VW Dave

Unfortunately, we don't get to stay over. My wife works a part time gig on Sunday mornings, and I'm pretty sure I'll have to work as well....can't ask for too much time off after being out for over a month with my broken jaw, I suppose

I just read this part again, and I'd think twice about wet sanding it.....if the label on the paint bottle says anything like 'water cleanup' or 'water-based,' wet sanding might break the paint down like stripper. When doing an early test of the metalflake acrylic, I used a clear acrylic as the top coat - it's called 'Triple Thick' - I tried to wet sand it to get it smooth, and it started coming off in gooey sheets. I now lay down a couple coats of Tamiya TS-13 spray after the clear acrylic, and the shine is great even without any sanding. brush your paint out on a spare body or a plastic spoon, and after it's plenty dry(like overnight) try a couple different clear topcoats and see what gives the best results.

When you push the focus button a few times, look for this symbol: That's the 'macro' setting when it pops up. You should hear little humming/motor sounds while the camera is in the macro mode, and a tripod will help greatly to get better pics as well. Try to keep the camera back a bit from the subject, and use the zoom to get in closer...your pics will all be blurry if you creep right up with the camera itself. If all else fails, see if dad has a manual for the camera...or if you can find one online to download.

'Similar?' I'd call them durn near perfect! At $30 for a full set, they're a bit spendy.....but well worth it. ScaleProduction makes some awesome stuff, and their quality is top notch to boot. I like the separate aluminum rim, which makes painting the centers über-easy.

After abandoning brush-painted bodies decades ago, I have gone back to it in a small way; I found an acrylic paint that replicates the heavy-flake gelcoat on my 1:1 dune buggy, and brushing it is the only way to apply it: I'm also using it on a RM chopper I'm doing for my son, but I have no pics hosted of that one yet

I'm sorry, but that just sounds funny read aloud. OK, kidding done...time to be helpful. You said: "Thre is not a AUTO button or swich. Just litning bolt - focus - program - display, bottons" I did a quick Google search for 'Sony Mavica,' and turned up an online review of the MVC-FD200; here's a little bit of the text that might be helpful, even if that's not the exact model your dad lets you use: There are two switches directly below the LCD. The one one on the left is the aforementioned LCD backlight switch. The next one is for changing between Playback, Still, and Movie mode. The four buttons below that are for: *Flash *Focus (Macro, 0.5, 1.0, 3.0, 7.0 m, infinity) *Program AE (Twilight mode, Twilight plus mode, landscape mode, panfocus mode, spot metering) *Display - turns info on the LCD on/off

I think he cleans his camera lens with it. All kidding aside, I like it.....blurry pics or not

I'm glad you posted this dio...it's a shame to show just the teeny-tiny pic of it as your avatar, and not give us a better look.

I've only painted a couple sets of whitewalls, but both times I used Polly S/Floquil water-based acrylic and had great results. Here's one:

I said model, especially if that photo is from the northeast.....you rarely see such nice jack points on real ones here in the 'buckle of the rust belt' nowadays.

Many of us bring our children, we just keep tabs on our own while there. Dominic came with us last year, and he was only 5 months old....gotta start 'em early, I say. He's coming with us again this year too: (thanks to Gary Kulchock for taking this photo before wee man puked on my new Rolling Bones shirt ):

I'd love to see better pics of it, as I'm a closet G-body fan from when they were brandy new. Better hope you never nail the gas too hard in a car like that, as no wire wheels could handle the power put out by a TT V8.

Took the words right outta my mouse, Lee. That's the same color combo I put on my 1:1 Beetle.

If Kevin strikes out on those wheels, I have a set too. If you're OK with enamel paint, the 'Odds n' Ends line from Valspar(formerly Pactra, then PlastiKote) has a color called 'French country yellow' that might be close to butternut. Even though it's mildly weathered in the pic, you can see it here on the main body of my 'Joe Dirt' Charger:

Well, I'd say you'll definitely be happy then...between the vendors and the 1000+ models on the tables(pretty sure last year there was almost 2,000), you have a full day ahead of you. Get there as early as you can.

Bob - Atlanta was a great time, even though we were only there a few days. The GA aquarium was a blast, as was the car exhibit @ the High......although their rule of 'camera phones only' came as a bit of a shock; we found out after buying our tickets and entering the elevator. Needless to say, I only have about 6 pics from there due to limited memory in my pretty lousy phone camera. I struck out seeing AAA Hobbies in Marietta, as they are closed Sundays and Mondays; didn't get to go over there until Sunday. We did go to the Kennesaw HobbyTown store, and I was pretty blown away - the Albany NY store would fit in there at least twice with some 'rattle room' to spare.

For the diehard cheapskate, a small pair of jeweler's sidecutters has served me well for decades, and they were about 3 or 4 bucks last time I bought them...maybe even less now, with Harbor Freight on the scene. I use them only for plastic, so they will likely outlive me.

Love it, love it, love it!!

I've been going to the NNL East for a good number of years, and all I can say is: 'bring your annual budget.' I don't buy a lot of mail-order stuff, so the amount I lay out at this event is usually pretty high. There's no guarantee that you'll find the exact thing you're after, but there's always the chance. There's always a lot of resin and kit deals to be had at this event, as well as older built-ups.

I got a couple sets of his chevy rally wheels recently, and they are excellent

My wife and I visited a friend of hers near Atlanta this past weekend, for her son's 1st birthday; we found out that Bruce Weiner's famous microcar museum was not far from there, and it was only open on the first day of our visit.....we made that our first stop, straight from the airport. We are very much into micros, and we were treated like family by the owner's wife while there. This place is worth the trip from anywhere!! There's just over 150 pics at the link below, which is roughly half the number of cars in the museum MICRO MACHINES!! Here's one that Hotwheels fans might recognize, and it's fully functional to boot:

Rodney - I love it!! You and Dave have gone nuts with your 'four bys' as of late, and I like the direction you're going in. I agree, and that's what I did to my lifted Samurai I built in 1989:

The whole set of wheels and tires is from the Revell 'Rat Rods' model A sedan kit(whitewall side turned in). RepMinCo also has period-correct sprint car tires, if you need them taller in the rear.

Very nice job on the 'Bullet,' Peter; another one of my favorite Mopars. I'm surprised nobody mentioned the subtle flaring/'bulging' on the rear fenders....nice touch adding that detail to the model as well.

I did this one around 1994 with a mix of cast-off Yenko and RS parts: Front bumper had bad chrome, so it got the color-keyed treatment; I also sanded the backside of the grille to open it up: