Karl LaFong

When I bought some competition parts from Ebay for my match racer, the seller also included almost all the custom parts, minus the front custom grill. I combined the parts with the crappy current issue of the GTO. I used the tube grill from the AMT '57 Ford, wheels from the AMT '69 Thunderbird, and tires from the AMT '71 Mustang. I wanted a period color combo - so the interior is black, the exterior is Testor's Pure Gold metalflake. And remember - MPC is tuned in... to you.

Right on! Some of the marks on the chassis for match racer seat location, roll bar, etc. are still on the modern chassis. I do wonder if, on the original '66 & '67 issue, the front and reat bumper fit was so bad - on the new kits, it's almost if the body and bumpers are two different scales.

I've wanted to build the match racer version of the GTO for years, but the price for an intact kit is WAY beyond my pay grade. For several years I've been collecting the parts - this year I finally completed it. It started with a gluebomb 66 chassis and engine: I was able to score the competition parts off Ebay, and used a '67 Weekend Warrior for completion: The headers are from the AMT Pontiac engine parts pack, wheels and tires are from the partsbox. Paint is Testor's Hugger Orange, decals are a combination of Slixx gasser and Weekend Warrior: Hardest part was getting the bumpers to (almost) fit!

Thanks for the kudos! Yeah, not only did they change the wheels and the frame for the dropped front axle, they also made the exhaust system one piece (instead of the separate mufflers). I had some NSFW comments about the new front suspension!

I had some late 80's/early 90's paint and parts taking up space, so in a fit of nostalgia, built this 1990 - era street rod. It includes the cliches styling cues of the era -pastel paint, billet wheels, smooth running boards, no bumpers, etc. In progress info here: I wish Revell/Monogram would re-release this kit- it's a cool period piece!

In the home stretch. I glued the windows with Pledge - less hassles than using 2 part epoxy. I had problems with the rear fender to body fit - I ended up grinding the interior sided flush with the back of the rear seat. The fit still isn't that great, but better than before. Next stop-"Under Glass".

The interior is done! The color is some old Testor's flat gray military color. The steering wheel was painted with Revell Chrome spray. "Chrome" bits were hit with Molotow chrome. The guages, HVAC, and cassette/sound units are Model Car Garage items. While the instructions call for assembling the pieces in the body, per Tim Boyd's '37 Ford article in the 1990 Scale Auto Enthusiast article, I assembled it as one unit. I did a test fitting (not pictured) and this is definitely the way to go!

Been there, tried that - not worth the aggravation.

Wow! Looks great, so far.

I got it up on all four wheels. The IFS is very fiddley - I wish the frame hadn't been modified and that the original dropped front end (which is still on the sprue) could still be used.

I’ve wanted to do a circa-1990 street rod – billet wheels, pastel paint, no bumpers, etc. I grabbed this kit for 15 bucks at a recent show: It’s a great kit for this era – it has its origins in kit that came out in the late 80’s. I had the perfect wheels (MAS Talon IIs) that I had bought at NNL East back in the early 90’s: BUT, in the last 30 years or so I lost two of the machined centers. I found that the wheel bullets from the original 1963 AMT Corvette filled the centers perfectly. I glued a styrene circle on the back of the wheel and glued the bullet to the reverse and, presto, it’s 1990 again. The engine is mostly box stock. I filed off the fins on the valve covers and added oil filler tubes made from craft beads and some ancient S & S Specialties photo-etched pulleys. The manifold is from a 90’s NASCAR Chevy engine; it along with the valve covers, air conditioner compressor, and alternator, were painted with Revell chrome paint. I’ll be adding brackets to the compressor and alternator – they look goofy just hanging in air. Finally, I had a jar of Testor’s “Colors by Boyd” Pacific Blue, which was the perfect shade for this project. That's it for now!

First off - what were they smoking at IMC when they designed this abomination?!? Lack of positive mounting holes, mounting holes that were too small, parts that didn't fit, ad. infinitum. I have seen some well done versions of this kit; in order to cover up things I botched, I went with a weathered look. With the exception of the tire rack (from one of the AMT trailer kits) and rubber mud flaps on the trailer (from a fishing lure), I built it box stock. The doors don't open and the front wheels don't steer; i had enough problems just gluing them in place. The red is Tamiya Italian Red, the black are various shades of Tamiya and Testor's blacks. I covered the wood decking of the trailer with diamond plate styrene sheet. The interior (not shown) has 1/25th scale tools and photo-reduced copies of vintage "Stock Car Racing" magazine. The rag and wrench on the trailer covers up a glue boo-boo. Definately NOT a kit for the faint-hearted!

Wow - looks like something out of '63 era "Car Modeler". Well done!!

Oh yeah!! Styline rules! Great job on getting the kustom parts to fit!

Great start! Not an easy kit to build (the chassis is a real PITA) and the tires are wrong for a dirt car, but it amazing that a company would take a chance on modeling East Coast modifieds.