Ace-Garageguy

Wow. That really IS beautiful. Nice work, sir. She looks convincingly like bare, lightly polished alloy.

Yes sir. Same cause exactly. Excellent point.

One warning note (and I've discovered this by first-hand experience): when you break the shiny as-molded surface by scuffing, the plastic almost always becomes more sensitive to the hotter solvents in some primers and paints. The shiny as-molded surface is actually harder than the plastic immediately below it, and somewhat more solvent-resistant I verified this again recently while prepping a Gunze Ferrari 250 GTO body for primer. I thoroughly scuffed the hood with Comet, but left the backsides of several parts as-molded. When I shot the hood with a hot self-etching primer, it crazed horribly. BUT...the un-scuffed backsides of the other parts showed very minimal crazing.

Great OP tip above. I've been doing exactly that for over 50 years, but my grit of first choice is 180. Often, drag slicks and other wide tires will present a sunk-in-the-middle appearance. This technique also allows you to create a more realistic flat tread surface...though on a treaded racing tire, it will obviously remove the tread on the outside edges first...which can make for a very good looking used-up appearance. You'll find that different "rubber" materials respond differently to sanding though, so pay attention before you ruin a rare tire. Some "rubber" will fuzz instead of becoming dull and worn looking. Using wet-or-dry paper, as mentioned by the OP, WET, will often alleviate the fuzzing problem, as will going to a finer grit. Tire treads look more realistic if the edges are slightly rounded off after you get the treads uniformly dulled. Scrubbing tire sidewalls with a paste made of an abrasive cleanser like old (pre-scratch-free) Comet and a stiff toothbrush takes the shine off nicely and leaves a realistic dull rubber surface...without the danger of sanding details off. If you have access to a glass-bead blaster, that also works very well, but you have to be careful.

I have no experience with U-pol 796 as yet. However, U-Pol Power Can 804 clear has had some glowing recommendations and is said to be safe over Tamiya TS colors and automotive basecoats and touchup sprays like Duplicolor. It's also considerably cheaper than 796, which is marketed as being "UV resistant"...not really necessary for model work.

How about a sackful of custom, untraceable bouncing Betties? Kinda complements the pogo-stick theme nicely.

Best method I've found (and swear by now) is an abrasive cleaner like Comet, mixed into a paste, and a stiff-bristled toothbrush. Scrub thoroughly, rinse in hot water. Yes, it takes some effort, but it gets all the crevices around the details uniformly scuffed and dulled without softening the sharp engraving, and is FAR easier than doing it with sandpaper.

I haven't read the whole thread, so sorry if I repeat what's already been said earlier. The boring same-same colors on most of the cars today are simply the resulting herd-think that they will have better resale value when you dump them, period. Consumer 'experts' have endlessly repeated this, and it's sunk in to the car buying psyche en masse. For me, it's always a treat to see something new in a bright or interesting color that the buyer chose for his (or her) own enjoyment rather than for the ease of palming it off on the next guy down the line. Reminds me of an earlier time. These were happy cars. Self-confident, in-the-moment. Who gives a damm if the next person likes them?

Best cup o' coffee I've had in 10 days...my own. Second best was in Williams, Az., Tuesday morning, at Cowgirl Coffee Cake Company. Fresh pastries baked on site daily. Great. Really. Most of the coffee on the road was like thin dishwater.

I don't know about EVERY issue, but the "custom" issue of the '41 Woody I have (this one) does NOT include the stock wheels, engine, etc. I believe this to be true for all the custom issues as well.

Another one I recognize instantly. Had one once, and bought out a defunct dealership's stock of body and mechanical parts long after they had pulled out of the US market. Sold the parts on to a national owner's club.

I'd buy a few if they came back. Last time I saw a complete unmolested original Big Drag it was something like $300, which I'll happily pay if I ever see another one. I've lucked into a couple of these over the years too, at not-insane prices. This is all 1/8 scale, and offers nice options for other 1/8 kits.

Now, if we could just teach that basic concept to the entitlement class in this country...

So why did you comment? Don't like the thread, move on. Nobody is holding a gun to your head here either (as far as I can tell).

For me, it's just another of the constant reminders that the world is full of clueless fools that think their carp is worth big money....and fools who pay it. Actually, it's just a reminder that the world is full of fools. More every day. And they all seem to be proud of it.

I honestly wish the heads of ALL the smarmy little internet thieves and scammers would simultaneously explode.

There's a decent looking stock built-up listed at $10.99. Several unbuilt in-box reissues for $45 to $77. The only things that make the $300 job special are the original-issue box and the custom rear fascia / taillights / continental kit.

A wee word of warning. If you elect to drill an existing axle, start small, use very sharp bits, work up to final size, and go SLOW. Starting with the finish-hole size bit is a pretty good way to split the axle into two parts. WORK CAREFULLY. There's not much extra meat to support the inevitable slight wedging of the bit into the hole and subsequent stretching...SNAP.

Yes. Even the last bit was kinda fun in a poke-yourself-in-the-eye-with-a-stick kind of way.

Not really worth whining about, but hey...whining is fun, right? First leg of flight to ATL delayed yesterday due to a group of fifty that had missed a connection somewhere or some such... Second leg of the flight delayed in Denver, first at the gate for 1/2 hour and then waiting for takeoff for another 30 minutes... Seated next to someone clearly terrified of flying...and of course, we got into some turbulence... Got in to ATL early in the wee hours and the trains from the gate to baggage claim had already been shut down. 1.5 mile walk... Almost all the whizzers were closed due to "repairs" or "maintenance" (which looked a lot like people standing around or leaning on walls, looking at their phones; I guess there's an app for toilet-cleaning)... Finally found an open whizzer ("family" one-holer). This is in America's BUSIEST airport. 10 people in line. I figured I'd be standing in a puddle by the time I got in. Happily I wasn't...just barely... Got a no-English cabbie from the dark-continent into whose NAV-app I had to input the destination FOR HIM. Nice guy, smiled a lot, but liked to run at around 85MPH (which in itself doesn't bother me) but one wheel bearing was singing so loud I'm kinda surprised it held out all the way home... The NAV-app was pretty low-end, incomplete info as to lanes, etc. so I had to watch his moving-map screen and constantly correct his driving directions, as he obviously couldn't READ the signs on the road either...and he was a little shaky on what the words "left" and right" meant... Got to my door at around 4 this AM and kissed the ground.

Unfortunately there's no shortage of poorly-trained "techs" these days in every part of the vehicle industry. Glad you got it sorted out correctly. Yes, a real PITA to have to compensate for the incompetence of supposed "professionals".

Hoping all is well and that she's feeling great real soon.

I thought this was supposed to be a family joint.

Draft this man to be Secretary of Education.

Agreed, stupid money asking price. The seller doesn't appear to specialize in anything in particular, doesn't know models...just resells everything in an online junk-shop. Lotsa this mentality around, probably saw that a similar kit in virgin condition sold for a similar price so just figgered he'd start high and let the buyers (?) sort it out. I have to wonder where these guys come up with the ridiculous figures they put on some of this stuff, and it's across the board too...not just model stuff...naturally.