M_Sinclair Posted May 8 Share Posted May 8 (edited) Been a couple years since I last posted on this site. Nice to be back. I finished this Revell 1970 Plymouth Cuda AAR last summer but only just the other day finally got around to taking the final photos. I rarely build car models of any sort but I'd wanted to add a classic 70's muscle car to my collection for a couple decades now. I quite randomly came across a photo of a beautifully restored 1970 Cuda AAR in blue fire metallic and that proved to be the spark to make this finally happen. The kit is predominantly stock with only a few modifications here and there. This was my first time using Tamiya lacquers I was really amazed just how smooth they spray. I simply eye balled a mix of Tamiya metallic blue and silver until it looked right. This was my first time using Bare Metal Foil for what it's actually meant for, chrome trim on cars. I also used Molotow chrome for areas I didn't want to use BMF. Some parts like the bumpers I decanted and airbrushed the Molotow. Others, like the fine trim within the grille, I applied with a 1mm Molotow pen. This was meant to be a fun and relatively straight forward build and that generally proved to be the case. The only area I thought would be fun to spend a little extra time would be on the distinctive black stripes down the length of the car. I knew I didn't want to simply use the kit decals. The real car would have shiny gloss paint but the stripes are matte black. If I used the decals they would simply wind up getting covered by clear gloss to seal them. Or I could elect not to clear coat them but the clear carrier film would again affect the finish and not replicate the look of the real car. Once the blue paint was on, sanded smooth and given a couple coats of clear gloss, I applied the decals I'd planned to use. This included the AAR graphics on the rear flanks. These decals were also cleared over and the whole car body polished. 20230502_152014 by _m_sinclair, on Flickr The large solid black areas were masked and painted. I was fearful of how well the paint would adhere to such a smooth surface but thankfully virtually no paint lifted off after removing all the masking. 20230502_174127 by _m_sinclair, on Flickr I had scanned the decals and then traced each individual stripe one using Silhouette's software. I used my Silhouette Portrait 2 to cut the vertical stripes into vinyl. The overall shape was cut into kabuki style masking tape. The AAR graphics were covered over with clear tape (sticky side out, just in case) to both protect them but still let me see them so I could align my masks correctly. 20230506_181528 by _m_sinclair, on Flickr 20230506_182635 by _m_sinclair, on Flickr 20230506_183422 by _m_sinclair, on Flickr 20230506_183516 by _m_sinclair, on Flickr Once the overall outline mask had been applied and lined up to my liking, I added the vinyl masks for the vertical stripes. 20230506_190838 by _m_sinclair, on Flickr 20230506_193255 by _m_sinclair, on Flickr The stripes certainly aren't perfect. There was some overspray here and there which I removed with very small amounts of Tamiya thinner on a fine brush and very gently wiping the affected areas. But overall I'm really happy with the overall look. I find it really satisfying I got that correct look of the shine from the gloss paint sort of poking in between the matte stripes. 20230507_114344 by _m_sinclair, on Flickr 20230507_114507 by _m_sinclair, on Flickr I live in Manitoba, Canada so was really happy to find 1/25 scale Manitoba plates for 1970 on eBay. My biggest blunder was definitely the rear window. The car body had been placed upside down and I adhered the window to the body with small amounts of five minute epoxy. After what felt like sufficient time for the glue to harden, I placed the body right side up. Except the glue had not fully cured and I discovered shortly after that one corner of the rear window had sagged ever so slightly resulting in a small gap in the top right corner between the window and car body. Removing the window would have destroyed it and I had already gotten a replacement front windshield (I had managed to seriously crack it which was entirely my fault) and so didn't want to have to wait again for a replacement. I simply chose to accept this defect and keep moving forwards. The exhausts were hollowed out and a styrene brace added inside based on what I'd seen in photos of the actual car. There were a few other additions and modifications but nothing crazy. So while the car has plenty of warts I'm overall really happy with how it turned out. She really sparkles next to all the olive drab and muted grey that fills the rest of my display case. Finished model photos were all taken with my new camera, the very impressive Ricoh GRIII Street Edition. Although I didn't use this technique for every photo here, this was the first time I've played with image stacking to get more of the model in focus. It was really easy to do and definitely something I plan to use again! 