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We got it. Very funny story.

Most would "kill" to have this paint finish, but I understand your standards. At least you realize how and why it happened and you can avoid painting it that way next time.

Just a suggestion on the photo etched grill. The grills for the Bel Airs only had a flat gold color much like the "V" hood and trunk trim along with the CHEVROLET letters, the 3 gills on the front fenders, and the Bel Air and emblem in the rear polish aluminum area. This just depends on the look you're going for. Your build looks very nice.

Your father's little '53 reminds me of the style in the 1950's and what you could do with limited funds and still have a real eye catching car.

Thank you for the coverage. I have always enjoyed your photography and thank you for sharing it with us all.

I'm with Cobraman on the flat hood. But this is a Pro Street build so maybe a hole in the hood and a big 671 Blower sticking out in the breeze would be more appropriate. I would google pictures of this style of car and get some ideas from that. Maybe you go with one of the Drag Racing style Hood Scoops that MoPars used in the past. Get some ideas and then do what ever looks best to you.

I'm also a long time user of the Tamiya paint line. I have also had a hard time getting the semi gloss and flat black colors since the shutdown. What I have done in these cases is to use their gloss black and then a finish coat of either semi gloss or flat clear. This also gives you an opportunity to experiment with different shades of gloss depending on what you're trying to paint.

Thank you for the additional information about the light system. Interesting how different regions approach things differently. The Black and Tan or Gold paint job is also a different style but seems unique to Florida.

That is a fine original looking 1950 Custom model. This one is about as nice as I've seen in a long time.

I would think a lot would depend on how much you want to spend to correct your problem. I have seen some paints offered at Home Depot that have you adding some fine sand to the finish before it dries. This would give you some better footing when wet. Problems may be that in time the paint doesn't adhere over time and starts to lift becoming bad looking. There are companies that will put down a cap type layer of concrete and use big rubber stamps to put a design in the new concrete as it dries. This would be a lot more money, but as you say you both love your home and plan to stay, so maybe you can justify the expense. I suggest looking on line at the DIY Network for home improvement ideas. You are only limited by your budget kind of like everything else in life. Good luck to you on your DIY project.

You can see this in movies all the time. They call it "Product Placement" and the companies doing the advertising pay the studios a lot of money to have their products appear in the movie even if it's something just laying on the table. Manufactures will supply several cars and or trucks for the actors to be seen driving in a movie.

The Carson style top looks perfect on this.

There is also Tamiya X-11 Chrome Silver. The trick with the old square bottle Testors was to lay it on thick and then gently blow on it. Somehow it would make it dry shinier that way.

Spread another 2 cubic yards of mulch today and still just short of finished. I'll need another trailer load I think. My wife just got home from her office, she works from home now, We'll be sharing some deck time tonight and a little Vino Rojo.

Beautiful looking Ford. All of your modifications flow well together. Besides the chopped windshield I like the T-Bird Tonneau cover the best.

This looks great, you could bet Roth would have done something like this. The '57 hood really gets your attention. Very nice smooth finish and I like the creativity.

I like the way the later roof looks on this. Great paint and stripes.

The Boat Tail Riviera always had a presents on the road even when stock. From the reflection of your car in the Buick's rear fender you can see how nice the paint is.

My Grandmother thought I was artistic when I was young and got me some of those "Color by numbers" oil paint kits. The biggest problem was trying to figure out what the painting was supposed to be when finished. No it wasn't my fault as anyone who was forced to do these will tell you. If you didn't need glasses before you would afterwards.

That's why you have a mute button on the remote. There're a few that are somewhat interesting at first, but anything over and over and over is why we have the button.

Very nice looking State Trooper. I notice that they seem to only have blue lights in the light bar.

Great looking "Super Stock Dodge". I like the direction of your future build with the Viper engine.

Beautiful looking '32. Great looking colors and finally detailed engine. Love the Pie Crust Slicks.

Very nice. I have always preferred the sleeper look on my personal cars also.

Looks great especially considering the basic kit. I never did finish mine years ago. I was going to see how well it would bounce off the wall, but used it for parts instead. I like how you did the body decals. How did the engine turnout ?