Included in this update is the gap mentioned in yesterdays rant. That has to be addressed after the doors are installed but before the seats. Ship in a bottle anyone? Also progress on the engine. I think I need to rust the headers a little more, they're too dark and gray....
OK back to work on the Monte after knocking some other stuff out of the way.
Here's my question to the group today: how do you ground plastic? I'm trying to paint the flat black mask around the windshield, and each time I get close to the part with my paint-dabbed pencil, paint jumps off the pencil and onto the plastic, not necessarily where I want it though. Dry air and static electricity are not my friends right now but I don't know how to nullify them.
I have ascertained that the gray paint has sufficiently solidified, so I'm painting the roll cage padding and stuff like that, and once that's done I think we'll be on the fast track to serious assembly. The engine is 95% done, just lacking the oil pump drive belt that will go on the front of the serpentine belt assembly.
Still not ready to tackle bodywork, which isn't in a rush rush mode since I still have to get that decal set solution. Since I'm not in any position to apply decals, there's no need to rush getting the body ready for those decals. But we'll get there soon enough.
In reply to Claff :
I've heard of people using an old Discwasher Zero Static gun for vinyl records to kill the static on model parts. I once tried it on the model I was touching up, but the metallic flakes in the paint still jumped off the brush when it got close to the model. Maybe hold the part near a steaming mug of water?
In reply to Claff :
This is not a problem I have encountered (yet) and I have hot air heat. I suspect the difference is that I tend to use rather thick paint. Certainly the static charge is there, as I am fighting with the flock from the interior of the Ferrari adhering to the rear window.
Gold anno wheels!
And seatbelts
In reply to Saron81 :
Gold wheels should have been more popular. I only remember Bill Elliott and Bobby Allison running them.
This was on Twitter the other day. It explains why Eddie Birschwale didn't run the Pontiac at Daytona but there were pics of it.
Current status:
Aside from the roll cage and seat the fit has been exemplary. I wouldn't recommend it for a beginner though.
All you guys are busy sculpting and molding bodies and I'm just here gluing crap together. 
In reply to ddavidv :
That needs a skinny LF tire.
In reply to Wally (Forum Supporter) :
I agree about the wheels!
That's so funny that popped up! Mystery solved!
Ready for decals. Still need to add seatbelts and a few more bits to the chassis and put a few laps on the tires. Hasegawa Sauber Mercedes C9 in the background, waiting for decals, too..
BenB (Forum Supporter) said:Ready for decals. Still need to add seatbelts and a few more bits to the chassis and put a few laps on the tires. Hasegawa Sauber Mercedes C9 in the background, waiting for decals, too..
What happened to the engine in that Ferrari chassis?
In reply to vwcorvette (Forum Supporter) :
It's a curbside kit, so no engine and minimal chassis detail. Historic Racing Miniatures makes a very nice resin engine for it.
I built the old Heller kit of this Ferrari when the kit was new and I was too. I wish I had painted the bodywork, but the chassis and engine are sweet.
Good news. I finished the flat black mask on the Monte's windows without further static electricity issues, maybe because I separated them from the trees and handled them directly while putting the paint on? Don't know and frankly don't care as it's done.
Chassis construction is chugging along, I just have to mount the seat and the left side of the cage can go on. The engine is done and can go in once I have the crossmember installed. The entire rear end assembly is ready to go in as well.
I gave the #34 decal sheet a test drive with the little sticker that goes on the fire bottle behind the seat. It peeled off the paper OK but wasn't playing nice holding the round contour of the bottle. So decal set will definitely be needed, and I hope I can score some at Michael's early this week.
Looking ahead at bodywork, in addition to the front valance, I'm going to have to figure out what is causing the hood to not close properly. If it's this bad in primer, it'll only be worse with another coat or two of paint.
I was painting the dashboard and I went to look for something to make the gauge needles orange and I lost it somewhere. I swear I could misplace the Death Star inside a Starbucks within ten minutes if given the opportunity.
Edit: found it less than 5 minutes after posting this. It fell into a nearby box that I didn't look in for some reason.
Now I can start assembling the interior at last.
Got most of the chassis in primer yesterday, and the body is about ready for paint. Here's my modified body compared to the stock one I built many years ago (in the late 84 livery)
Two of 3 colors on. Gonna wait 48 hours before the red goes on. I masked this too soon amd marred the nice gloss of the white. Will need a Polish and/or clear.
Yellow is so hard to paint well.
[edit] Didn't mean to imply you aren't doing it well. It's just a PITA to get nice.
In reply to Duke :
Yellow really is more difficult, in any scale. I had several yellow racecars that got too frequent body damage, so I have shot lots of yellow. I mostly avoid it now!
In reply to TurnerX19 :
This actually went on pretty well. Rust-oleum 2x with primer. The white is the problem. Actually I am since I didn't wait for it to set up longer before taping off with painters tape. Should have stuck with the tamiya tape.
I dont have an exact match for this, but went out, with the 36 hour loss of power, to the garage for a model to work on.
I found this one to pull in and work through.
Ill have to get some pics, but the "interior" is done. Will this fit the speedweek bit?
Window plugs are in and the wheel wells are turning out.
Two more parts to glue on and I'm done. My decals came out pretty sweet, if I do say so. Pics to follow.
Bodywork has started. I've been dreading it since I'm not good at it. I bet this will only get to "good enough" before I whip out paint and shoot this thing white. Some day I'll figure out how to apply putty without making it a (scale) foot thick.
Seat's in, left side of cage is on and I should be able to get the rest of the bars in fairly quickly. There are a handful of cooling hoses that run from the quarter windows to various areas behind the seat, this is something new since my last NASCAR build. I wonder how well they'll all line up when the body goes on.
I swear, no matter what kit I'm building, if it has a roll cage, there will be fitment issues. It never fails.
And yes, I thought it might be in there backwards too. Shouldn't the cross bar go behind the driver and have a headrest on it? I guess not, with this old-timey seat. It's a miracle any driver lived through the 70s and 80s.
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