A prancing horse of a different color......!

As a long time admirer of the matt black finish (initially popularised on some of the Ferrari test cars), I decided to indulge myself with this F10 from Revell. Not based on any particular configuration that might have ever been tested in Fiorano (or anywhere else for that matter) so I let my creative side have it's way and it helped me get the matt black "urge" out of my system! Decals used were in the main the ones which came with the kit - I got the barcode from the spares box and I used my imagination on the CF finish for the wing mirrors and exhaust panels. I find Hycote car spray always gives a very even matt black finish - it's great value for money and over the past five or six years, I've used it straight from the fizz can and it just never dissapoints! - so job done once again. The Revell kit is also good value for money coming in round the £24 mark - but the one weakness is the awful tyres - they really are a dreadful fit - out of two of these kits I struggled to get four good tyres to make up a set!
Anyway, it was a pleasing re-acquaintance with plastic kits - this being my first build of an F1 car kit in a long time
Best Regards,
Paul
http://www.p-m-art.com/
http://www.p-m-art.com/2012/01/a-prancing-horse-of-a-different-color-finally-passes-the-post/
http://www.p-m-art.com/blog/
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Paul - Very nice result. I have a matt black Porsche in the planning stages and I'm wondering how your decals adhered and layed down on the matt finish. Maybe I'm paranoid, however I've only ever laid decals on a nice smooth, shiny finish. Any input you could share would be appreciated.
Thanks, Chcuk

Hi Chuck,
Yes I was a bit worried about applying decals to the matt finish - it goes against all the best advice - normally decals onto a gloss finish is what we are all used to!
I knew the decals were going to finish up slightly glossy (which didn't worry me that much) as I thought it would add to the overall effect - what I was more concerned about was would they stick to the matt surface?? It's probably not that obvious from the photos but the finish with this Hycote brand is more eggshell than a heavily grained matt finish so I think that helped. What I would normally do in this situation when applying decals to a matt green or grey on combat aircraft or tank is to give the area for the decal a brush applied coat of Johnsons Klear, then apply the decal with a solution and finally give everything a coat of dull coat with the airbrush to bring it back to matt. However, I felt that this was wandering into dangerous territory, as I couldn't be sure that the final result would look right! The finish on a 24th scale car is quite different in terms of what one could get away with on a tank or a fighter aircraft! So I reckoned in order to get the decal to adhere to the surface I needed a solution which wouldn't leave a trace on the matt finish. Having tested it first I used stuff called Champ Decal set (sadly no longer available - now out of business) before and after applying the decals and it worked a treat - no gloss or indeed no water mark either. I reckon some of the widely available Microsol solutions would do the trick but run a test first - also the finish and possibly the brand of the paint is probably relevant. Hycote by the way is an acrylic base. I have heard of some decal solutions reacting badly with some brands of paints. Anyway, I hope this information is of some help to you with finishing the Porsche, all the very best,
Kind Regards,
Paul

Paul - Thank you for the advice! An eggshell finish is a great idea. I plan to give it a test this weekend. Thanks again.

Very nice :sunglasse

Looks good in black