Multipass Tutorial - Step 18

This little red detail thingie on the pass is an oddball. It seems to be different sizes based on what reference picture you look at, so a big part of this step is really at the builders discretion. In some pictures it looks very rectangular, and in other pictures it looks like the bottom is chopped at an angle. I really don't know what is right. I am using as my primary reference the screen grab of the pass sitting on Korben's desk. In that picture, the red strip looks to be roughly the same height as the LED, and is placed in line with it.

The LED measures .04" high, so I pulled out my calipers and measured it against the strip that comes with the kit. Trim accordingly.

To make life simple, and to keep things neat, I stab the strip with my x-acto knife. It will live here for a while. Because the piece is so small, it would be difficult to hold this for painting and application. You can probably also get away with using a pin or needle, though I find the x-acto blade optimal as it has a built in handle.

Primer the strip using the same primer we used for the body. Dupli-Color sandable grey.

I don't really have any insight into what red they used on the screen used multipass, so I just found one at the auto supply store that looked pretty good. It's red. It's bright. It's pretty. I'm using BCC0419 Flame Red (PR4) Replaces T354. If you find a color that makes you happier, go for it.

Once the primer is dry, blast the strip while it is still on the x-acto.

Once the red paint is dry, it's time to pull it off the blade. Be careful, it's tiny!

Using the same blade, scrape the paint off the back side of the strip. This will be where the glue goes.

Time to scrape a matching spot on the pass. Use the knife.

You just need to expose a little tiny bit of the styrene. Don't go too crazy with this. The styrene strip is very thin, and if you scrape off too much, you're sunk.

Mix up a little batch of two part epoxy. Use a splintered popsicle stick to aply it.

I recommend using tweezers to drop the strip into place. Then nudge it around until it's exactly where you want it to be. Press down on it a bit to squish out any excess glue. If you've got a bunch of glue squising out, use the popsicle stick to scoop it up.

All done. Looking REALLY good now. We just need to get the graphics on, and we can call this thing done!