# lexan painting W.I.P : classic gt (for magnetless race class)



## demether (Aug 26, 2008)

Hi, 

someones should have seen my first lexan painting attempt, a ford mk4. I'll use it for one of my magnetless home racing class (based on the tyco 440x2 widepan chassis) : 











I started other bodies, to complete the race class (4lanes). 

In order : mkIV ford, ferrari 330p3, ford gt40 mkI, et lola t-70mkIII. 












To conclude, a little family photo, with a 1/32 protoslot kit in rear side, to give a scale idea to the bigger scale racers (i've got a secondary 3lanes 1/32 track...but it's not as good as h0 slot racing in my opinion) : 












to be continued


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## resinmonger (Mar 5, 2008)

You have the ill-fated John Wolfe Porsche 917 in the back ground. John fatally crashed the car at white house (maison blanche) on the first lap of the 1969 Le Mans. I have a 1:43 resin model of the car that I made from a kit by Provence Moulage, a great French company that went out of business due to the presures of die-casts and royalties. 

Isn't the Ford with the Gulf Scheme a John Wyer Mirage M1?

http://www.geocities.com/simontmallett/fordgt02.html

You have a real skill for painting lexan bodies, Demether. Très Bien! :thumbsup:

Where did you purchase the bodies? They remind me of the old Lancer bodies but they appear to be larger - the Lancer bodies were sized for a T-Jet chassis. 

Will the Lola T-70 coupe be a Sunoco car?

Hutt


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## demether (Aug 26, 2008)

merci beaucoup :thumbsup: I love lexan painting. I practice it with the "freehand" technic, with brushes and razor blade. I pose my decals outside, and coat it with future. I don't know how durable will be my cars, but I found the technic I use very relaxing, and interesting (help to focus, to improve hand work skills, etc...like miniatures figures painting, in a way). 

For now, I just posed the basic main coat (in 2 or 3 pass, depends of the paint density), after that I make the fine freehand detailing (sides of windows, lights, etc...). After that, I make the "surlignage" (I don't know the word in english : I freehand paint the thin black or metallic lines to represent the windows joints, the metallic windows chassis, etc...).

Finally I paint the fake details (gaz cap, wipers, holes, metal grids, etc...). After that, I pose the decals, and varnish ! I use a razor blade to eraze mistakes to, scratching up gently the lexan. 



the ford gt40 is based on the mk1 1969 lemans winner, number 6 :












For the 1/32 porsche, I didnt know that story...I just found the car good looking 

The lola will be a sunoco version, exactly.

The bodies are a gift of a very skilled and talented lexan american painter, I don't know how made it.  I can ask him, if you want !

Bye


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## Montoya1 (May 14, 2004)

demether said:


> , I make the "surlignage" (I don't know the word in english :


Detailing?

Highlighting?


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## demether (Aug 26, 2008)

I don't know ?

It's the action of making thin black or grey paint lines...perhaps in custom painting, there is a specific name for it.


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## Dranoel Dragon (Oct 9, 2007)

Pinstriping.


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## demether (Aug 26, 2008)

YES ! 

thank you....a new word in my personal english dictionnary :thumbsup:


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## PD2 (Feb 27, 2003)

Demether,

Sorry to be late to the thread, but, WOW! These look fantastic! You have once again done a fabulous job of creating some masterpieces on lexan! Love the Gulf Ford GT-40 MKI...as I have said before, anything in Gulf colors is awesome, but for it to be a GT-40 is super awesome!

Thanks for sharing!
PD2:thumbsup:


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## slotcarman12078 (Oct 3, 2008)

I need to chime in here too, as I've been on the quiet side for a while.. I never was a big fan of lexan, but you make it look appealing!!! Nice detailing work. Keep up the great work!! :thumbsup::thumbsup:


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## demether (Aug 26, 2008)

Thank you a lot !

I hope to finish the paint job for these bodies this week, and achieve the same level of detail I 've obtained on the MKIV  

after that, I'll have to wait for the decals I ordered (I've got just the sunoco set for the lola)


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## Montoya1 (May 14, 2004)

Painted well Lexans rock.




























Demether's yellow GT40 is right up there.


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## demether (Aug 26, 2008)

funny to see the first car photo : I think it was done by my "mentor" Bruce Beaulieu, I believe :thumbsup: 

I went into lexan painting seeing his painted cars. First time I saw some realistic lexan painting in h0. As a modeller (scenery and dioramas, but the main work is the same) I had to try it !

So I contacted him, and he gave me a lot of advises, and even bodies to start ! a really kind and interesting person !


