StevenGuthmiller

I have no problem with the Model Master paints Gene, & they're just as durable as any other paint when they're cured. My only point was that they seem to cure much more slowly than other lacquers & you need to be careful when you have parts that will be touching one and other during that curing time. On at least a couple of occasions, I had builds with relatively tight fitting hoods that were finished within a couple of weeks of the last coat of paint going on. A month or 2 later when I removed the hood, the paint had stuck together & a chip was pulled from either the hood or fender telling me that the paint was not fully cured when the assembly was done. I should clarify & address this as an issue with the clear coat rather than the color as I've always used one of the Testors clears over the color coats, but the paint came up right down to the primer regardless. I wouldn't shy away from using the MM paints, but I will be aware of this in the future should I use them. Steve

I think I agree. I've used some of the Testors lacquers in the past & they worked fine right from the can. I don't think I'd waste the time decanting & airbrushing them. I only use my airbrush for jobs where it's necessary to use it. Like when I'm using colors only available for airbrush or when custom mixing colors. Steve

I just wouldn't chance it Mike. Some polishes may contain ingredients that may cause the clear to not adhere properly causing fish eyes or other problems. Some waxes can be tough to remove even with a good washing. You would be much safer saving the liquid polishes until after all of the paint & clear coats have been applied. There's really no need to get a "finish shine" on the body before clear coating anyway, unless you plan on leaving it & not clear coating. You'll just be wasting polish & it will have to be repeated at the end regardless. Use some polishing pads or even very fine sand paper to remove the texture, give it a thorough wash & then either shoot another color coat, or if it looks acceptable, your clear coats, & then polish after it's fully cured. Steve

There's nothing wrong with that Mike, as long as it's not a metallic paint, give it a try. It won't hurt. If need be you can always give it another coat of color before you clear coat. Just make sure you don't use any liquid polishes before you clear it. Steve

Brad, the # is "T428". They also have the same tires with narrower & wider white walls. Steve

Actually Mike, it's much easier to get that "sand paper" finish with an airbrush than a spray can. Rattle cans will generally spray a larger volume of paint than an airbrush diminishing the tendency to get that grainy texture. I've had the same problem on occasion & the remedy for me was just to open the paint flow a little bit & get the brush a little closer to the body when spraying. Remember, the clear is just a colorless lacquer. It will do the same thing as the color if you spray it the same way. I have found that the clear will shrink up & level out a little better than the paint, but it can still do the same sort of thing. Just to put your mind at ease, I have had paint jobs start with a little of that "graininess" that still turned out well with clear coats & polishing. I remember having some of that happen on the hood & trunk lid of my '60 Fury, but in the end, it turned out fine. Steve

That "roughness" was most likely caused by spraying too light or too far from the body. A little closer & a little wetter coats will most likely yield a smoother result. Steve

If your paint is a metallic color, I wouldn't polish the color coats. Polishing metallic paints can actually "smear" the metal flakes around causing inconsistencies in the finish. If your orange peel is very fine, clear coats may level that out depending on how many coats you apply. I almost always have some orange peel in my color coats but by the time I'm finished clearcoating, it usually smooths things out pretty well. Mind you, I usually use as many as 4 or 5 clear coats. Each consecutive coat will level it out a little more. The rest can be polished out. Steve

You should be able to do it either way Mike. Steve

I much prefer to have parts replated rather than replace them with resin parts. It's more cost effective, the parts fit as they should, & in general, the finish is usually better than a resin part. I feel, whenever possible, it's always much nicer to work with original styrene parts. Steve

