peteski

Because it is not about glossy coat, it is about the reflectivity of the metallic color. Most brass-color metallic paints look like metallic paints - gold, but dull. Clear coat will not magically produce a polished-brass look. It will still look like brass paint with glossy clear coat. That is why I suggested Alclad II Polished Brass. It should produce that polished-brass metal effect its name implies.

One thing's for sure: Plumcrazy's bold statement sure spurred a very lively thread!

While your recommendation is the sure way to fix the problem, if the alternate repair consists of washing, dabbing some paint and if that works, polishing the hood, why not give it a try first? It can always be stripped and repainted of the quick fix doesn't work.

That is exactly what I did on my 1:32 scale '57 Caddy. I made the partially open windows from 0.010" clear styrene, and then used thin strips of Bare Metal Foil to create the chromed edge.

From my interactions with David my opinion of him is that he likes instant gratification, and wants everything to be super-easy, just falling in place without any effort. Great idea in theory, but in practice that doesn't work out so well. Plus many of us actually enjoy the challenges that kit building or any advanced techniques (like designing and printing decals) present us with. That is how a mediocre modeler becomes an advanced modeler. Plus those learned skills can come in handy in other aspects of our lives.

I knew what the black dot meant, but never spent too much time thinking bout the meaning of that star. BTW, this section is for modeling related Q&As - this thread really belongs in the "How To Use This Board" section. I have asked moderators to move it.

Good point Trevor - I didn't think about it. But I"m sure that the paint does dry much slower in -10 deg. C temperature.

Is it ironic? I use Internet as a tool, and I could get by without it. I suspect many other respondents in this thread are like me. I don't use a smart phone or have any of my appliances on the Interwebs. Maybe because I work as a tech support engineer for large computer company, and I'm aware of all the security problems caused by poorly designed computerized devices, I choose to limit the technology around me. I don't need all the conveniences of all those "smart" devices - I have a brain that still works - I can do things myself. Also, this is not complaining about technology - if you haven't noticed, it is about overuse of that technology. I really don't need a smart thermostat and an app on a smart phone that allows me to check and tweak the temperature in my house.

I hope that you didn't mind my critique. Sounds like your are advancing in your modeling techniques. Your paint finish is excellent, even with spray cans.

True (and good idea), but troubleshooting commercial grade computers for a living I know that complex electronics can fail even being protected, and for no visible reasons.

Tough break! What to me makes it even tougher is that screaming eagle in 1:1 car is a sticker, so it has some thickness. No need to try to hide the decal line. I know that decal has extra clear film surround, but I think that even if that was visible, it would not have been all that unrealistic (for a model). I suppose trimming the clear film as close to the image (before applying decal) might have been possible for maximum realism. As an "official" model photographer for my model club, there is something that bugs me about the paint: the out of scale (too large) metal flakes. I also realize that what sticks out in closeup photos, doesn't look bad in-person (having photographed many models with out of scale metallic flakes). Personally I try to select paints which have smaller flake sizes, but yours is such a beautiful color . . .

My thought's exactly Bill. Last month I had to have my boiler replaced (it developed a leak) after 21 years of problem free service. It heats my house and provides hot water (of-boiler tankless unit) It used an old-school Honeywell aquastat with mechanical temperature sensor and hefty relays, which probably looked the same as relays built 100 years ago. The new boiler came with a fancy new aquastat (and while the boiler brand was the same as the old one, the electrical wiring was different than what the old boiler had). The new unit has a fancy microcontroller circuitry with a digital temperature readouts and status LEDs. I doubt it will last anywhere as long as the old Honeywell unit. Since I'm quite able to replace the aquastat myself, I already bought a spare unit as a cheap insurance policy. Last thing I want is for the fancy circuitry dying in the middle of winter. The burner also has a more fancy circuitry than the old one - I have to check if I can buy a spare circuit board for it too.

Stick too well? Paint is liquid which doesn't freeze at water freezing temperatures (unless it is a water-based paint). Liquid paint lands on a solid surface of the model. It "sticks" or adheres to it, regardless of the temperature. To me the drying (solvent evaporation in low temperature) woudl be a bit of a problem.

Another beauty from Jean-Philippe. I love the interior and the pinstripes.

My mom owned one of these in metallic gray with gray velour interior. It was plush inside and very comfy! But the interior was super staticky in the winter - I got zapped so many times when getting out of the car. It really hurt! Which kit is this?

I wonder if those temperatures are in Celsius, not Fahrenheit? Either way, it is cold! But I guess that if the air is clean and dry, spray-painting is ok. But drying would be a problem (take a long time). Bette rbring those bodies back into room temperature surroundings.

I love it! Miniatures of any kind are wicked cool! Especially when is a replica of a real thing.

While better than the cheap Chinese bits from eBay, I would only consider Micro-Mark drills as average quality. Better ones are available from industrial suppliers like Granger or MSC Direct. They carry a while range of bits - from cheap to really good quality. Price is usually directly related to quality (but then again stuff from Micro-Mark is usually overpriced). I will again refer you to the other thread I linked in the 2nd reply in this thread for some good sources of quality bits. Best (sharpest/hardest) are the tungsten-carbide PC-board bits (with 1/8" shanks), but they are very brittle.

I don't find that too surprising. Some paints (especially light non-metallic colors) are not perfectly opaque (especially applied in fairly thin coats, as we do when painting models). So whatever color is under the paint will partially affect the final color. The darker the paint, the less of an effect the underlying color has on the final color. But as a general rule, it makes sense to use a primer which is not too contrasting with the final coat. Even some metallic are partially translucent (again, in thin coats). Depends on how dense the metal particles are. Actually surprisingly white is usually quite opaque, but I still would not use dark gray or black primer under white. Yellows and oranges seem to be the most translucent.

I was wondering why nobody was mentioning Alclad II Polished Brass. If it is simpler to their Chrome paint (successfully used by many here), then Polished Brass over some glossy paint should look like . . . polished brass!

Your Spam filter should be sending them to your Junk/Spam folder immediately.

No, after she came back from a date.

I believe that backup cameras are required equipment on all new cars sold in USA (and have been that way for few years). I'm ok with that, as long as they still give me the rear view mirrors inside, and on both doors. I use all those features as-needed. MY GF's new car has cameras up the wazoo! When backing up there is a split screen view on the dash display: One side shows the rear view with the guiding lines which move with the steering wheel, and the other half shows what I call a "drone view". It shows her car as if it would look from 20' up over it. It is a computer generated composite image which combines a simulated view of the car with the 4 cameras around the car. It looks as if it was being transmitted by a drone hovering over the car. Backing up feels like playing a video game! It also stays on when driving slowly forward (with the front and top view). And her car is just a Hyundai Tucson. Some of the higher end cars have so many features, they'll make your head spin. But I'm not too crazy about the "fly by wire" throttle, or electric power steering that can actually steer the car on its own. I'm old-school I guess. And even the most current anti-lock brakes can be a pain, especially when going through a puddle or on snowy/icy road. Compared to properly manually modulated application of brakes, they increase braking distance. I have verified this many times (especially on snow and ice). But I guess if a clueless panicky driver is behind the wheel, they are better than a pedal-to-the-floor.

Wait til you get hacked. No, you don't have any national secrets, but there are plenty of hackers out there strictly looking for a "joy ride" - just to mess with you. Kind of like kids used to ring doorbells and run away, or make prank calls (before Caller ID), but with what they can do with your online devices will be more inconvenient than the old-school pranks.

You mentioned Summer, and you are in New Jersey. Is is possible that you painted on a humid day, and some moisture got trapped under or in the primer, messing up its adhesion to the model's body?