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## Montoya1 (May 14, 2004)

demether said:


> funny to see the first car photo : I think it was done by my "mentor" Bruce Beaulieu, I believe :thumbsup:


Indeed. As Teal'c would say.


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## tomhocars (Oct 19, 2005)

Nice cars Montoya1.They look fast just sitting there. Tom


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## demether (Aug 26, 2008)

with all your cool comments, I 've got new motivation : I've done another paint coat on the gt40, and now I'm detailing and pinstriping the 330p3


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## demether (Aug 26, 2008)

As I said , I started the pinstriping on the 330p3 :

Still a lot of work, but the car begins to look like something... (sorry for the poor quality of the photo)


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## yankee_3b (Dec 14, 2008)

Great lineup Montoya...Fast and stealthy looking.


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## Montoya1 (May 14, 2004)

I just wish it was me that had the skills to paint them 

Credit to Bruce B and Martin Hill, who did.


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## PD2 (Feb 27, 2003)

Montoya,

I LOVE the ZENT cars! Wow! I actually have the ZENT's in the MRRC 1/32 version and the old Proslot ZENT Toyota 1/32 version. SWEET cars!

PD2:thumbsup:


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## demether (Aug 26, 2008)

i've received my decals, so I 'll complete the ferrari tonight, I think.


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## Montoya1 (May 14, 2004)

PD2 said:


> Montoya,
> 
> I LOVE the ZENT cars! Wow! I actually have the ZENT's in the MRRC 1/32 version and the old Proslot ZENT Toyota 1/32 version. SWEET cars!
> 
> PD2:thumbsup:


Agreed. How cool would a hard body version for the Mega-G be?


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## PD2 (Feb 27, 2003)

demether said:


> i've received my decals, so I 'll complete the ferrari tonight, I think.


Demether,

Be sure to post up pics of the P3 - I love da rouge cars (code for Ferrari - HA!)! And the way you have started out, it looks good so far!

PD2:thumbsup:


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## PD2 (Feb 27, 2003)

Montoya1 said:


> Agreed. How cool would a hard body version for the Mega-G be?


YES! That would be something worth drooling over and then wishing I had the cash for! LOL!!!

PD2:thumbsup:


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## demether (Aug 26, 2008)

tonight after work I'll finish the car I think. I've got a lot of work to do on the windows grey pinstripping too. And make the wheels cuts before varnish the whole thing


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## K.L. VanAtta (Mar 23, 2009)

Hello,

Wanted to add a few photos of some lexan and acetate concours bodies Dave Pratt and I did back in the 70's while we were racing Midwest HOPRA.

The first is a MAC Porsche 917/10 by Dave Pratt.








Second, is a group shot of Dave Pratt's work and one of mine, the Prosche 917 in red.








And the last one is another of my Porsche 917's.








Enjoy.

Be good,

Keith VanAtta
_A.I.R.O_
_Absolutely Insane Racing Organization_


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## demether (Aug 26, 2008)

Your cars seem to have raced a lot ! Lexan painting is quite an ephemeral art, I beleive :lol:


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## K.L. VanAtta (Mar 23, 2009)

Hi,

When racing HOPRA (HO Professional Racing Association) in the Midwest in the 1970s the car that you entered for Concours judging was also your race car. Most of the time our cars competed in the Pro classification and we would place top 3 in Concours and then race the car into the top quarter of the racing field. Normal races would draw 20 to 30 Pro entries.

All car were hand painted including numbers, lettering, script, striping, did use a few decals from time to time. Back then we didn't have the means to do decals of specific sponsors, so, we had to paint them. I did the script "Coca Cola" on the nose of a 917, inside and backwards; I wish i could find that body!

Be good,

Keith


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## demether (Aug 26, 2008)

I didn't realize that the numbers were hand painted ! bravo 

Now, I 've got a ferrari and a gt40 to complete...


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## roadrner (Jul 21, 1999)

They're all some great lookers! Thanks for the pix. :thumbsup::thumbsup: rr


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## demether (Aug 26, 2008)

Hi, 

I didn't finish the ferrari, but I worked on the gt40 :























A little cleaning, some details and I 'll pose the decals. Tommorow I think.


bye


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## Montoya1 (May 14, 2004)

Nice stuff


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## K.L. VanAtta (Mar 23, 2009)

demether,

Looks very nice. A couple questions, what manufacturer make the bodies? Are you using paint or marker to do the detail lines? And what type of paint, lacquer or acrylic?

Thanks,

Keith VanAtta


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## demether (Aug 26, 2008)

Thank you


For now, I'm using detail brush and paint for pinstripping and details. I've got a permanent thin marker, but the result is not as good. The advantage of paint is that you can gently scratch it a little with a x-acto or modelling blade to remove defaults.

