Post by Bernard Kron on Aug 18, 2017 18:13:10 GMT -5
While I wait for decals and wheels to come from abroad for a Ferrari 250GT SWB project I've got going, I thought I do another large scale decal experiment in the form of a quick drag car project based on the AMT Chevy II Rat Packer Altered Wheelbase funny car kit. I'll be sticking pretty close to the kit build with only minor changes to the motor and wheels and tires. My focus is on the decals and paint scheme.
A popular style during the 60's for drag machines was full-body candy stripe style paint jobs. The most famous was probably the Ramchargers cars but many others were done in all manner of colors. The challenge when doing these decals is to align all those stripes with the proper axis of the car and keep them parallel. Making really large sheets with all the stripes for the surface on one piece is pretty much out of the question because the large decal will buckle, bubble and wrinkle. Instead I made patterns for the roof, hood and rear deck and then printed a set of 8 parallel black stripes with red borders spaced to fit across the width of all three areas. I then cut a set for each area (hood, rood and rear deck). Then I divided each set of eight into three pieces, 2 end pieces of 3 stripes each and a center piece of 2 stripes. By applying the outer 2 pieces first I could then center the middle piece and make sure the whole set was parallel within itself and aligned to the other two areas on the body.
Next up was designing (and naming) this fictitious car. With apologies to the late William Burroughs it's the Nova Express. All the decals were designed and made in Photoshop and printed to clear decal stock. Here's a summary of all the basic decal images with a schematic showing the relative areas for the hood, rood and rear deck.
To represent a lightweight fiberglass body I shaved all the trim away, including door handles. I also cut the front bumper away from the grille and made a simple front pan. The body color is Duplicolor Oxford White. The whole ensemble will get several coats of clear once the decals cure. Here's the result so far:
Most of the chassis and engine bits are already painted and waiting for assembly. This is a pretty simple project but a nice contrast from the meticulous attention the Ferrrari is demanding.
Thanx for lookin',
B.
A popular style during the 60's for drag machines was full-body candy stripe style paint jobs. The most famous was probably the Ramchargers cars but many others were done in all manner of colors. The challenge when doing these decals is to align all those stripes with the proper axis of the car and keep them parallel. Making really large sheets with all the stripes for the surface on one piece is pretty much out of the question because the large decal will buckle, bubble and wrinkle. Instead I made patterns for the roof, hood and rear deck and then printed a set of 8 parallel black stripes with red borders spaced to fit across the width of all three areas. I then cut a set for each area (hood, rood and rear deck). Then I divided each set of eight into three pieces, 2 end pieces of 3 stripes each and a center piece of 2 stripes. By applying the outer 2 pieces first I could then center the middle piece and make sure the whole set was parallel within itself and aligned to the other two areas on the body.
Next up was designing (and naming) this fictitious car. With apologies to the late William Burroughs it's the Nova Express. All the decals were designed and made in Photoshop and printed to clear decal stock. Here's a summary of all the basic decal images with a schematic showing the relative areas for the hood, rood and rear deck.
To represent a lightweight fiberglass body I shaved all the trim away, including door handles. I also cut the front bumper away from the grille and made a simple front pan. The body color is Duplicolor Oxford White. The whole ensemble will get several coats of clear once the decals cure. Here's the result so far:
Most of the chassis and engine bits are already painted and waiting for assembly. This is a pretty simple project but a nice contrast from the meticulous attention the Ferrrari is demanding.
Thanx for lookin',
B.
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