StevenGuthmiller

You can always do a "let's see your" thread. These type of threads probably irritate some members, but you just start a new thread in the "Under Glass" section titled, "Let's see your 1969 Dodge Charger builds", or something along those lines, and people will generally be more than happy to post photos of their models. Steve

If you can't fix it, send it to me. I'll use it. Steve

Just to name a few. Steve

Can't argue with that. I personally would start with contacting the city. They will know better than anybody what the implications of the project are. Steve

Thanks guys! Still working on refining some of the little details. One of the things that's been screaming for some attention on this project is the lack of chrome trim around the perimeter of the head light and tail light bezels. The 1:1 has a thin piece of chrome running around the inside of the head light and tail light openings. It just wasn't going to look right without them. So, I broke out the foil, the #11 blade and the steadiest hand that I could muster and had at it. It wasn't easy free handing this trim, but I think I got it looking presentable. Now it won't bother me so much. Steve

I agree. I don't particularly love the plunger applicators either. But strangely enough, I've really gotten used to working with them. I can mix very small amounts with them. You can get the Clear Weld in individual bottles as well if you like, but you may have to order it. Steve

I don't refute that your advice is not positive. I'm just reiterating the fact that the loss of a foot of boulevard space is not going to affect the value of the property at all and the city is very likely not going to reimburse him for the loss of that space. Whether or not he is going to be responsible for any of the costs involved with the project should be public information and he should be able to gather that information from the city. They should be able to tell him immediately whether or not his mail box will be eliminated or any other questions that he might have. I'm a bit bewildered that he didn't receive any information from the city already if there are improvements in the works. In every location that I've ever lived, I always received some sort of notice by mail if the work was going to affect me in any way. I find it difficult to believe that he's going to wake up some morning with his mail box missing and a bill taped to his door for driveway work without some sort of notice before hand. I'm not necessarily convinced that paying a lawyer at this point to do what the home owner should be able to do himself for free is required. The lawyer won't know anything more than the home owner at the onset, and all he's going to do is contact the city and then send the home owner a bill for the information that he gathers from them. If the work takes place with costs associated and the homeowner never receives any notice about them, that's the time to get a lawyer involved. Steve

The value of 18 inches worth of boulevard is basically zero. The loss of it will not make your property any less valuable. Improved street conditions however, might make it more valuable. Steve

Perfect! Would love to see it! Steve

An I-pad will do the trick as well. Anything will work if you have digital photos. They will just vary a bit depending on what you're using. That's the nice thing about using a photo hosting site. No matter what device you use, as long as you have access to the internet, you can easily post photos anywhere. Steve

I drove a '67 Chrysler 300 for several years with uni-lug Cragars and my '69 Grand Prix for at least a couple of years with uni-lug Keystones. No problems with either one. Steve

Me neither. You don't need one to post photos. Do you have a desk top or lap top with your photos on your hard drive? Or do you use a photo hosting site? Steve

Still have it? Love to see it. Steve

I drove cars with uni-lugs for years. Never had any issues with them. Steve

Consider 2 part epoxy for anything that you are gluing to the body and for glass. If you mix it up, apply it to the parts to be installed and then let it set for 5 minutes it will become very tacky and easier to work with than a white glue. The bond will be infinitely stronger than white glue as well. I use JB Weld "Clear Weld". You can pick it up very easily at nearly any auto parts store or online. Steve

Is there anything more essential? Steve

I had a set of Keystone "Raiders" on one of my cars in the day. Close in style to Cragars, but a heck of a lot cheaper. Steve

Mine was a "repeat" as well. Cold meat loaf sandwich and water melon. Steve

The "M.A.D." distributor that Brian has pictured comes with a length of slightly larger wire to be used as boot material. You need to strip the jacket from the wire and use the jacket for the boots. Drill the holes in the heads large enough and deep enough to accept about 1/8th inch piece of the boot material and glue them into the holes first. It's a good idea to use some sort of pointed instrument to slightly stretch the boot material on the end that will except the wire. This makes adding the wires much easier later. Once the boots are in place to your satisfaction and the glue has dried you can slip in the wires. Of course this is all dependent on the fact that the distributor is already installed. That needs to be done first. By the way, don't throw away any of the left over wire that you cut from the leads or the wire that you stripped for the boot material. These will both come in very handy for other wires, hoses and fuel lines throughout the engine compartment. On the '64 Grand Prix that I'm working on currently, left over wire from M.A.D. distributors was used for all of the fuel lines, battery cables, power steering hoses, brake line and the brake booster vacuum line. It's extremely useful stuff! Steve

I do exactly the same thing. Free shipping is one of the first things that I look for. You have to be careful about checking shipping costs before you buy. There's nothing worse than spending $8.00 shipping on a $4.00 item. It's also a good idea to at least give a quick glance at the sellers feedback. You don't want to send your money to some joker that has had a lot of issues with buyers in the past. Steve

CA glue is extremely useful for a great number of the small details that you have mentioned. Just be very cognoscente that CA can fog clear parts, chrome and even paint if you are too heavy handed with it. Just remember that a little dab on the end of a tooth pick can go a long way, and be wary of gluing in glass or fastening parts to the body with it. By the way, I use "Plasti-Zap medium CA" for these sort of applications, if that's worth anything to you. Remember that there are a whole host of other adhesives available to us. Just think about what task you are trying to accomplish before deciding which adhesive will perform best for you. Steve

I buy a lot of my stuff on ebay or Amazon. Many times you can stumble across some very good deals. Even if you prefer to stick with an online hobby shop, it's worth checking ebay occasionally. There are a lot of little hobby stores that you will stumble across there that you didn't even know existed. Steve

It is Jim. The vast majority of the engine bay parts came from the MPC '69 442 kit. Most of the engine parts came from either the AMT '66 or the Lindberg '67 442 kits. Everything else was scratch built. There are virtually no "after market" parts to speak of. This was just the example that I wanted to present to show how even a 52 year old kit with substandard detailing by today's standards can be made to rival a modern kit with a little ingenuity and extra effort. I just wanted to make the point that we don't have to sit around and wait for the kit companies to produce newly tooled kits of subjects that have already been around for a half of a century or more. I often hear people complain that they really want to build that '65 Pontiac Grand Prix or '63 Ford, but they can't get past the bad chassis or lame interior. Well, unless you're willing to do something about it and jump in with both feet, it's not going to happen, because there is very little possibility that Revell, Round 2 or Moebius is going to offer any new tooling for the vast majority of these old American cars. It's just a fact that we all are going to have to learn to live with. So my message is, get busy and build what you want to, because if you're waiting for Revell to offer a new '69 AMX, you're going to be sorely disappointed. Steve

I'll be there if the show is on. Not gonna let some little ol' virus spoil my fun anymore. The Grand Prix might wait until the 2021 show though. Steve

That is a fact. But then again, so was Bob Dahl when he was in charge of Kustom Khrome, as well as Chrome Tech, both of whom were very reputable. The issues have nothing to do with the the company doing the actual plating. Nuff said. Steve