I have noticed the propensity for the Testors lacquers to be more easily chipped than other lacquers. I've had examples where after the kit is finished and has sat for a few weeks, a tight fitting hood or the like would pull a chip from the adjacent fender edge or from the hood itself. I attributed it to the fact that the Testors lacquers seem to cure much slower than other automotive type lacquers & if the parts are touching before completely cured, they can actually "stick" together & pull paint off one of the edges when separated. I'm not entirely sure how long these lacquers take to cure, but I've had strange things happen to them weeks after application like cracking or dulling much later after a satisfactory polish was already achieved. Testors lacquers are a very different paint than an automotive lacquer, (not as hot) so I've concluded that one of the properties of it is a much slower cure time. It's probably not a bad idea to finish all coats, including clear, & then let it cure for a month or so before proceeding with any polishing or assembly of the body parts. Just my observation of course. Steve

Absolutely! Testors enamels will strip in Super Clean in an hour or 2. Lacquer could take several days or longer to come completely clean. Steve

Thanks Tommy! I don't know if it was really what you would call a "great buy" but it is pretty much mint. The chrome is a little "shaky" as it usually is in these old annuals & will need to be re-plated, but other than that, it's in fantastic shape & all there. I'll be sending parts to the chromer soon & the parts from this kit will be included. Hope to be working on it in the coming months. Steve

The '61 Is an oldie Tommy! Is it a Ford or a Chevy? The box art was the same for either back then. The Ford is usually more difficult to find than the Chevy. Great find in either case! I have the same kit with the trailer from '62 with the Chevy truck. Paid $25.00 for it from an antique shop about 20 years ago. Very nice stuff! Steve

Great looking Ford Tulio! I'm with you on the build philosophy. I figure what's in the box is close enough for me. Don't get me wrong, I have no problem switching out or scratch building parts on occasion, but I don't fret too much about a few inaccuracies here & there. For me it sucks all of the fun right out of building if I worry too much about those things. I really want to build another one of these someday, along with the "sister" '57. Haven't built either one for many years & I'm pretty sure I could do a little better job now. Terrific work!! Steve

I don't use brake fluid, I use Super Clean, but I'm sure that both will lose their potency over time. Clear coats will make a difference as well. I've had bodies that I've stripped that have sat for several days with little affect. Scratching through the clear coat in a few areas here & there to allow the stripping solution to get under the paint will help speed things up. Steve

Those are the old "American Satco" white walls. I love them!! Unfortunately, they are no longer made. But, Modelhaus does do a resin version of the same tires. I use a lot of them. The only thing that they are missing is the "Firestone" detail on the sidewall. Steve

You're an animal Al! Looks great to me! Steve

X3. Steve

I think we need a "Galaxie Intervention" Mike. Now I'm also wondering about that full length side spear I'm seeing on some pictures. Was that a standard XL feature, or was it an option? I'm seeing XL's with & without the spear. It looks as if the kit could be done either way simply by leaving it alone, or foiling the "peak" on the body. I think we need more input. I'll be building one of these soon, so I'm also interested Steve

Ditto. Steve

I think it may have been an "XL" thing Mike. I'm seeing just as many '67 Galaxies on line without the lettering as with it. The trunk badge is different on the XL & it seems most of the photos I'm seeing with the XL trunk badge are missing the lettering on the quarter panel. The kit does have the correct XL trunk badge, so the lettering may not have been correct in the first place. I'm no expert though, this is just a preliminary observation. I'm confident someone more knowledgeable about '67 Galaxies will debunk or confirm this theory. The photo you have posted is not an XL. This is what the XL trunk badge looks like. Steve

Well, the damage is done, so it pretty much gives you license to do what ever grabs you. I'll be watching to see what you do with it. I have a beautiful unbuilt example of this same kit to do very soon, & yes, it will be bone stock. Good luck! I hope it goes well for you. Steve

You know, it really amazes me to read the responses so far & to see how many Mopar "families" there are out there. In the small town where I was raised, Chevy & Ford ruled. Mopar fans were the ugly ducklings. It just surprises me a bit to know that there are so many Mopar people out there. Steve

Welcome mark! There have been a few trolls plaguing us from time to time as well. But lately they have been mostly non-existent. I think the moderators have been working overtime weeding them out. I applaud their efforts! Steve