Matt Bacon

It's complicated... ;-P Most decal solvents are more or less strong solutions of acetic acid (that's why they smell of vinegar). Micro Set and Micro Sol were originally part of the "Microscale Decal System", intended to work with Microscale decals specifically. Set is relatively gentle, and is good for moving decals around and getting them to settle down on a smooth surface. Sol chemically "melts" the decal carrier film and ink, so that it shrinks into all the underlying detail. Sol can be scary -- you're decals will wrinkle and look crumpled, before they eventually dry, magically shrink-wrapped onto the plastic below. You can move decals floated on Set; they should be exactly where they need to be before you hit them with Sol. Sol will render most decals very stretchy, and you can stuff them up permanently if you try to manipulate them while they are "part-melted". Things are a bit different with decal paper. It's not ink, it's the carrier film that's white. I'm a bit surprised, because if there's one thing wrong with the white decal paper I have, it's that it's TOO flexible. Try and lay down a stripe, and the "paper" will stretch and narrow, like an elastic band, as I try to lay it down. Sol and Set are part of the same system. You might try buying some Microscale Decal Film, which is a liquid you coat fragile decals with, applying it, and then using Micro Set to apply your stripes. Alternatively, get a different sheet of decal paper... I'm sure folks will recommend good ones in the US... All the best, M.

Thanks, Joseph... I think the first big decision is whether to use the kit tyres. The width is probably OK for the rears. I think, looking at the tyres, that with some deft scalpel work, I can probably take out one tread zig-zag circumferentially and glue them back together with soft vinyl glue, resulting in a front tyre that's narrower by (conveniently!) 1/16". The alternative is 3D-ing solid tyres as well. That could get expensive, I reckon... I'll have a quick look to see if there are any R/C tyres that might be a viable alternative. So, if we go for the kit tyres, that means that we have to stick with the slightly larger wheel diameter. I'll need to dig a little more closely to see why the front wheels in the kit are so narrow. Looking at the placing in the arches, I think the outside edge is in the correct plane, so I guess it must be that the inner rim doesn't go far enough inboard of the suspension pivot. It's kinda "nailed" to the upright, so there's gonna have to be some thinking about alternative mountings. Thus far, then, I think the external envelope of the replacement REAR wheels needs to be a "plug and play" copy of the kit part, and for the FRONT, it needs to be the front wheel with an additional 2.5mm width inboard, retaining the same mounting point to external rim geometry. bestest, M.

That would be fantastic! On closer inspection, it's a little more complicated than it seems at first ;-P The real things are 13" rims, 8" wide at the front and 9" at the rear. The kit wheels are made of outside (chromed) and inside halves. All four outside halves are identical. The outside pieces are 24.5mm in diameter, which by my reckoning is 15.4", meaning that the kit wheel size is more like a 14" than 13". Things get weirder when you add the inside halves. The front wheel width is 9mm, which corresponds to a bit under 6". The rear wheel width is 13.5mm, which is the equivalent of 8.5". And finally, the tyres. All four tyres are identical with a width of 15mm across the tread and 10mm across the interior bead. The groove on the rear wheel for the bead is indeed a tad under 10mm. But the front one is under 6mm, so the tyres on the front are simply pinched in by the wheel, and look rather weird. There's also the fact that the attachment for the wheels to the wheel carriers and suspension are different front and back, and the instructions would have you build up the chassis with the inside wheel halves attached, and then put on the tyres and outer halves toward the end of assembly. I'm happy to take some photos of the various bits and measure them up, but I think there's a bit more design involved than I first assumed... bestest, M.

I just acquired one of my "Grail" kits -- the Fujimi 1/16 Alfa Romeo Tipo 33 Stradale. It's one of my top 3 car designs ever: The only issue with the kits is those distinctive wheels. Probably because the wheels are moulded in inside and outside halves, the "dish" is nothing like deep enough. These are 13" Campagnolo alloys. Does anyone know of anything that looks like these in the aftermarket? At 13" in 1/16 scale, a set of 19/20" wheels in 1/24 would work as well. Alternatively, does anyone with 3D design skills fancy a quick project to make a CAD file that I could get printed by Shapeways? ;-P bestest, M.

Seriously? A couple of mentions in passing and that's IT? The single greatest rock and roll band that the UK has ever produced? Mick and Keef are OK, but... And 40 years later: The Beatles were the best band the world has ever seen; the Stones were/are the longest lived band at the top, but The Who go on working, like ZZ Top but with a better back catalogue... Costello has better song-writing, always, The Clash had the energy and commitment in their hey-day, and personally The Stranglers were my favourites, but no one has ever done guitars and drums so well... Apart from this teenager: And this art student did a pretty good job, considering... And a couple yo may have missed: I could go on, but I wont... bestest, M.

Who got it right (accepting Z102 or Z103, since references differ: Badluck 13 DW1603 matthijsgrit GTJUNIOR sjordan2 Ace-Garageguy CorvairJim (welcome back!) and an honorable mention to landman, who got halfway there ;-P bestest, M.

Another lovely job, as always, Jurgen. Looks like some kind of "Rosso Brunello Metallizzato" to me.... If anyone reading is inspired by this inspirational build, you just need to search an auction site for "Academy Classic European Sports Car" and buy one from Korea for about $25. The prancing horse is still on the grille, but there are no Ferrari emblems among the decals. bestest, M.

Someone a little more recent... ;-P bestest, M.

