StevenGuthmiller

I've always been of the opinion that price had to be the sole factor in the use of these paints. That and the availability factor. I can't imagine any other reason. I have to say, and I understand that some may not agree, but how much you spend, runs completely parallel with how you approach the hobby. By that I mean, I find it somewhat humorous that the people who usually complain the loudest about kit and material prices are those that feel the need to force out finished models like they're working on an assembly line. If you slow down, take your time, and try to the best of your ability to put out something of higher value, cost suddenly becomes a moot point. If you feel the need to pump them out like little rabbits, then of course, money begins to come into play. Concentrate on producing a finished product that is to the highest standard that you can achieve, and take the clock out of the equation, and you'll save. It always drove me up the wall seeing individuals tear through a kit in a week and half and then upon completion, immediately begin whining about the cost of the next kit! Steve

There's no way that I could put it any better than this. It's very difficult to arrive at a reliable painting regimen, (It took me decades to come up with one that worked for me consistently) and if you're continually going all over the map, it makes it that much more burdensome to arrive at. Steve

Of course, but for a good number of us, the only real guidance is to suggest to use a different product. That's where the problem arises. When we offer that suggestion, we're often ostracized as being rigid and uncompromising. I absolutely want to help people with their paint issues, but the best way that I feel that I can do that is by suggesting that they move on to what I believe to be much better materials. Steve

The occasional failure can be expected with any paint. That's a given. I've even had a few issues with MCW paint, but those instances have been extremely limited. The problem with products such as Rustoleum is not so much that the product itself is bad, but that it's entirely user unfriendly for a number of reasons, and especially in the case of inexperienced modelers, those reasons can be a major problem. The fact that it's an enamel, with highly troublesome protocols for re-coat seems to be the largest difficulty. Nine times out of ten, the issue that I see is the builder missing that microscopic re-coat window and winding up with a wrinkled mess with the second coat, or a coat of clear over the color. Then of course there's the delivery system which is similar to blowing the paint through a garden hose! Couple that with the fact that the cans and nozzles appear to be designed for one time use, as the vast majority of Rustoleum spray cans that I've used throughout my career wound up in the trash after one or two uses after they plugged up and became unusable with half of the product still remaining. With all of that, what irks me more than anything is the fact that within some of the Facebook groups, the Rustoleum aficionados have essentially won the argument, due to the fact that dissent has basically become inadmissible, so any young or inexperienced builders are left to the wolves with the idea that if they just keep trying, they'll eventually be successful. That may or may not be the case, but I think we're all aware that a different direction is probably more practical. Steve

Had several families of turkeys amble through my back yard in the rain last night. A half dozen adults along with 10 or 12 little ones. Steve

The Rustoleum faithful really get their panties in a bunch when you dis their paint, so it follows that there’s going to be some heated back and forth. Funny part is, it’s almost a 100% guaranteed that even before you begin reading the thread or the comments, that the paint used for the screwed up paint job was Rustoleum. As soon as the suggestion is made to use a different product, immediately you begin getting the “there is no bad paint, only bad painters” argument. Funny, but they’re so immersed in their “correctness”, that it’s more desirable to attack the individual than it is to admit that the product that they’re using is trash. Steve

Maybe it’s Johan. ? Steve

I certainly wouldn't pay for it! Although, I will confess that I have a number of the "tins" of Rustoleum enamel that I will occasionally mix myself for airbrushing chassis parts, etc, but under no circumstance would I EVER buy it again in a spray can. I've thrown more of it away than I've ever used! Steve

Right? It's kind of funny, but one of the Facebook groups that I belong to has begun banning members for taking part in the "Rustoleum argument". It's actually hilarious, and should be a little bit of an indication to people of what you're likely to encounter if you use the stuff. Nobody's getting into disputes over any other brands of paint, so that should be some sort of indicator. Personally, I don't give a rat's backside what paints people choose to use for their modeling purposes anymore, as it has begun to become a fool's errand to try to help, but it seems to me that the people who should be banned are the ones that continue to use Rustoleum and then continually post failure examples, acting as if they're surprised when it all goes to hell. I'll never quite understand the mentality that if someone posts a question wondering why their Rustoleum paint job is giving them fits, we're not allowed to give them the obvious answer that their problem is most often the product itself, for fear of being removed from the group. I guess it's more desirable in some instances to maintain the peace than it is to try to give sound and relevant advice. Go figure. Steve

We get dragon flies by the thousands around here in late spring, early summer. They get so thick at times that I find myself ducking to avoid them as I mow my lawn!! Steve

