Bugatti Fan

It's that time again. Armistice Day weekend Telford UK. The largest scale model show on the planet. Full details on IPMS UK website.

Shapeways had listed a set of corrected wheels and tyres for the Heller Bugatti T50 kit. Anyone know who the originator of the 3D Cad files is? I guess that Shapeways worked as an intermediary producer from other people's designs to sell on their behalf?

Greg. Yes, that's the polishing powder I was recommending. You can use it straight on any paint. Just so there is no confusion, this product is a straight alternative to all the spray on chromes. It can be used straight on gloss black for the best chrome effect, but experimenting by using it on other colours could yield different effects. Once buffed up to a shine it is quite resistant to bring handled unlike the spray ons. I would guess that as the powder pigment is ultra fine, the buffing action really works it into the paint pigment and thus bond's if better than a spray on chrome.

Ditch the spray on chromed altogether and get some C1 Polishing Powder. Use on gloss black like the sprays but the big difference is when buffed up to a shine it can be handled.

Nice interesting bit of innovation there Hugh !

Not used the Revell Chrome that I understand is only available as an aerosol and very expensive too ! I started to use C1 polishing powder instead of the spray on chromes some time ago and not looked back. It buffs up really well and the great thing about it is that it is resilient to handling after application. It needs to go onto a gloss black finish for the best effect. I normally spray the bits with matt black acrylic and when dry dip them in the old Johnson's Kleer ( or modern equivalent of ). Once hardened off the C1 is applied and polished up to a really good shine. It is great for trying out to obtain different effects by using it over other gloss colours or matt finishes. The tub of powder you get in the box is substantial and will last for ages. Application is by little swabs supplied that wear through quite quickly. They look a bit like small make up applicators. I started to use cotton wool buds as applicators as they are plentiful and cheap to buy.

A colleague of mine back in the early nineties owned one. Reckoned it was the best sporty car he ever had. Good to see Heller making a kit of this particular car that was very popular with enthusiast drivers back in the day.

Grey will possibly the best over red plastic. Key the plastic to a matt finish first by taking the shine down with a worn piece of Scotchbrite or some fine grit wet and dry paper.

Gundam kits are quite popular with a younger generation, and that is all to the good getting people into a creative modelling hobby. As they get older, perhaps their interests might also cross over into other fields too like auto modelling. making I have seen some interesting articles on painting and weathering Gundam models that can be applied to other fields in model making. Previous posters have already mentioned useful PE parts in those kits and a link to a guy who used parts from those kits. I think that there are paints aimed at the Gundam model maker that might yield some useful colour shades.

Agreed. Nothing wrong with good discussion, long or short provided it remains civil like this one.

Phew! All this discussion from Mike's first original post just asking a question about a spray primer ? And the band plays on ! Lol.

Pete. My last post was actually a bit of tongue in cheek humour. There are many out there who neither care about or own an air brush. That is not going to change. So no point in trying to flog a dead horse. Each to their own etc etc

I use an airbrush ( a very old Badger like yours) but also use aerosols Pete. So I have concluded that must make me partially lazy ???? LOL !

Francois, was that movie car actually driveable, or used as a static prop but scanned and using CGI in the film to animate it? Your designs are coming on in leaps and bounds for your model. You must be extremely proficient at using Autodesk Inventor by the speed at which you turn around your 3D designs. A really 'off the wall' subject compared to the Bentley !

