peteski

That is surprising. Nice! Usually pens used as free advertisements are of rather low quality (since they are disposable).

I don't see any green or olive drab in that paint. To me it looks like pale gold (sort of similar to the "cashmere" color popular in the '90s, but a bit more gold-ish). The Tamiya X-11 looks pretty close, but seems it seems a bit too beige. There are probably nail polish colors very close to what's needed. The transporter truck's cab seems to be painted the same color as the car. I should also add that color photos are not very good for accurate color matching. Plus since the original vehicle is likely long gone, who will question your color choice?

Nobody's forcing anybody to use Chrome. There are several different browsers available. I always thought Chrome (and Google) was evil tracking browser. Never had it installed on my personal computer. I use Seamonkey for accessing this forum. There is also Firefox, and few other non-Google browsers out there. What makes you all use Chrome? I suggest stopping drinking the "Google Cool-Aid", and using different browser.

Thank you Andy. As for catching up with me (number of models finished), I'm not a very prolific modeler. In the last 40 years I probably have not built more than couple dozen models. I do have a sizable stash of kits - I hope to get them all built in my lifetime. Yes, Gunze Sangyo is a Japanese manufacturer, but they have not produced a lot of American prototype automotive kits. They are more well known for their multiple lines of hobby paints (like Mr. Color). That Caddy was a part of their '50s-'60s collection series. Some of those models were sold in Revell packaging. Very simple kits, but they seem to have the correct proportions, and finely molded details. As other Japanese kits from the '70s, the can be motorized. And yes, generally speaking kits from Japanese kit manufacturers like Gunze, Tamiya, Fujimi, or Aoshima are a pleasure to build and have a good level of detail. If you never built a Japanese kit I highly recommend to pick one up and give it a try. If you live in USA, I would recommend buying the kit from one of the dealers in Japan. The Dollar-Yen exchange rate is currently very favorable.

Andy, the model is beautiful! You did an excellent job making a bad kit look really good, and all the opening features make it even better. I did have to smile because we both used similar color on out models of this car. Mine is smaller (1:32 scale) Gunze Sangyo curbside model. It is a very basic kit, but it seems to have correct proportions and good amount of visible details. I built it around 30 years ago (before easy access to photos on the Internet), and it was my first car kit on which I used Bare Metal Foil. I hope you don't mind me posting photos of my Caddy. They are scans of 4x6 snapshots taken with my 35mm camera back then.

Hey dude, that is a really nice scratchbuilt model. You made it just using your hands - no tools! True scratchbuild!

I used to live there. Moved to the suburbs about 30 years ago, and now I avoid it like a plague! But it is not just Boston. Drivers in the entire New England area are really nasty. Actually, I think the same applies to the entire country. We just totally lost our civility when it comes driving (and even politics). USA is not the same place it was years ago, but we unfortunately can't just make it nice again. Can't go back to the past. Just have to grin and bear it. Or is it bear and grin it?

I believe that it is a rhetorical question since you have been around long enough to know the answer: The cost of cutting steel tooling, and possible license fees are probably the 2 largest reasons manufacturers chose not to scour the internet for some better body design to produce it in injection-molded styrene. They also have to consider how well a new model kit would sell.

A lathe or a milling machine are all tools used for producing the desired parts. You hold and turn their handwheels with your hand to move the cutter forming the parts. A computer mouse or pen used by a CAD designer designing the part to be printed out on a 3D printer is also a tool held in their hand. Sounds like your definition would limit the tool to all manual tools. Knives, files, and hand-cranked drills. Not even a Dremel tool? This thread is like politics - you will have many different opinions (all presenting valid points) and it is best to agree to disagree.

eBay was much more civilized (and so much simpler to use) about 15 years ago. In many ways. That's when I did most of my buying and selling. Now it is like a wasteland full of nutz (both sellers and buyers). And the eBay rules are ridiculous. I sill buy some things there, but haven't sold anything for years.

