Peter Lombardo

What can any of us say that you don't already know about this build....simply stunning...the paint is so nice it still looks wet...the conversion of the body to handle the interior is first rate. Great job...but I have one question, and I realize that it could be considered a silly question as this is a model...do you think that those 1950's tires can handle the power and torque of the LS1 engine? See, silly question, but one that I felt compelled to ask none the less. Dave...great build, tires not withstanding.

Wow, that is really wild…the engine choice is perfect…way over the top…flames look great for your first attempt. Very different.

Very nice work, the engine looks great. The modified decals also look perfect on the car and the ride height looks dead on. Classy. Really smooth.

Thanks Jurgen, I can’t speak for Olle, but for me the time it takes to build a project car varies greatly. I tend to have many builds going at once. Usually, they are in completely different stages of completion. One almost done, one about half way done and one just starting (I am sure most builders operate in this manner). I spend about 3 to 3 ½ hours most every night building. I have my TV and stereo in my workroom, so I am very comfortable just building cars and listening to news, my DVD collection, history shows or Discovery Channel shows. Lets see, if it takes about 4 months to complete a project, and I spend 1 ½ hours a night working on that car, I will work on it about 25 days in any month, so that works out to about 150 hours per car, give or take a few hours…that is just under three 40 hour work weeks of time…but of course there are exceptions to every rule. I guess I am lucky, in that I don’t usually suffer from “Builders Blockâ€â€¦.I seem to be able to find my next project without a problem, so I can move right on to the next build. Right now I am finishing up a build, and getting close to completing another one. These two are really (I hope) going to be unique. I can’t wait to finish them and show you guy’s…they will be pretty sharp looking. One is completely different, for me, anyway, and the other is a brother to the 56 and 57 shown here to complete the series.

Although I never had the pleasure of a conversation with Bob, I certainly knew of his work. It is a sad day, for sure. I guess in some ways, this is a testament to the greatness of our hobby….We all build different styles of models, with passionate disagreements, but when one of us leaves this world (or is about to) we all feel like a brother has left us. For all of our disagreements, we all are as one. I am sure that Bob will leave us knowing that he had many friends from all over this world who appreciated him for his knowledge, friendship and a shared love of our hobby. Have a smooth ride, brother.

Big Gary, I think you have the facts a little out of line here; Daimler did not sell off the 80.1% of Chrysler because they just needed the cash, and the problem they were facing was that the Daimler stock was plummeting in Europe. The major stock holders, which were banks and mutual funds, were telling the Daimler top brass to unload the “anchor†that they had in Chrysler. If that did not happen, the stockholders would have Jorgen Schremps (spelling) head. He was not about to go down that easily, so he had to find a buyer for Chrysler. Chrysler was holding back Daimler’s stock value and the investors would not stand for that. The last few quarters that Daimler owned Chrysler, the Chrysler US operation was losing money very fast. The Daimler stock, before the financial world meltdown was trading around $80.00 a share, back when Chrysler was hurting their stock value, it was down around $35.00 a share. Now, granted, today their stock in down in the mid 30’s, but that is a reflection of the banking and finance crisis today, not their business or management. Daimler has now announced that they are buying back shares of their own stock, which is just strengthening the value of the stock. I am afraid the news is now very good for Daimler and not so good for Chrysler. My personal opinion is that Chrysler is far and away the weakest of the so called big three, and their future is completely unknown. Chrysler must rely on Joint Ventures and outside help if they are going to get through this current sales crisis.

