Bernard Kron

Heavy beathing! That gorgeous mill certainly sets the standard, but those wires are very, very tasty too! Definitely gonna be following this one!

Your results are very nice indeed. The orange peel that prompted this thread was far worse than yours. I still color sand and generally work from 4000 to 12000 unless the orange peel is seriously bad in which case I try not to get below 3200. For sure, color sanding provides a great base for the clear coat. I'm still intrigued by Treehugger Dave's method of allowing layers of paint to combine by painting when the prior layer is still relatively soft. The assumption, of course, is that the prior coat is relatively smooth, of course!

Thanx guys! At this point I've got 5 builds completed for the period since last March. I've got another 8 or so in various stages of planning or work. But I'll probably take no more than 4-6 down with me no matter how many actually get finished. Some are more flawed than others so it will be a question of quality of build combined with the all-important "vibe" or "story" the build "tells". The NNL West presents an awful lot of compelling "stories" all built at an extraordinarily high level of quality.

Thanx for the evolving discussion, guys. This is what I hoped to see. The Treehuggers' points, expressed in other threads as well, are/have been very helpful. Overall, I think smooth paint is the result of proper mix of the paint's components (Dave Z's point about shaking the can very well - I am finding that a good indicator is that I can't stand shaking it anymore ), optimum and consistent working temperature of both the surface to be painted and the paint itself, and - this from The Treehugger - possibly giving the paint layers the "chance" to dissolve or combine into each other (that's my theory anyway as to why Treehugger Dave gets such good results from a short interval between layers). Interestingly, the problem that caused me to start this thread was the one problem I never considered - a defective paint nozzle. As soon as I switched to another can of clear (this is the point at which the orange peel problem popped up) the problem largely went away. What seems to work well for me is to pre-heat both the paint (in a pan of warm tap water to the point where the whole rattle can surface is warm to the touch - so far I haven't had problems with bulging cans) and the paint surface (I use a dehydrator set to 105 degrees F), painting rapidly across and past the surace and immediately sending the object to the dehydrator to maintain the working temperature. I find the warmth of the dehydrator promotes flow of the paint and helps avoid the "chocolate dipped look" and allows thin coats. Lately I've been trying The Treehugger's tip of working quickly from layer to layer. I use DupliColor and PalstiKote lacquers (?) and, using the dehydrator, they set up very quickly and that by the time I have heated the rattle can back to temperature it's ready for another coat. The one thing I haven't tried yet is to go directly to clear coat during the paint cycle. I still color sand the hardened color coat (4-8 hours in the dehydrator). Since the color coats are relatively smooth and the application of another coat while the prior coat is still relatively soft allows them to bond together more completely, I will definitely try cycling out to final clear with an upcomng paint job. If the color coats are good enough I suspect this should work very well. But the bottom line is to be patient and methodical in the technique that works for you. For me, this is all still a matter of discipline. Someday I hope it will be a habit.

All done! The Under Glass pictures can be found here: http://www.modelcarsmag.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=23739

’32 Ford 5-window coupe as it would have been featured in a 50’s “Little Magazineâ€. (More pictures below) The new Revell ’32 Ford 5-Window in its full-fendered form reminded me of the hot rods featured in the “Little Magazines†of the 50’s, While some of those cars have become quite famous, even iconic, in hot rod lore, many were simple rides built within the limits of the budgets, abilities and tastes of their owners. It’s these more “average†cars that I wanted to capture in my build. This car is largely constructed box stock out of the kit with only a few changes. The engine is a stock ’57 Corvette fuelie from the Monogram kit, the owner of this car having simply transferred it as he got it directly into his coupe. The only change is that I had to remove the chrome plated ignition shielding the motor had, revealing the distributor. It just didn’t fit up against the firewall. All the kit chrome on the engine has been stripped and replaced with Metallizer metallics for a more realistic look. The wheels and tires are from the Revell ’29 Ford Roadster Pickup with Modelhaus Olds Fiesta hubcaps added. The front and rear suspension has been lowered about 2 scale inches all around. The interior is largely kit stock except for an AMT ’53 Studebaker steering wheel. The grill is a Model Car Garage p/e unit. Everything else is from the kit. Color is Plasti-Kote FM 8090 over DupliColor white primer. The white accents are the primer white. For the nostalgic fun of it I’ve included a few sepia tone pictures. Thanx for lookin’! B.

Thanx! Yeah, I tend to cover up my motors a lot. It's kinda cool seeing that Rochester F.I. gizmo peeking out from under the hood.

