charlie8575

Although we do have a digital camera, and many of the pictures I've posted here are taken with it for convenience, I still use a lot of film. In fact, it's almost all I use. I've found I have a very hard time getting as good a picture as I like with the digital camera; for some reason, I can't focus the things. The one big thing a digital camera has that I do like- the "erase" button. I've had very good luck with getting my pictures developed, put on a CD and loaded on Photobucket that way. If you're in the market for an inexpensive digital camera, I've been told Kodak probably has the bet of the bunch for the +/- $100 range. We have a Fuji Dad picked up on clearance for $99, so check to see what's on clearance, too, you might be able to get a really nice camera at a substantial reduction. I've used my cousin's Kodak a few times for pictures here and it's a nice camera with sharp focus and it's easy to use. The Fuji has a bit of a learning curve to it, but also takes decent pictures once you can get the focusing right. I've found I really need a conventional viewfinder for good pictures, the screens make it tough for me to get one. For the record, I have a Samsung Fino 70 35 mm point-and-shoot that's a nice little camera. Great optics on it and very, very easy to use. My more serious equipment is a Pentax SF-10, a Canon FD and a Canon AE-1. Dad has a Nikon N80 and a Mamyia 645. At the moment, I'm thinking of getting a Nikon N65, which is still available new through a few vendors. If I find myself with lots of money, I might go for the F6 or a Canon EOS IV. Think I'm bad? Dad still shoots 620 in c. 1938 Kodak DuoFlex and plays with his 4x5 Crown Graphic whenever he has a chance. He also likes 120 slide film. Just for shear beauty, it's hard to compete with the pictures you get from that. Charlie Larkin

Try toothpaste and a Q-tip. I was able to bring back the window unit on a 1960 Valiant using that method. It does take a while, and you have to be very careful to keep it applied evening (a problem because toothpaste tends to dry some, but it'll be worth it. Afterwards, if you haven't fully assembled the car, immerse the body in warm, soapy water, and VERY gently clean it, and then allow it to air-dry. Here's a picture of what I ended up with. The clear part that attaches to the roof will give you a pretty good idea of what I started with. If you have assembled the car, take a soft, damp cloth and very gently wipe the polished areas down, allow to air-dry. If disassembly becomes necessary, I'd use an X-Acto chisel blade for the #1 (small) handle. That would probably be the most successful for getting in and breaking the bond. Good luck, and remember, even after doing this for about thirty years, I'm still learning new things, too. This is all a giant learning curve. Charlie Larkin

I don't remember seeing this one before, Brian. Very nice build. Charlie Larkin

Nice work. That Rootbeer really does look like GM late 1970s dark brown metallic. Hmmm.... Charlie Larkin

That came out very nicely. Very good color combination. Charlie Larkin

Hi, David. I've used Acryl a couple of times and have found it to be an excellent paint. the coverage was good enough that you could get away without priming, too. Just use two coats, and it looks very good when dry. Acryl, by the way, is the only paint line that offers a color that even comes close to the Buick engine green of the early V8 era (1953-66.) RLM 25 Hellgrun is almost dead-nuts perfect. There are a few other colors in the military line that could also be used for painting older engines, too. Charlie Larkin

Well-put, Art. After nine years of teaching, it horrifies me that so many of our youths simply do not understand, or even more terrifying, care, about what you said, even as things are as they are at the present. Perhaps if we started reinforcing values like patriotism in school instead of bubble tests, we might help start turning things around. We can all hope it happens before it really is too late. And I like that poem. I'm surprised I've never seen or heard it before. I'm going to transcribe a copy of it for myself. Charlie Larkin

Gregg, that is what I'd call lilac. I believe Krylon has something in that general color range; I don't recall if any of the model paints do or not. If you still want a slight metallic finish to it, or something along those lines, perhaps you could try over-coating it with Model Master or Tamiya pearlescent clear? Even if mixing paint isn't your forte, a very simple mix would be to decant some of the Krylon spray into a jar and just add a little silver to it; don't worry about ratios, mix until you're happy with what you get. I found a glass eyedropper is indispensible for mixing. It resists all paints and the rubber bulb comes off, so it's easy to clean by just dropping it in some lacquer thinner for a few minutes, followed by running a pipe cleaner through it and a bath in soapy water. Charlie Larkin

