Harry Joy

I'm building that GTO kit right now. Wish I had an early version - this one has flash everyone, including all the chromed parts, and has sink marks all over.

Thanks!

Put this together as a quickie. I'm on vacation this week, taking care of getting the garden ready for winter and such, and taking care my wife after a little surgery, but played around with this during football games. AMT kit, and kind of bare bones. There were a lot of molding issues, and I glued the hood in place to make getting the front bumpers right a little easier. I only put together the bottom of the engine. Duplicolor finish with Tamiya acrylics everywhere else. AMT aftermarket tires (LOVE them).

Perfect. Thanks!

What is a good source, single shop preferably, for the AMT aftermarket tires? I see that AMT has a few sets, some others pop up on Amazon. But I don't see them at other online model retailers (the ones I know). I'm looking for the redlines, white walls, Goodyear stock tires, and other non-racing tires. Are AMT and Amazon my only options?

Tamiya Extra Thin is one thing I will not build without, although I probably use CA glue more. My modeling improved by leaps at certain set points in the past 15 years, and the first thing that moved my modeling past beginner level was discovering Tamiya Extra Thin. (The next step was starting to go to shows and joining a club. The third level was broached when I finally bought an airbrush and compressor.)

My trick, which I also use with any old or damaged decals, is to flood the area with Future, then float the decal into place, and put more Future on top. Once done, I put it where I cannot see it for the rest of the day, because it WILL look awful. The next morning however, the Future will have dried and sucked the decal right into place. This works wonders with original decals from 60s era kits.

Huh - I'd swear this is the car that tried to drag race with me on Stage Road this afternoon.

Micro Sol and Micro Set are the gold standard of decal setting products, but they are also the baseline. They work wonderfully, but don't work for everything. Some decals only settle down with Mr. Mark Softener. Mr. Mark Softener will melt others. Some decals are fine with a little help from Future or household vinegar. There is not a product out there that works 100% with all decals. Sometimes you just have to test various things. Same thing with everything else in the hobby for that matter. I love Tamiya putty, but sometimes Vallejo is the right one for a particular application. I like some clear coats over certain finishes, other clear coats with other paints. You just have to have the right tools at the right time for the right application.

Nice start. Following this build with anticipation, waiting for it to really catch fire!

The tools I cannot finish a model without: Good sharp sprue clippers - the most important tool in my mind Sanding sticks and sanding pads Toothpicks Alligator clips and plastic clamps CA glue and accelerator, and Extra Thin Tamiya cement Hobby knife - but I only touch the X-Acto when doing decals and bare metal. That's about it. Those are the items that have a permanent place on my table. Oh sure, I have tons more tools, but the rest of them sit in my toolbox until they're needed.

Loving this model!

Well, you know how good the aftermarket, owner installed defrosters look? About that good, which means not much. I had it down clean, with no bubbles or silvering, but it looked like there was a large, lined sticker in the back window. I thought it looked real enough, but the real deal doesn't look that hot.

Thanks!

I would recommend finding a local hobby shop/collectible store who might be able to buy the collection for resale.

Thanks! It is my second car model after one I built on my uncle's bureau when I was about 10, but it's not my second model. I've been doing airplanes, space and sci-fi for a while, and a couple of ships. I was always kinda scared of cars, owing to the difficulty in getting a good finish, but I'm getting comfortable with them now!

Hasegawa 1/24th kit. Second car I've built now, and I am still having a ball. When I finished the 1966 442, I asked my wife to pick my next build, since she's enjoying the cars sooo much more than my airplanes, and she pulled this out. Good by me, as I've always loved this one, even if I still think of it as a Datsun. The only departure from the instructions on this is I deleted the defrost cling from the back. I had the decal on perfectly, no silvering or bubbles, but my wife did not like the way it looked. On the Datsun, the lines run top to bottom, not side to side, and she kept saying I put the decal on wrong. I finally convinced her it was right, but removed it completely since it was being built for her. The side mirrors gave me fits, and I was never satisfied with the bare metal but it looks good on the shelf. Finish paint is Duplicolor, everything else on this one is Tamiya acrylics.

I have never had Future crack, and use it on virtually ever model I build. Have for about 15 years. That said, I've only rarely used it as an overall clear coat. I use it for clear coating windows and occasionally as a glue. When trying to reclaim old decals, in my experience Future is incredible. However, there are better clear coats for a final finish. I can easily see where using it as a thick clear coat could create issues. I only use it as a thin protective coat.

Thanks guys, much appreciated. My next build is almost done. Not much left but final chrome and bits, but work took me off to Cincinnati for a week and then my lovely wife took ill and I started playing nurse. She's back on her feet, and I may be able to finish this weekend. Car modeling has it's difficulties - and it turns out my fear of gloss finishes was justified! - but I am finding this so much more fun than anything I've done in a long while.

I do not think you have a problem. Comparing your pic to the real item, yours looks right. Anything you try to do to diminish it would probably serve instead to make it stand out more.

Cale's!

The only thing we see is the "picture not found" Photobucket message, which includes a picture of a cat. We see that along with a link that must be clicked to see the pic. Your pics are not embedded in the message. You might see the car pic but no one else does. Probably an issue with the link you are choosing.

Currently my job has me driving all over three states, and I never can remember what every little town's police cars look like. Spotting them is easy enough though, usually by identifying the add-on packages. Or by their behavior, moving or sitting still. I have an enormous amount of respect for law enforcement, but if I don't speed a bit I don't get my job done.

Tamiya paint is stinky. Always has been. The jarred paint has it's own special fragrance, but still stinky. If it wasn't such good paint, no one would use it.

I love the Tamiya Fine White as much as the Fine Gray. I use it sparingly though, as it can sometimes be harder to come by than Fine Gray, and the Fine White is the best white spray paint I've ever used. I frequently use it as a white finish. It does have an odor, but it dries in a jiffy. Out-gassing doesn't take too long either.