showbuilder

it's all looking pretty good so far..........except the second steer axle is way too far back. that truck should have about 120" spread on the front steers and 120" between the second steer and the lift.

i remember judging this model at richmond this year, nice job.

kfs makes a great set of straps with photoetched hardware, they are fairly inexpensive and it beats running around dept stores looking for something that might work.

i don't count every penny i spend on a finished model but i do keep a rounded off running total for my personal reference. i build all my models for competition so no expense is spared. here are a few examples...................................... revell c-5r built boxstock with about 30 bucks spent for kit and supplies........build time about 25 hrs. peterbilt 378 tractor with scratchbuilt trailer with about 400 bucks for kits and supplies......build time about 200hrs ford ltl 9000 with scratchbuilt trailer and tamiya tank with about 900 bucks for kits and supplies.....build time 400+hrs revell corvette with about 150 bucks for kit and supplies and 55 hrs build time. some of my builds use parts from up to four of five different kits which i have to purchase to achieve the final build i'm looking for. supplies are the cost of paint/clear, photoetch, aluminum, decals, resin etc. i do not figure glues and tools into the finished build cost because much of this is used on several builds. i think it all comes down to how far you want to take it. you can build a great boxstock model for very a limited amount or you can go all out super detailed if the budget allows. some build for contests and others don't, some spend unlimited money on a build, some don't. it all comes down to each person and what they enjoy to do. B)

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ford 9000ltl and 378 pete with condos.............................................................................

just go right over what's there now, you will not have any problems. B)

i will agree that future has it's uses in modeling but i just do not use it as a clearcoat. i've had several bad things happen when using it for various things, it worked well one time but strange stuff would happen the next time. there are much better products out there for clearcoating. as far as wet sanding and buffing.............i wetsand and buff every finish i do, habit i guess. most if not all of the top show painters use enamels, lacquers or urethanes that will outshine future any day. sorry if my comment offended you, that was not the intention. we all have different techniques and products that work for us. B)

leave future on a floor where it belongs, use a good enamel or lacquer clear that you can wetsand, polish and wax.

easy to build shiny???????????????????? i have to dissagree with that comment. it takes skill and attention to detail to build either way......used or super clean. i think this is a very creative build, nice job so far.

why do you need filler for frame stretching or sleepers? if you take care when joining the pieces you will not need filler and if you do then super glue with a shot of accelerator is the ticket. i stretched just about every one of my kit frames in the past and none of them had filler. i do use the super glue to fill the seam to make it invisible though. take your time when fitting your sections together and it will save you a lot of extra work in the end. B)

we will be there, no bells on but we will be there.lol

thanks for the great comment.................i have my own forum on proboards, http://www.theplasti...s.com/index.cgi

thanks guys, it is my best paint work too date but it still needs to be better.

thanks.............the paint is testors one coat lacquer decanted and sprayed with my airbrush. everything else is decals.......boy were they fun :lol: this probably is not the "correct" color but it looked close to the box art so i went with it. here is a pic before the weathering.......................

this is the one i'm most proud of so far. ford ltl9000 with scratchbuilt trailer and a 1/25th scale tamiya centurian tank for a load. this model was finished in feb 2010 after about 400 hours of work. it has won all 27 shows it's been too, three best in shows, one best paint award, one best interior award, one best engine award and 8 best automotive awards. it was in the latest mcm contest issue and is by far my pride and joy so far................

here is my second ever completed car build. boxstock revell corvette with a little weathering.............

thanks much, this build was finished in august 2011. it will be officially retired from competition this august. my main build interest is heavy commercial trucks but i have finished two other cars since this one.

thanks, i lost count :lol:

thanks much guys. the cds are photo etched pieces from detail master. there is one in the cd player also, it is a half disk so it looks partly ejected.

here is my revell corvette. painted with house of kolor tangelo pearl. many aftermarket and photoetched parts on this one. i also installed leds for the head and tail lights. this was my first ever completed car build. thanks for looking................................

here is my tamiya 350z built as a slammer. i painted it with house of kolor candy brandywine over a gold base. i added pegasus wheels and a few photoetched parts other than that it's boxstock. thanks for looking................................

here i am in 2009 the night before my first ever model contest/show.

pm sent

i will be there, this show is my last one for the season. B)