Ok, what's the deal with these guys? *thin skins should proceed with caution*

[Jeff Sauber]

I was browsing around on a couple of other model forums tonight and saw several threads where the builders had painted the body and polished it all out, added on the foil trimmings, then gave it a final show shine wax job.............So what's wrong with that you ask?

It's because the builder hadn't even begun to assemble the rest of the darn kit yet!!

Why in the heck do some builders try and do all the delicate body and paint work first, without ever assembling the rest of the kit?

Don't these guys realize that they could encounter serious fit problems that could require modifications to the body such as trimming and additional heavy sanding and/or tweeking?

And to make matters worse, all of the handling of the body during fitment sessions and mockups are going to potentially wreck that newly polished finish, and tear off that foil trim.

I don't know about the rest of you guys, but the final body and paint work as well as polishing out the finish, are the VERY LAST things I do on a model.

Seems like an awfully big gamble to spray on a nice paint job, before you even know what you could possibly encounter during the buildup process.

*THIN SKIN DISCLAIMER*........DON'T TAKE THIS THREAD TOO SERIOUSLY

Edited November 29, 2009 by J. Sauber

[JamesW]

In my case, I do a mockup and fitment of the MAJOR parts (body to chassis) before starting anything. The foiling is normally applied BEFORE clear, the clear helps to seal the foil to the body. In some cases, like on layitlow, some guys paint bodies and then sell or trade to other members.

[MrObsessive]

I'm one of those that normally waits until the END, before I do any painting and such. The exception is the Mercury build which is more of a tutorial than a build for a show, display, etc.

Especially with the work I do with opening doors, trunks, etc------I want to make sure there is absolutely NO drama trying to get the body and chassis together, glass fitting, interior clearance and so on.

Now some may say that they can get the rest of the model together while the paint is drying------sounds nice until like you said Jeff, they crack a panel, or they put a gouge into that nice shiny paint job.

My advice is to just start on something else if you're at that point in the build where you can go no further waiting for the paint to dry.

[Zoom Zoom]

It's often the sequence how I build. Glad to know I'm such a hack

[Foxer]

I do most all painting as the last thing on my building list, but then, I HATE painting with a passion! Since I LOVE body work, there's no paint to stop me from reworking anything on the body at the last minute!!

I suspect this all may have much to do about your take on model building... for instance ...

Mr. Obsessive, as the name applies, is obsessed with doing everything in the proper order exactly as the instructions say.. paint comes last!

and Zoom Zoom is a trained car designer.. the body IS the model and I'd venture he might have painted bodies with motors still on the trees!!

hehe,, all in fun guys..

[Zoom Zoom]

and Zoom Zoom is a trained car designer.. the body IS the model and I'd venture he might have painted bodies with motors still on the trees!!

hehe,, all in fun guys..

Shhhhh! Don't rat me out!!!

[george 53]

Hey, diffrent strokes for diffrent folks! Guys build their kits how it's easiest for THEM! You do it your way they do it theirs. Personally I'd LOVE to hack up a kit like the way Bob does!

[MikeMc]

Wow.....interesting answers!!

I do it different most of the time as unlike Zoom I have NO design talents or visions

But I know what trips my trigger and can stumble thru it, and with luck it looks pretty good.

If the motor is my inspiration then the body/paint is my last concern and it may wear primer

for some time. I just started a '56 chev...and as a loyal blue oval man,this common powertrain

will work....but as far as the COLOR goes..I've colored photocopys for a long time...So I got the paint covered

and bodywork is done...now I've got to find that 283 motor......its here somewhere

its just a different road home....so I enjoy the ride!!

[Chuck Most]

Doing the paint and foil before anything else does seem a bit 'bass ackwards' to me, but everyone does this a bit differently. I've done the paint first, only to have it come back and bite me later, so I usually postpone it as long as I can, at least until I can check how it fits to my chassis, etc.

