StevenGuthmiller

Yes, some good magnification is an absolute must for this type of intricate work. Steve

Right, but I was responding mostly to "Snake's" response about trying this method, but polishing the paint off of the script rather than using thinner. My first response to you in this thread was in 2 parts. In the first part I was merely stating to you how I used the same technique as you do with different tools to achieve the same result. The second part was meant as a response to Snakes post. I guess our wires were just crossed. Steve

Either way, this is something that would be difficult to do with polishing off the paint versus using thinner. Steve

I actually start with one of those small cone shaped Tamiya swabs to loosen & remove most of the paint. Then a sharpened tooth pick to get the edges & details. Another thing to remember guys, if you plan on polishing off the paint, one slight detail that you might miss, (and this may not be important to some) is the fact that the paint will still cover the sides of the script. It's a little difficult to describe, but the paint will extend from the body up the outside edges of the script. Polishing will not address this, & thinner will not eliminate it all, but with a sharp tooth pick & a little thinner, you can get a little ways farther down the sides to get closer to giving the script the "mounted on the surface" look, rather than a "peeking through the paint" look........if any of that makes sense!! A little hard to see things well in these pics due to the body color, but this is my latest attempt. Steve

You certainly can do that, but just be careful. It is possible to polish right through the foil as well. I started out with this technique by polishing off the paint, but found it much easier to use the thinner, & personally, I achieved better results that way. Steve

I don't know. That's almost impossible for me to answer. I have about a dozen models on the "start" list right now, all of them completely different colors! I guess that if I counted the builds that I have in my "finished" collection right now, it would probably be one shade or another of green. Steve

A "Dagmar" from the front of a 50s car might be a good place to start. Steve

Do you mean scripts? It's too late now, but in the future, the best way is to use the "foil under paint" technique. You apply foil to the script before your final color coat & then remove the paint from the foil with some paint thinner. It takes a bit of practice, but I don't know of a better way to do perfect scripts. Steve

That would be my thought. If I can scratch build a late 50s/early 60s Mopar mirror, surely, this on would be a breeze! Steve

I can't say that I like the green, but the workmanship is excellent. Steve

That is ultimately what you want. If you're planning on re-plating the parts, most chromers will likely not guarantee outcome if the parts are not utterly "naked". Even if you're planning on just painting the parts, the more you get off of them, the less likely you will be to wind up hiding detail. That "under coating" can be very thick on occasion. Steve

Agreed. I personally like to have one "go to" for everything if at all possible. Super Clean will not only remove the chrome AND the underlying lacquer coat, but I have yet to find a better paint remover for all types of paint. Not only that, but it's a great household cleaner/degreaser to have around the house. I've used it for everything from removing 30+ years of grime & discoloration from vinyl car seats, to carpet stains! It's really pretty amazing stuff! Why have a half a dozen different cleaners/strippers on hand, when one will do the trick? If Super Clean won't do it, chances are nothing will. Steve

Just a basic, table style, lighted magnifier. Steve

'60 Bonneville, '63 Nova, '64 Falcon........ Steve

I've been pretty lucky too. I only have one that stumped me. An AMT '62 Mercury convertible that I managed to get the windshield almost completely jimmied free except for about a 1 inch long section of one of the A-pillars. It's completely welded & I have found no way that I will ever be able to free it. My only option at this point would be to build it with the glass in place & just mask it during the process. Steve

Correct! It's a recipe for destroyed roof pillars. Steve

Almost too much to go through! Not seeing much that I need, but very helpful of you Michael. Thank you! Steve

Just an observation Steve. I personally feel that among the "atta-boys" it's sometimes helpful to receive a little bit of constructive criticism on occasion. Sometimes we just don't catch things until it's too late. This is one reason why I like to post projects in the "On the Work Bench" section. Occasionally someone will catch a mistake & point it out to me while there is still time to fix it. Steve

That is a very good tip. Also look for something that's not all broken up, or has every custom part in the box glued to it. Good roof pillars are a must for me. I also look for tell-tale signs of what type of paint was used. Enamels are generally much easier to remove. Some old paints can be nearly impossible. I also try to find something that has as many of the original parts for a stock build as possible. Steve

But remember, "the spoon test" is not infallible either. I have sprayed fairly heavy coats of automotive lacquer, just to check for color & metallic flake size, over un-primed spoons with no adverse affect to the plastic. Something that I would never even consider on a kit body. Steve

Possible, but as Ron has pointed out, the interior in the Johan kit is not correct for a Fury III either. So I guess we'll just say that this is a Fury III with all of the Sport Fury options. Steve

Got the first couple of coats of color on the Plymouth, although it has been giving me some problems. The paint was a little too thick for the first coat, so it wasn't going through my airbrush all that well. I thinned it slightly & shot a second coat. It sprayed better, but there's still a little more orange peel than I would like. I'll thin it a bit more for the final coat. As usual, I'm having difficulties showing the true color with my substandard photographic skills, but I believe the second photo depicts the correct gray-green color a bit more accurately. The first photo just looks silver to me. Steve

As far as I know, you're correct in your assessment. I'm not really all that familiar with these mid '60s Mopars either. Steve

The engines in both the Lindberg '64 Belvedere & the Moebius '65 Satellite depict 426 Commando engines, so for the '65 Fury with the 426, the chrome valve covers would have been correct. If I used the '64 engine, the valve covers would need to be chromed or switched for chrome ones. Steve

I used to use a lot of Testors clear enamel & it does work quite nicely. One coat is all that you need. The drawbacks are: Enamel takes an especially long time to cure, so if you're planning on doing any polishing afterwards, plan on putting it away for a couple of months after application. The biggest problem with Testors clear enamel is, never use it over a light color! That is unless you want your pure, snow white paint job to look like dingy yellow in a few months. Testors enamel clear yellows horribly over time. This is evidenced in this lovely yellow '37 Chevy that I painted years ago. Unfortunately, it started out as a very light ivory color before the clear coat! Steve