Pete J.

Mark - Me too! I hear that thump every night just before I go to sleep. But then I now have an advantage in judging P 34's. There will only be one true correct model and that will be the one I build!

It would have to be one with carburetor to be sure it has a choke mode! Sorry to the hard core fans! I'm just a frustrated fan.

The last great model contest prize was the all expense paid trip to Japan to the Shizuoka Hobby show that came with winning Tamiya/con. Sorry that is gone.

Man, you guys just don't go back far enough. There was a Dodge Colt, a Pontiac Chieftain, and a Muntz Jet. My favorite College team would have to be sponsored by a International Harvester corn picker:Nebraska a big red, Corn husker - Green Bay: a Packard -Miami:Renault Dolphin - St. Lewis: Dodge Ram - Atlanta:Ford Falcon - Jacksonville: XKE Just to name a few.

I'm bettin' it is Japanese. Has the look of a 4 door kei class car. They have thousands of different cars in that class in Japan. All of them very weird. Which one I have no idea!

So we're done? Great fun watching everyone's build. Great subject!

Harry, you got me! They are the correct wheels, just very hard to see the third row. RM auctions photo blows up better. I guess I should do my research before I vote, but then that wouldn't be in the spirit of the challenge now would it?

Real??? Unbelievable! The restorer got the wheels wrong. They should be Boronni's with a three row spoke. On a restoration of a car like this, I am quite surprised.

I vote model. There is a major error that any competant restorer would not have made. Won't say what, but will tell Friday. Very nice model.

Just a passing thought. Of those who have participated in this discussion, how many of you have actually judged a contest? I know Mark and I have, how about the rest?

Very clean build! Nicely done.

Just a couple of more comments. First on banning the host club from competing. I really don't see that as a viable option. I don't know what it is like on the east coast but out here, with some of the distance issues, if you were to ban the host club you would cut out about 60% to 70% of the models on the table and then you wouldn't have much of a contest. On top of that, it reduces the incentive of a club to host a show. That is like giving a party and not being allowed out of the kitchen. We have few enough contests as it is. I think this would reduce the number of contests significantly to ban the host club. Second, on the subject of improprieties of judging. Every contest I have been involved with excludes someone from judging a category in which they have an entry. Also if a judge's model up for a "best of" they are not allowed into the discussion or the vote. The best way to eliminate the appearance of club favoritism is to get judges from other clubs to volunteer. Unfortunately this can be quite difficult. Often it takes a lot of arm twisting to get a non-club member to join a judging crew. It would be ideal to have an entirely non-club judging crew, but my experience is that there are just not a lot of people who are willing to judge period, much less drive a long distance to spend several hours working hard at judging. Also, I disagree with those who want great prizes to go along with the trophies. Frankly, competing for anything other than bragging rights tends to bring out the worst in people. There are enough rumors of cheating(Not all the work was done by the entrant)and large cash or prizes only exacerbates the problem. I know of at least one situation at a contest with a huge prize that one entrant brought in a model that was built buy one of the show assistants(who had sold the model). The model was immediately recognized, because the actual builder was helping with model check in. Nothing was ever said to the entrant, but that model was not judged. Not all modelers have a good perspective on why they build and what contests are about. Yes it is nice to have great prizes, but that lead to another group of improprieties.

I would like to add my opinion and persecutive on the "disappearing judges" question. From my perspective it is more a matter of contestants attitudes than judges willingness to participate. I do not know how many times I have seen contestants verbally assault judges or just generally be rude to them or each other. In fairness to the judges, they are non compensated volunteers who are at the meet for the same reason as the modelers-to have fun. How much fun do you think it is to have some high volume idiot in your face, questioning your ancestry and your integrity. Most large shows are punctuated by at least one loudmouthed individual who screams obscenities and swears he was cheated and leaves in a huff. Kind of ruins the day for all. A polite, open minded contestant who approaches a judge will almost always get a good response, but a combative and disrespectful person will get a similar response. Anyone who has judged for any length of time is a little gun shy and for good reason. Judges understand that every contestant has probably poured their heart and sole into the model that is their pride and joy. Contestants really don't like to be told what it wrong with their baby and most judges don't like being the bearer of bad news. Most discussions with a judge start from a difficult position and it seems that it is up to the judge to defuse that. It is a potential mine field that is not easy to deal with. Ever wonder why it is difficult to get enough judges to cover a large show. Obnoxious modelers are a primary reason.

You have to close your left eye and squint real hard. Helps of the light is just right too!

It is a kit but not by Hasagawa. They are still available some times from HLJ. There is also a 956 in the series. I will have to look in my stash of kits and see who the original manufacture is. Glad you liked them. I was thinking of doing the P47 in some decals I got from IPMS. They came with the journal.

Click on the "Guest" tab on the home page. That will take you to my own brand of wierdness.

I had a hard time deciding were to put this as it only has two cars on the site. It is a web site that I think a number of you will enjoy as a bit of a brake from building such serious models. I met Milto through a friend of mine on the internet. He is an Austrian with a great sense of humor. We both build these strange little models because they make us laugh especially when done with great seriousness. He as a guest section where he has posted some of my builds. Enjoy another aspect of model building that is nothing but pure imagination. http://www.eggstrememachines.net/

Empty nester- Yea, nothing is better than having a nice quiet house to yourself. No one to interrupt the quite. No one to clean up after except yourself. Yep, nothing better! Well, not exactly. The quite can close in after a while. You miss the toys on the floor and the mess in the sink. You miss the little person to go with you to the hobby shop, the ball park, the park across the street for a game of toss. But you are proud of them and the grand kids will be along soon and you can have the mess when you want it. Good luck with the quiet.

I add a drop(yes just one drop) of dish washing detergent. I also use a bucket of water so I can dip the part frequently. The detergent breaks the surface tension of the water and lets it rinse cleaner. The wet model and abrasive prevents any bits getting on the abrasive and making deeper scratches in the plastic. This is especially important if you are doing clear parts.

Glad to share. While you are at that site check out their polishing sticks. I by them 50 at a time to get a good price. They are exceptional because they are coated with mircomesh abrasive.

Mark - The two most used tools on my bench are toothpicks and q-tips. After kits and glue, I couldn't build a thing without them.

If you are after the least expensive source, go directly to the manufacture. Micro surface. Here is their web site. http://www.micro-surface.com/ I have been buying direct for 8 or 9 years. Good people to work with.

That's 5 in a row! I would bet that monday is going to be a real zinger. Bring it on Harry!

Ya, he's one of the two that would build it. Ya, he is one of the two that would build a model of this car.

One bit of caution. Alclad black is an enamel and not a lacquer. You have to keep this in mind when top coating. I always apply clear over the base coat as that is what Alsa calls for and I get great results with any of the chrome paints. I just happen to like the Alsa system, because I bought a quart and split it up so a lot of my friends got a bottle at a relatively low cost.