ZTony8

A while back a fellow modeler and I were discussing the MPC '68 Indy turbine kit and I mentioned that someone,years back,made an upgrade set for it.My memory being what it is has failed to retain who produced this set and what it contained.Anybody out there have any information on this?

A belated Happy Birthday to you,George.If you can make the Downriver meeting on the 19th we'll have your 2 week old birthday cake for you!

I too have been a car nut since I was little( Mom says I was calling out the car names at age 3 when we were riding in traffic). So models were a natural part of my early car interest .Dad got me my first kit,an AMT '60 Buick hardtop,for Christmas 1959-I was five- and I built that kit.After that we would go to the local hardware/hobby store while my mom was grocery shopping and buy a model (for a whole $1.50!).Dad did build the more complicated kits for me(the Big T,Big Deuce,and the Hawk Mercedes W163 grand prix car) until my parents divorced and I got a little older and was able to handle the higher parts count.I also started receiving Matchbox cars from my uncle starting in 1960. I had my tonsils removed that June and,while in the hospital, my uncle started bringing me the cars from Windsor,Ontario where he was courting the woman whom he later married.

You should use the Testor "One Coat" lacquer clear over your Tamiya paint jobs.It doesn't go on all in one coat of course.Spray on multiple light coats.This can sometimes be a bit difficult as Testor's paints go on noticeably thicker than Tamiya paints.Then sand between coats of clear.Polish and wax afterward. Clear over decals?It's up to you.If you're doing a custom car with flames or pinstriping or scallops,it's a good idea.If you're trying to replicate a race car,I'd say no.Decals on a race car are vinyl (or on mdern cars on a wrap) so the have a more semi gloss finish.A high gloss finish there looks wrong.

As a kid I didn't duplicate build very much.I can think of a couple of AMT '40 Fords and '66 Mercurys but little else.As an adult(OK,a kid in an adult's body) I've managed to accrue multiples of several kits (few of which are built yet)-the Revell/ Monogram '55-56-57 Chevys and '49 Mercury, several versions of the Peugeot 206 rally car from Tamiya and Heller(some built) and I'm sure several more that currently escape my sieve-like brain but on quick thought the most I have of one one type of model is the Porsche 956/962 with about 13 of them.I have MANY more Ferraris but they run the gamut of many different model types.

Twenty one years?That's still new. In my stash is a Hubley '32 Chevy metal kit that I got for my birthday in 1967.I started to file the pieces and then put the kit away when I realized it was beyond the abilities I had at age thirteen.It's still not done and I don't know when I'll get to it again.

I don't usually set a budget since mostly what I build is box stock so for me it's just the cost of the kit (at less than retail) plus any paint I may not have in my stock or foil if I'm running low on that.Occasionally I'll splurge and buy some photoetch or aftermarket decals but not for every kit.The cost of the paint,glue,and foil is amortized over several kits.

Chuck-The shape of the back of the hood and the base of the windshield were incorrect in the first run of the '61 Chevy hardtop.They were much too curved.The next run of the hardtops was corrected.If you see the two versions together you'll clearly see the difference.All of the cars in the white background box were the early,incorrect,version.There were some incorrect bodies early in the stock of the gray background boxes but the majority of that run was the corrected version.The convertibles were the corrected version from the beginning.

I bought the Ferrari because I was willing to risk the seven bucks to discover the quality of the kit.Yeah,I'll build it but if it starts to go together with difficulty I'm not out much and I'm sure I can use the parts on something else.

The Great Invisible Floor Monster recently ate one of the carb/manifolds from a Manx buggy I was building.I saw it drop and searched for several minutes all around my work area to no avail.So back into the box the model goes until I find a replacement carb.

If you can find decal sheets from some of the Tamiya rally car kits those suppliers are on those sheets.They're small because they're meant to go on the seat backs.

Niko-all the detail items except the seat belts already come in the kit and the routings are called out on the instruction pages.

I have the F50.It's a cheapish copy of the Revell kit-some of the parts trees compare as far as where the parts are positioned on them.I think that the body mold may have been polished because the body is smooth and VERY shiny-almost like it already has a coat of clear lacquer on it.The rest of the parts DO look like they've been clear coated.

It was last Thursday when I was walking back to work from lunch at my usual rapid pace when I made a misstep off of a curb,fell down, and broke my nose.It's healing well with an almost unnoticeable shiner on one side and some minor scabbing to go with the 5 stitches on the bridge of my nose.No,I'm not going to slow down my walking pace.Then I'd REALLY feel old!

This is good news.If the old set of decals I have for my Gene Snow version crumble on me I can get a set of the Hawaiian's and paint the body.

RMR was still finalizing his offering as of last November but he has cast some bodies.One of my club members (and fellow HHR owner )bought one of them.

Interesting.I understood it was going to be offered through RMR after talking with him at the D.A.A.M. show last November.Maybe there's gonna be dueling resin HHRs?

Ask her to show you the ropes

My current cat,Zoey,is from my daughter's ex boyfriend's house when she lived there.The ex boyfriend's idiot mother told him to find Zoey a new home or she was going to put him down.My daughter went there and got Zoey and,in tears,brought him to me saying that she'd find him a new home soon.Nearly 6 years later now Zoey still hasn't left.He's become my buddy and my shadow-constantly following me around the house,even staying in the basement with me when I'm painting models.He's happiest when he can "lap nap" on me when I'm watching TV in my recliner.

Let's see.Sold for $4.2million.Less 8% seller commission of $336,000.Now you have to figure tax on the capital gain from the profit of $4,199,999.One of my model buddies makes most of his income now from selling things and he says the tax rate on the gains is 40 percent.So old Georgie's gonna net something less than $2 million.

The description that always amused me was on the AMT anniversary edition of the '68 B body Plymouth.AMT's license agreement with Warner Brothers had run out so they couldn't use the Road Runner markings or wording.So on box it says something like "anniversary edition of a version of a kit never issued before" (I'm at work and the box isn't so I'm paraphrasing).I laugh every time I see that wording.

Hockey? ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ AKA Boxing on ice.

Just as in 1958 when that version of the Corvette showed that Harley Earl had lost his touch,the 2014 version shows that Ed Welburn and his staff have lost THEIR touch.This thing is unoriginal,derivitive,and just over wrought.From the Ford grille shape to the Ferrari /Dodge headlights to the Ferrariesque sides to the Camaro tailights this thing just screams "copycat".And just like the 1958 version this thing has way too many lumps,bumps,and phony gills and vents.Is Ed Welburn 65 yet?

Hmmm.Testor's enamel.You're a brave man.Still a beautiful finish.

You're so very fortunate to have kept your bike.I had a green 1968 vintage 5 speed fastback and my buddy had a purple 1967 edition.Both are long gone. I had tons of fun on that bike.It was my "car" before I had my license.My buddy and I rode ours one day with a strong tail wind and got them up to about 30 m.p.h..At that speed those bikes had a definite stability problem!And it was torture riding them back into the wind.