StevenGuthmiller

I knew you built other things Tulio. I've seen them on the forum & you do fantastic work! I was just pulling your leg a little because I know how much you love Fords. Steve

Another beauty Tulio! But, don't you ever get tired of building Fords? I love Mopars, but I build tons of GM & Ford vehicles too! If it was made prior to about 1972, they're all fantastic in my eyes. Steve

I use Squadron Green because I agree with you about Testors. If you're going to use Testors, you just as well use drywall compound! The Squadron Green is not the best stuff on the planet, but I use so little of it, that it really doesn't warrant going out & buying a quart of something, or messing with 2 part fillers. The occasional gouge or sink mark is pretty much all that I use putty for. Steve

I will agree wholeheartedly with that. If I would have come across this kit for $5.00, I would have snarfed it up in a second. But having zero interest in funny cars, I would either sell it or trade it for something I really wanted. Steve

Just in case anyone is wondering, I have to confess something. You'll notice that there are no "directional lights" on the top of the fenders & no chrome fender well trim. For some reason, my kit did not have the fender well trim when I got it. I'm assuming that the previous owner trimmed it off for some reason. The directional lights were there, but were chipped up & I thought it would look better without them rather than trying to fix or replace them. I kind of like the look without those extra chrome pieces anyway. Gives it a little more of a "utilitarian" look, which was kind of what I was shooting for with this build. No bells & whistles, hence the omission of the bumble bee stripe. Now, that said, I don't know how accurate these 2 omissions make the car. Anyone know if the 1:1 could be had without these 2 features in '69? Most factory stock cars that I've seen have the fender trim, but the turn signals are sporadic. I have seen a few cars without the fender well trim, but don't know how accurate they were. Steve

If the Charger isn't MIB or at least un-built, there's absolutely no reason not to build it. If anything has been started or glued together, the "mint" kit value is gone & it's just a "builder". It can still be worth some good money, but not a whole lot more than a built kit. A very good professionally built kit would possibly bring more than the state it's in now. Build it! Steve

You won't be disappointed Tulio! I built one many years ago. It was a great kit! I'd really like to build another some day. Steve

It's MCW #6858 "Avocado Green Metallic". Steve

Sweet Bo!! The color looks great! The brighter the red the better!! Steve

The clear I used was Testors #1261 Glosscote. It's virtually the same thing as Testors "Wet Look Clear". Neither are really lacquers, but labeled as such. If I were to do it over, I would use Duplicolor clear lacquer. I doubt I would have had any issues with it. Steve

Along with getting all of the chassis & engine parts painted & ready for detailing for assembly, the body is pretty much done. I will be adding a set of PE door locks & the R/T emblems on the rear fenders in the final assembly stages. I have decided on a "stripe delete" with recall wheels for this build. Things seem to be moving along now, although still a little slow for my taste. Steve

Good looking Pontiac Paul! Steve

I would, at the very least, keep it in the back of my mind. Steve

I pretty much do exactly the same thing, but occasionally I have a momentary lapse of reason! Steve

In this situation, the tape had almost zero paint over the top of it. I was only spraying a small amount of Alclad. So the large area in the photo where the clear coat is missing had absolutely no paint on it. Yet it still pulled it off. The situation that Mike reminded me of also had very little paint over the top of it. I used it across the trunk lid when painting the blacked out area around the tail lights. It left impressions in the trunk lid. Very minor stuff that was easily polished out, but it had nothing to do with wet paint over the tape. Steve

I don't know, but I was watching very carefully under magnification while I removed the blue tape, Tamiya tape & foil. The Tamiya tape, while adhering very well, has no real "pull" when removing it. I could see while removing the painters tape, much longer & tougher "strings" of adhesive as I slowly pulled on the tape. The Tamiya tape had almost none of that. The painters tape was also much more prone to leaving little "balls" of adhesive behind. The foil will of course leave a little adhesive behind as well, but as long as it's not burnished too heavily, there is not a lot of "pull" when removing that either. Regular masking tape sticks even harder than the blue tape, which is why it never touches paint on any of my projects & hasn't for years. I thought that I could trust the painters tape to not give me these sort of problems, but I've come to the conclusion that it can't be trusted either. I've had the same type of situation happen to me mike. I had a bit of an issue in a couple of spots on my current project, but just chalked it up to the paint not being completely cured. I just don't think this stuff is worth the risk anymore given the issues that I've experienced, especially given the fact that there are other options. I will use all garden variety masking tapes sparingly & with extreme caution in the future. Steve

I was reminded "again" today of why I need to stop using regular masking tape, and/or Testors clear. I sprayed all of the black chassis & engine parts of my '69 Coronet with Duplicolor black primer, just because I like the nice smooth finish it gives, plus I can spray all of the parts with one color & then either leave them flat or clear coat them for glossy parts. So, I sprayed the shiny parts with a couple of coats of Testors clear lacquer over the primer. I decided to use some Alclad on some of the metal parts for a little more realism, so I needed to do some masking. I used some BMF, Tamiya tape & blue painters tape for the job. Well, you can guess what happened. every place I used foil or Tamiya tape I had no issues. The painters tape, on the other hand, pulled patches of clear off all over the place. I really don't know why I torture myself with this garbage! Probably because it's cheap. Well, no more! I've had my fill of the regular masking tape. From now on it's Tamiya tape, especially in critical circumstances. As for the Testors clear? I really don't know how much of the blame it shares in this instance, but I've had enough problems with it to warrant ditching it as well. Steve

I'll take my chances in the good old USA. Steve

Ick, ick & ick! Hate 'em all! I see these guys driving around town in an old Impala with a set of those huge hoops & it just makes my stomach crawl. Who wants a low sleek '68 Impala that looks more like a monster truck. The Turbine wheels are miles above any of these! Now you're talking! If you don't want to go stock, a nice set of "vintage" wheels like the Cragar S/S, Keystone Classics, some "Torque Thrusts or even a set of good old magnesium slots would do the Charger justice. The other ones would just make it look like a bad cartoon. If you're in short supply, just let us know. The guys on the forum would be more than happy to supply you with a nice set of wheels. I'm sure that I have all sorts of wheels I could part with. Steve

Looks great Steve! Would have looked better with a nice set of Magnum wheels though. Those "Dukes" wheels on every '69 Charger are really getting tired. Steve

That's what I've heard. I've also heard the story that a lot of the molds were stolen by disgruntled employees who were not being paid towards the end. The molds for most of their kits have been scattered to the wind, most likely never to be seen again. Steve

I've always heard that Super Clean is completely biodegradable. What I'm getting from the link Bill posted is that any material "added" to it may make it hazardous. The question should be what to do with the particulates left after using it to strip paint. The Super Clean itself can be dumped down the drain as far as I know. Steve

You'll have your work cut out for you with this one! Not an easy kit by any stretch. Good luck & I'll be watching as well. Steve

I think that there is a possibility that we may see a few of the old promo style kits that were re-issued back when X-EL did them, but that's about it. You're never going to see the likes of a '65 Plymouth Fury, a '66 Chrysler 300 or a '67 Toronado again. Those kits are long gone. My guess is that even the old "USA Oldies" molds are dead & buried. Don't get your hopes up. I still have an X-EL catalog from back in the day. I'll bet even a lot of them will never return. Steve

I use the Duplicolor "Perfect Match" lacquer. I also use the "Paint Shop" clear in the quart can on occasion. By the way Bill, I meant to delete the Dodge photos a little sooner. Sorry about that. I didn't want your Pontiac thread to fill up with Coronet photos. Steve