Dragonhawk1066

That is a great looking paint job!

Boy that Rustoleum Crystal Clear Acrylic Lacquer really looks like a nice clear, I can't wait for the warm weather to get here in Michigan so I can try it! What's the thinner blend that you used, I've seen a few different formulas for good acrylic thinner?

My wife wanted to browse Hobby Lobby again today, so I reluctantly took her there, LOL. They somewhat re-stocked the shelves, and I was able to finally grab the AMT '68 Camaro this time. I was undecided on getting another kit, even though there were a few I wanted another one of, until I saw the AMT '55 Chevy mismarked, I'm guessing, at $19.99. With the 40% off sale going on this week, I got both for 28 bucks and some change before tax.

Nope, the gauge panel, gauges, and gear selectors are all decals. The gauge panel is a little tricky as the gauge openings in the decal don't quite line up right with the gauge bezels.

That is beautiful! The interior and exterior colors are gorgeous and the paint is flawless! Bravo! And that is a surprisingly well done kit by Lindberg. I built mine a few months ago and was very impressed with the quality and details.

So I got the Decoart DuraClear Gloss varnish sprayed on and it definitely needs to be wet sanded and polished. I fear I might have gone too heavy with the first coat over the decals. We'll see if I can sand and polish it out, but if not I do have the second set of stripes for both to fall back on. I'll let the clear sit and harden until Friday or Saturday before attacking it. I'm at a standstill until then, because all that's left is detailing the engine bay, installing the "glass", the front grille and tail lights, and final assembly.

I got the BMF on the window trim yesterday, and the decals on today. I also finished both interiors today. There wasn't much of a groove for the front windshield, so I used some Tamiya tape for curves and outlined the trim, applied the foil, and used the tape edge as a guide for trimming. The back windows had a decent groove molded in, but I still deepened it a little for a better guide for the blade. I have the Trans am script for the front fenders and rear spoiler from Keith Marks, but I'm waiting until final clear, wet sanding, polishing, and wax before I apply them. The KM decal sheet has the right tiny fender script, but only includes one of each color, so I would need to order another sheet. There are 3 different shades of script just a little larger that I'm going to put on at the end, and decide afterwards if it looks ok with the slightly larger script. If not, I can easily remove them while I await another sheet. Tomorrow's schedule calls for both bodies to get their final clear coats, and getting the grilles and tail lights detailed.

Yes. I've got two lighter coats of it on so I can foil and put on the decals. Then I'll put on another light coat, followed by a couple of heavier coats.

Bummer about the decals, Mike. I had a problem with my '66 Shelby Mustang stripes as well. I just couldn't get the hood and trunk stripes to lay down right, and then they ripped, so I just put on the GT 350 rocker stripes and called it good, lol.

I know right?!?!? It was still water based though, LOL. The wheels are almost done, and the engines are wired and pretty much built. The interiors are detailed and ready for the dash decals, and the chassis and suspension pieces are painted and ready for assembly. The bodies are just waiting for me to be in the mood for BMF and then decals before final clear coat. It's been slow going, al least it seems like it, but everything should go together pretty quickly.

I received my order from Off The Sprue that included 4 Recessed Domed Air Cleaners and 4 Flat Top Air Cleaners and 3 sets of 4 ignition coils, all made from machined aluminum. These are fantastic looking, and well machined pieces, and I am very happy with the quality. He has some other great looking items available and I encourage anyone looking for custom pieces of this nature to check out his stuff. He also has a youtube channel (Mark Dunlop) with some great builds and in-progress vids that showcase some of his items,

That is a beautifully smooth paint job!

I got some clear on both bodies this morning. They're not super shiny, but it's only the initial coat before BMF and decals, and they weren't miles deep in clear back in '70 anyways. I got my decals in from Keith Marks, but I think I'm going to have to wait a couple of weeks to order another set because the size script I need has only one of each color on the sheet. I also got the chassis pans painted red after research showed that they were indeed red, at least on the 90% or so I saw on google, and I sprayed the wheels in Vallejo Aluminum. Hopefully tomorrow I can wire the engines and get some dash detailing done.

