charlie8575

This topic was mentioned elsewhere, and I think it's a good one. I like the idea of a separate Community Build section. It'll make finding them easier, and we don't have to flip through umpteen pages of other stuff to try and relocate them. The other forum I use most of the time has a community build section, and it's well-organized and easy to navigate. It might be worth considering. Charlie Larkin

That gold sort of reminds me of one of the stock colors Ford had in that era. It certainly looks nice on it. Remember, Walt, it's only plastic, and you're smarter than it is! Charlie Larkin

Mike, after reading through this, I'm wondering if you might want to try another stripping method besides immersion. If you decide to go the immersion route, you might want to try Whestly's whitewall cleaner. It's a lot less aggressive than Super Clean and still works pretty well. I've also used ammonia before with some success. My thoughts, though, after reading what happened and the body work issues, is to consider oven cleaner. While highly caustic, it does not bother the plastic, and will remove 99% of the paint very handily. It's also VERY fast (about 15-20 minutes,) so it might not have a chance to make a mess of your body-work. Also, as the body has sat for a very long time, that putty will have hardened very nicely, and would probably be less-susceptible to damage anyway. Give it some thought. Charlie Larkin

Interesting. If that '48 Coupe can be built stock, I'm buying one. I want to see exactly what they give us with the Cutlass (and if they put the trunk lettering on this time.) I might actually buy one of the midget cars simply for the trailer. I'll still probably build the midget for something different, though. And I'll probably by the Hawker Typhoon. I like WWII planes. I also see myself going for another Cadillac, and possibly another Tri-5 Chevy or two. Charlie Larkin

Looks great, Steve. That copper-brown tone looks good on that car. Charlie Larkin

I have one of these as well. Unfortunately, someone glued all the customizing ###### onto it, and didn't do it too well. I'm now trying to figure out how to remove it without wrecking the body. A couple of people said SuperClean seems to do a good job at breaking (or at least softening) glue bonds, so I might give it a shot. I'm also considering a chisel-tip X-Acto blade, and as the absolute last resort, a Dremel. Once the corrective surgery is performed, it'll be restored to factory stock, and painted in Rio Red, better known as Honduras Maroon. Charlie Larkin

Mike, that looks great! You did a beautiful job on the bodywork and all the little mods needed. What did you end up doing for paint for the interior? From what I remember, that's very close to right. Charlie Larkin

Very nice. Is it a resin or kitbash/scratchbuilt? Charlie Larkin

Nothing as consistent as being inconsistent! Charlie Larkin

I'd build it essentially stock, with the red as an accent on the pillars and the roof, as the 1:1 trucks were two-toned, as well as the tailgate letters. Here's an example of what I'm talking about: Mark's Used Cars Charlie Larkin

Very strange. I've never had any problems at all with it. It was being sold as Plasti-Kote at Michael's, too, before it was discontinued from the line, but from what I've observed, it's all a slightly thinner version of the gray sandable primer T235. I may do a little more experimenting and see what happens. Charlie Larkin

Very much in-progress, as you can see, but my contribution. 430 from an AMT 1969 Riviera. This engine is remarkably complex for its vintage; almost as high a parts count as what you'd see today. From the factory, they had the regular round air cleaner, but the kit supplied this very nice 1967 GS-style air cleaner, which I've decided to use instead. This is a fairly common field mod, and I believe someone makes these as reproduction, too for 1:1 cars. Charlie Larkin

Plasti-Kote is usually sold at CarQuest stores, and sometimes, NAPA. Independent stores may carry it as well, but that's up to the owner. Michael's carries Valspar lacquer primer, which is very, very similar, and works quite well. It's a little thinner than Plasti-Kote, which I like, and is less money, which I really like. Charlie Larkin

Mark, I have one of the little square jars of Tamiya brush-on primer (the white stuff) and alcohol absolutely will not touch it; I've tried. The only stuff that'll remove it is lacquer thinner, at least from my paint brushes. I've not had cause to strip any parts yet. I knew it wasn't water-based beause it stinks to high heaven. I also wonder about that as I know people who have used the Tamiya spray primer under lacquer with no ill effects. As to the paint, I'd try alcohol or Testors Acryl dried acrylic paint remover, which works very, very well. Word to the wise: follow the directions EXCACTLY. Charlie Larkin

And I don't have to set up the table-saw! Thanks, Jim. I may give that a shot. Charlie Larkin

I actually like Testors paints and use them quite a bit. The only complaint I have with them is because of the enviro-goons, the formulas changed a little and they don't seem to brush out or cover as well as they used to. However, when airbrushed, they work very nicely and look good as long as you're intelligent about the application. I still like their flat black the best and they're good for small details. I've found that lacquer thinner brings up the gloss a little because the enamel paint dries (hardens) faster and for some reason, that makes the gloss come up better, probably because the glossing agents don't have an opportunity to dilute or evaporate as quickly. I've used Testors, Tamyia, and a little Humbrol, and have found all of them to be good paints when used properly. Charlie Larkin

Nice job on the doors! Charlie Larkin

You could, but remember, you'll still probably need to thin out the paint a little for it to go through your airbrush properly, so I'd hold off on putting more paint in until you get the consistency right. Charlie Larkin

At least detail painting isn't too much of a problem... Charlie Larkin

To make this clear for me, is the Mark II what eventually became the Cressida in the U.S. (and presumably Canada.) Or was that another model? I remember there being a Corona (my aunt Mimi had one for many years,) a Crown and the Mark II. There used to be a Mark II coupe around here, and I always thought it was a nice-looking car. A Cressida is also known as the only Toyota I'd ever be caught dead owning , possibly aside from one of the six-cylinder Supras. Charlie Larkin

Unfortunately, I didn't have a chance to get a picture up as I didn't have the opportunity today to finish the 430 in my 1969 Riviera, but it will be up by the end of the weekend. Charlie Larkin

Nice job. Is that the little 1/32 kit they made along with the Mercury Lynx LN7? Charlie Larkin

They don't sell it here? That's just plain dumb- or Chrysler's legal eagles laying another in the series of big eggs they've laid since the whole royalty issue came to a head in the early 1990s.' Looking good, Jeff. Care to share your sourcing information with us? That's something that should be made plastic. Oh, as to the diesel issue...watch for it in the next couple of years from what I remember reading, possibly next year. Charlie Larkin

I'm leaning very strongly towards two-tone green myself. On the '46 (dark/light green) is that a new plate that California has? It looks a little different. The one thing I truly envy about the people of southern California and the southwest, they can drive beautiful cars like that all year. Here, we have to let them hibernate at least a third to half of it. Charlie Larkin

....now it's the turn for us Buick people! Had I been more coherent, I'dve done something on 4-25 and 4-01 as well. But, because I'm a good sport anyone with a 1958-65 or so Lincoln with a 430 is welcome to join in on the fun, too! Charlie Larkin