It’s been over a month since I posted anything on this build. It was supposed to be the easy project alongside my Ford ’29 A Roadster early 50’s racer which was supposed to be the hard one. The A Roadster is turning out to be very challenging but this one, which was supposed to be fairly straightforward with just a simple engine swap, was cursed with a bad can of DupliColor clear – the paint is probably OK but it had a bad nozzle, which took me a while to figure out resulting in Orange Peel Hell. Digging my way out of that disaster has been a real testimony to the miracle of polishing cloths. Even so, it’ll probably turn out to be a good “two foot†model, since the flaws in the crevices are almost impossible to polish out. Anyway, I’m on the home stretch. I hope to post a completed build Under Glass in the next day or two. In the meantime there have been some changes made. The side panels of the hood are gone. The air cleaner and generator of the box stock ’57 Corvette Fuelie don’t fit under them and I wanted the motor to be an unmodified drop-in, in keeping with the “little magazines†funk theme of the build. The semi-stock firewall from the AMT Phantom Vickie is also gone, replaced by the kit firewall from the Revell ’32 series – the motor just wouldn’t fit right. In addition I had to delete to stock ‘Vette ignition shield and substitute a visible distributor setup. Here are some pics of the chassis and interior before they disappear inside the completed model. Also, there’s a picture of the car up on its Fiestas and whitewalls, showing the body and fenders after an epic polishing job. Next stop is Under Glass! Thanx for lookin’ B.

I'm really lookin' forward to the rest of this, now. It's the full meal deal!

Nice one Curt! Really embodies the "Golden Age" in all its glory, with LADS as its epicenter. I've got one planned and I'm really glad this build is open 'til the end of the year 'cause it'll probably take that long to get to it! I've got a back issue of Rod & Custom from January '66 coming that has an article on my build - I sure hope it's from SoCal and not NorCal - I'd like to stick as close to the "rules" as possible...

With all the months that have gone by buried in the super-detailing of the engine, chassis, wheels, etc., I betcha there's plenty of folks who forgot about The Driver. Looking forward to the sculpting and the painting and the.... Oh heck - Let the games begin!!!

Beyond Ultra-Cool!!!! Your pictures really capture the vibe. It looks sooooo sinister under the low light in its flat black finish and gothic highlights, receding into the night-time urban landscape. This was always my favorite version. It summed up all the best of all the other versions.

I think that those of us that have seen this one before would agree that this is your "signature build". It reallys sums up your style: understated, but full of flare, originality and subtle touches. Glad to see you sharing all these with the MCM crew...

I hadn't seen this one before. Really nice wedge chop on that 5-window, goes well with the scallop on the side and the raked stance. Very cool!

Thanx guys. Dave, the inside of the body is all painted red metallic like the exterior except for the hood. The inside of the hood was painted, too, just not the final color. I'm running a p/e grill so you can see the motor (no radiator) through it. I haven't decided whether to paint the inside of the hood white for contrast against the red motor, or red metallic for continuity with the rest of the interior surfaces. The other thing I haven't decided on is what color to paint the interior panels I made, red metallic or perhaps some sort of dark metallizer for a more funky/realist look. I plan to leave the rear deck removable so you can look at the back end of the frame and rear suspension by removing it. I'm also going to leave the tonneau cover I'll be making removable to show off the frame and interior. I will, however, glue the main body in place. And thanx for the advice on the warm water. I'll try it. I think the distortion is the result of too many trips to the dehydrator! Those slicks came from Raul's parts box! (Thanx Raul, he, he...) B.

This build is going very slowly for me. Sometimes I feel a little over my head with this thing since it's mainly scratch built or heavily modified kit bashing. I've gotten the main body work done including paint. The frame and grill shell are Tamiya Dark Metallic Blue, the body is DupliColor Cherry Mietallic with Duplicolor Oxford White panels outlined in gold Pactra Trim tape. The numbers are gold leaf decals from the old Monogram Classics Super Modifed Dirt Track Racer/Kurtis Kraft Indy Racer double kit. The only major problem I'm facing is the the back half of the hood, which is a resin piece from RepMin, has splayed outwards and no longer lines up with the cowl. Does anyone have any tips on how to return it to it's proper shape? Below are some pics of the completed wheel sets and the painted body. Thanx for lookin'. B.

The Modelhaus site is the mother lode of wide whites (look for 2" and 4" white walls). Here's the main page: http://www.modelhaus.com/ Best place to look is under "Parts" - "Tires, nostalgic street rod": http://www.modelhaus.com/index.php?y=&...p;Submit=Search Unfortunately they have no pictures, buit here's a source for some photo references: http://s223.photobucket.com/albums/dd211/O...Pics/08%20pics/ Allow 4 weeks plus for delivery.

Beautiful sculpture on its way to becoming a gorgeous car, I'm sure. At this early stage what are you doing to ensure symmetry of the shapes from side to side?

Beautiful build of a beautiful and interesting car. The wheels and strakes along the bottom of the front fenders are very modern for 1933. It must have been a striking design in its day.

Beautiful. Gorgeous paint. Are the pinners and hubcaps in the cover art and are the 'caps included in the kit? Whether they are or not they are a super touch.