On the other hand, I hate paint and bodywork, so maybe getting it all out of the way right off the bat has merit. I'm glad some guys can get it out of the way early on, but I think I'll personally stick with saving the paint and body work until near the end.

[Aaronw]

It's often the sequence how I build. Glad to know I'm such a hack

I'm honored to find I'm in your camp.

I generally paint and foil the body before assembly because I don't have to worry about masking everything off. I usually do any foiling around the windows before assemble so I don't mess up the glass during the foiling process. I can't imagine doing major painting after assembly, I'd end up with a mess.

[Guest arni]

Well for me it is second nature to test fit all important parts before painting the shell,especialy as I find if extremely difficult to build something without modifiying it.LOL

The Mini roadster that I am building at the mo will stay in primer for a couple of weeks yet,once happy with the fit of things it will get colour.

But on the other hand,if I am doing a Tamiya kerbside I will simply check the floor/inner tub and spray.Never had a problem yet.Touch wood.LOL

[Jeff Sauber]

Relax people, I'm not trying to say it's right or wrong to build that way...

I'm just saying it's a risky way to build, if no test fitting has been done before hand, [which was exactly the case with those particular folks I had mentioned].

In fact, one of them stated that they "hoped for the best" when they began work on the rest of the kit.

I think I'll stick with my routine of painting and polishing out my finishes AFTER the rest of the model has been assembled, and no surprises remain when it's finally time to sandwich all the parts together for final assembly.

Sorry, but I'm just not really all that big on gambling with the chances of having glue smudges, scratches, gouges, smears, and fingerprint impressions on display along with my finished replicas....

To each their own I guess.

*THIN SKIN DISCLAIMER*.......... DON'T TAKE THIS THREAD TOO SERIOUSLY

Edited November 29, 2009 by J. Sauber

[ffreak]

Well I'm like Bob in that I like to do my paint and bodywork first. That is the part I enjoy the most. Depending on how well that part turns out will determine how much I detail the interior and chassis and engine. If the paint job is one of my better ones, i'll add lots of detailing. If it's not up to my standards, i'll just build oob. I seldome use the instructions in order. Just my 2 cents worth.

[Jeff Sauber]

I'm one of those that normally waits until the END, before I do any painting and such. The exception is the Mercury build which is more of a tutorial than a build for a show, display, etc.

Especially with the work I do with opening doors, trunks, etc------I want to make sure there is absolutely NO drama trying to get the body and chassis together, glass fitting, interior clearance and so on.

Now some may say that they can get the rest of the model together while the paint is drying------sounds nice until like you said Jeff, they crack a panel, or they put a gouge into that nice shiny paint job.

My advice is to just start on something else if you're at that point in the build where you can go no further waiting for the paint to dry.

Bill thats usually what I do. When I reach a point that I'm sitting around waiting for paint to cure, I'll just open something else up and get started on that...

I typically work on 3-4 models at once, bouncing back and forth between them. It's a good way for me to avoid burnout on a particular project, and it's also a good way to finish several kits at once [considering I do alot of comssioned work and sell off most of my projects].

By the way, that Merc clinic you have going is great!! I'm really enjoying following along and revisiting the basic techniques of a good clean buildup.....Keep them updates comming!

*THIN SKIN DISCLAIMER*.........DON'T TAKE THIS THREAD TOO SERIOUSLY.

Edited November 29, 2009 by J. Sauber

[Harry P.]

A friend of mine always paints the body first because he says that sets the tone for the amount of effort he wants to put into the rest of the build. If they turn out nice, he works a little harder on 'em; if not he, finishes 'em of as shelf models.

Is that "friend" really you???

[Fuel Coupe]

Personally I couldn't care less how others build or what sequence they build in as long as they are building. Thus keeping the hobby alive....

Edited November 28, 2009 by TxRat

[Brian Fishburn]

Well, let's see:

Bob does paint work first

Bill does paint work last

Both build beautiful models

I'd say there isn't a "correct" answer. Do it however it works for you. It IS interesting to read the different takes on it, though.

