rhs856

When I went to use some Testor's Steel, I noticed that, after shaking it, the paint was a little thin. I grabbed my trusty toothpick and went to work. As I scraped off the excess and threw the toothpick away, I thought, "There has to be a better way," and an idea came to me. Why can't I mix paint like a spray can? I tossed a couple of copper coated BBs into another jar and shook it until I heard them "click" on both sides. Voila! Mixed paint! It even gets the pigment in the corners - I have a jar of blue that had streaks on the sides that I couldn't get at with a toothpick. This made everything a uniform color.

For me, the body had a couple of huge chunks missing where someone at the factory had broken off the excess sprue, there was a metric ton of flashing, the detail of the interior was atrocious, and the hood didn't pivot; it had two pegs that met with two holes by the windshield. These are things that could be overcome, for sure, but since I had no emotional connection to this car, I had no desire to overcome these challenges to build an ok-looking Elkie. Hence, destruction.

How did you crack the windshield? @Malard Thanks! That's exactly what I was going for!

Sorry about the break, I picked up a new airbrush and I needed to take the crash course before I painted the Elkie. I used all the rust tricks - salt, hairspray, toothpicks and brushes. The color difference is mostly a reaction with salt residue and partly that some of it is wet from toothpick scraping.

Very cool idea! Can't wait to see what you have in store for the other three.

I don't see a warranty written on the trap - is it 5 years for all of Iwata's products (except needles and the such)?

I picked up the Iwata HP-CS set from Hobby Lobby, got everything set up and it all worked fine - until I hit the bleeder on the moisture trap. The trap is now leaking at the bleeder and I can get it to stop by pulling the bleeder down, but this is by no means a solution. Has anyone else had a similar problem with this plastic monstrosity? Is there a fix? Buying another moisture trap at this time is out of the question as I don't want to be a divorcé.

That chrome looks much better now! What did you do to the windows, scuff them with sandpaper? They look good.

Thanks for the comments and I am well aware of my A.M.S., AgentG. Advanced Modeling Syndrome is uncurable and usually results in things like this. A small update today; the engine compartment is done. Next on my checklist - choose a body color and an interior color and then destroy said interior. I'm thinking ripped seats, sun stained dash, trash on the floor... Here is what I have done so far. Only a little more than before, but I gussied the old girl up in the photo box.

I hopped on the email train, too. I am super excited about these packs since I missed them the first time around.

The dent on the driver's door was so severe that I found that the interior wouldn't fit right! (I know, new guy building a junker... ) After mulling over my options (dent the door pad or simulate damage to it, try to lessen the dent, etc...), a case of Advanced Modeler's Syndrome struck: Why don't I just cut out the terribly detailed door pads and make it look like they were long gone? Removed at some point in the Elkie's life, never to be replaced, I would have to find out what it looks like under the pad and scratch build it. I did some serious Googling, and found this picture - I sized it to fit where the door was and printed it off in scale from my friendly word processing program. I then taped it down on the thinnest sheet of styrene that I had. and lightly scored the sheet through the paper marking where some of the major details were. I wasn't going for perfect, just something to get the point across. After marking the lines, I cut the holes out. I did it in three parts for each side, the front detailed piece with every hole cut out, a second sheet with the big holes cut out (to add depth), and the frame that shaped the outside. This is what I came up with. A little smoothing up around the edges and they'll be ready for installation!

Ha! I only bought it because it was $10, and then I quickly found out why it was $10. I looked through your pics, you did the beast justice - that blue is pretty. I still haven't chosen the color for the beater. P.S. Nice Springfield. I went the cheaper, Russian route. My Mosin, Stasia, says hi.

I had a productive day. Being off for the summer is suh-weet! I attempted to smooth off the rear tires and while I was getting the hang of the dremel, I made a hole. In the spirit of making lemonade, the El CaBeater has a flat rear tire! (Don't tell my wife that I used her good pan... ) By doing this, I had to lower where the front left tire mounted to make the car sit with all of its feet on the ground. Since this is going to be a junker, I cut off the serpentine belt. I also left off the alternator (perhaps it was the only thing that worked on this old thing and was donated to a better looking Elkie ). I drilled the engine for plug wires, but I'm leaving them off, too. I think I may put a new set on the passenger seat - the first step of someone's big resto project. Anywho, here are some pics of the completed engine in the chassis. Enjoy!

Some pics of the engine, so far. Chassis is up next!

Thanks for the tip, Lenny, I'll have to give it a try! I know what you mean about going too far; I feel like I may have gone a bit far on the body, but it's hard to stop when you're having so much fun!

I put a primer coat on the body and frame, let it dry, and then "painted" water where I wanted rust. I sprinkled some fine dirt over the water and voila - texture! A second coat of primer sealed it in.

I've been wanting to try my hand at a weathered build for a long time now. The hard part for me was choosing the right kit to turn into a rust bucket. Then, while staring wistfully at my collection of "Models To Build", our eyes met. I was never happy with the MPC 1986 El Camino SS; it was flashtastic, had huge sink marks, and chunks had been taken out of the body before it ever got to me. As soon as I opened it, I knew it would've taken more time than I wanted to spend to make it look somewhat decent. It was perfect. I started by putting on some snaps for the torn tonneau cover that would come later. They were made from the ends of straight pins. My first dent! The old girl should have watched out for that careless pinvice handle... Driver's side dent and missing trim piece. The candle got a bit smokey this time around, leaving the black around the dent.

By the time I start spending $600 on a model, I assume my wife would have left me already!

Thanks! Hopefully it isn't on a "school night," it looks like you guys are about 3 hours away. Teaching antsy freshman the next day would be a bear!

I'm not sure what engine you're going to cram into that, but just looking at the rear slicks makes me want to take it for a spin (literally )!

First, my condolences. Problems that we have no control over can be the worst. Second, what plans do you have for the front end? Tilt?

Thank you! That front end took forever to fill and sand, but boy, was it worth the trouble!

I see it! "Daddy, the top came off!"

Here are some pics of the interior. Hopefully these load a little faster!

I assume this is a good thing?