This is the 1999 #44 Petty Enterprises 50th Anniversary Pontiac Grand Prix
driven by Kyle Petty in the Brickyard 400. The kit is a Revell #43 STP
Pontiac with aftermarket decals by JWTBM.
Painting and decals:
The chassis is light gray. First body interior was airbrushed with light
gray to match the chassis. Then I masked the body from inside and applied
testors flat white from a can as a primer on the outside. Next I
airbrushed a Petty Blue of my own making (Testors light blue with a few
drops of testors dark blue to take some of the "whiteness" away from it)
over the flat white. I then applied the decals starting with the hood logo
then the roof number and the Red Lobster logo on the rear deck lid. Next I
applied gold ribbon/door number/rearquarter Hot Wheels decals to the
sides. Then the front fender contingencies, the headlights, the grilles,
the rear panel www.Hot Wheels.com logo, the Hot Wheels 30th, the associates
behind the door numbers and finally the little #44's for the front and
rear! BTW the skirts and the front airdam extension were airbrushed with
testors flat black before the decals were applied. The JWTBM decals went
on very well with a little help from the Micro Sol bottle around the front
airdam! I then airbrushed the whole body with testors model master clear
top coat enamel and when dry I mounted the body and installed the clear
parts which I had masked and painted while the body was drying. Lastly I
painted the hood and trunk pins and the fuel filler opening with model
master chrome silver. The body on this one was warped but all I had to do
was put a plastic tab at the left front and the right rear of the body which
caught the chassis and held these corners down. You might say I performed
a wedge adjustment on it :~) ! As far as these Revell kits go I think the
latest Grand Prix (I know it still isn't "perfect") is the best fitting of
all of them in a long time, if the body had been straight on this one this
is how it would have sat on the chassis!
Wheels - They were sprayed with testors
metallic gold out of a can followed by a couple light coats of testors
high gloss clear enamel, again out of a can! I also found a very easy
way to paint these (After years of painting them on the tree!) I simply
trimmed them from the tree, put a drop of the clear craft glue that I
use to put in the windshields and other clear parts on the back side and
stuck them to the bottom of a used kit box. (This glue is like a clear
form of elmers and is called clear gel, I got it 3 bottles for $1 at
dollar general and the brand name is study time) Once dry I painted the
wheels. I then allowed the paint to dry and simply popped them off of
the box! The glue came off clean and stayed on the box!
Complete instructions for painting and assembly of chassis, clear
parts, and construction of slab sides can be found at the bottom of the main page!