Lunajammer

I like the slant back over the convertible. The paint job is quite fetching, wish I could do that kind of work. But it feels a tad incomplete. The white is excellent, but have you considered a light, clear tint over the whole thing? Just a thought.

All of the above is true. Unfortunately, there's become such a generation gap that sometimes the perception among young modelers dipping their toes into the hobby, whether true or untrue, is that they are kind of ignored. Though we are welcoming and encouraging, the discussions are so age centric that young visitors may feel like they don't belong. Not our fault, nor theirs, it's just the nature of generational interests.

That's amazing! Clearly, Super Clean on enamel is a confident way to go and the plastic underneath actually looks pristine. Thanks for the pics.

Toothpicks and super glue for the little stuff. Bent coat hanger for the bodies.

Actually, I do have an unbuilt kit. This was going to be for a project where I only needed the body and I had this spare. Once I started using strippers I just decided to share my experiences with pics. There are a lot of threads and even more opinions about what works better than what, but very few pictures to help visualize, or even validate those opinions. This is just a glimpse at what I did and what the results were. I'd love to see before and after photos and documentation of more stripping products. Especially as they apply to specific paints and under what conditions.

In the discussion about removing chrome plating, general paint removal is touched on in places. I followed some of the suggestions when attempting to remove paint from the '59 El Camino. The body, painted by a friend around 1990, had test shots of automotive primer on part of it, dark green lacquer on the left side, light green engine enamel on the right and white on the roof and fins, which I think is lacquer. This photo shows how it looks after it had already sat in Purple Power (the purple pond) for two days. Most of the engine enamel was lifted but barely any lacquer. Admittedly, my Purple Power is a couple years old and I know it weakens over time. Also mentioned on the plating thread was the product Totally Awesome, which I picked up at the dollar store. The body was immersed at 9:30pm At 4pm the following day I took it out and scrubbed with a firm toothbrush. A little more enamel was removed but otherwise disappointing results. I put it back in the bath. 24-hours later I removed and gave it another good scrub, including with fingernails. There was no substantial difference so I didn't take pics. Then I tried Toner283's recommendation of spraying with Easy Off and inserted into a plastic bag (and another squirt into the bag). It sat for 20-minutes, then scrubbed. More paint came off, but as you can see, what appears to be remaining is the lacquer that is mostly etched into the plastic itself. My last effort was to use STP DOT3 brake fluid. It sat immersed for about 36 hours. At one point, a hint of green paint was bleeding off the model. I don't know what the white paint is but it's bulletproof and nothing phases it much. I would say I had the most success with brake fluid but it comes at a small price... The surface of the plastic gets dried out and fine parts can get brittle. At this point I don't care to subject the model to any more abuse as the surface is getting rough and dry. I think the only the white areas remain stubborn and I'll sand those. Overall: I was disappointed with the efforts to remove lacquer and automotive primer, and you'll need more than a stiff toothbrush to scrape and scrub. But the enamel was gone early in the process so I have no doubts that the many testimonies endorsing various products on enamel are truthful.

Okay, I'm a little envious. I've never ever been able to get a black wash on a grill as cleanly as he did, then he calls it easy. Secondly, he's miles ahead of where I was at that age. Yes, he's probably gotten some good guidance from an experienced adult, but I still think he's got more patience and skill than I did, or do.

I dunno Bill, maybe it IS a world beater. Looks beautiful and I enjoyed following along on your WIP.

At the risk of being one of those guys speculating out his lower cheeks, acetone seems to be a universal solvent...

I had the exact same experience stripping a '60 Desoto kit. When I did mine in the 90's, brake fluid was the stripper of choice and I blamed that for making the plastic brittle and rough. Some fine pieces actually crumbled. But you used something else, so now I'm more inclined to blame the plastic.

We need you here Jim. Get that foolishness put right and come back all better.

Pretty easy to test. Glue your fore-finger and your middle finger to your thumb. Use accelerator on one and see which one comes off easier. Pics please.

Those are really nice pics. Some great subject matter there too. Thanks for the extra effort Justin.

Several years ago when the bicycle helmet movement was just picking up steam, there was a sign on a bike path several blocks from two schools that read "Be Cool, Wear Your Helmet." I still laugh thinking about it. Nothing more UN-cool to kids than a sign telling you how to be cool. Might as well have been a sign saying "You Look Like A Dork In A Bike Helmet. *VALIDATED BY THE MOST OUT OF TOUCH GROWN UPS IN YOUR COMMUNITY*"

Back in the 90's I could count on placing at some level, but the trophies never really got put on display. Not sure where they are now. I enter maybe one show a year now, but the quality of building has gotten so far beyond me now that I haven't won an award in years. Doesn't matter, I still enjoy competing. It inspires me to keep exploring new territory.

BTW, FWIW, ETC. Received my mag in the poly bag and I gotta say, it was pristine! I've never received a magazine that looked like it just came off the bookstore shelf and before the clerk stuffed it into a bag. Certainly different from the usual shredding machine that is my mailman.

I used to think I was out of sync with the modeling community who wanted more parts and ever higher detail. When the '57 Chrysler 300C came out I bought it, but upon seeing the instructions I knew in my heart I would not finish a car with such a high parts count. The most disdained and "tired" kits of the 60's, 70's and 80's have become my favorites and I think one reason is the lower parts count.

Just his week I brought out a started 93 Caprice taxi and had forgotten what a superb model that full build snapper is. I wouldn't sell that one short as simplified, but the parts count is probably on par with models of the 60s & 70s. Instructions.

Nicely done story and beautiful plane. Sad about the pilot in the end but that's life.

15-18 psi seems light to me. Spitting might be the issue. I'd try upping that a little to atomize the paint more then control the paint flow at the brush. I've enjoyed good Alclad results from my single action Badger. Pretty cool costume. I recommend therpf.com if you're not there already.

I think there's more this than meets the eye. The body splicing looks pretty seamless. Chassis is good too. Nice work.

Microscale Laser paper... Pretty happy with how it printed. Seemed a tad thick for working on compound curves but with patience and setting solution it settles down. However it was really bad for ink flaking off when cutting tight areas with a knife, like around the door handles. Straight cuts were okay, shaped cuts, not so much. Edit: This was the white paper with clear enamel sealer.

I like it. I like the idea of it. Unfortunately, it's the boxiness of the Mustang itself that's handicapping it.