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I used to categorically say, any Artist Grade - Watercolor brush that is constructed of Red Sable, for years the natural hair brushes were the goto for Sign Writers, serious Hobbyists, Water Media painters. Lately though, there are a whole lot of synthetic faux fur brushes coming on the market that have better stiffness, snap and feel for the detail painting you want to do. So, if you are going with a detail brush look for a good synthetic 0000 to 20/0 sized brush, the more 0's on the handle the finer the tip. Hobby Lobby, Micheals and some of the other big box arts and crafts stores are going to carry the brands like "Simply Simmons", Windsor & Newton, da Vinchi, Robert Simmons, Rapheal, are all good names in the watercolor world. If a brush will handle watercolor it should for the most part handle both enamels and acrylics. Cotman and some of the "student grade" brushes will do in a pinch and will be less expensive. The cheapest brushes in the long run will not be the cheapest brush, because you will end up replacing the cheap ones sooner. I've used all kinds of brushes in the Sign business and have settled on the newer synthetic brushes for general work, for sign work it's still Red Sable Kolinski from a dedicated sign brush supplier. I've been puttering around with painted sign work since the late 70s so I sort of know my way around a brush! The pencil eraser tampo trick is probably going to work the best as it doesn't require an absolute steady hand and properly thinned paint, I've used this trick with the Molotow Chrome pens, get a little of the chrome paint in a water bottle cap and lightly load up the eraser, if you mess it up take it off with isopropyl alcohol.

The Pedregon Fuel Coupe has been at the March Meet a bunch of times, you might do a search to see if anything comes up on the March Meet website or any associated with it. Just a Thought. Love Scott's idea though!

Although the origins are different, the types of containers are the same general idea. As long as they fit inside the kit box then that's what I normally try to use, Chrome and clear stuff go into (reused) plastic baggies, so they aren't scrubbing on everything else. Helps to have everything within arm's reach without an extended search!

Looks like I got here a little late for this party to add my two cents, I'll toss them in anyway. I read in and old SAE, and then saw someone probably Doug Whyte on his Model Car Muse or one of the aircraft YouTube channels, about using a Paasche air eraser with old erasing (blasting) media on tires to age and take the shine off. I was thinking of using baking soda through my air eraser to do the same thing, it's a whole lot less aggressive and way cheaper than the stuff Paasche sells. I've used Vallejo's Acrylic Matt Varnish sprayed on vinyl tires through my airbrush, which came out looking like your tires, almost a dead flat black color. Vallejo also has a Satin Varnish (Acrylic) that I've used on other stuff, (like interiors, gives a slight sheen that looks like vinyl or a low gloss leather). For interiors, some underhood and chassis details the acrylics work just as well as any of the smelly paints that I have, they seem to cover just as well as the others do. I can usually get away with spraying the acrylics into an old paper shopping bag with the parts on a clip, almost zero clean up that way.

My bench tops are 4' & 6' lengths of Formica countertop that you can buy at either Lowes or Home Depot, has the bullnose front edge and the 6" backsplash at the back. From a dust and cleanup standpoint, they are the best, you just wipe the countertop down with a damp cloth and the dusty tidbits are gone. I also have a 2' length of white HDPE cutting board that all cutting and sawing is done on, this alone has contributed to a cleaner tabletop. I use the tray system for the tools that I am using at that particular time, they are returned to their drawers as soon as the build session is done for the evening. Keeps the common tools I am using at my right hand throughout the building session. One bench is a sit-down work bench and the other is a stand-up work bench which is set at counter height on top of some used kitchen base cabinets, one benefit of using the base cabinets was that I got plenty of drawer space plus one shelved cabinet with doors to keep stuff on those shelves clean. Above the countertop are upper kitchen cabinets where parts, adhesives, bases... are stored, on the back of the doors I glued 1/2" cork sheet and pin the small PE bags, along with some resin parts in bags, keeps stuff at hand and off of the workbench itself. Whatever system you develop for yourself, needs to be one that you will use and stick to, otherwise you're wasting your time, effort and money.

