kalbert

I don't know about an '80, but a Super Coupe, Sport Pak, or R/T Aspen or Roadrunner Volare would be must have's for me!

For sure... Wayne's was a 76 and outside of that I can't imagine a Pacer joining my collection. Well, maybe a Levi's one, but those were '77!

Oh my gosh you have no idea what can of worms you just opened!!! Seriously though, yes you can make very nice decals with inkjet decal paper. A normal injet printer does not do white though, and that can make doing some colors (and white) tricky. Alps printers use a different kind of ink and they do have a white cartridge, but they too have their quirks to work through and cost quite a bit more. Screen printing makes the best decals, like the ones you get in kits or from Microscale, but to be equipped to screen print is a whole other thing. I use an older small HP inkjet photo printer and for the most part get results acceptable to me, but there are definitely limits to what it can do.

For really old paint that I'm actually trying to use (vs the neat old bottles that are as old as I am and just part of the collection) I find it better to stir than shake. Stirring mixes up the thick stuff at the bottom better and makes a more consistent viscosity and coloring. Not that you can't shake, but stirring sometimes is necessary to get old paint mixed back up.

Not even close.The only stuff on that list that is required is rubber and resin. You can get into resin casting for less than $50. I started with an Alumilite Mini Casting Kit from that national craft store chain who's name I don't like to mention. Cost me about $30, and included enough stuff to make 2 mistakes before successfully copying a wheel to replace one I had lost. As your needs and desires grow you can expand resin casting to include tens of thousands of dollars worth of equipment if you want, but to get started doing small pieces none of that is necessary.

It kind of looks like the Polyglas on top is smaller than the one on bottom. Either way I'm down for a couple sets and the gasser sets too!

I've got several bottles that are at least 20 years old, if I could get the lids off I'd use them! I periodically (like once every 5 years maybe) give them a shake to see if they mix up and they seem to. I probably won't use them now, they still have the price tag from the store I bought them when I was a kid and have more sentimental value than paint value.

Awesome! You don't often see a blue one, that looks real good.

A friend of mine in high school had a '68 4dr Nova with a 4cyl. It also had a seat and a steering wheel but that was about it! Very unusual car, cool subject though!

Are you insinuating that because some people don't build models they way you do, that this has somehow allowed model kit makers to loosen their belt and lower their standards of accuracy??? New tool kits are on a level of accuracy never before seen! I honestly don't think any model kit maker sets their bar lower just because some people like to put too much clear on a race car.

Hands down the best reply in this thread. Well stated friend!

On second thought.... The Monogram GM kits might not be correct for this, I think they're a Laughlin chassis. The T-Bird kits are a Banjo chassis though I think.

Yes, Google is your friend for sure. A good starting point for a chassis would be any of the old Monogram NASCAR kits. The IROC chassis of that time was very similar. IIRC They were a Banjo Matthews chassis with Camaro parts hung on instead of Thunderbird or Grand Prix parts.

If you really believe that building model cars to accurately represent a full scale subject is what this hobby is all about Then yes, you can't simply do what you want. But if you're like me, and you don't think this hobby is about picking nits and fussing over accuracy and rather think this hobby is about building and enjoying plastic models, you can build any model any way you like to whatever level you get the most enjoyment from. If documentation and research is your thing, by all means have at it. If a shiny race car is your thing, have at it. I'm not building my models to impress you or anyone else, I'm building them for myself. Heck some people don't even like to build them, they just collect kits! There's alot of ways to enjoy a plastic model kit, and nobody's a lesser man for doing what they want. Similar arguments spur up in model railroading, but in the end the reality is everyone takes something different away from the hobby. Some folks like to superdetail trackwork, some like circus scenes, some like landscaping, some like planning, some like running, some like switching. Some like to devise complex and prototypical operating schemes for car movements with actual paperwork filled out for each car. Some people like electronics and get their kicks programming PLC's to fully automate signaling, interlocking, and special effects and don't ever put a stitch of scenery on. Some people study a railroad closely and mimic it's history to the best of their ability and dont' ever actually build a layout, some imagine their own fictional line that may or may not even exist in a real place. There's no right way to enjoy any hobby. Don't tell me how I have to enjoy my models, I won't tell you how to enjoy yours. Maybe I am "playing with little plastic cars", but why should you care?

So to the contest judging side bar... When I build models for a model railroad model contest generally one of the requirements is to produce a photograph of the car/scene/locomotive/whatever that depicts the subject modeled so the judges have a reference point. Perhaps something like this should spill over into car model contests in categories like racing cars or factory stock replicas to guide the judge's (and the rest of the audience)'s opinion?

A contest pretty much has to be about beauty. It would be impossible to gather enough judges in a room that have enough knowledge of every possible modeling subject to be able make informed judgement about accuracy to prototype.

The reality is, people like shiny race cars. "Accurate" or not, people like shiny race cars. Stupid judges do, ignorant visitors do, and simpleton modelers like me do. Nobody here is suggesting otherwise. Everybody pretty much agrees that shiny race car models are not correct. If you don't like shiny race cars you don't have to make them shiny!

I don't think it's a lost cause, or that the majority is blind to the "scale sheen" or that they go ape about crazy amounts of clear. I think the majority just likes their race cars shiny. Go ahead and skip the gloss clear on your models if you want, I'll keep on shooting a little Future on mine.

Those wheels look just right, I mean it is a pro street car right? The monochrome thing was in back then so wheels matched to the engine/driveline/interior highlights is totally spot on!

I like the color too, looks real good.

I've used Krylon Matt Finish in a spray can from the craft store to knock down the shine on model trains and things. It's not flat flat, but it's pretty flat. Don't know how it would go over Future, I imagine it would be ok but I don't know for sure.

I clear over it all with gloss, I know it's probably not "correct" but I like them to look "better than new". I do it with race cars, old cars, everything unless I'm intentionally doing a beater and even then it gets a flat or semi clear coat.

Does it at least have all the glass incase you have to live out of it? Winter is still upon us...

Totally depends on the model and the mood. I want to build a replica of my own car, it's important to me to get the details right so some scratch building and kitbashing and detailing occurs. In some cases I'm just building a model I think is cool and it gets built right from the box. Whatever I do I make a conscious effort to not add every single detail available. There's alot of models out there clad with all kinds of fiddly add on photo etched parts and wires and cables stickers and stuff that really clutter up what would otherwise be a realy nice clean build.

I'd say build them. There's nothing particularly rare or collectable about any of them to bring big money, and they are cool subjects and decent model kits that are fun to build. The 1/20 Camaro is a little off the path, you don't see them every day and they'll probably never be rerun, but it's 1/20 and for some reason that turns people off. To each his own though, if you decide to sell them there's certainly a nut out there somewhere that will pay big money for them, just remember selling them on that auction site requires at least two nuts to get more than the minimum bid. If you aren't interested in the subject matter, by all means sell them off. Selling to try and make a profit is different than selling to clear space and give someone else the opportunity to build them. Really depends on your personal modeling interests and motivation for selling. Nobody here can really decide that for you.