StevenGuthmiller

No use for it myself. I’ll stick with my lacquer. Steve

I spent my afternoon making salsas. Smooth Chipotle Salsa, and Chunky Corn and Black Bean Salsa. Steve

Scale Motorsports makes a number of upholstery patterns that might work for you, depending on the affect that you want. Steve

I've always had the same opinion that very often, raw high gloss paint jobs can look too reflective in 1/25th scale, making the model look toy like, or as I sometimes describe it, giving it the "hard candy" look, which unless it's supposed to be a very high end custom show car, looks entirely out of place. This is part of the reason why I have avoided the 2K clear craze that we find ourselves in. To my eye, raw super high gloss clear is just too much for most genres of model cars. This is why I still continue to use clear lacquers, followed by cutting and polishing. I know nothing about the science of it, but it's my opinion that the polishing process not only removes any orange peel or other blemishes, giving you a perfectly smooth surface, but it also has the tendency to mute the over the top, or dipped in paint shine that you often get with some paints or clears straight from the can. I understand that a lot of people don't want to take the time to go through that process, but in my view, it's the absolute best way to achieve a showroom type shine without it looking like a toy, and after all, realism is the ultimate goal. My opinion on using a satin or matte finish to replicate a factory stock type of finish is that it would be far too flat. Much like what I feel is the completely misguided opinion that most stock vehicles have orange peel in the paint, and therefore orange peel on the model is acceptable, or that the heavy texture of masking tape for a vinyl top looks correct on a model, I often feel as if we as modelers put too much emphasis on textures, which in turn has an adverse affect on the realism of the model. We sometimes forget that everything we do on a 1/25th scale model should 25 times smaller than the actual article, making the orange peel theory, or the use of masking tape texture on a vinyl top wholly inaccurate. With that said, The polishing process will go a long way towards giving you a glossy and reflective factory stock type finish without going overboard. As I said, I know nothing of the science of this, but my assumption is that sanding and polishing, while affording a smooth and reflective finish, also adds microscopic scratches and swirls, much like a real car would have, that has a tendency to mildly reduce that reflectivity without making it dull. Steve

Honestly, I don't think that it's that our eyes are trained to see red in conjunction with a Coke can. I'm seeing light shades of red throughout the small photo, which of course all disappear when it's blown up. I see red in some portions of the hand holding the can, as well as tinges of pink or red in some of the lighter background areas on either side of the can. I of course know nothing about this kind of stuff, but it appears to me to have to do with something other than vision memory. Steve

I second this. They are always my first option when looking for a particular color. Scale Finishes comes in a close second. Of course these are not an option without an air brush. You can also get MCW Plum Crazy in enamel in a small jar and thin it yourself for air brushing if you prefer. Personally, I'd go with the pre-thinned, ready to spray lacquer. Steve

Nice option, but it doesn't look like it will help me with something that I'm going to need in the coming months. Any suggestions? By the way, my printer is a POS, so printing it myself is probably not an option. Steve

Our Father's Day dinner this past Sunday. Started with a nice Ceprese Salad. Then a delicious sandwich of grilled French Bread, Grilled Chicken, Bacon, Red Onion, Leaf Lettuce, and a wonderful homemade Tomato and Harissa Jam!! Steve

My guess? Either "Sierra Sand", or possibly "Sand Dune Beige". I'm thinking Sand Dune Beige, as I believe Sierra Sand was an Imperial color. In all honesty, I don't mind the color! But then again, I like weird colors. I often prefer "unusual" colors for my projects, and while this may have been a fairly common color for a car of this vintage, in the model car world, everybody always wants "flash", which in turn frequently makes common colors uncommon. Personally, I'd go with it! You might be surprised once you get it all dolled up with foil and a nice contrasting or complimenting interior color. Steve

No. Just a dumb photographer. Steve

I get way better photo quality with my I-Phone SE than I ever did with my Nikon 35mm digital camera. Steve

Certainly! I would go that route if I could find one. Unfortunately, there aren’t a lot of them laying around. There was a body for sale on eBay recently, but it appeared to have already had the scripts sanded off. Steve

I didn’t expect it. That’s actually okay with me. Saves me from buying another magazine. ? Thanks for checking! I appreciate it!! Steve

Thank you Dan! That surprises me a little as that model was in the NNL coverage from the 2021 magazine. Oh well. Not complaining! I wonder if the Coronet made the 2023 NordicCon pages? Steve

Well, this is my first attempt at this technique, and of course, I had to pick a tough one for the first shot at it. Believe me, I really had no intention of ever having to try this, but it was born out of necessity. I've been getting increasingly excited about getting started on replicating my 1:1 1969 Pontiac Grand Prix, and I'm finally beginning to feel confident that my skills are approaching the required expertise that will be needed to build this model to the technical degree that I have wanted to. However, there are some hurdles that I had to find solutions to right out of the gate. The first issue at hand was the long, pronounced sink mark present in the trunk lid of my kit's body directly above the GRAND PRIX script, making it nearly impossible to fill while keeping the script intact. After a preliminary check to see if I could possibly find some PE letters that would pass as replacements, which was unfruitful for the most part, I decided that I would have to try the foil casting technique. I followed basic suggestions from other members of the forum, and preliminary results appear to be passable. The letters are very small and quite difficult to work with, but you're dealt the hand that you're dealt. Installing these tiny letters will be a challenge unto itself, but it appears that I'm on the right track. Of course I will feel safest replicating these letters at least a couple of times to insure that I have spares in case of loss or damage. I will also need to replicate the letter "J" from the lower front quarter panel before eliminating the "SJ" from that location. Steve

That was my assumption. probably cost prohibitive for a one off. Steve

Fabulous!! Thank you Trevor! I suppose I'd better get one. Steve

Does anyone have a copy of this magazine, and if so, can you tell me if my '68 Coronet R/T made the "NNL North" section that year? I'd be interested to know, and I suppose that I should get a copy if so.......Just for posterity. Edit: Could have alternately been in the "NordicCon" section as well. Steve

I believe you're correct. At least I've never seen a '65 molded in any other color. The '66 was molded in white. Steve

Thanks for the interest in this model from eight years ago fellas. I appreciate the kind comments. Here are a few more recent outdoor photos of the same model. Steve

Thank you for your interest Amelie! To be completely honest, I bought this kit off of eBay a good number of years ago, and built it in probably 2015 or 2016, so I don't remember the particulars of the purchase, other than to say that it's likely that I spent less than $100.00 at that time when they could still be found relatively cheaply. My guess is that you would likely spend at least twice that amount today for a clean example. This kit was a one time release from MPC, produced in 1965 only as far as I know, so it has become quite rare and collectable. You can still find them on occasion today, but at a premium price. Steve

I love a good salad! As long as it has plenty of bacon, cheese, croutons and dressing! ? Steve

A simple grilled dinner on a hot day. Sirloin kebabs with Greek seasoning, and potatoes with onions and butter. Steve

I don't have the equipment, nor the know how to follow that route. Steve

That's always been an avenue to pursue, but I wanted to see what my alternatives were before I committed to that. PE scripts would of course be a less involved option. Steve