mikemodeler

Virgil, I appreciate the video and how-to as I need to get some type of booth set up going. I wrestle with the idea of building my own versus buying a ready to use unit. The caution from some members about using a blower fan that is designed to be used with paint fumes is well taken. In the end, we are all responsible for our actions (I think, the ACLU may be changing that )so whether one follows your tutorial or goes out and drops their hard earned money is really up to them. There was an article some 11 years ago in Fine Scale Modeler about building a booth and using a particular type of fan motor from W.W. Grainger that was designed for hazardous type fumes. IIRC that blower motor now runs about $120 but the design used in the article keep the actual fan out of the airstream, essentially keeping the fan clean. I know I have that magazine around here because I bought for that specific reason. Thanks to everyone for their input on this and I agree that something like this should not be done without some basic knowledge of electricity.

Mike brings up a good point- often times we have one or the other- wheels or tires! I have a bunch of American Satco tires but few wheels to go with them. I have some Modelhaus tires but no wheels because the I didn't like the ones offered with the tires. I did vote for numbers 3&4 as they would appeal to me the most. Before you have the resin poured for these, I would measure the wheels and see what they fit. While the old Goodyear Wrangler A/T tires are plentiful, I for one would prefer to use something else on a truck build. Alan at Ma's Resin had a wide selection of tires, I would check to see if the wheels you have on your poll would fit any of them and which ones. It may be that despite being the highest vote getter, the winner might only fit one tire while the rest of them fit a broader range of tires. Just my opinion but I would want to know what tires those wheels fit before I buy them.

Lee, I agree that the magazines DON'T have to offer the same content, in fact that is why I subscribe to both of them. I also agree that the builder reviews complete with pictures like those posted in the workbench section are much more useful. My point is - what added value, over and above what is already provided here on the forum, would a pay-per-view alternative give me that I can't find here or elsewhere? And to my first post on this topic, if the reviews are removed from the magazine, what would take it's place? I also have tried not to trash one magazine or the other as that isn't the theme of the post. The post about SA and trashing it has been locked for good reason. Why some feel the need to bash SA is beyond me, I guess because they can here is the only justification. again, my two pennies.

Geez Harry, I think you just cheated yourself out of about 8 "Real or Model" possibilities! Truly tasteless vehicles in the mix but just goes to show you one man's work of art is another's piece of ####! I did notice that a lot of the vehicles had Ohio license plates.....could that explain some of it?

As much as some love to bash Scale Auto here, if you subscribe to their magazine, you can access over 280 online kit reviews. So my question is this- If they can include it in the price of subscribing to the mag, why can't MCM? Seems to me they have decided to give subscribers a few extras in exchange for their subscription. And as it was already pointed out, there are kit reviews already posted in the Workbench section, maybe not done in a consistent manner but they are there nonetheless.

Like any other change in life, it takes some getting used to. There is a reason there is more than one car model forum and magazine to choose from......... While this forum is more comfortable for a lot of us, others find it impersonable. While many like the MCM magazine, others like SA more. To each his own I guess.

That is coming along great and nice to see a long bed. Sure would be nice if Round2 would reissue the Fall Guy truck as I have some projects I would love to do. Have you thought about having the bed cast by one of the resin guys? Not sure what it would take to cast it but I would think it could be done easily enough. There was someone selling a resin long bed but from what I remember it was a real rough casting that needed a ton of work. Keep the pictures coming!

Mark, you have said what I have felt for a long time. My only complaint about the two magazines is that while SA always gets bashed here, MCM always gets praised and never bashed. In a perfect world,we would get a new magazine every two weeks with all the how-to articles, contest coverage, kit reviews etc.that we could ever want! In the meantime, I will settle for the November and Decemeber 2010 issues of MCM that have yet to arrive. As far as what did I do when the board was down? Well, I fiddled at the bench on a couple of projects and got caught up on my reading. That work thing got in the way too so I didn't have as much free time as usual. I also surfed the web looking for some detail pieces for some projects that are in the works.

Luc, Are you suggesting that reviews would no longer be in the magazine? If Gregg takes the reviews and how-to's out of the magazine and load them here, possibly in a pay-per-view format, what incentive would there be for the magazine? The latest issue (OCTOBER 2010)has a total of 62 pages of which six and a half pages are dedicated to kit reviews. Add in 5 pages from Wayne Moyer on die cast car reviews and there is 20% of that issue. Most of what is left is advertisements and articles that may or may not be of interest to some of us. The stories and how-to articles in the October issue held some of my interest but they would not have swayed me to buy the magazine if I was reading it at a LHS. I think the best thing to do is leave things as is. Start removing content from the magazine and I doubt the subscription numbers will go UP. My two pennies......

