Chief Joseph

Some of the real cheap airbrush compressors will pulse as the little piston pumps air and it can make painting a chore. I have a cheap WR Brown compressor from the early 80's that pulses badly, making it almost impossible to do things like fine lines. I still use it occasionally, and when I do, I attach a long (about 12' or 15') 3/8" airhose between the compressor and the regulator to act as an air reservoir. Presto! No pulsing and I can paint with no problems from the cheap compressor. I suppose a simple buffer tank could be made from a short length of 2" PCV pipe to serve the same function.

I like the J-B Weld and J-B Kwik epoxies that you can get at just about anywhere. They just plain work and are relatively inexpensive.

Great save!

I had a couple of those GTO Judge kits and they are not very good. There were flaws in the paint and graphics and the separate parts for the chrome trim just look awful. On the other hand, the Rally II wheel is one of the best I've ever seen in a model kit. I can't comment on the motorcycle kit you mentioned, though; but you seem to have found some not-so-great information on it.

Sometimes when a model company obtains a license to do a model of a certain subject, the licensor will provide plans or data that the model company must use to design the model. Sometimes this information is just not all that good, but the model company is contractually bound to produce the model that way. I don't know for certain if this is the reason some model cars are a little wonky or not, but it is definitely true of many models in other genres. I like a model as close to the 1:1 version as physically possible, but speaking as a pattern maker, it's more important for me to represent the 1:1 item as opposed to reproducing it.

I sold a few kits on emodelcars.com a few months ago and it was an overall good experience. The shipping issue is unfortunately a fact of life; there are very few kits that will ship at the 1st class rate because of weight. I priced my kits in a way that I thought was fair-- they were not collectibles, so I priced them realistically.

Thanks for the very detailed build report! Too bad that Moebius could never make the deal to release the Batman and Joker figures, but the 1/25 Tumbler is still on the schedule. There will be another, slightly larger Batpod with a Catwoman figure coming out sometime. I think it'll be 1/18 scale.

Some rubber and vinyl compounds will inhibit the cure of platinum silicones. If inhibition is occurring with your particular material, the only options are to use a sealant on the master (acrylic lacquer works well), or switch to a tin-cured silicone that will cure against just about anything.

Great job! I love them Buicks

A typical cheap venturi valve like the ones sold for auto A/C service require a huge volume of air pressure to make them work. The one I have from Harbor Freight will only pull 27"Hg with my 5.5hp compressor (6.4cfm @90psi) and I'm not going to buy a bigger compressor just to see if it will hit 28" because it's slow and loud. Gast makes some little air pumps that have both in and out ports for vacuum and pressure and some of them can pull 29"Hg and push 50spi but they are expensive. I have a cheaper Gast pump that that I use for certain casting applications and it will pull 25" and push over 50psi but it needs a rebuild. My current vacuum pump for degassing rubber is a single-stage Robinair clone that pulls 29.5" and was just over $100 a few years ago. Far and away the cheapest (and safest) way a beginner can start making quality molds and parts is to get a paint pressure tank and convert it for casting with some standard 1/4" fittings and hook it to a nice utility compressor. Molds can be pressure-cured in the tank to eliminate air bubbles (masters have to be solid, though) and will work just fine when used to pressure-cast parts. When it comes time to move up to a setup with pressure and vacuum, you can build a vacuum chamber fairly easily or you can buy a dessicator or a commercially-produced vacuum chamber. My vacuum chamber is made from a section of 10" water main pipe with 1/2" polycarbonate plates for the top & bottom.

Great job and that green color with the cream top is very pleasing to the eye Is it an Eddie Bauer edition ? I think it's cool that if you have a big wad of cash you can basically buy a brand-new 1:1 Bronco like this with modern drivetrain and chassis.

Well the analogy might be you want to sell a Corvette to a guy, but he only has the money for a Geo Metro. You have to shrink your file size either through rescaling or compressing.

I love the Viggen! I built the Esci 1/48 kit many, many years ago with the splinter camouflage and almost went nuts with all the masking...

A quick look at a paint database says that color is M6091 Medium Gray... is there a reason you don't want an automotive-type paint that would match it almost perfectly?

From your description, it sounds like overspray that is drying and building up. You can try reducing your air pressure and/or moving closer to the surface as you paint. I'd suggest using an old scrap body to test your technique. How are your color coats going on? Do you see the same frosting or pebbly buildup?

Just a minor point, but you will definitely NOT want to drink anything through a straw for a week or so, depending on how fast you heal.

It may look a little goofy, but at least it appears road-worthy and not hazardous... like stretching tire sidewalls over wheels that are too wide.

Great build! The two cars together will look killer!

It's been too long since I updated this build! I have decided that one of the cars will be in a little vignette with a female figure, so I spent a few weeks tracking down a set of Preiser 1/24 Academy figures to build the girl with: I'm in the process of setting the pose for the girl and she will actually be wearing some clothes in the final version.

Fantastic job on these figures! I still have a set in my stash but I sold another set of them several years ago on eBay. I really like how you got the silver makeup on Peter and Ace. How did you achieve the glittery effect on Peter's costume?

About 2 hours ago (1pm), we had 100 in the shade, 103 in the sun, and 135 inside a car parked in the sun. Yes, I took a thermometer outside Funny thing is that it feels cooler today than it did last weekend. The heat has really put the brakes on my modeling projects!

Thanks, David. I'll post some more pics when I finish the base and do the "glamour" photo shoot for posterity.

John, the Badger 350 does indeed have three different tips. Depending on the specific packaging, though, it may be a single-tip or have all three. I looked at the Michaels website but it doesn't give any specific information about what is included with the set. If you have a Hobby Lobby nearby, they sell a Paasche H set that does include all three tips and it is a good price with a 40% coupon.

You did a great paint job on the old god of thunder; you friend should be very happy with it!

The old Halcyon Alien Warrior styrene kit painted with Liquitex acrylics: Still have to add his drooling slobber with a little bit of clear epoxy...