clovis

Here it is, a wonderful winter evening, a perfect time to work on a model, and my daughter is spending the night at grandma's house. I want to crack that kit open SO bad, and start working on it!!! Even if she would have hurt feelings over me starting it, I want this to be her/our project. It is still hard not to bust those sealed sprues open, and start scrubbing them in the sink!

Nice job!!!!!

Very nice, Greg. I like all of those kits! Thank you!!!

Cool Norton sponsored car. It looks as good as the one sitting in Indianapolis Intl. Airport.

I love them!!!!! I am a huge Indy fan. Are these kits? Resin? Scratch?

Nice build!

It is almost too late to switch models. My little one was was thrilled to get this kit. She was telling my parents tonight about her new gift, and how excited she was to build a Model A, just like they have at Greenfield Village. Since she has already decided that this one will be a rusty beater, non functioning doors and a little poor fitment might help us in a way. You all already have me a little nervous...I had a disaster built with my nephew a few years ago with a vintage Revell kit. I want fun builds from here on out!

Thank you, Harry! Now that I think about it, I had a bottle of the Testors back when I was a kid, pre-college. I used it some, but never really got the hang of using it. I still had it, that is, until someone decided to break into an office I had, and stole my model box, including the X-acto knife set that my dad bought me. That box had almost no monetary value, but I was attached to it, even if 90% of the paint was dried up. Maybe I'll invest in a bottle of it and try it again.

Thanks, SM! So you built the very model that graces the front of the box???? I spent a few minutes studying the picture, and wondered who built it. Nice job!!!!

Are you referring to super glue type adhesives?

I've got the old school type Testors brand in my box. Do you recall which brand worked for you? Do you have Testors in Canada?

My daughter's excitement. We had planned on letting her open it after supper...but the suspense was killing her! I am trying to figure out how to resize a pic for posting...bear with me. That isn't the pic I wanted to share, but this is my first attempt at posting a pic on this forum.

Thank you again for your replies and words of encouragement. My daughter was absolutely thrilled when she opened the model, and shrieked with excitement as she tore the wrapping paper away from the box. I want this to be a fun build, and if her excitement tonight is any indicator, I think it will be.

Thank you for your reply, Scale Master. You have me a bit worried. I'm not the best builder around, and I've often struggled with fitment. The kit, overall, looks pretty good. The clear sprue is brilliant and clear. The chrome is spotless, and I love the sheen and hue. This build will be a rusty beater, and I am already cringing about toning down that beautiful chrome. I've not built a ton of cars in my life, but it is by far, without a doubt, the nicest chrome I've ever seen in a kit. The flashing is very minor, and only present on one single sprue. So far, the only issue that I've seen is on the cab, and it looks like it was bumped as it was ejected from the mold. Definitely not a big deal at all. A bit of filler will fix that in a jiffy. Oh, and one of the wire spoke wheels is missing a wire. I'm sure that I'll run into more problems, and I pray that it goes together well. Working with warped or ill fitting parts is not my strength. Again, thank you so much for your help!!!!!!

Since you've been so kind to answer questions, Harry, 'halibut' this one: What size of round rod are you using to make the connectors for the spark plugs?

Any chance that you'll do multiples of these kits, and do extremely detailed WIP's on each build? There is a dude in Indiana with a 12 year old daughter that could use your help!

Can you expand on any issues that you might have had? The kit looks great in the box, but I am both curious and nervous as to what we might run into while building.

I've been searching for a new kit for my daughter and I to build. We are very active in 4-H, and I've been looking for her next 4-H fair entry. I have spent countless hours on ebay and the internet searching for a 1/16 or larger kit. I've also bothered you all on this forum a number of times asking about certain kits on ebay. (I appreciate your time and help!!!!) Strong contenders for her 2014 entry were: '55 or 57 Chevy, any body. '57 Chevy Corvette New Foose Camaro Another '64 Mustang Shelby Mustang (Revell's latest big kit) I was surprised to see the Minicraft sell so cheap on ebay recently, and since money isn't growing on trees around here, I snatched up the kit. I still paid a little more than I wanted, but I still got a great deal. That model arrived today...and I am excited. I love the detail in this kit, and I can already see that this is going to be an enjoyable build. No, the kit isn't perfect, but at least it isn't toy like in it's fit and finish, much like the Lindberg Model T that I am currently building. I love the number of parts, the detail of the parts, the instructions, and how the sprues are laid out. The chrome is nice and bright, and it features rubber tires. The only downer to the kit that I see, so far, are the decals. Cheap and dumb, IMO. I need to be focusing on work today...but that kit came, and my mind has been racing about the possibilities with this kit. I am going to wrap it up, and give it to tomorrow her as a late Christmas gift. Thanks for letting me share!!!! Wish us luck!!!! This is going to be an awesome and fun build!!!!!!!!!

