2002p51

Oh boy, here we go again! First let me preface my remarks by saying that in the past I have been threatened with actual physical bodily harm for expressing an opinion that differs from the established paradigm. So if you feel the need to get your panties in a twist because of what I'm about to say go slam a door or break some dishes or go sit in the closet and pout, but leave me out of it! That opinion? I never clear over decals. When? Never, and here's why; Like Harry said, race cars shouldn't look like show cars. They shouldn't have a deep, high gloss finish. They simply don't need the clear and look better without it. Second, the decals don't need the so-called "protection" of a clear coat if they have been applied properly. I've got models that were decaled over 40 years ago and have never had a decal flake off or peel. Clear if you want and if you feel you must but understand it isn't going to look realistic. Also, this myth about always clear coating on superspeedway cars is just that. Some teams have done it in the past, once or twice, but it has proven to be unnecessary and not worth the time and labor it takes. Of course these days 99% of the cars you see are not painted at all but wrapped in vinyl. Part of the reason they do that is because it makes it easy to change the graphic design of the car with the almost weekly change of sponsors. They peel it off and apply next week's scheme in 1/4 the time and 1/10 the cost of paint. You defeat the entire point of using a wrap on a 1:1 car if you clear coat over it. I've been covering NASCAR as a photographer since 1983, been in the garage, up close and personal with the cars throughout this time. I'm hear to tell you that, in person, NASCAR race cars don't look anywhere near as "pretty" as they do on TV. That little screen can be very deceptive. They are smooth but not overly shiny. And in spite of that, I've still been told I don't know what I'm talking about.

Hate to be the dissenting opinion, but here goes; I started airbrushing many years ago with a Badger 150. When it finally wore out I felt it was time to upgrade to an "adult" air brush and I bought the Paasche H on the recommendation of a friend and a lot of information from the hobby press. Almost from the start I hated it. It was very fussy about paint mixture, it was a major pain in the rear to clean, and it was constantly screwing up and ruining my paint jobs. Finally, my long nightmare ended and I went back to a Badger 150. I've been happy again ever since. You make up your own mind, but I'm just sayin'!

Thanks Harry and Mike, I don't know if it's age, laziness,or a "been there, done that" sort of thing, or maybe a little of all three. But I find that I'm now more interested in the overall look and impression of a model rather than concentrating on infinitely small details.

I once worked in the parts department of a large Ford dealer in San Diego. Everyday I would restock the shelves with the parts we got in from the warehouse over night to replace what we sold the day before. The labels on every box and package said "Genuine Ford Replacement Part" and "Made in XXXX". You can replace the x's with every single country in the world! And I mean those parts where made all over the world.

I know when these kits first came out a couple of years ago everybody was building them and posting photos of them, well, that's when I started building this one. But something happened and I lost interest or my "Modeler's ADD" kicked in and I just moved on to some other more pressing project. (Squirrel!) Anyway, since completing that '52 Hudson and '55 Chrysler just now, I thought I'd keep the '50s stock car thing going and so I dug this '57 Chevy out of my stash. I was surprised at how close to being finished it was. All the heavy lifting was done, all it needed was some paint detailing and final assembly. So, bada boom, bada bing, about two hours of work, and it's done. Like the Hudson and Chrysler before it, this model is really just a shelf model. The paint is all Testors Model Master and I think the decals are from Fred Cady. The engine is "paint detailed" only, no wiring, and there's nothing under neath the car that isn't necessary to hold it up on four wheels. And it wasn't until I looked at this photo just now that I noticed the "Fuel Injection" decal on the rear quarter panel is crooked. Rats! Oh well, the other side looks good! Anyway, back to your regularly scheduled rants and other stuff, I just wanted to share.

I can dig anything Santa Fe. Those look good.

All of the construction photos are here: http://public.fotki.com/2002p51/misc/model-railroad/

I appreciate the information Chuck (Michigan Madman), but I think you're missing the point of how and why I built these models.

Yea, I noticed the ridge on the glass, but shouldn't that be black not foil? I think that's the rubber seal. Anyway, I doubt it would've made much impact on the final result.

