ChrisBcritter

tachometer and dwell

Great build and great backdrops! I like the subtle washes you used on the grille, rear trim and wheels. I used to have a '64 Comet wagon 20-some years ago; nice car. One thing I spotted - you have Illinois plates from 1962; these are the 1964 plates if you want them - purple and white: I remember helping my dad take them off our '61 Dodge when we got the '65 plates.

Flying Nun landed

OK. Next logical step: Clone and bring back the '60 Ford pickup, a consistent $100-$150 seller for good builtups. Assuming they can pull it off in less time than it takes for Moebius to create multiple versions of a new tool full-detail '57-'60 F-100 that will have builders starting swordfights over the inaccuracies .

Hmm. Market casualty of the new/reissued wagon kit? Clean builder with engine intact:

A few shots I used for reference on my '65 project. Low-mile original '65 SS 283/Powerglide: This one was 283/stick, manual steering: 283 with A/C, power steering and brakes... ...and without A/C, manual steering and brakes; note different position of radiator hose: One thing I wish AMT had improved: The instruments are recessed into the dash cluster on the real car: AMT made them flush all three years (no '64): It took a bit of work to fix; I made a mold of the dash and copied and painted the gauges, then made the silver overlay and a clear lens, then carved out the original gauges from the dash and inserted the new cluster from behind. Not perfect, but better, anyway. The dash decal in the new kit should make it easier to fix.

Slick!

Got the '64-'65 Mopar console, big thanks to Casey - looks like it will be a good fit for the custom '62 Newport once the pin is trimmed off: And the long-tailed '62 Falcon has landed on my table; pretty much a survivor minus grille, front nerfs and one taillight: Note the car club plaque: "Yukon Drifters, Alaska", with a roadster popping out of an igloo. I think that may be a Revell item? Anyone know? I'll have to think about what to do with it; the front half is nearly untouched and would make a better donor for the '62 Ranchero project than the promo body I have. And a bit of trivia: These wire wheels, surprisingly, have valve stems. I can't think of any other AMT kits from that era with that detail...?

Do you need a set of stock taillights? I got a set from Okey Spaulding I won't be using - PM me if you want 'em.

Hate to ask, but will it still run on XP? I get so many false "clock errors" and "privacy errors" now on various sites as it is.

Still not there yet at HobbyTown or Des Plaines Hobbies - the latter now says first week of February. That's fine - no rush, and I'd like to give a little business to a brick-and-mortar. Too bad Klipper's in Glenview is long gone - would have been cool to get it where I got my first one in 1965.

Picked up some small bits over the weekend - '64 El Camino interior, I'll cut out the no-console floor for my '65 which will get the bench seat/column shift Powerglide treatment; '65 Mercury steelies - nice front hub detail and the edge of the rim is a little thicker than the GTO steelies so they won't flex coming out of the mold; '60 El Camino lower front pan - $ouch, but cheapest that's come down the pike lately. Then I spotted this: '62 Falcon with the Styline tail; even with the crummy 500px photos I saw it might be savable, even if only as a donor for the '62 Ranchero project. '62s and their parts don't come up often, but the eBay piranhas get busy when they do - except in this case; low open and I was the only bidder .

Wilbur believes Studebaker

I'm a big fan of 1930s Army Air Corps types, especially the Douglas B-18: I photographed this same exact plane (serial #37-469) 70-some years later, at the Air Force Museum in Dayton: I have both versions (B-18 and B-18A) of the Special Hobby 1/72 scale kit in the to-do pile. The B-17 is also a big favorite of mine, especially this one: My dad used to tell me about the B-17 that was flown into his hometown of Paducah, KY in 1946 to be used as a memorial and training aid for the Boy Scouts' local Air Scouts troop; after years of research I found its serial: 42-102875. Turns out it wasn't a combat veteran; it spent the war as a crew trainer in the USA, last based at Hobbs, NM. I have the 1/48 scale Monogram kit which will look like this when it's done:

Aha! You got 'em - thanks! Glad I didn't bid on them since they're probably bigger than I need.

I don't think so; those have a little ring around the faces plus the tread is straight, not serrated like these (I have a '62 with the original tires).

I like these truck (?) tires I saw on eBay; seller said they were heavy duty tires from an MPC '70 Chevy pickup. I don't think so, but what are they from? Nice tread. Anyone recognize them?

key starts Pontiac

Looked at the listing for the variable speed Yakamoz; it's rated at 13,000 RPM and the speed control ranges from 5 to 12 volts. If it's 13k RPM at 12v, wouldn't the slowest speed work out to be a little under 5417 RPM at 5v? Still looks like a useful machine since it will take bits down to #80. That video of the wobbly example is worrying, however...

Mike, now that is a big improvement!

A tough kit but a very rewarding one when it's done; as complicated as it is, Revell managed to capture the car's lines and details very well - and you went the extra mile with it! I built one when I was a teenager; best I can say is when I was done, the top did work. I have two in the stash - one's a donor for a PMC Ranchero, the other will be a donor for a PMC Country Sedan.

Looks like #8 John Gimmell is holding a full shot of the '65 Galaxie convertible kit.

At least Cadillac made the XLR not look like a badge-engineered Vette. See also: George Barris's "Barrister" conversion. At least he put some effort into it.

Hold my X-Acto.

Somehow I talked myself into buying a Premier English Ford that master modeler Tom Piagari donated to our model club auction; if HE gave up on messing with it (this was a guy who scratchbuilt a 1/25 '58 Toyopet Crown body starting with a Revell 1/32 '57 Chevy snapkit)... Multi-piece body whose pieces act like complete strangers to each other, rear quarters and trunk that bear little resemblance to the actual car... I will admit they got the wheelbase correct. I might just build it as a pre-'75 class banger racer so I can imagine it getting pummeled to bits around the track!