MILD

How about a 57 Chevy

I know a lot of people make the switch to the air brush due to the quality of finish. Personally, I can't really say I am unhappy with the finish I am getting out of a can (with the exception of my now resolved Pure White debacle) however after another trip to the hobby shop and spending just under $100 AUD (currently trading above the USD but we do get price gouged out here!)on spray cans for my Dart build I am wondering just how much could be saved by making a dedicated switch to airbrushing. As an example, I bought a can of pure white, matt white, light grey primer, semi gloss black, Testors Chrome for an experiment, two cans of metallic green and a clear- came out at about $99! I already have a compressor in my garage which I could dial down to suit an airbrush and I have a very cheap brush lying around that would need to be upgraded for modelling. Is moving to an airbrush a matter of decanting spray cans or do you guys buy bottles and mix with thinners? How do you find the shelf life of the paint in it's air brush ready form? How do you find the coverage? I guess the main question is how much money could I save by going to airbrush?

Thanks to everyone for the replies- I figured the most likely culprit would be the grey base! I guess it'll be a trip to the hobby shop for some stripper and pure white undercoat

I am doing a pure white interior in my Dart however I am having a few issues with the paint. The undercoat is a sandable light grey primer which I have used numerous times before with Tamiya spray cans without fault however the Pure White does not seem to play well with it at all. The main issues I am having is the paint not taking to the edges so the grey shows through as well as pooling. In other places it seems to be crazing. I am using my usual spray painting protocol of a few mist coats to build up a good even base and then a flow coat or two. The problems with the edges and pooling is happening as early as the later mist coat stages. I have painted the back half of a Black Widow 57 Chev and got around the problem by giving the problem areas a light sand to correct and then another blast with the paint but there has to be a reason I am having these troubles. Does anyone have a specific receipe when using this particular paint or ideas for getting good results with white sprays from the outset?

Thanks for the reply- both the block and blower are listed as 1/25 scale... I think I will simply do a comprehensive test fit to get everything as happy as I can. I just went and had another play with it then and I think it isn't as bad as I remembered it prior to taking some time away from home. If anyone has got pics of how they have done it I'd be appreciative.

Has anyone done this before? I'm not exactly sure which would be the best way of fitting the blower on top as the block is longer than the blower. I am thinking of placing it about central front to rear in the valley and then using some rod to extend the snout- is this the best way of going about it? I have tried googling blown 426 motors to see how they are configured and from what I've seen what I have described above looks about right. Any advice? It's my first foray into after market parts and I don't want it to look like a randow train wreck of bits and pieces! Thanks in advance gentlemen.

Apologies for the late bump. I've decided to use the kit engines and picked up some accessories from Comp Resins- namely a 6/71, some carbies, a shotgun scoop and a scoop like on the two cars featured above and a radiator with electric fan. All very, very nice pieces- I'm really impressed! Now I just need to decide whether to go with the 426 or not as well as which scoop and carbies to run... decisions, decisions!

Given the dollar as it currently is there isn't much to be saved by grabbing a whole Funny Car kit- except of course a whole host of extra bits I may or may not use. I was looking at the Comp Resins site last night and I think that could be a real possibility- one of their blowers plus one of those big and ugly hats could be a real nice alternative. Has anyone dealt with Comp Resins before?

I've only ever been to one model show and the amount of automotive enteries was very, very small. I'm wonder if a one and done rule might actually make this even worse. Having said that, I would like to see a one and done rule in place. It seems only fair and given it's expected in a real car show where the costs both monetary and in man hours are so much higher that a car have numerous new features before re-entry I can't see a problem at a model contest. I would also like to see an 'exhibition' class where people are not submitted models for judging due to previously winning or the builder having no interest, which still means there are a lot of subjects on offer for the viewer and the builder gets the opportunity to show off his builds and share knowledge. Just an idea.

That's about what I'm looking to do. Something kind of a long those lines. There's even more extreme cars out there but google isn't my friend tonight!

Gents- I am interested to hear if anyone has used an aftermarket engine with the Hemi Dart kit. My Nova has to wait so I am looking at a tough power plant to put in the Dart and build it in the Australian Street Machine style- big rubber and a metal mountain in the front! If someone has done a similar thing before I'd love to hear about any pitfalls you may have experienced. This is my first time dealing with aftermarket parts so I am a little in the dark. I am currently thinking something like the Gibson Road Hammer Hemi... the hood won't be being used on this one obviously! Thanks in advance.

Thanks for the kind words mate.

Thank you all very much for the kind words- it's a real encouragement! Also a huge thanks for all the advice concerning foiling. A lot of good ideas I'll definitely try in future- especially those concerning masking tape. Thanks guys.