That sounds more like an infestation than just a couple of stray cats. We have a couple of strays that use our yard as a conduit to wherever they're going, or coming from, and occasionally they love just lounging in the yard in order to aggravate our cat, who is a strictly indoor pet. They might very well belong to someone else in the neighborhood rather than being legitimate strays, but in any event, they look quite healthy, so I don't feed them. However, if it became evident that they were distressed, I might. Being a cat lover, I wouldn't want to see them suffer, and could possibly see myself taking them in if it became necessary. Especially as the winter months approach. It gets ridiculously cold here in the winter, and I couldn't live with myself if I just let them freeze to death. In the end, I suspect that they are just wayward pets belonging to someone as they seem to make appearances on a regular basis, and have been hanging around for at least the last couple of years, so I don't worry about them a whole lot. Besides, just like the snakes, I welcome them in my yard. I haven't witnessed a mouse since we moved here over 8 years ago, and pests like the voles make an appearance once in a great while, but quickly disappear. I attribute that to the owls, hawks and cats. Steve

Why not? People feed their birds, squirrels, etc. Aren’t they “just strays” as well? Steve

Oh, so now I get it. As Long as you’re pursuing the “accepted” hobbies, such as ceramics, chess, learning new languages, etc, you’re doing it right. Sounds to me like this egghead has more of an issue with understanding than any real insight. I’ll confess that I didn’t read the article, because as a rule, I don’t read things that begin with such blatant negativity for something the writer clearly has no understanding of. Steve

I assumed that would ruffle some feathers. And it makes my point perfectly. Nobody would ever dream of calling golf pointless, (which in my opinion, it is) but they apparently have no compunctions with calling forms of modeling pointless. I would argue that at least with modeling, (model railroading included) something is being created. Exactly what is being created with a round of golf, other than sweat stains in the arm pits of a mint green or salmon polo shirt? ? I joke! ? Steve

Pointless?.....really? Is there any more pointless hobby than the game of golf? Driving around for hours at a time on a little electric cart, in pursuit of a tiny white ball, on some of the biggest wastes of real estate on the planet! Steve

Well, the critters seem to like it. We’ve had all kinds of visitors to our yard. Rabbits, deer, raccoons, turkeys, pheasants, ducks, geese, owls, hawks, even a pair of bald eagles at one point. And we live in town! ? Steve

Steve

I don’t know. I didn’t even want to ask. ? Steve

The usual obstacles to avoid while mowing. Frogs and lots of garter snakes. Steve

So how do you go about ordering something from them. I could sure use one of the '69 Roadrunner chrome trees that they mentioned in the video. That would certainly help me get a much earlier start on my Roadrunner project! Steve

Should be a bunch of them. Any GM A-body should make an acceptable donor. That would include the Revell 1965 or '67 Chevelle, Lindberg '66 Chevelle, AMT 1966 and Lindberg '67 Olds 442, Revell 1966 Pontiac GTO, or possibly any number of the more recent Revell late '60s Chevelles or early 70s 442s, as well as the MPC '69 442. Some of these might fit better than others, or represent the '64 Chevelle better than some, but there should be a lot of options to investigate. I'm using the Revell '66 GTO chassis under my '64 Lemans. Steve

I don't remember which comedian said it, but I once heard one say, "The only time most of these "off road" vehicles actually go off road is when they accidentally back through the neighbor's flower garden". Pretty spot on if you ask me. Steve

I was sooooooo tempted!!! Steve

Ooof! I don't think I paid that much for my Johan original! Steve

I don't have any interest in trying to convince anyone that they have to build as I do, but in all honesty, I look at my builds every day. It's unavoidable as my display cases are directly adjacent to my computer table. On that same vein, any of the models that I've done where I've put extra effort into the engine bay has been constructed with the option of displaying them with the hood open, or closed, so they're usually displayed with the engines in full view. No offense, but if I were to have the same philosophy of "how often do I look at" the finished model, and if I never did, there wouldn't be much of a reason to keep them around. Seems to me that I would be better off selling them and saving the space taken up by the cases. On another note, I get quite confused when I see a post such as yours, and in the back of my mind I hear the continuous echos of the obligatory "I build for myself", that we hear repeatedly and ad nauseam, (not saying by you) and yet we're supposed to care about what aunt Matilda thinks about what's in the cabinet? I'm just half joking with you, but I think you get my meaning. Aunt Matilda has absolutely no bearing whatsoever on what, or how I build. Just like most of us, our families couldn't give a rat's *ss, so, as the old saying goes......"I build for myself". Steve