CadillacPat

The simplest method is just to remove only as much paint as you need from the aerosol can. Leave the remainder in the can. Or, an old CadillacPat Tutorial thread of mine here, http://www.modelcarsmag.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=52097&hl= This Tip goes along with my "Removing Paint From Aerosol Cans" over in the General Section under Model Cars Magazine Wants You. This paint storage method is fine for all Solvent based paints including Aerosols or Automotive brands. I purchase most of my House Of Kolor paints by the Gallon or Quart. Rather than constantly reopening the large containers I came upon this method to store my paints for easy daily use. I needed containers that were cheap and easy to pour from. These soft, squeezable small mouthed plastic bottles pictured here work perfect for me. They consist of the type plastic that is not reactive to solvents so any type paint or related solvent based products can be stored in them. I fill them with paint directly from the can for daily mixing and some of the bottles contain reduced paint of colors that I use frequently. HOK Urethane Clear, 311 Reducer, Catalysts (both Clear and Candy Activator), InterCoat Clear, Lacquer Thinner, Primer and a variety of Basecoats. The small mouth makes for easy pouring for mixing or even for transferring mixed paints into a 1/4oz. paintcup. The same small mouth also allows for less exposure to the air when opened. Pure strength paints or premixed, these lightweight smaller containers make for easy handling resulting in less mess and waste. If you have a project that you'll be painting all day these bottles are perfect for use as a mixing container. I Barbecue or Grill frequently, at least twice or three times a week and throwing away so many Barbecue and Ketchup bottles made me wonder if they couldn't be put to use. There had to be a better cheaper way to store paints than spending money on glass bottles from the Container Store. It turned out that these type Polyethylene or Polypropylene low-density plastics were non reactive to solvents. Even if you dump the sauce within, these proucts routinely go on sale at Food Stores for as low as 44 cents, usually 66 cents, making for a very cheap buy. Just wash the threads of the Cap and Bottle thoroughly. Fill half way with water, shake, shake, shake, repeat, repeat, then add a couple of drops of dishsoap, fill, shake, rinse, rinse, rinse and let dry. Run hot water over the labels, remove them and using a permanent marker indicate what you've stored in the container. Or make your own label. If premixing or if filling with Clear or Catalyst, mark the date filled. I do a whole lot of paint mixing and paint transfering, so while I don't paint full size cars these containers hold just the right amounts of paint for me. They're fine if you're doing Artwork or anything smaller than a car or large motorcycle parts. They are cheap enough that by the time you have emptied the container you can just toss it and use a fresh one. --CadillacPat the UnCustomizer--

Sure, I know it has been since I've been here. CadillacPat

While it is true that some Clears will turn some Chrome paints to mud, I have shot HOK Clear over Alclad Chrome and other types with no change or harm at all. Just make sure your Alclad is fully cured ( I bake mine in my CadillacPat Fact-O-Bake Ovens) and use a Medium or slower Reducer in your Urethane Clear. and go light on the first passes of Clear. CadillacPat

Thanks. Have I shown the matching Pink/Gold/Maroon one, And this Yellow Pearl/Tangelo Pearl one, CadillacPat

Yes, projects on these little 1/64 DieCast can really become involved depending on how you work them. Prepping a HW body, priming, colorcoats, Decals, Clear, wheelswaps, can all become easily as intricate as box kits and good Custom Graphics alone can take a couple of days to create and size. For me, 1/64 DieCast are the perfect Model allowing all my concentration to be on the body, paint, Graphics and wheels. CadillacPat

For anyone who does want to order what I consider to be the best Decal Paper, Papilio.com Chas, The Clear InkJet DecalPaper I get is said to be .0012mm thick, remember that is the clear film, what we call the carrier. The paper is said to vary between.0010" thick and .0015" http://papilio.com/inkjet%20waterslide%20decal%20transfer%20paper%20media.html White Decal Paper from Papilio.com is .0080mm thickness, about 6 times thicker than Clear. http://papilio.com/white%20inkjet%20waterslide%20decal%20transfer%20paper%20media.html So far the thinnest White Glossy Vinyl I could find for car wraps and advertising, in bulk quantity, is .08mm thick That's pretty thin but still 10 times thicker than White Decal Paper and 15 times thicker than Clear InkJet. http://www.alibaba.com/product-gs/317942625/self_adhesive_vinyl_80micron_thickness.html I don't believe the thickness of Vinyl would work for me, except for a wrap where the edges are hidden. My Graphics are normall centered in doors, hoods, roofs and trunks and the edge of Clear Decals is almost negligible, and some Clears used for sealant will make Decal edges disappear. I'd like to see pictures of this Vinyl stretched over fenders or other like areas of compound curves. I can't visualize it not wrinkling at our scale, unless it stretches. But, if it stretches I would suspect the imagery would be corrupted. I'm curious about when you say you can use the printer part to print on top of color. So what kind of printer, is it a sublimation process? I know this works on cars and buses but when you get down to scale size and want to "wrap" an area that has eges, detail, curves in 4 directions. and then, don't you have to go back and trim off excess?? With Decals that is all done before they are applied. Interesting, I would like to see pics. CadillacPat

