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I use something similar to this, uses a couple of tapered plastic plumbing washers about the size if the hole in the tire, once they pass through the 1/8" Screw and Nut they center inside the tire with little if any runout issues.

Mask it off. Use a Q-Tip and paste cleaner car wax and buff it away. I've done this on a larger scale on full sized vehicle paint oopses it works.

I'm using a Black and Decker cordless screwdriver that's old enough that I'm not seeing pictures of it on the 'net. From what I see on the B & D website, most of their cordless screwdrivers turn around 180 RPM. That's slow enough that you will never burn styrene, I've never melted anything with it. I use the same type of Hex Bit Chuck that everyone else is using, with a bigger and smaller jaw set up. Works fine for everything that I do. If I need slower speed, I use my pin vises and a shop made drill block which helps hold the drill rod at 90 degrees.

The bottom Sprue looks like it came from Monogram's Big Deuce, the top of the firewall and Pontiac valve cover are kind of a giveaway. The top looks like something Aurora while the middle looks like Lindberg, probably wrong on both!

If I remember right from inspecting paint for a really big used to be Seattle based Aircraft Manufacturer; the Cup you are talking about is called a Zahnn Cup. Sets in a heavy wire rack with another catcher cup below it. Dump a measured amount of the thinned paint into the top cup then time how many seconds it took to empty the top cup. Next there is a formula for the Temperature and Humidity factors and that gives the Viscosity of the paint. Didn't have to use this on most of the Commercial aircraft but had to do it on every Military variant. The painters all used the stick, the inspectors were forced to use the Zahnn cup and compute the viscosity... No one else has commented, but you said that your air temperature is around 90 deg F. that's pretty warm to be shooting paint, could be that you are having flash off occurring in the air before it hits the painted surface as dust. You might look into a high temperature reducer (thinner) to somewhat counteract this. Humidity at 90 deg shouldn't be an issue, in Texas it's probably next to zero hot & dry! What about painting in the morning when the dewpoint is a little higher for at least a few percent humidity and the air temperature is lower to help you with the flashing issue. It's worth a try, and you might not even have to mess around with switching reducer. You also might be picking up some dust out of the air as well, if you can cover the painted model with a stainless-steel bowl, plastic bowl... to guard against the dust you might help that issue. Being that painting is a process you can check off one step at a time to isolate the source of the issue until it's found.

Bob's comment just jarred a memory of stuff that's in my toolbox to do the waxing and buffing. I use "The Professionals Choice" Rifle & Pistol Cleaning Patches, 100% Cotton Flannel 3 by 3 in I think I got them last time at Wally World for like $3.99. They're really soft cotton and at 3 X 3 they are just about the right size to do the job without a bunch of extra to snag everything in sight!

Depends on if the paint laid down with zero to almost no orange peel and the paint is slightly dull then you can polish it up a high shine using polishing compounds. Almost Flat paint will buff up using either Novus 1, 2, 3, polish, Tamyia course, fine, ex-fine compounds or McGuair’s fast cut, swirl remover an then yellow carnuba. All three of these will polish if you’ve got orange peel, dust particles or slight runs then you will need to begin with polishing pads or cloths using the finest pad that will remove the defect. Then work finer and finer finishing out with a scratch remover like fine then extra fine Tamyia or Novus 2 and 3, or the McGuairs swirl remover and the Yellow carnuba wax. It’s all a matter of going with the least aggressive compound or polishing cloth that removes the heaviest defect such as smoothing over orange peel. You have to balance with aggressive enough to remove but not so aggressive that you are causing additional scratches that you might nit get out of the paint, determining that comes with experience.