20240505MS000023-Edit by _m_sinclair, on Flickr 20240505-MS000037-Edit by _m_sinclair, on Flickr 20240505-MS000040 by _m_sinclair, on Flickr 20240505-MS000048-Edit by _m_sinclair, on Flickr 20240505-MS000058 by _m_sinclair, on Flickr 20240505-MS000079 by _m_sinclair, on Flickr 20240505-MS000059 by _m_sinclair, on Flickr 20240505-MS000117 by _m_sinclair, on Flickr 20240505-MS000123 by _m_sinclair, on Flickr 20240505-MS000098 by _m_sinclair, on Flickr 20240505-MS000107 by _m_sinclair, on Flickr 20240505-MS000163-Edit by _m_sinclair, on Flickr 20240505-MS000166-Edit by _m_sinclair, on Flickr 20240505-MS000226-Edit by _m_sinclair, on Flickr 20240506-MS000231-Edit by _m_sinclair, on Flickr 20240505-MS000148 by _m_sinclair, on Flickr 20240505-MS000145 by _m_sinclair, on Flickr 20240505-MS000144 by _m_sinclair, on Flickr MS000153 by _m_sinclair, on Flickr Thanks for looking! -Matt Edited May 8 by M_Sinclair 27 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alpha Delta 210 Posted May 8 Share Posted May 8 Gorgeous colour and the side stripes are fantastic! Great result! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Farmer matt Posted May 8 Share Posted May 8 Wow! That's some masking job. Well worth the effort though, looks fantastic. Matt 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JeroenS Posted May 8 Share Posted May 8 Yeah, that's awesome! Fantastic jobs on those stripes, they look the part. Very nice photos too! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neddy Posted May 8 Share Posted May 8 Beautifully executed paint job, amazing finish! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toftdale Posted May 8 Share Posted May 8 Ingenious masking, she looks fantastic - Andy 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spiny Posted May 8 Share Posted May 8 Very nice. I don't envy you all that masking for the stripes, but the end definitely justifies the means. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
triumphfan Posted May 8 Share Posted May 8 Lovely job. Great tip on the reverse clear tape for masking. Atb, Steve. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vesa Jussila Posted May 8 Share Posted May 8 I like this. Really smart looking. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
M_Sinclair Posted May 8 Author Share Posted May 8 Thank you all very much! Really appreciate all the positive feedback! -Matt Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dnl42 Posted May 8 Share Posted May 8 Dude, that is outstanding! Love that stripe, very well executed. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pete in Lincs Posted May 9 Share Posted May 9 Looking fabulous, Matt. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clashcityrocker Posted May 9 Share Posted May 9 Showroom finish. A masterclass in masking. Nigel 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mral47 Posted May 9 Share Posted May 9 Thats really good. Magnificent masking and paint. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keefr22 Posted May 9 Share Posted May 9 Welcome back Matt, and what an absolutely stunning return! That is a simply beautiful model, gorgeous paintjob in a colour that really suits the car - and the masking work on the stripes is brilliant! I'm working on a model of an Escort Sport I once owned and that should have matt black stripes on the orange body, but I have neither the patience or skill to do what you have so the decals will be clearcoated with the rest! Really superb Cuda! Keith 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
M_Sinclair Posted May 11 Author Share Posted May 11 Thank you all very very much. It's lovely to be back and I couldn't have hoped for warmer welcome. I have more to share and I'll try to get around to posting a bit more regularly. Including updates on my M4 Sherman some folks may or may not remember from a couple years back that has made a fair bit of progress since I last posted about it. Cheers! -Matt 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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