Ink? Paint? Could someone provide a good scientific definition of the difference between paint and ink? I once looked online and never found a really good answer. The "dry faster" doesn't do it for me. Any lacquer-type of paint, if thinned enough with fast evaporating solvent will dry very fast. Nail polish dries fast, even as-is. If thinned further with lacquer thinner, then applied to a surface, it will dry very fast. Faster than alcohol-based Molotow. Alcohol is not as fast evaporating as acetone for example.

The headlights and directionals are not well integrated into the body. Looks like they were added after the car was built. Strange.

Thanks for the clarification Charlie.

Same here (Massachusetts, USA). No white Christmas, and I'm not complaining at all. Snow to me is a menace. But unfortunately this seemingly warmer climate also means more tropical (hot and humid) Summer days which I could live without. I wish we could extend Spring and Autumn, and shorten the Winters and Summers.

Excellent Charlie! I'm interested. Did you use a food packaging container or figured out what the problem with your buck was?

All those "as seen on TV" ads are so annoying. Seems that the new buzzword to use is "bionic" Bionic-this Bionic-that. Like a Bionic garden hose. Really? Has anybody looked up a definition of "bionic" and how it could possibly apply to a garden hose (or other similar devices). Or another garden hose ad claims that since it is has copper (likely just plated) hardware, it is safe to drink water from it. Ok, even so, but how about the other lead pipes the water passes through before getting to the hose? These ads are just so stupid (but I guess they are designed to reach their target audience). As for non-stick pots, the ads I see here tout ceramics as the indestructible non-stick surface.

That model looks very nice Steve, and so does your 1:1 car (which you can actually drive around without having to make vroom-vroom noises).

You should have politely set her straight. After all, a pharmacist is a professional who should not be making that type of a comment. Especially in this politically correct world we live in. Although I'm not sure if it would have made much difference, but it would likely have made you feel better.

Yes, I have ordered from Hobby Search (1999.co.jp) and from Hobby Link Japan without problems. They can be a bit different to deal with than typical American online vendors, but they are perfectly reliable and safe to deal with.

I assume you emailed them at Becky@slixx.com . Maybe your email was intercepted by their Spam filter for some reason. If you have another email account you can try emailing them from. Or maybe try calling them at 770-720-3177 ? Or even send them an old-fashion snail-mail letter. The address is on their website.

You might be thinking of steel wheels with similar shape openings in them. Those would be used in trailers.

Carl, not sure if I understand your question. Do you mean that the bead area of the hollow tire is too narrow? If yes, then like others mentioned, stuff the inside of the tire with something. I use a foam rubber insulation rod which is sold in various diameters in hardware stores. It is similar material to pool noodles, but it comes in a solid diameter "rod" It can easily be stuffed inside the tire to spread out the sidewalls. Edit: It is actually called "closed-cell foam backer rod). It can be trimmed if needed.

Well, that's not good. Hopefully you will eventually get some answers from Slixx. Dave I asked and I didn't see a reply. Since you had successful experience with Slixx in the past, can you tell if those misbehaving decals are any stiffer or thicker than the ones which used to work well? And Bob, I would never even consider waxing the model before applying decals. Like you said, wax will leave likely leave film os toms substance (like silicon) on the paint's surface.

I stay away from using ball bearings or BBs (any metal objects) as agitators. Steel ball bearings can rust, and lead can also oxidize in water-based paints, discoloring them. I also had that happen in some solvent-based paints. I now only use glass craft beads about 1/16" is diameter. Glass will not react with any solvents. Larger glass marbles are used as agitators in spray cans. I'm also very fastidious in cleaning the bottle lip and the gasket on the cap before screwing the cap on. I also use Parafilm-M for masking but I noticed that some solvents will soften the film. I notice that when I remove the film fresh after painting. It is likely paraffin-based (hence its name). Naphtha for example will dissolve paraffin. I have not done any experiments with it and solvents such as acetone or mineral spirits, but I suspect those will also soften or dissolve it. Should be safe to use on water-based paints.

Dave, is it possible that the paint (gloss coat) is the culprit? Since you already have some unused decals, can you maybe try to apply them to some other smooth surface to see how they behave?