Tom ... Can it be....

Chris Greathouse Awesome! Are you back from the fields of RC flying fun for the summer? Watching your T!

Bob Hall Going back in the way back machine with this one Mr Peabody !

Tom ... Finally got some modeling time in. A lot of clipping and scraping but some glueing as well. The interesting part has been figuring out which parts should be cemented together before painting. At least most everything is black so that simplifies things too.

Have to say the fit of the pieces is very very good so far.

Tom ... Pic #3 shows a weird effect from de-chroming with Super Clean. Usually with Super Clean the de-chroming happens very quickly, within minutes. With this kit it took a whole day and a lot of the pieces look like they are covered in cellophane.

Unfortunately effect does not peel off at all easily so I'm not sure how to proceed. I'm going to put some pieces back in Super Clean and see if that will fix it.... annoying...

Chris Greathouse I had the same kind of issue with the Paddy Wagon. The Dechroming took overnight and left some grime. Thankfully the grime brushed away with a small brush. Good Luck!

Bob Hall It's that funky Chernobyl chrome and those funky kits from Russia ! have to soak it in Vodka ! LOL !!

Bill Newcomer Westley's Bleach White (for cleaning white wall tires) works great for dechromeing. I also heard old school caustic oven cleaner works well too. Super Clean is better at actual paint removal.

Tom ... For the typical type of chrome Super Clean is great. However I've had two kits now that used different chroming techniques and it struggled greatly with them. In both cases there seemed to be an extra layer of clear plastic that is cellophane like. Maybe in future I'll split up the chrome pieces and try the different methods. Might be worth it in the long run.

Then again it'd be great if kit makers included a non-chromed version of the sprue. I'd pay a little more for that.

Bob Hall I have the original 1987 issue of this kit, looks pretty cool !

Tom I'm excited about this one. Just wish life would give me some time to do some actual modeling....

Bob Hall I feel ya, 100% !

Munkyslut I had a 1/16 Japanese XJ-S (probably Bandai ?) when I was a kid.
I grew up with them, really nice cars, make for a great model

Bob Hall When I was a kid, I had a friend who's dad loved the Jag's and the XJ cars, but hated the unreliable engines and owned 3 Jags but had replaced the motors all 3 with Chevy 350 motors.

Munkyslut Bob........ SBC into XJ-6 & XJ-12 was a popular mod Stateside.
Of course over here we just repaired them.

Tom...... what's the kit quality like?

Tom Munky it's not bad at all. The plastic is quite hard (even feels slightly brittle) and the details are sharp. For me there's a little bit of flashing on sprue E but nothing terrible. The glass is in perfect condition but the quality is not great. Has a slight melted soft look which is a shame. If you look at the "What's in the box" for the kit those are actually pictures of my kit.

Munkyslut That's pretty good quality except for the glass moulding then. Can you improve the glass with a layer of Future or similar?
What do you plan for colour?

Bob Hall I guess, it was just one of those car memories from my youth. I was thinking of doing mine in British racing green with the tan leather interior and tan fabric top.

Bob Hall https://historics.co.uk/buyi..-jaguar-xj-sc-v12-cabriolet/

Tom Definitely the tan interior but I think a light body color.

Bob Hall Whoa ! A Muscle Car ! An AMERICAN Muscle Car ! NO Way ! LOL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Tom Ha, true true Bob. And it's AMT too... An impulse buy at the LHS as it's the closest thing I've seen to a Ford Capri my mother had in the seventies... in Ireland no less. So if anyone knows where I can get a decent kit of a Ford Capri Mk II with vinyl top, I'm all ears....

Bob Hall Ebay.com Item - The 1973 Ford Capri 2000GT Doyusha 1 24 Complet Body Has Ink Marks Light Sanding

Bob Hall Ebay.com Item - Vintage Monogram Midnight Capri II S 1 24 Scale Model Car Kit 2103 0101

Munkyslut I reckon I built a Japanese 1/24 Capri in the very early 80's......

Munkyslut W30 Cutlass is gorgeous I really fancy a 71-72 with a 455 in it

Bob Hall A Match made in Decal Heaven ! LOL

Chris Greathouse He's enjoying porch life at the moment... Then he's moving to sunnier pastures... or fields, or wherever to fly his RC planes for the sunny season. He said he'll still lurk around the site... not enough in my opinion!

