Ddms

Well, you can bend the aluminum tubing with no kinks if you put brass or aluminum wire in it. But don't expect to recover the wire. Ddms

"Wuz up." How did you decide that the problem is not the nozzle? Ddms

Beautiful build! Better looking than the original, and probably more reliable.

Painting is not rocket science if you use the Right Stuff. As Curtis suggested, you won't find many complaints among modelers about Tamiya spray paints. The combination of Tamiya Primer, Tamiya TS-series color coats and Tamiya clear coats is nearly always troublefree. You'll read about the occasional problem with clearcoating over decals, but that's a rarity, and it's almost always caused by a combination of wet application and crappy decals. Anybody who's struggling with hardware store acrylics or enamels or other paints not designed for models ought to give Tamiya spray paints a try. Their primer sticks to just about anything and accepts just about any color coat - sanding optional. Their color coat goes on smooth, covers well, dries quickly, requires minimum polishing, doesn't attract dust and looks fantastic, even when it's not clear coated. And there are no long waits between coats. (You should wait a couple of days before polishing. That's about it.) There are other good paints out there (my favorite U-POL Powercan clearcoat included), but you can't beat Tamiya sprays as the way for novice painters to get terrific results on the first try, and with zero hassle. Ddms

Interesting that you can get Dupont lacquer where you live. Here in California, traditional lacquer is seriously illegal, and no automotive paint jobber dares sell it. One store told me that a shop had been closed down for importing it from Nevada. I did a lot of shopping around in the L.A. area, and the only place you can get a bottle of genuine clear lacquer is at a hobby store! And that's Testors Glosscote. Of course, Tamiya TS13 and MM Lacquer System clears are available, but only in spray cans. Both of those are synthetic lacquers that don't have environmental issues. Automotive paint stores do sell Dupont 2-part urethane automotive clears, which are not lacquers, but they don't sell them in small quantities. Expect to spend a minimum of $40 for a 2-pack including the coating and the hardener. As far as I know, Zero Paints from Hiro (MFH) are the only urethane clears available in small quantities. They give you a terrific gloss; some people like that, but for the cars I build, it's too extreme. And there are other drawbacks. Urethanes tend to collect near edges and panel gaps, giving the car a dipped-in-syrup look - it's called the meniscus effect. (This is more noticeable in small scales.) Unlike the syn lacquers, urethane coats don't blend one to the next. For example, if you sand through to the color coat, you can't just re-clear the burned-through area. The "patch" will show. They are also very tough and difficult to strip. There are also safety issues. At the very least, you need to wear a professional respirator when spraying urethanes. Actually, many modelers - including me - have had problems spraying Tamiya TS13 over decals. It depends on the decal, of course, but you can't be sure until it's too late. So it's essential to start with two or three very light, dry coats, and even then, don't apply it too wet. The same applies to U-POL Power Can, which is the same as TS-13, except much, much cheaper. OTOH, I don't think there's a problem spraying urethane clear over decals. I've heard that they are much milder than the synthetic lacquers, but can't say that from a lot of personal experience. I've only used 2K clear on a couple of cars, and the decals have not been damaged.

Steel music wire - like for pianos and guitars - comes pretty thin, maybe even #80. But it's very, very hard stuff and will ruin cutters. The upside is that it stays straight, so for certain things it's just the ticket, especially if it will be under strain. Case in point: I just used some for a 1/43 gearshift lever; I'd have bent any other wire in the process and it would have always looked crooked. I have a friend who's a guitarist, so he keeps his old treble strings for me. I've set aside an old pair of trashed cutters just for cutting the stuff. But brass wire has its uses, that's for sure, and it's available in hair-thin diameters from model RR sources. My local store, The Whistle Stop, carries it. Even if you have a good method of sharpening Xacto blades, how can you tell whether they're as sharp as new? With new blades, there's never a doubt. They're not too expensive in large quantities; try eBay.

I only use it when there's no way to hold a part in place while it dries normally. A Microbrush is a good way to apply it without getting it all over the place. One of the drawbacks of CA is that it's brittle. It can't withstand shock or flexing. I believe, but can't prove, that Kick'd CA is even more brittle than CA that dries on its own. Lately I've been using Gorilla Super Glue. It contains rubber and handles flex much better than regular CA. It's medium thick; I think it also sets up quicker than other medium CA's. (I don't use ordinary Gorilla Glue!) For tiny parts on bendy surfaces, old-tech Testors Clear Parts Cement and Window Maker still does a pretty good job. And it's easier to handle than any CA. Ddms

My huge local model RR store has lots of cast brass stairways in HO and N scale. Some look a lot like louvers; they could be curved and inset into the decklid. But you'd need to spend a lot of time searching the Whistle Stop to find the right ones.

