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A Model Car Hub exclusive column
Welcome to Terry Jessee, who many of you know from his articles and books about commercial vehicles. With his new column "Poured Plastic", Terry will step out a bit, and talk about what's happening in the world of resin casting. You'll find info about light commercial vehicles, plus muscle cars, classics, sports cars, trucks, and who knows what else. Maybe even pedal cars, figures, boats, and other unidentified resin objects!
There is a lot happening right now in the world of resin, and we're glad to have the knowledge and experience of Terry to help us sort it out.
This page sponsored by:
Parts & Accessories for
Model Cars
02/22/00
How do you know if you're getting a good resin kit? A number of factors enter in. First, how clean is it? The better resin casters do a lot of work to ensure that the castings are crisp and have clean, sharp lines. That includes door and panel lines, edges, and window and fender openings.
Any body modifications should be clean and finished—no wavy edges or panel lines, no evidence of putty or other fillers (at least on the outer surfaces).
The resin itself should be clean, relatively pliable, and smooth to the touch. Once in awhile I run into parts that seem sort of "chalky." My experience has been that such resin will be brittle and very difficult to work with, and I tend to shy away from that product.
The body panels should be of a uniform thickness. In the early days of resin casting, the technique was to produce a single-piece female mold, then pour the resin in and roll it around until it began to harden. Ideally, the resin would fill in all the surface detail and build up in a uniform manner. In reality, that kind of "slush casting" resulted in body panels which ranged from paper thin to as much as 1/4" thick. That early imprecision created a lot of fit problems and put off a lot of modelers who might otherwise still be using resin parts.
Surfaces should be clean and clear of voids and bubbles. Back in the mid-80s when I started buying resin parts, I had to spend a lot of time filling in pinholes. Caused by airbubbles in the curing resin, pinholes could creat all kinds of problems. Currently, most casters use some form of pressurization to push the bubbles out of the liquid resin during the curing process. Occasionally, though, you'll still find them on innner surfaces or in fine areas like fender tips or wheel rims. A little super glue and microballoon or baking soda will take care of the problem, but you'll still have some fine detail work with a file and sandpaper to repair the part.
Over the years, such casters as the Modelhaus have spoiled a lot of us by going to the length of smoothing INSIDE surfaces, too. The best castings will offer that feature because it helps with fitting the parts. Parts fit is another problem you may encounter. Sometimes the master used to create the part will be off slightly, so that some trimming, sanding, and careful filing will be necessary to get a good fit.
Overall, though, you should expect that the parts will fit properly, that they're carefully finished on external surfaces especially, and that they're completely filled. Most casters will cheerfully replace a defective part, although there are still some who will tell you that "you're lucky to have this unobtainable widget" on your work bench.
I don't order from those guys a second time.
For the price you have to pay, you should expect high quality. Anything else is unacceptable. Fortunately, most of the people who are in this as a business feel the same way. Your best bet always is to deal with reputable folks.
PAINT YOUR WAGON
Since station wagons are kind of mundane, you don't find a lot of them in model form. In recent years, though, the resin manufacturers have worked hard to produce many different versions of existing kits. Station wagons are kind of a natural possibility. Consequently, they've released quite a few station wagons as conversions for plastic hardtop kits.
Occasionally, you'll see one that really does come out of left field, but is so unique and unusual that it's worth a second look. Case in point is the new '81 Chevy Malibu station wagon kit from Perry's Resin Replicas.
Perry's Resin Replicas does this unique '81 Chevy Malibu wagon. It's beautifully molded with crisp panel and door lines. Although they're not shown here, the kit includes chromed grill and bumpers, vacuformed glass, dash, steering wheel, and clear/clear red lenses. This is a great kit, one that I look forward to building.
The Malibu at this stage was part of GM's downsized line of "mid-sized" cars. Originally a version of Chevy's popular Chevelle line, the Malibu first started as an upscale edition. Chevy dropped the Chevelle name in the mid-70s, so that all of the cars became Malibus. In 1978, the Malibu line was downsized to produce the series shown here. The entire line was replaced with the Citation in about 1984.
