Pete J.

I recall that there was some discussion a while back on the Hasagawa photo etched rim set for the 250TR. It seems that there is an error in the instruction sheet and some of the frets need to be flipped to get the right pattern for the Borrani wheels. If assembled per the instructions you get spokes with uneven spacing. They should be evenly spaced. Now since there are 5 different frets that gives you 120 combinations. I really don't want to go through that if some one out there has the answer. Thanks. Pete J.

Bobby - you are steping into an entire world when you get to weathering or making "beaters". Making rust and holes in panels, broken glass and scavenged parts cars is a real art form. There are dozens of articals on how to do it. Just do a google search and start with 'model cars weathered' You will get a whole host of tutorials. Don't forget the great weatherers of all time, model railroaders. Good luck and have fun. That is what it is all about. Oh, and don't forget to come back here to show us the sucess. The old boys on this site love to see what new things the younger modeler can come up with that we never thought of. Pete J.

If it's a model, I'm impressed. I'm saying it real. There are a couple of bits that would we hard to do. The chain is one of them. There are kits out there for individual link chains but I don't think this is one of them. The other is the reflection in the side of the frame and the way the light plays under the cowling to light some of the internal pieces. But then I've been fooled before! Pete J.

Don't get me wrong. Such things have a place. I can see someone with a data intensive job, or a job were they are not in the office a lot using them very effectively. Problem is when they are toys used without discrimination. 99% of the highschoolers don't need them. Just an irritant and distraction for most. I know I am becoming a bit senior, but when I grew up, toys were limited in when and where we used them. Part of being a responsable adult. Nothing more irritating than someone in a resturant sharing a loud telephone conversation with all the diners. Bad manners. My problem is not with the technology, it is will the idiots that think it is ok to use it any time and any place. Pete J.

Piece of cake actually Well not really. It is a 5 step process. Step 1: Lay down the clear in very thin layers and build up enough to start sanding and rubbing. How much? Well that comes from experience. Most people will tell you enough. Step 2: level the paint. Get a very fine sanding stick and wet sand it until you have a very even surface. THe key to getting a mirror finish is getting a perfectly level surface. Otherwise you get uneven reflection which destroys the illusion of the finish. Step: 3 Start sanding with progressively finer sanding media. I prefer Micromesh sanding pads but anything with a fine enough grain will work. I start with 3600 grit and go through the grits to 12000. Get rid of the scratches completely from each sanding before moving on to the next level. Step: 4 Now start with the polishing pastes. I use both Novus # 3 and Tamiya fine polish. Take a clean cloth (an old t shirt will do fine) and gently polish the final scratches out of the finish. I also use a cloth wheel in my Dremel tool but that is very dangerous for a novice. Easy to burn through. Not recommended. Step: 5 Finish it off with a good wax. There are a lot of them, but I use Pledge in the non-aerosol version. Works for me. General tips : Mask off the edges. Paint naturally recedes from edges and is thinner. By masking off about 1/32" of an inch will keep you from sanding through. That last little bit doesn't need the full treatment, just the final polishing. Stay away from things sticking out. Those burn through equally badly. Before you start all this, make sure the paint is well cured. 24 hours minimum and in some cases two to three weeks. Doing it too soon will just create a mess. Get an old body and practice. When you are done, practice some more. That way you won't screw up your masterpiece. This takes time to learn but the learning curve is pretty steep so it won't take you long and you will have exactly what you are looking for. Good Luck Pete J.

I haven't ever figured it out, but I seem to work best in the evening. I have the opportunity to model during the day sometimes but it just doesn't seem right. After dinner seems to be perfect. Pete J

Oh, I love it. Gallagher and his diatribe on language and how we put word together. Apartment owners who are strapped for cash need a plan. So they need some money (dough) and they need a scam to get their renters to cough up more money, (aka a con). Thus, a condo!

Cell phones that do too much are a pet peeve of mine. Who the heck need to have that much all the time. Texting has become the latest rude behavior. I can’t have a conversation with anyone under 25 that doesn’t get interrupted by a sudden jump and grab for the phone because someone felt the need to reach out and touch someone. I love a quote that I heard from S. Tamiya himself. He was distressed that his grandkids were spending all their time on video games. He said the younger generation is “all thumbsâ€. At the time I thought it was funny. No longer. Frankly, nobody needs to be in touch that much. It is shortening attention spans. Having said that, the shots look great. Macro mode is a great bit for modelers. Thanks for sharing. Pete SOF and getting worse

I can't remember what I had for breakfast, but I do remember this car. You really have to look at it carefully. The widened the body by about 12" to get it to fit over the 928 chassis. I thought it was a BB conversion. They did a really amazing job on it. Ultimate sleeper. It was not a rough backyard job either. The interior was top notch as were the mechanicals. Pete J.

Go to Amazon and search for Gerald Wingrove. His books go into great detail on building body bucks and making metal bodies. It is amazing stuff. Unfortunately the only way to get experience at this is to do it! This is not something you will get right the first or even the third time. The trick is to keep after it. Sheet aluminum is cheap so good luck. I have never taken the time to try it, but it looks like fun. Pete J.