Excellent job! Are you interested in making those for sale? If so, I'd be very interested in buying a conversion. Charlie Larkin

Hi, Mike. Occasionally, parts molded in red, yellow, orange, and some stronger shades of blue will have a tendency to "bleed." In other words, the dyes and colorants used to color the plastic will react to the paints and leech out. It's similar to putting colored clothes in with whites, everything turns funny colors. Although I haven't tried this, several people I know have suggested the following solution for bleeder colors: 1. Spray a light, but thorough coat of primer.] 2. Coat it with a light, but thorough coat of a light silver paint. The bleeding action usually stops at the paint. 3. Spray one-two more coats of primer. Paint as usual. As to primers, I've had nothing but trouble with Dupli-Color's primers, although their paints are okay. I generally use Plasti-Kote (avaialable at Car Quest, some Napas, and some independent stores,) or Valspar gray lacquer primer, available at the craft chains, and, again, probably some independent stores if you do a little searching. I use sandable gray primer for 99% of my priming needs, as I find it does what I need well. Some people like to use white under lighter colors, or red oxide because exposed areas on older cars were primed with it, so it looks more correct. Black primer will darken the colors you put over it. It's worth nothing that Plasti-Kote is owned by Valspar and the gray lacquer primer sold at Michael's (the one I use,) appears to be the same stuff as Plasti-Kote T235, but a little thinner, so it doesn't hide detail as much. It's also half the price. Best of all, it works beautifully. Charlie Larkin

Hi, Gregg. Picking colors does cause quite a quandry sometimes, doesn't it? I sometimes find that to be the most difficult part of the build. I like the idea of a lilac metallic roof with a dark purple lower body. I don't know what you had in mind for paint, but in the Testors line, I think you could achieve it by mixing a red, blue, white and a small amount of gray, as lilacs (at least around here,) all have a silvery-gray tinge to them. A good starting ratio might be something like 3:3:5:a few drops. If you're aiming for metal-flake color, you might want to use the Metal Flake red and/or blue as a start, or mix in a small amount of silver, possibly in place of the gray. The key is to get the lilac color to a light purple. Alternately, if you still have any of the purple from the first go-around, separate some out and mix in white (and, again, possibly a small amount of gray,) until the desired color is mixed. Good luck. Charlie Larkin

Hmmm...most of the restored '55s I've run across have orange engines. I checked Bill Hirsch, a major seller of engine enamel for the restoration market, and they recommend oragne for the '55, and then '57-up, with red for the '56. Check the drop-down menu here for the listings. Bill Hirsch Automotive Of course, if you really wanted to throw people for a loop, you could paint it that weird chartreuse green color that the 1957 265s used. That one year, and that one color. From the few pictures I've seen, it's sort of a lime gold color. You could probably get yourself in the ballpark with Testors Pla Chromate, some gloss yellow, and maybe a tiny amount of gold (like whatever ends up on the toothpick you mix the paint with.) Charlie Larkin

Very interesting; as I've begun to discover some of the drawbacks of my Aztek (it manages to be both easy and impossible to clean,) I might give this little number some serious thought. Charlie Larkin

Styrene or resin, I just wish we could get more Classics and pre-war cars of almost any description. I agree, though, and Atlantic would be a cool model to build. Charlie Larkin

I'm a model railroader too (without a layout for the last twenty years, but whatever!) Dave, the Commodore Vanderbilt is a great choice. I don't think anyone ever made one, even in brass. Monogram made a very nice static display Hudson, as previously mentioned. Where that engine is a J-3 underneath (N.Y.C.'s code for the Hudson,) I'd find one of those and use that as a starting point. The tender could probably be made from one of the Big Boy tenders, as it's about the right shape, but might need to be shortened and channeled a little. Hey...just like a chustom car. I know you can do that! I say post it anyway. I think a lot of us would really like watching you do it. Charlie Larkin

