charlie8575

Now those are cool. Charlie Larkin

Very nicely done, Al. What did you put in it for power? Charlie Larkin

I love watching the Finns make fun of the Russians. Not too far from where I live, in the Fitchburg/Ashby/Gardner area, used to be the largest settlement of Finns in the U.S., and where I went to college in Fitchburg, I made a lot of friends who are of Finnish descent. Especially listening to the older people take digs at the Russians and Swedes reminded me of the Armenians on my mother's side of the family needling the Turks. Very nice model, and great job assembling that. Kippis! Charlie Larkin

I also find Avery 5418 labels are a great help for the caps. They're just about the right size for the small Testors bottles. They also stick well on the plastic Tamiya caps and of course fit Model Master/PollyS/Floquil bottles, too. Now, Chris, I told you to stop skydiving while fighting Chuck Norris! Seriously, I hope you get better soon. Charlie Larkin

I used the technique I described on an original SMP 1960 Valiant window unit with perfect results. The key is to use very light pressure and even, large circles. Kevin is right, though. Old plastics can be quite brittle, so if the part you're looking at looks compromised beyond some hazing or a scratch or two, it might be worth it to try Future, or, if you must try to polish, be VERY, VERY careful. Charlie Larkin

You MIGHT be able to use a shadow-box picture frame. I'd be a bit concerned about the weight, as those aren't designed to hold more than a few ounces. This might become a bit heavy. A better alternative might be to be purchase a display case and scenic the inside of it. You could black out the top, one or both sides and the back with some black paint, drill a hole in the base and attach a strip or two of lights to the top or the top back corner, running the long side of the case. The display case base could also serve as your substrate for the base itself, although it might still be wise to use a thin piece of foamcore to attach everything to. As Donn suggested, you could fabricate a gaurdrail using Plastruct or basswood. Turn 4 Hobbies in West Boylston, Master Hobbies in Leicester and The Spare Time Shop in Marlborough carry those materials. If you'd like, as we're not too far from each other, we can sit down and I can give you a diagram of what I'm describing. I'm free Friday for most of the day. Charlie Larkin The display case that would probably work best is one of the roughly 12-inch-square ones that various Michael's and A.C. Moore carry.

Bingo. We're going to have a damp one from the looks of things. At least it'll be over 50, which is fine with me. Wonder if the bunny has a bright yellow slicker so he'll be seen? Not like a little bunny with tons of candy in tow would be hard to miss... Charlie

And next year, the show will be on the 18th. There's your birthday present to yourself. Hopefully, we'll see each other soon. I won't be at NNL this year- wedding to go to. Now with all the weddings out of the way, I can resume my normal show schedule, as Classic Plastic go nuptualed-out, too last September. Charlie Larkin

Simple, everyday items for a dirt-track? Once the snow in your part of the Heart of New England melts (here in Marlborough, I've still got a good four or five inches on the ground), go to a sandy or dirt lot someplace and take a scoop or two of a sand/soil mix. Grab a stainless mesh collander and run the soil/sand mix through it into some type of container. Set aside the larger particles in a sealed container for future projects if you so choose. Go over to Staples, Office Max or whatever, and get a piece of foamcore board that's about the size you want. It would be advisable to get a thin piece of plywood or some 1x2 stick and either glue the foamcore to the plywood or make a frame with the wood and glue the board to that. That will prevent warping. Paint the foamcore with brown acrylic paint. While the paint is wet, sift the soil onto the wet paint. For added realism, roll some tires across the dirt to make it look like it's been driven on. Hope that helps. Charlie Larkin

Now that's impressive. I might organize things a bit differently, but the assortment is incredible. Missed you at MassCar, Terry. Hopefully next year! Charlie Larkin

Now those were a couple of articles well worth reading. Thanks, Casey. Charlie Larkin

Nice work on that, especially the engine bay. Charlie Larkin

Please come back to MassCar next year with that. Your work is great to see in person, Tom, and it was a pleasure meeting you. Charlie Larkin

Tamiya Exta-Thin cement for a lot of stuff. Testors in the tube for the times that I need to fiddle with stuff and want something that dries slowly. Model Master clear parts cement for clear parts- I prefer it over white glue and similar stuff, finding it actually works. Super-glue for stubborn parts. Epoxy for resin and the other odd assemblies where it's appropriate. Charlie Larkin

I use toothpaste for polishing plastic and then follow with Novus #2 to restore the lustre. Works well. Charlie Larkin

I'd use a wire brush for cleaning the files. Generally, I prefer Stanley, Craftsman, and other name-brand tools. As observed here, and speaking as a one-time aspiring IA teacher, buy the good tools, they'll last a long time. Lacquer thinner, with the brass brush for cleaning out tough clogs is a good option. To help control corrosion, especially if, like me, your basement gets a little moist, a VERY light coat of sewing machine oil will help protect them. Be sure the files are absolutely dry before oiling, and let them sit at least overnight to allow the oil to absorb into the metal so they won't be greasy and goop up your model or become hard/dangerous to control. Charlie Larkin

The Volt is probably so nanny-state controlled, that with the exception of the spoiler and possibly the rolling stock, I don't think the car will even run after being improved. Pity. It has a lot of potential like that. Charlie Larkin

As I've been gently reminding....MassCar is here. If that's not convenient, we have Classic Plastic for the northern tier of Massachusetts and there's a little club in WMass, too. Anne, send me a private message and we'll get something co-ordinated. Charlie Larkin

This is definitely great news, Chris! Glad to have you back with us. Get as well as you can soon! Charlie Larkin

Nice job on those doors. Charlie Larkin

I always get it out of the shrink-wrap within 24 hours to make sure all is well. Ron, you're a good builder. I'd look at Kenn's all-scratched models for some ideas on how to fix that, as you'll be doing a very similar operation, and I think you can do it. Charlie Larkin

Nice 1:1 model. I like your display base, too. Scratchbuilt? Charlie Larkin

Okay...I'm starting to think it's the paint. To answer a few questions and comments. 1. It seems gloss black always dries slowly, and I was hoping the lacquer thinner would change that. Perhaps not. 2. As I suspected, it worked, so they might have "fixed it." It could also be the thinner itself, so changing brands isn't beyond the realm of reason, either. It does, however work well for cleaning the airbrush. 3. Yes, MM Classic Black enamel. 4. Dan, what are you using for your reducer? Worst case, I might go grab a can. 5. Donn doesn't use automotive thinner because his technique involves generally painting on bare plastic that's been very finely sanded, almost to a mirror polish. The automotive thinner will still attack the semi-sealed plastic. As I use primer under everything, it probably wouldn't be as much of a problem for me. I have a couple of friends who use the PPG automotive thinner and get very good results with it. And yes, the can is marked lacquer thinner. As I think about it, I used this stuff in some other paint (Model Master Light Ivory and Shell Beige) and it behaved the same way.....this just occurred to me while I was typing this, as it's been a couple of years since I painted my '32. Thinking changing brands might be the smart way to move. Charlie Larkin

Objet offers a clear, acrylic-like material as part of its array of print materials, along with an elastomer-like material, and has several materials that simulate engineering plastics, like Delrin and Lexan. It's really an impressive machine. Charlie Larkin

I've had (far too many) months I haven't hit that. Trust me, man, I'm right there with you. Even in a good year, I don't think I go much over $300-400, including paint, etc. If the corner ever turns for me, though.....yeah, I'll do it on resin and OOP at least periodically. But, at that point, the question becomes will I have the time to actually build anything? Charlie Larkin