StevenGuthmiller

Unfortunately, there is only one chief, and one Indian.........I'm the Indian! Steve

Well, I had a nice little stint at the bench for the last few months, but the wife cracked the whip and it's time for me to get back into some home remodeling projects. Hopefully, I'll get a little time in the shop occasionally, but for now, it's a new bathroom project. Started this morning at around 10:00 Am and got the bathroom pretty much gutted out by around noon. Let the fun begin!! Steve

I suppose you're correct. But that's the nature of the beast. Steve

Well said. But you have to remember that often times people are looking for a quick answer and don't necessarily want to spend 2 hours weeding through a 40 page thread to find the information that they require. I'm guilty of this one myself many times. Steve

My guess is that the vast majority of the people on this thread have never worked in an injection molding facility and are therefore "lay people". Steve

And now you get to weed through it all and figure out your best course of action. But hey.......that's why we're all here! Steve

I understand Jonathan. I'm not trying to convince you of anything either. Just trying to get out opposing points of view. Sometimes a new builder will take what one of us says and take it as gospel. I just want everyone to understand that there are many ways to skin the proverbial cat. Steve

True, but I try to spend as little as possible on paint stripping because I DON'T WANT TO DO IT! Steve

I don't think he thinned it at all. My understanding was that he shot it straight from the can. Steve

I've tried both the regular and fine. I appreciate your enthusiasm for the product Jonathan, but it's so much easier and economical for me to swing into my local auto parts store and pick up a 12 oz. can of Duplicolor for less than $10.00. It lasts me twice as long and does just as well of a job in my opinion. Another thing that I love about Duplicolor primer is the fan spray nozzle. I know people praise the Tamiya nozzles, but I didn't find them to be any better than any other round spray nozzle. Steve

Okay Joe. I've never used the stuff personally, but if you can unequivocally tell me that it will plow through 12 to 15 coats of automotive primer, color and clear in 20 minutes, I'm all in. I just don't necessarily believe that it can. I just have reservations about spending money on materials that I try once and then abandon because it didn't work as advertised. I've done that before! Purple Power comes to mind. Steve

The main reason that I don't use Tamiya primer is that I don't find it to be any better than any of the primers that I currently use, but it is definitely more expensive. $11.00 was the price tag for a can, (5 oz?) of Tamiya primer the last time I bought a can at Hobby Lobby a few years ago. I wasn't thoroughly impressed with the product, so I can't justify that sort of price. As you stated, to each his own. Steve

Agreed. I have tried the Ultra Bright in the past and was disappointed with it's performance. It's thicker, thus more difficult to cut and making it less able to conform to compound curves. Plus I found that the adhesive was not up to my standards. I found little difference in the finish between the two if the original was burnished properly. Steve

The only reason I ask is because a LOT of guys use Duplicolor or one of the many automotive lacquer after market paints like MCW or Scale Finishes paints. Super Clean will remove all of the above and will make short work of Testors enamels and lacquers for around $9.00 a gallon. Steve

Well, lets just say that the Monogram '70 GTX/Roadrunner kit could use a lot of detail mods under the hood. It all depends on how far you want to take it. Steve

If this is the case and you have already started over, consider one of Testors clear lacquers, like Testors "wet look clear". Yeah....I know, you're saying, "I thought I couldn't spray lacquer over enamel!" Well, Testors lacquer is only lacquer in name. It's so mild that you can spray it over virtually anything. Yes, I have tried it......many times. I've used it over lacquer, enamel and acrylic. You might still want to test before you try it, but I can almost guarantee you success. Be certain that your color coats are fully cured before using it though. The only issue I have had with Testors clear is cracking, which I have decided was from base layers not being dry enough. Steve

Does it work on automotive lacquer? How much does it cost? Steve

Agreed. Skip the "Ultra Bright" stuff! Steve

While I wait for the paint to arrive, I got a start on getting the engine and chassis parts together. I'll be using parts from various kits as well as some scratch made and after market parts. I'll be using the 4 speed version of the 426 wedge provided by the Lindberg '64 Belvedere kit with the addition of the dual quad cross ram intake from the Color Me Gone Dodge. I am swapping out the somewhat cheesy looking exhaust manifolds from the Plymouth kit for a better looking pair from the 413 in the AMT '49 Merc kit. I have also decided to take the big leap and order a pair of AFB Carter carbs from Fireball Modelworks. The chassis will be largely straight from the '64 Dodge box, but I will need to scratch build the exhaust system from plastic tubing or rod. The lack of the "plug" detail in the intake manifold was bugging me, so I decided to quickly try my hand at adding them. The should look alright once painted. Steve

To be perfectly honest with you, I think you might be screwed on this one. Just from looking at your photos, I have real doubts that you will be able to save it. At this point, you might want to cut your losses and give it about a month long soak in something like brake fluid and see if that will remove the paint. You might have to start over on this one. At least I don't have any answers for you. Steve

Next time, get yourself some .007 clear film and cut strips for the top. It's just about the perfect thickness. Steve

Actually Nick, that's not Bill's fault. Both of those bottles are molded into the fender wells on the Monogram kits. Steve

Yeah, I think I agree with you. These details are hardly noticeable from a short distance on the real car. Not worth obsessing over in 1/25th scale. Steve

I'll just say that just because someone invents it, doesn't mean that they perfected it. Innovation doesn't amount to a hill of beans if the thing is in the shop more than on the road. From my experience, I wouldn't take a Renault if you gave it to me. Just my humble opinion. Steve

You can use a enamel clear, but I would be careful. Some clear enamels, like Testors, will yellow badly over time. This is another example of why I stopped using enamel paint. You have to be very careful about the compatibility of anything you're putting over it. With Lacquer, you can spray virtually anything on top. Steve