1959scudetto

Very nice Brockway, Warren - looks great !

Excellent idea with the side-mounted spare wheel and great execution of the whole build - looks very realistic !

In 1989 (immediately after its release) I built a model of Italeri’s Ferrari 250 California Spider, hastily glued together : red spray-paint from the can - interior, engine and chassis left unpainted. Its wheels were used to pimp up one of Esci’s 250 SWBs, so I pirated spoke wheels from a Fujimi EM Daytona (will be built with the alloys) and used 1/24 Monogram plastic tires (leftovers from my ’57 Vette street machine) - they were a bit trimmed to fit. I was never satisfied with the result (track too narrow, headlight lenses turned white and headlight covers partially frosted from the glue, some glue residue on the windows.) The following 2 pics are from 2005 : So I started my "restauration" 3 weeks ago: Mainly cosmetic, as all invisible things remained untouched (drivetrain, chassis etc.): the red paint was carefully wetsanded and then polished with Micromesh; glass came off – windshield was polished, its frame got some black paint to simulate a rubber gasket, the side windows were discarded, the headlight covers came from another kit I only bought for parts (I have still 2 more unbuilts) – the white headlights were treated with Tamiya clear yellow to represent a French car (yellow headlight lenses or at least bulbs were mandatory there from 1936 up to 1993) – of course, the US plate had to be replaced with French ones. The track was widened by using plastic washers. Most work went into the interior: the spartanic racing seats were replaced with buckets from Protar’s Alfa Giulietta which look rather close to Ferrari’s originals, the interior was painted tan, the floor got some flocking, a pin was used as gear lever, door handles and lower door trim were fabricated from steel wire. The final touch was chrome foil strips on hood and doors, fine steel mesh behind the fender louvers (see first picture), a Ferrari script logo on the trunk (from Virages decals) and photoetched wipers (ebay, from Spain). As the kits shortcomings (incorrect headlights, wrong interior door panels and seats, clumsy wipers etc.) have been only partially addressed to, the result is far from perfect (the hood has been glued shut) – but it does at least look better than before. Comments and critics are always welcome – here are the new pics from last weekend (I just noticed the right exhaust tips have to be corrected - will be done soon) - otherwise it is done:

Thanks Gary - I will post some pics "under glass"...

Excellent looking phantom Cougar, Mario - fantastic finish (and background!) als always!

Finally finished my rework of (my own) old build: Ferrari GT 250 SWB California Spider (Italeri 1/24):

Very nice model, Mario - and your backyard scene could be from a "Kojak" TV episode.

Excellent truck-tanker combination - well built and photographed - could easily be mistaken for the real thing! My favorite Coe!

Another great classic from your garage, Mario - excellent paint job as usual.

Very nice build, Michael - excellent paint and detailing !

Well done, Snake - little things can make a big difference !

Very nice replica, Steve !

Nice model, Mario !

Merci, Philippe ! Thanks for the compliment - Mario makes fantastic paintwork that I probably never will be able to achieve.

Thanks for the nice comments Michal, Carl, Chris, David, Anders, Dennis, Tom and Bob !

Thank you Mario, Larry, Lee, Glen and Eric - I don't know if two tone is factory correct, but I liked the idea of a white roof as the interior is also red as is the body color.

x 2 - wonderful model, Anders - as always ! I don't know how I could have missed this one (probably due to summer holidays without internet...) !

Fantastic builds as usual, Mario ! I saw the movie a few years ago on youtube (especially the car chase scenes) - your cars look like the real ones!

Very nice Kurt ! built most of amt's 1/16 kits between 1982 and 86 - all had some issues.

Nice addition to your fleet, Dan - I think I will rework my old dump trailer also from 3 to 2 axles!

x 2 ! All very nice builds, my favorites are the Jaguars and the Ponticac Firebird - super paint and awesome engine detailsing on all your models ! Engine wiring and plumbing is the hardest part for me - I mostly avoid that (don't want to frustrate myself...). Believe me, this can really be a life-long hobby (at least if you are a petrolhead like me) - I started as a ten year old and now I am 62. You can build most cars that you are dreaming of (well: almost) and can modify them to your taste! I have been building for 50 years now (with some interrupts in between), but have not yet reached your level - keep on building and show us more !

Very nice Transtar - if this is your first truck, we can expect lots of cool big rigs from you !

Arrived yesterday from Italy : 1985 Tour de Corse-winning Renault 5 Maxi Turbo from the 1/24 Hachettte WRC collection series: Here with its 1982 predecessor: And here, with its civilian brother (stock version):

Great job as always, Mario ! While the 70's American cars are not to my taste (though well-built), your background diorama is superb - could go for real !!!

Very cool-looking Ford, Gareth - is this a cop car (red light on the roof) ? - Great idea to create a wheel-changing scene !