Norm Veber - Replicas & Miniatures has them listed in his catalog.

The ones that I have in my stash are all generic fictitious names, Fremont Racing Specialties who goes by - paintinjoe on eBay has team specific, off the shelf decals for Gassers and other historic drag racing cars.

That type of bumper over-rider was used up to the end of the 1967 production year, they were pretty much unchanged. So just about any 1967 or previous, VW Type I model that builds to stock should have those bumper over-riders. (As mentioned above the Tamiya 1966 Type I does.)

I remember seeing an article and a hint or two in SAE magazine about using muffler tape, (heavy foil tape) for the outside of the panel then sticking regular household foil on the inside. Attach the muffler repair tape (HVAC Tape) to the panel, then stick the household foil to the rest of the adhesive part of the tape. Then mash it to your hearts content!!

Recently retired Engineer, sometimes it helps to look at things from a "Process Analysis" approach, leads to detailed answers. LoL!!

Another silly, probing, question please don't get upset if this is what's happening. Just trying to help here, that's what we are all here for in the first place to help one another be better modelers. Hope this helps narrow down your paint issue. Since you said that the scratching occurred again on a second painted body, you are using wet sanding and flushing away the shedding paint residue. The next thing to check is going to be your sanding pads / films / papers for contamination even slight. Examine your polishing films, pads, papers... use a magnifying glass if you have to. Now, do you see any gummed-up paint residue on the polishing film? It will appear as a little roundish dot building up to a splotch on the polishing film/pad. If this is the case, the paint residue on your pad is probably your scratching culprit. Sometimes this buildup happens even with wet sanding while using a wetting agent such as a drop of dish soap. It pretty much signals that the aggregate media on the film is worn out - time to replace. (See Below **Bonus Tip - how to fix a good but slightly gummed up abrasive pad.) Next, after you are finished with all wet polishing, store the polishing kit in a baggie or container so it is not going to pick up contaminates while being stored. It sounds like there is some sort of contamination issue, just not sure where it is being introduced into your polishing process. *Polishing Tip - Another hint taken from wet sanding more than a few full-sized cars is to use a dense foam pad to back up your sanding film / paper. I use the (3"X2"X3/8") McGuire's Black Foam pads that I cut down to size with a super sharp knife. I actually use a kitchen butcher knife to cut them, to get a straight square cut I take a piece of wood block a little longer than the pad set it on the pad and use it as a knife guide. The knife has to be really sharp to get a good smooth cut, the foam will tear otherwise. Then I use these Mini-Pads to back up the smaller sanding films and even the sanding pads while wet sanding / polishing. The foam pads control and distribute the pressure evenly across the pad. Use just enough pressure while polishing, so you feel just a slight drag, not a full-on cutting action like with sandpaper. ** Bonus Tip - You can maintain polishing films / pads with an art gum eraser, or the gum-rubber pads made for cleaning sanding disks, or to remove latex masking fluids (used by watercolor artists). Both the eraser and the cleaning pad can be found at a well-stocked art store, (or Dick Blick, Jerry's Artarama, Cheap Joe's websites). Both the eraser and cleaning pad are used just like an eraser on paper, best results are rubbing the eraser on the sanding pad in one direction until you get all of the embedded contaminants off of the pad. If you cannot get it 100% clean, then it's time to replace that pad / film. This trick works to extend the life of sanding sticks and sandpaper on the bench as well.

If you’ve tasted the water in and around a lot of Southern California then you know why they try drinking paint thinner, it probably tastes a whole lot better! LoL!!

I’ve used craft acrylics in the past, but have since switched to Vallejo acrylics. You get what you pay for with craft acrylics, the cheaper brands are cheaper because they use less pigment in them so it often takes a coat or two to get good coverage. The Vallejo glossy and matte black cover with one coat, the brush marks almost always lay down for a smooth finish. I never got that with craft paints.