If the clear is a synthetic lacquer like Tam TS13, you can spray a color coat over it and more clear on top of that, EVEN if the color coat is automotive urethane. Works like a charm, but don't let a lifted inner tape edge accidentally drop down and stick to the model. If that happens, you'll have a ridge to sand down.

I love patching, mainly because it seems like a small miracle. You can get great results by doing it carefully - but only you're painting with synthetic lacquers like Tamiya TS and MM Lacquer System. With these paints, new coats melt into old coats. Enamels and acrylics don't do that, so patching them is a much more difficult proposition. That's one reason I like the syn lacquers. (Actually, patching seems to work pretty well with automotive urethanes, too. But I haven't done it enough times to be sure.) I've tried masking along panel lines, and it never works for me. I always manage to either fill the panel gap or to create a new and unsightly edge along the seam. So I now do what I call "soft patching." Here's the drill: Prep the damaged area, making sure that there are no unwanted gouges, nicks or paint edges. Mask off the rest of the car about 1/4" back from the repair. Then comes the magic: lift the edge of the masking tape about 1/8" inch all around the area to be sprayed. When you spray, avoid spraying under that lifted tape edge. That way, the new paint won't build up a hard, visible edge. Multiple coats might be necessary, since repairs often have dark and light areas that will show through. When the masking tape is removed, the boundary between new and old paint should be invisible. If there's a change in texture, a little light wet-sanding with 1500 grit will disappear it forever. Ddms

I think there is a difference. A Tamiya nozzle is the next best thing to an airbrush.

After some serious pondering, I solved my own problem. Using a drill and some small files, I modified the tips of a pair of crappy Harbor Freight pliers. In this instance, crappy is good, because the pliers' metal is soft and easy to file and drill. In case the pic isn't clear, here's an explanation: Both plier tips are the same. I filed a perpendicular groove across each tip, about 1 mm back from the very end. These grooves form an opening where the rivet head goes. The distance between this opening and the tip of the pliers is less than the length of the rivet shaft. Then I drilled a .025 hole between the plier tip and the opening formed by those grooves. The hole is where the shaft goes. Because the distance between the opening and the end of the pliers is shorter than the rivet, the tip of the rivet shaft sticks out beyond the tip of the pliers, which don't let the rivet swivel around, but don't crush it either. With these pliers, the rivet never gets loose. For each rivet, I start by grabbing it and breaking it off the sprue. Then, without releasing it, I dip the tip of the shaft in glue, stick it in the target hole, tap it down and go on to the next rivet. I thought this job would be a major PITA, but I could have riveted the whole car in the time it took to write this. Hope somebody else can put it to good use. I'd try to patent it, but somebody has surely thought of it before. Those model railroaders probably use a similar gizmo for driving spikes.

Using a pin vice, I've drilled quite a few holes for the Tichy rivets. That went better than expected. The problem is inserting the rivets themselves. I've inserted a few, and they look just fine. But it took a long time to get each one perpendicular to the hole. I tried holding them with a tweezers and with poster tack. Neither method is able to hold a tiny plastic rivet at a fixed angle, so it takes about a dozen tries for each rivet. At this rate, this task will take many days. I'll probably get better at it with practice, but is there a better way to hold these things straight? Ddms

