tips


Let me preface this with a disclaimer, I am NOT a Pro at customizing. I am just getting started on this venture myself. Therefore, if you get a conflicting tip from what I have given you please, do not hold it against me, like I said I can only state what I have learned from others or on my own, well enough of that --- LETS GET STARTED

1) The first thing you need to do is make sure you have one of the most important tools you will need to get started. The tool I am refering to is a Dremel Tool ( or other small hand drill), Almost everyone whom I have spoken to uses one of these. I personaly use a Sears Craftsman model. You will need this to do several things, You will need it to do cutting, drilling, grinding, and polishing. You will also probably find many other uses for it once you begin to use it.

2) The second thing some people will disagree on me with but, like I said in the begining, this is just what I use, this is an Airbrush, I will tell you this, DON"T buy the cheap Testors Airbrush, It is NOT worth it, believe me I tried it. I also dont expect you to go and buy a top of the line airbrush. I purchased a BADGER MODEL 175 CRESHENDO, Its a real nice brush. It cost me roughly 100.00, you will have to shop around and see what you like, also if you are able to afford it, get a dual action airbrush, it really works better

3) Last of all, again it costs a few dollars , but again worth it, try and invest in a compressor, all you need is a small hobby one. Cost is again about 100.00. The way I saw it, was once you buy it once, you shouldnt have to buy anything major for a long time.

4) Your going to need paint stripper, I use a generic brand that I get at Wal Mart, its called Kleen Strip Premium Stripper It works pretty good, cost is like 6.00 per can.

5) Next is the Paint, I have been using Testors BOYDS PAINT, they are pretty good, not cheap, roughly 2.00 a 1 oz. bottle, you must thin this paint with thinner for use in the airbrush. In time I am going to go to my local Auto Body Store and get some actual automotive paint, I have heard its much cheaper. I just like alot of the colors BOYDS make. I also have been using BOYDS clearcoat, I have found that you can use any primer, I have been using KRYLON. It works just fine.

	GETTING STARTED

1) First what you want to do is pick the car you want to customize, if you want to try and get the car out of the blister without damaging it so you can out it back in the package, try the following: get some lighter fluid, turn the package over so the back is facing you, soak the cardboard with the fluid, let it sit for like 5 min. or so turn it back over and attempt to peal the blister off the cardboard. start with a corner first, if it is ready it will somewhat come off easily, if it starts to tear, STOP, add more lighter fluid and then try again. Try not to take the whole blister off the cardboard , it will be harder to re-attach later on, try and get the car out with the least amount of seperation. I will go over re-attaching the blister later on .

2)Next you have to get a 11/64 drill bit, I use a Bullet Point so the drill doesnt (walk) on you. Using a drill at low speed drill both rivits on the bottom of the car (unless it just has one rivit) DONT DRILL to far , just enough to get the head of the rivit off. Then using a small screw driver pry the body apart, be careful not to damage any part of the casting or the bottom of the car. Once you have the car apart, take all the pieces and keep them in a safe spot.

3) Next, grind off the the excess of the "posts" ind get them nice and flat, grind them down far enough so the body meets the frame when you put it back together with no resistance. Then you will need to get a # 40 drill bit, (I am in the process of finding a supplier for these and the # 40 Rivits) I will post on my page when I have them. Take your drill with the # 40 bit and drill the post down far enough for the rivit to slide into, go slow, the casting is very soft metal and gets extremly hot and if you dont take your time , you will not be able to driil sraight down into the post.

4) Next, using your paint sripper, strip the car, I use a glass Pyrex dish and pour the stripper in, then drop the cars in. Allow all the paint to come off, some cars will be harder to strip than others, once the paint is off wash the cars off and then put then into some Dantured Alcohol, this stops the chemicals in the stripper from working. Then wash your car off with water.

5) What I do next is take my dremel and gring out any imperfections and also use the wire wheel to remove any excess paint that may have not been stripped off, make sure you get your casting in the best condition possible because belive me you will see the imperfections through your paint.

6) Next is the priming stage, like I said I use just Krylon Primer, Either Grey or White, depending on what color you use, you will see a different final color of your paint when you apply your paint, if you use a grey primer your color of your car will tend to come out a little darker than if you used a white primer, I use both, I like to use white if I am using a light color like Yellow , White or any Light color Metal Flake.

7) After you are done priming, lightly wet sand your car, make sure all the little imperfections are out, if not re-sand or re-grind the car untill your happy, then re-prime.

8) What I like to do after I have gotten all my paint equipment ready , I take an automotive TAC Cloth and wipe the car down, this takes any excess dust and particles off the car just before I am ready to paint. Heres a little item that may be of intrest to you, I bought 5 alligator clips and mounted them to 12in. pcs of steel rod and made them into a post that would connect to the cars post then drilled a pc. of 1 x 6 pine the same dimension of the steel rod so I could set the rod in the wood so I could paint the cars and also take the rod out and get to the underside of the car and paint that as well, it works real well.

		PAINTING

1) The next step is choosing the paint you are going to use, like I said in the begining, I have been using Testors Boyds Paints, they make alot of cool colors and most hobby stores carry them. Make sure you thin the paints, I really can't give you any help on this because it takes alot of practice getting the correct consistency. I can pass on one item of information that a fellow airbrusher gave me, he told me to make the paint consistency the same as MILK,(like the kind you drink). I have been following that practice and it seems to be working.

2) When you start to paint, keep your pressure on the compressor around 19-22 pds of pressure, that is what most airbrushers recommend. Start by applying very light coats of paint, dont try to put alot on at one time, it will "run". If you use light coats they should dry very quickly, apply them till the car is completely covered to your satisfaction, make sure you do the underside too!!! When you are done, make sure you allow the car to dry in an area you think will have the least amount of chance for dust to get on it. Please make sure you allow the car to dry, this is very important to the final outcome of the car.

3) The next step is to apply any decals you may want to, I have done a few different things, mostly I purchase them from a Company called HOT HEADZ, the guy who owns it is Todd Hoffman, he is a super guy and makes decals for quite a few different cars, (see my LINKS Page for the link to Hot Headz, check it out). the Quality of the decals is superb! Applying decals is not an easy task, What I do is spray the car with water so I can move the decal around once I put it on the car,then just wipe off the excess water and the decal will be all set. Use your imagination for the decals !!!!!

4) When that is done and you are happy, it is now time to clear coat the car, again, I use BOYDS CLEAR COAT, It works just fine. This is just like painting, use light coats and as many as you like. Don't go nuts, I use roughly 4 to 5and it gives that "I can see myself" look. I can't stress enough that this all takes practice, dont get frustrated it all takes time.

5) Last of all in this section I want to tell you how I re-attach the body to the frame, Let me remind you one more time, make sure the car is DRY, If the clear coat is not dry, you will leave finger prints and then all your hard work has been destroyed. What I do is I use a # 40 Aluminum rivit and a 1/8 in. head rivit gun. Make sure you use a tapered head Rivit gun or sometimes you will not be able to get the head of the gun into the place to make a tight fit. Be careful when you rivit the car back together, hold onto it tight when you actually set the rivit. Thats about it, your done !!!!! Take some time and set back and enjoy it, you worked hard.

6) The one final thing is getting the car back in the blister, just slide the car back in, and what I do is use a Elmers Glue Stick and a tooth pick, I just take the glue and apply it to the cardboard where the blister meets it and the set blister back on it, wipe off all excess and then put something heavy on it for like 12 hrs or so to keep it secure, JUST LIKE NEW !!!!!!