Bob Hall I figured he'd been taken by aliens or Terrorists or something ! He Just up and disappeared !

Chris Greathouse It's funny because I sent him a similar message yesterday, then you send him one today.

Nathan Dempsey I just sent out a drone, but it hasn't spotted him...

Bob Hall Nate ! In my experiences, If a drone spots you,you don't come back, if so, it's in many pieces ! LOL !

Chris Greathouse We could drone his RC base! *ALL YOUR BASE ARE BELONG TO US*

Tom Sorry guys, I was in rehab dealing with solvent abuse and OCD issues. They didn't allow internet access but I was permitted my favourite sprue cutter and a sanding stick... my nails are immaculate!... they just need some 2K clear...

Bob, you know changing your name won't fool the drones. They can detect muscle car thoughts from a hundred clicks. Old European bangers don't generate the same level of brain activity it seems.

Yeah, it's hard to be modeling right now with the good weather... and the porch is my favourite place on the planet and we are getting long evenings again. But don't worry, it won' t be long before I get a wild hair up my butt and breakout the airbrush and glue pot again...

Bob Hall AHH ! The previous stated "decal rehab" ! In you absence "Archer J Maggot" made his triumphant return along with his many aliases, so I had to become the "Good Bob" So, don't stay away too long or I may build a Beamer or Benzo in your absence ! LOL !!!!!!

Chris Greathouse I painted my first fig with the arcade. It was kind of exciting, but I didn't know what I was doing. For him to go from sprue color to painted was a fun process. I hope you have fun too!

Tom Did an initial "panel wash" to bring out details. Need to find a better Q-tip. I have the Tamiya ones but they are too compact.... need to find something in between...

Also tried out AK Interactive's dirt deposit wash on the under carriage... hmmmm, I've got a long way to go in order to get any good at this.... still it's interesting and fun trying.... this might just end up a muddy mess all the same. Oh well.

Nathan Dempsey That dirt and dust deposit stuff looks interesting. I may have to pick up a bottle.

James C Were you able to resolve the residue issue from the hood?

Tom James, I didn't resolved it. In this case I don't think it's going to matter as when I do a final matte coat it shouldn't be noticeable. However, in future I'm going to get into the habit of washing off decal'ed areas to ensure there's no residue left.

Chris Greathouse That interesting... I have lakes of micro set when I decal, aside from the usual mop up/squeegeeing the liquid from under the decal I don't clean anything, I just let it dry for a few+ hours before I spray Future.

James C That's a bummer mate.

I've wondered if it's caused by the gloss layer not being completely cured/hardened and reacting with the decal setting solutions?
For me It's always been caused by the Micro Set... but erased with Micro Sol or just another gloss coat when sealing the decals down. Interesting.

Tom I feel like it might have been due to the decal's adhesive. I've also never had a problem before with micro set and sol. But also this was the first time I used Alclad's Aqua Gloss for coating decals so maybe it's some weird interact between them all. Like you say... interesting...

Arne Greve The Drill behind the Link looks interesting. But the size of the drills starts with minimum 0,7mm. In modelers reality is 0,3mm more a common size.

Chris Greathouse Aw snap. Thought that'd be small enough for you/the hobby... Good price though... The search continues

Hans Robben Buy one of these, drills are also available individually. has a 4mm shank:
Hand Drill (DSPIAE Craft Tools AT-HD, No)

Tom I have this one: https://amazon.com/gp/product/B07FJ6VD2P/

which has a great selection of tiny bits. Just need to find a battery powered version. Or a better chuck for the Tamiya.

Chris Greathouse I have that same one. Nice set for $12.

Martin Oostrom I have this one Modellbauer- und Gravierset ..MOT 50/E (Proxxon 28515, No)
Similar to a dremel, with drill bits from 0.3 upwards. Is great for thinning pieces as well, just beware of the high (adjustable) rpm's

Thomas Tuerler Martin, if you attach it to the adjustable NG2/E or NG5/E transformer, you can reduce the RPM to Polystyrol compatible numbers without losing too much power. Big fun for little money!

