Kranman
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Posts posted by Kranman
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Over the years, I've embraced the Alclad line of metallic finishes. A few of them demand gloss black as an undercoat - chrome, for example - to achieve a high gloss finish. It occurred to me if I use different undercoats, for example, gloss green, flat black or grey, even a yellow, different sheens, finishes, and effects could be obtained using only one or two Alclad colors.
I wondered if anyone else may have considered this approach. I have some older, inbuilt kits that may be my guinea pigs on this. Just wondering if anyone else considered my wacky proposal...
Frank
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Ugh. Richard, if what you say is true, it's like watching the old Mission Impossible series when the recording self-destructs in the beginning of each show. While I have quite a few bottles with old dates (I date everything I buy), there is a good number of recent purchases I've made. While I have had one or two bottles dry up on me over time, I will watch the newer bottles closely.
The secretary will disavow any of my cuss words.
Grrrrr...
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I've been acutely aware of Model Master's slow death for some time now. While I don't 'love' MM's paints (where I did 'love' Floquil's military line), I get them to work very well and get good results from them. Over the past months, I've been assembling the current lineup of every color available from MM. I now lack two that will complete my collection. Before you ask, my reasoning was that I was well over half, so owning the whole range was not that difficult or expensive.
It's frustrating seeing this trend. As an enamel and lacquer user (don't even ask me about my Floquil collection!), the choices are getting narrower by the month. I covet the paint I have and wonder aloud what think tank made the decision to fritter-away a popular, widely available, and good selling American brand. RPM/Rustoleum has proven they do not want to support the hobby. As MM was really my only choice after RPM bought and killed Floquil, I presumed MM would continue on strongly. That, alas, was an incorrect presumption.
I've got enough paint to finish hundreds of models, so I'm good. It's a cleaner, more environmentally friendly world for the future - at least that's what they're shooting for, I suppose. Now, where's my lacquer thinner?
Frank
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Gil, are you still able to source Floquil Old or Bright Silvers? I've got a couple bottles I guard like a hoarder and wondered if they're still available.
Beautiful work on the B-66! I have a couple Collect-Aire kits that I have to get around to building. You're inspiring me!
Frank
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Usually, I use blue painter's tape that I have "de-stickyfied" by applying it to fabric (jeans, sweatshirt, etc.) so it sticks, just not so well. This will also work with Tamiya tape. While Alclad is a pretty tough finish (in my experiences), I treat it carefully. Using tape with less tack helps immensely. Hope this helps you!
Frank
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I have a question on cancelling a room reservation: Is there a waiting list or pool it will return to?
It looks increasingly bad for my attendance as I'll be moving my son to Baltimore that weekend and I did not want to just cancel my reservation without checking to see if any mechanism was in place to accommodate another member. And, will the room still carry the discounted rate for someone in line to book it?
Many thanks!
Frank
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Just throwing it out there - would you consider CO2? I've been using it for years now and like it a lot.
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Clare is a man after my own heart... I've got several hundred bottles of Model Master enamels and I hoard old Floquil Military paints like a miser. I also use lacquer thinner most of the time. I have a few bottles of acrylic I use for some applications where I need the different combinations to avoid one paint attacking the other. I'm a Badger guy, currently using the Krome model to good effect, powered by several CO2 bottles.
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Indeed, it's not a wax but a finish, like a polyurethane finish you'd use on woodwork. Future (or whatever name it's currently been given), is a pigment-less finish. It cleans up easily, is easy to use/apply, is very forgiving, and can double as a decal setting agent, a windshield/canopy adhesive, etc.
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Um, wow. This disappoints me to no end. First RPM bought and killed Floquil's military line (which was my go-to brand) and now it seems to be killing off Testors (which replaced Floquil for me). What's an enamel paint enthusiast to do?
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I've tried Perfect Plastic Putty and can concur with Nick - it works and cleans up very well. Wing roots are an obvious strong candidate for its use. The reason I got it was a recommendation on Track Link for its use as Zimmerit. I see it as Ralph says, "another tool in the toolbox." I'm very partial to NitroStan glazing putty but the Mr. Surfacers will clean up/smooth out with denatured alcohol to my satisfaction. I've not yet embraced acrylic paints and fillers yet as my spray booth works very well for removing fumes. Still, PPP has made strides in winning me over.
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Here are two shots of a kit I thought would never get built. Several chapter members kicked-around the idea of a 'throwback build' and we chose kits offered prior to 1979. I have gotten a little more done since these pics were taken; the engine is installed and I've added some varying metallic finishes to different parts. Body colors are Model Master enamels, Classic Black and Imperial Japanese Army Navy Green.
I'll post more as practical... This is one big model for 1/24th scale. And for only seating four, this is a really big car!
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A couple points if I may, as I'm the one who started this whole thing...
Dave Morrissette, the number we're talking about is the number of IPMS entrants in the contest, not the registrants nor the entries of models. That number could then be used to weigh how many entrants, less the number of banquet attendees, are denied (in some manner) access to the awards ceremony.