Thank you; that's mostly a shout-out to Harry and Ken for carrying it on so long. Me and the Ace and Matthijs are just guest presenters...! ;-P bestest, M.

It's a 1959 Rayson Craft Ramos Ski-Drag boat: http://www.hotrodsandboats.com/Hot_Rods_and_Boats/A_Look_Back.html bestest, M.

I'd echo the above -- do three or four light "mist coats" first, to seal the decals before you apply any "wet coat". The solvent may be milder than many, but it's still highly volatile stuff, and you don't want any chance of the solvent moving the decal ink around... bestest, M.

God forbid that you would want to delete more than one message at a time, or maybe get rid of older ones... Unbelievable... bestest, M.

So, thanks to the UTTERLY RUBBISH private messages/conversations software on this version of Invision, I have had to delete ALL my private messages to free up storage space. I have therefore (in this day and age) had to write down on a piece of paper next to the computer the names of the people who have correctly identified the car above. However, if you want to be absolutely sure that I haven't lost track of you, please send me another PM. And anyone who's been trying to send me a PM, you should now be able to... bestest, M.

I'm sorry, but not being able to to select multiple "Conversations" to delete is absolutely rubbish. Your only options are: 1) scroll through older messages one conversation at a time, and "leave" it for each one (when you do, of course, the list defaults back to the most recent messages, so if you're trying to remove the oldest conversations, you have to go through multiple reloads of "next messages" to go back to the bottom again). 2) "Empty" the whole conversations list, which removes every message. On the other forum I frequent that uses IPBoard, you get a full page list of all the separate personal message threads, with a check box at the right of each one. Check one or multiple boxes, and there's an action button with "delete", "mark read" "mark unread" etc. Whoever thought that making IPBoard work more like Facebook was a good idea should be drummed out of usability school... bestest, M.

There's a story behind that Cobra, it seems. The chassis number is HEM-6, and although it's classed as a true Cobra, it was built on a Thames Ditton chassis by an engineering company associated with it's first racing team. At the time, though, it looked more or less normal, although it had the rear arch vents. It's been modified over the years, and now belongs to the Bryant family, raced by Oliver Bryant. http://oliverbryant.com bestest, M.

Forgot to mention, there are quite a few more here: https://cmatthewbacon.smugmug.com/Donington-2016 bestest, M.

...and a few "arty" efforts! bestest, M.

The epitome of classic racing: lightweight E-type in hot pursuit of Aston Martin DP214 "project car" Lola T70 starts heading downhill I think we know the outcome of this challenge, but you can't fault the style You don't see many of these around -- lightweight Morgan Plus 4 SLR March 712 The racing line... I think we know where those Capris are going! Whereas these guys are playing "follow the leader"... BTCC nostalgia turned up to 11... bestest, M.

Usual rules apply... PM me with make, model and year.. and no reverse image lookup! So, it's a 1956 Pegaso Z-103 Panoramica Berlinetta, with body by Touring bestest, M.

These days, a "platform" is even more flexible. If you look at what VW, JLR and Aston Martin are doing (and to a certain extent, McLaren), their "platforms" underpin a wide rage of cars. None more so than VWs "MQB" which runs the gamut in size from Polo to Passat, and in style from Audi TT to VW Touran. Add in the MLB, which covers everything from the A4 to the Bentayga, and just two platforms cover nearly every car across VW, Audi, SEAT and Skoda... bestest, M.

I think it's pretty much in the eye of he beholder... For example, I certainly wouldn't regard that limited number of years as the "pinnacle", at all. I suspect what you're talking about is a particular style of American car, maybe... But for me, there are beautiful cars in the 30s, from the Jaguar SS100 to the Saoutchik and Figoni & Falaschi Art Deco masterpieces and the Bugatti Atlantique. There ARE plenty of beautiful cars from the 40s to mid-Sixties, including the XK120, 250SWB Califonia, Aston Martin DB4 Zagato, E-Type and Alfa 33 Stradale. Equally, I'd make a case that the Lambo Miura is the most beautiful car ever built, and that's the late 60s. Then you get the Countach and Esprit, epitomising the "Origami" style -- whether you personally like it or not, they have style, personality, creativity and flair. Coming up to more or less the present day, the Alfa 8C is achingly beautiful, the Huayra is a technological marvel that's also a steampunk symphony of style inside, and the BMW i8 is bleeding edge... Average daily drivers are more influenced by aerodynamics and safety than they are by "art", but I think there's still plenty of extremely expressive auto design going on. And I don't think for the vast majority of the people on the roads tha cars have EVER been more than a way of getting from A to B. Between the late 40s and the mid-60s, the auto marketing guys were selling you the DREAM that a car was a statement, and Exner and his ilk were piling on chrome and fins as part of the con that made you want to buy a new car every two years, but for most people across most of the world it WAS just a dream. There have always been humdrum, dull workaday cars and ground-breaking style statements that cross the border into art, and I reckon there always will be... bestest, M.

Ad this is one of the great reversions... http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x2kxrya_nirvana-mtv-unplugged-1993_music bestest, M.

One of my faves -- John Fogerty and Foo Fighters version of "Fortunate Son": bestest, M.

Looks great! How is it I've been trying to buy "Big Block Snake" for months, and it's still "Coming Soon"? ;-P bestest, M.

Very nicely done indeed. I really must get on with building my GT86, which has been painted for months! bestest, M.