Jersey Red's '57 Ford Gasser

[JerseyRed]

Here is my version of the '57 Ford Gasser. It's painted in Testors Bronze Lacquer and Testors one coat clear.

I had two problems with it. One was the model itself, in that when I put the body on the chassis, the rear wheels hit the quarter panels. I had to completely remove the rear suspension and move it back about a 1/4" to allow enough room for the wheels to sit in the center of the wheel opening. The kit comes with two rears to allow it to be built stock or gasser. It drove me nuts because I thought I used the wrong one but it was the correct one that didn't fit properly. The second problem was that this was my first attempt at using BMF, and the results reflect the hard time I had with it. The next time I figure I need about one new blade per inch to cut it without tearing the foil. Other than that, it went together well and I had fun building it.

 

 

[crazyjim]

Looks really nice.  I always loved those endless line things.

[PARTSMARTY]

Looks great-can't wait to get one of these !!!

[donb]

You sure did a fine job on this model Kevin. I like the color a lot! And your BMF looks pretty good too. I've used it a lot and it still gives me trouble.

[TooOld]

Looks great and your foil looks just fine , nice and smooth with no wrinkles . . . a little practice trimming and you'll have it !

[tbill]

that looks fantastic! your foil looks pretty good to me. trick to the foil is to rub it down real good, and when cutting, just drag the blade, no need to put pressure on it, the weight of the knife/blade is enough to cut it.

 

again, very nice build

[espo]

Turned out really nice. Maybe I'll have to get one of these. Foiling is a love/hate thing. As Tbill mentioned, It will take some practice and trying different techniques to get where you want with the foiling thing. Yours looks far better for a first time than mine did.  

[vintagercr]

Very nice!

[Snake45]

Very nice indeed! I like the color--what paint is it?

[JerseyRed]

Very nice indeed! I like the color--what paint is it?

It's Bronze, Testors Lacquer spray can. I originally wanted to paint it the same Gold color it was on the box but this was the closest thing they had at HL. I was happy with it in the end. 

[JerseyRed]

Thanks for all the kind words guys, especially concerning the BMF.

It seems BMF is the primary choice for chrome here. I have a '59 Cadillac that I'm finishing up and I don't like the decals they give you for the chrome molding. I was debating whether to use BMF or give Alclad chrome a try. There's a fair amount of chrome molding so there would a lot of taping, which I wouldn't mind if the results are worth it. Anyone have any opinions which way to go with it?

[tbill]

in my opinion, if bmf gives you trouble, alclad will make you lose your mind [ask me how i know, lol]

my best advice, use bmf, also, go to HL and get some of the tiny q-tip looking things, the real small ones. lay down your bmf, then take the tiny q-tip and rub the foil down real good, now with a new blade, trim the foil around the body/molding lines, peel off excess, then with tiny q-tip like device mentioned earlier, re rub the foil down along where it was trimmed. this will help smooth any jagged edges from cutting. trust me, once you get a feel for the bmf, you'll love it, and if one part doesn't look right, peel it off, and try again, you'll be glad you did. i think you have a good start on foiling, i think with a little practice, you'll have it mastered.

[Snake45]

It's Bronze, Testors Lacquer spray can. I originally wanted to paint it the same Gold color it was on the box but this was the closest thing they had at HL. I was happy with it in the end.

Thanks! I bought a can of that to use on a Corvette. Nice to see what it's gonna look like!

[Snake45]

Thanks for all the kind words guys, especially concerning the BMF.

It seems BMF is the primary choice for chrome here. I have a '59 Cadillac that I'm finishing up and I don't like the decals they give you for the chrome molding. I was debating whether to use BMF or give Alclad chrome a try. There's a fair amount of chrome molding so there would a lot of taping, which I wouldn't mind if the results are worth it. Anyone have any opinions which way to go with it?

I'm using Silver Sharpie for everything I can get away with it for these days. Threw away three empty ones today and opened a new one. Does it look as good as BMF? No. But it's a tenth the work and a tenth the cost. If it looks even half as good, that's a bargain!

