General Model Kit Building Thread

[vettefreak95]

Yes... I tend to get too frustrated. The body/chassis mating was difficult and damaged the suspension. This made the car a bit off-stance. Other than that, the taillights were the only other (albeit minor) problems. That was more on the paint I used than anything.

Thanks for your post. I'll be working on Kyle Petty's Mello Yello Pontiac by Monogram next.

 

[SJC ALPHA]

Thanks for your post. I'll be working on Kyle Petty's Mello Yello Pontiac by Monogram next.

Look forward to some pictures.

 

[scholesy1899]

Yes... I tend to get too frustrated. The body/chassis mating was difficult and damaged the suspension. This made the car a bit off-stance. Other than that, the taillights were the only other (albeit minor) problems. That was more on the paint I used than anything.

Thanks for your post. I'll be working on Kyle Petty's Mello Yello Pontiac by Monogram next.

Get some Evergreen's styrene strips/rods of any dimension you need. It helps with mishaps, also when you're kit bashing/modding. I automatically upgrade my suspension using it.
You should always keep some styrene in your boxes.

 

[vettefreak95]

Get some Evergreen's styrene strips/rods of any dimension you need. It helps with mishaps, also when you're kit bashing/modding. I automatically upgrade my suspension using it.
You should always keep some styrene in your boxes.

I've never heard of them; what exactly do they do?

 

[SJC ALPHA]

I've never heard of them; what exactly do they do?

Styrene Rods or strips are just lengths of styrene. You can have sheets, rods, tubes, angle strips etc. Tamiya produce some of these as well.
In car models suspension pieces are thin and can easily break, Hasegawa are especially fragile in this area, so you can use or even replace, depending on your confidence, to attach a piece of rod or strip to help support broken suspension pieces. What you do is cut a piece of rod the same length as the, lets say the suspension arm and glue the rod to the broken pieces there by giving strength. Luckily this area is generally dark coloured and hidden by bodywork.
Hope you get what I'm trying to explain.

 

[AerodyManiac]

Hello guys, I have a question: How do you remove CA cement from a model? I got some of it stuck on an undesired part of my model, and I want to get rid of it. Most of it is on a photo-etched part, if that helps.

 

[Apok]

If it's just a separate part you could put it in the freezer. The water in the CA will freeze making it easy to break apart.
This is of course not possible if it's a part already on the model, as you've likely used CA elsewhere in the build.
There is a way to melt the CA, but I can't really remember what substance that is right now. Probably something like nitro paint thinner or similar. Hopefully someone else here knows.

 

[SVX]

Super cool. AZ-550 made out of an AZ-1 kit.

http://www7b.biglobe.ne.jp/~aishawo...z550typea_seisakuki/az550typea_seisakuki.html

 

[silverromeo]

Styrene Rods or strips are just lengths of styrene. You can have sheets, rods, tubes, angle strips etc. Tamiya produce some of these as well.
In car models suspension pieces are thin and can easily break, Hasegawa are especially fragile in this area, so you can use or even replace, depending on your confidence, to attach a piece of rod or strip to help support broken suspension pieces. What you do is cut a piece of rod the same length as the, lets say the suspension arm and glue the rod to the broken pieces there by giving strength. Luckily this area is generally dark coloured and hidden by bodywork.
Hope you get what I'm trying to explain.

I'd like to add sytrene rods and tubes are VERY useful in converting wheels from male to female and vice versa too!

 

[silverromeo]

Latest piece of work, something we don't really see in GT but nevertheless will be really cool if we can actually see these two cars in GT.

Full post and pictures can be found here:
http://silverromeo.blogspot.com/2016/02/124-evangelion-racing-porsche-gt3r-2011.html

 

[AOS-]

Ohp.

If my McLaren doesn't sell, I know what I'll be doing with it.

 

[vettefreak95]

Is anyone still on this thread?

If so, I would like some help. I've been building a 1991 Pontiac stock car from Monogram. The build itself went well, but the 24-year-old decals fell apart when I tried to put them on. Is it possible to get around this, or are they beyond saving after a certain time. The box was sealed when I got it.

