John Goschke

...with apologies to Billy Gibbons. My Larry Watson tribute '59 Thunderbird is finally done after what seems like forever. The first model I've actually completed since December '09. It's based on an original 1959 AMT "3-in-1" Customizing Kit. The front and rear bumpers are resin repros by Modelhaus of AMT '58 T-bird promo model pieces. The wheel covers are also Modelhaus repros of '59 Dodge caps, which were a custom option in an early '60s AMT kit (anybody remember which one?) Other than shaving the handles and emblems, the only other body mods was to open up the hood scoop and add a bit of the grill from a Monogram '58 T-bird. Considerable time was spent modifying the vent window frames and windshield pillars for a more accurate appearance. Hope you like it! View the whole saga here... http://public.fotki....59-thunderbird/

It's finally finished!...

What a cool idea! Keep it going!

Speechless...

Beautiful job! Looks like a great kit, too!

Thanks, guys! Looking forward to finishing this one real soon, just hope I don't screw it up somehow!

Really nice work on a very interesting subject. Will you weather it to replicate the look in the old pic?

Finally got the interior done on the “Pennsylvania Bluebird!” Also shot the clear coat but it stilled needs to be polished out. Just to give you a taste of the finish here's a couple cropped shots of it mocked up with bumpers and chassis.

So sorry for your loss, Darin.

If the model was truly built out-of-the-box without mods, it should have been your choice to enter in OTB or Curbside (for which it also would have been eligible.) The contest organizers didn't know what they were doing.

Well, I never really thought this was confusing until now. It always seemed pretty clear to me that the “Custom” in the title of that model car contest category referred to the fact that the subject of the model happened to be a Custom car, without regard to whether the modeler heavily modified the kit, added a Flintstone resin body onto an existing kit, or simply built a kit (such as Revell’s Custom Merc) out-of-the-box. The category typically includes scale models of full-scale Mild, Semi, Full and Radical Custom cars and, unless the category is broken down into these subcategories, they’re all judged (or voted on, in the case of NNL-style events) together. It seems to me that it’s the responsibility of the modeler who does an extensive amount of custom work on a given model to display it to its best advantage, which would include an attractively (or at least neatly) typeset list of the modifications, perhaps with some photos, so that the judges and spectators can fully appreciate their model versus the lowered, nosed and decked stocker with the re-sale red paint next to it on the table. You can’t take for granted that everyone will notice that you might have taken a Lindberg ’53 Ford hardtop and converted it to a chopped, channeled, and sectioned ’55 Lincoln Capri, especially if it’s a subtle, low-profile color. I’ve been to a lot of different kinds of model contests over the years and the one thing that most car modelers do not do well is displaying and documenting their models in a way that separates them from the rest of the stuff on the table. However, I think there is an argument to be made for a sub-category like “Customs: Modeler Modified,” or something like that, for models that have had extensive body-style conversions (ie. Phantom pickups and wagons) or body modifications such as chops, sections, etc. to an existing kit or combination of kits. As for the guy who takes Revell’s ’49 Merc out of the box and does a stellar job building what’s supplied therein (including getting the windshield installed correctly!), it’s his choice to enter it in the “Out-of-the-Box” category or the “Custom” category ('cause after all it IS a Custom, along with the 20 others with skirts and DeSoto grill teeth!)

As shown in the attached photo, convertibles and hardtops use a unique, plated, squared-off vent window frame that has a thinner profile than would result if the coupe door window frames. I think when I build the kit I'll thin down and reshape the vent widow and windshield pillar and replace the "glass" with acetate or clear packaging plastic.

Beautiful build and pics, Sean! If this a final test shot? Just wondering, as the windshield pillars and vent frames on convertibles and hardtop Hudson are significantly different from the coupe. Not quite a deal-breaker, but it'd take some work to get it too look correct based on what we see here, which looks like a coupe with the roof cut off.

Great build of a classic kit! Terrific job adding detail to the SBC, really sets it apart from all the "box art" builds from the kit. Looks like you also chopped the windshield and top a bit, correct?

Outstanding work as always, Andy! Very inspirational!

Beautiful job, Dave!

Jim Lytle, the builder of "Big Al" passed away only recently, on January 8. Here's a link to the H.A.M.B. thread in tribute to him... http://www.jalopyjou...light=jim+lytle Big Al was cool, but my favorite was the 5-window Deuce he built...

In this case maybe "Pro" is short for "Prosaic." pro·sa·ic / prōˈzāik/ Adjective Having the style or diction of prose; lacking poetic beauty. Commonplace; unromantic.

Thanks for the comments, guys, they're much appreciated!

I think the term you're looking for is "scrub line." In addition to being a practical consideration it's also an aesthetic one.

Truly outstanding work on this build. That engine is a real thing of beauty! It's really crying out for a set of hand-laced wire wheels to complete the illusion of realism!

Nice clean work, Greg. Sharp color, too!

MORE Masking Tape Madness! Without a practical method for doing in 1/25th scale, a .125" pin stripe outline on the panels as Larry Watson would have done, the T-bird still needed a third color, so the plan called for another panel border with a few thin scallops. The gold will harmonize with the color on the grill and taillight surrounds and hopefully gives an additional visual "hook" that isn't too busy. ...I think next model I finish is going to be a single color!

Really beautiful work!

Very cool build! Reminds me of Keith Weesner's chicks in flying cars series of artworks.... And a series of classic Fisher Body magazine ads from '58 and '59.