John Goschke

Outstanding quartet of Victorias, Tulio! I especially like the turquoise one.

Beautiful job restoring this space age dream car!

Huge improvement!

I like that a lot! Very cool! Period perfect, right down to the wheels and tires.

Beautiful color combo, nice detailing!

Ken, I covered the kit windshield with a piece of masking tape before installing it in the body. Then I used a pencil to trace the shape of the windshield opening onto the masking tape. Next I peeled the tape off the windshield and applied it to a piece of manila file folder to create a pattern by cutting it out approximately 1/16" larger than the pencil outline. Then I cemented pieces of styrene strip inside the windshield posts and the bottom corner of the windshield about 1/16" inside the opening. The strips act as brackets to hold the windshield in place. After peeling the tape off my new folder stock pattern I fit it inside the body and trimmed as needed to refine the fit until the pattern popped into place in the brackets and fit nicely around the opening. Then I used the pattern to cut the new "glass" out of the sheet of PVC. Before cutting I protected both sides of the PVC with masking tape. Once the new windshield was cut out and tape peeled off it was test fitted inside the body. Luckily this one popped into place without any adjustments to the fit. It sounds like a lot of work but this one only took about 1 1/2 hours and the results are sure worth it! Thanks to Steve Boutte for persuading me to give it a try. Here are some photos from when I did the windows in the '58 Ford...

Thanks for the responses, gentlemen! The Bonneville continues to move along!

Now that the '58 Ford is finished I can get back on another neglected project, this '58 Bonneville. Worked on fixing some nagging issues. Weak cowl vent detail resolved a with piece notched in from an AMT '58 Impala. Shaved the front fender ornament "jets" off and replaced the fender top raised crease detail with filed-down .030 triangle strip. Made a clear PVC windshield and replaced some damaged moldings at the rear of the roof with styrene strip. Good to have this one moving again!

Thanks so much for all the comments, guys! Wish I had time for a personal reply to each of you but deadlines are limiting my forum time!

The Fairlane is finally finished! Details in brief... • Johan ‘57 Chrysler front bumper • Taillights from 1960s Aurora Custom Grill & Trim set & red plastic piggy bank • Emblems and door handles removed • Rechromed bumpers • ‘59 Ford chassis lowered • Handpainted whitewalls • Wheels from Ertl ‘50 Olds diecast • Roof and window openings reshaped for greater accuracy • Cowl vent detail added from ‘58 Edsel • Photoetch mesh added to molded-in and opened hood scoop • AMT ‘57 Ford custom headlight lenses added with “googly eye” reflectors • Kit windows replaced with clear PVC • ‘57 Ford interior with scratch sidepanels, ‘58 T-bird console, ‘62 T-bird bucket seats and rear seat insterts added to ‘57 Ford seat, ‘56 Ford custom steering wheel, scratch rear view mirror • Decanted, mixed, and airbrushed Tamiya lacquers Build thread ad nauseum, here,

Thanks, Lee! The masking went well until I ran out of the black tape and had to order more online then wait five days for delivery. Sure looked like there was enough on the roll! Thanks, Craig! I can't wait either! Wish I could click my heels and say "There's no model like a done one!," and poof, it'd be finished and ready for photos!

Painting process mostly finished with clear coats but no polishing yet. All preceded by the usual 12 hours of masking! Highlighting the grooves in the roof in the light purple I was using for the outlines and scallops on the body against pearl white turned out to be an ugly idea so I ultimately decided to go with the same lighter purple for the entire roof.

Finished up the interior for the Fairlane!

Congratulations on completing a tough build! It looks very nice. Paint looks smooth and it's a great color for the car. I built this kit many years ago and also found the top mechanism very frustrating!

Very cool project! Nice clean workmanship!