Looks great Matt , I can't wait . I have three VO1000s waiting. On another note; perhaps someone can help me figure out why my paint isn't drying on my ALCo S-2 and S-4s. I primed them with Floquil grey primer, did some light sanding on the carbody and sprayed the locomotive with Scalecoat 2 milwaukee orange paint. Its been a week and the paint is still tacky. My results with Scalecoat 1 paint wasn't much better. I use the Scalecoat mostly because the colors look correct for my tastes. Randy
I've heard rumors of that sort of thing (tacky paint) happening before but unfortunately not much of a consensus as to why. I wish I could offer more help but I've only ever used Pollyscale acrylics...
Acrylics here too. I think solvent-based paint could be reacting to the composition of the FUD, and either preventing a "curing" of the paint or possibly something in the paint is eating the FUD causing it to breakdown (preventing paint cure). I avoided solvent paint because I didn't want to ruin my FUD..... hope you haven't. In fact, for the FUD Acrylic seems to leech into the plastic, and bite the surface so well it's almost impossible to remove! Makes brush-painting come out very, very well. Maybe strip your floquil and try the Pollyscale? EDIT- Post # 666. Odd day so far, this isn't helping.... but I'm not superstitious!
For what it's worth - I've managed to strip the spray can primer that I use off of FUD with acetone and an old toothbrush. It wasn't perfect, but it removed about 80% of the primer I'd guess. I then repainted the models - it seemed to work well. Hopefully it won't come to that for you though...
Hey Randy, I had a similar problem with some CB&Q FUD truck frames that I ordered a coupla months ago. My take was that I had not properly removed the waxy support residue from them, so I made sure that I soaked them overnight in Bestine before I painted my next pair. I've painted them with acrylics, Testors enamels, and whatever Krylon Cammo Black is, and now the paint dries hard and flat. I believe the waxy residue from the support structure is more difficult to remove than we've been led to believe...at least it was for me. Your stripping with Acetone probably got the residue gone for good...that's why your new paint job "took". Cheers!! Bob Gilmore
you might be on to something , I never soaked them in Bestine , I just used the bestine to scrub them , next batch (FMs) I'll soak them over night . The paint did dry to a hard finish after all , they look pretty decent.
Randy - Good to hear that the paint dried up! A long soak in Bestine is really what I recommend for cleaning - I usually let them soak for 8+ hours.
Bestine is heptane (well, mostly heptane). It's the smelly part of rubber cement and is usually used as a rubber cement thinner. You can find it at craft and "scrap-booking" type stores. It's nasty stuff, but it gets the job done. I keep mine in a well sealed jar.
I soak my prints in this: One hour soak, lightly brush the sides with a soft brush, rinse with water and you're done. No fumes, costs about $3 a gallon at Walmart. It's basically highly concentrated Dawn detergent. You still want to wear gloves and eye pro.
I also took the plunge and ordered an H-10-44 kit this morning. Now, the tough decision: Milwaukee or C&NW?
That would be a tough one ... you can always order another one so I think a coin toss will work. Mine will both be Milw. Randy
And with that (after far too many delays) both the H-10-44 and H-12-44 are available! -Note: this sample sits higher on the mechanism than the "production version" - but it should still give the general idea... A few quick tips regarding assembly: 1) I tried to make the fit between the shell and the mechanism as tight as possible (so that it will snugly press-fit in place). That said, if the fit is too tight, I would recommend lightly filing down the spacers at either end (it should be clear what I am talking about once you have the model in hand). There's no need to go crazy though: a few scale inches should do the trick. 2) The cab interior is awesome, but the fit is also very snug. The best way to remove it is to push (through the rear windows with tweezers) on the vertical bulkhead above the console and seats; this causes the entire interior to rotate forward and eventually wiggle loose. Also, as I mentioned on Shapeways, the decoder board's rear LED interferes with the interior, so it will either need to be replaced or removed (it's no where near the reverse light anyway). As always please feed free to give me feedback on my design!
And kudos for being so on your game! haha They weren't available until late yesterday evening... Thanks as always!
I ordered three. It appears that entreprenuers like Matt Myers will be the ones to turn to for the less ubiquitous locomotives and rolling stock many of us are clamoring for from the mainsteam manufacturers. With this purchase I'm voting for your success Matt. Bring on the VO-660 so I can round out my D&RGW roster!
