rcdave

I am keeping a list of all the parts and prices. Do you know Tamiya makes a 1/14 semi that is very popular with a tons of aftermarket parts. Still working on paint but I finished the dash, I think. Looks better in person cause the camera shows all the little imperfections alot better. I put a blue LED behind the dash so the white gauges are backlit.

Waiting on paint to dry so I can clearcoat it. I like the look of big 10" stacks so I got some 7/16" x .016" thin wall aluminum tube. I didn't think it could be bent without professional tools but I tried it anyway and it worked well. I packed the tube with sand and heated it with a propane torch, this is the tricky part. Then I put the tube in a handheld tube bender and carefully bent it. The 1st try the tube ripped when I was almost done, it needed more heat. The 3rd try I got it too hot and it was a little deformed but the 2nd and 4th turned out nice. The bends could be tighter but the are close enough. I know they are too long but I can't decide if I want angled cuts or straight cuts. Also needs to be polished.

I have seen this painted on a helmet in person with an airbrush. He had been doing it for a few years so I'm sure he made it look easy. He just took a black helmet and laid a rubber toolbox/drawer liner on it, the kind with the little square holes in it. Then sprayed the 2nd color over it. It looked really good from a few feet away but I have stickers that look better.

Thanks for the comments. I will post it in a day or 2. I don't like painting so I took a few days off.

Thanks, that's what I was thinking. Do you think 2 light caots will make a difference? I am worried about the paint getting thick in areas I can't sand.

You must have just missed the pic when you posted. You can see the unavoidable orange peel from the rustoleum.

Here's the truck.

I used Duplicolor primer sealer(light tan)and Tamiya Mica blue. I'm just trying to get a blue I really like. I like the blue on this truck I built and wanted to match it but I used Rustoleum to paint it and learned my lesson with that.

Tamiya Mica Blue is the paint. I didn't think white would change the hue of any paint. I don't really want to change the hue I just want to brighten it up a little. Unless someone can recommend a blue brighter than Mica that looks good. I think my monitor make the paint chart brighter than the actual paint.

If I spray 2 coats of blue and think it's too dark can I spray a coat or 2 of white and then more blue. Will it brighten up the blue? If so any tips?

Thanks I'm glad I could inspire you. I.m not married.... hmmm with a Cheshire cat grin.

That is what I planned to do but I thought this would be easier. How did the fiber optics work out? I was thinking of what to do with the fiber optics since I didn't use them and they might work good for interior trailer lights. Paint the optics and notch them where you want a light but I havn't tested it yet.

On my other builds I did the lights after paint but there are so many led's on this I thought it would be better to install and wire them first. I used 32 gauge wire and 2 types of led's, Osram micro side mount white and blue and 1.8mm diffused red, blue and yellow. The cab marker lights were the hardest to plan out and get right. I hollowed out the chrome housing for the 1.8mm yellow led that I sanded the corners off so it would fit. Then I colored it with an orange Sharpie so the color was right when it is turned on or off. I installed 3 micro slide switches to control the lights and a connector so I can plug into a power supply for display. There ended up being a total of 50 led's on the truck. http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h312/rcdave13/Losi%20Micro%20Crawler/Micro%20Pete/MicroPete1721024x768.jpg http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h312/rcdave13/Losi%20Micro%20Crawler/Micro%20Pete/MicroPete1731024x768.jpg http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h312/rcdave13/Losi%20Micro%20Crawler/Micro%20Pete/MicroPete1761024x768.jpg

Thanks, here's an update.

Hotrod/Show Truck

Thanks, you missed it. Post #64

Thanks, the bumper is thin , highly polished aluminum. I just bought it and trimmed it to fit.

Thanks for the comment. I put a couple coats of yellow on the engine to see how I like it but planning to match theengine and body color later if I don't. I will be building a Featherlite Race Trailer for it to carry one of my other builds.

The bumper was custom made to my measurments from ebay store Trick My Plastic Truck Model and it will be held on with a few drops of glue. Now you can see why I remade the hood hinges.

What do you use for flashers? It's hard to explain what I'm doing but I should have it posted by the weekend.

I used 1.8mm for the back and top of the cab and Osram micro side mount 1mm x 2mm for headlights and side markers. 50 led's total!

Starting to take shape.

Thanks, I almost don't want to say but I do kind of keep track and since I started this almost 1 year ago I have over 130 hours in it. Sounds like alot but most of the time is research, design and finding parts. I have about 8 hours on the 5th wheel, 4 hours on the front wheels and over 20 hours on the axles and suspension. I have done alot recently that I have not posted yet like about 25 hours on lighting.

Here's where you can get fenders. http://www.ppvintagekits.com/RESIN-WORKS/RESIN-TRUCK-PARTS.html

Thanks, wait untill you see the lights. Question for anyone who likes Hot rod/show trucks. I am planning to paint the body blue and silver and the frame and axles will be blue. Should I paint the engine blue, silver or Cat yellow? Also should I put the air horns on top of the cab?