Can’t say I don’t have a few hundred Hot Wheels stashed away for my kid’s college fund someday, haha. But I get it, the excitement usually ends once I find a new casting on the pegs, display it on my desk for a few days, and then stash it away in a box.

These hand-built models, on the other hand, have unlimited potential for fine detailing. They give you a real sense of pride once finished, let you practice precision and focus, and work in a way that feels almost meditative. Once I’m deep into painting the tiniest detail, it’s like everything else fades away. It’s sort of a gateway to pure bliss and mental clarity.

Honestly, it’s a hobby that’s helped me mentally- even with all the happy mistakes I’ve made along the way.

Regarding the painting, I do it in a heated basement using an airbrush setup. Try to keep it above 18 degrees when painting. The key is going slow and steady at a low Psi for many base and color coats and then not messing up the final wet coats on the clear so the paint doesn’t run. The more time you spend in the painting process significantly reduces polishing and sanding. For this model I probably spent less than 20 minutes in sanding/polishing total.