Good point, Tom. I've often wondered about the differences between Legos and models, and why one is overshadowing the other. The family/business that owns Lego has done a fantastic job marketing their product, including the use of child psychologists in why kids like the blocks. They've taken that information and used it to strategically market to kids. I wish that one of the model companies would do the same thing with kids and kits. You can buy Legos almost everywhere. If you remove ebay and the internet from the equation, where does one buy a model? I think the closest place to us is 25 miles away, and I'm not out in the boonies. Legos are more expensive than models, for the most part. The high end kits are expensive! The distinct advantages of Legos over models: 1. You can build a Lego kit as many times as you want, or build anything at all, should you desire. 2. Legos are definitely considered "cool" by most kids, at least for now. 3. You can buy a Lego kit, build it, and it looks good. Buy a model...wow...I remember how bad some of my first models looked! 4. No mess. No paint, no glue, no broken parts. 5. When you are done with a Lego build, you still have a toy to play with; build a model, and you've got a fragile item that needs to sit on a shelf forever. I am certainly no expert, but I did drink a Dr Pepper today. From my arm chair perspective, I think that kids are outgrowing Legos by a certain age, generally speaking. My nephew has aged out and is too cool to build with Legos now, but knows very little about building models, even though I've tried. I think there is room for models to become popular, but we are starting to get a generation or two out of the "let's build a model" mentality. If you are 10 years old, and your mom and dad weren't exposed to models, there really is no chance that you'll pick it up as a hobby. I think we need more marketing from the industry as a whole, and better availability of cheap kits and supplies. Kids love to build...just look at the popularity of Minecraft...they just need exposure to model building.

Be careful. That is the kind of car that you buy thinking you'll fix and flip, and the next thing you know, you will have fallen in love with it. Cool old ride!!!! Enjoy it!!!

Since I started the thread, maybe I should be one of the first: I started building when I was a kid because it was fun, challenging, and because it was something to do to pass the time. As I grew older, I began to realize how much I loved building WWII military tanks and aircraft. While I am a gear head at heart, my real passion is WWII history, and the models gave me the opportunity to delve into areas that I had deep interest in. Those models gave me a whole new dimension to the books that I had been reading, and helped me understand the subject matter on a much deeper basis. I was nearly in seventh heaven when I built a 1/32 Corsair as a kid. I was literally spray painting the my model plane in the actual color that they were originally, and not laying across my bed reading about them in books from the library and looking at black and white photographs! And when I built a C-47 years ago, I was building the very plane that the 101st jumped out of on D-Day. Simply said, the models gave and have given a life to the history. And most recently, I loved building a rusty Mustang with my daughter. It was fun to recreate and teach her about how many of the 60's Mustangs looked 25-30 years ago...just rusty, old cars. I often find myself lost in thought while I build, and I love the "engineering learning" while building a model. As dumb as it sounds, I notice things and think of things about the model that I'm building. Yes, I day dream a lot while building. As a silly side note, I don't enjoy the build afterwards. I am amazed by the large collections some builders have of their completed models, but if the house were burning down, I wouldn't run back in for a completed model. I would be desperate to get my 'box' of paint and supplies though!!!!! Weird, isn't it?

Yep, you read that correctly. Why do you build? What exactly do you enjoy about the hobby that causes you to build and continue building? Is it the challenge of improving your build or improving your skill set? Is it the creativity in the model that causes you to build? Do you just enjoy having completed models for your showcase? What is it exactly???

You should definitely jump back in to modeling. I had a 25+ year hiatus, much like you did, and have wondered many times why I ever quit building. If you liked building then, you'll love it now!

Thank you for sharing your WIP and your building tips!!!!! I LOVE it, and learn something new every time you post! Again, thank you!!!

Interesting topic. I too am worried about the long term viability of this hobby. Back when I was a kid, building models was very popular. I quit building when I went off to college. Back when I was building in the 80's, the 4-H entries at our fair were impressive, and numbered into the hundreds. The number of entries stayed way up through the 90's, and was so popular that the fair board built a special plexiglass wall (so they could put more models on the floor for viewing and keep people away from the models) and built additional shelving for display. In the past few years, the number has dwindled to a shockingly low point. Today, the fair boast hundreds of Lego entries. I know Legos are popular, but man alive, the number of Lego kit entries are astounding. While I am 100% for small business and for the LHS, when Walmart quit carrying models, paints and supplies at cheap prices, the number of entries plummeted. And I don't blame any parent for not getting into building a model with their kid. The kit prices at HTUSA are mind boggling, and the kit selection at HL is low, to say the least. A few years ago, I heard a parent say "We won't be doing this again. This entry cost us almost $100!" I even have a hard time justifying the cost of a build sometimes, and I am a straight-box builder. I think kids still enjoy building when given the opportunity...but when does that opportunity exist? When you have to drive 25 miles to get a kit or a bottle of paint, and pay a fortune for it... I've always said, cheap models at Wallyworld were the gateway to big, expensive models elsewhere, and to a lifetime of building.