I'm using vallejo game color : it's an acrylic miniatures figures(warhammer and stuff like that) paint. Why I'm using it ? because I paint miniatures figures too, so I've got all the needed materials. I paint the bodies in the interior of it, with brushes.

To help the paint stick to the lexan, I carefully clean the body with alcohol, then with soap and water, and cover the interior with a coat of Future before. Since I just started to paint lexans bodies (the gt40 and ferrari are my 2nd et 3th attempt), I can't say if it will be enough. My friend B.Beaulieu told me to try PVA glue too, for the same effect. 

So I pose the main colors in the inside, by freehand painting. After that, I do the pinstripping with diluted black color outside of the body, and pose the decals. Finally, I dip the whole body in Future.


Finally, To try to make a sturdy body, Inside the wheels cuts, inside the front and rear bumper place, everywhere where the body can be hitted on race, I "paint" the interior of the body with pure PVA glue, to plastify and make the body more hard. On the weakest parts of the body, I make 2-3 coats of pva. 


This is my technic, for now I don' t know the result after a good period of racing. I don't know if it's legal for competition, too.


The bodies are a gift of Bruce Beaulieu, a great lexan painter. I believe it 's the custom job of Steve Medanic, like the ford MKIV, the "body style" seems to be the same. It's a good balance between realism and typical lexan racing eficiency.


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## PD2 (Feb 27, 2003)

Demether,

You torture me with the GT-40, don't you? LOL! I'm just kidding! I LOVE it! My two favorites together! The GT-40 and a Gulf livery! I can't wait to see the decals and it completed on a chassis!

If I had the cash I'd ask if you could do one for me too! Man I love that look so much!

Awesome choice and work as always my friend!
PD2:thumbsup:


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## demether (Aug 26, 2008)

Thank you a lot !

Perhaps in future I 'll trade some new ones (as that specific bodies are a gift, and so I'll keep it for me, of course), how knows? 

but it stills one unknow thing : 



> This is my technic, for now I don' t know the result after a good period of racing. I don't know if it's legal for competition, too.


So if in the future I trade (no sell, no business) people will have to be aware of that...

I hope finishing that body this week end, but I 've got a lot of very boring work to do in my house in priority ! 



dimitri


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## demether (Aug 26, 2008)

Hi, 

the gt40 mkI lemans 1969 winner is almost finished ! 

Today I cutted the wheels holes (stressfull operation, if you miss something you can just throw the body...), and finished some paint details (metal grip, lights, etc...). Here's some pics (the chassis is my magnetless "tyco Pan Jet")































Everything is freehand painted, so there is some imperfections, but I' m happy with the result. Once the decals and varnish posed, it will make a cool racing car.

Tonight, I'll pose the decals.


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## PD2 (Feb 27, 2003)

Dimitri,

Tres bein! Excuse me while I drool for a moment. HAHAHA!!! It looks fantastic for free-hand painting. Mine would look like a child did it if I attempted anything like that! I know I said this with your other car, but I almost think that adding decals is not needed, but, I trust your abilities after seeing the last car...so I cannot wait till its done! GREAT job! You know me....huge fan of GT's and Gulf racing livery so of course its the best of both worlds!

PD2:thumbsup:


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## demether (Aug 26, 2008)

thank you ! 

the decals are posed, I'm doing the first coat of varnish...or to be honnest, I try to fix a beginner mistake I did : not fixing the decals before apply the coat of Future...so the decals started to move (in french : "se faire la malle" :lol: ) !

I fixed that, so I'm wainting it dries to make the "real" first coat of Future (two coats is waht I do usually).

ps : I always add decals, because I prefer real racing cars


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## PD2 (Feb 27, 2003)

Dimitri, 
Vous êtes très bienvenu ! I' ; le VE n'a jamais entendu parler de ce " de limite ; pour être fait au trunk" ; comme énonciation de Français - pouvez-vous expliquer ce que ce signifie ? Je sais que la voiture semblera grande avec les décalques de emballage. Je pense juste que le GT avec le Golfe emballant l'écurie est déjà parfait. HA HA !

Merci!
PD2:thumbsup:


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## demether (Aug 26, 2008)

"se faire la malle" means "prepare luggages and go away" : it means that the decals, with the humidity of Future, don't stick anymore and move by itself on the body. "se faire la malle" is an expression used for things or for people ( example, for a thief).