Urban Gardini I've got this one and it's perfect! https://super-hobby.se/products/GRINDER-DRILL.html

Laurent "HELLER-forever" great

mark brinkley Work of art

Tom Thank you all. You are very kind. The model does have a lot of details and interesting surfaces so it does end up looking well. It was a challenging but satisfying build.

Bob Hall Plus Tamiya is a pretty high quality kit so it builds well, and look great completed ! Looks Great Tom !

Tom I agree, Robert. Definitely the best fitting kit I've built so far... okay I've only done 5 but I was still really surprised how well everything lined up. The Revell MG TC was the opposite.

M M Looks so good!

Allan Gage This is great..crisply modeled. I've had some issues with tamiya white decals as well. Sometimes i just couldn't get near them with setting solvent have had to rely on hairdryer. I want to try this kit , those helmet boxes are trick.

Tom Thanks guys.

Allan, the helmets and box are cool. However putting the decals on the helmets was crazy hard. Can't believe I didn't take a picture of them before glueing them into the box... oh well.

James C That's a great result Tom.

Laurent "HELLER-forever" top !

Neuling Very beautiful!

Tom Thank you guys. Glad you like it. It was a challenging (for me) but satisfying build.

Bob Hall WOW ! Fantastic ! Another fine piece of artwork ! BRAVO !

Chris Greathouse How do you just pick up a hobby and be this good already?? It's always amazed me. This Subaru is really well made, I like the contrasting colors, I know they're decals but it's still cool... Did you swim your decals in Micro Set to help? Great job as always.

Tom Thanks, Chris and Robert. I have to say it looks better in the pictures than in real life.

I did use lots of Micro Set and Micro Sol. It was a bit of a love/hate relationship. For the Set solution the decals would move too easily while trying to remove the excess, so that was maddening. Then adding the Sol solution would cause some of the nicely laid down decals to wrinkle, and there where decals that the solution didn't seem to have any effect in terms of conforming the decal to the contours. I'm really impressed with your Blue Shark decal work. When I saw that decal sheet I got an immediate decal PTSD flashback.

Chris Greathouse The Sol will cause the decals to wrinkle as the decal softens/stretches then it will tighten up and sink into crevices as it drys. I baby the Sol process with a Q-tip to help flatten and get rid of wrinkles as it drys.

Bob Hall Ditto, Roll a Q-Tip and it works wonders.

Tom The build quality of this kit is really good.

My only complaints are that there are:
1) A lot of seams on the sprue pieces (but not the body or the large pieces),
2) The sprue connections are really really thick and lots and lots of them to boot, so a lot of tedious cleaning up of edges...
3) Some annoying pin-marks
4) The undercarriage is one simple molded piece so is going to be a pain to paint cleanly.

The chrome pieces are of a very high quality. I still went ahead and de-chrome them (which was very hard indeed) as I prefer the Alclad chrome.

I do wish they did some better or more interesting texturing for the seat but I guess for the skill level of the product I can't complain.

Anyway I really like this kit. All the pieces fit perfectly. The quality of all the pieces is solid. However, it's going to take me a long time to complete as I want to create a vintage (and slightly weathered) look but I'm not sure how to do that yet... so if you do follow along be prepared for very slow progress...

Chris Greathouse no slow.... go go go! Your alclad pieces look very good.

Tom I have a question for experienced military builders. This is my first military vehicle build and I'm trying to figure out how best to paint/assemble the model.

I've seen a lot of videos where the builders assemble most of the model and then paint.... however, while my main goal with this build is to learn weathering techniques I also want to focus on detailing as much as I can so any advice (or links) on how best to assemble and paint military vehicles would be much appreciated.

For example, in picture #2 of the album I'm trying to figure out the best way to paint/assemble the chassis floor...

(I'm sure there's no right or wrong answer here but I'm interested in what experienced builders think)

Tom This mate's album is very helpful: Bren Gun Carrier (Completed) | Album by Noob (1:35)

This way I can see what parts are visible and what parts aren't.

Xerxes Hi Tom. This is my way of building and painting my models. I try to build as much as possible without painting. Quite easy without interior parts. But i paint all parts i cannot access in a proper way after finishing the model in advance. This might bei the case wirh your floor. Be careful to mask your finished paint job before painting the rest of the Kit.

