Frankie Goes To Hollywood

[walt francis]

This is one SMOKIN project and my IMOP...sand down the weld a little and restich it

[Dr. Cranky]

Walt, that's exactly what I did . . . so thanks to you, Fred, and others who suggested possibilities . . .

All right, I am happy now with the welds . . . so I took another close up comparo with the illustration . . . this, I believe, is much better . . . and it still has that haphazzard look . . . and its ON the cab body, so once I primer it and paint it with some of the metal showing through like Mr. Watson has it, it should look okay.

Now all I need is to get my hands on a company that will make decals so that I can have them print up the sign . . . if you know of a place, please let me know.

Thanks. . . .

Edited October 21, 2007 by DamnCranky

[Dr. Cranky]

I am spending most of the day finishing up the engine work and chassis, and then getting the parts ready for the paint booth . . . and this would be as good a time as any to sit back a moment and discuss a few things about my interest in this build . . . not that you asked or anything, but I thought it'd put this one in particular in perspective for me and my own history with this kit . . .the AMT '50 Chevy, both the street rod version and the 3100.

I am sure most of you have your own trajectory when it comes to this particular vehicle . . . I mean, for me, for the longest time it was one of the better kits out there, and in just coincided with my getting back into the hobby in the late '90s after about a 25 year hiatus . . . I'm sure lots of this sounds familiar to many of you . . . but one day I went to the hobby shop and this was the first kit I bought, then I found out they had re-realeased it and that Wal Mart sold it cheap, so I bought a whole bunch of them because while I was getting back into the hobby (you know, getting familiar once again with handling styrene, tools, paints, etc . . . ) I kept mangling the bodies or making severe mistakes (like stripping the paint off with nail polish remover, etc . . . That gives you an idea . . . )

Then came the moment where I felt sure enough to build something interesting, but reading the magazines I felt so far behind . . . and I was jealous and awed and surprised by how many great builders there were . . . so I applied myself. I read up everything I could, but most importantly, I found books authored by Pat Covert, Ken Hamilton, Mark Gustavson, Terry Jesse and many others, and I got all the magazines I could get my hands on . . . etc . . . and I went about it as if I were returning to school. All these things were helping me get back into a hobby . . .

Not that when I started I was working with just the '50 Chevy, but it was a vehicle I kept coming back to . . . and finally a few years ago, I started cutting up one kit and finding ways of challenging myself with it and finally came up with this . . .

And though I finished it and everything worked, it look garrish to me . . . and the doors didn't close right and so many things went wrong, so wrong that instead of throwing it out I kept it because it was a reminder of not only how far I had challenged myself and the few skills I had learned at the time but also how far I still wanted to go . . . the funny thing about this one is that it's sat on my shelf all these years and over time everything got stuck in place . . . and so I never fiddle with it but I keep it . . .

A few years later, I got into wanted to build beaters and junkers, heavily influence here by Pat Covert (all his Hogdoo Grundy builds are classics in my book), and so I went back to this kit and build this one . . .

I keep going back and forth between building shiny vehicles and wathered vehicles because they each require different levels of stress, and mood . . . so it varies and I feel like this kind of ping-pong keeps me interested in wanting to build . . .

Then, a few years ago I was reading through old issues of Scale Auto Enthusiast (before it changed its name), and ran across an article co-authored by Pat Covert and Ken Hamilton about building a "camp mule," and so I was hooked. It's a great article, if you've never seen it . . . Pat C. scratchbuilt the vehicle and then send it on to Ken Hamilton in New Jersey, and Ken painted and weather and detailed the vehicle, and once again I returned to wanting to do something with the '50 Chevy . . . and I put this thing together and I have to say it's the most fun I've ever had building a vehicle . . . and everyday I worked on it was like going over the edge . . . not knowing what I was doing next . . . I just knew it was the strangest model I'd built to date . . .

It's clear to see how and why Jairus's illustration would appeal to me . . . I had been tinkering with the idea of building a '50 Chevy that would lose it's front fenders and be dropped closer to the ground, and of course Jairus took it a step further and chopped the grill and front of the hood, and THAT DID IT!!!

Just a little bit of history, that's all . . . thanks for lending me your ears . . .

[Taxdude]

DC those welds are beautiful. Now it looks like the body was stitched together instead of JB Welded.

