Ace-Garageguy

Yup, TIG would be the best if you have the equipment and know how to use it, but this just shows it's entirely possible to do a clean clean clean job with MIG, and the same technique of tacking closer and closer together, then working the welds flat with hammer-on dolly (which helps to alleviate the shrinkage introduced by the heat of welding) works equally well with oxy-acetylene.

Much Doo-doo About Nothing would likely be the name of a Shakespeare play were he alive today.

The model cars used in The Giant Gila Monster... ...with my favorite being the valiant hero '32 Ford roadster that gave everything to save its humans from the rampaging lizard.

Windowpane, man.

That'd be cool. Six months after the check that the client across town swore up and down "was in the mail", it finally comes in with stamps from Amarillo and DC and Honolulu and Anchorage, and slightly singed during its passage through LA. What fun.

Hmmmmm... I use white glue or rubber cement for hubcaps, because it keeps low-stressed things stuck, and comes off easily should I ever decide to change the look of a build...but that's just me. I use the epoxy I use because I almost always have some that's gone out of date and can no longer be used safely on aircraft. The typical use-by window on my aircraft stuff is six months to 24, depending on the exact goo, in unopened containers. There's a reason aviation epoxies are often date-coded, and that's because performance of any epoxies deteriorates with time. I have some MGS 285 resin that's now 10 years out of date, and there's no way on dog's green Earth I'd use it on anything important, its cure time and hardness and adhesion are noticeably different than fresh material, and it's still so much better than anything in the hardware store or hobby shop, there's simply no comparison. Consumer-grade epoxies aren't all that terrifically strong to start with, and age-out can make them useless in much less time. Again...whatever works for you, fine. I d o n ' t c a r e . But paying attention to details like shelf-life and mixing and roughing mating surfaces can't hurt, and can very possibly ensure problems like the OP is having don't crop up.

Consumer-grade epoxies are designed to be tolerant of sloppy mixing ratios and mixing procedures, but only to a point. The mix-ratios specified on the product should be adhered to as closely as possible. HOWEVER...due to the poor accuracy of consumer-grade dispensing methods (you even need to pay attention to the twin-tube dispensers, as they will frequently deliver significantly more of one component than the other), extreme mix-ratio accuracy simply isn't a thing achieved by most users. The 5-minute stuff is the weakest of any epoxy product, and any significant deviation from the specified mix-ratio only weakens the stuff further. (I've used it myself, and allowed my employees to use it for temporary fixturing ONLY, specifically because it's so weak and easily removable) I've watched countless people using the stuff , measure it out fairly accurately, but then fail to thoroughly mix everything they've squeezed out, getting in a hurry to slop it on whatever they're doing before it starts to "kick"...for what seemed to them good reason. Any epoxy applied once it's begun to polymerize will NOT develop its designed adhesive strength, and can cause subsequent joint failure. Elevated temperatures accelerate the "kick" even more, so there are multiple failure points just waiting to bite anyone who uses it. Used reasonably carefully, quality 5-minute stuff is fine for static models. But compared to the high-performance aerospace products I have access to, it is garbage. EDIT: But y'all can do anything you want. I just like to make out I'm a big-shot know-it-all.

"Gamble with other people's money" is the way a lot of things work in the real world.

Luck probably doesn't have anything to do with it. I'd assume, judging from the attention you give the rest of your work, that you use product that's not expired, you probably exercise care with your mix ratios, mix very thoroughly, and you may even rough up the areas to be bonded. If you DON'T do those things, then yes, it IS luck.

Epoxy is supposed to be mixed in specific proportions to harden correctly, and to achieve maximum adhesion. High-performance epoxies even have to be mixed using a gram scale, often with only .5% deviation from the specified mix ratio being tolerable. Adding a higher percentage than specified of one or the other component to epoxy negatively affects performance. Polyester, on the other hand, can tolerate a somewhat higher or lower percentage of "hardener" (because it's technically a catalyst) but it doesn't make it stronger. It only adjusts the cure time relative to temperature.