Tony, Donn is a good source of info and he is right on with his advice- propane heater, keep the paint away from the flame and let the garage warm up a bit before you head out to paint. Marc brings up a good point- if you can somehow manage to set up your airbrush and paint booth inside the house and have a stable environment (consistent temp and humidity), you will be able to paint every day! I have yet to convince the wife to let me use the guest bedroom as a paint shop so I am relegated to the garage and a propane heater!

Rob, Sounds like you want our approval for a primer build and all I will say is if that is where you are headed, Go For It ! Build it like you want, you can always get another to paint blue. A word of caution on that blue- the metalflakes are pretty big so the color doesn't really reflect a factory color. Makes for a nice custom though. I have one nearly done and it is painted hugger orange and I plan to build a few more in different colors.

What a bummer Don, probably the worse feeling in the world. One of the first tools I got 35 years ago was an electric engraver. Anything of value of mine has my name engraved on it. We just got our kids new digital cameras for X-mas and I made sure their names were engraved on them in case they get lost or stolen. It also scares away a legitimate pawn shop if there is a name engraved on something and that person's name doesn't match. Not entirely foolproof but might keep someone from taking my stuff if they think it will be a problem to pawn or sell it later. I have a ton of tools in the garage and in addition to keeping them locked up, I have engraved my name in them and also have taken pictures and recorded model & serial numbers. Took awhile to do but heaven forbid I suffer the same fate as Don, I can prove what is missing and be compensated by the insurance company. I have done the same to the inside and outside of the house. If we ever have a claim, we can show how things looked before. Sorry you had to go through the experience, hopefully the criminals will be caught.

I have heard that there is another place to sell models called.....eModelCars.com. The guy that runs it is somehow related to the guy who runs this forum, I think. Give it a try and tell us how it goes! You could also check to see if there is a swap meet coming up soon in your area. Mike

Nice job on that Chevelle! I built the snap version as a weekend quickie and it is in gray like yours. I like the color so much I have to remember I have plenty of other colors as I have 3 models in that gray color since I built the Chevelle! Keep them coming.

Donn, my wife would love to have hardwoods throughout the house but when I explained our "arrangement", she understood why we can't afford the floors if I am sending checks off to PA ! HA HA HA I was obviously kidding about the bootleg DVDs as I hate when my own work gets copied without any renumeration. Besides, your DVD is worth more than $20, but I understand your passion for sharing your tricks and you would rather work until you are in your 70's than to charge the true worth of your product! In a related topic to this original post, I understand the pros/cons of clear and which types are hazardous and what not. I hope others will consider the cost involved in using urethane if you are not among those that work with it on a regular basis. The extra equipment and precautions necessary to work with it successfully might cause some to cut corners or take risks. While it is great that some have said that they spray it outside, consider where that overspray is going when doing so. My 17 year old son used my spray paints in the garage to spray something and didn't consider that Mom's new car was 10 feet away when he hacked out a quick spray job on some school project. He knows now that the car has to be removed from the garage because I had him clay bar and hand wax the whole car to get the overspray off!!!!! While I like to kid that "There's no high like a lacquer high", a term told to me by an old painter 30 years ago, the truth is that any amount of paint, regardless of the type, inhaled is dangerous. As I stated earlier, I recently tried Future floor wax as a clear coat applied with a 1/4" brush and was amazed with the results. I plan to use it exclusively moving forward as it is less toxic and easy to use. The cost is significantly less and the amount needed means a regular sized bottle will last a long time! Like the Life cereal commerical..Try it, you'll like it!

Donn, I believe I have your address off the DVD I bought at the show in North Carolina a few months ago so look for an envelope with the money in it towards the end of next week. For those of you interested in helping me pay Donn, I offer you a bootleg copy of his DVD "The art of airbrushing quality model cars" for the low price of $10, a savings of 50% over buying it directly from Donn! In all seriousness, Donn does offer some helpful advice in his DVD and I highly suggest picking up a copy. I have been painting model cars for nearly 40 years and his DVD was quite informative.

Jeff, You ain't playing fair ! I thought it might have been you but the ageing process is playing a bad trick on me! Send me a link and I will get one ordered, PM me or be obvious and put it up here! Thanks.

That sure is some shiny paint there Lee! I love the reflections in the front fender from the pictures you took. (I didn't forget about our 442 trade, just been hectic with the holidays, I will get it out soon!) Keep them coming, I am liking them!