This may sound stupid, so don't be upset if this is what you're doing. I haven't seen this addressed so time to ask... Are you using adequate water to flush away the shed paint removed by the polishing pads or are you using the films / pads dry. The only time that I use polishing films or pads dry is correcting small dust bunnies in the paint. Otherwise, I flush the body with water with a drop of liquid dish detergent which helps the abrasive particles cut better and helps clear away the paint particles shedding off the body as you wet sand. Most hobby shop sanding sticks can be used wet or dry as well, makes them last longer.

Greg, Just went through your build-up to where you currently are, having build the '55 years ago all I can say is WoW! This is one of the best '53 - '55 Corvettes that I have seen. I ended up building the '55 as a Gasser out of it combining the poorly engineered AMT '57 flip-front Gasser. Still there were a ton of issues with the body and interior bucket, bullet proof windshield... I like how you are setting down and solving each issue as it comes, building a real replica out of a kid market model! Keep it up. I'm watching this one going together!

I've been using business cards and magazine insert cards for years, to mix small batches of bondo and epoxy. Mix it, use it, toss it. I got the tip from Paul Budzig (a Dentist), on his aircraft modeling YouTube channel. He uses cut up copier/typing paper pieces about the size of a Post-It or business card. I always had a wad of business cards at work from every Contractor that I worked with, so free mixing boards!

Uni-Body Ford F-100's, the full-sized Ranchero of the Ford Fleet! I Remember seeing this one in the magazines of the day, looking good!

Great job. just be really thankful you didn't start with an AMT Chevelle, metal axle through the block, crude frame, screw bottom chassis originally. The colors, engine decals wheels & tires look spot on, like this one a lot!

Nice upgrades Tim. I think you are right on the money with your changes, they are in keeping with a traditional Hot Rod. More like a backdated traditional Hot Rod, if one is going to go the period Hot Rod route, then the rear frame crossmember, spring and mounting of either a quick change or early Ford banjo rear end would need to be fit. The other thing would likely be a '32 car radiator shell, shaved or not. The slightly chopped windshield frame and stanchions take the roadster from stock windshield to a Hot Rod inspired windshield. Wheels, the black rims were what the average Hot Rodder probably would have run every day. At least the guys that my uncles used to run with did, then they would pop on the trim rings and either post '40 Ford caps or baldy caps when they were headed to a show or to show off. Swapping out the fuel injection is a smart idea, most of the early injection units were a pain to tune and keep tuned, they required near constant fiddling and changing out of the pills (jets). Running fuel injection on the street back in the day was a real rarity even in Southern California, it wasn't until the computer controlled (aided) retro-injection systems started showing up in the early '90s, Kinsler, Ingalese and others which are controlled by computer Vs. the pill etc. A dual 4-Barrel setup was far more drivable than any injection system back in the early/mid '60s, way easier to tune for the street too. Almost forgot, one of the real big hitters on your '29 Ford clean up was fixing those weird looking wheel wells, (inner fender wells) I haven't liked them since the Revell '29 Roadster first came out. Having grown up in a Hot-Rodding family, from as early as I can remember we've had something Hot Rodded in the garages either my uncles or my dad, brothers and my own. My brothers and I were exposed to good old Hot Rods back in the early 60's and it's been a string of Hot Rods, Muscle Cars, Race Cars through the years. So maybe, just maybe, I'm kind of qualified to give an opinion or two on early Hot Rods because I have been lucky enough to be surrounded by them from an early age. Most of my family have owned Hot Rods, not Street Rods with their pretty carved billet handiwork, billet didn't make it go fast... I think that's one of the biggest reasons we have seen a resurgence of basic Hot Rods with their simplicity and just darn good looks!