Thank you, I wish more people cared about the language, especially on forums such as this one. (Don't get me started!)

Not long after I retired last summer I realized I finally had the time to make some real progress on a model railroad. (Yes, I've always been a closet model railroader.) Consequently, model cars got pushed aside as I spent most of my days (and not a small amount of money) on finally building a real layout. Well, the railroad progressed to the point where I can now slow down a little on it and I've finally got the bug to build a car or two again. And it was these two kits that re-lit the spark: I'm sure I don't need to mention which kits they are as they have both been well discussed all over this forum. Both are built pretty much straight out of the box, and both are done in a sort of curbside style. After nearly 50 years in this hobby I've finally reached the point where I have little interest in building fully detailed models anymore. My models, once completed, sit on a shelf and never get very close scrutiny by anyone, ever. So I just don't feel like spending much time on that which will never be seen. So, while both of these models do have their engines, they are not detailed. The chassis have just enough parts installed to hold up the wheels and then everything is shot flat black. Nobody will ever see under there. The railroad is still getting some attention but I'm trying to at least give some time over to the "main" hobby once again. As always I welcome and encourage comments, both good and bad.

It's an "internet forum word" for people who are too lazy to type out "distributor".

Race cars, obviously, mostly all sorts of circle track cars. Same with drag cars, everything from local bracket cars to Top Fuel. Hot rods next. I've been known to do the occasionally factory stock. I would do more customs but the whole "fill, sand, prime, repeat" process is too much like work and I'm too lazy! Of course for the last six months or so I've been lost in the O/T world of model railroading so . . . .

Only problem with that Harry, is what happens on a Saturday afternoon when you've run out of a certain color paint, or need fresh blades, or anything like that? You're stopped until the UPS guy can bring fresh supplies.

Coupons for Hobby Lobby and Hobbytown don't do me much good because both of those stores in my area have a pitiful selection of model kits. I do all of my kit buying on-line, either from regular retailers or eBay.

In all honesty Patrick, if I were building this car, I would leave the molded in trim around the windows of the Bel Air and just paint over it as if it wasn't there. The amount of work involved to remove it vs. the benefit of how it would look after, balanced by the potential for messing it up would make me want to take the easy way out. But then I'm the original lazy modeler so take that into account. Also, it's hard to be sure from that photo, but it looks like the car had those three little fake louvers that Bel Airs had on the front fender. So be sure not to remove them from your Bel Air base kit. (They were not on 210s or 150s)

I think what you're seeing as "55 trim" is really a '57 150. That's what the Black Widow is. The spears on top of the fenders are the same for the 150 and 210 so they would work for the OP's project. Here's a '57 150.

What two are you seeing? They should all look like this.

The Revell Black Widow kit is a 150 and has the correct fender spears for your 210.

I don't know if any of these are the best ever but they are my favorites. I use them as a border at the top of the walls in my model room.

If there is a competition for the messiest, I'm in!

I did and I did! Thanks!

That was my experience too Harry. I went to the Bare Metal site first. Total for one sheet of chrome with shipping was $17.00! I passed.

I know by the title of this post you must think I'm an idiot. "There are tons of places on line that sell Bare Metal, what's wrong with this guy?" So, let me clarify; I'm looking for an on line source for Bare Metal Foil that doesn't charge an exorbitant fee for postage. In the way of a little background; I went to my local hobby shop and for some reason that I can't figure out the manager feels the need to stock about 12 sheets of the copper foil but no chrome. When I asked him about it I got a blank stare as if he was thinking "Chrome? They make a chrome foil? You mean somebody might want chrome foil?" Okay, so I can't rely on this guy, no problem, I'll just order some on line. Now I don't mind paying the $6.50 or so that most of them charge for the foil, but $8.00, $9.00, and even $10.00 to ship it to me? Really? So back to my original question; anybody know where I can get this stuff AND pay a reasonable shipping charge?

Well, this is Saturday night short track racing, it's a whole different world from the so called "big time". The sign on that light pole in front of her says "Do not go beyond this point when cars are on the track." so she's okay.