peteski

I believe those wheels are one-piece forged or cast aluminum. Then the rims are turned on the lathe, resulting in that shiny metallic look. The spokes are left natural rough aluminum (or maybe they are even sandblasted) to give them that dull gray/silver look. I have simulated this on the Revell '32 Ford 3-window coupe wheels by masking the outer parts of the kit's "chromed" rims, masking the hub and lug nuts with liquid mask, and spraying the centers with "steel" color paint. That was over 20 years ago and I don't recall what brand of paint I used. It could have been Alclad II steel. It is metallic with very fine metallic grain, and it has a dull finish. The spokes on Monty's wheels almost seem to have bluish cast to them. That might just be an artifact of the photo. If not, maybe use one of the Alclad Aluminum shades, and maybe even add some Alclad transparent blue to tint the color a bit. Alclad metallic paints have very fine grain.

"Perfection" is a very big word. Most modelers like to build models just for fun, and aren't as fastidious as others. To some gettign to "perfection" would be considered a tedious labor. To them "good enough" is good enough. When I build models I like to make them as good as I can, but I would not call them perfect by any means (although some might consider them perfect). I know they are not. But I have fun building, and satisfaction when I complete them. People are all individuals, and we all have different personalities. Striving for perfection is not everybody's goal. But I do know that some (after a very lengthy build) sit back, look at the finish model and declare perfection. Perfection, by definition means "flawless". Why even use that word in this context? They way you described it Pete, perfection has a sliding scale. That doesn't seem right. We should just ban usage of "perfect" when it comes to describing models, to free modelers from the word's burden.

Nice! To me they look like a box of giant chocolates - ever one different flavor. Just pick one and take a nice bite. Lots of really cool foreign cars. Not something one sees often. Usually collections like this are mostly American cars. Nice to see automotive history preserved.

Too flat to me is just as bad as too conical. Do we have to go to extremes? Why not just make them correct? It is not like cutting steel molds for injection plastic molded wheels. Changing the design would be as easy as few clicks of the mouse (yes, I know that I'm oversimplifying the CAD drawing, but like you, I'm just making a point). And to be honest, I don't think those DB4 wheels are all that exaggerated. Just look at the Jaguar wheel photo I posted. The hub sticks out quite a bit. I also want to apologize for hijacking Tim's thread to discuss the flaws of the wheels he chose. I should be discussing in another active thread about these wheels elsewhere on the forum. Signing off here.

That might be all well and good, but I was confused by your "Seems about as logical as the typical internet 'explanation', anyway. " Statement. From what you post I know quite well how you feel about the general idiocy and ineptitude of the current world's population, and that the Interwebs are full of stupid and incorrect information. Your statement to me seemed like you were serious (yes, there was an emoticon, but it didn't seem to fit the statement). That's the problem of indirect communication; Sometimes the meaning of someone's written statement is missed.

Not sure if you're joking or serious. Hasegawa "egg planes" are cute caricatures model kits of famous aircraft. They are not scale models.

Micro Mark also sells punch/die sets.

There are many chemical metal blackeners available. I usually use them on brass or copper chains. If the chain is silver or silver plated then it should naturally darken (that is why silverware needs occasional polishing). If you want to speed up the process, do in Internet search for "how to blacken silver". For other blackening chemicals see https://jaxchemical.com/product-category/colorants/ I use those chemical myself. Also, black finish chains are usually available in hobby shops catering to model railroad hobby. Clover House has some blackened chains available. https://cloverhouse.com/Cart/index.php?cPath=22

Like I mentioned, I'll try to contact Jason and see if he can offer a more correctly rendered set of wire wheels. Unlike injection molded plastic, there is no expensive steel molds to re-cut. The CAD drawing just has to be modified (or new wheels drawn), then the new drawing can be used for printing correctly shaped wheels. 3D printing makes modifications easier. While it would be nice to have the wheels printed for Jaguar XKE, I would be happy with a less pronounced conical shape which might be more universal fit. But the "negative cone" just doesn't work for me.

What I think is neat about the eggplane is that they correctly depicted the unusual main landing gear arrangement, and the engine exhaust looks fairly accurate.