I've shot a ton of paint through airbrushes doing sign work, custom automotive stuff, and model stuff over about a 30 plus year spread; it depends on what you are painting and the overall appearance you are looking for. High Shine - Either Enamel or Lacquer, thin both with Lacquer Thinner (Reducer) The High Shiny Luster comes from the after paint and clear coat wet sanding either color sanding or wet sanding over the clear coat. Medium to Shiny Luster - Acrylics + an Acrylic Clear Coat - Flat - Med. Luster - Shiney Clear Coat, you can use an Enamel, Lacquer or 2K Clear Coat over acrylics, In my opinion, I don't think they look as well as the Acrylic Clear Coats. You can buff the Acrylic Clears with a microfiber cloth or I have even heard of people using coffee filters to buff acrylics out to achieve more shine. Brands - Vallejo Acrylics, Model Air or Game Air are the two go to pre-thinned paints that I use for acrylic painting. I do on occasion use thinned craft paints thinned with either or both Vallejo Reducer or Vallejo Flow Improver. Thin the paint to just slightly thicker than skim milk, so say whole milk should just about right to begin with, adjust the paint thickness once you start spraying to get a good spray pattern. Use a good Automotive grade lacquer-based primer, white, red oxide, gray or black matched to the color you are shooting. If you shoot a Lacquer Clear coat test the stacked paints Primer-Color Coat- Clear Coat for overall compatibility, I've never had an issue with acrylic compatibility, but I still do test it for overall compatibility, so I don't get caught in a bind at the last minute. Enamels and Lacquers - MCW Paints, Scale Finishes, Splash Paints, Tamyia, Testers and a few others are what I usually shoot through the airbrush for bodies and some interior colors again there are clear coats in the flat, med and shiny ranges from the manufacturers line or another that is tested compatible with the color coat that you are shooting. Use a good Automotive grade lacquer-based primer, white, red oxide, gray or black matched to the color you are shooting. Testing overall paint stack up, I always check the paints used Primer-Color Coat- Clear Coat for any compatibility issues, there have been times when I have been caught in a bind with Lacquers and Enamels reacting even after testing, often it is an issue of too much thickness of the clear coat reactivating the primer under the color coat, depending on how severe the reaction is you might get lucky and jus sand the orange peel out, other times it involves a trip to the purple pond for complete stripping. Rattle Can Paint Straight From the Can - I still use Rattle Can paints right out of the can, painting with a Rattle Can should be your first paint delivery system that you master. Doing to may require a whole lot of stripping, sanding and polishing but it is the easiest paint system we use in building models. Decanted Rattle Can Paint - Typically decanted rattle can paints are not in my preferred materials, I use them but really infrequently. I do not decant any of the primers that I use, I prefer to shoot them onto the bodywork straight from the can to get both enough coverage and thickness enough to do some finish sanding on the primer. Dehydrator - If you don't own a Dehydrator yet, get one, this is one thing that will help you get better with all of the paints we use, I use my $3-Garage Sale dehydrator on everything that will fit into it. Not only does a dehydrator speed up the curing process, it also in most cases yields a harder paint finish that can be polished out quicker. Make sure the dehydrator you get has a temperature control on it and do not exceed 110 to 115 degrees F. That's probably enough to get you going, and for all the others who have their own patented paint systems arguing about what and which is the best! LoL!! I hope not! The real thing here is to develop a painting system that works for you, where you're at, and with the temperatures you have in your area. That's why sometimes someone will recommend a certain primer, paint, thinner and clearcoat combination; the works like a charm for them, doesn't quite work somewhere else. That's when painting gets exasperating because you are getting sound advice from someone the combination works for them, but you are having problems getting it to work for you. The key to fixing paint issues is taking small steps back to a repeatable condition. Then follow that process every time you paint! Long answer, but hope it helps you on your airbrush painting journey...

A friend of mine has a daughter that is a museum curator, I specifically asked her what the museum uses to keep objects that might move around like a toy car or something with wheels on a shelf. She recommended, Quake Hold, Museum Wax. Quake Hold Clear Museum Wax I found some at a local art store which has since gone out of business, so the link here is for Dick Blick Art Supply. The stuff looks like clear bees wax or other pliable wax, you take a tiny dot apply it to the tire and stick it to the shelf. On most of the models that I have used this on i put a dot on both front wheels and have had zero movement. It comes off pretty easy and like the Blue Poster Tack it will get between the tire treads and you will have to use a toothpick to remove it if you want it off completely. I have used both the Blue Poster Tack and the Museum Wax, I like the Museum Wax the best as it is not detectable on a glass shelf between a tire and shelf, where the blue Poste Tack looks like you ran over a spot of gum. That's just my opinion though.

Yep, go for it,,, time to pick up a 51/52 Chev and a C1 Corvette, then let the slicing and dicing begin! Have Fun with this one, looks like it might just keep you scratching your head all the way through.

