DVA Dolermo Cadillac Northstar LMP

[MoFo]

Continuing with the multimedia 1/43 theme, here's the 2000 Cadillac LMP.

I'm kind of torn on the kit. It has a ton of PE, which is all very, very nice, but the basic resin mouldings for the body are a tad... meh. They're clean and all, but they just lack a certain refinement. First problem: the panel lines were massive, and soft. Tried filling them with light curing putty and re-scribing, but the putty wouldn't stick to the resin. Tried polyester putty, but it wouldn't cure properly. Tried straight-up putty, but it was a bastard trying to get it cleanly into the panel lines. Resigned myself to something drastic like CA'ed in strips of Evergreen, but decided to have one last go with the polyester putty, and this time, it worked. Laid down a bead of light curing putty over top to smooth things out, then sawed in the lines with a JLC saw:

Nice thing about the poly putty is that it's got really good colour density, and that yellow is VIVID. Even the tiniest little blob stands out, which is great on the dark grey resin. This overview should give a good idea of just how thick the original lines were (though I'd also roughed them up in a few areas with a razor saw to help give some added grip).

Close-up showing the revised lines. Much more petite, they should look a whole lot better under paint. Ultimately it's more of a personal preference thing, and I suspect that my airplane modelling background makes me prefer finer lines, but I think this is probably better suited for scale, tight-fitting body panels on a racecar. DVA also do pre-finished models though, so their lines are probably designed to be visible under umpteen layers of primer, paint and clear.

Next job will be to re-do the louvres on the wheel arches and rear of the car. They're solid resin, not even a hint of a depression, so I've re-cast them with LCP. The plan is to scoop out the copies, remove the resin items, notch the fenders and tack on the hollowed louvres. Fingers crossed.

Edited May 22, 2012 by MoFo

[MoFo]

I've done the louvres. Played with the LCP cast items for a couple of minutes, decided I might as well just try scooping out the resin first, and went that route instead. Notched the back with a JLC saw, then opened up the recesses with various scribing implements (straight pin, P cutter, scribing pick, Xacto blade). They're not see-through, but they're recessed enough that it should look okay.

Louvres, as mentioned, were scooped out. Not perfect, but better than they were, and hopefully okay under some paint. I'll have to prime to be sure, but I'm calling it done for now.

'Nother view. You can see the stock panel lines around the louvred panel. I really should fill and re-scribe these, but trying to apply filler (and sand smooth) so close to that kind of raised detail would not be fun, so I may well leave it be, unless I can come up with a workable solution. Unfortunately, the resin is really smooth, so I'm having a hard time getting putties to stick, so re-building lost detail is a bit of a last resort.

Case in point: there's a couple of slightly ragged edges on the rear louvres, from being scooped out. Applied some LCP, let it harden, sanded off... only to have the putty flake off just as I was finishing up. I'll probably need to use CA as a putty instead. Wheeee. Also: something is really screwey with the louvre shapes back here. They're not symmetrical. The left half on each side seems to follow the outline of the fenders; the right half on each side goes straight down. Guess I'll have to make up some templates to figure out the best solution, then break out the files. Grr.

...and keeping with the theme of re-building lost resin... Through the multiple filling/sanding/re-filling attempts at fixing the panel lines, I damaged the small lip around the cockpit opening. The resin itself is quite soft and easily workable (it's actually kind of weird - it feels really light and just different than most resin), which means careless sanding can do some serious damage. Which, again, is why I'm leery about filling those louvre lines. This lip got hit with sandpaper a few too many times, so again, out with the LCP.

I ran a piece of tape around the inside of the cockpit opening and carefully spread on some LCP, generally sculpted to the right shape. The tape gave me the proper vertical surface and provided support for the putty, to help build the shape, then peeled easily from the cured putty. Some light filing to smooth and define the contours, bit of sandpaper to refine things, and we're back in business. It's probably not 100% right, and I may need to do more work around the windscreen bulge, but it's pretty decent. I'm slightly amazed that the putty stuck as well as it did, though.

[MoFo]

Shot some paint last night. Spot the oddball:

So, I laid down a coat of Alclad's Black Microprimer/filler. This is really, really nice stuff, BTW. Add a few drops of Gunze's retarder, and it'll give you a fantastic, smooth sheen. This is completely untouched:

It does need some smoothing and sanding, and I didn't bother worrying about dust, but it's pretty remarkable. Anyway, the re-worked panel lines are visible here. Nice and crisp and sharp and petite:

You can compare the original lines around the louvre panel vs. my filled/re-scribed ones. Quite a difference (and, damnit, I think I'm going to have to try re-working those lines after all :():

Looking into said louvres. I think I'm going to try scooping a bit more out, but they look pretty decent, IMO. Though it IS gloss black, which is kinda tough to see. Might run a slight matte-black wash in these when done, as a better simulation of shadows:

And behind the rear wheels. These do need some more refinement, but it's not as bad as I'd thought. Right now, I'm thinking maybe some delicately applied gel CA as a "putty", since actual putties won't stick well enough to last through the sanding. It's one of those horrible situations where you've got delicate surface detail that calls for a light touch, yet the nature of the materials means you've got to use more of a sledgehammer approach. Bleh.

Tonight's job? Sanding out some primer coats with micromesh. Wheeee!

[Shawn M]

beautiful work on the panel lines and louvers!

[HOLMES]

MoFO,

To ME it is looking quite SLICK!!!

you are doing a splendid job on it..Cant wait for the end !!!

Great ..I also prefer neat lines on this..gives it more sutble definition and sleekiness in its stylish contours !