Pete J.

It also may have had something to do with the extra two feet of length added to the length of the car by the nose. Probably wouldn't fit in most garages and parallel parking one of this would be a beast if you could get it to fit!

I remember watching a Top Gear episode a while ago and I think they had a Ford F-150 on the roads of England. The thing was just flat worthless because of the narrow roads and confined spaces. I am sure the results in Asia would be the same. They have much smaller and narrower utility vehicles more like the Ford Transit vans. Also, it seems as if the DIY market there is much different. Not so much hauling of larger loads. Also people can make a living hauling small loads in small fuel efficient vehicles. It is a different world. This is why I want a small truck and I do me small. Something like I had in my two small 70's Toyotas. It is not my daily driver. Just something to haul an occasional sheet of plywood, some 2X4s and bag or two of dirt. Nobody makes/imports anything like that anymore. I had occasion to rent a Toyota Tacoma a month or so ago and the thing is a full size truck and then some. I wouldn't fit in my garage! I guess I am going to have to go look for an old truck instead of new.

Exactly my point about Ford and other two US manufactures. Cutting the lineup is about short term profits not looking to the future and doing something about it. This may help the company get through tough times but you have to have vision to get into the future. The world changes. If a company doesn't adapt it becomes a dinosaur. A company with a future has to see the future to make it future. Doing the same old thing over and over is a quick road to the grave.

Keep in mind that there was a time when you couldn't give a Barracuda/Challenger or a Daytona away. They could be had for a couple of hundred bucks. Most got destroyed. That is one of the reasons that they are so valuable today.

Mark, looking good! I know you are going to put seat covers on them, but I like the "bomber seat" look on this car. Kind of a rustic old school thing I guess.

The main issue with solar is that it is very location dependent. Here in SoCal, I can completely eliminate my electrical bill(about $300 a month) with the installation of solar panels on my roof. That will cost me about $20,000. If I live here long enough it pays off. If I add a few thousand more, I can get a large capacity storage system which will store excess over what I use and power the house for a couple of days if the power fails or I can use that to power a car. However that is primarily because southern California is at lower latitudes with more intense sunshine and infrequent cloudy days. As they say, "Your results may vary. So Solar is not the sole answer to the problem any more that hydroelectric or wind. All will work in the right location but not in every location.

Well the earth is constantly creating oil from biomass. It just takes hundreds of thousands of years to do it and we ain't got that long! By the way one of the dumb things people think is that it is dinosaure bodys that decompose into coal and oil. Probably from the old Sinclair oil mascot. It is actually the biomass of deep rain forests and swamps that decomposes into oil. So someday Florida will be the next Saudi Arabia for oil. As to hydrogen, we have to overcome the "Hindenburg" effect. People envision massive explosions at accidents when in reality hydrogen is no more dangerous in an accident than the natural gas or LP powered vehicles we are currently running. To that end, Toyota is already leasing hydrogen/fuel cell cars on the roads of SoCal. They also have refueling stations. Take a look. https://ssl.toyota.com/mirai/fcv.html

Good question and I don't know the answer. I do know that every compressor that is designed for refrigerants will have some form of lubricant. Either mineral oil(R12) or a synthetic(R134). Not sure that they can run without it and if it got in your paint it could cause a problem. Without it, I can't imagine the compressor would last long.

This has always been an anathema to me. Even here in "eco friendly" California, two thirds of the electricity we use comes from burning fossil fuels. I see people spending a hundred thousand on a new top of the line Telsa and driving around shouting about how they are saving the planet with "zero emissions". Ballony! Unless you plug that thing into solar panels on your roof, you are still polluting! Electric cars are simply pollution transfer devises. After they are done with them, then you have a problem with disposing of the heavy metals in the batteries. Yes there are better solutions on the horizon and but they are not here yet. The problem with Ford is that they are not looking to the future. The bean counters that run the companies are looking to the here and now. We have few people with that "long term view" running our companies. At least I have to give Elon Musk credit for being the head of a company with his eyes on the future. Imagine what Ford could do with him at the helm!

A very unfortunate time for British motoring. British building techniques of this era were referred to as "Measure it with a micrometer, mark it with a grease pencil and cut it with an ax". The cars were really attractive but just horrible to own. I knew a lot of people of that era who replaced the entire drivetrain in their TR-6s with 240Z drivetrains. For those who liked their Triumphs it was cheaper than paying the repair bills to keep the cars on the road.

Such clean, precise work Tim. Love to watch this one. Thanks

Done! I remember this one from my days......... Oh, never mind. I bought a 911 instead!

Even in The PRC(people's republic of California) we can walk into any Home Depot and get a gallon of lacquer thinner so it is not illegal. It is the commercial use of it for auto bodies that became illegal. There is also a loophole for restoration shops so it is only marginally illegal here. Lacquers are still ok for furniture and aircraft. Don't ask me to explain. As to the air brush, if I am going from one color to another then a quick flush with lacquer thinner or acetone will clean out most things. As others have said, you are not using enough to do any harm or damage unless you are blowing it up your nose(not recommended). I also have a set of airbrush cleaning brushes(look a little like tiny pipe cleaners) that you should be able to find online or at any well stocked store that sells airbrushes. I use these if get into all the openings on the airbrush if I am done painting for more than overnight. That is when I disassemble it and clean everything. If it is just going to be overnight, I just fill the brush with acetone and let it sit. I agree with Don that you should pull the needle each time. In addition to cleaning it, I suggest you lubricate it. Both Iwata and Tamiya make a lubricant. It comes in a small tube and just a little bit on the needle before reinstalling it, lubes up the seals and makes the needle slide smoothly. Worth the investment. Oh, and buy the way, I have never had a problem with the lubricant contaminating a finish from any paint. Not sure what it is but it is worth using. One other thought. If you are using and old airbrush, you might consider changing the seal. New teflon ones are cheap and easy to install. That is the one part that will wear out. If you start getting sputtering paint or pulsing air, it is your seal that has failed.