Your graphics look good. InkJets will produce the same tiny lettering and detail even down to the very minute. I can't tell from your pics how well the edges of your vinyl disappear. That's the benefit of Decals, you can make graphics look painted on without any edge buildup. If the vinyl can be ordered thinner than Clear InkJet Decal Film then the only question left would be adhesion and it's ability to conform or wrinkle. CadillacPat

Thanks Man, I have a '32 Delivery Sedan and a '47 COE Box Truck coming along that will add to the set. CadillacPat

Good job Cobraman, Those look like some of Rich's Decals. He used to be Flamingraphics and now is Flamingcolors CadillacPat

Yes they are, I have a friend in New Mexico who established a Divco Club and he has 5 running vehicles. Very cool indeed!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! CadillacPat

You're welcome, it's just a little tip but it sure makes a difference if you want to correct pics after you take them. CadillacPat

Like ScaleMaster who is also in the DieCast Customizing world, I knew you were asking about Vinyl Plotters. These same Plotters are used by some to create masks for 1/64 scale HotWheels's and such. We discuss them a lot on AirBrush sites. The Vinyl used for them would be a nightmare to attempt to apply to the surface of even the larger 1/18 scale models, and most certainly would not conform satisfactorily to body lines, door and trunk jams, small detail. You would wind up with your model looking like it was wearing a scuba wetsuit. Seriously, the thickness would make this impossible. Plus, any necessary heat gun application would melt your plastic model. Think Decals. If you wish to put imagery on Models or HotWheels then use Decals as I do. The Promotional Customs that I do all rely on Custom Graphics and imagery that cover as much of the 1/64 scale car as possible. Decals conform to compound and complex curves, and my HP InkJet will produce color and detail to match any printer. As for Arts quote:::::::: All very nice indeed--but not yet something that even a significant minority of model car builders are going to adopt, I'm afraid! Art Not so Art, that's already happened years ago within DieCast Customizng and those people are all Model Builders. These Plotters are useful to many in Customizing and have been for some time. CadillacPat

CadillacPat

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CadillacPat

Harry if these little 3D Printers ever gain the ability to manufacture a complete Model Kit of the same quality or better than what today's Model manufacturers produce, If the programs needed to "print" an entire Model Kit, piece by piece, are ever simple enough for anyone to run them and achieve consistent satisfactory high end results, If the mass demand (once the tech was proven 100% viable and it's accuracy 100% acceptable) were ever enough to justify Model Kit manufacturers to change over to offering files, or to offer files as an additional sideline, If a large portion of Hobbyists decide they would rather "print" their own kits rather than pick them out from a display of pretty boxes like an excited kid in a candy store, Then maybe, maybe. But I only see a portion, a very very small portion of Model Builders ever adding this method to their building. Cost and time involved with 3D Printing would weigh heavily against buying Models off the shelf. So, maybe there might be one guy in Peoria or Cleveland printing one off bodies, just like resin casters today, but for a couple hundred a pop. But, Hobbyists are driven by obsession. We like to go to the source of our interests (the store) and pick from an assorted display of brightly colored boxes with inspiring photos of how our build can look when finished. Sometimes we go just to look. The idea of looking through files online just doesn't measure up to a trip to the store. Model Builders come in all kinds of degrees of dedication. Some are satisfied and even happy with snapping together a Model that needs no paint, Some want to take it a bit further, Some aren't satisfied unless their build is very involved and very intricate from paint to final assembly. But, and this is very important, Some Modelers are as happy with their stash of a couple hundred kits they have in their closets and garage as they are with their finished builds. Like your own Pharoahs Tomb you can stare and dream at all the kits in your stash just like you do in the store. Just like HotWheels and Baseball cards, people buy Models and pack them away in the closet. Just the idea of having them, just like buying a Lotto ticket, allows you to look at them and dream of what will be. Digital files just don't have that pizazz.. Buyers, consumers, Hobbyists, like tangible items. The talk here from some has been very futuristic like this can all happen with just the touch of one button. If that day ever comes and we can print perfect durable large Model Kits at home in a machine for under $100,000 then I submit that it follows that Detroit will scrap their car factories and just "print" real cars. For what these little but expensive 3D Printers can produce for use around the home (?????????) you can buy the same items at Walmart. Think about it, for household use, what could possibly be made in these tiny little chambers, at great cost not only for the Printer but for Print Cartridge Material, that you could not purchase cheaply? Now, do I have favorite HotWheels bodies that I would like to be able to quickly replicate, sure, but why, I can buy them for a buck apiece. CadillacPat

