THarrison351

I'm guessing the green is for the rare sage green Hertz model?

Sorry to dispute you, but those are Ford truck hubcaps, Used from about 1980 to the mid nineties

I always enjoy reading comments about everyone's home town hobby shops. When I was a kid in 70's and 80's my models where purchased at Air Force BXs and department stores. When I visited my grandparents in eastern NC there was a drugstore that had all these old models. When I visited my other grandparents in Hickory NC there was an ancient toy store downtown with old models. When I joined the Air Force in '82, my first base had a hobby store was that was centered around NASCAR. Unfortunately that guy only lasted a few years and closed shop. There was another couple of shops in Greenville, SC that I would patronize when my tanker was at Donaldson Center for inspection and maintenance. They went under also. Here in Wichita I have a great hobby shop I can go to plus Hobby Lobby, Michael's, and Hobbytown USA. When I was up in Quebec I found a great store called Udisco in Montreal. If you are in Montreal, you have to go there. They have everything and large quantities. Having this Forum has opened up possibilities to find other hobby shops when I travel. There seems to always be someone on here that knows a shop near by. Thanks to all.

For the short time it is started and raced there isn't enough time to over heat the water if that is what is used. For every few pounds removed. the car will accelerate quicker.It looks like with everything removed, the car is on the ragged edge of weight removal (no front brakes, narrowed body, etc..). If you look to the left side of the engine there is a silver tube with a blue cap. That should be a reservoir to collect/cool the water as it expands in the block. Somewhere (the cap usually) is a way to relieve the pressure from expansion after the race. If they are running alcohol, the engine runs even cooler due to the low BTU of alcohol. After the race the system will likely be hooked up to a pump and cooler water to circulate and cool the engine for the next round.

Very impressive. I work on airplanes and here is a strip and repaint of a 747 from Northwest Airlines to Delta.

Texting is illegal in most places, but eating, drinking , reading maps, even adjusting the radio can take your attention away from driving long enough to cause an accident. There are a lot of things that are illegal, but unless the criminal is caught by the law, they keep on getting away with it. Sure, you could add more law enforcement, but then we become a police state and I don't think anyone wants that. I have driven in almost every continent in the world. I think the Germans and Scandinavians have some of the best drivers. The act of driving in those countries is a privilege, costly, and requires lots of tests. In some other countries the act of driving only seems to require possessing a car. The US drivers have some of the best roads in the world, and some of the worst educated. Most high schools use to have drivers education programs and gave the students a good start on how to drive properly. After the driver receives their license it is their responsibility to drive safe. The problem is there are no more tests to see if the driver has developed bad habits. Only if they get caught doing something illegal and the court decides to take their license is there a chance for reeducation on driving. Of course this doesn't stop some drivers from driving anyway. Today's cars are some of the safest and sensory depriving cars built. So many cars do things automatically for their drivers, a blind person could almost drive them. This puts the driver in an almost unconscious state. I remember when the proponents said if we raised the speed limits above 55 MPH the drivers would have to be more attentive to driving due to higher speeds. This may have held true for the cars built at the time, but now we have family sedans capable of speeds in excess of 150 MPH so driving at even 80 MPH seems pedestrian. I'll get off my soapbox now, but I will leave you with this. It doesn't matter how powerful a vehicle is, If it is driven unsafely, 80 hp or 800 hp can kill you.

I'd guess it's a Tamiya Mercedes Benz 500 SEC. I built a Lorinser version back in the early eighties. Nice kit, I think I still have it moldering in a box. Your version looks great, I'm not sure about the Isuzu 4 cylinder, but a Mercedes in NASCAR would be cool.

The seat decals look great and so does the paint. I have one question though. Why did you mount the mirrors on the doors instead of the window frame? It messed up the flow of the decal. I'm not sure how easy it would be to fix at this point.

1) Was your introduction to modeling at home? Las Vegas, NV Nellis AFB base housing. 2) From whom? Well, as I recall there was an unbuilt model car in a desk? or some other drawer in our home. I was very curious and found a tube of cement (don't know what kind, but I don't think it was model glue) and attempted to glue the car together. It was a multi-piece body and I pretty much made a mess of it. Don't remember who made it or what kind of car it was but the color was a dark red. When my father discovered my work, he was very upset and used colorful words to demonstrate his anger. After he calmed down, my mother talked him into buying a model for me to build. I don't remember the model itself, but it was made by Hawk and looked like a red Italian open wheel race car. I've never seen another kit that jogs my memory. (update) I decided to look on the Internet and see if I could jog my memory after writing this. It looks like the Lancia Ferrari with a picture of a built model might be my first kit. 3) What kind of models (cars, planes, trains, etc)? Yes, I built anything I could talk my mom into buying. My dad was Air Force and was rarely around. 4) What did the person who introduced you to modeling do for a living ? My dad was an aircraft mechanic on bombers (B-47), tankers (KC-135), business jets (T-39) and fighter planes (F-100, F-111 and F-16). I would later follow his footsteps and work on the same exact tankers at the base where I was conceived. 5) How old were you? 5 yrs 6) About what year was your introduction? 1970

Thanks, I'm going to try to go to Udisco next week when I trade my rental.

