Got her paint and markings done

wilfreeman · Post by **wilfreeman** » Mon Sep 17, 2012 8:50 pm

Well, I finally got the finish coat on my M38a1 Saturday and the markings done (except for some touch ups) today. I decided to NOT put the fender stars on - for some reason I think it's just too much, and the 3" bumper star is enough.

I have a full writeup on my blog about how it played out (and LOTS more pictures):
http://wilfreeman.wordpress.com/2012/09 ... ne-almost/

Now to get her home and finish her up!

Post by **wesk** » Mon Sep 17, 2012 9:28 pm

Awesome looking A1 Matt. I agree the front fender stars are a bit too much.

wilfreeman · Post by **wilfreeman** » Mon Sep 17, 2012 9:36 pm

Thanks alot Wes - it means even more coming from "The Man"

oilleaker1 · Post by **oilleaker1** » Tue Sep 18, 2012 5:01 am

Nice! Long hard road, but you are through the pass and almost there. After it's done, and you iron out the bugs, what's next?

MB, GPW, M38, Half Track?????? Sherman?????? Green Disease! John

wilfreeman · Post by **wilfreeman** » Tue Sep 18, 2012 6:20 am

Yeah, it has been rough John! I'm thinking a G506 - already finished this time though! But I have to blast and paint my M100 to complement the 'A1 first.

Hopefully I can get her home today and get the top back on and my fuel leak fixed - looks pretty rainy today though.

Bretto · Post by **Bretto** » Tue Sep 18, 2012 7:18 am

Very nice!
I think I can speak for everyone in saying thanks for bringing another one back to life.

Beast · Post by **Beast** » Tue Sep 18, 2012 7:19 am

Looks good Matt, sorry you had problems with the one paint mask. If you want I will cut you a new hood numbers set and get it in the mail. I keep a file of every marking set I make so that if anyone has a problem, or needs to remark something later on down the road, I have the exact replacement. Just let me know, I 'll send it out free of charge if you think you could use it. I had never thought about squaring the surrounding edges, but that might be a good idea, as I just usually use the lettering of the graphic to find my straight edge. Also I usually do not recommend trying to scuff the paint because it is then easy to damage the edges of the paint masks or contaminate them with dust and debris from sanding. And I will go in and add the word "fully" to the instruction of "let the paint dry before removing mask" so people better understand to let the paint dry fully before trying to remove the masks.

Looks great and I'm glad you are happy with how it turned out. Also let me know when you get ready to mark the M100, as I can do those markings also.

Dave

Foxmike · Post by **Foxmike** » Tue Sep 18, 2012 9:51 am

Lookin good!

wilfreeman · Post by **wilfreeman** » Tue Sep 18, 2012 1:04 pm

Repost from SS site so everyone gets to see it:

I appreciate the offer on the replacement stencil Dave, but it was my fault - no yours! I wouldn't think of letting you send me a free replacement. For now (until after the rally), I am going to tape off the 3 letters and 3 numbers and touch them up. I wasn't completely satisfied with my "dry sprayed" hood to start with, so I am planning on re spraying and re applying the markings on it this fall/winter. I will order some new hood numbers and star along with my M100 set when I start blasting the trailer, as I know they will be at my door in about 5 days!

I hope you didn't take my comments on my blog as bashing remarks - I, in no way, meant them to sound that way! Like I said, this was MY first time applying markings - it was a learning experience for me.

Now, having the mask squared would aid a newbee like me in applying them. I actually squared some of them off myself (like the bumper stencils - I cut them square, 2" from the ends of the bumper because that's where I wanted them placed). But you will still need to tape the stencil down where you think you want it, measure and visually check it (twice), before you "stick it down.

After I pulled the paint up with the mask, my brother (I used his shop and paint booth to do this work) suggested scuffing the area to be painted before painting. I used a Scotch Brite pad, and yes, it did pull some of the letter points up a little - but I think it helped it to stick better.

Yes, for me and all newbees out there, add "allow the paint to COMPLETELY dry before removing the mask!" You know how impatient we are!

With all that said, thanks for the great product and support, and I'll be placing my M100 order after the rally next month!

P.S. : You need to advertise more! I think you have a great product, price, speed of delivery and support. Most people only know of Rick Larsen

RICKG · Post by **RICKG** » Tue Sep 18, 2012 3:10 pm

Nice work Matt, Really nice work!!

wilfreeman · Post by **wilfreeman** » Tue Sep 18, 2012 7:16 pm

Thanks Rick - I appreciate it

Beast · Post by **Beast** » Wed Sep 19, 2012 8:01 am

wilfreeman wrote: I hope you didn't take my comments on my blog as bashing remarks - I, in no way, meant them to sound that way! Like I said, this was MY first time applying markings - it was a learning experience for me.

P.S. : You need to advertise more! I think you have a great product, price, speed of delivery and support. Most people only know of Rick Larsen

No offense taken, I do appreciate it because it helps show areas that could use improvements that I don't think of (like squaring the surrounds).

Yes it would be nice to advertise more as right now I do most of my work through word of mouth and on the forums. I do my markings as a little side industry from my daily jobs as the owner of 2 motorcycle dealerships here in Michigan. The addition of the second dealership last fall has left my time short for most other things, which is why I still haven't got my 38a1 painted from last year when I bought it at the Dayton MVPA show. Anyway, the addition should eventually lead to more free time once everything gets running smoothly and at that point I hope to have more time to devote to the decal/markings stuff. I have already purchased the new website URL of www.deltateamdecal.com and hope to have it up and running by the first of the new year.

STXM38A1 · Post by **STXM38A1** » Wed Sep 19, 2012 11:24 am

Looks fantastic.
What primer did you use? Gillespie red oxide or an epoxy 2-part? Happy with it (primer)? Of coure it looks so great, how could you not be pleased.
Thanks for sharing so much about your troubleshooting on your web site. Very helpful. Should be added to the "Web Links" of this website.

wilfreeman · Post by **wilfreeman** » Wed Sep 19, 2012 5:54 pm

Hi Warren,

I used an etching primer to start with because I blasted down to the metal. Then, on top of that, I used an epoxy primer made for auto body work (my brother suggested it, as he runs his own body shop). I shouldn't of used it - should have gone with the red oxide. The epoxy primer I used was gray - and it shows with every little chip and scratch! It is a heavy duty primer - I haven't had a scratch go to the metal yet.

Thanks for the compliments! They mean alot! She does look new in pics, but of course there are always problem areas (imperfections if you will) when you get up close. I am not a perfectionist, and have been building her as a driver for the past few years. I don't want to be scared to take her off the trailer and take her on a trail (like I am going to be doing at the Steel Soldiers Georgia Rally next month)

I am glad that you are enjoying my blog! I started it as a way to keep track of where I started with my Jeep. That way, when I got tired of working on her (or burnt out), I could look back a couple of months and say "man, that thing was rough a couple of months ago", or "she wasn't even running then". Then, people started reading and subscribing to the blog and it was actually helping peolpe that were going through the same things. That's when I started getting more in depth with the descriptions about what I was having to do. And, as always, if anybody has questions or recommendations, they can always contact me on the blog or email me.