XS500 finished

Yesterday I was at Short-Cut choppers and we test-fitted the tins I painted. It features a matt-grey base with satin flames and a high gloss outline. Another great project finished!

Spreads like butter, hardens like rock!

A time for work and a time for play...mobil

It's ready! A lot of work has been done by my apprentice Martijn. Well done, grasshopper!

Haunted House: the final insult.

Playmobil Helmet

New helmet project, check it out!

It'll take some shaping and sanding and a nice kolor, but I'm laughing every time I see it!

XS500 for Markus

Another chopped Yammie from Short-Cut Choppers, this XS500.

I sketched out a flame design to show Markus and suggested matt grey with satin black flames and a white outline.
I mixed up a grey, added pearl powder and lots of matting paste.

Next week I'll add the wihite outline.

Out and about...

Brought out the beast to stretch it's legs after a long hibernation.
You can hardly spot it between all that greenery, with it's camouflage kolors!

Perfect Getaway Car of the week

What would be your perfect getaway car?
Behind the iron curtain in the 60s, the Tatra 603 was built for diplomats and other big suits only. It was a big streamlined luxury car with an aircooled hemi V8 in the back. The Czech peasants drove Skoda's. This commercial shows it has everything you want in a getaway car: fast highway cruising, off road capability, bomb-proof engineering and a luggage compartment you can fit a body in...

Vintage Flakes

Went to visit an ex-custom painter yesterday. He's been into building choppers, hotrods & custom cars since the early 80s. He was around when Metalflake was at it's peak and he still had some o' the old stuff lying around. He gave me that shit to use for future paintjobs, thanks, Art!

From left to right: Kelly Green, Green Apple, Nile Green and Chartreuse. All in original packaging. The bag below is a deep gold flake. Only deep gold and kelly green are still available today, the other kolors are no longer being made by Metalflake.

So, if you want a genuine vintage 70's or 80's flake kolor, you know who to call!

Sneak peek

The hole in the top will have a round plastic bubble, to be painted like the full moon, lighted from behind. Tune in next week!

I was a teenage Haunted House

This was the last week working on the details of the Haunted House. Next monday I'll be spraying on the clear, then it has to be reassembled and it's on the road march 16th. I'll be there to take some pictures of the finished product. In the meanwhile, here's some pics of this week's work.

Here's an overview. Martijn is taping off some parts to spray a glowing edge around the stones. This will separate the foreground from the background and make it pop out even more. 

Our work area...

The middle section finished.

And here's some details.

Can't wait to see this thing when it's finished!

Haunted House: The quickening

Some more gruesome details. Next week will be the finale.

Corpse of the Haunted House

Bride of the Haunted House

Some monsters added to the haunted house:
Devil figure.

Dragon skull:

Rotting corpse (not finished yet).

Need to fill in blood, guts, brains and worms!

Son of the Haunted House

Struck Gold!

Yesterday I was visited by Rob Kater, who wants do do a photoshoot with the Green Machine next spring. He was kind enough to bring some gifts as well:

The book on the left I have been looking for for some time. It was first published in the mid-seventies by Metalflake and it is all about the application of all of their products. From flakes, kandies and pearls to Vreeble, Eerie-Dess and refraction-tape. It also covers many traditional special paint techniques like Acetylene painting,  Acrylustrations, Freak drops, Fish-scaling, lace painting, cobwebbing etc etc. A real Kustom Painter's Bible!

Here's some kolor sample pics of the effects described:

The other two are kolor sample cards from Metalflake. Samples of all Flakes, pearls and Kandy kolors over silver, gold, pearl black and white base-kolors! It even features some kolors that are not produced anymore but some I have got in my secret stash of seventies kolors!

Thanks a bunch, Rob!