PHPaul

I too appreciate the technical details of "wrecking" a model. Thanks!

Roughly half of the 2x4 addition is spoken for already...

Howitzer-sized bullet holes aren't quite as noticeable when installed on the diorama.

I know, right? I started this project as a substitute for rebuilding/restoring a John Deere 420C crawler. I got the dozer torn pretty much completely down and made a list of everything it needed. I totaled up the parts list and fainted dead away. Discretion (and my bank account) dictated that I part it out and run away. I did manage to break even on the deal so it could have been worse. When this idea occurred to me, I said to myself, "Self," I said, "How much can a diorama possibly cost?" And that right there, Boys and Girls, is what ya call yer "Stoopid Question". Cheaper than fixing the dozer? Yeah. So far anyway...

Ran out of room before I ran out of ideas, so I added another 2x4 section. It'll be home to the corn crib I mentioned above and some other buildings I've built or had donated to me.

Ha! There's no school like old school!

20 mike-mike twin Oerlikon mount...

Well the answer is...sorta. I started with this: I initially tried the "Purple Pond" but it didn't touch whatever they used for paint so I went to the old standby brake fluid. Once stripped I went at it with a pair of parallel jaw pliers and a small vise. I was able to do a fair bit of bending, taking it slow and watching carefully for the beginning of cracks. I went a little too far with the driver's door and broke it, but some super glue and baking soda and it looks like I did it on purpose: I used a small drill to make some "bullet holes", super-glued everything together artfully ? and hit it from a distance with Rustoleum Rusty Metal Primer: This will get posed on my farm diorama with a tree growing up through the frame.

Surfed a little yesterday, didn't really find anything. One guy has pretty decent luck "straightening" bent parts. Nothing extreme, but slow, steady pressure seems to work as long as you don't have to move things too far. I've experimented a little and been able to put noticeable bends in the fenders. If successful in achieving my intended result, I'll post pictures here.

Hmmmm. Should have thought of Ewe Toob. I'll look around. Thanks!

I have a 1/64th cereal box diecast truck that I want to add to a diorama as part of a junk pile. It's a 30's Ford. I'm going to strip it and repaint with a lot of rust but I'd like to add dents and bent-up body work and maybe a few "rust holes". Can diecast be worked that way without breaking pieces off? If so, what's the best way to do it?

The longer I looked at the first version, the more the problems stood out. The metalflake paint was inappropriate for a working truck and (as is often the case) the flakes were way out of scale anyway. Also, there were bodywork problems on the tank, mostly a "glue burn" on the side skirt and I didn't like the domes. So, I built a new body, left off the domes and used thicker material for the skirts. My first attempt at paint was okay-ish until I tried to buff it. Not sure exactly what happened but even using a VERY light touch with a soft, dry cloth it rubbed right through the paint. I used buffable metalizer over a coat of gloss black. Might have been the enamel base coat vs. the acrylic top coat. So, stripped it, re-glazed the seams, wet-sanded and did the gloss black again, this time with a chrome acrylic vs. buffable. Then decals and a coat of acrylic clear gloss. Still can't hold a candle to the paint jobs I see here, but significantly better than the original. And that's my goal: Each build is an improvement in some way over the last one. Edit: Once again, pictures highlight areas that could use improvement. I faired the joint between the skirts and the tank too much. Should have left a shadow line I think.

VERY nicely done! Very convincing. The first car I owned on my own was a '62 Impala. It was a 4 door with a 6 cylinder and 3 on the tree which was disappointing at the time but probably wise, if you know what I mean. ? Mine was black with a red interior. You NAILED the interior color!

Got 'em and Thanks!

Do you have any detail pictures of the '49 Ford? I love that era of Fords. Might be a little biased, that's me with my Grandfather's Ford. Not sure what year the car is, the picture would be from 1951.

Sweet! I had a 1:1 '69 Nova SS. Only really cool car I've ever owned.

REALLY like the paint!

Unfortunately, HL is the ONLY hobby shop within reasonable driving distance of me and that one is 60 miles away. I was just there yesterday. The model section consists of both sides of one short aisle. Decent selection of plastic, didn't pay any attention to the diecast section as that's not my thing. Their selection of scratch building supplies is extremely limited. Some K&S brass sheet, tubing and rod in limited sizes and a paltry collection of Evergreen plastics. Tool selection is not much better. They do have a reasonable assortment of Testors and Model Master paints but overall, it's not really worth the trip. Used to have a really great Mom and Pop place about 20 miles away had a full display of K&S, Plastruct and Evergreen, models out the wazoo and pretty much anything you wanted in HO train stuff. Sadly, they closed up shop 4-5 years ago. Thank Goodness for online shopping.

Looking forward to watching this build!

"Built like a..."

We had a combination corn crib/equipment shed on the farm I grew up on. It's visible in the upper center of the home place picture. Decided I wanted one for the diorama, couldn't find anything even close in kit form so scratch built it from scale lumber. Just needs a little more weathering on the corrugated roofing. Oh...and an addition onto the diorama table so I have some place to put it...☺️

Step awaaaaaaaaaay from the crack pipe...

No direct experience, but I have some VERY tiny cog belts from scrapping old printers that might well work.

For years, I thought 9/16ths and 10mm wrenches had microscopic little legs and walked off on their own. Back when I was young and limber enough to crawl under cars, I had a dog that loved to "help" me. He had two favorite tricks. One was to catch me when I was wedged in a position I wasn't at all sure I could get out of and then give me an exceedingly thorough tongue bath. The other was much the same, except that he'd lug off a tool on his way out. Exceptionally smart dog, he knew precisely which tool I'd need next...

Yeah, me too...? I've got a corner of a chilly and often damp basement. The good news is that, like my garage, my wife won't go near it, so I don't have to worry about her "organizing" or "cleaning" it.