Secondly, my disappointment in this is limited to the fact that one number cannot be pulled from our convention data. It stems from my fairly commonsense (to me) notion that we, as a society, hold a yearly convention yet we cannot ascertain how many entrants participate in the contest portion of the convention. With all the mincing of data I see from the yearly breakdowns IPMS/USA provides in their convention activities, this should be a number that should have been kept from day one, so it's not really a knock against the Columbus folks, Ron Bell, please do not take it as a reflection on the whole of the convention. I and the guys I was with had a great time. The fact we do not track that number puzzles me.
Third, while the vast majority of banquet-goers are probably IPMS members, how many dine with their spouses - who may or may not be members? That would skew the numbers of members attending as well.
If we're trying to find out how many members in attendance are shut-out of the awards ceremony due to unwillingness/inability to pay for or unavailability of banquet tickets, that number of entrants in the contest is required.
I simply reiterate the fact that several dozen IPMS members and contest entrants were sititng in the corridors in Columbus, trying to catch a glimpse of the ceremony. This, I find, is wholly unacceptable. Not surprisingly, I agree with Paul Cotcher and Mike Moore in their assessment that a member and contest entrant in good standing and in attendance, should be afforded a seat at the awards ceremony, banquet notwithstanding.
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Well, this is even more disappointing that I first thought. For a national organization to be unable to tell how many members attended their national convention's contest seems very strange to me. I had the thought it would be a number that would have been tracked all along.
Getting back to the Columbus awards ceremony, all I can say is there were dozens sitting in chairs and standing at the doorways during and scores waiting in the prefunction area outside the model room afterwards. Until real numbers can be associated with these members, it'll have to remain subjective; e.g., 'dozens' or 'scores' of members.
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I{ believe we cut off the banquet at 300. Unfortunately, we don't have the number of entrants. Entries, yes, entrants, no. I suppose we could count them and filter the family members, but quite frankly, I don't think that's going to happen, at least not for a while as we're all pretty tired of convention "stuff" at the moment.
Well, this is a bit disheartening. If we cannot have this information to make comparatives, we're not going anywhere with the discussion. Ron, are you saying you cannot provide a number of how many IPMS members participated in this year's contest? I just expected that would be a fairly available number.
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I suggest that instead of posting all this on a Forum topic that at this point can't change anything, that those with a concern in this area contact the organizers of next year's convention in Columbia. They have the ability to make changes if needed, Columbus does not. I was told their web site will go up in September. I'm sure they will have contact info there.
Instead of posting to next year's convention's website, can anything be done on a level where every member will be able to participate in the awards ceremony? I think if you handle it on a year-by-year basis, that doesn't address the issue. If the C&BLs already mandate there be an awards ceremony, this member feels that event should be made available to all members in attendance. As others have mentioned, the banquet is all well and good but... A: Not all members choose to attend it and B: Not all members may be allowed to attend it (limited attendance). And, since the banquet and awards ceremony have been morphed into one event, perhaps some allowance should be made to those members withing to attend the latter.
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Mike -
I completely get it that there'll always be a cost associated with all these things; I work at a university and see CCTV setups on campus from time to time there. Even our IT department gets reimbursed for their efforts...
I'm in no way looking for heads to roll on this - I've been to many regionals where those who were not partaking in the banquet were present at the awards portion of the evening. I'm just trying to bring light to the fact that convention participants, like me, were essentially shut out of the ceremony. I completely agree and understand that venues are all different, requirements change and options are sometimes limited (fiscally, technologically, and otherwise).
What I'd like is for an option to be provided because, as you stated above, just because that's the way it's been needn't mean that's the way it should remain. When I can Skype my brother in Tennessee from Pennsylvania, it's not a huge leap to think we can provide something akin to that to the next room over. Then, more *members* can participate in the whole event.
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While I can see the points being made, the question begs answering is, then, how many banquet tickets went unsold? If the banquet was sold out, there are still attendees - IPMS-USA members - who were shut out with no alternative than to sit in the corridor or go elsewhere.
This is not an inclusive event and I respectfully disagree with Michael's assessment that any member who participated in every other aspect of the convention, be compelled to buy a banquet ticket to witness the awards ceremony. Even the schedule had three distinct events listed and please feel free to correct me if needed:
Cash Bar @ 5:00PM
Banquet @ 6:00PM
Awards Ceremony @ 7:00PM.
Ron, can you offer what estimates you received for setting up a closed-circuit link to quantify "prohibitively expensive"? And, why couldn't the Fayette Room (IIRC) have been used as it was already set up and used for seminars?
As I may have stated, this is only my second Nats I've attended. I can only presume this situation has presented itself before and if it has, I again state we can do better.
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So, what extra cost would it have been to set up a CC camera and broadcast the awards to, say, the Fayette Room that was used for the seminars? I stayed four nights at the Hyatt, so I helped with the room nights for the local chapter. I registered and entered the competition. I (and many others) were left to drift in the corridor? No, I left and went to my room. There were then perhaps 125-150 others waiting outside the ballroom for the banquet attendees so the doors could be opened.