As for the rubber mat’s surface, how about using a medium or fine rubbing compound to polish the worn areas. Maybe use something like a pencil eraser under the polishing towel to create the smalll foot worn spots on the mats surface. Followed by a spot polish with a cleaner type wax in the smaller spots within the areas of wear using a smaller eraser tip to put the pressure under the polishing rag. Another thought for rubber mat basic color, might be as simple as using the rattle can truck bed liner, experimenting with spray nozzle! Should give the surface that rougher texture you are looking for. Follow that up with the above might give you a plausible worn rubber mat look that you’re after, especially using Steve’s foil suggestion.

When we restored my Brother’s 1953 F-100 it had Red Oxide primer under the original Sheridan Blue paint. We found no other color primer anywhere on the interior or exterior. Hope that helps.

Good observation and trick, I've used a sewing needle to do the same.

I should have mentioned this earlier, I regularly use my ultrasonic cleaner on my airbrush parts, with either Windex, Simple Green or Harbor Freight Ultrasonic Cleaner concentrated powder and they always end up squeaky clean. So, I have little doubt that this would clean up the extra metalic bits floating around your airbrush.

Same here, if it seems really stubborn, I might spray some decanted primer or non-metalic paint through and go back to flushing and cleaning, the few times that I did resort to that it worked picking up the extra unseen metalflake bits. Cleaning up after metalics is a matter of flushing and brushing. My other tool is a 1/8" hog bristle brush like the oil painters use, then cut its hog bristles down to a straight across at about 1/4" long, this makes a stiff cleanup brush like Iwata sells for a lot more than I have in mine the hog bristle wears out pretty quickly like after 6 or 8 cleanups. Which is why the cheap version works for me.

I think your analysis of painting over chrome is a good one. Plus, modernized painting methods where nearly everything that is painted is also primed to further promote paint adhesion. If I remember correctly, a lot of it began in the pages of SAE, where the chrome was being removed from kit parts to paint, baring the plastic's details and not for adhesion purposes. Much of the Alclad and the other chrome paints that followed gained acceptance because they replicated chrome in scale better than vacuum chroming and two the chrome paints allowed the surface details to show better than through the "chrome plating".

I’ve never tried this, but it might work better than masking and using bleach, purple power, oven cleaner, brake fluid d any other concoctions some use to strip chrome I would be concerned about whatever is used to strip off the chrome to replace under any latex type liquid mask. My idea would be to use a rather heavy coat of latex and or tape mask. Next use something like a Paasche Air Eraser to blast the chrome off the plastic. I have shot Baking Soda through my air eraser and it is a much milder abrasive than the media Paasche sells i just remembered when I worked for Boeing, I saw guys doing what is called Chem-Milling, where they use a rubber like masking fluid, (think plastidip the tool handle rubbery dip that sets up like soft rubber). The rubbery mask would hold the acid that the part was dunked in, leaving a stepped edge like it had been milled away. Plastidip might work to preserve the chrome but it might’ve difficult to remove. Might be more trouble than it’s worth…. Good luck and hopefully it gets someone thinking of some other processes they’ve seen.

Are you referring to the clear watch crystal cement or the thicker white polymer glue, I’m not home right now so I cannot do pictures of either. Not certain what the watch crystal cement is, but appears to be some sort of air cure resin, which I think is waterproof, so I’m not sure what to use. Wouldn’t hurt to ask a jeweler about how they break it loose. Maybe a soak in ultrasonic cleaner hoping the cavitation breaks the bond. For the canopy cement, probably soak it in water see if it breaks down and breaks loose, it wouldn’t hurt to run through a soak in an ultrasonic cleaner, hopefully that might make it break loose.

My usual methodology on two tone/color bodies is to work light to dark, like Steve said "it's easier to cover silver with black..." If you shoot the lighter color over the darker, I think you are setting yourself up for bleed through. I've never experienced bleed through issues when going light to dark; being that the light color is silver, you might not encounter any sort of issue, then again, you might.

