When you set out to build model cars you have chosen a hobby that can last a lifetime. With different skill levels available you can enjoy many hours building and customizing. One thing that will make picking up this hobby much easier is to be prepared. The actual preparation may not take much time but it can save you a ton of time in the long run. The first thing you must figure out is exactly what tools and supplies you will need.
If you are going to be doing a good deal of customizing on your model cars then you definitely want to buy a decent hobby knife with a couple different shape blades. A thin one that comes to a rather sharp point is excellent for getting into areas that have a good deal of small spaces. A chisel shaped blade is handy for making long straight cuts when cutting out hoods, doors, and trunks. A normal hobby blade is great for cutting your parts from the parts tree. If you have small children in the house you might consider purchasing a lockable kit so that small hands cannot get to the knife. These are extremely sharp no matter if cutting through plastic or skin.
The next thing you must think about is whether you will be hand painting your model cars or if you will be airbrushing them. If you are going to paint them by hand you should pick your supplies accordingly. A number of brushes and some acrylic cleaner will get you started. Next you need to pick up the paints you would like to use. Acrylic paints stay good for sometime so you might consider picking up a couple small jars and a couple larger ones of your basic colors. The last things you should need are some primer for those models that require it and some rubbing alcohol for the little mistakes that can happen from time to time. If you are airbrushing then you will need a decent airbrush kit that should come with all the parts you need to get started including a small compressor.
Some other supplies that you will find useful in building and detailing your model car are toothpicks for painting extremely small details such as knobs and buttons on the interior, a soft bristle toothbrush for cleaning your parts before you paint or glue them, and wet and dry sandpaper of a very fine grit in case there is a painting error or glue error you need to correct. You should also think about safety equipment. While you may not realize it there is a bit a caution required in dealing with model cars. It is easy when cutting plastic for stray pieces to fly up and catch you in the eye. You should always wear eye protection when cutting and painting your model. Another bit of safety equipment to use is latex gloves. They will protect your hands from paint and from little nicks that may come from handling sharp bits of plastic.
Gather your supplies in a small storage container or even a shoe box so that you will have them all together next time you get ready to build a model car. By spending just a bit of time preparing you will save yourself a good deal of time when it comes to building your next masterpiece.
Many model car fans love to add detail to their cars. From adding custom paint jobs to adding or removing parts that they feel that the car may or may not need, the nice thing about models is being able to customize them as much or as little as you would like. One nice touch is to weather your car so that it looks as if it had actually come off the assembly line back in the forties, fifties or whatever model year it is based on.
One way to do this is to add damage. By doing this you can make your model car appear to have been through the mill and back. There are a few different ways to do this. By using a sharp pointed hobby knife or straight pin you can make simulated bullet holes in the car so it appears to have been shot up. You can also damage bits of the bumper, fender, or wheel wells with your hobby knife so that they appear to have been banged about a good deal. If you have added a cloth top to your model car you can then carefully peel just a little bit loose with the point of your hobby knife to add wear and tear to it. Remember, any damage you do to your vehicle such as this cannot just be undone. Make sure that you are ready for these changes to be permanent.
Another step to weathering your car is to simulate chipping of the paint job. To get this affect you should first paint your model car with a metallic silver color so that it appears to be an actual steel body. On top of this you would apply the paint that you are going to color your car. The only difference will be that you should make sure to miss spots so that the silver can show through. This will make it appear that your car's paint job is chipping and fading with time. The best spots to do this are wherever dings and dents are most common on a car such as the door, bumper, and fender.
If you are wanting to texture your undercarriage and frame to show wear then you should sand it very lightly with a low grit sandpaper after it has been painted. If done properly you can dull the finish this way but if you apply too much pressure you can totally eat through the paint and damage your car. You can avoid this issue if you also apply several coats of paint to the model as well. A quick note, if you are using different colors of paint on a single area make sure that you let one layer dry before you add the next. By adding them too quickly you can end up with quite a mess and have to attempt to redo the work.
With some creativity you can add a good deal of aging to your model car. It will also make it a one of a kind since you were the one who came up with the changes that you made it. Soon you will have a fleet of antique and classic cars that look just like they rolled straight out of Detroit.
Victor Epand has sinced written about articles on various topics from Shopping, Trucks and Interest. Victor Epand is an expert consultant for model cars, model trains, and model trucks. You will find excellent hobbying and trading resources here for ,. Victor Epand's top article generates over 11100000 views. to your Favourites.