Sooo, got a bit more detailing done today and snapped a load of photos to share my process. Click on any of the pictures to enlarge.
Today I was working on the shoulder area of the chest piece, detailing the raised face and part of the lock mechanism of that area.
As you can see in photos 1 through 3 I started by measuring and then sketching out the areas I wanted to detail, these areas were then masked off with masking tape. Once I've got the tape down I apply a layer of bondo and before the bondo sets I carefully peel the tape off.
The tape has to be removed carefully so that it doesn't drag across the still wet edge, we're trying to maintain the integrity of this edge as much as possible. As you can see in picture 3 this doesn't yield a perfect result but it gives you a decent base to start with, this face will need another coat (or two, or three) before it's done so there's plenty of time to straighten those edges up. Unfortunately I was working by myself and got a bit carried away so I didn't get any pictures of the next part of the process. After the initial coat of bondo and the removal of the tape I let the bondo half set so that it reaches that lovely rubbery stage, I then use a scalpel or razor blade to trim back any edges that have bled over while removing the tape. I then used a sander to knock down any particularly high spots and applied a new coat of bondo.
Again I let the bondo cure to it's rubbery stage and using the now solid base coat as a guide I drag the scalpel through the soft bondo to create a (hopefully) stright line. I repeated this process until I had a nice, rectangular, even coat of bondo. Once I'd attained this shape I filled any pitting with spot putty and using a fine sandpaper I rounded the corners and rounded of the edges. Done.
I used a similar process for the ridge around the lock mechanism but decided I wasn't happy with a silight raised lip, I wanted something more defined. Sigh.
To attain the height I wanted in this area I knocked up a cardboard supporting template (photo 5) this would support the weight of the bondo until it reached the rubbery stage. Unsupported wet bondo would have just slid off under the bulk of it's own bulk weight the carboard support.
In photo 5 the bondo is in the rubbery semi cured state, I've gently removed the carboard and I've started to slice away excess bondo and carve out a shape that looks something like my goal, see photo 6.
Photo 7 shows how much work I do with a blade by the time I've finished this step.
Once the bondo hardens I give it a quick sand to see what I'm working with (photo 8) and, realising there's a few voids I apply a bit more bondo to these areas (photo 9) I was probably a bit enthusiastic with the hardener here, it's looking very red lol, oh well, it set quickly
Again I give the bondo a quick shape up with a blade and give it a coarse sand again (photo 10). Once I can see I've got the shape I'm after I start sanding with a finer grade of paper. Once it starts to get a smooth finish I start filling any imperfections with spot putty (photo 11) look at that air bubble,
mocking me.
Photos 12 to 14 show where I stand currently, I'm waiting for spot putty to dry properly before I can get in and give the area it's final sand.
Sorry about the stack of photos and for being a bit long-winded, I
might have gotten a bit carried away :S tomorrow I'll finish this area, start on the other side and continue detailing the neck area.
As always, thanks for looking.
Cheers
Sara
