1. PRIMER COAT 2
I PUT ANOTHER COAT OF BLACK ON THE INSIDES TO HIDE ALL THE UGLINESS...THEN PUT PRIMER COAT #2 ON THE BACK AND ALL THE PANELS.....
2.
AFTER THE PAINT DRIED I GAVE EVERYTHING A LIGHT SANDING......I RECRUITED ANOTHER LITTLE HELPER TO BLOW ALL THE DUST OFF OF ALL THE PIECES....
3.
THEN PUT BACK IN ALL 50+ SCREWS TO SEE WHAT SHE LOOKED LIKE. I'M HAPPY WITH IT, BUT SOME OF THE PANELS ARE WAY OFF....AND I KNOW THAT WOULD BOTHER ME IF I LEFT IT. IT DOESN'T HAVE TO BE PERFECT, (BECAUSE I WANT THEM TO LOOK LIKE SHIP PANELS OF COURSE), BUT SOME OF THEM NEEDED SOME WORK........
OF COURSE I DIDNT GET PICS OF THE SANDING...IT WAS PRETTY ROUGH IN SOME PLACES....WHEN YOU KEEP PUTTING IN AND TAKING OUT ALL THE SCREWS, IT GETS A LITTLE DISTRACTING.
4. PRIMER COATS 3 AND 4
HERE WE GO AGAIN....GOING TO GIVE A BACK TO BACK COATING THIS TIME.....
5.
BACK TOGETHER AGAIN.....AND PUT ON ALL THE FIXENS TO SEE HOW IT LOOKS...
6. CURRENT PROGRESS
GETTING THE NECK DONE TOO....LOOKING PRETTY GOOD!!!!!
7. 1st coat real paint
DIDNT SPEND A LOT OF TIME PICKING OUT A COLOR. I WAS ACTUALLY PRETTY HAPPY WITH THE PRIMER COLOR.....BUT IT WAS TOO STICKY. I GOT THIS "GRAY" PAINT IN FLAT HOPING TO TAKE CARE OF THE STICKY PROBLEM. IT IS A BIT LIGHTER THAN THE PRIMER, BUT CLOSER TO THE REAL COLOR OF THE SHIP...(IN MY MIND ANYWAY...)
SEE...ITS GRAY....NOT SURE ABOUT THE CHIC THING, BUT ANYWAY....
1ST COAT OF MOST OF THE PANELS...STILL CLEANING SOME OF THEM UP....
8. MANY COATS OF PAINT
THIS IS COATS 4 AND 5 I THINK....SOMEWHAT FRUSTRATING.....I SAND BACK A LITTLE AFTER EACH COAT AND STILL HAVE SOME PRETTY BAD STREAKS IN THE PAINT. NOT SURE IF ITS FROM BAD PREP WORK OR TOO THIN OF COATS, BUT I WILL DO SEVERAL MORE AND SAND THEM DOWN A BIT TOO. HOPEFULLY IT WILL GET SMOOTH SOON.
9. still painting base coats / sanding back
HOPEFULLY GETTING CLOSE TO THE END OF THE BASE COATS. THIS WILL HOPEFULLY BE THE LAST COAT ON THE BACK......
WE WENT FOR A WALK AND FOUND THIS OUT IN THE FRONT YARD....PRETTY COOL!!!
10. PROBLEMS WITH PAINT
WELL....GOT SOME SLIGHT PROBLEMS. FROM ALL OF THE COATS OF PAINT THAT I HAVE DONE, THERE SEEMS TO BE SOME BUILD UP ON ALL OF THE EDGES AND UNDERSIDES. WHEN I SCREW EVERYTHING TOGETHER, IT ALL STICKS TO ITSELF AND DOESN'T FIT QUITE AS WELL, THEN DOESN'T WANT TO COME APART WHEN NEEDED....NEED TO DO SOME CLEAN UP WORK...
11. CLEANING UP PAINT
LOTS OF WET SANDING, SCRAPING, FILLING, CLEANING, SMOOTHING....YOU GET THE IDEA. AFTER FILLING SOME SCREW HOLES, (HOPEFULLY FOR THE LAST TIME, I'VE PROBABLY PUT THEM IN AND OUT 5000 TIMES...), I AM READY FOR THE FINAL CLEAN-UPS!!!
12. INSIDE PAINTED AND READY
13. LAST BASE COAT
GOT THE LAST BASE COAT DONE, DRIED, SANDED, FIT, AND PUT TOGETHER FOR SOME DETAIL WORK. I TRIED MY VERY BEST....BUT AN ARTIST I AM NOT. THAT'S WHERE GRANDMA (MY MOM) COMES INTO PLAY! SHE HAS OFFERED TO TRY AND PUT MY VISION DOWN ON THE GUITAR. NOT TOO MUCH DETAIL, BUT A LITTLE BIT FOR SOME DEPTH AND VISUAL APPEAL. CANT WAIT, THANKS MOM!!!!!
14. NEW PLAN
SO MOM DID WHAT MOMS DO BEST...THINK OF A BETTER SOLUTION FOR THE TASK AT HAND. SHE SIZED ALL THE PANELS TO SCALE WITH AN OUTLINE DRAWING FOUND ON THE WEB. NOW THE PLAN IS TO 3D PRINT ALL THE (MOST OF THE) DETAILS!!! COMING SOON HOPEFULLY!!!!!