Ben Brown

That’s looking great! I love the Volt cars and saw this one race at the VIR. What decals did you use? I used Indycals and had to double up several of them because the bright paint showed through them. Ben

I keep the instructions, any useful extra parts and decals, and then throw out the box with the sprues and any parts I can’t use. Which is why the Aoshima Aventador I just finished is missing the exhaust tips. ? Ben

Their LP line of lacquer paint is excellent. A lot the bottle colors are the same as the TS rattle cans. Ben

Nice! Hopefully they’ll follow it up with other GT3 kits. We still need a Huracan, NSX, Aston Martin, and 488. Ben

I’d love for someone to release a replacement rear engine bonnet for the Revell 911 with a duck tail or factory whale tail spoiler. The one Scale Production sells is an “outlaw” aftermarket version and isn’t meant for the Revell kit. Ben

I’m a big fan of SpotModel, Burbank’s, and Hobby Search. I’ve done a lot of business with them. Ben

Bought this 2023 Subaru BRZ as a replacement for my ‘04 Mazdaspeed Miata last week. I’m loving it! It reminds me a lot of a first generation RX-7 or 944, but with modern updates and a weird engine. Now to remove the mods from the Miata so I can sell it. Ben

No name, because I can’t remember it. Probably Ronco or K-Tel. ? It was in the “As seen on tv” section of Walgreens a couple of years ago. I never saw it there again, just the usual assortment of cheap nose hair trimmers, HD night driving glasses, and “tactical” flashlights. It’s probably safe to say the JB Weld stuff from Home Depot is better. Ben

I’ve found it has a fairly short shelf life, so yeah, one or two models, depending on how fast you build. It works great for car and airplane clear parts. The no-name stuff from the “As seen on TV” aisle I used a couple of years ago made a good seam filler, too. It was easily sandable. I haven’t tried this with the JB Weld, yet. Ben

I built the Fujimi kit a few years ago and mostly enjoyed it. It’s not too bad, given it’s age, but it’s certainly not a Tamiya kit. Heller made a 917K that’s supposed to be pretty difficult to build. The Fujimi body was fiddly to fit to the chassis and I ended up having to clamp it while the glue dried. I seem to remember the spare tire causing some interference with the body. I also never got the side windows to fit quite right. Ben

Indycals has released some decals for the Porsche 963 from the 2023 Spa race: LINK. I assume they’re for the Wicked kit. Ben

Hopefully, the GT3R will be along soon, now that the RSR seems to be finally on the way. Ben

Drooling over the Nunu 911 RSR and BMW with the ugly face! And still no Huracan GT3! ? Ben

Finally!!! Ben

I haven’t found a decent US-based source for Nunu kits. Burbanks House of Hobbies has a few. I usually get my race car kits from one of several eBay sellers or from SpotModel in Spain. Ben

Nunu has announced a 1/24 BMW M4 GT3. Not surprising since they’ve already done the M6 and M8. I’ll be getting at least one, even though it’s got a face that would be improved by a front end collision. Facebook link: Link Still waiting for them to release the 911s they announced a couple of years ago. Ben

I’ve built the Hasegawa kit. Unless you want a C9 with the high downforce wing, get the Tamiya one. I had fit issues with the clear parts and the body panel that makes up the radiator outlet duct. I felt like building it was more of a chore than Hasegawa’s Porsche 962 or Mazda 767. Ben

Mr Surfacer works fine with MCW paint, as does Tamiya’s primer. I’ve been using Mr Color clears but switched to Tamiya’s LP lacquer clears because they’re readily available locally. Ben

I had similar reactions back when I had an ‘86 Integra. I had a TR7 for a few months when I was in high school. If you turned on the lights, then quickly cycled the switch off and on, only one light would cycle, so the car winked. I actually managed to get a couple of dates that way!?

Thanks for the info! I just happen to have a Monogram kit handy…. Ben

Beautiful! Outstanding work on the paint! Did you convert the dash to left hand drive yourself or was the part supplied in the kit? I don’t see any LHD parts on the parts layout in the instructions. That’s the only reason I haven’t bought a couple of these, yet; I’ve been holding out for them to release a US version. Ben

If you don’t want to hassle with decanting TS-13, Tamiya’s LP clears thinned with Mr Leveling Thinner are great and will work fine over Splash Paints. I thin mine with about 1/3 thinner, since it isn’t as thick as Mr Color clears. Ben

I’ve been building what I have and selling off other kits pretty aggressively, so I’m down to ~50 unbuilt kits, now. If you ever wonder if your stash is too big, about 10-15 years ago, I went to an estate sale that had over 10,000 (yes, ten thousand !) kits. They held the sale in an empty store. It was amazing! Ben

I’ve used it in the past. It does cover dark surfaces well, but I didn’t think it worked well as a primer. It doesn’t seem to stick to plastic as well as Tamiya or Mr Color primers, and rubbed off easily, taking the paint with it. Ben

Windex is a brand name for a household window cleaner that contains ammonia. Stuff does a lousy job as a glass cleaner but is good for removing acrylic modeling paints. Similar products are probably readily available in other countries. I usually buy the cheap store brand. Ben