The only models based on the downsized Malibu were the '78 El Camino kits from MPC and Monogram. MPC changed theirs and updated it as the cars were changed, and even did a GMC Diablo version in about 1980. Once MPC's kits were folded into AMT's product line in '89, the El Camino was retooled to include a Monte Carlo-style nose and released as an '86 El Camino SS in about 1993. Last year AMT re-released the kit with water-based paint and some other items for new modelers.
No kit of a late Malibu was ever produced until Randy Frost announced his Malibu coupe about three years ago. The wagon is another conversion of that kit and is a neat idea.
What you get is nearly a complete kit, less wheels and an engine. Randy lists the chassis as "promo style," but it has a nicely rendered rear axle with driveshaft and an open engine bay. Too, the hood is separate and a firewall and radiator wall are included. So you can set one up as a stock wagon, a police/fire department wagon, a Street Stock drag car, or just about any way you want.
The body appears to be very well done according to my reference sources (there aren't a lot of references for early '80s Malibus), and is crisply molded. Proportions are good and it just "looks right." As I mentioned, the hood is separate.
The interior bucket includes the firewall, a molded rear seat, a separate front seat, and the dash and steering wheel. Vacuformed glass is included for the windshield. You also get a sheet of clear plastic for side and rear windows.
The grill and bumpers are chromed pieces and look crisp and sharp. A final touch is the clear-cast headlights and taillights.
If you're interested in a stock Malibu, then using the wheels, tires, and engine from MPC's El Camino will get you all the parts you'll need to finish that off. In fact, you could even substitute the pickup chassis so that you don't have to trim out the wheelwells on the resin part.
For other versions, almost any parts from AMT, Revell, and MPC should fit. These little wagons have been very popular in the Street Stock drag classes for many years because of their weight distribution.
All in all, this new Malibu is a high quality resin kit for a moderate price. I've been looking at resin for a long time, and this is one of the nicest products I've seen. I have a lot of projects ahead of it, but it's sure hard to keep my hands off this one.
FAMOUS DEUCE
Tim King's Resin Rods produces a number of '32 Ford conversions, not the least of which is this Milner coupe from American Graffiti. You get the shortened grill, grill shell, and radiator; front cycle fenders with brackets; rear transverse spring; bobbed rear fenders; and even a set of Modelhaus chrome reverse wheels. This has lots of possibilities and is well-done. Although it's designed for Revell's Deuce kits, it fits AMT's early frame, too.
I've always been a fan of the George Lucas film "American Graffiti." And like so many modelers, I wanted a model of John Milner's yellow Deuce coupe from the film. In about 1976, MPC did a kit based on their earlier "Switchers" series. The model was inaccurate in many aspects, and was a real handful to get together.
I'd thought about trying to build a clone from AMT's Deuce coupe kit, but that's a
handful, too. Now, though, much of the heavy duty work is done for you.
Tim's Resin Rods of Vacaville, CA
has a transkit for Revell's '32 Ford. Using the conversion with the Deuce chassis yields a
fair replica of the Milner coupe.
One of the fun aspects about resin conversion parts and kits is that they really open up your modeling possibilities. Whether it's a detail part, a different engine, or a whole new body, your opportunities for "different" projects seem virtually unlimited.
Tim's kit includes a chopped, five-window coupe body, sectioned (shortened) grill shell with radiator and grill inserts, bobbed rear fenders, and front cycle fenders with separate brackets. There's also a transverse leaf spring cast in resin. In addition to those parts, the kit includes a set of chrome reverse wheels from The Modelhaus.
You can take this project just about as far as you want to. To get beyond the basics, you'll need to come up with a small-block Chevy V8. The Man-a-fre four carb intake manifold is probably a light scratchbuilding project, and you'll need some outside headers. A good set of "weed-burners" is available in Revell's latest reissue of Ed Roth's "Tweedy Pie."
Other necessary parts include a pair of hairpin radius rods, which you can get from Revell's Tony Nancy 22JR dragster/roadster kit. Or, if you're industrious, you could make those easily from some wire and bits of plastic or aluminum stock.
The body looks to be correct, as do the accessory parts. And like the full-sized coupe, the roof panel sticks up about two inches (in scale). That padded insert has always been an unusual feature of the real car. If you want to tone it down a little there's lots of material underneath, so that's just a manner of some filing.