Tom Sound advice, Xerxes. I guess my question is really to do with how much (color) detailing there is in military machines. I think that is what I'm getting stuck on. I should find some reference books/pictures to work from.

I did find this video of a real Bren Gun Carrier: Youtube Video

Looks like most everything is the same color so that does simplify things a great deal.

Tom On hold while I wait for the Eduard PE set: Universal Carrier Mk.II (Eduard 35364, 1:35)

ArcticFox Pz Division I'm not an expert but you can follow most of the process of building and painting technique I use here on youtube... I will give you the link for my first video but there is 5 videos for the Universal. Youtube Video

Olivier Hello Tom,
In my case I really enjoy painting all the small pieces first. And of course all interior bulkheads or floors. Building and glueing comes later.
I use brushes, no air brush. So touching up the hull or undercarriage is easy.

Chris Greathouse What do you use on the end of your toothpicks? I use bamboo skewers and toothpicks with BSI super-Gold but it's like the wood and glue have 0 reaction unless I physically hold the stick until the glue starts to cure 5+ mins for each piece...

Bob Hall [img1]

This is what I use

Tom I use blue-tac in certain cases but I have no problem with using CA too. Just keep in mind that CA needs moisture to activate so maybe moisten the tip or breathe on it?

When using CA I drill a little hole in the plastic for the tip of the toothpick to fit into. (I assume you are doing the same.) And I use thin or medium glue.

I certain cases, like the seats, I actually super glue them on to a piece of cut sprue. That one is harder to get right as there is not much moisture to activate the glue... but I prefer it to using blue-tac as it feels much more secure in the hand.

I just ordered some of those sticks with the crocodile clips and so I'm going to see if they are useful in certain cases.

Chris Greathouse I use CA, bamboo skewers, popsicle sticks with doubleback tape or blob of sticky-tac, crocodile clip sticks, and good 'ol pressure fits... I have quite a few ways.... and as far a drilling holes, I do not. I usually put a drop of CA on the plastic and put the flat end of the skewer in it, I just try to make sure the glue spot will be hidden at the end, thanks for the moisture tip... I did not know that (now that I'm done sticking all my pieces ) crocodile clip sticks, yes, they help alot with tiny pieces, I put a picture of my latest stick prep in my current project Project 022 -- '37 Ford Convertible with Trailer | Project by chrisagreat (1:24)

Tom Ah, if you are not drilling a hole then make sure to use the smallest amount of glue possible, otherwise I think it is going to take a long time to cure. However, I find with drilling a small hole that the toothpick nearly stays put without any glue but then the glue seals the deal. Having said all that I'm only on my second model so maybe I've just been lucky so far.

Chris Greathouse What do you use to drill the small holes? In general, everytime I look at a tiny drill-bit they break, I swear.

Tom I have this: https://amazon.com/gp/produc..ge_o08_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

It's okay but might try to get a battery powered one.

Chris Greathouse I do have a manual drill like that but it's somewhere deep in my supply box because it pissed me off... I've heard good things about the Tamiya handy Drill: https://amazon.com/Tamiya-El..-Plastic-74041/dp/B01LX208SY

Tom Ha, just bought the Tamiya drill. I'll let know if I like it.

Ben M Yesssssss...

Tom Beighley Nice build, looks really clean. Should fly well.

Chris Greathouse Neat, I like it!

Tom Thanks! I'll try to fly it when the weather is a lot better. Whenever that is.

Neuling Very nice! Those were the days of elegant automobiles ...........

Martin Oostrom Excellent shine on the paint!
I don't know if it's still possible to correct, but the headlights light the skies instead of the road.

Tom Ah I didn't notice that. I was just glad to get on them on without making the glue noticeable. I might revisit this model in the future but for now I'm happy to be done with it.

Martin Oostrom I know the feeling Tom. Overall very good job

Daniel Klink Wonderful built of a wonderful classic Tom Congrats

Chris Greathouse Daaamn dude! Beautiful! and you should always learn with every model, figuring stuff out is part of the fun

Spanjaard looking nice Tom. very nice!

Tom Ha, I've been eying the Isetta the last week or so. I think I just might.