 

[Apok]

Is anyone still on this thread?

If so, I would like some help. I've been building a 1991 Pontiac stock car from Monogram. The build itself went well, but the 24-year-old decals fell apart when I tried to put them on. Is it possible to get around this, or are they beyond saving after a certain time. The box was sealed when I got it.

You could get some Microscale Liquid decal film.
I don't have it myself, but it's basically a clear liquid that you brush onto the old decals. The liquid dries and acts as a base for the old decals so they don't fall apart.
Other manufacturers probably make something similar, but I only know the Microscale one by name.

 

[SRV2LOW4ME]

What he said. Your local hobby/craft shop should be able to help ya out.

 

[SJC ALPHA]

Is anyone still on this thread?

If so, I would like some help. I've been building a 1991 Pontiac stock car from Monogram. The build itself went well, but the 24-year-old decals fell apart when I tried to put them on. Is it possible to get around this, or are they beyond saving after a certain time. The box was sealed when I got it.

It sounds by your description that unfortunately the decals have dried out and cracked. Decal set and sol solutions might work with a lot of care but if you can source new decals from the manufacturer or after market companies I would try this. When I have had this it's what I do.
Good luck, hope it goes well.

 

[vettefreak95]

Well, its a Monogram kit, so I don't think new decals are an option. Even with the solutions, they still fell apart. I might just finish it without the decals.

 

[vettefreak95]

You could get some Microscale Liquid decal film.
I don't have it myself, but it's basically a clear liquid that you brush onto the old decals. The liquid dries and acts as a base for the old decals so they don't fall apart.
Other manufacturers probably make something similar, but I only know the Microscale one by name.

Does this work on the sheet itself? My decals fell apart before getting onto the car.

 

[Apok]

Does this work on the sheet itself? My decals fell apart before getting onto the car.

Yes. Using decal film is basically reapplying the adhesive that holds the ink of the decal together. It's pretty normal for this clear film to go bad over time.

 

[SJC ALPHA]

Well, its a Monogram kit, so I don't think new decals are an option. Even with the solutions, they still fell apart. I might just finish it without the decals.

Most manufacturers carry spares, some models are re-issued with new and/or updated decals, it's always worth a try. It would be a shame to not finish the model completely.
Hopefully the adhesive will do the trick for you. Hope it goes well for you.

 

[Apok]

It's also worth checking ebay. Maybe someone is selling the decals, or perhaps there are aftermarket decals produced for that kit.

 

[silverromeo]

Lastest update - and especially want to share to the Gran Turismo community:

Who here remember this R33 from the first Gran Turismo installment?

Full post and pictures can be found here:
http://silverromeo.blogspot.com/2016/04/memoire-of-90s-japanese-race-car-124.html

 

[AerodyManiac]

How do you remove cement from a plastic part? Or is there no way to completely remove it, and you can only cover it up with paint?

 

[silverromeo]

How do you remove cement from a plastic part? Or is there no way to completely remove it, and you can only cover it up with paint?

Is it extra cement that bulged out or did it eat away the plastic?

If it's extra or bulged, shave and sand the surface evenly. If it ate away, use putty to fill it up and sand.

 

[AerodyManiac]

Is it extra cement that bulged out or did it eat away the plastic?

If it's extra or bulged, shave and sand the surface evenly. If it ate away, use putty to fill it up and sand.

It's extra cement that has accidentally got onto a part. It was difficult to be removed with sandpaper, as sandpaper cannot reach that part easily. Now I have covered it up with paint, and luckily it isn't so conspicuous. Thanks for the advice, anyway.

---

I finally got some time to continue working on my model, and since I've completed most of the hand-painting, what remains mostly was gluing the parts together, and spray painting the windows and photo-etched parts. Anyway, here're some pictures.