That really turned out great! The GSX stripes are a perfect contrast, great choice of wheels with the red stripe on the outside edge of the rim, and the red steering wheel and shifter grip are perfect touches!

There's something you don't see every day! Very nice and Very cool!

Very nice! I really like the color you ended up with!

Man that laid down nice, and I love the color!! I spray my craft paints at 20 psi give or take a couple, and I'm a little closer when I spray, at about 4-6 inches. Obviously your method works very well for you! I'd be very curious what the gold decals would look like on that blue. I might be tempted to put a couple on to see, lol.

That's exactly why I use them. If I want to build in the winter, I'm using craft and acrylic paints. The wife and son are very sensitive to the solvent based spray cans, so if I do any painting it's water based paints through my airbrush. I do still use spray cans, but only in the warm months and out in the shed, lol.

Thanks guys! Thanks Mike, it's really just all about getting the right consistency. I knew better on the first try that it was a little thick. I over-compensated on the second one and it was too thin. The third started too thin, then I added a little more paint and got it just right. I don't know if they need it, but I'm giving them a couple of days before a coat or two of clear so I can foil and decal them. As you just learned, I don't think the lacquer and enamel clearing after paint window applies to craft paint, especially depending on the clear. I am going to use this Gloss Varnish instead of Pledge for these, which I think is very similar to Vallejo and even Createx gloss varnishes/clears. I've used it before with great results and it can even be wet sanded after a couple of days. Patience is my worst trait as well, but that Mustang looks great and I've seen your other work, so I think you have the body painting thing down more than you realize.

So I got the white sprayed on Monday and it turned out quite well. I'm pretty happy with it, and now just have to make sure nothing stupid happens to ruin the paint before I can get a coat or two of clear on it (white paint shows everything!!). After the second botched blue paint job, also on Monday, I'm happy to say the third time's the charm. I ended up thinning it with windshield washer fluid, and after a too thin first coat, managed to get the perfect consistency and the paint job looks great (at least to me, lol). Now to protect this on until I can clear it as well, lol.

I did give the Decoart one more try and thinned with windshield washer fluid. I tested it on a spare hood and it came out wonderfully, so onto the car it went. Third time was the charm! I had been working on color mixtures, and thinning with Pledge last month with great success, but I just couldn't seem to get the ratio right on this one.

Well, after spending a few minutes on the hood I decided not to bother saving the blue paint job either. So into a container of warm water it went for a few hours. One of the great things about craft paint, strip it in some water, or at worst LA's Totally Awesome and just peel and scrub the paint off with a toothbrush. I'm pretty sure I know what I did wrong, so here's hoping for better results tomorrow or Tuesday. Did you use the Deco Art? I used it on the Mustang model in progress and did'nt like how it looked so used some Anita's Metallic Black Craft I had previously and it went on smoother and actually with a bit of gloss. Yes, I did use the Decoart, I've had really good results with it before this. I liked the Anita's too. I've been thinning the Metallics with Pledge and that usually levels and glosses pretty good, I just didn't thin either color enough, my own dumb mistake. That Mustang looks great too!

I got the bodies painted yesterday, sort of, lol. The white didn't cover over the light gray primer very well, so into the sink it went with some warm water and a toothbrush to take it back down to primer. I then sprayed a coat of white primer over the light gray and will wet sand it today and re-paint hopefully Monday. The blue on the other hand covered very well, but has a bit of a texture to it. I'll work on that today or tomorrow and see if I can save it. I'm pretty sure I can, but we'll see.

Very well done! I agree, that is a nice kit. I built one back in the late 80's/early 90's, and definitely need to pick up one or two of the newly re-released kits.

Very nice! That Purplicious is a really nice color! I'm pretty sure I would never be able to complete a 24 hr. build, let alone have it come out as fantastic as yours.