Inner door panels are cast into the body shell, so that you don't need to use the Revell panels. Some slight cutting and pasting is necessary to get the interior to fit the body, but beyond that, very little prep work is required to set the model up.
And if you aren't a Milner coupe fan, this kit is a great basis for just about any '60s style hot rod. It's a neat little model, and very reasonably priced.
One of my favorite aspects of resin kits and conversions is the HUGE range of possibilities these casters offer. If you can think of a car or accessory, SOMEBODY is probably doing it in resin.
Great fun!.
This is really different. Resin Rods' newest release is this custom '36 Ford mastered by California modeler Nathan Sills. The model is a combination of an AMT '36 Ford with the roof and upper body from a Tamiya Volkswagen Beetle. It sounds implausible, but it works and is a beautiful design. Some of the panel lines are a little shallow, but some careful work can fix that. The only real drawback is that you'll need to scratchbuild an interior. The casting, though, is very clean and well-molded.
If you like Deuce kits, Ron Cash has a cute little chopped five-window coupe. This one is designed for AMT's Victoria frame. I think it's one of the best castings from Ron Cash Scale Models. I started this for a project a couple years ago (hence the primer and flames), but had to use the frame for another project. This is a perfect body for a vintage "rat rod" model.
The Modelhaus does only a couple vintage rod conversions. This one is a '40 Mercury transkit for AMT's '40 Ford. It requires the complete chassis with the lowered front axle. Everything else is included with the Modelhaus kit. These kits really are the standard by which you should measure other resin casters. The casting masters are superb; the castings are free of voids, rough edges, and ripples; and the finish is nearly flawless.
Once it's assembled, the '40 Merc makes for a unique custom. This is actually a model of a '40 Merc built by Gil and Al Ayala right after World War II. The nice part about resin kits is that you can paint them with nearly any paint. The model shown was painted with Dupli-color Chrysler Garnet Pearl right from a spray can. They're fun kits.
01/27/00
Last time out I discussed the beginnings of the resin aftermarket, and showed you a little bit of the operation side of it. Interestingly enough, the Hub's survey for the last few weeks referred to resin parts and kits. We discovered that about 53 percent--more than half - had never worked with resin.
We also got a number of responses asking about the "use and care" of resin parts, so I'm going to switch gears a bit here and spend this installment on techniques for working with resin.
Resin casting high-quality parts isn't easy, but it's possible with some work and experimentation. Fortunately, there are a number of people who are willing to devote the time and attention to producing quality parts for the accessory market. One of the newest is Larry Krauck at Resin Works. Although his emphasis is on smaller parts at this point, he's doing something for just about everybody. With products ranging from plain steel wheels for police cars to skull shift knobs to mechanic's toolboxes, Resin Works is a promising new company with some great ideas.
As they come from the package, Resin Works parts are very clean. I found no pinholes, voids, or bumps. As is the case with almost all resin, I did find a little flash (essentially, leaks where the mold doesn't fit completely together). Flash is present in just about every resin kit or part I've ever seen, but the Resin Works parts are simple to clean up. Sanding sticks, emery boards, and fine sandpaper usually will take care of any finishing.
Be careful in sanding or filing. First, resin parts seem to sand more easily than plastic, so you can remove too much material in a big hurry. Second, resin dust isn't good for your lungs, so make sure you're in a place with good ventilation. I usually sand or file resin parts outdoors or in the garage away from my work bench so I don't have resin dust floating around while I'm working. Use of a dust mask is highly recommended.
One other thing about resin parts--even though casters have experimented with newer formulas to eliminate the brittleness found in early resin, the parts are still more brittle than regular styrene plastics. So be careful if you apply pressure to a body or other piece. They will break more easily than styrene.
Next step is to remove the mold release. Most casters use some kind of lubricant to keep the mold rubber from sticking to the resin. In the early days, some used "PAM" cooking spray. Commercial mold-release products have taken over, though, for the most part. That mold release will not allow paint to stick. In many cases, the paint will just bead up like water. At other times, the mold release will cause little round holes in the paint called "fisheyes." So it's important to remove the mold release. Modelers have several methods. In some cases, simply washing the parts in warm, soapy water will do the trick. Be careful not to use really hot water because the resin in small parts is susceptible to heat, which can deform them, especially the thinner parts.