I didn't think you were serious, and I also wanted to inject some trivia about what to me is the coolest looking airplane ever. It sort of looks like a flying stingray, but even more better. You wouldn't think it it was designed and built over 50 years ago. I built a Testors 1:48 scale model of it about 30 years ago (still have it) but it is a bit tired looking.

Excellent color choices (exterior and interior). Very pretty!

Thanks. That is *EXACTLY* the flaw I'm talking about. While the interlaced 72 spokes are gorgeous, and the multiple diameters are very handy, the flatness kills it for me. And I was all excited when I found info about these wheels on this forum. All the vintage wire wheels I have seen have the hub protruding quite some distance beyond the rim. And as you noted, in Jason's wheels the hub is even recessed slightly. They just don't look right to me (especially for Jags). I'm just surprised that someone would take the time to design these in CAD, but come up with a very wrong offset. As I see it, when designing something from scratch, looking at some reference photos or dimensions, it shouldn't be difficult to get the offset correct. But I'm sure that I'm in a minority (being anal). I'll see if I can contact Jason to see if he would be willing to have another version designed and printed with the more correct offset.

That's going to look really good. I also ordered multiple sets of those wheels. How did you find out who designed the wheels? They are gorgeous, but there is a design issue with them, I hope they can address (those wheels are described as for the Jaguar XKE).

Very impressive!

It was also a bit more aerodynamic than this "egg". I read that when SR-71 was cold (sitting on the ground or flying subsonic), the wings (fuel tanks in them) leaked fuel. They only sealed up when flying supersonic, due to the plane's skin heating up and expanding to seal those gaps. If that is the case, there would have been some visible seams, right?

If underside of the hood has a very thin plastic around the perimeter designed to be easily separated from the body, then it is an ESCI kit. Or ESCI body.

I agree that photoetched pieces are too 2-dimensional (flat). These look better. Best ones I have seen were resin cast by Norm at RMCoM, but those represent the more curvy ones used in '50s cars or older.

Yes, it did have that "Eastern European Bloc" flavor to me too, but the rectangular headlights had be puzzled.

Thanks for the comparison photos. Yes, that is a dramatic difference in roof length (which messes up other proportions). But it obviously doesn't bother some modelers. It's all good.

Carl, thanks for all the details you provided (I only quoted a small part). Very helpful.

Carl, I'm curious, is that after or before deducting the eBay fees? Even then I really have no good insight into how valuable your kits were. I guess the bottom line is that the kits are out of your house and you have cash instead. I used to sell on eBay long time ago and I know there have been many changes since then. For example will eBay send you tax forms (not the state taxes they collect automatically, but for your own personal income tax)? Kim, I would not worry about your personal profile. If you are posting messages that means you are an active member. You already provided enough personal info. If you are curious how other member's profiles look like, just click on any of the member's avatar (picture) on the left of any post. That will bring up that member's profile.

Exactly because the real thing is translucent, and that is very difficult to duplicate on a non-translucent model version. I seem to recall that someone here ( @Scale-Master ?) built a model of a Porsche and did a really good job simulating the fiberglass color. Was is on a tank or maybe a blower housing? Actually I wouldn't put past him if he actually molded the miniature part out of very thing fiberglass for the ultimate realism.

That just means that someone else has put in a higher bid amount than you did. Like I mentioned, I prefer snipping because that eliminates all that drama you described. It doesn't mean I always win either (again, someone else could have put down more money in their earlier bid), but it is less stressful, and if I'm the high bidder (win the auction) I feel that I got the best price for the money I was willing to spend. Some people despise people who snipe, but I see nothing wrong with it since the bidding system allows for it (and always has). Like Les mentioned, just bid the highest amount you are willing to spend on the item and if the current bid is lower, eBay will proxy bid for you til the end of the auction (or til someone outbids you) using the lowest amount of money possible. Or snipe by bidding your highest amount of money right before the auction ends. If you win, you win, but if not, that again means that someone wanted the item more than you did.

It is called "proxy bidding" we have discussed this in the proper section of the forum. Then there is "snipping", where a bidder comes in at a last second with a very high bid.