Dr. Cranky

I think that's gonna be another masterpiece for your collection, Bill!

Thanks for getting back to me, J, just in time too . . . I think I will go with the '39 Chevy headlights in blue . . . though I'm very tempted to hit them up with that rim yellow too . . . but other than the hood front piece, there's very little of the body color up front, and I love it . . . Okay, I'm set to go then . . . . let the painting begin!!! Stay tuned in for more progress . . . THANK YOU! By the way! Cheers.

Thanks, gents . . . I feel like I'm making molasses slow progress, but hey it's progress . . . and yes, I'm trying to stay true to the illustration . . . though I feel much better J has said I can deviate a little here and there . . . It's also great to have Jarius around to but him with some of the datails . . . Like J, I'm assuming the headlight buckets are body color? Right? Light blue? There's a hint of chorme, but that's just the light rim . . . Anyhoo, it's been fun so far . . .

Thanks, y'all . . . I appreciate the encouragement. It's yet ANOTHER rainy day in North Florida, so the painting is on hold . . . I just have to primer a few more parts . . . but I have also the front part of the hood and the bed ready, so I anxious to shoot some of the custom color I mixed . . . I am putting some subtle rust spots here and there on some of the panels just to make it seem like a natural decay taking place . . . and hopefully Jairus will think it's the right thing to do . . . I am saving the cab body for last because that's the one that's going to require the most work, and layers of paint . . . and here's a list of steps I have to do for it to work: 1. primer 2. a coat of rust color 3. apply rubber cement resist 4. a coat of white (to lighten the blue and also make the paint look a little faded 5. final coat of blue 6. a little fogging here and there with maybe some white and gray We'll see . . . The same method will be used on the cab, except that before I spray #2, I have to shoot a medium gray to then apply to rub on letters (for which I have made a guiding template). After I apply the rub on letters, I have to shoot silver all around the weld seams, and then continue with all the other steps which includes #7, which is to come back with some rust and a brush to detail . . . I am keeping my fingers crossed about how when the whole thing dries, I should be able to remove the letters and the rubber cement resist with tape . . . and it should revel the final look, or close to it . . . In principle it should work, but we'll see how it goes . . . what's the worse that can happen, that I have to strip the paint off and start all over again?

How refreshing, a model car magazine editor with a sense of humor . . . man, that's rare . . . Is this the person I am talking to here?: Well, I hear through the grapevine that you are a rich pineapple plantation owner with deep pockets and an uncanny ability to smell talent all the way from the beautiful island of Hawaii! This might indeed be the beginning of a beautiful relationship, and I do look like Bogart! Riding around in your limo, drinking mint juleps and playing chess with the limo driver, a man named "Scrapple" Bigguns? All right, buddy, but I am assuming that when you say: "send me unedited pictures," you mean electronically . . . all the pictures for this build, in case you have not gone there yet are here: http://public.fotki.com/vsuarez666/voodoo-...e-auto-salvage/

And, of course, I did the same to the backs of the wheels, though they are hardly going to be seen . . . here I posted them backwards: The spanking, freshly painted: And the greased up:

Okay, took Jairus's advice not to have the wheels be so clean like the illustration . . . (apparently he is having extreme weathering withdrawals ) . . . so I used some diluted Vallejo acrylic ink brown and toned down the wheels . . . it's made a big difference, here's the comparo: The new wheels (I mean weathered, sorry!): And the old (clean and pretty!): Also, I'm going to have to break out my magnifying glass to paint CHEVROLET red on those caps . . .

I've been playing around with Vallejo acrylic inks, 50% or so diluted and have been putting subtle washes on some parts . . . like the head covers. They too look pretty good, I think--at least the letters stand out . . .

Listen, everyone, you might as well scrap my radiator hose idea . . . well, not all of it . . . use the thin wire wrapped around solder wire . . . you can play around with the diameter according to what you need the hose for, and then use heat-shrink tubing, and this is what you will get: I still can't believe how real it looks . . .

Thanks, J . . . that allows me quite a bit of freedom . . . since I've been trying my hardes to replicate your art, but if the artist himself says to weather accordingly so I shall, which is, since you are not familiar with my work, most of what I have fun doing . . . here's an example from last year . . . So I will be in my element, sort of!

I've been back to the engine, getting it ready for wiring before I paint it . . . though I am going to be true to the illustration, I will put some subtle weathering on it, like all engines take, you know . . . I put a couple of plastic rod pegs on top of the carbs so that my aluminum tubing will sit straight and sturdy . . . I did the exact same thing to the exhaust . . . hope it works when it is time to line everything up neat . . .

A bit more progress to report on this morning . . . . I put the tires and wheels together and I think they came out just right . . . though I still have to paint the CHEVROLET letters read on the chrome covers . . . The illustration's yellow has a creamier look to it that I tried to replicate . . . I also worked on the taillights just to have them ready for when the bed (which is the first body part I will paint) is ready . . .

Though I have a few Merc 49 kits on standby . . . I am not building one this very moment, so I leave the experimentation to youse!!! Also, I believe it will take paint as long as you use good primer . . . any kind of paint, why not?

Since so many people are working on their Revell 49 Mercs, I thought I'd share this with you in hope you will experiment . . . . Today when I made myself coffee and thought I should have it with some cream, I reached for the new Publix brand heavy whipping cream and when I unscrewed the cap, this is what I had to pull out . . . And just before I tossed it into the trash, I thought, wait a minute . . . isn't this? Wouldn't this be great for a moon cap? You be the judge . . . And the best part is that it is plastic . . .

