Custom Mike

Thanks for the compliments guys, they really keep me going on things like this. I finally got my side windows made up, and even with the templates I made this was a real pain to do. I wasted a bunch of clear plastic, but I've got all 4 windows now, they just need the black paint on the inside and I can glue them in. I've also got my windshield and door window trim painted, with a tiny amount of clean-up to do. Here's some pics of the trim and the windows set in place (They really didn't want to stay in place for the pics!), enjoy!

Randy, this is simply unreal work. I am in total awe of what you're doing here....I'm gonna go throw my stuff in the trash now!

Kane, that is some absolutely beautiful detail work! And I love your explanation for the Blue shock, sounds like something I'd come up with!

Oh, and I masked off the rocker trim and corresponding trim on the front and rear fascias and painted it black. I felt like it would help make the side of the car appear slimmer than it actually is. It seems to have worked, you tell me!

Today was my day to handle little stuff like the dash (Hey Revell, drill out the dash and give us something to mount the decals to BEHIND those holes! What a P.I.T.A.!), front fascia, hatch, under-hood stuff, etc. Here's the pics, another update in a minute!

Thanks for the info, I'll try it myself on a few things I have laying around, I sure can't seem to cast anything using resin!

Dan, spill it, I can't see a difference. How did you get past the grainy texture that Mike had when he cast his stuff? Both of those hubcaps look like kits parts, I want to know how you pulled it off myself!

Great work on my all-time favorite Impala Mike!

Thanks for the compliments guys, I've got a little ways to go before she's finished, but it's coming along nicely now! Les, THANK YOU!!!!! I can finally stop sweating running out of this stuff! Oh, and that Pete's grille looks awesome, is it completed yet?

I kind of figured it would be rough, but at least now we know. Thanks for giving it a shot anyway Mike! Kyle, there are two ways to build something up using this filler. One is the method I used on the Momad to fill in the backside of the wheel arches on the Magnum body, and the other is applying it straight to the area you want to build up. On my Concept Charger, I added a rear spoiler made entirely of this filler. I placed a piece of tape on the trunk (Since I wanted the spoiler to look like a separate piece, I made it removable) and laid the filler on it until I had the rough size and shape I wanted. If you were doing wheel flares, you could just lay down some filler where you wanted it on the plastic. Lay down some filler, and let the first application cure (About 15 minutes if it's not too thick) and apply some more, building it up until it was slightly larger than what you wanted. If it's a thick application, let it harden overnight, then start shaping and sanding it. Here's a few pics of the Charger's spoiler being made, the only limit with this stuff for body work seems to be your imagination! The filler built up into the rough shape of a spoiler, this took 3 applications to get the thickness I wanted... After a little rough shaping..... The final shape prior to fine/finish sanding... And a shot of it off the car, it's not completed in this pic, but you get the point. From here, it was finished off, then super-glued to the trunk. I cut the ends off and attached them to the quarter panels, making a 3-piece spoiler completely from Acrylic Filler! And the completed model, with the spoiler in place!

After fixing the problem with the trim, I cleared and polished the body, then masked and painted the under hood area. I let it sit for a few hours, then added some foil to the back hatch and passenger side, and taped on the P.E. insert and snapped a few pics. I'm liking the look of this baby now!

Man, that just looks sweet Adam, I love the satin finish, it makes this beauty stand out even more!

Hey Tito, it's actually the same color all around, but the lighting gives it that Flip-Flop effect. Why do you think I wanted this color, it's just killer! Luis, I'm going to use the Photo-Etched inserts from AMT's Pro-Shop '57 Chevy, I've got both of 'em all trimmed up and ready to be epoxied on! Thanks for the compliments guys, now wish me luck on my little repair job!

I use Lacquer thinner, a 50/50 mix works best for me. It thins it out just right, and gives you about enough for one model, but I'd suggest buying two bottles of the same color just to be safe!

Since I got home too late to lay down any clear, I took some shots of the interior, chassis and body all mocked-up, and I love this color even more now! I can't wait to lay some clear on this baby! But, I did spot a problem. On my lower piece of trim on the passenger side, there's a spot that didn't get glued back down when I broke it loose. I can fix it with some Mr Hobby White putty, but I'm going to have to be extremely careful so I don't screw up the paint. I'll give it until this weekend before I try any repairs, just to be sure I don't mess the paint up.

Good to see the rims and intake put to use so quickly Mike! The foil work you've done is beautiful, not too shabby for a guy who prefers Mopars!

Tito, I'm betting once I lay down the DuPont Nason Clear, it'll really pop. A buddy of mine nearby may have one of the speakers, but if he can't find his, I'll drop you a P.M. and let you know!

WE HAVE COLOR!!!!!!! I had to lay down some Dupli-Color Silver, because the Nail Polish is essentially a Candy color, it was almost translucent over the White base. But after laying the Silver down, and applying 8 coats of color to get the shade I wanted, we're looking good! I've got two tiny dust specks on the rear of the hood, but everything else came out perfect! Here come the pics, I'm shooting for Wednesday as my date for Clear coats, wish me luck!

Randy, this is just unbelievably cool stuff you're doing! I'm about to try soldering some Aluminum, and I hope I can get my work to look 1/10th as good as yours!

I decided after I went to all the trouble of making these spiffy new door panels, I had to brighten them up a bit. So after fixing my dash and armrests, I masked the door panels off again, and laid down a lighter shade of gray. I think it looks killer, but I've been wrong before. Oh, and does anyone have one of the door speakers from Revell's 2006 Charger kit they can spare? You'd think that a guy who bought three of the kit would have one laying around, but I think I sent all my spares off to someone. Either that, or I lost 'em somewhere in here, I'm going with option #2!

I'm still fighting with my printer and trying to decide which script to go with, I really need to get a new printer with better resolution if I want to print my own stuff. But in the meantime, we have some paint on the interior parts, it's Dupli-Color Interior paints Charcoal Gray. Once it spent a few hours in the dehydrator, I masked off the console, center of the dash, and armrests, and laid down some Dupli-Color Vinyl Blue for an accent color. I've got a few spots to touch up, but it'll wait until tomorrow. Here's the pics, enjoy!

How's this for color?

Thanks Alyn, I'm leaning toward the Modern stuff myself, it just fits better. But you know I like to give people the options I decide on, because God knows I'm not the only person on the planet, I might just be deciding on something stupid if I go with my first thought. BTW, my first thought was the Retro stuff!

And the interior is in primer, I should be able to get some color on it Tuesday night!

We have White primer! I've got to sand two spots down on the hood and and re-scribe one line a bit, then re-shoot it (I brushed up against it like an idiot!), but the rest looks really good. I'll let it cure for about 4 days, and then lay down some color!