Anyone else build scale model cars?

ssjmaverick23 said:

could yall give me sometips on painting lastnight i was working on my 88gt and the paint didn't come out to good i might have put on 2much.

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I'm going to assume you're shooting with a spray can. Secondly, I'm going to assume your asking about actually spraying the paint onto the model(if you need info on prep and priming, let me know).

1. After initial prep sanding and priming and sanding the primer coat, wash your model with dish detergent and a SOFT bristle tooth brush(you can get a "Dr. Du-Mores" tooth brush at WalMart for a buck). Gently go over the model in a circular motion, then rinse well with warm water. Wash your hands at this point, best with the dish detergent, you want to strip your hands of any oils that will get on your model(body oil, sweat, etc. can hinder the paint from adhering) Either let air-dry or use compressed air to dry the model. After it is completely dry, this is the time to mask(use 3M Blue painters masking tape, it is $6 a roll, but one roll will last you a while-keep your tape in a plastic bag, you want it sterile, no dust on the roll etc.).

2. Shake up your paint for at least 1 minute, longer if the paint has been sitting up. When you shake the can be sure to do the following: hold the top of the can by your fingertips and swivel your wrist so that the mixing ball will ride the inside of the bottom of the can. You will be able to hear it rolling, it is stirring up the paint at the bottom(my shop teacher showed me this in 8th grade). Alternate this with shaking, this will insure a steady flow of paint and reduce the chance of spattering.

3. Mount your car body on a coat hanger or paint mixing stick, dowel rod,(use your tape to help mount your model) basically anything that will:
a. keep you from painting your whole hand(you may catch a little bit, or wear rubber or latex gloves)
b. enable you to keep the model body at a distance of 8 to 12 inches(follow the distance guidelines on the can, if you are unsure, use a ruler to get a solid idea, this is very important)

4. KEEP SHAKING THE CAN, if your not painting you are shaking the can, you must keep the paint in suspension with the propellant to avoid spattering.

5. Painting. First spray paint your cardboard or dropcloth to make sure the can is spraying right. Better than taking out your car on the first pass.
When you paint you want to use an "X" or figure 8 pattern(with the 8 laying on its side like the symbol for infinity). Work right to left or left to right depending of course if you are right or left-handed(I'm a lefty).
Let's say you right-handed and you are holding your car with its passenger side facing you, front end to your right.
Holding the can in your right hand you want to begin spraying into the air ahead of the bumber then in the X motion bring the can across the body and beyond the rear bumper, do not stop spraying until you are spraying into the air beyond the rear bumper. This one pass would be one line of the X. Do the opposite operation to make the other line of the X, that is start spraying again baeyond the rear bumper bringing the can around and past the front end in one continuous spray/motion. This will require practice. You can use empty soda cans taped to a stick to practice your technique.
Always keep the spray moving and keep your correct distance form the model to avoid spraying to much in one place which will cause runs.

6. BETTER TO SPRAY TO LITTLE THAN TOO MUCH. Spray your model in a logical procession, such as this one:
a. pass. side then flip to-(don't forget the bottom edges, like beneath your doors etc.)
b. drivers side, then-
c. front bumper/fascia area, then around to-
d. rear bumper/fascia, then-
e. top side, one end to roof to the other end
Make a nice even coat, all over-better a thin even coat than a heavy runny dripping coat. Follow the guidelines on the can to determine when to apply your second coat.

7. Get a clear plastic container like a rubbermaid or sterilite at WalMart to carefully store your model in while it dries. Your wet paint is susceptible to DUST.
Figure out HOW you will mount your car in this container before you spray it. I use small blocks of styrofoam and tape to do this, actully tape the car, like under the roof with a block of foam.

8. Let the car dry for at least two days, better a week, especially if you live in an area of high humidity, like I do.
When you next handle the car, make sure you wash your hands.

I will try to generate and post some pics to accompany this, if you need more help feel free to pm me or email me.

ssjmaverick23 said:

thanx alot for the info ive never done that much befor im going to hav to repaint my 88gt and ill try that all ive ever done was pull it out of the bag and use the model paint no prep ill try it on the gt also is there anytips on painting with a bush (like the dash and stuff like that) also i did try to paint the car about a year ago and i i got some runs can i just wash it with paint remover? or should i sand it and primer it over? also what grade sand paper should i use?

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1. Brush painting- load up your brush with enough paint to saturate the bristles, but not so much it is dripping. Paint the piece without going over it again and again, try no more than two passes as enamel model paints dry rapidly, and you don't want to see brushstrokes. Wait a few hours or even till next day to re-coat, as Testors paints can take a while to dry.Also have a variety of brush sizes/shapes and use the one best suited to the job, this makes for better coverage per pass with the brush=less passes=smoother finish. Even the least expensive brushes from an arts and crafts store will do. Clean your brushes with paint thinner, then blot them dry, then wash them again with warm water and dish soap. Reshape the bristles with your fingers and put them up to dry. Do this and they'll last a long time.

2. Since it has been a year, I would just wet-sand it down, and prime it. sand the runs down carefully since they are probably raised a bit. After you prime you probably want to sand it again if you can still make out the runs. Repeat this process until its smooth, washing the body with dish soap between every coat(sand, prime, sand, wash, prime, etc.).

3. Wet-sanding: Requires special sand paper for wet-sanding. I use 3M Auto-Pak Wetordry Super Fine 400 Grit(part# 03015NA), which is great for all phases of modeling, not just prep sanding. Wet-sand over the sink or out of a bucket or in the backyard with a spray bottle. Trick is to keep the model and the sand paper wet at all times, this keeps the sand paper from getting clogged up. Also a 3M Green(NEVER USE THE RED IT IS TOO ABRASIVE!) Scotch Brite is good used wet(wet it down like you would a sponge, and keep it soaked) is good if used GENTLY, they are very abrasive. A Scotch-Brite will help you get into hard to reach areas where sandpaper won't go.

4. Priming: I use "Rust-Oleum Automobile Primer Light Gray Primer #2081". Says "Fast Drying, Wet Sandable" on the front. Read all the directions on back of can. I have found this primer to be compatible with Testors spray paints, and the big can will enable you to prime 2-3 cars(the Testors primer is a rip-off by comparison).

Happy modeling!

'53 Ford truck huh? Hmmmmm, sounds interesting. I could see you putting a blower on a Mustang. It would be different, since everyone in the magazines puts centifugals on theirs. What would be really cool is to add an intercooler between the intake manifold and blower case. You could effectively fake it with a rectangular piece of plastic, your engine would be sky-high, topping out over the windshield, I'll see if I cant find a pic!

If the truck is going to wind up homeless without its engine, and its otherwise complete and you'd like to get rid of it($), let me know, it could be a great companion to the '53 Ford Victoria leadsled I'm building.

Here are the pics:





You can see the intercooler sandwhiched in there, should be easy to build-just a box really-then paint it aluminum, and voila a sky-high mill!

Red_LX said:

If so, don't bother putting that engine in a mustang, it's a big block chev

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I have to agree with Red, I don't mix engines and models either, it somehow seems wrong.

But, you can still use that supercharger! Just fab up a manifold or modify the Chevy's manifold so it fits on your 5.0! At 1/25 scale no one is going to be able to tell.