StevenGuthmiller

Welcome, from up the street, right outside of Fargo ND. Steve

True, but I had resigned myself to the fact that I was going to have to purchase more paint anyway, so if there's any more problems, I'll order more. I want to do my best not to cut any corners on this project. I have far too much time invested already. Besides, I'm a risk taker! Steve

I had a little set back that I feared was going to sink this paint job! Upon inspection, I found a booger in the paint on the passengers side rear quarter. When I tried to sand it out, it basically "picked out" right down to the primer! This basically left a void in the paint that was the depth of several layers of paint that would have been very difficult to sand out, not to mention the variation in color after building the color through several coats. I wasn't sure if I was going to be able to fix it, especially with the added problem of having about a third of an air brush cup of paint left before I ran out. Well, I decided to try to tackle the issue by first dabbing some paint into the void several times with a brush in order to bring the level up to, and beyond, the surface. Then I very lightly sanded the spot to try to level it back down to as level as possible with the surrounding surface without affecting too much of the surrounding area. Then I loaded the cup and hit the spot and immediate surrounding area with several fairly heavy coats to try to blend the color, followed by lightly re-coating the entire side with one coat to blend the whole side. I was very concerned that there would be enough color variation when compared to adjacent areas of the body that I would not be happy with the results, but it appears to be pretty good at this point. I believe that I have enough paint left to hit the entire side one more time, and with any luck at all, enough to paint the hood hinges, which are the only remaining parts left to paint body color. It's going to be tighter than tight!! This was what I had at the point where the brush work was done, before sanding. This is the point that I'm at now, with a possible single light coat on the whole side remaining. This is what I have left for paint! Steve

Thanks Greg! Here's a few pics after the final color coat. I think it has a little more depth now, and clear coats should bring the color to the forefront. Steve

Finally! Some color on the Coronet!! Next, I'll foil the scripts on the front quarter and rear panel before giving it a final color coat. Then I'll begin layout and painting of the bumble bee stripes before beginning clear coats. Steve

Thank you for prompting me to "try again"! Steve

Hi Frank. Of course, the levers themselves are nothing more than pieces of silver wire bent to shape. The thin knob on the blinker switch is just a piece of thin plastic rod, drilled on one end to accept the wire, and sanded round on the other. The knob on the gear selector is a little more involved, but still not difficult.......that is as long as you have good dexterity, and either great eyes or plenty of magnification. I started with a piece of rod in the correct diameter. Then I sanded the end of the rod to a point, or cone shape. Next, I took a small round file, and lightly filed around the upper portion of that cone to create a little bit of a concave cone shape, if you know what I mean. All of this is of course done while it's still attached to the rod. Next, I drilled out the thin end of the cone for for the wire. Finally, I sliced the knob from the rod right at the point where the cone meets the rod. Here's a little trick to use when continuing to work with extremely small parts such as this knob after it has been removed from the rod. Be sure that the small end is drilled before separating it from the rod, and then once cut off, slip the part back onto the drill bit with the bit still in the pin vice. This allows you to use the pin vice as a handle for finishing work on a very small part instead of trying to handle it with your fingers. Once the knob is separated, sand the end smooth, or a little convex, or as I did in this case, sand a small strip around the wide end of the knob flat for a little added detail. Sometimes it's a little difficult to give instructions for something like this with the written word Frank, but I hope I made it understood. Steve

This one wasn't too bad, which is why I decided to attempt it. The engraving was pretty deep and well defined. Steve

No doubt, but I'm just thinking along the lines of the paint that I use. All acrylic base coat lacquers, most with very small metallic particles. That stuff will "smear" when sanded like there's no tomorrow. Steve

I remember foiling those tail light bezels on my '60 Dodge! If you can foil those, you can foil anything!!! Steve

Agree completely. I wouldn't even consider trying to polish a metallic paint job without clear coating anymore. Been burned a couple of times, and that's enough. Steve

I agree. There’s really no set formula given all of the variables possible. I use a lot of primer because I want to ensure a good impenetrable barrier to the automotive lacquer that I use. I use just enough color to get a good even distribution and acceptable depth, but even that usually equates to four or five coats. Finally, I generally use about 5 coats of clear to ensure sufficient thickness for polishing eliminating the fear of polishing through to the paint. That’s probably enough to be considered “overkill” by a lot of modelers, but it’s a regimen that I’ve developed over the years that has since treated me very well with an extremely low rate of having to strip and repaint, which makes it well worth it in my eyes. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. ? Steve

