Terry Sumner

Great job! Did you take any pics along the way of that cut you made?

Whatever.... Cheers.

Oh...nice... for a simple comment trying to help you out and you resort to calling me names!

Sam you are not offending anyone nor do you have anything to apologise to anyone for. Each modeler has the right to enjoy this hobby to whatever level they derive the most fun from. For me personally, I like to build for contests and I thrive on accuracy as much as I'm capable of. But that has no bearing whatsoever on your desired level of accuracy. I only started this thread in the hopes that we could come up with somewhat of a definitive list of common errors that other guys who aspire to be more accurate could refer to to make their builds better.

Love it. So glad you didn't call it a gasser just because the front end is raised!

Cool model but not a gasser. Should be an altered. No cooling system and front end is too high.

Of course! That has to be it! I mean...anyone who can swing from skyscraper to skyscraper on a thin wire attached to a batarang that always seems to find an anchor point should easily be able to invent 2,000 degree-proof parachutes right?

No you didn't miss it. I just haven't had much time to work on models. With warm weather, lot's of other things take priority! Yard work, projects in the workshop, my Harley, etc etc. I'll get back to it soon as I get some time..

Man that body is a rough piece. My hat is off to you for even trying to work that sow's ear into a silk purse...and even more so if you succeed! Good luck my friend!

Charlie...the best way I know of to check your surface prep is to give it a light coat of Testor's Metalizer aluminum. This stuff will make EVERY flaw in your work stand out plain as day. This comes from my airplane modeling when I'm trying to achieve a natural metal finish. To get a perfect NMF the plastic prep has to be flawless because the metalizers all make flaws readily apparent. Try it...it sands off easy and you will be able to see in minutia where your flaws are...

Cracks me up how the designers of this Batmobile decided it was ok to place 2 parachutes right next to the jet exhaust nozzle! Those chutes would have been a melted mess of nylon in about 2 seconds from the heat of that jet engine!

Please...let's not drail this thread. May I ask that we keep it on topic. Not to diminish your message Mike but this thread is supposed to be about flaws that we fail to fix in our models, not judging. That subject alone can be highly volatile and isn't germane to this thread. Thanks all!

How many pairs of shoes does she have?

A little tip for those headlight lenses...Don't use glue at all...use Future floor finish! It will glue them right in place and dries perfectly clear. I also dip my window glass in Future and then mount the glass to the body either with more Future or with Super Glue. The Future on the glass prevents the dreaded "fogging" by the super glue.

Absolutely as the other guys have said. But maybe I can explain why, so it makes sense because the smoother, more glossy the paint is...the better those decals will lay down and look like they were painted on. This is basic to most modelers but to the less experienced...well maybe this will explain the "why" we want that smooth glossy surface for the decals. ALL painted surfaces have varying degrees of smoothness to start. Even a freshly sprayed gloss coat that looks super smooth does too. In a flat paint, the surface is chock full of microscopic hills and valleys. These hills and valleys trap air in the valleys under the decal and it is this trapped air that causes the silvering effect on the decals. The way to eliminate the silvering is to eliminate the trapped air. And the way to eliminate the trapped air is to eliminate all the hills and valleys! To eliminate those hills and valleys, the top surface of the paint must first be leveled by sanding with finer and finer grits. Hence the use of the polishing kits with grits all the way from 3600 to 12,000! And believe me, when you finish sanding with 12,000 grit, that paint surface is pretty darn level. And this assumes that you've used the rubber sanding block because it will do a much better job at leveling versus your fingers! Then finish up by polishing the surface to a super gloss with either the polishing compounds that come with the kit or Novus or whatever brand of fine polish you choose. It is only then that you will have gotten rid of all those hills and valleys and your paint is now super smooth. The decals will then go on nicely and look a WHOLE lot better! To illustrate the power of these sanding kits one need look no further than aircraft modelers and the canopies on airplanes. Many of these canopies are made in 3 part molds due to their bulbous shapes. This neccessitates a mold seam line right down the middle of the canopy! To eliminate the seam it's gotta be sanded out. This of course messes up the nice clear "glass". Well you sand that seam line with all the grits in order up to that 12,000 and the canopy "glass" is almost perfectly clear again. A final polish and the canopy is perfect! HTH!

One more thing that I notice and is kind of a pet peeve with me is when someone calls their model a "Gasser" when clearly it's not. It seems like any drag car with a high front end is automatically a gasser! And if I'm judging a contest in a drag or competition car class, putting incorrect class designations on the models is a points deduction.

Without naming anyone in particular's build(s), what are the most common errors or maybe problems with kits that go unfixed? For me, one of the things that I see frequently is an ill fitting hood. Why is it that so many models seem to have the hood all messed up? Other things that I notice are mold/seam lines not removed, all 4 tires not on the ground, tires that look like they're falling off the wheel, the list could go on and on I guess. So what do you see that are easily corrected items? I hope that maybe simply discussing these problems in a generic manner could help some guys with their builds...you know...kinda like a list of things to watch out for when building?

Dip the sidewall in Future first and let it dry...then almost any paint will work! It's also one of the best ways I've found to serve as a base for tire decals!

Well I can certainly relate to THAT! A few years ago at the garage I was managing, we had a lady bring in her TR6 for some work. Back when I had my TR250 I was only about 160 lbs and I could easily get in and out of the car. Now I weigh...well...ahem...considerably more than 160...and man I gotta tell ya, I couldn't even get INTO that car unless I put the top down!

Can I put my Mooneyes pickup in here that I've already started or does it have to be something new from today on...?

That's pretty good my friend...but not good enough to win the title of Best Wife Ever! At least not until she equals my wife! And for that your lovely wife will have to do what my wife has done...and that is actually go out and BUY me kits! Yep...she has surprised me on more than one occasion by bringing me home some kit she heard me talk about or by ordering it on the sly from Squadron and having it show up with the UPS man! Add to that she has gone with me on a few shows and THAT my friend qualifys her for the Best Wife Ever title! And she's kept ME around now for what will be 30 years this coming December!!! All in good fun of course and may I congratulate you on picking such a wonderful lady to be your bride!

You're quite right! Not too bad at all...in fact...very nice!

Still have any of that gear? I still have my 2 RB's, 90mm, 150 soft focus and a 250mm. A bunch of backs, Polaroid back, prism finder, light meters, flash units, etc etc. Even still have some Norman studio flash gear, umbrellas, etc. Finally sold off all my darkroom stuff a few years ago. That was well equipped too! Color enlarger, processors, Stainless sink, etc etc. All gone now.

Art...it's not a center drill. It's just a small carbide drill bit with an identification collar on it. These bits are, as has been said...very brittle and break easily. They don't stand up well to the forces placed upon a true center drill. I have many of those bits and just as many broken ones too! LOL Here is a photo of an actual "Center Drill". Hosted on Fotki