Another method is to soak them for a couple hours in whitewall tire bleach. The accepted product is Westley's Whitewall Tire Bleach, found at any good auto parts store. K-Mart has a house brand in their automotive section that works well, too. After a soak of no more than eight hours (more will allow the bleach to attack the surface), rinse the parts in warm water and scrub them with a soft, old toothbrush. Set them aside to air dry and you'll be ready to paint.
Once the parts are dry, check them again to make certain that you've cleaned up any mold lines or other small flaws. Then apply a thin coat of primer. Resin can take the solvents present in any paint I've tried, including acrylic lacquer and urethane, but the primer just gives a paint coat a better surface. Doing so encourages a smooth final finish, and ensures that the paint will stick. Some water-based acrylics and hobby enamels will not stick to resin without a primer coat.
What if you make a mistake in painting? For plastics, the answer is to drop the part into some automotive brake fluid. DON'T do that with resin! Brake fluid will react with the polyurethane and turn the parts into a weird, rubbery mess.
The best method for removing paint from resin parts is to rub them down with a cotton ball or swab soaked in non-acetone fingernail polish remover. That's more work, but doing so ensures that your parts will be in good shape for a repaint.
One word of caution: all of the chemicals we've discussed here are highly toxic. Bleach is caustic and will burn your skin, brake fluid can be a serious poison, and the fingernail polish remover emits some noxious fumes. Do this kind of work in a space with lots of ventilation and a floor that won't suffer if you drip. I'd recommend wearing some rubber housecleaning gloves, too.
GLOO?
Adhesives are another story. Common styrene cements don't work with resin. Most veteran resin modelers use some form of cyanoacrylate (CA) cement or "super glue." My favorite is "Bob Smith" brand, the one that you see in hobby shops with the store label. Their medium cure CA cement is one of the best I've used.
Devcon Five-Minute Epoxy is another adhesive that works very well on resin parts. It takes longer to cure, but the bond will be quite strong. It's also good for gluing styrene and resin parts together.
That's about it. Beyond those differences, working with resin is similar to working with the plastic parts we all know and love. In at least one case, they're easier because you don't have to worry about paint solvents attacking the surface.
I've been using them for more than 10 years, and I enjoy the possibilities they offer. If you're not sure about spending $75 for a full kit, try ordering just a few parts like the Resin Works items we showed here. Use some of the tips we've offered, and you'll discover that they really enhance your modeling. There's a reason why I'm a big fan of resin kits and parts.
A WORD ABOUT OUR SPONSORS
The ad banners you see associated with this column are for aftermarket companies who have ponied up and agreed to pay to help sponsor the pages. Consequently, I think it's fair to give them special mention here.
Both of these companies appear to be putting out high quality parts for good prices. Many people tell me that they're uncomfortable paying the relatively high cost of resin parts and kits. My attitude about that is to reply that those parts deserve a little extra attention - whether it be paint or detailing - to justify that extra cost.
In most cases, though, if you started to figure the cost of a kit you'd make useless by robbing parts, then the price becomes less of a consideration. Worse, figure out what it might cost you to scratchbuild some of the items you'll see here, and you begin to realize that these parts are really reasonable.
I believe completely that resin aftermarket parts are a great boon to my model building. Companies like Resin Works and Perry's Resin Replicas help me to enjoy this hobby even more than I would otherwise. Too, (like all of the best aftermarket companies) both of them deliver a great product for a good price. Take a look at their links, find something you like, and try one. You'll have fun.
PHOTOS:
Although many companies do most of the cleanup for you, occasionally you will find
some flash on the parts. On this Hendicks Manufacturing '53 Ford sedan, flash is still
evident in the window and hood openings. It's easy to remove with a hobby knife and some
sanding sticks or sandpaper. Hendicks Manufacturing parts are available from Model Roundup
Dump the parts into a vat of whitewall tire bleach to remove the mold release. Make sure
that you don't leave them there longer than overnight. The bleach can attack the surface
of the parts if they're left for too long.
