It's not the weekend, but.......

[Carps]

....been off work for a few weeks and figured to cut the boredom I should use the time constructively.  Simple solution, build a few cars, starting with something relatively straight forward.  Old Jo-Han promo kit of '63 Mercury Comet Caliente, only a few minor mods on this one.







Then I figured I could maybe improve on Lindberg's old toy like model T coupe.  So I chucked away what didn't look like it belonged on a hot rod and replaced those bits with the right stuff.










That done, I figured I should build a Bonneville race car, but I really need a parts chaser.  So as hot rodders do I collected up the junk laying around the shed, and wouldn't ya know it, just enough parts to build me a twuck.

















Now that's done, it's back to collecting bits and building me a racer.

[purplepickup]

I still wonder about your sanity but that truck is really nicely done

[wayne petty]

wow.. thats nice...

when i was growing up here in hollywood..  there was a hobby store called reginald dennys.. seems he made models for 20th century fox (across the street at that time)   there were giant ship models used in many war movies...  there was a huge B29 hanging just inside the front entrance.. there were model planes, cars , ships... all over the store... along with all the other items sold in hobby shops...  

worst thing.. i don't think any of his models exist..  his store on the north west corner of sunset blvd and western ave..( now an OSH store) was in a bank of america branch building.. was destroyed in the 71 sylmar earthquake..    he moved a few blocks to hollywood blvd.... the hardware store absorbed his store... and what was left was hanging in there till the northridge quake.. where the last of them were smashed...

keep up the fine work..      there was an article about the lack of old model dies to make more...   seems the local metal scrap dealer where the models were produced at .. payed with bottles of alcohol instead of dollars for the exotic metal dies they used to produce them...  (Beryllium copper as i recall)

[Carps]

Sanity?  Being sane would drive me nuts!        

Fear not Wayne, I have more than enough unbiult kits (and spare parts) to keep me going for the rest of my lifetime.  But of course I can always use more.  

Speaking of sanity, did I show you the finished '36 Kustom?  The guys who were at the Saturday BBQ at '07 NSRA Nats, will remember me taking off to chase down the original as it cruised by.  I got enough pics to make sure the model is as close as it can be (I left off the Appletons and and used the wrong license plate).  

[Crosley.In.AZ]

I like the green wheels on the truck....

[phat46]

Nice work carps!  The patina work is outstanding...maybe you'd share you secrets???    

[UGLY OLDS]

Nice work....   Your models look better than my REAL cars  :!:  






Bob........

[enjenjo]

I hope the reason for being off work is not health problems.

[Jbird]

I hate to sound redundant but that Caliente is Hot. What kinda of glue you using, does it make your fingertips tingle?    Jbird

[Carps]

Bob, that's why I build them, cheaper and more reliable than if I did them in 1/1 scale.

JBird, I use diffferent glues for different parts,  Liquid styrene cements for unpainted plastic, superglue for when I want a stronger joint (there's different types toofor just sticking or for filling gaps - sometimes I mix superglue with ground styrene for filling) there's a couple of different adhesives that work for clear parts.

As for the 'patina' the rust is real rust and there's a number of methods I use depending on the part and finish I want.

If you really would like I can post a tutorial later.

Meanwhile it's new years morning here and I have to run as my club is cooking breakfast at our traditional new years day rod run.

Happy new year ya'all!

[phat46]

As for the 'patina' the rust is real rust and there's a number of methods I use depending on the part and finish I want.

If you really would like I can post a tutorial later.

 Yes please!  

[Carps]

Your wish is my command, so here's my usual process for making rust.
This is part of my rust farm, the underside of my BBQ hot-plate.


The rust can be chipped off in big flakes or scraped off using a chisel or whatever you have handy for scraping stuff.


The rust is collected in containers.
Often I crush the big chunks to create more dust than rust.




Here's some different rust, grown in a cup of nails, just add water.
The water evaporates but only after turning the nails into a nice rusty mess.
Different types of nails create different coloured rust.


My process is pretty easy.
First up detail the part you want to send rusty.
On this part I cleaned all the plastic away that didn't look like a '34 Ford fender and drilled out the headlamp mounting hole plus the horn bracket hole and the two holes where the coach bolts attach the fender brace to the fender.


The trick part here is the extra detail.
On a real '34 fender the headlamp mounting is not just a hole it has a sort of raised edge which helps keep everything located properly.
So a little localised heat from a match and a push against the hot plastic from below with a toothpick and it looks much more like the real deal.

Underneath, all the moulded in stuff has to go. I use a medium stone on my Dremmel to get rid of this stuff.


Next up is to apply some paint. I use this water based stuff from the model railway store, it dries sort of looking like rust.
However, the best bit is it stays wet for a good time.


I just paint it all over the part not taking any particular care with coverage or surface finish. Sometimes I may coat the part with coloured enamel to replicate original paint before adding the rusty stuff. Experimentation is good and will get you many different effects.


Whilst the paint is still wet, the part is dropped in the container of rust, the lid sealed and....


I shake the bejeeezus out of it.
How long doesn't seem to matter, the important bit is how wet the paint was.


When ready, open the container and remove your rusty part.
Carfeul here as there'll be very fine rust dust looking to escape and make a mess.
So I'd strongly recommend this job is done outside.


Because I was taking photos the paint on the topside dried before I did the shake deal but it was wet enough that it looks OK.
The 'new' fender is painted in 'steel' laquer and the surface rust is simply a light dusting pf rust coloured crushed pastel


The underside was much wetter and the difference is obvious.
From here the part can be detailed with whatever else you use such as Tamiya weathering pastels etc.


Sometimes I use an 'iron' based paint and rust activator from the local artsee craft store, to get a variation in the surface effect.
The rust activator also works well on the real rust if you want it to look even more rusty.

Here's another shot of my rusty '34 coupe body, that shows the differences in finish and texture from the different 'grades' of rust I use.

[phat46]

That's amazing! That coupe body looks very realistic. When i was a kid my brother and i built many models and did quite well in the local hobby shop model contests, but we never had anything close to what folks are doing today. I wish i had all the models from back then, mid 60's, but they have long since gone missing (Mom and Dad) Heck, i would even love to have the parts box we kept for all the extra pieces that came in the  3 in 1 kits. I have a '34 coupe that my daughter gave me a couple years ago and now that I'm retired I have the urge to try it again, if I do I'll try some of your methods and see what happens. Thanks for the lesson!

[Rayvyn]

Some people have too much fun and too much time on their hands while doing it.

Looks like someone needs to get a job........  

I wish I had the painstaking care and patience to do that and the time to try it.

Nice work... );b(

[Carps]

Fear not Bryan, I'll be back at the salt mines before the end of January.  However, with a new set of rules, so the model building and other fun-time activities will continue with a vengeance.  

Meanwhile, the racecar is coming along nicely.  Right now, it's sitting in the paint booth whilst the pearl white base coat dries.

I considered running a NOS fed pro mod power plant, but the scoop kinda blocks the vision a bit.........


.....so I've decided to stick with the good old blown 427 side oiler.


Punched some louvres in the deck lid and underneath it will have 3 piece full belly pan with everything neatly tucked inside for smooth airflow.