Ace-Garageguy

I have a friend who continually asks me how to do things. Invariably, whatever I tell her, her answer is "...yes but (and some variation of "I've never done it but I know better than you do, so I'll do it my way"). This thread is becoming very familiar somehow.

At the moment, I personally feel that the Heller E-type is better proportioned overall than the new Revell offering. HOWEVER...this is not the result of any measuring on my part, but just a cursory look at both bodies in bare plastic, and photos of the models completed by competent builders. HELLER model, below: REVELL model, below (retouched):

That's pretty funny right there. The "electronic digital postal scales" I've seen lack the precision you'll require to accurately measure and compare the specific weights of "pill cup" amounts of anything. You're going need something accurate in the sub-one-gram range. I use an old-school beam scale that will measure down to .1 gram for mixing aviation-grade composite resins...and you have to use them out of a draft to get any consistent results. That kind of accuracy is necessary for mixing structural materials that hold things together that go several-hundred miles per hour and are subjected to multi-G loads. That kind of accuracy is also required to achieve color matches in the collision industry, where one color may have 10 or more pigments and toners (with which I have considerable experience). That kind of accuracy is not, however, necessary to achieve proper spraying consistency of any material I've worked with over the last 5 decades building high end vehicles...and somewhat above average models.

I would. But I've already gone deep into modeling two extremely high-performance hybrids, one loosely based on the Jaguar C-X75 turbine/electric powertrain.

Indeed. I recently attended a legally sanctioned "street drags" event, but had it been an event for glorified golf carts, no matter how quick and fast they were, I wouldn't have bothered...or wasted 3 days out of what remains of my life. And the knee-jerk re-bleating insistence that electric vehicles will save the world is simply ludicrous. Electrics make perfect sense as a part of a rational mix of propulsion systems for surface vehicles, but REPLACING the entire global ICE fleet by force of mandate is one of the stupidest actions taken by humans to date. Of course, all anyone needs to do to verify that decisions are no longer being made, and things are generally not being run, by smart, capable people, is to look at the global "chip shortage" and the "supply chain disruptions". The idiocracy is upon us.

Or who George Washington and Thomas Jefferson were and why they're important either, most likely.

Much respect.

^^^ For those who don't know, the three exquisite models (and the larger scale engine model) immediately above were entirely designed in CAD and 3D printed by Bill Cunningham, who I mentioned in the first post in this thread. Every part (except plug wires and flexible hoses) is printed, including the tube frames and the wire wheels. His body panels are only 1mm thick, and he's accomplishing things that "experts" have said couldn't be done. He's also using relatively inexpensive printers, one of which can be had for around $150. The photos, though very nice, simply do not do the models justice. They have to be seen up close to be fully appreciated...and they're almost beyond belief.

Very nice. Great fade !

You have a truly remarkable feel for texture and color to represent different surfaces. Fabric that looks like fabric, rust that looks like rust, burned hulks that look just like burned hulks before they've rusted, etc. Definitely among the best of the best... Really diggin' the field-armored fork-lift too.

It's over. Great turnout by modelers and vendors (without a mask in sight), and I got to have nice chats with Pico Elgin and Bill Cunningham (two of the guys who've really been pushing the limits of 3D printing), and Okey Spaulding. In short, it's here, it's "affordable", and the possible results are staggeringly beautiful. Mr. Cunningham's models are the best I've ever seen in 1/24 scale, bar none. Sorry I don't have any photos. I couldn't find a memory card this AM that would work with my old camera. But I'm certain somebody will shortly remedy the lack-of-pix situation.

Very nice. A demanding medium to work in 'cause you don't get to make mistakes.

Nice indeed. I really enjoy seeing well thought out "what ifs" that are entirely plausible from a technical and historical perspective.

Thanks Ray. But even it's not really done-done.

Ace hardware.

What Irked You Today? Frankly, damm near everything. But most particularly old "friends" who turn into self-serving backstabbing greedy lying weasels.

Must notta had the fix-overheating app on his phone.

OMG !!! OMG !!! If I had written that, I'd have been banned for life.

Thanks Joe. Good to know it's not all my imagination.

Presumably, the AI-endowed self-driving cars will be intelligent and self-aware enough to avoid these annoying human actions. But don't bet the farm on it.

I've found this design to be very helpful for a wide variety of modeling tasks...

Yup...definitely liking the post-sectioning flow and lines.

That I don't know, as I still haven't had time to go through what is there now, and compare carefully with what I'm absolutely certain I've posted here in the past. However, there is content I've posted going as far back as 2012, the year I signed up here. Far as the earlier question regarding photos goes...that's not the issue I'm addressing. I've maintained my paid Photobucket account from the beginning, and all the PB photos remain, as well as photos hosted on this site on the remaining build threads. Certain pasted-in photos from other sites have disappeared, but again, that's to be expected and is not the current issue.