70/73 K&K Dodge Charger

no they’re there. if you look closely at the bottom of the window between the window and the bulge. you can make out a row of grill. the glare makes it difficult. i have not seen a decal sheet offering cowl vents, might be a good add for the manufacturers.

joe

Joe,
I just checked and they’re there. Can’t understand how they didn’t mold them into the hood in the 1st place.
Joel

Excellent decal work.

well Joel that’s salvinos, no attention to detail. we are lucky they got most of the body right on this kit. who knows what abomination they come up with if they ever attempt the daytona or superbird.

Joe

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thanks HW. i glossed it last night. i did it a little different than i usually do. normally i go right for the heavy gloss cote but i instead did two mist cotes first. i was concerned about the decals and despite this the number on the trunk wrinkled/bubbled a little. i also got orange peel on the hood, i have to sand that out but i planned to wet sand the gloss and give another cote anyway so i hope i don’t screw it up.

Joe

Joe,
I’m surprised that you had a reaction to misting on the gloss over the decals as that’s supposed to eliminate that issue. Whose gloss and thinner did you use, and what ratio did you thin it to?
joel

well actually joel i decided to save the 2k for another project so i used my usual testors lacquer gloss in the can. but as i said i gave two mist cotes first. last night i gave the decal a little solveset on it and got it to settle down. the hood i tried a gloss can i had laying around, a mistake. it had a bad nozzle i guess and sprayed unevenly. last night i wet sanded it but i don’t know, i may have to strip it and start over.

Joe,
Egads!! Sorry to read that so many issues that just went way wrong.

I still use Testors Dullcoat and even have a bottle of the good old Glosscoat that I use for small jobs. In more then 45 years, I’ve never had a single issue with either of them. Well, the few were caused by me for sure.

If the decals started to lift up with just a light mist coat, which isn’t so easy to do with a rattle can, then the decals themselves either had an issue with their glue sticking to the paint, or weren’t cured long enough.

I’ve always used a air gun so that I had better control then with a rattle can as they put out a tremendous amount of material at a super high psi. True, there’s clean up, but I clean my AB after ever session in less then 5 min and maybe 3 min between colors.

joel

Joe
Just catching up on your build and some terrific work both detailing and correcting the kit. Painting and decaling looks spot on.
Peter

thanks peter. i am happy with the results. i liked the gravity paint, it sprayed well and dried smoother than i thought it would. it is a little brittle though in that it chips easy so i was wanting to get a clear on it. hope to finish it up soon.

Joe

yes joel i think iy is the decal. it was a number that i took off the slixx decal sheet that was in the polar lights dodge kit. i had messed up the number from the yesterdays sheet i had. i’m not fond of slixx but at the time it is all i had. i have had some issues with this testors glosscote from time to time, the last is when i had finished my earnhardt wrangler monte and glossed it. all the blue area crazed. that one is sitting in the closet after i sanded it down to the decals. i never have put a gloss cote by air brush yet, a little nervous to do so.
Joe

Joe,
I know what you mean about the Slixx decals. I’ve had issues with them from day one and try not to use them,
joel

Any progress on this one Joe?

actually i have ran into a few issues that have really frustrated/angered me. i read somewhere someone saying the front window of this kit goes in with no problem. well i can tell you they were lying. three times i tried gluing it in and it wouldn’t stay. i usually use alieens tacky glue(don’t think i spelled it right) from any craft store. it fell out twice and i got so angry i threw the body down on the bench and cracked apart the front bumper- fender join on the passenger side. i then tried some zap a goo, kind of like shoe goo, and that didn’t work. finally i tried the goo and some super glue and it worked.
then i tried the body/chassis fit and the tabs on the bottom of the window keep the body from sitting right on the chassis. i tried grinding the tabs away and didn’t realize i gouged the visible part of the window in each corner so now i guess i will have to make a vacume form of the window. i think i will use the window from the second kit that i have to do that, just don’t know if i should remove the tabs ahead of time. also the glue on the bare metal aluminum foil sheet for the window trim is dried out and will not stick. my can of photo mount is clogged up so i can’t recoat it, i have to go buy another can.
close to the finish line but have to deal with a few problems still.
in the mean time i started a 1/72 p 47 thunderbolt on my military bench to experiment more with NM finish.
Joe

Holy smokes Joe!!! Man that all sounds terrible man. Sorry you’re having to go through all of that craziness but am looking forward to the recovery efforts.

Joe,
Sorry to hear your tail of woes.

I posted that Salvino messed with the windshield and screwed it up only get a few guys saying that I was nuts and they fit just fine. Like you found out, mine continually just fell through the enlarged opening. Only Nascar kits I’ll build are original AMT or Monogram with AM decals and some goodies.

I’m also having major issues with the Porsche, but will post in a few days what’s been happening on that build.

Glad to read that you can repair the damage and hopefully cross the finish line.

joel

I made a few vac form windows yesterday from recycled plastic packaging. i have not gotten down stairs to work on it yet today. i hope to get it fitted and finished. i still need to finish up a few little things but am waiting to get the window and body mounted first.
I am not surprised at the response. salvinos is cocky and don’t admit their flaws. well i know what happened to my build.
Joe

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Doncha hate that s#$?? I can’t believe the audacity of some vendors when you’re giving good feedback or have a genuine concern? It kills me even more when we’re not like …beginners here and then for the vendor to come back with a smarta$$ response. I got some backlash one time when I was dealing with Summit Racing over a distributor that they sold me. It worked awesome for 10 months and then out of the blue it bellied up on me. I was trying to get it warrantied and these jackwagons told me I had the wrong distributor for my application. I’ve been an automotive service technician now for 25 frickin’ years and know dang well what I’m doing and these guys are the ones that backed my decision to use this part after I had done extensive research…and then wouldn’t stand behind it.

I’ve had good customer support from other vendors but nowadays I’ll know within the first 30 seconds of any given customer support conversation if I’m going to get any real help or not.

In any case I’m looking forward to that vac form window fit Joe.

The Salvino bros have a following that swears that every improvement was just that. Just build one of their kits and you’ll quickly know the truth.

Joe, I’m looking forward to seeing the new windshield in place sooner then later.
joel

Joe- it’s hard to find good help. had the same recently with a doctors staff and yes, i could tell right away the woman was clueless. she called the wrong MRI facility first, then when i told her and gave her the right one she never called at all. a week and a half later i called the main office and complained. i got an appointment in 10 min. because of this phony covid stuff there are a lot of stupid people out there doing the wrong jobs.
Joel- got the window in today. giving it overnight to cure. after i vac form it i put it back in the form and trim it precisely with a razor blade to get the exact shape.
as far as the kits go, i hear this is their best effort so far. it is not professional grade for sure. i know the chassis is the same for all their kits and it doesn’t even fit the other bodies. don’t understand how they could put out a product that is designed so poorly.
Joe

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