And I really like you the seat came out. Looks hastily installed, brilliant

[James W]

You do top notch weathering. I like the 'junk in the trunk'on the tan truck, very convincing.

It was Terry Jessee's Cowboy Cadillac that got me to think of building worn out vehicles from the start instead of weathering already built models. SAE 46, I about wore that mag out.

Keep going man, you are on a roll.

You might be able to scan the original art and print it onto decal paper or even hand letter onto decal paper. just a thought.

[Dr. Cranky]

Thanks, James . . . yeah, I love all my back issues of the mags . . . I almost have them all . . . and spend a great deal of time re-enjoying them!!!

Would it be cheating if I asked Jairus to pen the graphics for this?

[Dr. Cranky]

I had also been meaning to say that everything about this build has been different for me, including where I've been building this one . . . I normally keep my workbench in the garage with all my other toys, but for this one I came inside the house where it's still cool and the mosquitos don't bug me . . . the kitchen counter is usually no place to build models, and things can easily go wrong with the family coming and going, so . . . I've been taking my chances at keeping everything in one place . . .

[James W]

Pay Jairus to make you two sets, use one and offer the other for sale.

Then they are just commercially available decals.

[Dr. Cranky]

You might have a point, he is a working artist afterall, and like all artist he needs to be paid for his work . . . hum . . . I'll have to find out . . .

That's about the only thing left that I am worried about with this build . . . it's just getting those graphics right and if you look closely, they seem to be hand painted, but done well, like with artistry

I should have done more with my AA from Art Instruction Schools in Minneapolis . . . of course, I can always re-enroll!!!

[Dr. Cranky]

You might have a point, he is a working artist afterall, and like all artist he needs to be paid for his work . . . hum . . . I'll have to find out . . .

That's about the only thing left that I am worried about with this build . . . it's just getting those graphics right and if you look closely, they seem to be hand painted, but done well, like with artistry

I should have done more with my AA from Art Instruction Schools in Minneapolis . . . of course, I can always re-enroll!!!

[Jairus]

Ahhh, I don't make decals guys. I would suggest you go and get some Letraset rub on letters and apply them to the sides. That way you can chip and scratch them so they look old and worn. The letters take paint so dry brushing and weathering is okay and can also be removed with scotch tape if you don't like them.

At least, that is what I was thinking when I drew the original.

Or, you could simply try your hand at brush lettering... it is not that hard once you practice a bit on something else.

By the way, package sent on Friday, you should get it Monday. Let me know when it gets there.

[Dr. Cranky]

Sorry if the discussion made it sound like you would or should, J . . . I have some rub on lettering in 1/4 scale that is close enough and it just might work.

Yeah, when the package gets here I will let you know . . . much appreciated and thank you!!!

[Dr. Cranky]

Lots of people have given me all sorts of great ideas when it comes to the shiftknob . . . from hand-granades to brass knuckles to skulls, etc . . . but in my quest to stay true to the spirit of the illustration, I got some round toothpics and did about 10 attemps here at his tikki head knob . . . and for a while I kept thinking I would not get it right . . . besides, I think Jairus's illustration conveys a sense that it IS a tikki god's head . . . so without further ado, here's my last attempt . . .

The next question is, should I stain the wood, and then paint it wood color or should I leave well enough alone and move on ?. . .

Here's another slight angle . . .I will paint the shifter though . . . probably dark gray/blue like the interior . . .

Edited October 21, 2007 by DamnCranky

[James W]

Hey Jairus, just trying to throw some work your way.

Two thoughts on Letraset, if I may, You can apply the letters to a clear decal sheet then apply the whole thing at once to the body or...

Paint the door the letter color, apply the Letraset letters individually as a mask, then paint the final body color and remove the Letraset with tape and/or a pick.

Either way you can then finish off by dry brushing the lettering to give a worn look.

Tikki looks good, is that like a standard toothpick, you must have some tiny hammers and chisels.

[Tom Kren]

Great job so far keep us posted going to be killer when finished!!!

[Paul Payne]

I would say put a light stain on the Tiki and then use a darker wash to highlight all the great detail. That is a great little carving, a model in its own right! The rest of the model is also looking great, by the way!

[Dr. Cranky]

Thanks, gents . . . well, it's been raining down here so it's slowed down the priming, since I've gone ahead and finished most of the fabrication . . . the engine was last and that's done, so off to the paintbooth.

