Amen! Done this several times. I was building a 57 Chevy and launched the heater motor/duct off somewhere into the living room. I heard it click off one of the walls and it was gone.
I usually do a base coat of steel or aluminum, then wash in a mix of gold and steel, then a little drybrush in gold. That comes pretty close to the weird anodized color that's ususally on a carburetor.
Make sure you've got a good set of polishing pads. MicroMark makes a set that runs from 3200-12000 grit. once you've got a good smooth clear coat, start with the low grits and run up the scale until the panels are smooth, then polish
I tend to build whatever strikes my fancy at the time. I've got Star Trek stuff, GK anime figures, cars, etc. I used to do model airplanes, but there's not enough room for those, especially in 1/48 scale. I miss my 1/48 C-130.
Because of varicose veins on my legs, I've had to use some of those a couple of times. I've had some small blood vessels on the side of my ankle pop open and spray due to dry skin. Fortunately, my wife had some of those within reach so I taped one on over the wound. Worked really well, and everything healed up nicely afterwards.
The only way I've seen of doing a true metallic look on a decal is using an ALPS printer. It's not an inkjet, it uses cartridges more like an old style printer ribbon. The up side to these is they can do any color including white.
I usually paint it on by hand, and use a toothpick to touch up the edges by lightly rubbing off the excess. If I'm trying to be really careful about the edge, I'll go around the edge first with a micron pen.