A coat of primer is advisable once you get the parts cleaned up. I don't recommend trying
to spray finish colors directly over the raw resin parts. The paint won't adhere properly,
and can chip or peel up. Use a good automotive primer like Plastikote Sandable Primer to
give the paint a better surface prep. We mentioned flash earlier. On this Dodge sedan from
Colorado Resin Specialties, the caster left the flash in the hood opening area purposely
to strengthen the part for shipping.
Basic tools for working with resin kits and parts are really no different from those used
for styrene plastic kits. Exceptions are two-part epoxy cement (lower left) and CA
adhesive or "superglue" (top center). Regular styrene cement will not adhere to
resin.
Larry Krauck's Resin
Works products include interior accessories, mechanics' toolboxes, hubcaps,
club plaques, and a wide variety of wheels ranging from drag and vintage custom wheels to
dirt modified wheels.
Here's a set of Resin
Works drag wheels all set up and ready to mount. Resin is not affected by the
solvents even in lacquer paints, so painting is pretty easy - no need to worry about
crazing. The rear set was painted with Testors Metalizer Magnesium over gray primer. The
fronts were painted with a special mix of Floquil Bright Gold and Old Silver to produce
the gold anodized look popular in the early '70s.
My favorite item from Resin
Works, though, is the skull shift knob. Although it's tiny (the electrical clip
gives an idea of relative size), it's well-detailed. This was given a medium brown wash
right over the unpainted resin, then drybrushed with a little pure white to bring up
highlights. This is a perfect accessory for a vintage hot rod. Here the skull is mounted
on a #17 dressmaker's pin.
11/29/99
An Introduction to Resin Cast Model Cars
Resin model kit producers have been using the space age
technology of
liquid polymers for more than 15 years. Polyurethane resin is liquid in its
original state. As the resin and catalyst are poured together, a chemical
reaction causes them to harden. Because the resin and hardener are liquid as
they’re added to a mold, they can seep into all the little nooks and
crannies inside the mold to reproduce startling detail. Hence the name
Poured Plastic.
Here's a basic resin kit. Resin casters can turn a two door
into a four door, or vice versa. In this case, we have the makings of police car.
This is an AMT Chevy SF+ pickup with a chopped custom cab,
from Ron Cash Scale Models.
I’ve been working with resin kits
and parts for more than 10 years. Early
resin products generally were conversions for existing kits. My first
serious effort with resin was a Sportside conversion for AMT’s 1989 Chevy
Silverado kit.
The All-American Models Chevy Sportside conversion was
also the first resin
product from that company. At the time, owner Art Anderson was involved in a
hobby shop called the Modelmaker. He began to produce resin conversion parts
at first, and finally expanded into full kits. For ten years, All-American Models has been
one of the most innovative resin casters in the business. They weren’t the first,
though.
The first resin kits which were produced for auto modelers
were done
primarily in 1/43 scale. MA Scale was one of the first American companies to
produce full kits in resin in the early ‘80s. The French company Starter has
been a major force in 1/43 scale resin kits for the last 15 years, producing
all of the LeMans winners since 1948. Starter has also done more than two
dozen NASCAR stock cars in 1/43, ranging from current competitors to
historical cars for drivers like Mario Andretti.
In 1/25 scale, SC Miller was one of the earliest producers
of resin kits.
Miller kits were generally based on promotional models from the ‘50s and
‘60s. Miller kits were characterized by thick, brittle castings. Working
with those early kits required a great deal of care in handling.
The company that really changed 1/25 scale resin was the
Modelhaus. Their
constant experimentation with polymers and molding techniques have combined
to make Modelhaus kits one of the standards in the industry.
“I can remember the day I started,” Don says.
“It was October 19, 1985.
Dennis Doty did a story for Super Hot Rods and Customs [title in italics]
magazine about the Kastpro system. I sent in the $33 and got my package back
on the 19th.”
Don’s earliest efforts were reproductions of small
parts like fender
ornaments from vintage kits. A Colorado promo dealer named Bob Zetterman
heard about Don’s products and began to use them to restore damaged
promotional models. He also supplied masters for bumpers and other larger
parts. “That led to more improvements, like chrome plating,” Holthaus says.
“We started offering chrome plated parts in 1988, many of them based on Bob’
s promo parts.”