Please allow me to explain the post – Iacocca era at Chrysler the way I saw it. I was the General Manager of a large Chrysler store at the time. We were a “breakthrough†dealer. That is not important now, but at the time we were one of 50 select dealers who worked very closely with the factory. I was, at the time, very interested in Chrysler business and politics. When Iacocca stepped down, Bob Lutz, then President, fully expected to be offered the chairmanship of the company. There must have been some huge underlying tension or resentment that was not showing to the people outside of the inner circle, because Iacocca went outside of the company and recruited Bob Eaton to move into the chairman’s position. I have always felt that Eaton was the “fox in the hen houseâ€. Bob Eaton came to Chrysler after being the head of GM Europe for the proceeding 20 years. Surely Mr. Eaton had plenty of time to cultivate relationships with the other heads of European auto manufacturers because he wasted no time in setting up the deal for the “sale†of Chrysler to Daimler. I say “sale†kind of tongue in cheek, because at the time it was sold as a “merger†of equals rather than a takeover by Daimler but as time went by and the details emerged, it became clear that it was a complete takeover by Daimler. Have you noticed that Bob Eaton disappeared after the deal? He took off and was not seen or heard from again. I heard numbers as high as $100,000,000 (one hundred million dollars) as his take in the deal. Eaton went on to build mansions in Michigan and Naples, Florida surrounded by large high fences. There was always the question being posed…..would Chrysler rise up because of the alliance with Daimler, or would it be the other way around? We don’t have all of the facts yet, but I think it was the latter; Daimler suffered because of the deal. Since the termination of the deal, Daimler products have been well received and their worldwide stature has increased. The numbers for the auto industry for September 2007 vs. September 2008 sales were horrible, but when Toyota was off -32%, Daimler was only off -8%. Granted they were down but they were far and away the best of the entire auto industry….you don’t even want to see how far the US auto companies are off…Ford -36%, Chrysler -33% and GM -16% (the only reason the GM number is lower, is that GM in 2007 was very bad, so to compare to 2008, the drop was not as large as it could have been). So the question remains……did Chrysler benefit from the time spent with Daimler? It may still be too soon to know that as it will take time for the facts to shake out and the books to be written, but I think Chrysler got more out of the deal than Daimler did. Daimler had superior platform and electronic technology that was shared with Chrysler. The electronic and computer innovations improved the Chrysler products tremendously, although you would never know that if you drove a Sebring sedan or convertible because, in my opinion, they are horrible. I am sure that Daimler is glad that the deal is over and I am willing to bet that Cerberus wishes they never got involved. It is interesting to me how so many outside of the auto industry think they could do a better job….it is not as easy as they think it is.

Clearly, I have no inside knowledge of the negotiations going on, but from the information I have seen and read, I don’t think the GM – Chrysler merger is really in the cards. There is no real synergy here. GM does not need, and that is the prime word here, need anything that Chrysler can bring to the table. The only real asset that Chrysler holds that would be of any value is the Jeep Brand, and GM doesn’t really need that. Chrysler needs everything right now, cash, new “economy class†product, less production capacity and major concessions from their union workers and GM can’t really help them there. I think the move that makes sense for GM here, is a buy out, if you will, by Renault / Nissan. There was a lot of talk in the past few weeks that Renault / Nissan was interested in Chrysler. That talk was also fueled by the fact that Chrysler was looking to buy back the 19.9% of outstanding stock still owned by Daimler. The talk was that they either wanted to sell the entire Chrysler operation or do a joint venture with another manufacturer and Daimler would not allow that because Chrysler was still using a lot of Daimler technology. But if Chrysler was wholly owned by Cerberus, then they could sell or “Joint Venture†with whom ever they want. But last week Renault stated that they have no interest in Chrysler but really want to talk to GM, which they are, behind the scene. Maybe that is a bluff or maybe that is real, but a Renault / Nissan / GM combination would be a real juggernaut. They would be a major league player in all of the big global markets……US, Asia and Europe. I don’t like the move because I don’t like to see an American Icon, GM, owned by a foreign group, but in this global economy, and the steep decline of American industry, I think this is going to be commonplace. Foreign investors are currently keeping our economy afloat right now. I fear this is just the next step to the pending Socialization of our country…..next stop is government owned banking, healthcare, heavy industry and the curtailments of many of our freedoms. It was sure great while it lasted.

Very nice looking Chevy, but not to be a jerk here, I have a question for you…... I think this car will be very loud running down the street or do I just not see the exhaust under the car? Still, very nicely done and very nice color choice.

That car looks great…I think the Chezoom roof would make even the Pontiac Aztec (world’s ugliest vehicle) look good so on the 60 Ford, it’s a natural. Does anyone know if a reparable resin caster makes a copy of that roof? My son found some for me by some guy just learning to cast, but the quality was so poor that I need to rebuild them with styrene support on the inside and lot’s of putty on the outside. Very clean custom…nice work, Oh yeah, the color works well on it too. The only question I have is the lack of chrome trim on the Ford hood logo and the "name" on the front fender, in fact, I think they could have both been shaved, but that's no big deal.