M M Tom! Those dials! Well done. Care to share the link that shows the epoxy technique?

Tom M, I don't remember. It wasn't an article but rather a build picture where the person mentioned they used 5 minute epoxy for the effect. I actually used 30 minute epoxy as my 5 minute stuff is too old and cloudy.

For me I very gently mixed the epoxy with a toothpick so as not to create air bubbles. I also used the toothpick to transfer the epoxy to the dial. Practiced a lot first with scratch piece of plastic to get a feel for controlling the amount of material and avoiding air bubbles.

I think the important trick is to make sure to work the epoxy into the edges of the dial. That was a bit nerve racking as the epoxy does not really flow so you have to be a firm with it spreading it out. Hope that helps some.

Also be careful when removing the toothpick at the end so you don't get a "string" of epoxy on your model. Take it out real slow and vertically, and maybe twist it to help detach the clinging epoxy.

Chris Greathouse So much patience you have

M M Thanks Tom. I will file that away in the memory banks. Chris this hobby has helped find more patience LoL!

Bob Hall Zen like Even !

Tom Got it finished tonight. Did not enjoy this build though I did learn a lot. The problem is that it doesn't fit together well. In future I'm going to stay away from inexpensive kits, unless they have very good reviews or I have no other option. Onwards and upwards!

Bob Hall Hey ! It came out great ! Very Nice ! But I know what you mean, I really not impressed with a lot of the Revell of Germany Kits. My Chevy Impala Police car fell into that category. Great Job my friend !

Ben M Watching... hope to build a wooden kit like this, this year.

Tom Welcome, Ben!

For those who have been following my builds so far, this build might seem unexpected and far along. It's actually a project I started early last year... but let me explain:

Last Christmas I decided I wanted to build something that wasn't electronics or robotics and thought about doing something with balsa wood and then remembered the old school "stick and tissue" planes of my youth.

Long story short: Bought some rubber band powered balsa wood plane kits and that got me into building and flying electric powered RC planes over the summer and then that got me into building plastic scale models in Autumn/Fall and becoming a Scalemates groupie...

In the meantime I forgot about the balsa wood kits I had been in the middle of making so I've decided to get them finished... or at least get started on getting them finished...

Oh yeah, I also got serious about learning to play the piano again. I think maybe I have a hobby problem... and no, I'm not ADHD.

Stefan Schacht Very nice, i take a seat.

Bob Hall [img1]

Tom Been too busy with life to post updates but progress is happening.

Alexander G. Great

Tom Thanks Alexander. It's no LP400!

M M Nice build Tom! Your window trim in silver is superb. Did you use a mask?

Tom M, I did. I covered the windows with Tamiya tape and then used a sharp knife to cut away the edges.

Click on this link to see my WIP picture: Revell Mini Cooper - WIP | Album by Cohort (1:24)

Chris Greathouse Dope little mini Tom!

Bob Hall That is a sweet little spud ! Awesome work my friend !

Alexander G. "Thanks Alexander. It's no LP400!" No, but it is Mr. Bean's car ffs!

Jozef Goos Nice car !

Tom Thanks, Chris. I think you mean super OCD...

Spanjaard nice job. i am surprise with the problem about the finger marks in the future. how did you applied it?

Daniel Klink Fantastic classical cars finely done Tom .. except of the green thing left hand side....

Martin Oostrom I like the bright colours of the Citroën and the Mini. Just wonderful. You can be proud Tom

Tom Thanks, guys. Much appreciated.

@Spanjaard - I applied it straight. It had been curing for 3 weeks in a dry environment. I've also noticed that it can get dinged very easily, like with my fingernail. Maybe the batch of Future I have is not the best or has a change of formula? It's funny, people talk about not letting Future dry in the airbrush or the airbrush will be ruined. Don't think my Future has that problem. Hmmm.... is it important to "shake well" before use?

@Daniel - Ha, the green thing was a "let's try this hobby out on something that I won't care if I ruin it" purchase, so definitely the odd man out.

