Straightliner59 Posted February 2 Author Posted February 2 On 1/31/2025 at 5:39 AM, David G. said: That looks about right, I think body color will work. At the angle they're sitting, those intake tubes remind me of the smoke dischargers on an army tank. David G. Thanks, David. I think body color for the bases will be best. Ha! You're right about the stacks! I hadn't thought about that!
AmericanMuscleFan Posted February 2 Posted February 2 The hood lock pins are awesome Daniel, another great idea, a simple solution that would be possible and effective on a real car, that's all that matters! 👍 1
Straightliner59 Posted February 3 Author Posted February 3 14 hours ago, AmericanMuscleFan said: The hood lock pins are awesome Daniel, another great idea, a simple solution that would be possible and effective on a real car, that's all that matters! 👍 Thank you, my friend! Yes, I had to figure out something, because I didn't have anything to anchor them to, on top of the hood. I couldn't think of any reason this wouldn't work! I've made new bases for them, that look better, I think.
Straightliner59 Posted February 6 Author Posted February 6 The going's been slow. I've had particular annoyances with the left-side rear window trim. I think I'm good with it, now. I'm going to try to shoot another coat of primer, before work, tomorrow. If I'm happy with what I see, I'll work on color, over the weekend! I need to thermoform the windshield and backlight, as well. I started cementing the grille into the surround. I had to trim some of the top of the grille off, because the Monogram '55 Grille, and the Badman's surround are curved, across the top, while the hood is flat. I'll use some sort of clamp (or, maybe pin it to balsa) to pull the surround down to the grille while that cement sets. I'll do that as soon as the bottom cement is cured. To finish the surround after stripping, I shot it with cheap Walmart Color Place spray (RIP🙂) gloss black. After about 30 minutes of dry time, I rubbed some old SNJ aluminum powder into it. I think it makes a nice-looking nickel plated look. As always, your comments and questions are welcomed. Thanks for looking! 3
BK9300 Posted February 6 Posted February 6 That’s a nasty (in a good way!) looking engine compartment, Daniel!
AmericanMuscleFan Posted February 6 Posted February 6 The photo where we see the car 3/4 in front (number 2) is impressive, there's a lot of work in there! 👌
Straightliner59 Posted February 7 Author Posted February 7 (edited) 22 hours ago, David G. said: Nice progress on this Daniel! David G. Thank you, sir! It's definitely getting closer! 16 hours ago, BK9300 said: That’s a nasty (in a good way!) looking engine compartment, Daniel! Thanks, Brian. I kinda like it, too! 12 hours ago, AmericanMuscleFan said: The photo where we see the car 3/4 in front (number 2) is impressive, there's a lot of work in there! 👌 Yes, there is, Francis! There's more machine work than I've ever done, before, in this one. Thanks to some inspiration from a friend! After a new coat of primer, I found three spots that needed fixing, around the headlights. I've smoothed those, and hope to spray a last coat before work, tomorrow. I'm going to do the emblems under the taillights using Bare Metal Foil under the paint. I've never tried it, before (mostly because I avoid BMF like the plague!), but it looks great, when done well. That said, I really should actually start painting, this weekend! It's getting exciting, up in here! Edited February 7 by Straightliner59
Pierre Rivard Posted February 7 Posted February 7 Looks like the body is good to go for paint. If I remember right the plan is for a Plum Crazy kind of color right? Wild car, wild color, what's not to love!
Straightliner59 Posted February 8 Author Posted February 8 20 hours ago, Pierre Rivard said: Looks like the body is good to go for paint. If I remember right the plan is for a Plum Crazy kind of color right? Wild car, wild color, what's not to love! Yessir, Pierre! It's a kind of medium purple, but I am thinking of making it a tad darker, although I like what I have mixed. I'll likely sleep for a little while, and get up early (usually about 11:30 AM) with an eye toward starting about 8:30, or so. Maybe I can put the markings on, on Monday! Fun, exciting times!
