peteski

I just saw some info on the Spotlight Hobbies board (posted by Tom, the proprietor there). I figured I would re-post it here: Don Holthaus called to bring me up to date on their progress, and asked me to pass the info on to you. They received so many orders when they reopened their site for 7 weeks early last summer that it took from October to January just to do the orders for May 15th, and they’re now finishing up orders from the 16th. Orders placed just before the site closed, in July of 2016, are well more than a year out, possibly spring to summer of 2018. Please just be patient, they’re working their fingers to the bone, and when your order comes up it will be shipped. If you have to talk to them they’d rather you call than email, but keep in mind that every time you write or call them you’re just causing orders to be delayed further. Thanks. Actually, the first thing he said when he called was that he heard I bought the Modelhaus and wanted to know when I’ll be by to pick it up. I’ve heard that too, so just for the record, the rumor is absolutely not true.

That would be my opinion too. The main reason modelers use spray-cans is to minimize cleanup after the painting is done (or so they say). The Preval sprayer seems to need a cleanup similar to what an airbrush would need. So why not just get an airbrush? It will allow much finer spray and full control of the air pressure and paint volume.

All putties and fillers are junk! I only use kit parts filed to perfection. No gaps or sinkholes in my models!

That was true many years ago, but now thanks to inexpensive digital photography, you can take close-up photos of all the parts of the model which will become hidden and then create an album which you can place next to the model and which will show all those photos of the hidden items. Just like the restorers of 1:1 cars do when they display their cars.

Glossiness of the model's paint is not the main deciding factor when the model has so many layers of paint that they almost hide the door lines or other details. It might be polished and shiny, but it doesn't look good or realistic. As far as judging goes, when my the judges judge models at our club's model contest, we use the pont system. The model gets certain amount of points for overall paint finish. That includes body, interior, undercarriage and engine compartment. Pretty much all the painted surfaces. If the body has a superb paint job but the interior or engine is poorly painted, that model will get fewer points than a model which has quality paint jobs on all of its components.

Good to know - thanks Danger!

Looks good, but I like more chrome on my Hogs! But I also know that's not the "in thing" right now (and that is how the kit depicts that bike). I have that kit (unbuilt). How stiff is the bike's plastic frame while supporting the weight of the model? Does it flex or sag? I've built the previous 1:6 Fat Boy bike Tamiya produced over a decade ago (for a very short time, only available outside US). It was an older Harley. That one had a diecast frame which was really sturdy. These are fairly heavy models and that is why I'm worried that a plastic frame might not be up to the task of supporting all the weight.

Nice curves!

If you think that the kit you are building has too many parts you should see some of the 1:35 scale military vehicle kits - many of those have between 2,000-4,000 parts! More modeling time for your buck! Many of those parts are for the track which is built one-link-at-a-time. But seriously, some of those are a bit of an overkill.

Looks great, but how does it stand up to regular handling that the door panels see in everyday use? For example, doe the silver color rub off and get smeared onto the brown vinyl? How about when you clean those door panels or use some sort for protectant (ArmorAll or whatever you use)? Does it affect the shine or make the solver coating spread to the brown panels? As far as the reflectivity of this stuff goes, it is just like any other shiny finish (including the real chrome). It will only be as reflective as the surface it is applied to. Real chrome is usually applied over very smooth layer of copper plating. Alclad chrome needs a glossy undercoat. To maximize the reflectivity of the Molotov stuff, it should be applied over smooth glossy surface.

Never heard of Super Clean? You have to read this thread !

I know what it is but finding the specific make/model took more time than I was willing to spend. It will be interesting to find out who made it.

That is Shapeways, not Shapeway. There are zillions of 3D printed items available there and if you know how-to, you can design your own items and they'll print for you. As far as how those take paint, it depends on the material they are printed with. Some materials are very porous, others (like FUD or FXD) have a waxy coating which has to be washed off before painting.

Mixing them with water? Why? Did you look at this post earlier in this thread? It sure shows "how to".

Those are really nice! And I can appreciate that this is not only done using metal bodies (not plastic) but also in 1:43! Well done!

Ouch! That is terrible! You might want to contact the forum administrators directly. There is a link on the bottom of the page for contact: http://www.modelcarsmag.com/forums/contact/

Is there really some law out there which makes it legal for someone to use somebody else's work as long as there is 15% difference (however that could be measured)? That doesn't seem reasonable.

Really?! Paint commonly used for models? So all they are doing is repackaging the good old Testors Chrome paint from the little square bottles, calling it Molotov and selling it for mots of money? The stuff that never really dries? I'm joking of course, but I just found their statement funny.

Well, AC induction motors (which are also brushless by design) have been widely used for all sorts of fan applications for many, many decades. From tabletop fans to exhaust fans. Many power tools (like bench grinders, band saws, etc.) also use them.Those are very simple (no electronics required to drive them). They just need AC power (which is widely available everywhere). Not sure what real advantage a DC brushless motor has over the AC induction motor. Maybe they use slightly less power than the SC motors but the AC motors are dead-reliable (since they are very simple and robust). One disadvantage is that their speed depends on the frequency of the AC on which they run, so speed control is not easy to accomplish. But that is ok as in the applications they are used for, speed control is not required. AC induction motors have been around as long as the AC household power has been around. (that is over 100 years!).

It wasn't meant as a put down - being an old fart is something to be proud off. Like you said, it is a fortunate thing to be still alive, and to have a perspective on how (much better) things were in the past.

Just making a statement like this makes you an old fart! Ah, the good ol' days when things were much better than now. . . Don't worry, I feel the same way.

Seems like everybody is waiting for the other guy to try it.

That photo got me thinking. Actually it appears that the scales are pretty close after all. I took the 1:25 model and enlarged it to 104%. It is pretty close to the size of the Monogram 1:24 scale model. The angles of the models in the photo and the spoiler on the 1:24 car are a bit distracting, but even then, the enlarged Revell body is very close to the Monogram 1:24 scale body.

Flat finish is from the paint surface being very rough (on a microscopic level). That scatters the light hitting the painted surface making it look dull. That rough finish makes the surface fragile so can be scratched or stained easily, even by just handling it. The less flat paints (satin or semi-gloss) have smoother surface and are more durable in handling. Just like others said, flat paint can be clear coated, but the result will not have the same sheen as the original paint surface.