PeteJ

Ok, I cleaning up my shop area and decided to get rid of some stuff. I have six Tamiya pit crew kits. Five of them are the same and one is a tire changing crew. All of them have tools included. These are definitely old school as the decals have one set of tobacco markings. 4 of the pit crew kits and the tire changing crew are untouched. The fifth pit crew box has some damage to the box but the contents are good except that one of the prior owners has started the faces of two of the figures(not very well) but I am sure that they can be stripped and repainted. I want to get rid of the whole lot. Selling them individually, shipping would probably double the cost, so I want $100 for the whole collection and the buyer pays shipping. The price is negotiable. Shipping would be from San Diego Ca.

As an OOB class I would say that it is not built to the instructions. My opinion is that if the instructions say the wheels are to be attached, then that is how it should be built. Keep it simple.

This spamer got into the contacts. This is the second such attempt. Not sure how IPMS is going to handle this. Under no circumstances reply to this. They are definitely phishing!

Total fail as far as I am concerned. My old eyes just can't read the damn thing. Looked at the pictures, tried reading a little, couldn't! Tossed it in the trash. Not an auspicious start.

R/C canopy glue has always been a go to for me. Dries perfectly clear, cleans up with water, tacks up pretty quickly and doesn't fog clear plastic. Not sure what more you could ask for.

Still a lot of work ahead of us to get that done!

Generally, beater and rust buckets that are still "drivable" belong in custom(see section 5C). This is a class that is to be judged as an "artistic class" meaning that the judges are looking predominantly at originality and not will this car actually run as built. If they are junk cars(not running) they belong in Automotive technology and culture(see section K9). Weathering is generally acceptable on race car categories because they are built and displayed as replicas in "as raced condition". Of course there is always an option for "weathered vehicles" to have a split category of their own if there are enough of them. Enough is always an issue. When creating categories, contests have to have enough entries to justify them. This is always a very subjective point. In southern California, we often plan to have Low Riders in their own category because of the number of entries even though they are technically customs. In my opinion there would have to have at least 5 or more entrants(not just entries) to suggest a separate category, but that is my subjective opinion. If you are talking about local contest, they are not bound by the national rules and can certainly use their own criteria for categories.

Shooting any clear over decals is a bit of a crap shoot, but it can be done. The trick is to start by laying down several very light coat with sufficient time to dry between coats. The solvent in the paint is the main problem. With light coats, the solvent gasses out of the paint much quicker and is less likely to interact negatively with the decal. Once you have a few coats down, then heavier coats will not get through. I agree with Eric. You can use any clear paint. I have used every thing from automotive lacquers(which are as hot a paint as you can get) to several different hobby paint and art store paints and all can be used successfully. You just need to test them before hand to see what works. Careful experimentation is the way to go.

I do a two step decanting that a lot of people aren't going to like. I made a piece that looks and acts like a saddle valve that penetrates the can with a pointed screw. That lets me control the outflow of the propellent. The first hole is as close to the top as I can get. I let it sit overnight so the propellent is gone. I then move to bottom of the can and punch a second hole. I drain the paint out of the bottom hole into the storage jar. Once that is done, I use a pipet to squirt some thinner through one of the holes and cover both holes and shake it up. That will clean the inside of the can of all paint. Oh and here is a side thought. When everything is done, I use some shop shears to rip open the can and remove the marbles and drop them in with paint I just decanted to assist with mixing it.

Then I guess the question becomes,"how are you decanting it." I can think of no reason that is shouldn't go through your airbrush just fine. On second thought, I suppose it could be a dirty airbrush. A good disassembly and clean, including the seal could be the answer to your problem. Flakes off of old paint clogging the needle.

Very unusual for an issue with clogging the nozzle. I've been doing this for many years(10+) and never had any issue like that. A brief question. Did you shake the can before decanting? Could be settled paint from the bottom of the can. Regardless, thinning it properly and mixing it well should solve the issue. I always decant an entire can at one time. This allows me to put a little lacquer thinner in the can to get every last drop out. Oh, and by the way, a 46ml Tamiya paint mixing jar will hold exactly the contents of one Tamiya can.

For those decanting the rattle cans, Tamiya sells a "paint mixing jar 46" which is perfect for the job. It holds one rattle can exactly and seals well enough to keep the paint usable for a very long time. I have several jars that are years old. They may need a drop or two of thinner after they sit for while, but the paint is still as usable as the when it first came out of the can.

https://ipmsusa.org/sites/default/files/2023_ipms-usa_national_contest_rules.pdf Pages 5 and 6.

After 7 years of politicking, proding and cajoling, the auto categories have true definitions for each category. You have no idea about how happy this makes me! IPMS owes the group that wrote them seven years ago, a big thank you!

Ultimate Rat Rod! Very nice. I especially like the license plates reinforcing the door! That is a stunner!