jbwelda

that looks pretty authentic alright. very kool concept. just wondering: is the underside of the hood finished? so the hood bulge is sort of incorporated into it? I take it the bulge was necessary due to the high rise intake manifold? jb

yeah great job of assembling all those parts to come up with this. looks beautiful and I really like the 409 with the front blower setup. that's something you don't see everyday! the body, did it come with wheel wells cut out of the side of the body or did you do that to sit the body back on the chassis? jb

last kit I was really disappointed in was the recent reissue of that Barnabas Collins truck kinda thing. I figured I could make a kool street rod from it. got it home and opened it up...what a hunk of junk. warpy, flashy body panels, flash so thick on the chrome you couldn't even hardly make out the part, minimal detail and what was there was cartoon like, actually nothing at all I wanted to do with it except close up the box and forget about it. will probably donate it to our model show for raffle prize or something...best to pass along the pain. jb

ya know, its always something. jb

that is really impressive, a really great design. depending on how it turns out I think you should think about entering it in the GSL in Utah next time it happens. its exactly what they are looking for: unique body design incorporating known design elements to make something that stands on its own. to me it kind of looks like a super size Lexus, maybe its the wheels that do it, maybe its that sort of Japanese looking air dam in the front, but whatever it is, it really works. and that 'Stang roofline is really what pulls it all together. just noticed it but that little bitty rear door looks pretty neat too. jb

awesome, both the model and that real one above. must have been a real privilege to be in the presence of those cars not to mention your friend Lee and get a tour around a place like that! jb

Sorry to respond to my own post, but there is something in that prototype design drawing that makes it look really interesting to me, and its something that didn't get into the real car as it developed. it is the way the rear fender area curves inward and then back outward to expose the top of the tire. that looks really graceful but I guess it wouldn't work for actual driving too well as it would probably throw gravel and dirt up onto the paint. sure does look sweet though, makes the way it actually came out look kind of, well, squaresville, daddy-o! jb

>Nice work keeping all the fiddly bits straight and square. that's what the graph paper is for! this frame is kind of fiddly alright, took a couple of times of gluing it with white glue before I thought it was straight enough to reinforce with epoxy. its still messed up a bit in the front but the axle sits parallel to the ground so that's good. >I'd completely forgotten that this wild thing was mid-engine. yeah ed roth was pretty far ahead of his time in the "smaller is better" club plus willing to experiment with different engine placements. on this car all the good stuff gets hidden by the body but you can see down a small window onto the air cleaners basically, plus the wiring. but I am going to have to make the body and interior removable because I just like how the frame and running gear fit together. same with the Surfite with its little Austin motor and jewel like running gear. this is one show rod that I bet ran pretty well and could be driven around (aside from the bubble top...no way that works outside in California even in the spring much less the summer!). maybe it never got driven around but I bet it could have been. really one of his best designs in my mind. and I really like the prototype drawing with the truncated pods: here is ed roth working on the car, with the pods in their original design state: I think the book I took the photos from says he came in one day and sawed them off because he didn't like them and then remade them in the solid form. maybe I am confusing this car with another though. by the way definitely NOT my photos, I just took a quick snapshot of the page from the Tony Thacker book which is a very interesting read along with having a lot of really kool photos, and great research material for building the Revell models, which I am slowly doing. after this one is done, I think I need to do the Tweedy Pie finally...kind of the ultimate fiddly there along with original Orange Crate which I also coincidentally have on my must do list for the next year or so. so my workbench might get even more interesting soon! not sure which issue I am using here but I am sure it is not an original. I have had it around since the nineties I think, but probably from the eighties sometime. molding was still pretty clean though some nasty parting lines and sink marks. some pretty detailed parts that looked fine though. jb