Yes, years and years out there, What about the logistics of one guy using a program and files to print every single part of a Model kit. You can't just walk away, you have to empty the print chamber every time a part is finished. It would probably take 2 or 3 days and I bet the price would be sky high even when they do get a machine that will do it. Depending on the size of the print chamber and the capabilities of the program, maybe you could print a handful of small pieces all at one time. What about print material costs? You know that's where they are going to get you, every time you need a print cartridge. I can see these being used for design purposes but not necessarily for making Model Car kits. I could see this 3D Model Printing in a decade or two along the same lines as people who make decals on ALPS Printers. Very few because of the expertise involved and each person producing items of different quality and finish. With a Home Depot and WalMart on every corner I don't see why any household would ever need a machine like this to produce items they could easily go purchase. I can't see a guy laying out the cash for a Printer that would produce Model bodies in the expectation of making a profit back. We're not talking about a $2200 machine, that would not cut it, much much more money. Now if it could promise to print me out a Rolex and a pair of Alligator boots it might get my attention. CadillacPat

I doth protest. Mr. Haney is much too intelligent and far too resourceful to even be mentioned in this thread. He is the entire reason that Aliens visit our Earth, he has the answer to everything or a part to fix it. CadillacPat

Yep, that new set of pics is much brighter and sharper. CadillacPat

I don't know why the acegarageguy feels that everyone has to believe him, or why he is so insistent that I believe him. Cause, I don't. Others have already stated the quality of parts is not up to par with this machine. It's grainy texture is not attractive for Model Building. At the moment, it's not the Magic Machine you say it is Ace. Are you sure you don't have this 3D Printer mixed up with the Atomic Simulator on Star Trek. You know, the one where you ask for a Hamburger and it spits it out. You have a couple of hundred parts in a Model Kit. These cheap home machines will not be producing the hundreds of tiny detailed parts in an average Model Kit, for many many years to come. I think it's interesting fodder for conversation, but I don't see this happening. CadillacPat

No AG, I didn't miss any parts, But, When you say you and your friend are OUTSTANDING, is that up to par for what people would want to purchase?? That's subjective isn't it?? Sure the tech is here but it will cost you a Million Bucks if you really want to make Models. These $2200 Printers are encouraging but they won"t work magic. Let's see some Macro pictures of the bodies that people are 3D printing? Nice closeup shots for detail and finish. Considering the number of Model Kits out there and the changing state of Modeling, I don't see this 3D thing, with it's current ability, making much of a showing. CadillacPat

Looks good Tony!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! You might be able to rid yourself of that tinted background using Auto Color in your photo editing, or making sure your camera is set for Incandescent and not Sunlight. CadillacPat

This is not going to happen tomorrow. Maybe in 20 years there might be a handfull of people in the world printing obscure home designs of scale bodies, But, Factories will always have the edge on perfection and quality. Think of the tens of millions of Model Kits in home closets and factory warehouses coupled with the loss of the baby boomers. Kits will be for sale but there will be less people who want them, leaving even less of those who would take the initiative or have the interest to "create" their own bodies and parts. It's a nice utopian thought but I dont see it happening. But, As cities double in size and more and more people spend the majority of their lives indoors. there will still be Model Builders in the future, 20-50 years from now, but the interest in Model Cars that the baby boomers created, nourished, and passed on to two successive generations will just not be around. The abundance of kits still on hand will serve to fill the needs of those wanting to build Model Cars. CadillacPat