It's a case of each to their own, like anything else in life. If those Henrys (as in Henry Ford) churn out models as though on a production line and use an aerosol like a fire hose that's fine by me. At least they are making something, and if happy with what they build, so be it. And, does it really matter to anyone else how they make their models? But, we must remember that some of those Henrys just might at some time come over to the dark side of the hobby and get more serious like mastering air brushing, super detailing and taking months on end to make a model. It's just a hobby at the end of the day and regardless of how far anyone wants to go with it, as long as they enjoy what they build, it matters not one jot what level of expertise they gain or not. And, it should be remembered that we were all rank beginners when we built our very first kit. We should be encouraging, not discouraging our fellow hobbyists, and making disparaging remarks does not help promote the hobby as far as I can see. Personal circumstances, other commitments and whether a modeller has an area to build models in or not are major influences for all of us. Someone who has to model on a kitchen table and clear away after every session can only look at those who have dedicated modelling rooms and all the gear and can only wish they were blessed with the same. Some more highly experienced modellers, not just on this forum, can be a bit aloof with their opinions about others at times and can come across as being a bit 'I'm better than you'. By all means be a serious modeller. But don't take yourself too seriously !

Oh well! According to the last two posters I appear to have not shaken off the attitude of a twelve year old and I am lazy. Funny thing that. I can airbrush as well as anyone, but maybe I should not have been awarded Gold, Silver or Bronze medals for any my models over the years at IPMS UK SMW and other shows where the bodies on them were sprayed with? Wait for it! An Aerosol ! LOL

Acrylics over Enamels is a no no ! The solvents in enamel paints leach out over a long period of time. Going over it with acrylic is effectively covering the old paint with an air tight plastic seal. The solvents in the enamel (unless many years old and eventually gone rock hard) will start to lift the acrylic as they leach from the enamel and attack the acrylic from underneath. I would suggest that over painting enamel be done with enamel to be on the safe side.

I can remember Columbo Trevor. Peter Falk played that character really well and can remember also that old beaten up Peugeot saloon that was his car in the series.

Les could be right about it being a Ford V8 Pilot. It looks like quite a big car. Other alternatives might be a Rover or a Humber saloon of the era as they were aimed at the slightly more affluent back then like doctors and bank managers. Re creations looks the best way to go Mitchy it you are looking to simulate bomb destroyed vehicles. Buying good functional period vehicles that people have restored to destroy them making a movie would be frowned upon by car enthusiasts these days. CGI has got so good now, there is no need to destroy real historic vehicles for movie making. I just think of all those lovely Mk2 Jaguare driven over cliffs or blown up on film sets back in the day!

Nice model. I built one of these a number of years ago when it was a Matchbox kit. Still have another inbuilt kit. AMT made your kit when the two companies had a tie in. Since then Revell have acquired the tooling.

After the demise of both Scale Auto and Model Car Builder magazines it looks like MCM will now be getting a bit of competition from the newly launched Auto Modeler Magazine I have recently heard about.

Talking of flat finishes by Floquil. I think their original formula was for model rail enthusiasts who made their models from metal. The mention of flat finished reminded me that there is a company named Hiroboy in the UK who import the MFH kits. They ave a range of auto colour paints for airbrush use under the name Zero Paints. They go on flat and need to be sprayed clear gloss to finish.

Randy, are the USCP wire wheels designed to take the Revell tyres? They look really impressive in the posted photo. Or have USCP made the wheels the correct width and supply separate tyres of the correct size too? Helmut, I believe that the Motobitz wires for the E Type Jaguar that I mentioned have the tyres moulded integrally as part of the 3D print to correct the wheels and tyres from the Revell kit that are far too wide for that car.

AMT Lacquers. I remember using one of two of them that I got over here in the UK back in the sixties I think. They were very good paints as had some unusual metallics in their range. Flying model aircraft dope. There was a brand named Oh My Dope years back in the UK I seem to remember. It stank to high heaven when I used it on a balsa glider model. Don't know if the brand still exists or not as I have never been into flying aircraft models ever since.

Floquil. Pretty good but very strong smelling paint for railway modellers. Way back in the seventies a very good American friend of mine, the late Professor John Tilley, who back in those days was studying over here in the UK for his PhD in Marine History and a brilliant ship modeller, introduced me to Floquil Polly S Acrylic Model paints, the first of that type for modellers. Very good paint as it happens but I believe it was discontinued quite a number of years ago.