thank you Casey for coming up with exactly what I was talking about some time ago: in 97 I guess it was they were going to release four cycles in one box. SAE had a photo of the box I think in the prior coverage of the announcement that they were bringing them out. but then not. you cannot tell me there is more "interest" in a Pacer (but that's AMT or MPC or whatever) or some multiple reissued tom daniels "show rod" than in a set of four motorcycles that have rarely been reissued all the way back since the sixties. simply cannot be. especially because it implies that they know where the molds are, that they work, and that they are complete and usable. what it says right there is "weak pre-order performance" whatever the h e double l that means, just sounds like a lot of dealers didn't have any foresight to order a case or two. kinda really pretty stupid if so especially considering the dreck they evidently DO pre-order. I know everyone says this (and no one probably ever does it) but I would buy a case of them myself and I am pretty sure they would end up outselling say the ninth reissue this century of some tri-five cheby. no matter what the brainiacs who judge pre-order performance might predict. jb

one thing, you will find the slicks far superior to Monograms in just about every way. rest of the kit is so so, but some nice parts for the parts box jb

I recently came into a GMP 1/6 scale Offenhauser engine and display stand for a good price (I think it was originally > 250$ and I paid 50). the problem is, it had been dropped and the display case (clear cover) is cracked in numerous places plus the brackets that hold the engine fore and aft are broken or badly bent. there were some other issues like a little scratched paint and a broken fuel line attachment, but those cleaned up pretty nice with a little effort. I went looking for GMP but it appears perhaps they have gone under. Possibly replaced by ACME Trading who I contacted with this request as well. Does anyone know a contact for GMP or is ACME it at this point? anyone have any idea or history of getting replacement parts from them? Or any other ideas about getting the parts? (The brackets are no real problem to make but I would prefer to have the original ones if possible). Thanks for any input! jb

one word: Apple. one more: don't jb

I wasn't aware I was responsible for organizing all the parts WE collect. but for mine I throw them in the spares box. or tub actually. or if its something particularly kool I set it aside. pretty simple, all except the finding part. jb

I believe the Fujimi Garage and Tools tool set has at least one. also try scale equip ltd jb

now you are talking with the pipes. that collector just didn't cut it, didn't have the same panache. its what makes the car in my mind. looks much better now jb

some progress, engine done except hooking up coil wire, exhaust system epoxied in place, battery and fuel tanks mounted. all that really remains of complete rolling chassis is to mount wheels and tires and the back bumper nerf bar deal. thanks again for looking! comments, questions or criticisms always welcome. will be starting on the body next, possibly tonite jb

that front end looks good! jb

a "dry ice bomb" will get you thrown in prison these days. have fun explaining to Bubba how you don't want your exit used as an entrance...cause he will be up to all kind of practical "jokes" that you will be the butt (pun intended) of. jb

just get some wire slightly larger diameter than the spark plug wire you are using, cut a 6" or so section off. split one end just a bit and with needle nose pliers or tweezers, pull out the multistrand wire until you have a tube of hollow wire. then cut off sections and slip them over your ignition wires and work them down to the engine block. you can get fancy and slit one side of the connector opposite the direction of the wire, then bend it over to make a 45 or 90 degree boot. if you need to, go to radio shack or an electronics store and get some appropriate wire, way cheaper than aftermarket. jb

excellent and that paint looks fantastic! I built a next gen of the MR2, but Ive also wanted to build this kit as well. I think the wheels look real up to date. great looks overall! jb

that's really neat. never seen a Monza like that. well done! jb

I haven't read this whole thread but I would say that I have taken Tamiya masking tape and cut it into 1/32" or so strips after painting it with Tamiya spray paint, and it went around corners as smoothly as you could hope for and the paint didn't crack or anything. the tape was thin enough that you couldn't see it on the edge of the paint if you see what I mean. it was a desperate move but it turned out really really well (this in 1/24). I shot some clear over it and it looked painted on. might want to experiment with that if its appropriate. it did have just a bit of texture but that seemed to disappear with the painting. and its strong enough to manhandle a bit if necessary. jb

he was probably talking about using the trailer as a base for a tent trailer sort of thing. not sure if that's a pop up or not but that's what I got from it. jb

there is a clear view edition on ebay right now for 86$ shipped. I picked up 3 of them back 10 years ago at some liquidation place, for 3$ each. I should have bought 20...they had to have had at least a hundred there. jb

nice eye for detail! is this kit the same as the clear-view clear plastic body one? sure does look similar. jb