Profil 24 1/24 Maserati 450S

[Brandy]

Nice work on the suspension. They knew how to make beautiful sound back then, didn't they? Second only to a Merlin.......

Ian

[PC2012]

Thanks again everyone for all your comments and input. Codger, thanks for the link. I loved your GT-40, absolutely gorgeous. I don't want mine quite as dirty as yours but just as real looking (hopefully). So, I've promed the main frame, front suspension and parts and the gearbox. I also built one wheel (well almost, it's drying now) because I didn't trust the lenth of the pins that hold the wheel in place so I wanted to test the fit. I used the spare wheel which has half the tyre cut off, so it fits in the boot. The rims are lovely but a bit too shiney for me, so I'll spray some clear acryilic matt on them to tone them down a bit for a a more (in my opinion) realistic appearence.

I need some help again I'm afraid. I was going to paint all the parts above (apart from gearbox) in either a dark grey gloss or alclad steel..... what do you think?

[triumphfan]

I would go with gloss grey for the frame. I don't think I have ever seen a chassis frame in bare metal and I go to a few vintage race events each year. Also, it makes a nice contrast to have different coloured parts under the skin. I have seen a lot of car models where everything under the body is painted aluminium which looks a bit strange imo.

Steve.

[PC2012]

Thanks Steve, I was thinking the same thing. I wuldn't have thought it would be left as bare metal. I'll do the brake drums either alclad steel or exhaust manifold.I found another couple of pics. I love the exhaust color. I'll try and emulate that

[PC2012]

One wheel done. I put it in a full tyre to see what it looked like. I'll play around with some paint, so I'll know what to do with the others... thanks for looking..

[triumphfan]

I had a look at some google pics and they seem to show both grey and silver chassis/frame tubing. The silver was obviously a paint finish, only detailed pics were of restored cars so I guess you could do whatever takes your fancy.

I have this in my stash to build but the front suspension frame is not as poorly cast as your example. I wonder if this particular mould wore out quickly?

I am going to have to try hard to achieve the standard set by your build so far

[Codger]

Beautiful work on the parts and the wheels PC. I'd do the chassis either gunmetal gray or matte black-(all Ferrari chassis were flat black in that era) and the mechanicals like gear box in steel with thin brown / black washes. Dry brush the bolt heads and fins with a touch of silver or Rub 'N Buff.

To tone down the ally-colored exhaust use khaki or sand craft paint. Heavier at the ports and bends, thinner in the middles. Looks heated but not rusted.

[PC2012]

Thanks again for the feedback. I think I agree with you codger, although if you look at the pics of the car above. It looks as though at least some of the frame (you can just see it under the door) is light colour. Although that me be because it's a replica (or I assume it is). Don't worry about the exhausts. I know it sounds a little sad, but they are one of my favorite parts to paint on a aircraft Here is a pic of the WIP of my last build, a 1/32 Spitfire. I spent a long time trying to get the exhaust right.....

[Codger]

I think I agree with you codger, although if you look at the pics of the car above. It looks as though at least some of the frame (you can just see it under the door) is light colour.

My chassis is painted gloss black and it reflects the light gray pavement just like that. I think that car's is gloss black or gray and the shine reflects light.

[PC2012]

Excellent - thanks Codger

[toms111s]

I had to double take that the picture of the Spitfire wasn't a real one. The detail and painting are fantastic, I'm sure your Maser will turn out just as nice. Looking forward to seeing more of your work.

[PC2012]

Thank you Toms. Good news, I wrote to Alice at Profil 24 and sent her pictures of the bad mouldings. Basically said I was disappointed that such an expensive kit could be sent in that condition and here was her answer...

I'm sorry for your disappointed.
But no problem, we can send to you new pieces.
Thanks to send to us an email with the wrong pieces and in back, I send it to you.
No need to spend hours trying to make them better: we are here :-)

Best regards
Alice

So I thought that's fair enough So I'm going to get some other parts prepped and wait for the new parts to turn up. Hopefully they will be good to go with little prep. I also managed to drop my rage airbrush straight on it's nose (it's my acrylic brush) and it's damaged the needle beyond repair. Never mind I didn't like it anyway.it's always giving me trouble. So in the meantime I'll order a new needle and my lovely wife is going to buy me a new Iwata brush for Christmas.....