In my eyes, Paul will be remembered for his charitable work and his monogamy more than anything else. Yeah, the movies allowed him the luxury of the racing and the celebrity to have his food products known, but the fact that he kept his life grounded with the reality that he had a family “first†always impressed me. When you consider that a man with his looks and fame could have partied all the time, done drugs and chased all the women, he chose to work for his own charity and build a family. In Hollywood, you don’t see that every day.

I don’t know how I overlooked this posting until now, but that is a beautiful build. Very classy rendition of a very well known car. Because it is so well known, a model of it must look right to get noticed….this looks very right. Nice work. One of these days I plan to jump into that kit…I have it, opened the doors but stopped at that point. I don’t think I make as convincing a replica as yours though.

I just completed a 1957 Chevy, posted the "underglass" where I made a converible boot cover for it...take a look. It was very easy to do, I trased the approximent size on a piece of paper on top of the car, than I cut out the cover from a piece of Evergreen styrene, using the tracing as a template. Once done I filed and sanded to the finished shape. I used a small pliers to bend down the edges to get the "curve" I wanted so as to give the proper fit. Than, I cut out another piece of plastic just a little bit smaller and glued it over the first one. I applied Tamiya putty arounf the edges and once dry, sanded it smooth to give the boot a rounded side. Two was fine for my car, but you could add a third and even a forth layer of boot if you wanted more height. I wanted a smooth finish on my boot but you could add texture by appling either masking tape or using the tissue paper technique mentioned above. I have used that before, over a white glue base and it worked fine. Hopefully, the link below will take you to the Chevy where you can see the finished boot on the car. If not, just look at the underglass section, go down a few topics and you will find it. http://www.modelcarsmag.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=14500

Sure, I’ve done it many times, although, I don’t really recommend it. For exterior body painting I always use a sandable primer. I use, among others, Rust-oleum Automotive primer. It is light grey, goes on fast and dries even faster. You can begin light sanding in 20 minutes if you are in that big of a hurry. You can put down and top coat any paint over this primer with no fear of it grazing the plastic…even “Hot†automotive Lacquers. But to your question, Tamiya paints do not require a primer, but if you have a hardware store in the area, they have the primer on hand; it is about $5.00 for a huge can that will last many projects, so why would you not use it?

This build represents all of the best things about automotive modeling, Mix and match, take strange combinations and make them work together. There is really no right or wrong. Some combo’s work better than others…but I think the best plan is to experiment, nice work, this really works together nicely.

Your tee is tops.I know, corny, but very nice workmanship....Is Ford watching this??? They should be.

Ollie, that is pretty neat. It reminds me of the concept cars that GM did in the mid 50’s. The Corvette was getting a lot of attention, so the designers banged out “Corvette clone†concepts for some of the other divisions. I like how you intergraded the Viper styling cues into the shortened ’57 body. Its how old?....The paint still looks wet! Well done.

If I let inner fender walls get in the way on some of my builds, some the cars I did that were “down in the weeds†would look more like “Donks†getting ready to takeoff. Instructions??? What are they? If I read the instruction manual, I might learn how to actually use my cell phone properly. Real men don't read instructions. We like to blame the manufacturer for making something to complicated.

Guys, thank you very much for the VERY kind words. I really appreciate your thoughts on the builds. Ok Olle, let’s see your version of the ’57. I am sure it is an eye full. Thanks again guys. I can’t wait to post the pictures and the story surrounding my next completion. It is very different and I think it will border on “artâ€. I know some guys have speculated as to whether or not building model cars is art or not. That is open to individual interpretation, but I think my next build (if I can finish it as I want to)will be “artsyâ€. But of course, I can be out of my mind too. So, we'll see.

The Penske Sunoco Camaro from the Trans Am series is such a natural to update into the new Camaro. I have on my “someday to build†list, one of these along with the original and the Mustang Trans Am along with an update to the 2006 Mustang. We’ll see, I have the kits set aside, just need the time. Anyway, yours is sure looking good. Nice stripe job. I love how a painted on stripe looks vs. decals.

Just beautiful, love it down in the weeds. As much as I like real cars in black, I shy away from dark colors on models as they tend to hide the detail, but this looks very nice. Black is difficult to get right...you got it right. This will be a stunner when done.

AND some of us are way ahead of you (59 headed for 60, God willing) Happy Birthday, Tom......Keep 'em coming.

