unclescott58 Posted August 5, 2014 Posted August 5, 2014 (edited) OK, this has actually been done for about two months. But, decal problems prevented me from posting it until now. Over all I'm happy with how the model turned out. I'm especially please with the paint. The body is paint with Tamiya's Pearl White. Very nice paint. I'm very displeased with the decals. I had nothing but troubles applying the decals. I ruined the set that came with the kit. So I posted in wanted section on this site looking for another set. And Vince Nelson was kind enough to find and send me another set decals. (Thanks again Vince!) But guess what? That second set gave me nothing but trouble. The decals would tear. They would stick to everything but the model itself. They would fold up and stick to themselves. And not come apart. The worst set of decals I've ever worked with. At least I got on the two main Allison Thunderland decals. But notice the top of the "n" in Allison. Part ripped off! The other side is perfect. But that is the only decal I got get to lay down perfect! Disappointing! But again thanks to Vince. It's not his fault. Scott Edited August 5, 2014 by unclescott58
unclescott58 Posted August 5, 2014 Author Posted August 5, 2014 By the way. Here is a photo of the left side and the one good decal. Oh, I like the rest of the kit. It was a fun build. The Allison engine is beautiful. The chassis is not up to the detail of the engine. In fact, it's pretty cheesy. The body itself is not of a funny car type. It's just AMT's old annual 1969 Thunderbird body. But I like Thunderbirds. And I love AMT's old Allison engine kit. So I had to build one. Scott
vintagedragcrazy Posted August 5, 2014 Posted August 5, 2014 sorry about that scott those decals must be junk i know the ones i sent you were out of a brand new kit i opened it up for you (i have two of them) they must be like the ones in the model king challenger funny car a lot of them did the same for me either roll up or fall apart. any ways it still looks cool was glad to see it when it came out. vince
unclescott58 Posted August 5, 2014 Author Posted August 5, 2014 sorry about that scott those decals must be junk i know the ones i sent you were out of a brand new kit i opened it up for you (i have two of them) they must be like the ones in the model king challenger funny car a lot of them did the same for me either roll up or fall apart. any ways it still looks cool was glad to see it when it came out. vince You got it Vince. I know the problem wasn't on your end. It's who ever does Model Kings decals. I'm glad I have not chosen to use the ones that came with my other Model King models. We tried Vince. And your greatest for helping me out. Scott
TooOld Posted August 6, 2014 Posted August 6, 2014 This is the first one of these I've seen built and it looks pretty nice ! Yeah , the chassis is a bit simplistic but I like Thunderbirds and this is really cool with the Allison engine . Great job !
unclescott58 Posted August 6, 2014 Author Posted August 6, 2014 Thanks for the kind words guys. I too think it's cool. (Other than the decals, of course.) Scott
S. Svendsen Posted August 6, 2014 Posted August 6, 2014 Before Round 2 took over ownership of AMT/Ertl and MPC the quality of the decal printing really suffered. Model King was at the mercy of the kit manufacturer during that time who was not concerned about quality control. The decals were only printed with one thin layer of clear making them very flimsy. The best advice is the soak them in water for only about 30 sec. or less and then keep them on the paper until you can slide them directly on the model. Also, setting solution isn't needed because they are so thin. They take some getting use to but are workable if you are very careful.
unclescott58 Posted August 6, 2014 Author Posted August 6, 2014 Before Round 2 took over ownership of AMT/Ertl and MPC the quality of the decal printing really suffered. Model King was at the mercy of the kit manufacturer during that time who was not concerned about quality control. The decals were only printed with one thin layer of clear making them very flimsy. The best advice is the soak them in water for only about 30 sec. or less and then keep them on the paper until you can slide them directly on the model. Also, setting solution isn't needed because they are so thin. They take some getting use to but are workable if you are very careful. Thanks Sven. But it's too late. The Decals I planed on using from both decal sets are ruined. The main regret is losing the engine displacement decals. Sponsorship decals I can and may get from other decals I have laying around. On a side note, I find it interesting that AMT chose all those years ago to do a Ford Thunderbird with an Allison engine. Allison was a General Motors division. But, I do like the naming pun of Allison Thunderland. Allison Rivieraland doesn't quite work as well. Scott
Dragfreak Posted August 6, 2014 Posted August 6, 2014 That sucks to hear about the decal issues, it's a great model nonetheless
Bob Ellis Posted August 7, 2014 Posted August 7, 2014 (edited) Decals, like tires, are best the day they are made. The do get old. If they get old, even a few years, spray clear lacquer over them. Always apply decals over a glossy paint surface. Use a sharp Xacto to pin BLAH_BLAH_BLAH_BLAH air bubbles and a decal set solution to make it settle down to contours. Use a clear gloss or dull to cover the decal and seal it in place Edited August 7, 2014 by Bob Ellis
Bob Ellis Posted August 7, 2014 Posted August 7, 2014 The TBird looks nice. I didn't write BLAH BLAH. The computer or site did.
dragcarz Posted August 7, 2014 Posted August 7, 2014 I like it! I think this is the first one I've ever seen built. Oh looks great by the way, good job!
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