G'day guys- my first post here for a long time. Unfortunately my build thread fell by the wayside due to other commitments, however here is the completed model. I did not build this as a historically accurate example of one of the racers as I don't have much knowledge concerning them and as I understand it a lot of work is required to achieve that out of this kit. Instead I have built it up as an over restored example that doesn't strictly adhere to any particular rules. My main aim was to increase the finished quality of this model over my first Impala- especially fit, body work and foiling. I feel that everything went together quite well and the model is a much cleaner build than my first effort- looking at the two side by side on my desk now it's easy to see the improvement. My foiling is much better this time however still needs work. I feel that my straight cuts aren't as good as they could be and the trim is cut far too wide which detracts from the realism of the model. I will also next time mask the area so the adhesive does not damage the paint. If anyone can offer any advice on how I could improve subsequent builds I would love to hear from you. Please don't be shy in offering advice or being critical of the model- just give me some ideas as to how to improve my skills, not just tell me how poor they are;) On to the photos- apologies for the lighting (these were just taken in my lounge room!): Thanks for looking at my thread. Now to build that pro street Nova...

No worries G- thanks for the reply.

Any takers? The paint is touch dry and a couple of days old- probably 48 hours to the minute. Should I let the paint degas further or will I be safe to apply the tape on it now?

Gentlemen, I am in the process of spraying my Revell 57 Black Widow and was wondering how long I should allow the paint to cure before masking it off in preparation for the final black coat over the remainder of the body. The paint is a TS Pure White straight out of the can which I intend to cover completely so I guess the paint would require a reasonable amount of time to cure so that the finish isn't damaged. Thanks in advance.

Something in lime green at the request of my son. I'm thinking a Nova might look the part in that hue... maybe with some tubs and a big block?

Amazing build. I love the extra details on the transmission! Excellent work.

I have run into a small problem- the drive shaft runs at a slight angle! I am thinking perhaps it is the diff that is out of alignment as the transmission seems to marry up with the chassis as intended. I was pretty sure the diff was all lined up correctly with the leaf springs but if it was surely the drive shaft would run in a nice straight line from front to rear and not veer off slightly to the right. Has anyone else who built this model experienced this problem? What is a common fix for it?

A very long time between drinks as my real life tried it's hardest to sabotage my modelling! I have completed the motor, interior tub and am well under way with the chassis. The next step will be fitting the donk, lining everything up and then putting the wheels on. The body is in primer awaiting a good rub back but I'm confident I have removed most noticeable defects. I have decided to not go historically accurate with the car but instead am taking the 'over restored' approach to justify the far too bright chrome and a few creative liberties. On to the photos! I made the decision to go with a black interior with unflocked floors to represent the rubber flooring. Rather than go with a black roll over bar I decided to hit it with some white paint to make it stand out. It's my first car with one so I didn't want it hidden in a sea of black! I initially painted the dash insert in grey however it looked very unfinished as if it were in primer so decided to go gloss white with a matching steering column and wheel. I'm happy with the look of it even if the fine boarder of the white insert isn't my best work. I decided the chrome tacho wasn't a good fit so painted it black leaving on the forward edge in the kit chrome. I think it looks quite good. A little more work will be needed next time on the mould line on the transmission. I think putty will be required in future. Other than that, I sanded back the moulded lettering on the rocker covers so the decals went on nice and flat. The other big decision was to leave the manifold and accessories in kit chrome- I was very, very tempted to try some aluminium paint over the top to dull them down but decided to leave it as part of the whole 'over restored' theme (some would call that laziness... I'm calling it a theme ). Thanks for looking at the photos- hopefully the next update will come much sooner. As always constructive criticism encouraged.

I spray with Tamiya rattle cans. For brush paint I like working with Tamiya enamels- yes they take much longer to dry (and you really need to give them all the time they need)and clean up requires thinners or turps but I think the end result is worth it. I recently got a Mr Hobby (Model Colour line maybe?) acrylic for brush painting as my LHS didn't have colour I was chasing in enamel and although it took a fair effort to get the required coverage the end result looked pretty good. In my mind it's a little like this: Enamel Pros - Good coverage with a nice smooth finish. Enamel Cons - Long drying time and turps or thinners for clean up. Acrylic Pros - Quick drying time, water clean up, smells better Acrylic Cons - Typically more coats for coverage. Anyone got any other pros or cons to add? I was thinking of creating a similar thread recently.

Must be an Australian thing because I couldn't agree more!

I am about to wrap up my second build and am very, very keen to start drag modelling- more of the pro street style than anything. Looking at the threads here it seems a large portion of this is made up in scratch building but I am curious as to where I should be looking to start. Is the Revell's latest 1955 Chevy Pro Sportsman kit a good place to start or is there a better launching point? If anyone could offer any advice they think would benefit a new upstart I'd love to hear it. Thanks gentlemen.

Sorry Bill but I think we are talking about different tapes in this instance. The foil tape I have is in no way a duct tape and is used more for when working with electronics- the particular item I bought came from an electronics chain we have here and I daresay you would get a similar product from a similar store in the USA. This tape does have a backing on it that must be peeled off to expose the adhesive but is in no way as agressive as suggested. Yes it will stick, but it can still be lifted with a little effort and no damage done. I may- if I get a chance- post up a picture of the exact tape I have at home. Perhaps my link is causing some confusion.