AmericanMuscleFan Posted February 8 Posted February 8 I can't wait to see this color Daniel, it's going to be awesome! I've been working nights this week and I'm battling jet lag at the moment, it's a tough work schedule and I admire that you're so awake in everything you do. 👍 1
Straightliner59 Posted February 9 Author Posted February 9 (edited) 2 hours ago, AmericanMuscleFan said: I can't wait to see this color Daniel, it's going to be awesome! I've been working nights this week and I'm battling jet lag at the moment, it's a tough work schedule and I admire that you're so awake in everything you do. 👍 Here it is! This isn't going to go as quickly as I'd hoped. Since I mixed One-Shot enamel, the lacquer thinner I cut it with didn't speed its drying, as much as I'd hoped. So...I wait. There are a couple of motes in it, and it's a little "peel-y" in a couple of spots. I am reasonably sure that's because I am used to using spray cans, so I move quickly across the surface, to avoid paint build up. That's not a successful formula for the airbrush! Anyway, once it's dry, I'll wet-sand and shoot it again. I still have the option to darken it, a tad, but, I would have to use black, because I don't have Royal Blue, which I think would be better to avoid muddiness. When I held the chassis assembly alongside it...Wow! The colors look sweet, together! If it gets at least dry enough to gently handle it, I'll set it on the chassis, and get a couple of shots. Thanks for looking! Edited February 9 by Straightliner59 1
Straightliner59 Posted February 9 Author Posted February 9 Never mind those last photos. Now, it's really gettin' interesting! I'm happy I trimmed the top of the grille, and was able to get the surround to attach to it. The fit between the hood and grille is much improved. Now, my vision for this is really coming through. Thanks for looking! 1
Straightliner59 Posted February 9 Author Posted February 9 I made these nifty inner fender skirts, to tidy things up, a bit. They're tacky-glued in, currently, pending completion of painting. Thanks for looking! 3
Pierre Rivard Posted February 9 Posted February 9 I love the fender inner skirts. They jus add more to admire. You have convinced me that I need to learn about materials and punches needed to do that as it adds a level of realism that just cannot be done with paint effects. I hope we can see the paint job under better lighting. Deep purple fits this car so well. 1
David G. Posted February 9 Posted February 9 The color looks good Daniel. I really like the fender skirts too. David G. 1
AmericanMuscleFan Posted February 9 Posted February 9 The color is superb Daniel, it's a change from the red, black or yellow that we usually see on these 55 Chevy. 👍 I really like the inner fender skirts, they dress up the engine compartment very well, I was just thinking about adding some to my Demon, you gave me the kick to go ahead with that! 1
Straightliner59 Posted February 9 Author Posted February 9 10 hours ago, Pierre Rivard said: I love the fender inner skirts. They jus add more to admire. You have convinced me that I need to learn about materials and punches needed to do that as it adds a level of realism that just cannot be done with paint effects. I hope we can see the paint job under better lighting. Deep purple fits this car so well. Thank you, Pierre! I will post about the material and tools, some time after I get home from work. I'll also post better photos, once the paint is done. Thanks for following!
Straightliner59 Posted February 9 Author Posted February 9 7 hours ago, AmericanMuscleFan said: The color is superb Daniel, it's a change from the red, black or yellow that we usually see on these 55 Chevy. 👍 I really like the inner fender skirts, they dress up the engine compartment very well, I was just thinking about adding some to my Demon, you gave me the kick to go ahead with that! Thank you, Francis! I'm glad I decided to make bigger ones. They really did tidy things up. I think you'll like them in the Demon, too!
Straightliner59 Posted February 10 Author Posted February 10 @Pierre RivardAlong with some progress shots, I'm including a couple of photos of the tools I use to make rivet details. The material I prefer, for this is aluminum step flashing. My stock is 5"x7" sheets, but, it's also available in rolls. The sheets are better to work with, because they're already flat, eliminating a step. I think the smaller-pointed tool was the stylus end of an X-Acto compass. The other is an ordinary scratch awl. I lightly polished a round point on the smaller tool, just enough so that it doesn't pierce the metal, too easily. I hope this is helpful! If you have further questions, feel free to ask! As you noted, nothing looks more like metal than metal, itself. I enjoy working with it, too! I shot some color on the hood. Unfortunately, a booger or two, as well. It's not a big deal, other than the slower cure time of the One-Shot. I'm still waiting to feel comfortable with the body, before wet-sanding and re-coating. In the mean time, using a spare body, I began experimenting with some tooling aluminum (dead-soft sheet) and a form made from a piece of brass tube, and a quickly-carved burnisher, to make aluminum surrounds for the parking lamps. Although I intend to use aluminum "plates", rather than lenses, I felt like something needed to be done with them. I'd planned to address this issue, but forgot, in my excitement to paint. I think I'm on the way to fixing it, yet, it's a work in progress. I really like the way the front end is coming together! As always, your questions and comments are welcomed. Thanks for looking!
Straightliner59 Posted February 11 Author Posted February 11 Set the hood on, just for grins. I think I solved the parking light quandary, so I made two "bezels". I ended up using a piece of styrene to emboss the lens area, as it pressed more cleanly than the original wooden burnisher I was using. I think these things look pretty good. Certainly better than the kit's molded-on bits! Thanks for looking!
David G. Posted February 11 Posted February 11 Nice work on the parking light bezels. The car looks great overall. David G. 1
Pierre Rivard Posted February 11 Posted February 11 These last pictures show the color much better, and it holds a lot of promise. This project is really taking shape in a beautiful way. Huge cool factor. Thanks for the help on the making of aluminium panels. Might jump in with these on my next project.
rv1963 Posted February 11 Posted February 11 Nice work Daniel, you put a huge amount of work into this model, looking good.
Straightliner59 Posted February 11 Author Posted February 11 6 hours ago, David G. said: Nice work on the parking light bezels. The car looks great overall. David G. Thank you, David! It's getting there! Maybe by the end of the month! 6 hours ago, Pierre Rivard said: These last pictures show the color much better, and it holds a lot of promise. This project is really taking shape in a beautiful way. Huge cool factor. Thanks for the help on the making of aluminium panels. Might jump in with these on my next project. Thanks, so much, Pierre! I'd love to see you add some aluminum panels to your arsenal. It will only enhance the beautiful work you do, already! 3 hours ago, rv1963 said: Nice work Daniel, you put a huge amount of work into this model, looking good. Thank you, Robert! Yeah, it's a lot more than I had intended, originally!😄
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