I would use a good primer that's intended for styrene models. Tamiya is excellent. Use the grey first. It's intended to help you see any defects and it's easy to sand. Automotive primers are great for 1:1 automobiles, but IMO they're too thick and grainy for small-scale models. Many are quite toxic and some will ruin a styrene plastic surface by etching it. Since you're painting the car red, you might want to apply Tamiya White Surface Primer as a final primer coat. While the grey makes it easier to see problems, it tends to deaden a red color coat. Unless you apply many color coats, your Ferrari will look brighter if you use the white primer before applying the red color coat. When you've wet-sanded away any glitches and you've got a perfect, smooth primer finish, mask off any areas you don't want to paint and wash the model with a soap-and-water solution. Rinse well and soak up - or blow away - any standing water. At that point, avoid touching the car with your hands. Wait a few hours until all dampness is gone. Before you spray, warm the can under a hot tap. Give the car a light, dry first color coat by holding the can about 12 inches from the model and moving it fast. I don't use Humbrol, but if it's a synthetic lacquer like MM Lacquer System or Tamiya TS Series, you only have to wait a few minutes before applying another coat, whether color or clear. Important: That timeframe does not apply to enamels or acrylics. (Some people sand with 2000 grit paper between coats. I realize that some people think each coat should be sanded and polished to perfection before another coat is applied. I'm not one of those people. I don't think undercoats need to be orange-peel free, so I don't sand except where there is a problem. Unlike enamels and acrylics, synthetic lacquers melt away any orange peel when you apply another coat.) The second and third coats can be a bit wetter than the first - you can achieve that by holding the can closer. The idea of multiple coats is to hide the primer and allow you to compound the car without burning through to the primer underneath. I assume Humbrol "Ferrari Red" is not a metallic. So a clear coat isn't necessary. If you've applied the paint correctly, you don't need to sand the final coat. Wait a couple of days and use Tamiya Coarse and Fine compounds. They will eliminate all paint texture and achieve a deep, rich gloss. Ddms

Thanks, but should this sort of thing be encouraged? I bought the Tichy rivets. Each sprue has 200 x .030" rivets and costs $2.50. I bought two sprues. They look great on the sprue - smooth heads with no mold lines. On the BRM car, the major rivet line is adjacent to the belt line where the two halves of the clamshell will be connected. I want that seam to be invisible - meaning I'll need to do quite a bit of filling there - so I'm thinking the best time to attach the rivets is after the two halves are connected and the seam has been "disappeared." The same will apply to the Dzus fasteners that attach the upper panels to the space frame. If it's necessary to polish the final coat of paint, I'll probably cover the rivets with masking tape to prevent burn-through.

By "this product" I assume you mean Parma. I've used it too, and I think you're unduly optimistic about the ease of removing it from cracks and crevices, but let us know how that works out for you. There's no doubt that some situations require liquid mask; that's why I have about ten bottles of the stuff. But I've never fallen in love with any of it. Ddms

I use mostly Microscale Micromask. It's fine with solvent-based paints, but since it's water soluble, it doesn't play well with acrylics. It's easy to apply, but it can be tricky to remove if it gets down into crevices. So don't use it over bent PE or other fine detail. It can also be hard to tell a masked area from an area that you were intending to paint. On more than one occasion, I've managed to scratch perfectly good paint thinking I was removing liquid masking stuff. Ruined my day. Ddms

Thanks, Mr. O. Your Jag looks great! The Great Planes rivets are .5 mm. If my weak math is correct, .5" is the same as 1/2 inch. I agree, those are pretty big, and if they are really .5 mm, they are bigger than I'd like to use. Regardless, where did you get them? That's okay. At least they'll stay put. I have a PE sheet of disks and washers. but they just attach to the surface. Even if they're glued with epoxy, they're very easy to knock off. I'd rather do the extra work than be constantly replacing rubbed-off rivets. I can tolerate tedium and repetition okay. It's tension I can't stand - like repairing a ridiculously fragile resin light cluster for my current Southern Cross Miniatures Talbot Lago T26 build. The tension is partly because nobody has replacement parts for the model - the mfgr is apparently in hiding. If I screw up that cluster, I'm up the proverbial creek. I also hate it when I lose a part that's either irreplaceable or the product of many hours work. That's one reason I'm trying to find a lot of rivets at a low price. I'll try to post a pic of the BRM kit later today.

I found some pretty good pix online, one of which is attached, so I've decided to go ahead and build the old Wells Finecast ("Auto-Kits") BRM P57 kit. I'd like to make a few corrections and add some detail. The white metal body was really rough and took a lot of cleaning up and filling, but I think the worst is behind me. I still need to punch a couple more access holes in the body. I've already scribed more panel gaps and I'd like add the rivets that attach the panels to the space frame. I've looked online and found a couple of sources at widely varying prices. Great Planes offers 360 individual .5 mm rivets for about $20 including shipping. Seems like a lot, but that's the best deal I've found so far. Any other ideas? Is .5 mm the right size for panel rivets? Seems like individual rivets in drilled holes are the best way to go. Any other suggestions re other ways to put rivets on the car? Any other details that cry out to be included? Tom

I keep coming back to the thread just to spend more time looking at it. A masterpiece.