The dashboard (before and after attaching the steering wheel):

Dashboard 1

• AerodyManiac
• May 6, 2016

Dashboard 2

• AerodyManiac
• May 6, 2016

A pic of the parts of the dashboard which have been made glossy due to prolonged contact with my fingers:

P4240596

• AerodyManiac
• May 6, 2016

A pic of the tub. It has some decals applied, which, shamefully, won't really be visible once the car has been assembled:

Interior tub

• AerodyManiac
• May 6, 2016

A pic of the complete interior. Unfortunately, it was rather dark in the photo:

Interior

• AerodyManiac
• May 6, 2016

Doors:

Doors

• AerodyManiac
• May 6, 2016

Headlamps:

Headlamps

• AerodyManiac
• May 6, 2016

Underbody:

Underbody

• AerodyManiac
• May 6, 2016

Rear suspension. Originally, this is going to be covered up by a piece of black plastic. But since I want it to be visible anytime, I decided to use blu-tack to adhere the piece of plastic to the underbody instead of using cement. Hopefully the blu-tack won't ruin the paintwork!

Rear suspension 1

• AerodyManiac
• May 6, 2016

Another pic of the rear suspension:

Rear suspension 2

• AerodyManiac
• May 6, 2016

Engine cover:

Engine cover

• AerodyManiac
• May 6, 2016

I accidentally got some cement onto one of the seats, as shown by the red circle.

P5060617

• AerodyManiac
• May 6, 2016

Actually, this is also why I want to ask: Are there any methods to remove cement on a plastic part before it completely dries? Are there any methods to prevent the plastic parts from getting glossy due to contact with fingers? I don't want to use my gloves, as they are quite dirty, and so far the only solution I can think of is using masking tape to tape off those areas which I'm going to hold when painting. Are there any precautions to take before using Tamiya's TS-13? I've seen people saying that hairline cracks appeared after using it. Do you spray a layer of clear coat or apply anything onto the windows? How many layers of metal primer am I supposed to spray before I can start colour coating the photo-etched parts? How do you completely remove modelling wax from the tyre treads? Lastly, is it common for manufacturers to produce rattle spray cans of varying quality? I'm asking this, as quite some time ago it took me only 3 layers of paint to achieve a smooth finish, but now it takes me 5 layers of paint to achieve a not-so-smooth finish and the amount of paint sprayed out has decreased. Will spray-painting more layers solve the problem?

 

[AerodyManiac]

Another question: Do the areas surrounding them get darker after you have finished adding panel lines and wiping the excess away with thinner? After wiping away the excess, I found out that the surrounding areas changed into a darker shade.

Also, it'd be fantastic if you could answer any of my above questions, particularly this one:

Are there any precautions to take before using Tamiya's TS-13? I've seen people saying that hairline cracks appeared after using it.

I'll be applying the clear coat a few days later, and I'll hate to ruin my model simply because of a simple mistake.

 

[AOS-]

I'll hate to ruin my model simply because of a simple mistake.

Try it on something else first.

 

[vettefreak95]

I've finally got new decals and decal film for the Mello Yello car. Do I need to do anything else before applying? The sheet still seemed a bit dry. I've also started work on a Tamiya Mini Cooper.

 

[AerodyManiac]

Hi guys, hopefully you won't mind me asking a few more questions.

How do you remove Tamiya's modelling wax from areas that are hard to reach such as panel lines? Do you use a toothpick, or do you wash it away with water?

Also, what is the purpose of Tamiya's polishing compounds? I'm saying this, as it doesn't seem to have any effect on the body, apart from creating slight patches of white (which cannot be removed), and I was originally expecting it to become a bit more shiny.

 

[TheSkyliner]

Hi guys. I'm new to 1/24 modeling, and I'm looking for a good start.

Things that are on my shopping list are:

1. A modeling knife and side cutters
2. Tamiya Cement
3. Enamel paints? (canned, for details)
4. Spray paint for primary body colors for cars (not coming until I find my first model)

One thing that I still need to add to my list (that I have in mind) is a first-model. What models would you guys recommend for me to start on? Also, any other suggestions for my list?

 

[DG_Silva]

Go for something simple and cheap, you'll always mess up on your first (I know I did). A Tamiya Supra or the lower level Revells are good and cheap, and will give a good starting point.