Raymond Gallant

Talk about making a silk purse out of a sow's ear... Best rendition of this kit I've ever seen practically makes you forget its proportion oddities...

I've been watching your project and really like where you're going with this. Can't wait to see it come together. Just a hint for your coil-over springs, next time try wrapping the wire in the threads of an appropriate size bolt. That way you can "unscrew" the spring and the coils will all be evenly spaced.

Beautifully captured circa '60s... Love the fact that the top is actually seam filled to the body. Most examples you see have that awful line between the body and the top. Great color too...

I like it too and I really like the fact that the headlight rings are two-toned... Usually people leave them one color.

I agree with you... I think it's because of the blacked out portions...

I like where you're going with this but I have one question, are you going to straighten the "C" pillar. Originally it had the same angle as the windshield but I think it should match the "B" pillar. No way a widow can roll up and fill that opening.

Amazing detail work on the front and rear grilles/bumpers... Love the color too... Overall great look.

Name: Raymond Gallant Age: 75 in 2022 .Occupations: Draftsman/ Illustrator/ Graphic department supervisor/ Business owner/ Teacher/ Woodworker/ Environmental group office manager/ Retired since 2012 .Address: East-Coast of Canada .Phone: Prefer email .Email: regalant@nb.sympatico.ca .When did you start modeling? In 1959 .Primarily builder or collector? Mostly collector but have 100’s of projects .Have you always built automotive subjects? Yes .What scales do you like to build? 1/24-1/25 .How many cars/trucks do you have in your collection? My collection of unbuilt kits is getting unwieldy at over 4,000 kits. I also have 100 or so projects on the go (haven't finished anything in decades). Recently, diecasts have caught my attention, especially the 1/24th offerings from the now defunct Danbury and Franklin mints. Recent die-cast purchases include; a '50 International Metro Van, a '50 Divco milk truck, a White 3000 Budweiser beer truck, a '38 GMC Coca-Cola delivery truck, a series of early pickup trucks that is to die for, i.e.: a '50 GMC, a '41 Chevrolet, a '37 Studebaker, a '29 Dodge, '41 Dodge. Diecast cars: a couple of '53 Buick Skylarks, a ‘48 Chrysler Town & Country, '57 Studebaker Golden Hawk and '56 Oldsmobile Super 88 just to name a "few". .What type and/or style of cars/trucks do you like to build? I have very eclectic tastes. I collect/build everything from forklift trucks, Go-Karts, motorcycles, early racers, the big classics, light commercials, trucks, rods and customs to factory experimental showcars. If it's 1/25th or 1/24th scale and has any semblance of mechanical significance, I like it. My collecting habits seem to coalesce into mini-collections of their own, i.e.: Pick-ups, Ferraris, Duesenbergs, GMCs, Chevies, Fords, Macks, Hondas, Volkswagens, Jaguars, MGs, Cobras, etc. Street Rods, Classics, Pickups, Commercial vehicles, Customs from the ‘50s, Prototype Dream Cars, Construction equipment, Mini cars, Sport cars, etc.... .What would you like to see the manufacturers offer? The manufacturers should look at 1:1 car magazines and look for typical vehicles that have been the staple of the hot rod and custom hobby since the early fifties and make sure that they release at least a vehicle of the same "food group" and reissue it every 5 to 10 years. As an aside, I would also like to see more 2 in 1 and 3 in 1 offerings. I think it is greedy marketing to offer these products one version at a time. I would actually buy more of their kits if they would offer multiple versions in one kit. .What would you like to see from the aftermarket? I know that the aftermarket is ephemeral at best as companies come and go but a comprehensive website that would list the myriad of products and services offered by aftermarket companies. This would entail some sort of follow up to keep the information fresh and up to date. And for better customer relations, maybe some sort of governing body, an Ombudsman of sorts that would protect the rights of all concerned. .What would you like to see from the modeling community? More non-competitive NNL type shows. More attendance from vendors at toy shows (seems the vendors are using the internet more and more and dropping the traditional methods of hawking their