I agree 100%. I just finished a Lotus 25 painted with Tamiya British Green. (It's posted elsewhere.) The paint went on so well that it didn't even need Tamiya Coarse. Just a bit of Fine here and there and a final polish with Finish. Amazing. My question is this: I've been using Tamiya primer for a long time. It covers so well, and gives such a smooth result, that I'm hesitant to change. I build some 1/43 models, and the Tamiya is thin enough not to cover the details. But it's expensive. So how do you think Plastikote primer compares with Tamiya? Is it available in both grey and white? I tried automotive primer a long time ago, and it was a disaster - thick and dusty, and it totally etched a Gunze Sangyo Fiat before I even started building it That's something I never want to repeat. Ddms

Gorilla Super Glue has become a mainstay for me. I'm not talking about ordinary Gorilla Glue here, but Gorilla Super Glue. They advertise it as impact resistant, which it is. It's a lot less brittle than ordinary CA and it seems to dry quicker. Hold any joint for 15 seconds and it's set. Unlike other CA, it has "give." I've found it to be especially good for small parts where I've only used canopy glue before.

I was recently gluing a tiny windscreen on a very primitive kit of an old 1/43 race car. It was just a 1/4" square cast frame with a clear screen. When it started to topple toward the cockpit, I tried to catch it, but it fell out of sight. So I looked in the cockpit, figuring that the cockpit was the only place on earth it could be. I probed around with various instruments. But it wasn't there! I was sure I had seen it fall into the cockpit, but who knew? Maybe I had somehow flipped it out onto the table. So I did the usual table and floor search, to no avail. I figured it had joined its many buddies in the Tiny Parts Matrix and would never be found, so I made up a brass replacement. But the two attachment pins wouldn't fit into the holes on the cowling. Hmmm. I got out the magnifier and tried to see what was blocking the holes. Mystery solved! The original windscreen had done a backflip over the edge of the cowling and had slipped through a narrow gap between the cowling and the dash. There had been wet CA on the pins, so it had managed to instantly glue itself to the inside of the cowling, up behind the dash where it could not be seen. I drilled through the holes and mounted the new windscreen. After making up a replacement, I'm not about to take apart the entire interior just to retrieve a hidden windscreen that been damaged by my drill bit. Under the dash it shall remain for all eternity. Ddms

I just had an odd thing happen with Testors black spray-can enamel. I was prepping some Tamiya suspension parts for Alclad II. Using an alcohol/purple cleaner mix, I had removed both the chrome and the lacquer undercoat, so I was spraying the Testors on bare plastic. It went on nice and smooth, with no sign of a problem. A couple hours later, I looked at the parts, and they were lumpy as hell, like the paint had reacted to the plastic and bubbled up. It was a real mess. I immediately dropped the parts in a purple bath. It's now about three hours later, and the paint is loose, and it feels like there isn't any damage to the parts. I had washed the pieces and let them dry for a couple of hours. I have to wonder whether there was some PP residue on the plastic. Or whether the plastic had absorbed some moisture that hadn't evaporated even after more than two hours. Or was it the Testors? At this point I don't know whether to a) prime the parts using Tamiya Surface Primer and then to use the Testors again, or to get some other kind of spray-can enamel, or c) to brush on Model Master glossy black from a bottle , or d) to brush on Floquil black enamel? Alternatively, I could airbrush on one of the enamels, but I'm a little uneasy about airbrushing enamel - how much to thin it, and with what. I do have some Testors thinner, but I'm much more familiar with airbrushing lacquers and urethane. These parts are pretty delicate, and I want to handle them as little as possible. So I definitely want to take a "hands off" approach. Thoughts? Ideas? Suggestions? Ddms

Any "pharmacist" who does not know about 91% alcohol is a clueless clerk, not a trained pharmacist. You can buy 91% and 99% alcohols off the drugstore shelf, for Hoodie's sake! Both are denatured alcohols, but that's only important if you intend to drink them - not a good idea unless you want to make yourself very, very sick. Any of these products will strip fairly fresh synthetic lacquer (Tamiya TS spray), acrylic paint (Tamiya AS spray) or automotive urethane, but NOT enamel. Alcohol will not hurt plastic. I don't believe Castrol makes Super Clean any more, but Purple Power and Purple Cleaner will do the same thing. It won't hurt plastic either, but it will remove just about kind of paint (except urethane) if you leave it in the bath long enough. If the paint is too cured to be affected by CSC or alcohol, try DOT brake fluid and Easy Off until you get results. None of this stuff will hurt plastic, but brake fluid will soften resin. AFAIK, the only "stripper" that damages plastic is lacquer thinner.