Since others are sharing stories, I will add mine. I have only ridden in a Miata once and frankly it scared the bejebers out of me! There use to be a place around here that took Miatas and dropped Ford 289/302s in them. If you know that engine, there ar a ton of performance parts available. The one I rode in had a little over 450 hp. They claimed is was faster that a Cobra and I can believe it. The place is somewhat of a legend in the local Miata community. It was called Monster Miata. I was as impressed with their engineering as the shear terror that the car cause. Needless to say, they really just used the basic shell of the car. Everything else needed stiffening/strengthening. There is a local doctor who has a 700HP Monster. They have tubbed it for the bigger tires so there aren't any real outward signs of what it is. If you didn't notice the wide tires the only give away was a small green dragon emblem on the rear. If you are interested here is their web site. http://monstermiata.com/

Nice job on the prepwork! One comment and you can take it for what it is worth. I learned years ago that yellows and reds are really translucent colors even in automotive paints. They are very sensitive to what is underneath. This is why Ferrari uses pink or orange primers. Gray just kills the color. I seem to have to lay down way too many layers of paint to get the red right. I will stick to pink, orange or white when doing red and yellow or white for yellows. Not being picky, just laying out a little personal experience.

Well, I will have to reserve judgment like Jesse. It takes "reality" shows a while to find their style and substance and this is no exception. I like to see the old Japanese cars getting some love. I have owned 15 Japanese cars and remember some fondly(240Z, FX-16, CL and MR2) and others just served our family well. I hope this show can find it's niche.

Well, maybe. I just spent a couple of hours putting the SMS into the kits they belong to and labeling them with stickers so I know which ones have it. The way I see it, many years ago, I wanted to build a Tyrrell P34 in 1:12 scale. Of course it was out of production and this was before the internet had become what it is today. I found one at a specialty vendor and paid way the heck to much for it. I think it was well over $100. Then of course a couple of years later Tamiya reissued the kit and it was about $60. It taught me a lesson that if I have the money, buy it when it is available. That is why I have a garage full of kits and parts. That is what this is all about, not stocking up as an investment hoping to gouge the heck out of someone in the future. However, knowing that it is unlikely that any of this stuff will be available as reissues in the future, I can't imagine that it is going to get cheaper.

Interesting attempt. It was fun to see the results. I am intrigued by your comment about contest categories. I know over the years, there has been a huge amount of discussion about how and why people build and there always seems to be a slam on those who would do just what you suggest and build quick for a contest category because it gets them a trophy. Often times they are referred to as trophy hounds or hunters and derided for being so. Personally, that is not my style. I prefer to put our my best effort on every model. Having said that, it might be fun to try and do a short quick build and see how well it turns out. Perhaps I am over thinking my model building? How knows, I may actually get something done.

Spot on! I think it is great that Matthew had a great run and created a company that really elevated the aftermarket car parts business. I know his prices were above what others did, but I always felt I got value for my dollar. It was the best stuff. Well engineered, good instructions, "Tamiya like" fit. He set the bar high for his competition. I don't see anyone stepping in to fill that slot soon. I am going to miss looking forward to his new products. As I said, I bought it now because I didn't want to have to go looking for it later. I still have 4 935 super detail sets and three 956 super kits to build. I will be building with SMS for a long time to come.

Got a box today from Scale Motorsport. Since they are ceasing production, I decided that I needed to get stuff for every kit that I had, that they made a set for. Not that I need it, but once they are gone, I do not want to have to pay someone an arm and a leg for something I didn't get. Get'em while you can.

Don't want to step on your thread but this is how I did the air intake on a Red Baron I did some time ago. Thought it might provide some inspiration. Never finished it, but I may need to get back at it one of these days. As to the decompression lever, I have no experience with the physical force to operate it, but considering the fact that this is scaled down to about half size, I don't think anyone could argue with a cable control. You could leave it alone and just say it takes two people to start the engine. On the real deal aircraft it takes at least two people to start it.

Bill, nice job of translating. Here are two additions which may be useful. Warmluftleitung- warm air duct. Being an aircraft engine, it is subject to carburetor icing. The solution to this was to route the air intake through the crankcase to heat it up. As a hot rod, hot intake air would be a detriment to power production. You could easily open this side up or put some form of air filter/supercharger in place below the carburetor. You could also mount a side draft weber in that location. Dekompressionshebel- This is the decompression mechanism. It serves the same function as on large bore motorcycle engines and opens the exhaust valves to allow the engine to be rotated easier for starting. You should have some access to this from the drivers seat as it would be needed to start the engine.

The young'uns always have to try it out again. Been going on since the stone ages. Had to have a fancier club! The girls would love you if you had the fancier club. When it comes to cars, JC Whitney had that "Fancier club" and made quite a lot of money off of that. Use to love thumbing through it. Never bought anything out of it, but I sure knew a lot of kits who did. Fart cans, coal rollers, jacked up rear ends, CB antennas, low riders all part of the car culture and each looks with disdain on the others . Like art, cool cars are in the eye of the beholder!

Tim- Bang, my jaw just dropped again! That is just killer. Hope to see this thing in person some time soon.