geetee66

I guess it all depends how much time and money you want to invest in them. I almost never build stock, because I enjoy the creative challenge... But some kits are enough of a challenge already, without making things more difficult for yourself.

Thanks everyone Russ, the teardrop knobs are from Replicas & Miniatures of Maryland. I used a red sharpie to put the lines on them. You get a variety of sizes in the pack. It's quite difficult to drill a hole in the ends of them, though. I used a 0.5mm drill, after making a countersunk start with the tip of a #11 blade. Be careful not to slip and jab your finger with the blade...I found the best way to hold them was with fingers. Pin vice jaws leave marks in the resin.

Ouch! I feel your pain(t)! Keep at it, mate. This is gonna be killer!

The paint looks wet, it's so glossy! Nicely detailed and the wheel/tyre combo is bang-on!

Very clean, very well built, very nice indeed! I love these ol' R34's... I have an Aoshima Mine's R34 waiting to be built. I hope it turns out half as good as yours Thanks for showing us, James.

Here are a few of mine: I used the salt technique on the '29 Just rubbed the paint & used pastels on these. All the rest are shiny..

Wow! You made a silk purse from a sow's ear! I love the paint, stance, wheel choice and finish. Now, if I could only get hold of one of these. Just seen one on eBay. $250.00 Stroll on!

Beautiful. Need I say more?

Art, it's work like yours, that inspires me to do better, increase my skills and create something unique. And to top it off, you're related to a legendary name. How cool is that? (cooler than a Bose-Einstein condensate...that's how cool.) Really super details here. I love the simple way you constructed the hinges and suspension. Truly masterful.

those wheels are the mutt's nuts! is it going to have a swamp cooler, roof rack and ice box?

Chapeau, Rick! Nice to see resin being given a go...although I haven't tried yet, as there are so many styrene kits I need to build first!! Top marks for doing a body that's a rare beast How about more pics?

Thanks everyone. Billy and Don, this is what I used for the glitter roof: Halfords is an auto-parts retailer here in the UK, but I dare say similar paint could be found online or in craft stores worldwide. Here are some new pics. I've done the interior now. I added some period stalk-ends to the shifter and the other column ( I guess it's lights or indicators) I recently discovered 3M Spray Mount to be the best method for applying flocking to the floor. Mask everything but the floor. Spray on a mist of the glue, sieve the flocking using a wire mesh tea strainer (So you don't get lumps) Dump it on generously, gently press it down with your fingers, give it a minute for the glue to get hold of the flocking powder, then turn the interior upside-down and gently tap the sides to remove the excess flocking. You'll get smooth results. I've been doing a bit on the chassis, too. You can see in this picture that I've chopped-off the ends of the exhausts and inserted wire pins. This is where my solder sections to the Bellflowers will attach. I'll probably drill small holes for pins in the Bellflowers and invisibly fix them to the chassis. I'll work out positions/sizes once the body is on the chassis as the position and length of the pipes is critical. I didn't want a spotless chassis. I noticed Larry parked his car on a gravel forecourt in the photos I've seen and I envisaged this car would be a daily driver (of sorts) and would pick up road dirt. I imagined someone with a top-of-the-range Caddy, rolling up to Watson's and saying: 'Larry, I like what you've done with your car. I'd like you to paint mine in a similar way. While you're at it, put some Bellflowers and Appletons on it and lose the stock 'caps.' This is a nicely engineered kit. It took a while to find the hardtop version. The Biarritz version abounds, but these are in short supply (just like the 1:1's) The engine is quite nice, too. The engine bay is nicely detailed. I'll add plug wires and some bracketry for the various pumps, etc. I foiled the valve covers and the oil filter lid. I'll add a fuel line, too and maybe copper pipes from the compressor to the reservoir. I have a small problem with a wrinkle finish on some of the chrome parts. I'll be able to fix it with BMF It's going to take me a few days to mask the body and get it sprayed, but I'll post more pics asap. Thanks for looking