[Nick Winter]

Who really cares, I've been building to TV/Movie vehicle The A Team van and Bandit Trans Am, the Trans Am I painted and decaled after everything else was done, the van I painted and decaled before everything else was done.

[tabsscale1]

I was browsing around on a couple of other model forums tonight and saw several threads where the builders had painted the body and polished it all out, added on the foil trimmings, then gave it a final show shine wax job.............So what's wrong with that you ask?

It's because the builder hadn't even begun to assemble the rest of the darn kit yet!!

Why in the heck do some builders try and do all the delicate body and paint work first, without ever assembling the rest of the kit?

Don't these guys realize that they could encounter serious fit problems that could require modifications to the body such as trimming and additional heavy sanding and/or tweeking?

And to make matters worse, all of the handling of the body during fitment sessions and mockups are going to potentially wreck that newly polished finish, and tear off that foil trim.

I don't know about the rest of you guys, but the final body and paint work as well as polishing out the finish, are the VERY LAST things I do on a model.

Seems like an awfully big gamble to spray on a nice paint job, before you even know what you could possibly encounter during the buildup process.

That is the way I do all of mine. Unles I have a lot of Modifications to do on the Chassis I just do a mock up then. I can only get the juides flowing. when the body gets painted then it gets The flow of the way i want the rest of the build going. Have had only a couple of mishaps doing it this wat.

[Jeff Sauber]

You nailed it, Shane! One of the wonderful things about out hobby, IMO, is there are often multiple ways to achieve the same end results. I have long been of the belief that telling another modeler that his or her way of doing something is "wrong" is incredibly arrogant and wrong-headed. I have also long been an advocate of, and believer in, people finding and using the methods and techniques that work best for them, as opposed to trying to conform to some arrogant, wrong-headed individual's views on how they should be doing things!

Who exactly on this thread is being "arrogant"?......

Some of us have stated different opinions on the matter, but who the hell is being arrogant?

Should we get out the flame suits and fire hoses just in case? ...........Is that a little smoke I'm smelling?....LMAO!!

*THIN SKIN DISCLAIMER*..........DON'T TAKE THIS THREAD TOO SERIOUSLY

Edited November 29, 2009 by J. Sauber

[Kustommerc]

I don't know why any of Us should be concerned about the order in which Someone constructs a Model Car! I guess I fall into the Zoom Zoom Hack club, but I don't really think any of this is worth worrying about, in fact, I don't know why I took the time to reply ! Go finish a Model...

[Jeff Sauber]

LOL @ the "Zoom Zoom hack club"....

Does this mean you guys actually paint and polish the bodies before you even hack 'em up?.

Wow!! talk about saving time!! .

*Thin skin warning and disclaimer*............[Yes, I'm actually just kidding with this response]

[Jeff Sauber]

I never said anyone was, but, it's kind interesting that you chose to jump to that conclusion, don't you think?

Nah, I don't think so.

The subtle insinuation was certainly there, so reading between a few lines wasn't that hard to do, although perhaps maybe I read a little too deeply?

Only you yourself know if the comment was directed at "anybody in particular".

*THIN SKIN DISCLAIMER*....DON'T TAKE THIS THREAD TOO SERIOUSLY

Edited November 29, 2009 by J. Sauber

[Jeff Sauber]

Maybe it was ... maybe it wasn't ...

Tell you for $5!

Meh, I think I'd rather put the 5 bucks towards a backup can of paint in case I get the urge to join the "Zoom Zoom hack club" and end up botching a paint job that I applied in advance of the buildup.....

*THIN SKIN DISCLAIMER*............DON'T TAKE THIS THREAD TOO SERIOUSLY

Edited November 29, 2009 by J. Sauber

[GOTH KUSTOMS]

WOW! I thought I was the only one who, started the body work, then built, then test fited it all together, then painted, holy cans of paint, builder batman, I'm not, WOOO WOOOO.