Hey Canada, Whats the best hobby shop near Mirabel to St-Sauveur? I'm on loan to Bombardier for a while. Anyone who is nearby that has info would be great. I've looked at Google, but the information is thin and in french. Thanks, Tim

Some kits and diecasts are better than Maisto. I have built and detailed a few. I think the Chevelle is an CMW original. Several are unbuilt Welly diecasts. Good luck.

Looks good in orange. I built this kit also, but in yellow with a white/black interior and usual paint details. I think this kit's origins are from Classic Motor Works. You should enjoy detailing this kit. I never took pictures of the interior or under the hood but it is painted.

Tony, I used these decals on an Action diecast. Probably a Carl Edwards car, because I won a bunch from GoMotorBids for cheap. Don't know what color white was used, because I have a lot of old touch up colors on the shelf. The decals are fantastic. I only have one picture from when I redid my display cases.

I Agree

Sorry Dave, it's been 20+ years and I can't remember. I know I was starting to use automotive paints, so it might be anything.

Built in the early nineties without the internet for reference. I don't remember it being difficult. Also, one of the first cars I foiled.

'55 Thunderbirds carried the spare in the trunk, but due to lack of room and complaints from customers, the '56s have Continental Kits. The '57s had longer trunks, smaller wheels and they relocated the fuel door allowing the tire to placed in it vertically on the side.

Here's my take on the guy and the car. He already had another car. He won money in Vegas and purchased this car. He didn't have to drive it unless he wanted to. At some point he was married either before or after the car's purchase. He drove the car only occasionally, hence the low miles. He loved the car and made little personal upgrades over the years. His wife felt he loved the car more than her (probably) and they divorced. The car has odd aftermarket thingies on it because those were what he liked.

Like a co-worker told me several years ago, the difference between a good sheet metal worker and a bad sheet metal worker is the good one can make their mistakes look good. It looks good to me.

1) 1968 Pontiac Grand Prix 2) 1968 Mercury Cougar XR-7G 7.0 Litre 3) 1957 Pontiac Safari 2dr wagon (like the Nomad)

I think it could be done in 1/64 or larger scale. The diecasts today are mostly wraps with a thick coat of clear, and difficult to strip compared to the old painted/tampo print.

Been living for 16 years in Wichita and have been purchasing kits from Automobilia for as long as I can remember. I don't know the owner by name, but he always recognizes me when I come in. Real nice guy. I was just there yesterday looking for foil, but the club had purchased the last of his stock. Got some from Hobbytown USA. I would like to meet with the club, but I work on saturdays and probably always will for the foreseeable future.

"As far as symptoms go I have had to let the pedal out quite a distance before it engages for some time now. Not all the way yet, but at least half way. What it is doing now is sputtering a bit at take off ( like it is slipping) and when cruising along and I head up a hill or try to give it a bit more gas it begins ti sputter again." From what I read in this post, if your car is "sputtering" the engine is slowing down. In my experience a slipping or worn clutch is an increase in engine RPM without an increase in speed. A clutch that is fully engaged at half travel sounds like it is working properly and not maladjusted. Usually on the older non-adjusting clutches, the clutch might not fully engage until the top of the travel. Self adjusting clutches will keep the travel reasonable. If your master cylinder fluid is low or leaking internally, normally it is difficult to engage a gear without grinding. This is due to air in the system or fluid bypass and the pressure plate will not fully release the clutch. As I have told many a customer at my parts store, without first hand knowledge the diagnosis is difficult. Take the car to a professional mechanic for evaluation.

The last of the built models and one Funny Car Diecast. Revell 1969 Dodge Dart GTS. This is from mid 90s and was a pleasure to build. Polar Lights 1966 Batmobile "snap" kit. Great kit that benefits from extra detailing to make it pop. Polar Lights 1965 Dodge Coronet "snap" kit. Great kit that looks good with some detailing. Polar Lights 1964 Pontiac GTO "snap" kit. Great kit that looks good with some detailing. 1320 plain white Vega Funny Car. The color is too dark, but I like it. The decals are Slixx and almost impossible to apply.