When I saw some photos of Larry Watson's work, I knew I had to try and do something similar. I like most custom styles...everything has it's place. But late 50's / early 60's with these paint jobs, Bellflowers, Lancers and Appletons, really please my eye. This is what gave me the inspiration: So I laid down some Audi Alumin(i)um silver, then gave the roof a dusting of glitter. I polished with Micromesh down to 4000 grit, then used Meguires Scratch-X, Tamiya medium compound and Meguires deep crystal polish. I'll mask off a border, leaving the silver underneath, then hit it with candy red. My pattern will differ from Larry's, in that his car was a series 62 (I think....Please correct me if I'm wrong) and this kit is an Eldorado, which has a chrome strip running from the rear, up the top edge of the panels, to the windshield. I decided that adding a side-spear like Larry's, would make the sides too cluttered. They're busy enough as it is. The cross-bar wheels from Pegasus were a fairly good match to the ones on the original. To keep the clear red tidy, while flowing it into the cross-hatched centre, I first paint in a bit of clear thinner. It kind of helps the red to form a level edge without having to touch the sides with a brush... Thanks for looking More pics soon

Looks very kool! Nice job you did on that.

Nice build! I saw one of these in a forum post, somewhere, and the guy who built it used fibre-optics from a miniature christmas tree, to illuminate the grille, dash and underside of the car. He put the battery box in the trunk. Btw..a lot of the wrecked cars in the movie were vacuum formed panels filmed in reverse, so it looked like the panels were rebuilding themselves. It was horrible seeing whole cars smashed to bits though. That was a real horror movie!!

I've seen quite a few 1:1's of these and your build is VERY convincing. The interior looks so real and your chrome work is spotless. I can see why it still has first row status in your collection!

Krayzeee! Hugely creative and unique build...superbly executed with a great deal of skill

Well, i've never seen one of these before. Looks like you brought it back from the dead, with a lot of style! I reckon its always good to rescue old kits and give them a good home. You did this one real justice.

BLAH_BLAH_BLAH_BLAH! That build is sharp enough to cut steel! Perfect finish..good colour choice. Very classy looking build and good photos.

Thanks guys Mitch, the paint stand is Tamiya. It came with a turntable and clamps, for painting small parts. Should be easy to get from a Tamiya dealer. I've used mine on every build. I also use it to keep the painted body in a safe place and for when I apply the decals (although I then tape the rotating part of the stand so the body doesn't turn when I'm in the middle of a decal) Here's a link to a pic of it: http://www.tamiyausa.com/items/paints-finishes-60/tamiya-air-brushes-accessories-57000/spray-work-painting-stand-set-74522 Your truck sounds like it's gonna be very cool! Lookin forward to seeing it 'under glass'

Let me be the first to say how nice this build is. The paint is very good. You got a real nice shine on it with no 'peel! Super-clean and tastefully done. I'd gladly have this in 1:1!

Very nice indeed! Very clean and crisp build. You did this kit real justice! I've used the foil-before-paint technique. It works like a charm...as yours did!

Cheers for the nice comments everyone. You guys are pretty much the only people apart from me, who will ever see my builds. Your opinions matter a great deal to me, especially when I see what the rest of you are up to. Mitch, I waited about a week for the gold to gas-out, then I sprayed clear over it and waited a week for that to gas out, before I hit it with the candy red. My plastic spoon tests showed the metallic effect was increased with a clearcoat between the gold and candy. I applied the candy very progressively, taking time to check for patchiness or over-application. As soon as I had an even coat which had consistent colour saturation, I stopped. I left the candy to cure for a week or so before I sealed it with a clearcoat. The Alclad-looking paint is from a rattle can. I got it at an automotive parts store. I think it's intended for craft use and like Alclad, it doesn't like to be touched with fingers. Clearcoat dulls it and makes it look like flat silver. I heard that Alclad works well over gloss black, so that's how I prepped my surfaces. Plus, it helps you see where the paint is thin. The heat-stain was brushed on, using Tamiya smoke, clear orange and red with some metallic copper and a bit of clear blue. It's a bit trial and error. I used some sprayed sprue to test my colours, before I applied it to the model. I built up the orange gradually, allowing each coat to dry completely. I added a bit of red to the top portion of the pipes, mixed in a little metallic copper and dulled the top part down with the smoke paint. Be progressive, light and don't try to rush it.

Man, you have SO much skill! You got everything right on this, as far as I can see! Colour, shape stance. It's all there. I really love this. It's so perfect.

That paint is bang-on! I like the steelies, too. Another thing I noticed, which made me nod in approval, was the way you got the front bumper level. A lot of people miss this and install it at an angle. I already built one of these, but I now have the custom version with the button upholstry interior. A real nice kit with great detail. Yours does it real justice.