Dave Ambrose

You need 10-4 mm Hg pressure to coat aluminum. That's a long way from 2mm Hg. Vacuum leaks are a constant problem at these pressures (or lack thereof).

It's probably way simpler to send your parts out for plating. What kind of vacuum system do you have? You'll need more than a mechanical pump to vapor deposit aluminum. You should at least have a diffusion(?) pump to get the vacuum low enough. You'll also have to accept that it's going to get dirty enough that you won't be able to do other kinds of vacuum deposition with it.

I'm so sorry. Moms are special. There's never a good time to lose them.

I've been using Testors wet-look clear from the can. I like it a lot. I've also used Future through an airbrush with good results.

46 for me. Apparently, I'm well-balanced. They clearly don't know me very well.

Probably the best way is to find a local model show/swap meet and buy a table. I don't know how many kits you have for sale, but if they're priced right, you'll move a lot of them and net about what you'd get on ebay for a lot less hassle.

I feel your pain. I have a lot of want-to-do projects where I currently lack the talent to complete them, But the wonderful part is that you can set stretch goals for yourself, and have fun while you're improving your skills. Willingness to re-do things helps a lot.

What is the color? I'm thinking it would be a great color for a couple of projects in my queue.

Enamel needs a different painting proceedure than lacquer. Put down a very light mist coat before you get serious about putting down color. The mist coat will look terrible and very transparent. Let it dry, give it an extremely light sanding with the finest sandpaper you can find, then lay down color coats. Keep the coats light, and let them dry for 15 minutes before you put down the next coat.

Here's something I learned from a guy who painted spacecraft for a living: Paint the hard to cover areas first. He would get into the nooks and crannies and hit them with paint. Then, he'd go back over the entire whatever, and paint it. When he was done, he'd have perfect coverage. It is a principle that's worked will for me on my models In your case, hit the areas giving you trouble. Leave the rest of the model alone. When it's dry, lightly sand the paint with über fine sandpaper. Then paint normally.

Congratulations! Remember this day, my friend. It will be one of your best days ever. I still smile when I think of my children's births.

Let's just say that if his IQ was a price you would have gotten change from a dollar bill. I once had to swim 17lb of dive weights back to shore. It was tough. At least I had fins and wetsuit. Somebody with no wetsuit or fins and a 10lb rock is doomed.But, why didn't he just let go of the rock?

These days, I hear the Taj Mahal version of Take a Giant Step far more than I hear the original version by the Monkees.

My first airbrush was Paasche VL set. It was great. You could tackle just about anything with it. We were doing model railroad and the occasional aircraft. When the friend who loaned it to me needed it back, I replaced it with an Iwata Eclipse BC. It worked, but I could never get a nozzle large enough to work well with hobby paint. It was awesome for ink tho. When I got back into cars, I got another VL and have been using it ever since. I mostly use enamels and lacquers.

A right-hand drive MG-TC. That made my day.

I started mine too. It's a fun build. The fit is excellent. I'm at the fill, file, sand, and repeat too many times phase. I'm using Tamiya masking tape on the windows and it seems to be working.

I brought several kits back from Canada, and never had a problem with US Customs, or the TSA. One customs agent asked about a couple of Gundam kits I was bringing back for my daughter. She smiled and said, "Lucky kid." Tools and acrylic paints had to ride in my checked baggage.

If you haven't already tried this, get a set of close-up lenses that fit your current lens. These allow the camera lens to focus closer. I'm shooting a Canon EOS 60D, with an 18-135mm lens. I normally use a +1 or +2 closeup lens for shooting models. For really small stuff, I might need a +4. You can get them in sets for a reasonable price on Amazon. If you decide you need a new lens, you'll have to get a macro lens. Be prepared for sticker shock.

It's not a car, but I still think it's cool:

Thanks for the heads-up. I saw one of these close up in the rail museum in Scranton, PA. They are massive in a way that does not come across in the photographs. I think it's going to be awesome to see this running under its own power again.

I was in the same boat. I've discovered two things: The cleanup gets faster with practice. I now clean the inside of the airbrush by spraying lacquer thinner, then cleaning the inside using a cotton pipe cleaner dipped in lacquer thinner. The gravity fed airbrushes clean up very quickly with just a spray-through of thinner, and a bit of swabbing with a Q-tip. I'm totally sold on this type now.

The 20,000 Leagues Nautilus is perpetually a favorite subject. There are very few kits around and those that exist are expensive, probably due to licensing. I thought it was interesting to see high popularity on anything from Firefly and 2001, a Space Odyssey. I confess, I added my votes there too.

This shouldn't be a problem. Aluminum is soft and drills quite easily. To add to the above: You should use a drop of oil to lubricate the drill bit. They type isn't terribly important. 3-in-1 should work just fine. Also stop periodically, and clear the cuttings from the drill bit. It also helps to turn the drill counter clockwise when you withdraw it. You should avoid flexing the drill bit while drilling. You can't correct the direction by tilting it, so start as accurately as you can.

Thanks, everyone. I'm getting happier by the day. I don't actually care whether it's a boy or girl. It's gonna be awesome.

My daughter called, and asked whether I preferred Papa, Grand-dad, or Grandpa. I went for Grandpa. Baby's due November 10th. Well off any holidays, and out of our family's "birthday season"; a three week period where half the family has their birthdays. I don't know whether it's a boy or girl yet, I don't care. We're gonna have fun. Building models will likely be part of it, regardless of their gender. This whole grandparent thing is growing on me. I might just get to like it.