VW Dave

One of my favorite 'non-big-three' cars is the Allard J2X, and I missed buying a built-up on another site by minutes about 3 years ago...the seller, however, knew the manufacturer was Premier; I set about finding one of my very own, so I could build a replica of the 1950 J2 in our local museum. A year or so later, I nabbed a 'MIB' one off that certain auction website. I don't have any pics of it at the moment, because I loaned it out to an excellent resin caster in MD...maybe somebody here knows of the guy.

Not my favorite bgguy style, but it looks better without the top...and this is a sanitary build to say the least. Lots of brightwork, great color choices, and plenty of details to go back and look for again. Three thumbs up! Blah,blah,blah...the 'VW vs. Corvair' rhetoric is beyond old, but at least us Meyers fans can spell 'Corvair.'

Scale has little to do with my purchases; it all boils down to subject matter; I do, however, only buy kits that I have an interest in. It's been years since I've gotten a kit as a gift, and my build percentage of 'gift kits' is zero. If I don't choose the kit, there's no real enthusiasm to do anything with it.

Oak and basswood are great, but the craft sticks(popsicle sticks) and 'skinny craft sticks' from Michaels are just as good for weathering and a screaming deal with their coupons shaving at least 40% off the vig. Tongue depressors from our pedeiatrician's office are good for the skinny ones too, and they're free if nobody sees you take them. Another tip I heard about and tried for staining is a little offbeat....OK, a lot: soy sauce. Lots of us have packets in a kitchen drawer left over from countless take-out dinners, so it's essentially free. The smell of the sauce was my main concern when I tried it, but it goes away during the drying process. On a larger piece, like a loading dock platform I did on my buddy's layout, I also like to sneak in one relatively clean board among the others.....looks like one had been replaced recently, and it adds a lot to the 'story' of the piece.

I must correct my above statement about balsa wood.....the vertical posts on my flatbed job are balsa.

I couldn't say a bad thing about it; a great idea, and very well executed to boot.

Personally, I wouldn't use balsa; it's pretty fragile from the get-go, and aging/weathering might be too much for it. I use a couple different sizes of craft sticks from Michaels or A.C. Moore. Here's the bed of a ratty flatbed I did for my buddy's model RR layout: I pre-cut the wood with my mini chop saw, and I try to do no more than 2 in the same length; to add to the randomness/scrap wood vibe, I'll make uneven or angled end cuts as well. Notches and grooves are easily done with a file or Dremel, and I drill out my own knot holes. My weathering solution is 50% isopropyl alcohol with a splash of India ink, a recipe I picked up from my railroading buddies. I soak the wood in the solution for no more than 30 minutes, and lay it out to dry on paper towels on a plastic tray or plate that I don't care about(because it can and will stain). Let it air dry overnight, or until the pieces feel totally dry to the touch, and you're good to go. I'll randomly dry sand one or two planks to make them seem older or more worn than the others, and I add the knothole details & nails with my 005 Micron artists' pen. You can use heads from straight pins, but they're too large to represent nails in scale...they look much more like carriage bolts IMO. A quick tip for keeping weathering solution around, as the isopropyl has a nasty habit of evaporating: An old pickle or jelly jar. I have a dollar store Tupperware-like container that I use for the soaking, but the stuff goes right back into the jar when I'm done with it.

Like others have said, I've never really been a fan of baggers....but the StreetGlide has made me see things differently. That's absolutely beautiful!! I have forwarded this thread to my brother, who picked up his black 2012 StreetGlide 3 weeks ago.

It's 'pink slip daddy,' Jim; the message is that the guy is willing to race for 'pinks' because he holds paper to the car...and he's confident he'll win

Stupid thing: I was applying decals to a model many moons ago, and using a short 'highball' style of glass from the kitchen cabinet for the water. While decaling I was carrying on a casual conversation with a friend, and I had a small glass of iced tea nearby....in mid-conversation, I grabbed the wrong glass and took a healthy sip of decal water. Really stupid thing/freak accident: One evening about 25 years ago, I was fiddling at the bench when something frustrated me....I went to toss my X-Acto knife down onto the table and walk away, and it somehow pierced a spray can....everything received a healthy 'peppering' of Testors flat white, including 2 of my finished builds. I dismantled both models in order to re-do them, and they ultimately became parts donors. I no longer keep finished models or spray paints near my work area.

Thanks! I answered your question in the 'Meyers Manx is in da house' thread

It's a brush-on acrylic from Michaels or A.C. Moore, and I figured out a pretty neat system for application: http://public.fotki.com/VWDave/how-tos/dune-buggy-approved/

Here's a little 'sneak peek' of the Manx body I painted for George53.....I'm looking forward to seeing what he does with it now The headlights are the smaller ones from any of the Revell '32 Ford street rod kits; they're much nicer than the AMT kit-supplied ones, and they scale out to a nice 7" light....just like the Deitz/Cibie units on my real Manx

Here's a couple I shot before I mailed it out the other day:

Actually, the wheels on the LRE's were made by Superior(an aftermarket wheel manufacturer); their wheels were also available through Montgomery Ward's automotive department. The only difference between the retail and Mopar-only wheels were the center caps; the factory LRE caps were without logos, while Superior's retail caps had their trademark 'S' on them. When we were in need of new caps for my mother's '79 Lil Red back in the 1990's, we were schooled by a veteran Moparts guy. I can remember seeing a display rack of Superior wheels at 'Monkey Wards' as a kid.

Thanks for sharing your pics, Mike; it's always good to see the things that caught another modeler's eye...and you snagged a few that I don't even remember seeing

Thanks for sharing, and for taking notice of one of my models as well...it's in there twice, so I'm doubly flattered

Thanks for sharing those pics, Dave, and it was great to finally meet you this time around

Here's a handful of things that caught my eye on the tables: http://public.fotki.com/VWDave/model_car_shows_/26th-annual-nnl-east/

As most temp. tattoos go on like an ink stamp(or 'tampo'), it might be impossible at best to get them on an uneven surface....you might be better off sending the piece to a decal maker for conversion into a more useable media for models.

I've got a thin saw blade that fits in my #1 X-Acto, which is no bigger than a #11 blade, and it's pretty much all I use now. A few guys I know of swear by PE saw blades, but I haven't tried them yet.

I'm glad to see it going to a good home; my older brother built it in about 1980, and he based the paint scheme on a Dodge brochure from his stash:

I didn't get my copy yet, but I got a compliment from a buddy on my model that made the magazine.

I like it....a lot.

The wraparound rear glass on the Cameo cab will probably be a real bear to chop and fit, because the outer molding is molded-in....I'd almost recommend gluing it in place before the chop, and cutting a smaller rectangle(or oval!)-shaped window into it afterwards.