gman

Keith Marks decals may be an option for you, depending on whether there is a difference in scale (1/24 vs 1/25)... ^^ this video shows the Keith Marks decal sheet

Great looking build- it looks ominous all blacked out like that. Nicely done.

A promising (re)start. As always, your build is looking great.

That is a striking two-tone combination. Looking good!

That has to be one of the slickest, most well-executed flame jobs I have seen. The shot in natural light really showcases your hard work.

...and painting individual parts mocked up together as an assembly will usually help in getting good color match, good orientation of the metallics or pearls consistent between one panel and the next.

Looks to be a promising first airbrushed paint job. Nice even coverage. If those are dust nibs in the paint as opposed to sitting on top of your paint job, a wet sanding (after it has fully cured) and another coat of paint should set things right. I usually wash the body or parts being painted with dish soap, go over it with some rubbing alcohol and make sure it is clean, dry and free of dust before shooting primer, color coats or clear coats. If dust or debris gets caught in your clear coat(s), a polishing kit can often times get things smooth enough that you'd never notice.

I had that problem with one of the original Testor's Wet Look Clear lacquer cans. I warmed the can after ample shaking, and shook it some more for good measure. The first few passes were fine, but the clear ended up foaming as it hit the body on subsequent passes. It was sprayed over the Testors lacquer it was intended to be used with. Imagine my surprise, as the first 2-3 cans of the stuff I used worked fine. As much as I've wanted to like Testors lacquers, results aren't always consistent. I would rate their lacquer base coats more hit than miss, with the clear coats less predictable.

As is your work on this resin piece- I like how things are shaping up so far.

I was thinking your resin was a "phantom" body style, seeing as I haven't seen a variant like that in all of my years . https://www.google.ca/imgres?imgurl=https%3A%2F%2Fi.pinimg.com%2Foriginals%2F89%2F0b%2F08%2F890b08df1a0b192a489ee9e2517e008c.jpg&imgrefurl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.pinterest.co.uk%2Fpin%2F116178865360010544%2F&tbnid=78uWDGOZg-aYuM&vet=12ahUKEwjrlf3NncvpAhUUBzQIHdkBBVoQMygLegUIARDNAQ..i&docid=GiKIKPWaLg1InM&w=1000&h=687&q=www.irmaododecio.blogspot.com&ved=2ahUKEwjrlf3NncvpAhUUBzQIHdkBBVoQMygLegUIARDNAQ

That looks pretty good! With some better lighting in your photos, it may be even better than these photos do justice.

https://www.modelroundup.com/mobile/Product.aspx?ProductCode=DM-2480 A piece of stretched sprue and a photo etched bolt head to finish them up will have them looking like the style in your photo.

That pistol grip looks pretty useful. If I end up going that route, it may be a worthwhile add-on.

Paul at ISM is a skilled painter- I have seen many of his videos and reviews, and while he pushes what appears to be their own house brand for many things shown in some of the videos, he seems to like that air brush. Heck, I am starting to like it, though it would likely mean picking up a second more powerful compressor in order to run one properly. That Mr. Hobby brush seems more along the lines of a touch-up gun used on 1:1 vehicles for things like door jambs, and I could see it being very useful for scale painting. I bought one of those touch up guns years ago for my father, though I don't think he's used it yet. It was priced similarly to the Mr. Hobby airbrush.

Agreed. I got my first airbrush in the early 80's- a cheap plastic bodied external mix Badger, with the main selling point being that it allowed mixing and spraying custom mixes of the available hobby paints at that time. It did some things OK, but where it fell down was adjustability and quality- absolutely minimal control over spray pattern, and it wasn't possible to break the airbrush down as far for proper cleaning as it is with a better quality unit. I was able to coax some decent finishes out of it, as I was with spray cans, along with some failed experiments for both of those methods. Even a blind squirrel finds a nut once in a while. I like my VL, but typically won't use it as a double action. I'll set the paint flow with the needle adjustment in the handle for mist coats, and gradually adjust it wider open at the needle adjustment for wetter coats rather than relying on the trigger to adjust flow. I find it easier to set in the handle (especially with metallics) than trying to get consistent flow rates as the trigger is depressed and then pulled back each time. I was looking at gravity feed units with a covered cup from Iwata, as well as a different Procon Boy model and a UK model (Apex). A number of airbrushes I've looked at seem to come with only one needle these days, and the Apex has a variable needle. I'll do some more reading before taking the plunge. I appreciate the feedback, as it is nice to have from someone whose paint jobs turn out the way Steve's consistently do. I have been concentrating on lacquers these days, and with some of the sources for exact match paint available these days, there is not as much need to mix up a big jar for airbrushing a custom mix.

I understand. I have a Paasche VL that I've owned for many years (over 30). I was thinking of picking up another model to experiment with. The fan spray feature on this one does sound intriguing.

Is that what you get those great finishes with? Interesting. I'll have to look into one of those.

That looks really good- nice and crisp paint separation lines. This is coming together nicely.

https://www.revell.de/en/products/colors-accessories/email-colours/ It sounds like there may be a few different paint configurations in their line, with some being a lacquer. http://www.mr-hobby.com/en/itemDetail.php?iId=158 ^^ if this is available locally, it may be worth trying some and spraying over something to test (like plastic spoons or a scrap body), see if it performs better through the airbrush.

https://www.tamiya.com/english/products/74078brush/index.htm ^^ as mentioned I saw this being used by a well-known modeller in his painting videos. I used to have an anti-static gun for record albums that did double duty for model purposes. https://www.amazon.ca/Milty-Zerostat-Anti-Static-Gun-Blue/dp/B0033SHDSS ^^ a quick internet search revealed something similar, though it is shocking how much the pricing has changed

That makes for a very realistic looking headlight and tail light treatment. :staying tuned:

Excellent paintwork, sanitary building style- what's not to like!

The clear coat really makes that paint job look superb. Looking forward to seeing this one come across the finish line.

...and just checked the alternator mounting bracket in my kit- broken

Looking good. I like what you've done. I have to confess, I LMAO when I saw the license plate, but once the laughing subsided, got curious as to how you made the raised letters.