All right, a little progress on the body was made . . . I primered the cab, cab interior and bed yesterday, then this morning I went back through with that new Tamiya primer/filler (you see the white spots?) and filled a few places where I didn't like the gap. I mean, what I like about doing these kinds of builds is that you don't really have to stress out too much about body imperfections, but you don't want to overdo it either . . . Since Jairus's illustration doesn't show the rear of the bed, I took some liberties here and added what I think are a few nice touches, including a liscense plate holder, and then I drilled the holes for a chain that's going to be placed on the bed once it is finished being painted . . . And here's the cab interior. I did a bit of work on it so that it looks nice, though it will still be ratted out somewhat . . .

And BTW, here's a revision of the hose technique . . . it really works . . . rather beautifully, if I may say so . . . . You bypass having to use glue altogether . . . one less step, the same results . . .

Ah, thanks guys . . . I really appreciate it . . . I'm just trying to share some of the fun . . . I remember seeing others before do translations of Jairus's work and always thinking it would be a blast, AND IT IS!!! Mr. Gregg, if you are interested in an article, the good news is that I've gotten all three of Jairus' illustrations for this latest wonderful issue of MC and I plan to build all three, so you let me know what you'd need from me in terms of word count and I will reread the photography specs you require . . . I think I read them somewhere . . . oh, the latest issue? I could be wrong. Stay tuned in for more progress . . . cheers.

Addendum to the above, you can use same diameter solder and wrap the wire around that . . . bypassing having to use glue altogether. Thanks, Lou!!!

While the body panels dry from getting a first coat of primer, I decided I need to find a way of recreating that old style, accordion radiator hose . . . these kinds of builds always require two or three elements that I usually break my head trying to figure out, except this time the lightbulb went off . . . and I remembered an old trick I saw or heard about somewhere . . . or so I tried it tonight and got excellent results right away, and it could not be easier . . . Okay, you figure out what diameter hose you need (you can do any size for that matter, the technique is the same), then you find a metal rod or wood dowel of the same diameter. . . in my case, I found a piece of wire I had laying around that was just the size I needed. Then you take some of that green, thin, spool wire you find in the florist section of Wal Mart or you can use any thin wire for that matter. Then you sit there and you wind the thin wire around the thick wire to look like this: And you keep turning it making sure it's pretty tight and even . . . You keep doing it until you have enough for the length you need. I my case I made a few extra ones just in case . . . and like I said, you can make them with any thin wire . . . but you want wire that will hold it's shape when you bend it . . . . And this is what you end up with: Now, after you have the length you need, you slip out the curled wire slowly, making sure you don't dent it or uncoil it . . . After you have it out, then the next step is to take some white glue, carpenter's glue, or I ended up using Aileen's tacky glue because it dries fast . . . and you put enough on the coiled wire so that when you rub your fingers all around it, the glue gets between the coils where it will seal the gaps, but still provide an indentation. And you should end up with something that looks like this: All I need to do now is wait for the glue to dry overnight completely and then I'll paint the hose black, then cut it to size, and install it when I need it. It's amazing how much time goes for little things like this, but I am hoping they pay off big.

Update: I worked on the tikki head some more last night, and I just couldn't leave it alone--I had to put a bit of mischeviousness into it . . . so now it's got it's tongue sticking out . . . I hope you can see it in these pictures . . .

All right, two things happened in my favor for the sake of this build today . . . one it's been raining, and two the original art work showed up from Mr. Watson . . . and both saved me . . . I'll explain, but first here is a picture straight from the original . . . I'm glad this arrived before I started painting the vehicle because the original is way lighter in color than the copy I had and which I was following. I would have ended up with a much darker vehicle . . . now I have to mix my blue with a bit more white and maybe a tinge of light gray . . . Now, I can frame this puppy up and put it up on my wall . . . just in time for Holloween too!!!

Note to Jairus: oh man, oh man, I just got the original artwork in the mail. WOW! It's even more beautiful than the magazine reprint . . . .and so much lighter . . . the blue is like duck egg blue . . . which is going to send me back to drawing board (no pun intended!) when it comes to mixing the right color . . . it's like baby breath blue or something . . . how utterly gorgeous . . . I also sent you an email. Let me know if you got it! Cheers, V, and thanks for making sunshine out of my rainy Monday down here in Florida!

Thanks, gents . . . well, it's been raining down here so it's slowed down the priming, since I've gone ahead and finished most of the fabrication . . . the engine was last and that's done, so off to the paintbooth. Now before I start painting, I would like to ask Jairus a few questions about the colors . . . I think I can approximate the blue of the body, and the yellow of the wheels, but I'm wondering about some of the details I cannot make out . . . like the interior of the cab? Is that black or is it body color blue? The headlight buckets I am assuming are body color too. The frame I believe a Panzer type gray would do it, something maybe a bit light . . . Just curious about some of the colors that are not visible on the illustration. Any suggestions or help you can fling my way is greatly appreciated, Jairus.

Lots of people have given me all sorts of great ideas when it comes to the shiftknob . . . from hand-granades to brass knuckles to skulls, etc . . . but in my quest to stay true to the spirit of the illustration, I got some round toothpics and did about 10 attemps here at his tikki head knob . . . and for a while I kept thinking I would not get it right . . . besides, I think Jairus's illustration conveys a sense that it IS a tikki god's head . . . so without further ado, here's my last attempt . . . The next question is, should I stain the wood, and then paint it wood color or should I leave well enough alone and move on ?. . . Here's another slight angle . . .I will paint the shifter though . . . probably dark gray/blue like the interior . . .

Sorry if the discussion made it sound like you would or should, J . . . I have some rub on lettering in 1/4 scale that is close enough and it just might work. Yeah, when the package gets here I will let you know . . . much appreciated and thank you!!!