peteski

That line shows how the liquid plastic flowed during the injection process (from gates on both sides of the hood, and met in the middle. The problem is that your primer/paint combo is "hot" enough to have the solvents affect the plastic, exposing the joint line. Similar to what happens when you sand down scripts on a car body, then paint it, and the ghosts of the scripts show up. This was never a problem when using mild hobby paints. Not sure how to guarantee that it will not show up after sanding and repainting. Maybe spray a barrier coat of the Killz shellac-based clear?

It is back to being really sluggish this morning, but intermittently.

I would be *VERY* cautious doing that. Yes, the can is not full, but at that point most of the propellant gas (usually propane) is still in a liquid state, dissolved in the paint. The already gaseous propane under pressure in the can keeps the rest the gas dissolved. Rapid depressurization of the gas will cause the paint/propane mixture to start boiling and it will start spraying out of the vent hole. I would never attempt this process.

One way to dull the shiny appearance is to roll the wire with your finger over 400 grit wet/dry sandpaper sheet. It will take a while since the fingertip area is not very large, but it should nicely dull the wire's surface.

Easy way to check if the can is pressurized is to squeeze it. It is made from thin metal and if it still has full pressure it will be hard to squeeze, but if the gas is gone (or almost gone), you will be able to dent the can with your fingers (and it will not spring back). That also tells you whether the paint is not coming out due to lack of pressure or due to clogged valve/nozzle.

How do you know the foil's thickness? Is that mentioned on the packaging, or you measured it (off the backing paper of course)? I'm asking because 0.1mm (0.004") is *AWFULY* thick! Much much thicker than even heavy-duty household aluminum foil. Maybe you meant 0.01mm (0.0004"). That would be more like what I would expect.

Sometimes I ride behind drivers using both feet in their automatic cars. They are easy to spot because their left foot must be tired, as they are constantly riding the brakes (they brake lights are on most of the time). I never understood that. In emergency braking situation your reflex likely will be to stomp on both pedals! Plus the automatics aren't designed to comfortable place and keep both feet on the pedals.

Them's some *BIG* shoes! Probably for those giant dump trucks used in strip mining. Each one probably costs as much as a passenger car.

You're welcome Keith.

Hmm, I wonder if this not-so-swift mail carrier misread your address and the place where he delivered the package was actually vacant? That doesn't excuse them, but how stupid can someone be not to realize that your place is not vacant (even if you aren't at home). Or maybe he was using a GPS and is misrouted him to some abandoned house or vacant lot? I don't know your neighborhood, so I'm not sure it is even feasible.

They are very hard and brittle (especially the small sizes), with split point which as you mentioned does not wonder and will quickly bite into most materials. They cut plastic like butter. The fragility is why I like to get mine in larger quantities. I had some really good deals for boxes of 50 bits. Also whenever I can, I used them in a drill press., but I also often just drill by hand if I can't easily use a drill press. The 1/8" shaft makes hand drilling easy. You do need steady hands. I still do use standard HSS bits, but only as a last resort for some specific jobs.

Did you comprehend what I wrote in my last post? Well informed? About what? That new members are moderated for their first 25 posts? I know that. You are making me even more confused. Vette_lover already had 48 posts to their credit (way over the moderation threshold), back in February, and he hasn't been around since February 15. So even back in February Vette_lover was no longer moderated. Now you come in now (on May 5th) asking for some unobtainable help in posting for the Vette_lover? How the heck do you explain that?!

I know on a "real" computer I can edit that quoted text, or if I select some part of the text in the post I am responding to, I can quote just the text I selected (instead of the entire post). Not sure if you can do that on the smart phone, but I don't see why not. You can also quote multiple posts (or portions of them) in your reply. Some members do that when thanking multiple members for their praises by using multiple quotes with a "thank you" response. Makes for a much cleaner thread.

I don't understand James2's plea. First of all i don't understand how a full fledged member can help another newbie member to increase their post count. It is up to the newbie to read existing threads/posts on this forum and comment on them, or create their own new threads (therefore increasing their post count). Second, it appears that Vette_lover2004 has left the building. He has not visited here since February 10 (and it is now May 15). Why did James2 posted his plea on May 5th when Vette_lover has not been visiting here for months. Third, Vette_lover2004's post count (according to their profile) is already 48! Way past moderation. This whole thing makes absolutely no sense! Weird!