The Empi Inch Pincher run by Joe and Darrel Vittone was a true NHRA Gasser, it ran in I/Gas with a very low front end. The rules for gassers stated that the front could be lowered or raised but not more than 24 inches from the center of the crankshaft to the pavement. Lots of other Volkswagen Type 1, Bugs ran in the NHRA and IHRA Gas Classes, usually H/Gas, I/Gas depending on the horsepower to weight ratio, which is what placed any Gasser in its respective class. Other VW Gassers were "The Tar Babe", "Iguana", Gene Berg - Gene Berg Enterprises, Gary Berg - "Sonic Muffin" The Schley Brothers,,, and a bunch of others. The "Original California Look" lowered, dechromed, Hi-Horsepower engines, Light weight racing type wheels - BRM, Rocket, American Mags all in the wide five bolt pattern, all business interiors were morphed back onto the street in some cases from the NHRA Gas Classes when the gassers were dropped. So, if you do a little homework on the mid-60's to mid-70's, you will find the combination for the VW Gasser engine sizes of the day ranged from 1500 - 2180 cc, Carburetion a pair of 40 IDA Webbers on the smaller engines to the big 48 IDA Webbers on the bigger engines, large diameter header and a long stinger 16 - 24" long depending on the tune. Externally from a visual standpoint, those are the real changes to the Volkswagen engine. The engine in the AMT Super Bug gasser, looks like it is probably either a 36 or 40 HP engine, could even be a 1500 cc single port engine. Nearly every Volkswagen gas class engine that I saw in the early days of the VW Gassers was based on the larger higher flowing Dual Port Head equipped engine. So, if you are using the Super Bug or the Meyers Manx VW engines they won't be quite accurate. There was someone on here that had a friend who resin cast some VW engines that came with everything needed for a VW gasser engine, it had bare cylinder barrels which most of the early gassers ran without any engine tin at all. Your reference material should show that. The AMT Super Bug gasser would not run in the VW Gas classes, the shortened wheelbase would have moved it into the Altered classes, not sure any VW's even ran in that class. I don't recall any of them, but that doesn't mean that someone somewhere didn't. Look at Hot VW's magazine, VW Greats magazine from the 60s and 70s, Hot Rod (Peterson) Complete Volkswagen books 1,2 & 3 - There was plenty of VW drag racing engines and cars in those publications. Do a search on Joe and Darrel Vittone there are a few of the Empi Inch Pincher VW's that have been restored, last I saw they were online. There should be a ton of reference material on the innerweb you just have to look and search for the right thing. I don't have any of my collection of Volkswagen stuff in print so I can't help you there. When I switched back to American muscle cars and Hot Rods, I got rid of all VW related stuff parts and print. I used to hang around Gene Berg's shop when he was in Kent, Washington before he moved everything to California. I had one of Gene's engines, I believe came out of Gary's Sonic Muffin, race car, roller crank, ported heads, 48 IDA Webbers... that I ran in a '57 oval window mostly at the drags up to the mid-80s, wish I had never got rid of it! Smoothest running modified VW engine I've ever owned. Hope this helps you on your Gasser Quest!

Soak it in some acetone then make the decision that its trashed. Make sure that the O-rings and Teflon seals are removed as acetone or ketone will attack the seals. Acetone will break down CA glue, I've used it before on other projects. Good luck!

Ron - Great idea, I don't have a fidget yet so guess I'll stick to my water bottle caps, use those for just about everything then toss them when finished. Our recycling doesn't accept bottle caps and lids, so I'm recycling the caps for another use before tossing them!

Greg - That's a great idea! Normally either use needle files or rifflers to get to inside radii, have to try it.

That looks great I think I'll have to try it out, looks like it's a good way to get that sidewall "pooch" from the weight of the vehicle as well. Model Car Science Magazine and Don Emmons used to recommend using a hot iron for flattening and treading tires (over metal screen). I remember trying it as a kid and getting into a whole lot of trouble with my Mom, for getting black model tire residue on the business end of her iron. I only tried that method once! LoL!!

That's a great way to mask. I don't use it because I am plagued at times with static electricity which can and does do funny things to sprayed paint. I typically use either white butcher paper or masking paper taped to the edge of the already masked areas.