Now before I start painting, I would like to ask Jairus a few questions about the colors . . .

I think I can approximate the blue of the body, and the yellow of the wheels, but I'm wondering about some of the details I cannot make out . . . like the interior of the cab? Is that black or is it body color blue?

The headlight buckets I am assuming are body color too.

The frame I believe a Panzer type gray would do it, something maybe a bit light . . .

Just curious about some of the colors that are not visible on the illustration.

Any suggestions or help you can fling my way is greatly appreciated, Jairus.

[Dr. Cranky]

Note to Jairus: oh man, oh man, I just got the original artwork in the mail. WOW! It's even more beautiful than the magazine reprint . . . .and so much lighter . . . the blue is like duck egg blue . . . which is going to send me back to drawing board (no pun intended!) when it comes to mixing the right color . . . it's like baby breath blue or something . . . how utterly gorgeous . . .

I also sent you an email. Let me know if you got it! Cheers, V, and thanks for making sunshine out of my rainy Monday down here in Florida!

[Dr. Cranky]

All right, two things happened in my favor for the sake of this build today . . . one it's been raining, and two the original art work showed up from Mr. Watson . . . and both saved me . . .

I'll explain, but first here is a picture straight from the original . . .

I'm glad this arrived before I started painting the vehicle because the original is way lighter in color than the copy I had and which I was following. I would have ended up with a much darker vehicle . . . now I have to mix my blue with a bit more white and maybe a tinge of light gray . . .

Now, I can frame this puppy up and put it up on my wall . . . just in time for Holloween too!!!

[Dr. Cranky]

Update: I worked on the tikki head some more last night, and I just couldn't leave it alone--I had to put a bit of mischeviousness into it . . . so now it's got it's tongue sticking out . . . I hope you can see it in these pictures . . .

[Dr. Cranky]

While the body panels dry from getting a first coat of primer, I decided I need to find a way of recreating that old style, accordion radiator hose . . . these kinds of builds always require two or three elements that I usually break my head trying to figure out, except this time the lightbulb went off . . . and I remembered an old trick I saw or heard about somewhere . . . or so I tried it tonight and got excellent results right away, and it could not be easier . . .

Okay, you figure out what diameter hose you need (you can do any size for that matter, the technique is the same), then you find a metal rod or wood dowel of the same diameter. . . in my case, I found a piece of wire I had laying around that was just the size I needed.

Then you take some of that green, thin, spool wire you find in the florist section of Wal Mart or you can use any thin wire for that matter. Then you sit there and you wind the thin wire around the thick wire to look like this:

And you keep turning it making sure it's pretty tight and even . . .

You keep doing it until you have enough for the length you need. I my case I made a few extra ones just in case . . . and like I said, you can make them with any thin wire . . . but you want wire that will hold it's shape when you bend it . . . .

And this is what you end up with:

Now, after you have the length you need, you slip out the curled wire slowly, making sure you don't dent it or uncoil it . . .

After you have it out, then the next step is to take some white glue, carpenter's glue, or I ended up using Aileen's tacky glue because it dries fast . . . and you put enough on the coiled wire so that when you rub your fingers all around it, the glue gets between the coils where it will seal the gaps, but still provide an indentation.

And you should end up with something that looks like this:

All I need to do now is wait for the glue to dry overnight completely and then I'll paint the hose black, then cut it to size, and install it when I need it.

It's amazing how much time goes for little things like this, but I am hoping they pay off big.

Edited October 23, 2007 by DamnCranky

[Dr. Cranky]

Addendum to the above, you can use same diameter solder and wrap the wire around that . . . bypassing having to use glue altogether. Thanks, Lou!!!

[dub]

What a great idea! I'm gonna use this one for sure. The only thing I would do differently is paint after cutting and bending into place. I worry about the paint flaking off if you bend it too much after painting. I don't know, is my fear baseless?

Either way, it's still a great tip! Thanks!

[Gregg]

I smell an article :-)

[mikelo]

This has been a cool thread & I have enjoyed reading over it. Keep up the great work. Another tip for the radiator hose is to get some heat shrink tubing (for electrical connections). You can leave the wire in the middle, bend it to shape and not have to worry about the paint coming off (plus it has an authentic rubber look since, well, it is). Keep us posted.

So what was the benifit of the rain?