wares at shows). We have supported them all these years and there is nothing like actually seeing an item before purchasing it. .What clubs you belong to? Founding member of the FanPlastik Model Car Club (now defunct) AND I was also a founding father of GLOBE 25, a model car club in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The word GLOBE is actually an acronym of the founding fathers' initials. That was 1984 and it is still going strong. I am now a charter member of MASA (Moncton Area Scale Automodelers). .What publications do you receive/buy? Hang on to your hats because over the years, I've literally collected tons of magazines related to my hobbies. This extensive reference library consists of EVERY ISSUE of; Scale Auto Enthusiast, Model Car, Plastic Fanatic, Car Modeler, Car Model, Model Car & Science (barring a few from the, IMHO, terrible slot car era), Auto Modeler (remember that one?), R&C Models, Model Car Journal, In-Scale Illustrated (all three issues!) and Scale Wheels. I was also collecting Fine Scale Modeler but I've actually stopped collecting FSM. I also owned a 1/1 scale 1940 Studebaker Champion 4 door sedan street rod for 32 years and for the last 20 years have been building a 1952 Chevy pickup street rod (see link below). This means that I also collected 1/1 magazine titles, I have EVERY ISSUE of; American Rodder, Car Collector, Classic Trucks, Collectible Automobiles, Custom & Classic Trucks, Custom Rodder, Rod Action, Rod & Custom (all the way back to the May 1953 premiere issue), Rodder's Digest, Rodder’s Journal, Street Rodder, Street Rod, Automobile Quarterly, Special Interest Autos, Wizz, Rolls and Pleats, Kustoms Illustrated, Hot Rods Illustrated and many more. My other interests include woodworking and metalworking and collect a dozen more titles for those interests (Machinist's Workshop, The Home Shop Machinist, etc.). These lists only enumerate the magazines, but I also collect books, books and more books on all these subjects. .What types of events, if any do you like to attend? Living on the Atlantic Coast of Canada, I do not attend as often as I would like but every 5 or 6 years I like to go to AACA Swap Meet in Hershey, PA and it used to coincide with the Fall Sylvania Meet. It is close to a 2,000 mile pilgrimage! There are also a few very small local shows that I attend when my schedule allows. .What non-modeling interests or hobbies do you have? As I mentioned above when describing the different magazines I collect, I am into Woodworking (partly earned my living from it, teaching and taking commissions), metalworking and for something completely different I also sit on the executive of a local square dancing club. I also have a Multimedia Programming background. .Any words of wisdom for the other members? A hobby, as the term defines it, is a means to relaxation and it should never be the cause of tension. If you're just starting in this wonderful hobby, this board will be a very useful tool. Contribute as often as you can. You will be in good company and learn a lot. I know I have and I have been in the hobby since 1959!!! Lately, we have seen a revival of our hobby, several new releases a year of models we would never have dreamed of even in the heyday of modeling. My ongoing truck project : https://public.fotki.com/skylark/1952-chevy-pickup/ These are the Golden Years, enjoy our hobby. .Happy Modeling .Raymond Gallant

Hi again Howard, Before I forget, here's my home email addy. (remove the arrows) <<regalant@nb.sympatico.ca>> No, I wouldn't have been there in the 90's because I moved East just around the time we started up Globe 25. It was within that first year of the club I'm pretty sure. I did attend a few meetings but I had already moved by then but I was there at the writing of the constitution and all that necessary paperwork. I'll be visiting Cliff in a few weeks on a business trip to Ottawa. Their collections are beyond description... Like the "Eldorado" of model cars, micro cars and some big cars thrown in to the mix. I was never as close to Gary as you were but I will give him a call next week. I'll be away until Saturday night and that's his work number. Thank you for this Howard. Ray p.s.: When you get a chance, read my profile on the Spotlight Message Board. I haven't figured out how to put my profile on this board yet. I don't know if this link will work for you... http://wwwboard.spotlighthobbies.com/index...raymond+gallant