[PC2012]

Small update. I received lots of replacement parts for the Maserati, so I can carry on with the build now. I must say, Profil 24 models may be expensive but their service is sublime. Alice at Profil couldn't be more helpful, she asked for a full list of parts that i would like replaced fee of charge and with free postage. What major manufacturer would do that? See the parts below.....

[ptcruiser]

Having met both Alice and Jean-Philip at the home/workshop I can only reinforce your comments PC. Very nice people indeed.

Rich

[Codger]

Those suspension bits look far more like it PC. I know you'll make them sparkle in there.

[PC2012]

Thanks Codger, well I hope so. I think i'm going to need your advice on how to paint the body shell though .. lol. I f you don't mind. I would really like to get the finish that you have on your builds. Awesome paintwork BTW. I'm in two minds, the two pack route or enamel and polish. I've only ever used decanted gloss tamiya paint. I have no idea how to do anything else. How am I going to get that lovely subtle red for the bodywork?

[Codger]

Thanks Codger, well I hope so. I think i'm going to need your advice on how to paint the body shell though .. lol. I f you don't mind. I would really like to get the finish that you have on your builds. Awesome paintwork BTW. I'm in two minds, the two pack route or enamel and polish. I've only ever used decanted gloss tamiya paint. I have no idea how to do anything else. How am I going to get that lovely subtle red for the bodywork?

First off PC, you give me too much credit for paint. I ain't that good...

But here's what's worked well for me.

Sadly, I have NO 2 part experience as others such as Steve Noble do-so if you lean that way, get with Steve or other experienced 2-parters.

The most successful enamel finish I've done is the British Green Gullwing seen in my older WIP. There are many caveats to that method however.

First, prep to the death. Clean that resin within an inch of YOUR life. Get the surface to about 600 grit. I used Tamiya Fine White primer, 2coats, sanded between with 1200 grit. You just want enough for coverage. If you have putty patches, coat the shell with Future as an effective barrier, then the prime.

I was going to decant that green for AB but testing revealed I had good nozzles on the Testors Model Master cans so I went with that. Keep cans in pot of warm tap water between coats. Go from mists to deep colour- don't rush and squirt the final finish as the first coat. Waste a day between coats and rub with 1200 or 2000 grit; wet, warm and with a drop of dish soap (we have 'Dawn' over here) between coats for 'Oh Gawd' finishes. Follow your paint mfgrs recommendation for time between coats, don't spray on humid days and dry with a larger box over top but the bottom edges getting some air. A food dehydrator is better. I sometimes use my sedan, parked in the sunny driveway as drying chamber and it easily gets up to 105 Deg. F. OK so I'm wacky...

Get as much gloss and smoothness from shooting enamel as you can, then leave it alone for 3 weeks to dry out.

At that point I rub it with Micro Mesh cloths from 2400 to 12,000 grit. Start with a lighter grit (maybe 3600) and go back one or two in coarseness if needed. But use them all. In a sink full of warm water with generous dish soap; you keep the cloths from clogging and scratching that way.

At this point it should look like diamond and reflected light from a fluorescent should be a perfect reflection and hurt your eyes. Now use your favorite 1:1 CARNUBA (not silicone) wax. Exhausted yet?

Having said all of that-my weapon of choice is lacquer. You can coat thinner, dry faster and repair nibs easier. The Rolls has all Duplicolor 1:1 paint system; gray sandable primer under Toreador Red, and Krylon lacquer (same temp as the Dupli) for the Sweet Cream yellow. That's over Dupli gray primer with a Tammy Fine White mist prime under the cream. Then, all topped with Dupli Clear; two medium coats which were then rubbed to 4000 grit. It will get final polish to 12,000 after I get through building the cursed thing.