How shocked have you been when a normally mild mannered person utters a curse? On occasion, for intense emphasis and good full bodied oath brings significant attention. Reserving such words for occasional outbursts when one is frustrated beyond control is a worthy use of such expletives. I have used such words for follow the recalcitrant model across the room as it is hurled into the corner dust bin. Those who would use such words in daily conversation have lost the advantage of surprise and the personal satisfaction of verbal relief that follows such an outburst. Such frustrations occur on this board when the brain override the bodies need to throttle some "expletive deleted" who justly deserves and is rightly entitled to have the wind choked off in an abrupt fashion. Consider your words before you type.

Was digging through my old photos of the build and found this shot of the engine. It shows the detail a little better. Also included a shot of the rims that are from an artical I am writting. I think this shows the complexity of the build. Each rim has 28 parts. The brakes have a total of over 1800 holes that have to be drilled with a pinvise. Hope you like it. Pete

Sources say it is still a long way off. Good! I hope they massage it until it is right! I hate reworking everything and Trumpeter has had some real misses, but they have shown that they can get it right if they want to. Pete J.

I have been watching this thread and find it very interesting. I was going to stay out of it and just watch, but saying that anyone can build a model was a bit much, George - I think you really oversimplify what is going on here. Yes, anyone who can read instructions can build a model, but it goes far beyond that. Don't short change your fellow modelers. Reading instructions and building a model is exactly the same as painting with "paint by numbers" . Anyone who can follow instruction can do it. But if they never get beyond that, they will never have a fine work of art. It dosn't even come close in process or skill. True artists take years and in some cases, a lifetime to aquire the skills to create fine works of art. The highest levels of skill are rare and quite valuable to many. The art in that model lies in what was done that is not in the instructions. The placement of hundreds of little rivets, nuts and bolts and other scratch built parts that match the placement on the original car. Glueing things on in such a fashion that they don't look glued on. Creating the illusion of metal from plastic. Creating textures and shadows with paint. Scratch building pieces not included in the kit. In short the artists eye and hand. If you follow the instructions, you get a nice model. If you go beyond that and mimic the apparance of the original 1:1 car it takes far more skill and technique. Skills that many will never take the time or have the ablity to develop. Your comments on value can be applied accross many diciplines. Can a bottle of fine wine be worth hundreds of thousands? Not to the average diner in a resturant. Is a Ferrari worth millions? Not to the proud owner of a new Yugo. Is a Picasso worth millions? How much is a diamond woth? ... a rare coin, etc, etc. To the discriminating buyer, the finest is always worth having. Those who appreciate the minutia find the differance worth the money. Those who don't find it a waste of assets. One more analogy. In collecting any collectable, the last 10% costs more that the first 90%. What I mean is that getting that collectable vehicle to be finally perfect, achieving the last 10% of accuracy is the most costly. Example. The other founder of Microsoft(not Bill Gates) collects WWII warbird. He restores them to original, from the factory, condition. Modern wire is readily availible and quite inexpensive, but he spends large sums to have the last place on earth that makes cotton loom wrapped wire, make the wire for his aircraft. Does the aircraft fly differant because of it? No, but that is not the point. It pushed the cost up beyond what most people can imagine, but he has the assets and desire to do this, so more power to him. I love to see truely authentic war birds flying. Brendan - In costing the project out, you really missed a lot. Take another look at the piece and you will see it is mounted on a rather sophisticated stand. Paduka wood with custom cut mirrors and brass mounts for the chassis, wheels and body. The Porsche emblem was from a dealer and cost $90. The wood alone was $100 not to mention the time to build it. There is a lexan cover was $120. Oh, yes, and I don't work for $30 an hour. Here in California a skilled tradesmen start at $50 an hour and I value my time at more than that. In general, I will say that what most people miss is it that this is an art form. Like any art form there are people who putter with it as a hobby strictly for their personal enjoyment, and are happy to throw a model up on the shelf. Then there are others who devote time and effort to replicating a piece in minute detail. Both are art forms, but the final product is significantly differant. Differant in both obvious and subtile ways. That subtilty is the most significant. Don't underestimate it. I spend a lot of time devloping and practicing my craft, but I am no Gerald Wingrove(though I have read his books and learned a lot from them). Is that kit worth what he is asking for it? It will be if someone wants it, but that is beyond my control. One final comment - I don't do this for a living. It is my passion and I really enjoy the thrill of doing the research, devloping new skills, and the art of creation. Many parts on the models I build get done several times, until I have them right. Frankly, the fun of modeling is in building. Once a piece is done, it is of little value to me. Let others enjoy it. The man who purchased this from me has enjoyed it, and now feels it is time to allow others to enjoy it. Good for him, and I hope the new owner enjoys it as much. Jake-off - Yes, you can insure it for that. I had my Tamiya/con winner stolen and the insurance company did not blink an eye at my claim for $10,000. For those who would like a closer look, here is a photo of the engine, before it went into the chassis. Pete J

Worked here. PC no problem

Ah, shapes and sizes. One of my favorite subjects. When companies create models using only the manufacturers spec's, they rarely look right. In Mr. Tamiya's book, he pointed out why. We view models from a completely differant perspective than we view the actual cars. Therefore the eye's perception is thrown off. If you check the dimementions of a kit that "looks" right you will find it wider and flater than the real thing. That is because we view our models from above and the real deal from about level. We percieve the real thing as being wider than it actually is. All model companies try to get the look right. IF you shoot a photo of a model at a low angle, more like a "street" view, it will often look out of proportion, because it is.