A very entertaining series of postings,not to mention informative as well. I think the biggest thing we can take away from this has been pointed out by a few of the "sane" voices here: 1. ALL painting and clearing can be considered hazardous and proper precautions should be taken to ensure we do not harm ourselves or others around us when painting. 2. We all have different opinions on what processes or types of product one should use to achieve whatever degree of "shinyness" we are after. 3. Not all cars deserve the same clear coating as they differ in real life too. 4. Find what works for you and master it (a nod to Donn Yost!). 5. If you are a trophy hunter, determine what degree you have to master to achieve your goal of a full shelf of trophies. If you build for your own enjoyment (like me), get them to your satisifaction and be done with it. 6. Work on improving your skills as that is a natural part of "growing". Something I learned about on forums was the use of Future floor wax as an alternative to spraying a clear coat. I was skeptical at first until I saw a few examples in person. I then researched it a little more and have finally attempted it on a model this week. I am pleased to say that I may have found a new way to clear coat models without much difficulty and it dries MUCH faster than any clear I have ever sprayed before. Add in the fact that I can do it inside the house without offensive odors or special equipment and it becomes an even bigger bonus (if any of you tell my wife I am using Future and I have to start doing the floors at home, I WILL hunt you down! ). Hope everyone has a safe and happy new years!

Recently was surfing Ebay and saw a resin '66 Ford shortbed pickup and it didn't say who the caster was. Does anyone know who is casting it and where to order one? I think it is a neat subject and have a few ideas kicking around in my head if I could find one. TIA Mike

That looks great George, that Chevelle shouldn't take too long to bring back to showroom condition! Careful pulling that trailer, sitting high like that a sharp curve and that Chevelle will be headed to the scrapyard!

To the best of my knowledge, there aren't any kits of the current generation Toyota Tacoma available here but one place to check would be Hobbylink Japan. They export kits from Japan and if there was a kit, that would be the best and first place to look. The older Toyota pickup you seek (1983)was probably available in a snap fast kit and those pop up on Ebay from time to time. You can also check with some of the old kit sellers- Dean's Hobby Stop, Fred's Model World and JiminOhio as they might have that kit or could point you in the right direction. The '64 Chevelle is not currently available in a kit from one of the manufacturers but there are a couple of options. If you can find the Revell '65 kit (a nice kit by the way), then you can set about picking up the needed pieces to back date it to a '64. I don't remember exactly what the differences are between a '64 & '65, but The Modelhaus offers replacement grilles, bumpers, and other parts for a '64. Keep in mind that they are typically made for the promo models of that time so a little work may be needed to get them to fit the Revell kit. Your other option would be to buy a complete '64 Chevelle resin kit from The Modelhaus. It goes for about $53 and has a molded closed hood, so you couldn't have an engine unless you wanted to cut the hood open and do some scratch building of an engine compartment. It also requires the '65 El Camino kit for the chassis so there again is another $10-$20 on top of the resin kit. The Modelhaus product is among the best in the business and is often the one others are compared to ("That piece is on par with Modelhaus quality"). Don and Carol are some of the nicest people to do business with and can answer your questions on their product before you buy. Hope this helps, let us know what you find.

Looking good so far Curtis, I like the black paint. At the rate you are going, it will be done before New Years' day!

I am not a huge Mustang fan but I do like this year/body style and you have done an excellent job! I like the details and the interior is very nice! Thanks for posting!

The day after here in Charlotte saw about 2 inches of snow at our house. Got the call early this morning that church was cancelled so we hung out at home. My teenage kids looked around for friends and their winter gear to go out and play in the new snow before it melts (calling for 60 degrees by Friday!). I headed upstairs to the model area and worked on some projects for most of the afternoon while I watched/listened to the Bears/Jets game. The family kind of went their own way throughout the day and we got together to eat dinner at 6 PM. I didn't get much for X-mas and that is fine as I have been blessed to have most everything I need. My birthday is this Tuesday and I really do not need anything. My wife is saying how she HAS to get me SOMETHING and I remind her that I don't need a thing. I would rather spend the day with them or tinkering on my hobby desk than to get another T shirt or pair of socks. Like so many others have stated, I have plenty and really need to simplify my life. I have discussed with my wife the need to cut back on our spending and start saving more, and reducing our holiday spending is one area we agree on. She found some great "day after" deals online today and she is proud that she has about a third of next years' X-mas shopping done and saved 50% in the process. While I wanted to argue that we shouldn't spend the money 364 days ahead of time, she was able to convince me to do it and save the money now. She has a hard time some days with my model building because I am content being alone "in my own little world" while she craves for interaction like playing a board game or cards. It is a hard balance to achieve as there is something to be said for marital harmony!