Will try the Tamiya clear also, my friend @gblair. Thanks for the tip!

Solid progress and excellent looks so far, my friend @stephen-w-towle!

Looking good, Stephen (@stephen-w-towle). Looking forward to the rest of the paint.

Glad the clear worked out, Stephen (@stephen-w-towle). I get sticker shock from all of the metallic paints, but all of the prices are similar. At my LHS, Vallejo metallics are around $10, Alclad is around $9, and AK is around $11. I only bought 3 colors of the Xtreme because I wasn't sure if I would like them. I used all three colors on the 104, as well as a couple of Alclad colors. The thing I hate is that none of these paint lines seem very long term. I find a paint that I really like, and a year down the road they don't make it anymore and they are coming out with a new and improved line of paints. My AK Real Colors disappeared, only to be replaced by the "new formula" Real Colors a few months down the road. I am afraid to invest too much money or time on any of them. Tamiya is my go-to paint, and it has been around for a long time.

Getting better and better, my friend @stephen-w-towle!

I spent the weekend shoveling snow and applying decals. This Hasegawa F-104 has over ninety decals. Decals over decals and the instructions don't always show exactly where the decals sit. I was hoping not to put my nose into a book but, fortunately I have a copy of Koku-Fan illustrated featuring the F-104. A good reference for modeling this kit.
.

2 attached images. Click to enlarge.

She looks really great with the decals on, Stephen @stephen-w-towle

Looks really great, my friend @stephen-w-towle!