Jo-han 1935 Mercedes-Benz 500K

[bamadon]

That's looking good. I really like these old classics.

[slusher]

Looking very sharp Ray. Awesome progress..

[cobraman]

Thanks guys. So far no major problems.

[cobraman]

Well, I have the chassis pretty much done and most of the body polished. Still need to get a good color for the interior. I'm thinking it has to be a tan, beige or an ivory color.

[bobthehobbyguy]

Looking good. I vote for an ivory interior.

[Harry P.]

Way to go, Ray! I love seeing a classic built, You're doing great so far, I'm liking it!

[Harry P.]

I vote for an ivory interior.

I second that.

[slusher]

Looking good. I vote for an ivory interior.

Not a bad idea. Nice clean work Ray your almost there....

[cobraman]

Thank you very much guys. Ivory interior it will be. Been getting tired of building the same old thing so trying something a little different every now and then.

[sjordan2]

I vote for a "biscuit" interior, which is a very light tan – lighter than shown in shaded pictures here, and a bit darker than the sunlight shots.

Maybe a light tobacco brown? This is a 540K.

Edited May 11, 2015 by sjordan2

[om617]

Classy car,you are doing a great job on this.

[cobraman]

Thanks. I picked out and bought the paint this morning. Will post photos of painted items later. Hopefully it's a good color choice. Being partially colorblind sometimes my color choices are off.

[Eric Macleod]

The chassis looks fantastic. I look forward to seeing the interior colors on this one.

[charlie8575]

Beautiful work so far.

I also vote for the biscuit interior.

Charlie Larkin

[cobraman]

Had a minor problem yesterday. I was doing my favorite job of laying down some BMF (NOT ! ) and I had some paint lift off when I removed the foil. The model was primed and painted and cleared all with Duplicolor paint which I have used several times without this problem. Why did it happen this time ? Did I do something wrong ? I don't know. Just going to fix it as best I can and go forward.

[microwheel]

Had a minor problem yesterday. I was doing my favorite job of laying down some BMF (NOT ! ) and I had some paint lift off when I removed the foil. The model was primed and painted and cleared all with Duplicolor paint which I have used several times without this problem. Why did it happen this time ? Did I do something wrong ? I don't know. Just going to fix it as best I can and go forward.

I've had that happen a time or two before Ray. It has nothing to do with the type of paint you used. More than likely there was still some left over mold release oil around the areas that lifted. There have been a few rare times, where even after I had washed all the parts, and thought I had washed them thoroughly, and got my primer and paint done, and needed to mask off the car for a two tone paint job, where I had a couple of spots lift like you discribed, when I removed the masking tape. And a time or two during BMF foiling that I had the same issues. Once it was so bad the only fix was to strip the model back down to bare plastic and re-wash it and then repaint it. It doesn't happen often, but it does happen. Now when I wash my kits, I fill my kitchen sink half full with warm water and a generous amount of Dawn dishsoap, and let them soak a good hour in the stuff, before rinsing and drying them off. I even take a few minutes to brush the high areas, and the recessed areas, gently with a old toothbrush a time or two during the soaking time. That helps remove any mold release oils laying along the edges and in the recess areas like door and trunk seams. One last thing I do, which might be a little over kill, is I give the model, especially the body, a gentle wipe down with a cotton cloth soaked in 70% isopropyl alcohol, just in case there is still any release oil, or oils from my hands, still lingering on the body before I start any primer or paint. SInce doing all of that, I haven't had a problem with primer or paint lifting off.

[Randy D]

Hi Ray,

You are doing a great job on this project !!! Sorry to hear about the paint issue.

Randy

[sjordan2]

I have often seen comments here about paint interacting badly with kits that are molded in red plastic. Would that have anything to do with this BMF problem, since the kit is molded in red?

Jim's suggestions seem good, and others have suggested that extra barrier steps may be necessary for red plastic. I don't have experience in that area, but perhaps someone can chime in here.

Edited May 12, 2015 by sjordan2

[cobraman]

Thanks guys. Interesting.... does the color the body is molded in play a part ? I don't know the answer to that. Before I prime I always wash and wet sand at least the body pieces. They were pretty small areas so I redid them best I could. One was on the hood which I took a chance on and masked with blue tape and resprayed a whole section and then cleared again. It came out ok. The worst spot was by the side window where I used the BMF to cover the drip rail as well as the window frame. That one was in a tough spot. I decanted some paint and hit it with a brush. Still need to work on it some more. I should mention that the clear and red paint was pulled off, the the primer remained.

[bobthehobbyguy]

I've had a similar problem in the past. Don't think it is related to the prep or the primer would have come off also. Can't see how the plastic color nqkes a differnce. In my case I suspected it was because of old paint.

[cobraman]

Paint was new the day before but no telling how long it was on the shelf I guess.

[cobraman]

Here's another mock up pic.

[jaxenro]

I registered just so I could tell you how much I like this build

How are the wheels? How thick / accurate are the spokes?

[cobraman]

Thanks. The wheels are not all that bad given the age of the kit and what you sometimes find in other kits. I am not fond of the instruction sheet and there is a disappointing lack of detail in the interior however I don't think you will be able to see inside very well.

[Karl LaFong]

Very cool project - seems like the Johan classic car kits are far more affordable than the 50's - 70's cars.

Not to hijack this thread, but was the Mercedes red from the 1930's a solid color or metallic? It's difficult to tell from pictures of the actual vehicles.