone through a complete and total transformation! Gone were all of the old Testors paints......and I mean ALL OF THEM! Not a single bottle of Testors enamel to be found! I have to say that I might miss the Testors enamel jars, more for the familiarity than anything else, but chances are good that I'll get over it really quick. Now my shop has 5 full racks of Tamiya spray paints, and Mr. Hobby and MCW acrylics and enamels, as well as all of the corresponding primers, thinners, etc, etc, etc! My eyes began to glaze over after a few minutes and I had to engage with the owner to help me figure out this giant array of paint in front of me! I guess I've got some research and learning to do to figure all of this stuff out now that Testors has bit the dust! Goodbye Testors! I really can't say that I'll miss you very much! Steve

Apparently some people were confused by my comments above, but the issues with Molotow chrome expressed by this thread are just one of the problems with this product. I've had the same problem with the ink in my 2 pens turning to garbage with them both being still more than half full, and with the cost of this stuff being what it is, I'm not pleased with it. Not sure why that would be confusing. And no, it has nothing to do with the tips. I never used the tips anyway. I either took the ink from the tip with a brush and applied it that way, or cracked open the pen and used a brush. Now I have two pens, two thirds of the way full with trashy, non-durable silver paint. What is it exactly that should make any of us think that this stuff will act any differently after it's applied to the model and it's a few years down the road. That's the problem that I have with this product. It was never designed for this hobby and it's properties of longevity are completely unknown, not to mention the fact that you can't touch the stuff after it's applied. I'm out! The rest of you are more than welcome to my share. Steve

Steve

That’s totally uncharacteristic. I’ve used dozens of rolls of Tamiya tape and have never had adhesion issues. I’d be interested to know the particulars of the paint that it wouldn’t stick to. Otherwise, you were unlucky enough to receive the only roll of bad Tamiya tape on the planet! ? Steve

Commencing with one of my least favorite operations.......polishing. But I feel that it's so worth it! Steve

Thanks John. If nothing else, the photos in the link are interesting as it looks as if I got the right color! Steve

Thanks Bob. Hopefully the addition of the rest of the engine bay detail won't ruin the affect. Thanks David. I was going for that slightly high ride height. I think it gives a lot of cars a more "muscular" look. Makes them look like they mean business. Thanks John. I'm not too worried about the underhood decals. I've got quite a few different sheets of Mopar decals laying around, plus I still have a lot of generic underhood decals left from a couple of "mini sheets" that I got from Speedway Decals a long time ago. Anybody have any knowledge of what kinds of "chalk/inspection markings" you would have seen on a car like this? I did some of that on my last 2 GM cars and kind of liked the affect, but I'm not sure yet on this one. Steve

That's probably one of the worst tapes to use for masking edges. It's literally designed not to stick very well. Second worst tape to use is regular masking tape. It sticks too well, but still does not seal well enough on the edges, plus it has the tendency to leave residue behind and can even tear off the underlying paint. Tamiya tape is your answer. I recently did these stripes with Tamiya tape and all that I did was cut a clean edge, apply it, burnishing well on the edges and then apply light coats of paint. It will give you perfect lines if you do it right. Steve

Personally, I don’t think this stuff was ever going to live up to the hype that it was given. I was never convinced that it was that great in the first place. Looks nice to start with, but the durability is for cr*p and now it’s starting to become evident that you’re probably going to have to throw half of it in the garbage before you can use it up. If you ask me, it’s beginning to look like the chickens coming home to roost. Steve

Haven’t given much thought to the engine bay stickers yet. I’ll consider that at a later time. The top isn’t white, it’s just primer for the time being. I’ll polish the body first and then do a black vinyl top. Steve

Thanks guys! I wasn't sure originally, but now I feel like I made the right decision. I really like it too. Steve

A quick mock up to be sure that everything is fitting as it should. So far it's looking good. Steve

Clear coats are finished. I added an extra one this time, which makes it 6 coats. I'll give it a few days to cure completely, and then I can begin polishing. Steve