So I had to replace them, sponge the future, and wait it to dry (and fix the decals) to make the real first future finishing coat 

ps : your french is awfull, I hope my english is not as bad 


:thumbsup:


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## demether (Aug 26, 2008)

the car is finished !


the round front decals are a bit little...but I have to save some ones for another project 







































last picture, with the 1/32 scalextric gurney MK2 (one of the most beautiful racing delivery in my opinion)










Why 1/32 scale ? because if everything's ok I 'll receive the racemaster version this week ! I bought some display "cube" boxes to create some cool show case, meeting the two scales. I'll do the same with the number 5 cobra daytona , I've got the 1/32 version, and ordered the h0 too ! one of my own collector's little "dream" : making "couples" of my most beautiful 1/32 cars with others in my favorite scale, h0. I'll make photos of course.




bye


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## PD2 (Feb 27, 2003)

demether said:


> "se faire la malle" means "prepare luggages and go away" : it means that the decals, with the humidity of Future, don't stick anymore and move by itself on the body. "se faire la malle" is an expression used for things or for people ( example, for a thief).
> 
> So I had to replace them, sponge the future, and wait it to dry (and fix the decals) to make the real first future finishing coat
> 
> ...


AH! OK. Thank you for the explanation Dimitri - I think I understand the expression now.

As for the French, you can blame the translator at Bablefish/Altavista. LOL! If I had spent a bit more time with my parents I'd be able to speak and write French - at least the Acadian French. Sorry to "butcher" our language. :drunk:

I'll stick to the English from now on my friend.

Fantastic job on the decals for the Gulf GT! Like I said, I trust you when it comes to placing the right amount on the car and it has come out fantastic! I love it! GREAT job Dimitri!

PD2:thumbsup:


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## demether (Aug 26, 2008)

thank you ! now I have to finish the 330p3. i cutted the wheels holes etc... the car looks already very agressive...a real italian beast !




> Sorry to "butcher" our language.



no problem :thumbsup:

I permitted my self to speak about your french because I knew it was some automatic translation 


your parents are from french canada ? canadian french language is quite weird : they don't use english expressions like us in france are using (we speak about parkings, skateboards, etc..., canadians speaks about "parcs de stationnement, planche à roulettes"...lol ). 

But when you speak in real life with them, they speak a curious "frenglish" using a lot of typical american expressions, but literraly translated in french...add them strong accent, sometimes it's very difficult to understand for us !


That's enough for the cultural intermede ....


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## Bill Hall (Jan 6, 2007)

Y'all talkin' funny!


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## yankee_3b (Dec 14, 2008)

Beautiful job on the GT40. The Ford GT40's are one of my favorites.


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## demether (Aug 26, 2008)

Thank you ! 

Today I finish the ferrari 330p3. I need to fix 2-3things, then I' ll go on varnish.







































to be continued


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## PD2 (Feb 27, 2003)

demether said:


> I permitted my self to speak about your french because I knew it was some automatic translation
> 
> 
> your parents are from french canada ? canadian french language is quite weird : they don't use english expressions like us in france are using (we speak about parkings, skateboards, etc..., canadians speaks about "parcs de stationnement, planche à roulettes"...lol ).
> ...


First, the Ferrari looks great Dimitri! Next to the GT, Ferrari Red (any Ferrari) is my 2nd favorite! I love how you bring it about as a racer, but keep it simple and clean to preserve the natural color and car itself - decaling up a car to cover it up is not always cool. Fantastic job.

Second, I'm actually of Cajun/Acadian - Louisiana descent. My parent grew up in South Louisiana only knowing how to speak French and were taught how to speak English in school - in fact, they would get in trouble with the school if they were even caught speaking French. So actually, the French that I barely know and heard a lot from my parents is the old French language that is similar to what you speak in France, but as one elder person, who was from France, said, the Louisiana French is like the old country France French - almost a slang or older use. So yes, I do realize that the French translator that I used horribly butchered what I knew as French. I should have learned to continue the language...for a while I could understand it better than I could speak and write it and now I've been away from my parents for so long, there are only certain words and phrases that come back to me from time to time.

Thanks for sharing your creations and part of our culture!
PD2:thumbsup:


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## demether (Aug 26, 2008)

Thank you for the ferrari ! I like this particular model. I don't like several ferraris, by the way : enzo, modena, california...too much modern and polished style for me !


for the language question, I hesitated between cajun and canadian. in the 2 cases, people speaks an old french, and have a strong accent  


You know, french and france history is not my birthday culture too : I'm half portuguese and half ukrenian ! I 've got (ukrenian side) family in USA too, in Vermont (but we have no contact with them, it's a shame...)

They ran away from world war 2 to search peace in your country. My grand parents (mother side) weren't lucky as them, so they 've been deported in Germany to work. After the war, they went to france to escape communism in the eastern europe. My father ran away from portugal dictator ship to france. I believe I 've got a family history quite similar with a lot of american people ! 