Spanjaard hi Tom, strange... well, one thing i can say for sure, is that i do not shake it, so that should not be a problem. applying over tamiya acrylics should be also fine. how thick is the coat? i do apply multiple layers, but each as thin as possible. much better than thicker layers. i wonder if your trouble is also related to the orange peal that you are getting with it

Tom I'm going to do some experiments with Future to see if I can't figure this out. I think part of the problem (with peeling) might be due to my cheapo airbrush. I have a better brush now so I'll compare their ability to lay down thin coats and avoid peeling (and pooling). Basically I'll test on a bunch of plastic spoons and compare and contrast.

Spanjaard good luck

Tom Going to try using oil paints to do the leather and canvas parts. Any personal recommendations on what oils to use. I'm going to be googling/youtubing it all but any pointers are appreciated.

Bob Hall I'm in on this one, looks interesting !

Arne Greve Tom, it depends on, what you can buy in the US. Here in Germany, Schmincke is a good company for Oil Paints.

Tom Thanks, Arne. My local arts store seems to have Schmincke: https://dickblick.com/brands/schmincke/

Thank you for the referral!

Arne Greve You´re welcome.

scalemates

Tom Great work, Tim. Must have been a complete nightmare the last few days! Hope you can rest easier now.

Bob Hall Do what I do, Google Image a picture of the real car interior. Maybe get a clearer interpenetration of the dash.

Bob Hall [img1]

Bob Hall [img1]

Martin Oostrom I always plan my impulse buys....

Greg Baker I haven't had much success with white glue on windows. It seems to take forever to cure and in some cases leaves the seal a bit "rubbery" after I run out of patience for waiting. The Future will protect the plastic from a CA bloom but I'm always pretty cautious about how much I use... just in case.

Chris Greathouse I just use Tamiya Extra Thin with the windows (with and without Future), I don't have any fogging or weird issues and it holds the window in place just fine. I haven't had luck with white glue, and CA just turns into a mess on the window for me. but the capillary action of the Extra Thin around the edges of the widow works wonders for me.

Bob Hall Looking Good my friend !

Tom Thanks, Robert.

I just got the windows in. That was NOT fun. Very frustrating. The fit of the windows was not great so it made it really tricky to get them to sit in well. Some of it seems to be the mold and then the layers of paint and clear coat make it worse.

I used Chris's extra thin cement technique. It definitely glues them in well but very risky. I managed to get glue on to the window in places. I think I was also trying to get too much in there. Next time I'm going to try the testor's glue Robert mentioned to see if it's more forgiving but using the extra thin cement I think is fine once I learn to use a lot less glue.

Going to let them fully cure before finishing the rest of the build. Should be easy going now. Just glad the windows are over!

Bob Hall Still looks great ! A labor of love !!!!!!

Chris Greathouse Tom, just so ya know, my Citroen will be nothing near this quality ... very good, beautifully done and yeah the Extra Thin is great, but it does take a window or 2 of accidental smears and NO shaky hands of get the hang of it. Great Job!

Tom Thanks, Chris. Much appreciated. And no worries. It's all about enjoying the process. On to the next one

Spanjaard It certainly looks pretty good Tom

Bob Hall https://i.chzbgr.com/full/5180428800/h1B7F2A78/

Tom Nah, I'm thinking more the Italian Job: [img1]

Bob Hall Darn ! I was hoping for a 1:24 Mr Bean Figure ! LOL!!!

Neuling Very nice! Reminds me of my student days!

Daniel Klink Love it!

Johne 69 Top

Treehugger Looks nice!

Tom Thanks, guys. Maybe some day I'll manage just part of what you can do and I'll be very happy indeed.

Martin Oostrom Bla bla bla. Your Citron looks very mellow yellow. Very nice, Tom. Keep it up!

Daniel Klink What?? Your Duck looks MArvelous in every perspective

Neuling Yes.

Tom Ballhoff Excellent

Daniel Klink One little thing: The Laquer is a little bit too less on the shiny and polished side.
Even Ducks had a shiny and deep glossy Hull when they were new and well preserved

Tom Ha Daniel, you make me laugh. At the moment I just struggle to not make a mess of airbrushing. Hopefully it doesn't take too long to get to the point where I can control what look I really want.

And what I really want is to get good at weathering/realism. I find weathered models much more interesting. I think I should buy some miniatures and just practice painting them, that way I don't care if I mess up.

Bob Hall Very Nice !!! BRAVO !