[Tyler62990]

Looks great to me. I love the box art for this model and think you pulled it off well. I think I like the deeper color of the bronze better, actually. The foil also looks a lot better than my first attempt. What I learned is burnish it very well, always use a fresh blade (I had no issues doing a 53 Hudson with a single, fresh blade), and try using just the blade, no handle. I think it gives you much better control.

[crazyjim]

I use make up applicators from Walgreens.  CVS and Wal-Mart have similar items but the Walgreens units are better.  One end is pointy and the other is a round flat.  Muc, much cheaper than similar Tamiya units.

[JerseyRed]

I'm using Silver Sharpie for everything I can get away with it for these days. Threw away three empty ones today and opened a new one. Does it look as good as BMF? No. But it's a tenth the work and a tenth the cost. If it looks even half as good, that's a bargain!

I'm going to give this a try. I have a crappy Firebird I can experiment on.

Would you use it for all chrome? I can picture using it for thin chrome like windshield moldings, but the Caddy has wide quarter and rocker panel moldings 

[JerseyRed]

in my opinion, if bmf gives you trouble, alclad will make you lose your mind [ask me how i know, lol]

my best advice, use bmf, also, go to HL and get some of the tiny q-tip looking things, the real small ones. lay down your bmf, then take the tiny q-tip and rub the foil down real good, now with a new blade, trim the foil around the body/molding lines, peel off excess, then with tiny q-tip like device mentioned earlier, re rub the foil down along where it was trimmed. this will help smooth any jagged edges from cutting. trust me, once you get a feel for the bmf, you'll love it, and if one part doesn't look right, peel it off, and try again, you'll be glad you did. i think you have a good start on foiling, i think with a little practice, you'll have it mastered.

From my limited understanding, the problem with Alclad is getting everything smooth, laying down the gloss black and then getting the chrome layer perfect. I'll probably won't try it on the Caddy, but I probably will at some point just for the experience and the challenge.

I had an easier time originally on the windshield and rear window than I did on the side body moldings. I ended up peeling the BMF off four times each side to get them to what you see. Another problem was having to work around the chrome. Some of the windshield peeled off putting in the glass.

[JerseyRed]

Looks great to me. I love the box art for this model and think you pulled it off well. I think I like the deeper color of the bronze better, actually. The foil also looks a lot better than my first attempt. What I learned is burnish it very well, always use a fresh blade (I had no issues doing a 53 Hudson with a single, fresh blade), and try using just the blade, no handle. I think it gives you much better control.

I'm not sure but I think I'm burnishing too much or too little. Or both in different areas, if that makes sense. In some areas it took more pressure to cut and then it was very hard to remove the excess. In other areas the BMF tore as I was cutting it but the excess was easy to remove.

[JerseyRed]

I use make up applicators from Walgreens.  CVS and Wal-Mart have similar items but the Walgreens units are better.  One end is pointy and the other is a round flat.  Muc, much cheaper than similar Tamiya units.

Do you remember what the name is? I don't have a Walgreens conveniently located so maybe I can order them online. The Tamiya ones are a little expensive and I like using them for a lot of things.

[crazyjim]

These guys -

https://www.walgreens.com/store/c/studio-35-beauty-dual-tip-cosmetic-applicators/ID=prod3908992-product

[madhorseman]

Great looking gasser!!

[ChrisBcritter]

Great to see this one and tbill's version finished at the same time!

Could you please give us a shot of the chassis? tbill didn't mention any trouble with the rear axle and I'd like to compare them.

[Snake45]

I'm going to give this a try. I have a crappy Firebird I can experiment on.

Would you use it for all chrome? I can picture using it for thin chrome like windshield moldings, but the Caddy has wide quarter and rocker panel moldings

I typically use kitchen foil for that kind of thing, though I have used the Sharpie on a couple of C2 Corvette rocker panels I've restored from glue-roaching and they don't look half bad.

[slusher]

Sweet Gasser!!