Amazing realism! You are a very fastidious modeler. It looks exactly like a 1:1 engine!

I recommend reading the following threads for some good drill bit discussions (as that is a whole another subject). As it will become apparent there, whenever possible I highly prefer using the PC Board Tungsten Carbide drill bits with 1/8" shanks.

Oh yeah, in today's world you have to be ever vigilant to keep the bad guys away. Thanks for keeping the forum running smoothly!

Yes, the access speed seems back to normal. Thanks Dave! Now I'm curious what the problem was.

Dead? Maybe to you, but there are still lots of us using it. As for shelf life, I still have some remains of it on a backing sheet which is 30 years old and the adhesive still works (I tested it). BMF chrome foil is made from some special metal alloy (it is *NOT* just aluminum foil). That makes it more stretchy, which is a huge advantage when foiling complex shaped surfaces. Aluminum will also stretch but nowhere as much as BMF. But you're right, we need to wait and see what the Tamiya foil is like, but after trying multiple BMF imitations, I'm not holding much hope.

I do pin quite a bit of parts in my builds. Not only for attachment, but sometimes as alignment pins for parts which do not have any alignment aids otherwise. I mostly use hard brass rod (wire) in various diameters (depending on the size of the parts being pinned). From 0.020" down to 0.010". For that one I use #80 drill bit (0.013"). I use CA as adhesive. This is a very helpful technique for clean (no glue stains) joints for small items like the rear-view mirrors on the doors or fenders.

That's true Matt, and the solution is to buy directly from BMF. Unfortunately for modelers living outside of USA, this is not a viable or cost-effective option.

Several years back I had a similar problem with their (non-metallic) enamel paint. I did a test spraying on a spoon and the paint never hardened (even after several weeks (and spending some time in the dehydrator). I could still easily dent the finish by pushing the edge of my fingernail into it. When I contacted them about it, they sent me a small bottle of hardener. It was a clear liquid to e mixed with the paint before airbrushing. At that time I got busy with other projects and never tested the paint/hardener combo. Some time later I noticed that the liquid hardener has hardened in the bottle (which I never even opened). It looks like a solid block of crystal clear resin. I guess that is a good indication that the hardener would have have made the paint hard. I wasn't even aware that enamel paints needed hardeners. At least none of the hobby enamels (like Testors) or even household enamles like the stuff you buy in hardware stores need add-on hardeners. While they take long time to harden, they do that without any extra hardener needed.

I'm quite familiar with quality of Tamiya products, and myself a big fan. Sure, good to have yet another option for adhesive foil, but to me the BMF "chrome" is without equals in its pliability. I have tried multiple brnads of similar foils, and read and participated in foil reviews here. The problems with BMF (which seemed to correspond with the COVID-19 craziness which affected ever facet of out lives) seem to have been resolved. For some time now BMF has been back to its original quality.

We have been discussing this on a model RR forum I frequent. I can't link to that topic becuase it is in a members-only section, but here are some external links: https://www.freightwaves.com/news/firecrown-media-grows-again-with-addition-of-trains-astronomy https://docs.google.com/document/d/1NwhJgYUkKchceELvfckU32qAvA-bnxGEDNuI6RPEa60/edit?usp=sharing https://forum.mrhmag.com/post/kalmbach-publishing-sold-to-firecrown-media-13364332?trail=100 and https://firecrown.com/about/

I have noticed it few days ago that it takes exta long time for anything I try to do. After I click on anything (like bringing up a thread or going to the unread part of a thread, or hovering over a thread subject line to see the little first/latest post summary), the status line on the bottom of my browser shows "Waiting for www.modelcarsmag.com". Then after some time the forum websites responds and supplies the requested into which then renders fast. I don't recall experiencing anything like that for such extended period of time. I access the forum various times of the day (from about 7am to midnight), and the access is slow at all the times I have been accessing the forum. I have no sluggishness accessing any other websites.