Since this apparently happened before at this venue, I submit we can do better. -
Watching and straining to hear the awards presentation from the corridor outside the banquet room is unacceptable. No consideration to several dozen attendees in this situation is unacceptable. No thought to closed-circuiting the proceedings to another room? Suffice it to say, this is disappointing.
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James, there's been a bit of discussion on various other sites on just how you'd display "Fury" from the movie. In actuality, "Fury" is an M4A2E8 diesel being presented as an M4A3E8. You can certainly kitbash to make the movie version or use the Tasca (now Tamiya) M4A3E8 to depict what actually would have been used in NWE in early 1945. My leaning is to use the Tasca kit. Otherwise, you can use the older Academy M4A2 (Russian) kit as a base, steal the bogies from, say, the older Dragon M4A3 "Easy Eight" release. I don't know where you'd source the T-84 tracks (IIRC, they were T-84s) but I'd imagine they were available in some Sherman kit. And the aftermarket could supply the later turret with the oval loader's hatch.
It shouldn't be too difficult to source the kits I mentioned - they may even have said turret in the box as a spare. Then, pile on the storage - pails, C-Ration boxes, ammo boxes, etc. That should get you close!
Frank
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Thank you, gentlemen! I'm happy with the outcome so far - I hope I don't drop super glue all ofer it getting those pesky periscope cages on. I should've added them well before this but, well, you know. I cannot say enough about the kit, it's that good to build. I'm not much of a competitor but the guys in the club are goading me on so I may enter it in some upcoming show. We'll see. Thanks again!
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Here are the tracks installed. My darkest Alclad was Stainless Steel and it proved to be too bright. I tried some MM Anthracite Grey Metallic but it hardly showed up over the Tamiya black. I washed the tracks with oils and turpenoid again and then dullcoated them with Floquil Dull Lacquer finish. I still have to massage the tracks to where I want them, paint the tail lights and add the two visor cages for the driver/co-driver positions, as well as a few more tweaks but, it's largely done. What a great kit! I'm really impressed. I only imagine what fun surprises will greet me when I roll around to their M32 kit.
Oh, and thanks for the kind comments! It's been a little hiatus for me and getting back in the swing of things wan't too bad. Now, to refill my CO2 cylinders and move on to the next project.
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This is the fabulous Tasca kit - why I shelved it months ago is beyond me. I had a hissy-fit with an Italeri M24 Chaffee last week and ultimately ended up putting it in the trash. I then saw my Jumbo, forlornly sitting in a Sterilite shoe box and got back at it. This is a wonderful kit! The .50 cal. is a kit unto itself, the jerry cans are great and the attention given to the detail on the tank are first-rate.
The photos aren't the best and show up my dry brushing application harshly - it doesn't seem as stark in my hands. Anyway, some dusting effects should lessen that harshness and I've turned my attention to the tracks now. I previously shot them in MM enamel Flat Black but that rubbed off. So, I scrubbed them clean (not a difficult task) and re-shot them Tamiya Gloss Black - that stuff sticks like crazy! I'll probably use a dark shade of Alclad for the metal track connectors and EECs while the rubber portions will be worn and lightened with some dark grey I have in the paint shack.
My applications of color to this point are:
1. MM flat black shade coat (shadow areas, recesses and wheel rubber)
2. MM Olive Drab overall coat
3. MM Faded Olive Drab on horizontal surfaces and under streaked areas (lightly and randomly splotched)
4. Floquil Crystal Coat gloss (for decals - all two of them!)
5. Grumbacher oil + turpenoid wash overall (burnt umber? I can't recall)
6. Mix of Titanium White and Forest Green oils and turpenoid to make a mint green for drybrushing. This was an experiment on my part but I'm happy with the outcome. I thought straight white would be too much and the green tone isn't so stark and complements the OD underneath.
7. Oil pinwashes of varying colors for spills, wear, etc. (tonight)
8. Floquil Flat Finish
I've not done too much with pastels, though I do own some. I'll probably toy around with them as well - sparingly, as my intention isn't to make this model appear worn too much.
ANY and ALL comments are welcome! I'm my own harshest critic so you won't offend me
Natural Metal Finish Question...
in Tools, Tips & Techniques
Posted
Dave, many thanks for that article link! Very helpful, indeed.
Ron, what you illustrate is pretty much what I was thinking of - I can see a variety of sheens, textures, what-have-you for a few of the Alclad products.
Gil, I've come to realize there is a 'tipping point' when using Alclad. Once you reach it, it may be too late. My efforts have been to limit the amount of paint - it's a balancing act, to be sure. One second, you're going along fine and the next, the effect you want is gone. Been there a few times. The latest was on the Monogram Duesenberg SJ; stripped ALL the chrome. Some parts turned out fine, others looked like metal paint. I learned a lot with that model...