I wouldn't mind a little good luck (of any kind!) rubbing off on me... Charlie Larkin

Hi, David. In 1955, Chevy V8s were orange, and the Model Master Chevy Engine orange is a great match. In 1956, the V8s were painted red, and Model Master Chrysler Engine Red isn't too far off for that. It also works well for mid-late '60s Buick V8s. Chevrolet used orange engines through most of the 1960s in most applications, so it's a good paint to have on hand. Sixes of the '50s were either gray, or I believe by the mid-late '50s, blue. A nice dark blue will do well for that. The truck V8s of the 1950s, anyway, were yellow. Plain old Testors yellow isn't too far off for that. That '55 is a nice kit; you'll enjoy it. Charlie Larkin

I like Avantis, Brian, and yours is very nice. I saw one on the road a couple of weeks ago in turquoise, and boy did that look good. There's another one around here in a medium metallic brown with an interior about your colors, maybe a hair darker. Charlie Larkin

I've found for me that it depends. Some parts I like to paint on the sprue. I don't like handling small parts during painting, as I find my fingers get in the way and I can't paint well. If a part has really heavy mold lines, flash, etc, I carefully clean it up with a knife and perhaps a little sanding. I've found I like to put together assemblies like engines that tend to be one color, together and paint them on the sprue; it's faster and much easier for me to do it. with some engines, though, I do remove them, put them on a toothpick and prime on my paintstand, before brush painting. Priming- this is where the sprue is handy. I've found I really like to prime the parts while attached. It makes the priming much easier because no assembly is done (or very little,) and I can get very thorough coverage on the parts. Occasionally, I might need to go and dust on a small amount of primer in hard-to-access area, but I've usually had good results with doing it. As to the touch-up after removal- that never really bothered me. Enough of the rest of the part is dry so I have someplace to hold while painting. Charlie Larkin

Hi, Jerry. Yikes, what a problem you have! My suggestion is as follows: 1. Strip the paint. Tamyia seems to remove well with 91% alcohol or Dawn Power Dissolver; I don't know if you can get that in Canada or not, but if you're not too far from Washington State, it might be worth it to grab a bottle next time you're down here. 2. Re-wash the parts thoroughly in Whestley's Bleche-Wite, and then follow with a good degreasing dish soap and lukewarm water. Allow to dry thoroughly. 3. PRIME! One thing I have been told is that resin doesn't always like acrylic paint on it, hence the constant recommendation to use automotive primer. 4. Re-paint. Good luck. Charlie Larkin

Nu-Finish is a polymer-based car polish. Very tough and gives a nice shine. You can get it at any auto parts store, and yes, I do believe it comes in a bright orange squeeze bottle. Charlie Larkin

Okay, I'm sold. Johnny- where'd you find those full wheelcovers for it? C'mon resumes....get me a callback! Charlie Larkin

1989...I was in 8th grade. I was getting ready to paint an AMT '65 Bonneville, and bought a spray can of the Model Master Burgundy. I thought it would look really nice on that car (still do.) What a horror. The paint came out runny, drippy, and some of it looked like green snot in color (!) I have never, ever, before or since, had a can of paint do that. I have a jar of it now, and I'm going to try the airbrush method to see if I get better results. I'm toying with painting a '69 Riviera with it, as I think with the right primer, it'll come pretty close to right. Charlie Larkin

I saw one of these at the ISWC convention in Sturbridge, Ma. a couple of years ago in red with the black interior...very sharp. Yours looks great, Johnny. Definitely on my "will get" list. Charlie Larkin

Spoken like a true Newporter! We've had attempted (and, unfortunately, a couple of successful) pilferages from Classic Plastic and MassCar over the years. It's very upsetting when it happens, and when it does, and we know who did it, they're banned from shows, and if it's serious enough, I believe the police have been called once or twice. Very, very upsetting when I see this. Charlie Larkin