Building Trans Am cars

[Reslotted]

I mentioned Inaslot, because I've ordered 3 or 4 chassis off them. They arrived in about a 5 days to Australia.

[slothead]

Life is tough up here in Maine. Slot cars help maintain sanity once the cabin fever needle gets pegged.

So, I'm working on a '69 Camaro SnapTite kit destine to become the #42 Trans Am car driven by Brock Yates. I got pumpkin orange Fusion spray paint at Wal-Mart which recommends temperatures above 50 degrees. It hasn't been that warm here since early November. I finally resorted to painting the car in our unventilated 39 degree attic. The color wasn't bad but did have a bit of that 'orange peel' thing going on, but I decided I could live with it. A day later work continued in our 59 degree bedroom and I noticed the body felt sticky when I was taking it on and off the chassis while working on the interior. When I applied some 600 grit sand paper to the sticky door panels I was able to get some gunk off the car, but now that pale orange color of the plastic seems to be showing through.

Yes, I could wait another 4 - 5 weeks till the 4 feet of snow in my yard melts and it warms up enough to paint car bodies in the barn, but I'm not that patient right now. Is there a way to bake the paint on and not deform or melt a plastic body? What did slot cars manics do when building Trans Am cars during the last ice age? There must be some tricks to help a fellow out.

Slothead

[wildbill336]

I would be interested in a bandit trans am bibbster if your selling one.

[Reslotted]

[Reslotted]

Just to show that you can get a reasonable job done with rattle cans.
This was done outside at night under the back porch, using cheap hardware store enamel
with the hot water method I described, it was quite warm outside, so that certainly helps too.

[slothead]

Ted

I saw that car on the other thread and admire your work. That color looks closer to the car I'm building than the Gloss Pumpkin Krylon paint I got at Wal-Mart. What brand and color did you use? And is the car finished off with Future floor wax for the shine?

Slothead

[Reslotted]

The paint is Dulux wildfire red. I only applied Future over the Black decal stripes to protect them a bit. The paint is straight from the can, I've used the same paint before and always got a little orange peel, but the difference this time was the hot water, I cant believe the difference I got on the finish and shine, didn't even have to polish it. It's a good tip that was past on to me just recently by a guy who makes static models. Hope it helps out.

[HomeRacingWorld]

I have to echo the advice on the rattle can "dunking". Learned this trick a long time and it really makes a big difference.

Did a side by side test using the cheap Wal-Mart blue. Once warmed up, one not. The difference is pretty impressive.

Since the old Skunkworks still get's chilly in the coldes part of winter, dunking the cans as described is pretty much mandatory around here.

[slothead]

I have 2 SnapTite bodies ready for decals. A bright orange '69 Camaro will get #42 Genesee Beer decals from Slotcar4U. A black '70 Mustang will get #11 full body wrap decal panels from Pattos Place. The body wrap decals are intended for the clear bodies Pattos makes, but I'm giving them a try on the SnapTite Mustang and an undecorated Scalextric Mustang.

Anybody used these body wrap decals? Any tips on how to make them fit these bodies?

Thanks.

Slothead

[bobbyraz49]

[slothead]

I used to live in Rochester NY before moving to Maine. One of my step daughters went to college in Buffalo, and I dread to think how many Genny beers she probably put away back then. Used to get to Ransomville Speedway once in a while, and Fulton Speedway is one of my favorite places to get dirty.

I saw the Genesee beer Camaro on the Historic Trans Am website (http://www.historictransam.com/index.html )on the Cars page and fell in love with it. I was finally able to match the color using engine block paint. The goal is to create a realistic field of Trans Am slot cars based on actual cars (no fantasy liveries). I just ordered 2 more hard to find Scalextric cars from a hobby shop in Ohio. When they arrive and my SnapTite projects are done I'll have around 30 cars set to go. Photos coming soon.

Slothead