Fire investigation unit

[Firebuilder]

13 hours ago, hct728(Bob) said:

Looking like something now it's in primer and on wheels! Good match between the two elements, and neat work on the bumper too

Thank you!

[Firebuilder]

13 hours ago, hct728(Bob) said:

Looking like something now it's in primer and on wheels! Good match between the two elements, and neat work on the bumper too

Than you!

[Firebuilder]

Thank you Charlie!

I will definitely follow your instructions , I appreciate the time that you have taken to post step by  step instructions.  Your help has  advanced this project, and also my skills. 
 

Dom

[Chariots of Fire]

I finished up casting the bezels.  On two of them I cut off the turn signal lights.  They are the red flashers that go above the headlight bezels.  I used Molotow pens 1 and 2 to finish them off in chrome.  The lenses have been cast for the light portion.  For the turn signals I'll mix up some two-part epoxy and drop some into the bezel, letting it build up a small amount in the center.  Then the epoxy will be painted with clear amber.

[Firebuilder]

On 1/30/2024 at 3:44 PM, Chariots of Fire said:

I finished up casting the bezels.  On two of them I cut off the turn signal lights.  They are the red flashers that go above the headlight bezels.  I used Molotow pens 1 and 2 to finish them off in chrome.  The lenses have been cast for the light portion.  For the turn signals I'll mix up some two-part epoxy and drop some into the bezel, letting it build up a small amount in the center.  Then the epoxy will be painted with clear amber.

Looks great,  silicone is out of stock  at micro mark , so I have to wait a bit   To make the mold unless I can find it at another vendor

[Chariots of Fire]

Check out Amazon for a number of RTV suppliers.  Look for the 1:1 ratio mixes.  I saw some that are less cost than M-M anyway.  Might be worth a try.

[Firebuilder]

The bottom half of the mold has been made,  My thanks to Charlie for all of his guidance. Putting the tape on the back side of the bezel,  I can see has already made a huge difference from the first mold attempt.   Will cast the second half of the mold and then see what the final results are. I am  following Charlie’s instruction step by step.

 

Dom

[Firebuilder]

Finally got the  light bezels molded. The tape did the trick. Much cleaner resin cast part. There was minimal flash and clean up. Just  need to file  a bit  in some places. Also made a mold for the grill. Was thinking of doing a black chrome for this truck instead of the traditional chrome.

[Gary Chastain]

Impressive work 

[Firebuilder]

On 2/4/2024 at 10:13 AM, Gary Chastain said:

Impressive work 

Thank you.

[Firebuilder]

I finally figured out the dashboard  and interior. Just need a steering wheel and some details. It took several attempts to get it  to look right.

[Firebuilder]

The  front bumper is  done, and some paint on the lower half of cab and body.  Then the  top halves will  be  painted  grey like on the bumper chevrons.  The chassis  still need some detailing, but is painted.

[Gary Chastain]

Great progress, looking good

[Firebuilder]

On 2/11/2024 at 9:50 AM, Gary Chastain said:

Great progress, looking good

Thank you Gary 

[Firebuilder]

The rear of the box chevrons have been painted, the cab had  first coat of the grey  completed .

[gotnitro?]

Excellent work 

[Aaronw]

Coming along nicely. 

I really enjoy watching people make things out of nothing, scratch building parts, resin casting, printing decals etc. 

[Firebuilder]

20 hours ago, gotnitro? said:

Excellent work 

Thank you

[Firebuilder]

20 hours ago, Aaronw said:

Coming along nicely. 

I really enjoy watching people make things out of nothing, scratch building parts, resin casting, printing decals etc. 

thank you, the resin casting is new for me, but it is working out great so far. Had a few issues at first, but now got the process working. I don’t have the capability to print decals, and  there are  very few online , so I am stuck with what I can find.

[Rockford]

Impressive stuff! 

[Aaronw]

10 hours ago, Firebuilder said:

thank you, the resin casting is new for me, but it is working out great so far. Had a few issues at first, but now got the process working. I don’t have the capability to print decals, and  there are  very few online , so I am stuck with what I can find.

 

That is one of the joys of light colored (white, yellow etc) fire apparatus. Decal film and a regular printer work just fine for decals. 

These are a couple I did close to 20 years ago just using decal film, Microsoft Word and an ink jet printer.

 

You can even get around the darker colors by using white decal film. I printed the text on white decal film and then cut the white film into strips for the striping and door logo. On darker colors sometimes you need to double up the white film to keep the color from bleeding through.

 

 

[Scott Eriksen]

Looks great Dom !  I had to apply Scotchlite vinyl chevrons on a few real rigs .... not fun!

Edited February 15, 2024 by Scott Eriksen

[Firebuilder]

21 hours ago, Rockford said:

Impressive stuff! 

Thank you

[Firebuilder]

17 hours ago, Aaronw said:

 

That is one of the joys of light colored (white, yellow etc) fire apparatus. Decal film and a regular printer work just fine for decals. 

These are a couple I did close to 20 years ago just using decal film, Microsoft Word and an ink jet printer.

 

You can even get around the darker colors by using white decal film. I printed the text on white decal film and then cut the white film into strips for the striping and door logo. On darker colors sometimes you need to double up the white film to keep the color from bleeding through.

 

 

 

17 hours ago, Aaronw said:

 

That is one of the joys of light colored (white, yellow etc) fire apparatus. Decal film and a regular printer work just fine for decals. 

These are a couple I did close to 20 years ago just using decal film, Microsoft Word and an ink jet printer.

 

You can even get around the darker colors by using white decal film. I printed the text on white decal film and then cut the white film into strips for the striping and door logo. On darker colors sometimes you need to double up the white film to keep the color from bleeding through.

 

 

Aaron , Nice  looking decals, my computer skills are limited, wouldn’t even know where to start to make the stripes and emblems like you have done .  Can the letters be made with a shadow  effect  with micro soft word?  

[Firebuilder]

16 hours ago, Scott Eriksen said:

Looks great Dom !  I had to apply Scotchlite vinyl chevrons on a few real rigs .... not fun!

Scott,

thank you.  And I would not want to try  this on a real rig!  I leave that to professionals like you . It took a while to tape this and get it all  to look even.  I was worried the grey paint would bleed under  the tape due to the tread plate , but  luckily it was  only minor in a couple of spots and a quick touch up of the red was easy enough.