Well, that’s convenient, considering that I’ll be using a good portion of the other parts from that kit. ? Steve

Just short pieces of aluminum tubing, drilled out a little to thin the wall thickness and then polished on the ends. Actually a pretty easy upgrade. Steve

Yup, this was my plan. The engine will need to be a complete swap anyway, so unless there’s some other issue that I don’t know about, I’ll plan on using the belts and pulleys from the El Camino on a yet to be determined Pontiac engine. Probably the Revell ‘68 Firebird’s. Anybody have a suggestion for the best automatic transmission to use? Steve

I look at it from the same perspective as my other hobby, cooking. I like to cook, but I want to cook what I feel like cooking when I feel like cooking it, and when it’s finished, I consume it, and if it’s not up to someone else’s standards, it doesn’t matter. You start bringing in all of the complications of a restaurant operation and having to please all of your customers all of the time and it looses all of its appeal. Steve

An absolute killer for me! I wouldn't last 5 minutes building a Porsche for somebody. There's no possible way that I could sustain any excitement trying to build a subject that doesn't interest me in the least. Too bad the OP had to pick up his toys and go home. Some insight from him might have been valuable to this discussion. Steve

I don't think anyone has questioned his motives. Did he want people's opinion on the subject, or not? If not, I don't know why he posted. This is a forum, where discussions take place. If he didn't want any opinions of what others think on the matter, he's in the wrong place. Or he should have stated that he didn't want any feedback at the very least. Although I have to say, I can't imagine why anyone would come to an online forum and not want to engage with other hobbyists. Steve

Got some wipers stripped and pinned as well. I'll paint them with some Alclad aluminum when the time comes. Steve

Thanks everyone! Finally got started on laying down some primer on the body parts. I got the side marker bezels installed, will add another coat of primer, do a light sanding and then I can begin applying some color. Steve

Who said anything about being "pissed off"? You have to understand that when you come onto a "forum" and make a post, people are going to respond with their thoughts and opinions on the subject. That's the nature of a "forum". If you don't want any reaction, or if you expect to get only positive, glowing reactions, you're barking up the wrong tree, dude. You might need to thicken up your skin just a little around here, or you'll get eaten alive. Steve

Yeah, I'm pretty certain that I never would have attempted to open that grille! Next time I have one that I want to open that appears impossible, I'll send it to you! Steve

Steve

I will have all of the reference that I need. I have one sitting in my garage! Steve

Just out of curiosity, I checked the GTO chassis, and this is my assessment. First, the chassis is a little too long in the rear. This would create a problem with shortening as the fuel tank would be affected. The chassis is a bit too wide in the rear, which wouldn't be a problem, and a little too narrow in the center, which could be a little bit of a problem. The biggest issue is the fact that the floor pan and frame are molded as one piece which would make it more difficult to stretch in my opinion. The floor pan stampings appear to be relatively close, (at least the Monte's is close enough for me) but I could cut the transmission mount from the GTO and install it in place of the Monte's. I'm beginning to get a picture in my mind for what will likely need to be done. At this point, I'm probably going to go with the Monte Carlo chassis, and just to ensure that parts will mate more easily, I'll use as many of the Monte's parts as possible. I will likely need to start with removing the rudimentary cowl vent section from the Grand Prix body and scratch building a new one as the Monte's is not the same as the Grand Prix's The firewall from the Monte appears to be pretty much a spot on match for the Grand Prix's. I'm thinking that lengthening the floor pan from the Monte Carlo may not be necessary, so lengthening the frame directly behind front suspension may be required. I'll know for sure when I see where the joint between the floor pan and firewall comes together in the body. Another issue will be the inner fender wells. The front quarter panels on the Grand Prix are much thinner across the top than the Monte, so a simple engine bay swap will likely not be possible. I will probably need to remove the fender wells from the Monte Carlo, widen them and then mount them into the correct position on the frame, so that when it all goes together, there won't be any issues. There will be room to fudge position of the fender wells between the radiator bulkhead and firewall, but they will have to sit correctly over the suspension. Anyway, I have time to work all of this out as it will still be while before my '68 Coronet is finished, but I wanted to get a jump on the situation. I'm not even sure that the Grand Prix will be my next project. I've been contemplating whether it will be the Grand Prix, a '64 Bonneville convertible, a '67 Plymouth Fury or possibly a '66 Bonneville. Decisions, decisions. Steve