Another little story for you Howard... Do you remember this picture I showed you a few days ago. http://images17.fotki.com/v309/photos/2/20...ophy1963-vi.jpg I met some friends that car show weekend that turned out to be my best lifelong friends of all times (I hope that doesn't sound to mushy but there are no other words to describe them). On the Sunday of that weekend, right after I went up on the podium to pick up the 2nd prize trophy I won in the Competition Class, I was walking away with my new friend waiting for me at the bottom of the stairs. As we walked behind the curtains to get to my club's display table, something horrible happened. The model rolled of the trophy shelf and shattered in pieces on the concrete floor. My friend kept reassuring me as we picked up the pieces that nothing was broken, just dissassembled. We went back to his table and we glued it back together to put it on the trophy (for the picture I've linked for you). My new found friend was Larry Read (and his twin brother Cliff). Larry, Cliff and I have been friends for 45 years now. We went to Ontario College of Art together in the late sixties. We worked for the same companies, although never at the same time. I worked for Imperial Oil for 10 years after taking over a job that Cliff was leaving. I worked for 8 years at Canadair a couple of years after Larry left Canadair. I just got off the phone with Larry this morning... Your ears must have been burning because he talked about you as a friend too. What a small world we live in, especially since the advent of the Internet. Later Howard... Ray

Wow!!! I have the same plaques that you have from the Piston Poppers car shows. Mine start in 1963... I'll have to look for them to see how many I have. Let me tell you a little story about another model car club that I was a founding member of. It's called Globe 25... I know, I know, it sounds a lot like Group 25 in Toronto but that's not why it was called that. G.LO.BE was an acronym for Raymond Gallant, Jacques Loiselle and Denis Bergeron. Three of the 5 founding members... The other two were Francois Spenard and GARY HEAVYSAGE!!! I have been looking for Gary for years. I asked about him a few times over the years on HHMB. He moved to Ontario about the time I moved East to New Brunswick and we completely lost touch. Do remind him of me and give him my email address if you're still in touch with him. I didn't know most of the hobby shops you mentioned except Westmount Hobbies and I only have a vague recollection of it. I remember hunting trips that Denis Bergeron and I took all around Montreal looking for plastic kits in every "Depanneur" we could find. We came across some super deals that way. We also bought out whole collections and divied them up once we got home. We didn't collect the same stuff then but today I'd like to get my hands on all those old kits. Where do you live NOW Howard? I live in a small fishing village on the Acadian Peninsula in New Brunswick called Neguac. It sure is great talking to you. I do hope your friend can find info on the "Little Ones" from Longueuil. Later Howard Raymond

Hi Howard, No, I don't recall the Morgan's contest but our club did have a display at the Show Mart in 1963. I've tried twice to upload a picture of our club display but the MCM system doesn't seem to want to cooperate. Here's the Fotki addy to that picture... http://images29.fotki.com/v310/photos/2/20...trip1963-vi.jpg About half the models on the table are mine. This is how I narrowed down the precise year of that display. http://images17.fotki.com/v309/photos/2/20...ophy1963-vi.jpg My memory is not as good as it used to be and I can't recall if the "Little Ones" had a display table. They may have but I seem to recall meeting them through the Central Aquarium Contest. I tried slot racing but never got into it. I ran a sidewinder motor in a '32 Ford Sedan called "Hellapoppin In the Groove"... I'll be curious to see if we (you) can contact any of the old "Little Ones" gang. Raymond Gallant p.s.: Where did you (do you) live in Montreal. I lived in Ahuntsic, moved to Snowdon area when I married then to DDO when the first child arrived.

Lookin' good Terry... I like the bullet holes. Raymond Gallant

If you're not adverse to the dreaded D-word... Walmart sell 1974 Maverick diecasts in what looks like 1/25th scale. Raymond Gallant