Same here Steve, I remember trying to replace a 1/12 scale ‘57 Chevy, with flat material, it just wouldn’t stretch around enough to make both curvy ends line up, it would make one but not the other I’d get it in and glued and it would just suck right back it again and again! (Most exasperating!) I finally ended up creating a buck out of the old windshield, balsa and bondo, then vacuforming a new windshield with the same material. The original break did “bleed” through to the inside f the windshield, which I ended up polishing and finally dipping in Future. I could tell where the defect was but no one else did, sooo I guess it worked out after all. The car now belongs to someone else, I look every time I see the model, it’s still stable and doesn’t show. Thats pretty thick, 1/32 = 1 / 32 = 003125 say 0.030 thick, the stuff that Revell used to use for their flat windshields was 0.010 thick, I never measured the camera film a lot of us used to use for windshield material but it felt like it was thinner than the Revell stuff. (Anyone have any exposed camera film they can measure?) Although back when I was vacuforming aircraft canopies we didn’t pay a whole lot of attention to what the exact material was. First it had to be clear, then thin enough (0.010 in - 0.020 in) to heat and form quickly so I’m sure we used a whole lot of stuff that wasn’t supposed o work, but did! LoL!! BTW - 0.010 in - 0.020 in white Evergreen sheet styrene vacuforms into a really nice Hobby Stocker hood, providing a realistic droop like an old hood with all its internal bracing removed, trunk and door skins too…

Not necessarily, it helps enamels when your polishing them out helps not to burn through as easily as it does what it says hardens the enamel a bit over un-hardened enamels. Enamels tend to run a little softer than say a lacquer based paint, there are some that believe hardener adds to the luster of the paint. I’m not so certain about that though, because I normally polish to even out orange peel no matter how shallow. I’ve used enamel hardener with sign paint to get it to cure out quicker, so that’s probably it’s main advantage.

Guess I'm late to this one, but I'll chime in anyway. I love my Starrett Machinists Pin Vise set of five varying sized pin vises so you can have all five of them set up with a different diameter drill bit. Comes in handy when you are drilling a pilot hole then drilling up to size, you just set up the appropriate vise and bits and drill away! I've seen cheaper Machinists Pin Vises on eVilbay for a lot cheaper than the Starrett's but the threading on the chucks is not as smooth. My set belonged to my grandfather who got them sometime in the thirties, they look and perform exactly like the newer Starrett Pin Vises do.

That's what I thought too, one time I ordered some enamel paint from Mike at MCW and forgot the hardener. So, I ordered it off of eBay hours later from whomever was selling MCW paint there. Both orders arrived in the same box with a refund on shipping on the MCW order! For what it's worth, Mike /MCW combines shipping on eBay so the shipping ends up a decent deal if you order more than one jar of paint. I believe that MCW charges that much for shipping because they require extra materials to secure the jars in the box to keep them from breaking. I always order enough for several projects from both MCW and Scale Finishes, so I've never really been bummed over the shipping. Both MCW and Scale Finishes might also be getting hit with some Haz-Mat fees as well, which certainly would jack up the price of postage. I don't have a box from either around right now, but I remember the tape used to seal the boxes had some sort of Haz-Mat wording on it.

For one thing the 1948 cut off was set by the early NSRA parameters, if I remember correctly because 1949 marked the "Shoe Box" era with the blended fenders versus the detachable from almost any pre-48 body. Pretty sure that's oversimplifying it. NSRA also declared that post 1949 classified it as a "Street Machine". I pretty much lurk over at the HAMB too, unless you are one who invests time in extended build threads and endless discussions of your build, justifying every nut bolt and widget, you won't be accepted into the "Good Ol' Boys Network". So, I get about as much out of the HAMB by lurking as participating, I really like the vintage drag racing as in restored race cars and the restored Hot Rods RRR - I don't recall you being run off TRAK, most of everything that I've seen you build fits in with our build parameters, pre-1969 and Muscle Cars excluded. There can be some attitude over there too regarding what parts, wheels, engines should be allowed or not. Of late things have been loosening up over there, but we are in no way snobbish to the point of HAMB, (when politics of building enter into things it just becomes a lot less fun). Not to mention that I've always enjoyed your builds and generally learn a bit from each of them.

I have done this before, it's quite interesting what you can do with a file and a small machinist vise. First chuck the tubing in a vise to the desired cut depth, then file it down to the top of the vise jaws. The end result is a parallel depth of cut with little if any need for additional dressing with either a file or sanding stick.