The demand will be there, all you have to do is post a few pics of stuff of this quality in 1/25 and they'll come a runnin'! (I purposely included only built up kit pictures in my examples - to see the full kits for a large variety of variations including 60's style blown and i jected hemis, a racing Jag engine and a 9" rear end go to the TDR site and click on the Fotki links).

Beautiful stuff. I remember the Offy from a recent post. The CAD/Rapid Prototyping approach sure cuts through a lot of nonsense. I know I speak for many of us here on the board when I say that these kits would be so very welcome in 1/25. I must wonder, however, how well they would scale down to such small pieces using Rapid Protyping technology and whether the market prices fo smaller scale parts would justify such an offer. On the other hand, the number of potential buyers would probably rise exponentially. At some point, however, I'll have to build that Jag motor. It's a real honey!

Thanks for this fun discussion Raul. It’s an interesting exercise in “modified out of the box†or “greatest hits kit bashingâ€. Here are the most successful parts in each category IMHO. 1) Body style: Roadster This is almost too close to call. The only really “questionable†one would be the 3 window since, like many, it’s always looked mildly chopped to me. The sedan has great looks, the new 5-window really nails the spirit of the 1:1 and of course the Dan Fink Speedwagon is what it is, take it or leave it. But the roadster is iconic, solves the problems of the AMT version (funky lower body and poor grill). And it looks great no matter what you do to it, highboy, channeled , full fendered, competition, street rod, Old School, it’s all good! (see below) 2)Fendered or Highboy: Fendered Ironically, even though the seminal kit was the highboy-only Roadster the stance of the kit chassis looks best with the kit wheels and tires partially hidden by the fenders. The front end is particularly successful in that regard. 3) Engine: Flat head All three motors are very nicely detailed. But the small block Ford is just too bland and spoiled by the end-of-90’s branded valve covers and transmission pan. Also, neither the single four barrel or the FI float my boat. The Hemi, while very nicely done is too bulky and ties your hands in terms of the style of builds you can consider. Of course you could say that the Flathead also limits the style of builds (where oh where is the small block Chevy for this series?) but it’s become so “classic†in the modern era that it’s ironically the most flexible in terms of possible looks to chose from. 4) Wheels: 5 spoke Torq-Thrust The Roadster’s slotted Halibrands are very nice but out of the box in full chrome they scream 90’s Street Rod and emphasize far too much the style of the period that is embodied in the tires from the Roadster kit. The tires introduced in the 3-window kit don’t really change things. Proportioning the Kelsey Hayes spokes from the sedan and the Steelies from the 5w coupe to fit these tires has ruined them both for me. What’s the point of using either of these if you’re running fat low profile front tires (but then I'm a decidedly Old School purist...)? The Torq Thrusts, on the other hand, are superbly detailed and look great chromed or stripped, and with the tires hidden under the fenders, look just right. So my “modified out of the box†or “greatest hits kit bash†version of these kits is a Contemporary Old School full fendered Roadster with the Flattie and Torq Thrusts, and stock full hood, finished in either glossy Black or bright Red. The only modification would be to do the “Tim Boyd trim†to the front spring tab to bring the nose down a bit and improve the rake. This version remains true to the contemporary Street Rod style of the stock kit frame. My “dream build†on the other hand is a fenderless roadster with a 4†channel, pinched and bobbed front frame ending behind a 2†sectioned grill shell, full louvered engine cover and full belly pan with rear rolled pan and hairpins front and rear. The rear of the frame is z’d with conversion to transverse leaf spring and the front crossmember is shaved a bit to bring the nose down even more. I envision either of two wheel/tire/engine combinations. Combo #1 is a flattie with four 97’s, steelies in body color with baby Moons and rings and narrow blackwall big and littles front and rear. Body color for Combo #1 is either Maroon or Deep Metallic Violet. Combo #2 is a small block Chevy with cast iron headers and three 97’s, red steelies with Lancer hub caps on wide whites, narrow fronts and M&H slicks on the rear. Color for Combo #2 is either Bright Red or Baby Blue. Also on my shopping list is the sedan with a 3†chop. Two versions are floating around, a channeled full fendered version with stock full engine cover in black, and a highboy with a z’d rear frame so it sits low parallel with the ground. This second version is sitting on my bench half-built. Almost done on my bench as I write this is a stock, full-fendered 5-window in baby blue with stock '58 Corvette fuelie, white walls and Buick Regal hubcaps. The combinations are limitless, build styles cutting across all decades and trends. The cult of the ’32 continues unabated. That’s what happens when you develop and exploit a classic series of great kits the way Revell has done.

Brendan: I love watching you "do that thing you do"! Building immaculate recreations of modern sports racers is a talent all its own. It's one I wish I had! I guess I'll stick to old school rods and customs because they are within my comfort zone. In the meantime I'll relax and kick back and watch you make another fine contemporary sports racer! The grass is always greener... B.

The basic design of that Topolinp is so "right" that those wheels and tires actually look "right" sitting under it. I'd love to see it done simply with one of your trademark bright poaint jobs and call it good. Very cool!