That's pretty bad. Can you get an emergency prescription filled locally?

You can see it here...

Any means to an end, right?

Yet again I dodged a bullet by not investing too heavily in US tech stocks.

EDIT: Watch the video. The performance is impressive. The claims about its low cost and in-house development may be bunk, but there is no denying that watching its thought-paths in real time is just like a human internal dialog while solving a problem.

Nice Mr. Postman dropped off an A. G. boxing of AMT's '56 T-bird today. For a long time I didn't give this kit much thought, stupidly assuming it was nothing but a warmed-over version of the flawed AMT '57, blobular chassis and all. Some posts on this forum corrected my thinking, and Duddly01's ongoing build reminded me I kinda wanted one. Nice kit, and I'll be needing more, as it seems the best way to get a GOOD '57 is by using this kit as the basis.

I don't know what kind of mask you're using, but dust masks are next to useless in my experience. I won't sand any composite or catalyzed material without something like this at the minimum:

Tools often evolve and become other tools over time, the most frequent in my experience being cheap screwdrivers morphing into little prybars, paint stir sticks, and dangly-holders for rattlecanning small parts.

"Do unto others first, and they won't be able to do unto you" isn't exactly the Golden Rule as it was intended.

I have used casting materials from both of these companies extensively and never had any allergic issues. This is no guarantee, but as both of them are sellers to professionals and industry, their customer service may be able to help you. https://www.freemansupply.com/ https://polytek.com/

I complain and whinge constantly about the lousy quality of "offshore" made parts, and the dearth of American companies even trying to make good stuff here. I'm happy to say I have found an American company that makes great stuff, engineered, designed and MADE in the good ol' USA, while delivering their parts at prices I'm glad to pay considering the quality. EDIT: They are resellers of other manufacturers' parts, and I don't know about all of that stuff, but their IN-HOUSE parts are some of the best I've ever seen. https://motionraceworks.com/

The Kirkham cars are alloy-bodied, and are actually more symmetrical and better made than real factory Cobras, as one side of the car was digitally modeled and flopped to mirror-image the other side. Then, production body-panel press dies were made in Eastern Europe, and panels were welded together on precise steel jigs. But real Cobra bodies were hand-hammered over wooden bucks, and no two are absolutely identical. Shelby used Kirkhams for the alloy-bodied continuation cars. Years ago I subcontracted to Chuck Gutke / Cobra Restorers making repops of factory fiberglass Cobra parts (brake cooling scoops, hinge covers, etc.) and saw a Kirkham car being built. They are wondrous things, and you REALLY have to know your stuff to tell one from a factory original. https://www.fordfe.com/the-kirkham-cobra-story-the-real-story-long-but-in-t56166.html

5-minute epoxy is, in a word, garbage. In general, the longer any epoxy takes to fully cure, the stronger it is. The epoxy I usually use for modeling is out-of-date material made for full-scale aircraft work. I assure you...it does NOT fall off over time if used correctly. It also requires 24 hours to cure at room temperature, and a further post-cure at elevated temperatures to achieve full strength. It costs $400 per gallon. If you want good long lasting epoxy joints, use at LEAST the 30-minute stuff made for model airplanes. AND CLEAN AND SAND THE AREAS YOU'RE APPLYING IT TO THOROUGHLY. ANY epoxy applied to a shiny or contaminated surface is a recipe for failure. EDIT: Inaccurate or inadequate mixing is more likely than a "bad batch" of material...but 6 months to a year is usually the longest you can really trust the hardware-store or hobby-shop stuff anyway. Cheapo consumer grade epoxies allow for a lot of latitude in mixing proportions, but that negatively affects strength. Insufficient mixing also negatively affects strength...and mixing the 5-minute stuff is often rushed because it starts to set so fast.

Unicorn-hunting can leave you with nothing but a horn.