I have only wanted the 57 Buick and Olds models for the past 45 years. My luck, the day after I get turned into ashes, one of the kit manufacturers will announce that they are coming out. I have never fully understood the reasons why they have not been kitted by now. We get multiple 57 Ford and Chevy kits but no Buick and Olds. Go figure.

Chezamo Back in 1998, I picked up the AMT 1957 Chevrolet Pro Shop kit, you know, the one with the yellow and white coupe on the top. I thought it was a huge improvement for AMT, I mean; it even included very well done photo-etched pieces. But as much as I was impressed with the kit, I could not bring myself to build it in a stock or even a mild custom version so it sat on my shelf for many years. A few years ago, after seeing the 1956 Chevy Foose designed, “Once A Knight†built for Christopher Titus and the 1956 “clone†of it he built for Overhaulin’, I built a close copy of that car (pictures included)from the Revell 1956 Del Ray kit. As I was doing that car, it occurred to me that that style of treatment would work on the 1957. Besides, Thom Taylor’s design, built by the late Boyd Coddington, “Chezoomâ€, had a similar look to it. Now, I did not want to copy, or start with the kit of the Chezoom, as many modelers have reworked that kit in every imaginable way so the AMT ’57 was a great starting point. So, a few years ago, I cut off the top, but work stalled at that point as I could not decide what direction I wanted to go after that. Then, about a year ago, my son picked up a 1996 AMT Camaro Convertible kit at a swap meet that’s body had all the beginnings of a classic “Glue Bombâ€. But looking at the huge windshield, convertible top, dashboard and interior, it hit me that it all might fit into the ’57 with a little gentle coaxing. Once I worked that out, I found a custom lower front grill opening from the parts box that came from the first generation AMT ’57 Chevy. It was adjusted to fit, but the front end and fenders sides seemed too heavy, so a thin pie wedge was cut out from the front fenders and the grill opening was also thinned down in the same operation. Then to add a little curve to the fender tops, I glued some plastic strips to the tops of the front fenders and finished that off with body putty. The two doors were moved back about a scale foot and then opened up, so as to better fit the new dash, interior door panels and windshield. The twin hood scoops were filled in and smoothed out. The headlight bezels are stock but the headlight lenses were replaced with HO scale MU “Jewel†lights. The rear view mirrors started as the Camaro units with putty fabricated front extensions. All of the stock side moldings were removed and new moldings were made from strip styrene loosely following the side pattern from the Chezoom. All moldings were then covered with Bare Metal Foil. The only change to the rear are the kit bumper was de-chromed, sanded smooth and a license plate indent was created and the exhaust outlet pipes were relocated just under the stock taillights. The chrome “Vee’s†on the nose and tail came from the chrome tree of the kit. I did not use any of the AMT Photo-etched parts on this car; I am saving them for a mild street rod version of the “sister†kit to this one that does not have the photo-etched pieces. The engine is a very crazy mix of, AMT 1949 Mercury Chrysler Max Wedge block, exhaust and heads. The intake is a metal casting Chevy fuel injection system from Curbside Dioramics and the block is painted the same as the car and induction system is Tester’s Burnt Metal gray. The chassis is also a mix of components. The front suspension is lowered and modified from the ’57 Chevy and the rear is a modified version of the Camaro underpinnings. The frame rails were modified to fit the new rear and it is also painted with the same color combo as the engine. The rear wheel wells were removed and replaced with units from an old Viper Roadster kit. The exhaust is custom made from solder and Aluminum tubing. And the wheels are Pegasus #2298 23†DZ’s Chrome. The convertible top is from the Camaro, but the convertible boot is custom made from sheet plastic. The interior is basically right out of the Camaro, painted gray and gun metal, carpeting is black embossing powder sprinkled over flat black paint. Seat belts are photo-etched buckles with tape belts. The body was primed and then painted Mopar Viper Silver as a base. The top paint is a mix of Russet Red pigment from jacquard Pearl Ex Pigment powder and clear lacquer thinned out for my airbrush, sanded smooth and then topped with clear lacquer and then sanded and rubbed out with wax. I know I have run long here, so I will spare you the detail of the paint, but as I have stated before, this “color pigment†mixed with clear is so cool. It is the neatest paint I have ever used, and I plan to try many variations and custom mixes with it …..I love it. As much as I like the look of the car with the top down, I think it looks even better with the convertible top up. If I owned a 1957 Chevy, this is the way I would want it to look, assuming I had the coin available to convert it.