ToyLvr

Airbrush or Rattlecan?

Agreed. That's why I posted that close-up photo. I also don't like the rubbery "plastic" used in the kits manufactured in China, but that's another discussion topic for another time...

I often buy kits at my LHS. Haven't had much trouble with missing or defective parts in my kits. Only case in recent history was missing tires in the AMT "Sock-It-To-Me" '62 Corvette reissue (an issue which was discussed here on the Forum). I talked to the owner of the LHS where I bought it, he went through his supplier to contact Round 2, and a few days later I had my tires, no charge, no paperwork, no hassle.

Here's how I do it... Whenever I get one of those cheapo magazine offers, I give the info to one of my family members and tell them to order the subscription as a birthday/Christmas/Anniversary present for me. Most of my economically-challenged family members are delighted at the thought of only spending as little as $7 bucks on me, and I wind up with a good bunch of reading and reference material. I just give 'em away when the pile gets too big. Where to get rid of them? Model Club meetings; Local Veterans groups or VA hospital; Local volunteer fire department; Barber shop, doctor office, car repair shop - take one with you to read while you're waiting, then just leave it (remember to remove or mark-out your mailing address); RECYCLE BIN.

Since I love to collect models of all Corvair-powered cars, the Piranha has also been a "Grail" kit of mine for many years. A couple of years ago, I finally found a reasonably priced example of the Piranha's companion kit (see attached), and now they go and reissue the kit! Oh well, I can enjoy the funky box art...

A few snapshots of the kit:

Well, aside from the funnycar version, you could build a "late" Corvair to replicate one with the "Kelmark" or "Crown" mid-engine V-8 conversion. One of my 1:1 Corvairs had the Kelmark kit with bored-out Chevy 283 coupled with the original Corvair transaxle. The kit included a special adapter plate to mate the V-8 with the Vair transaxle. I've seen a few models over the years where someone has stuck a V-8 in a Corvair, but I've never seen one where it's been a "proper" one with the Corvair transaxle. I have one in the works, but too many projects, too little time.

11:27PM Eastern time....waiting up to hear the sound of reindeer on my rooftop. Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good night.....

My son gave me the Revell '71 Cuda kit for Christmas. Also, Santa dropped by a little early on Monday this week and brought me a paint booth. Merry Christmas to all!

The Chevelle Drag Kit is my "Holy Grail" kit. The only one I've ever seen was going for $300 on evilbay. Sure wish Round 2 would issue it.

All I can tell you is they were very old AMT decals. I have a large box full of them. Friends have "donated" their childhood collections to me in the past, and I never throw anything away. In one bunch were many decal sheets, but only a model trivia champ would know where they came from! The "Corvair" decal came from a 1960 3-in-1 kit. The rest are, like, ???????

Not to hijack Bonehead's thread, but here's another fast Corvair-powered vehicle. This one was built by a fellow up in the Detroit area, and utilizes Weber carbs (IIRC). I really like to see more Corvair engines in interesting concepts, whether models or 1:1.

Cool! Where'd you get your decals.

That C-Cab model may be Revell's "T-Bone Stake" (spelling of "stake" is intentional = stake bed truck).....

A note to Adam, or anyone else who may want to try that Krylon color. It's part of Krylon's "Fusion" series. I've heard some tales of it crazing plastic. I haven't had any problems with it, but I always use automotive primer.

Yeah, Miles, I am. Like most other colors, its final appearance is influenced by the color of primer under it, and what type of light you see it in. I used it on a recent project, and it looks sorta gray-green....

If Krylon spray paint is sold in your area, look for their color called "River Rock"....

Congrats on getting your "Passport to Paradise" as I once heard someone call it. Who cares about the car....the girl looks like a "keeper". Do what you have to do to hang on to her! :-)

Sweet!

When the Aztec was first debuted, one of my friends saw a bright yellow one travelling on I-75 near Dayton, Ohio. It was so butt-ugly that he thought something had escaped from "Area 51" of the nearby Wright-Patterson Air Force Base!

Guess my '05 Beetle counts! Actually, it was a girl's car. My daughter bought it brand new, and drove it for several years. Once she finally got married and started a family, he quickly learned the merits of owning a 4-door sedan. So, I "inherited" the Beetle after she bought a new sedan. It runs good, gets good gas mileage, etc., and the price was right. It may be a "girly" car, but it beats walking! ;-)

Thanks for catching my typo, Snake. My "chemo brain" not working well this AM.... Fitch was a great car guy! I remember reading some old car mags that had articles about the Corvair "Sprint" and how he converted the engine to 4-carb. Interesting how Chevy soon had the 4-carb as an option...... ;-)

OMG, here we go. Corvairs had two (2) distinct body designs, 1960-64 and 1965-69, commonly referred to as "Early" and "Late". The easiest way to tell them apart, at a glance, is that the Early has louvers in the hood for air intake, whereas the Late has its air intake in a grill area just below the rear windshield. For many model years, there were several trim levels; the "500", "700", "900". "Monza" was an upgrade that was available from the Spring of '60 until the last unit rolled off the line in May of '69. As you might guess, the "500" was a no-frills stripper, the "700" a bit nicer, and the 900 was the group with the Monza trim, etc. "Spyder" was a performance upgrade available from '62-'64 model years. Easily distinguished by the addition of a turbo to the engine. The option also included a nicer instrument cluster which contained a Tachometer and pressure gauge. There were also some fancier badges on the body. The turbo, BTW, raised the horsepower to 150. All Spyders were manual transmission; no Powerglide available with the turbo. The AMT '64 Corvair "Craftsman" kit depicts a Spyder upgrade. This kit was a curbside, so there's no engine (other than small detail seen on the chassis). The "CORSA" was the performance option available on the "Late" Corvairs. Things get a bit more complicated here. The buyer had two engine choices, the 140 horsepower with 4 single-barrel carburetors, and the 180 HP with a turbo. As in the case of the earlier "Spyder", there was a nicer instrument cluster and some other badge upgrades, etc. Likewise, all CORSA units were manual transmission. Most of the AMT kits for the "Late" depicted the Vair as a "CORSA" with the 4-carb engine, IIRC. These AMT kts had an oening hood with engine and engine compartment detail. I don't recall the turbo being an option in the kit, but I'd have to go pull a couple from my stash and have a look to refresh my aging memory. The AMT "Parts Pack" Corvair engine did include a turbo, so it's possible for you to add that to your Late engine if you like. To further complicate model year choices, there were "Early" Corvairs that modified by "Finch" and known as the Finch Sprint. For the Late, there were a bunch modified by the legendary Don Yenko, and known as the Yenko Corvair. In both cases, the Corvair had engine performance upgrades, and various trim and badge upgrades. This is a brief "thumbnail" sketch of the Corvair mods, and not intended to address every little detail. Then of course, there were the Vans and trucks.... Hope this helps.

I sure wish it had been casted! I had the pleasure of meeting Dean years ago when he had his "museum" in Elmhurst. Truly a fascinating individual.

Ken - Maybe you can PM me with a little tutorial on that? Thanks.......