By the way, I'll post the final result of the ferrari tommorow I think 


Dimitri


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## yankee_3b (Dec 14, 2008)

PD2 said:


> First, the Ferrari looks great Dimitri! Next to the GT, Ferrari Red (any Ferrari) is my 2nd favorite! I love how you bring it about as a racer, but keep it simple and clean to preserve the natural color and car itself - decaling up a car to cover it up is not always cool. Fantastic job.
> 
> I totally agree! Nice and clean!:thumbsup:


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## resinmonger (Mar 5, 2008)

Un bellissimo modello! Forza Ferrari! That's a great looking Ferrari, Demether! Once again, you make lexan bodies look more realistic and what one typically sees. :thumbsup:


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## demether (Aug 26, 2008)

I'm looking for testing lexan painting since I started in the hobby. Last year, I was looking after the work of the 1/32 scale lexan master, Milan Tomasek : 

http://www.mtr32.com

But I never dared to try it myself...for now.

But several months after that, as I was rebuilding my h0 slot track, I have seen great h0 bodies on the internet. I was less intimitated, because I was thinking that it will be less expensive to start on this scale (decals are cheaper, need less paint, I can reuse used chassis, etc...). Simply as that.

So I contacted another lexan master, but in H0 scale : Bruce Beaulieu. I had a great contact with him, and he kindly sent me a big bunch of lexan bodies. And several weeks ago, I started with the mk4 body. Now I 've painted 3 of them (mk4, gt40 mkI, p330 p3), I've got a sunoco lola t70 to finish : I 'm hooked in this "sub hobby" ! 

I was painting miniature lead figures before i went in slot racing : for me it's quite the same skills you need. 

I've other h0 projects ( + my track scenery of course) ! I've got several resin kits in my (long) todo list, and a lot of lexan bodies too...I think the next h0 lexan projects will be used on hand crafted magnetless brass chassis (another thing I want to try). 


I think the next steps for lexan painting learning will be a try in 1/32 scale (I 've got a secondary 3 lanes modified artin track under construction, near my main h0 slot track ), I want to try "super detailling", like modellers says in model railroading.


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## resinmonger (Mar 5, 2008)

*Mega Sano Modeling Site!*

Thank you for the MTR32 link. The craftmanhip of his bodies is fantastic. His use of varnished paper for a master is alos very ingenious. 

Très fantastique! :thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup:

The Hutt camps near San Onofre Power Plant (Nookier) so he can grow more thumbs! :drunk::hat::freak::dude:

http://www.sce.com/PowerandEnvironm...clearGeneratingStation/default.htm?goto=songs


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## demether (Aug 26, 2008)

a friend on a french forum bought one of his car (mtr32) : great hand craft object, and quite eficient on the track. 

The price is quite high, but fair for the amount of work (much fair than some RTR resin cars or "limited" plastic chinese editions we see sometimes, in my opinion...), as Milan make your car on demand only : no casting, or factory work. 2 thumbs up for him :thumbsup::thumbsup:





> The Hutt camps near San Onofre Power Plant (Nookier) so he can grow more thumbs!


:lol::lol::lol::lol:


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## videojimmy (Jan 12, 2006)

If I could paint lexans like that.... I'd have a lot of them.... mine always come out like turds


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## WesJY (Mar 4, 2004)

videojimmy said:


> If I could paint lexans like that.... I'd have a lot of them.... mine always come out like turds


yeah i just cannot do them!! i can paint/customize any slot cars but i just cannot do lexan!!! they drive me crazy!!

Wes


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## PD2 (Feb 27, 2003)

demether said:


> Thank you for the ferrari ! I like this particular model. I don't like several ferraris, by the way : enzo, modena, california...too much modern and polished style for me !
> 
> 
> for the language question, I hesitated between cajun and canadian. in the 2 cases, people speaks an old french, and have a strong accent
> ...


I like the F series cars from Ferrari - F430 and yes, the F360 (Modena), but the Enzo and FFX and those cars they can have. The P racers are advanced beyond their years for their time in racing and have always been nice race cars, to me. 

Yes, the Cajuns do have a strong accent. I typically do not have the accent come out, until I go back to Louisiana and spend some time with family and the next thing you know I sound VERY Cajun...people that know me ask what happened or where have I been. LOL!

Great talking to you about our family history! Sorry to have taken your thread a bit off track, my friend. Continue to produce these great cars! I think you do a wonderful job! Please continue to share them with all!

PD2:thumbsup:


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## demether (Aug 26, 2008)

on the good forums, out of topic is always possible, and interesting, in my opinion :thumbsup:


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