As is the case with other resin producers like Ron Cash
Scale Models,
All-American Models, and R&R Vacuumcraft, the Modelhaus line has expanded to
include both simple and complex conversion kits for many AMT and Revell
kits. Ranging from model year changes to station wagon versions of existing
hardtops, the kits offer a huge variety of model building possibilities.
The kits aren’t difficult to build, but they do require some special
handling. First, common styrene cements won’t work with resin parts.
Superglues (cyanoacrylate adhesives) and epoxies are the best for resin.
Second, most resin casters use a mold release which can
cause serious
painting problems. The use of a strong bleach-based cleaner is recommended
by most producers before prep for painting. In recent years, the preferred
product has been Westley’s Whitewall Tire Bleach. Using a Tupperware bread
box as a dip tank, you can drop the parts into the solution for six to 12
hours to remove the mold release.
Finally, although improvements in formulas have eliminated
some of the
brittle quality of poured resin, the parts are still more brittle than
regular styrene plastic. So, use care when pushing or applying pressure to
the parts.
Other than that, resin parts require only a little cleanup
of the flash in
windows, and they’re ready to use.
Lets' take a look inside a resin casting shop:
Don Holthaus built a shop with enough space for several work
stations. Here
he’s getting ready to pour a body for a ’58 Ford station wagon promo.
One of the prime concerns for full-time resin casters is the
need for
storage space for all the molds. Some kits can take as many as 20 different
molds.
Here Don mixes resin for the casting. Resin comes in two
parts: the actual
polyurethane resin, and a hardener or catalyst. Note how little is actually
used (small paper cups).
Current casting technology makes use of a two part mold, with
an outer half
and an inner half. The resin is poured in the main cavity, and the inner
half inserted.
Smaller molds like dashboards don’t require the heavy
mold block
reinforcements like those used to cast a body.
The mold is placed in a pressure pot, which is sealed and
pumped up to two
atmospheres to eliminate any bubbles in the resin. This step ensures that
the finished parts will be free of voids.
When you remove the hardened resin from the mold and clean
everything up,
you get a set of parts, a kit, or a conversion like this ’67 Impala station
wagon for AMT’s hardtop kit.
Next: From A’s to Z-cars (limos).
******
Here are a couple reader's questions:
From: David
Message: I'm trying to find either Big Rig Mirrors with CB
antennas or something like the whips used on state trooper cars. Is there any
place I can order these or how can I make them. Also looking for
running boards for trucks,or any truck accessories.Including brush
guards,cab visors ect. Don't even know if these are avalible.
Thank you
David M
Thanks David -
Probably the best source for items like you're seeking is
Scale Equipment
Limited's remarkable catalog. They have truck tool boxes and many other
small items. AMT's '89 Silverado pickup had roof clearance lights and some
nice running boards that should work on many different pickup kits.
The mirrors are fairly easy to make using a big kit mirror and some .025"
music wire or stainless wire. Just measure and shape the wire to fit. For
the mounting bracket plates, some .010" plastic sheet or strip cut to
appropriate size and drilled for the wire will do the trick. Cover the plate
with a little bit of foil or paint them silver, then insert the ends of your
mirror mount, and secure with a dot of superglue.
I did a section on making antennas for Kalmbach's Building and Detailing
Scale Model Trucks and Emergency Vehicles. Check with the book department at
Model Car Hub for the book and a copy of Scale Equipment Ltd.'s catalog. You'll find all
kinds of
info there.
Terry
Dear Terry:
From: Kyle R. Freeman
I am looking to build a '95 through present Dodge Ram Club/Quad
cab dually 1/25 or 1/24 model. I can can find the dually bed, but to
my knowledge no model company makes a club/quad cab body. I was
wondering if you could help me. I have had no luck find resin
internet sites so I don't know if any after market companys make one.
Please help me. Modeler in need!!!!
Dear Kyle:
Check with Perry's
Resin Replicas. I know that he took over
the resin side of Bruce Weeks' Accu-Pro shop, and Bruce had an extended cab version
of the big Dodge.
See you next month!
Contact Terry Jessee at jessee@mcn.net
Your thoughts, feedback, comments, criticisms, beefs, boasts, and bodacious rumors are welcome! Please send them to jessee@mcn.net
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