Seen here to 4000-reflection not at pain level yet, too much handling still to come:

All paints are compatible, tested on the actual plastic of the kit. Test your stuff on the cut-off blocks of resin you have generated. Your car should have no metallic which is good for those reasons. Metallic is tougher to repair or spot. Do all the same prep as above; the priming, rubbing etc. Takes less time between coats but 1/2 hour or so lets it out-gas sufficiently for recoating.

If you AB, you can get excellent gloss by thinning top coats more and adding %'s of clear to the colour-practice on spoons and plastic soda bottles.

And you can rub lacquer just as above too.

If you want a 1950's finish, don't polish with cloths; leave a trifle of peel and less gloss. If you want our modern (over-)restoration finishes, make it look like candy apple. All of this depends on how patient you are, not how skillful. Just formulate a philosophy first then see it through. Don't rush it; the work you've done so far demands paint excellence to match it.

Speaking of candy; a coat of candy apple red over what you finally select will give you fantastic depth of finish if you keep it subtle. That was the big secret of my 1:1 Cobra; a Cobalt blue base over gold prime, topped by 2 Radiance candy blues. Shhhhhh.

As far as getting the actual paint to use, I have no good knowledge of UK-based paints. If you AB, I'd experiment with mixing some Testors Guards Red with maybe Italian Red to get a deeper red. Again experiment, I use plastic spoons.

A final though if you care to; ScaleFinishes here in the US is owned by a really good chap named Jameson. He literally has hundreds of accurate paint colors for many makes and models and frequently can make up that special colour. He responds well to email.:

http://www.scalefinishes.com/welcome.html

You will probably never ask me a question again.

But I hope you got some of what you needed out of this soap-opera.

Edited December 6, 2014 by Codger

[Brandy]

If he didn't, I certainly did. Very helpful, Codger, thanks!

Ian

[arni]

Codger,that is easily the best paint finish I have seen.Will be learning from you as my paint jobs are hit or miss!

[Codger]

Thank you Ian and Arni-you're very kind. Hope PC thinks so too!

Arni, in my Big Rolls Royce WIP, I will soon be adding the body prep I'm currently doing. It's as basic and vital to any good paintwork as the color itself. Sanding and filling dips and waves right now. Possibly priming if the weather allows but I doubt it now; plenty cold and damp.

Drop in if you care to see how I prep.

Meanwhile, lets watch for PC's methods....

[PC2012]

Hi Codger,

That's just what I was after, fantastic. I really don't mind how long it takes as long as the finish is as I want it to look (One of the things I like about modelling, is that there is no deadline!). I'm a long way off though, so in the meantime I'll watch your build and contact the site (link) you gave me and see if they can match the colour. I'm just prepping all the suspension parts at the moment, so I can get some primer on them. I thought your sample picture above looked amazing, I like the way you paint and think it looks more lifelike than the 2 x pak finishes I have seen. All I can say is, if I can get it looking like yours, I'll be a happy bunny. BTW, you say 'I'm ain't that good'. Well thats a matter of opinion... as well as myself I'm sure many others would disagree. Thanks again for all your help. I'll post some pics soon

[toms111s]

Have you looked on www.hiroboy.com for paint?

They sell 2 part paint but there are good instructions on the site for how to get the best results. I've used quite a bit of their Zero Paint range for various projects and have always had excellent results. The best thing is they are ready thinned for airbrushing which makes life a lot easier.

[roymattblack]

I'm all for trying to get accurate colours etc, but have you tried good old Halfords?

They will mix rattle cans to EXACTLY what you want.

I always use these cans now, and the finish isn't too bad:

This is my D Type with 3-4 primer coats and 4 top coats.

All from rattle cans.

It hasn't had a final polish yet.

Roy.

[PC2012]

Sorry I haven't posted for so long, Things have been tough for a few weeks. Roymattblack - thanks for the update on Halfords, when I'm ready to paint the main coat I'll give them a go. I've done a small amount but last night when I glued the rad to the frame, the engine looked as though it was leaning to one side. I've cut with a saw one side of the rad and one side of the engine mount, so I will see if I can get it right. Will try and post later in the week. In the meantime... it sort of looks like this now....

Just test fitting the body.........................

[shood23]

Very nice i love the look of these old cars industrial looking frames (compared to racing car now that is)

Shaun