StevenGuthmiller

I'm deeply saddened to hear this Carl. If there was one thing that I could always count on, it was that Carl was always around somewhere on the forum. Please don't make a stranger of yourself! Your input here is still of great value. Think of it this way. You won't be the only guy on the board that doesn't build anything! Steve

I pretty much did. There's no telling what to expect from George. There have been issues..........with excuses, but the excuses are irrelevant to someone who's waiting for their parts. There's really nothing else to say, other than you might be taking a chance by using his service. The silence coming from anyone who might have actually used his service says a great deal. I really wish Bob Dahl would have continued with The Kustom Khrome business. At least if there was an issue with something, he wasn't afraid to communicate with you about it. It appears that a large part of the problem with George is communication..............or I should say, the lack there of. I sent him several emails maybe a year ago just to inquire about prices, etc, and I still have never gotten an answer to this day. Says pretty much all that I needed to know. Steve

I feel your pain John. We have a 14 year old cat that earlier this summer began vomiting excessively. We waited for a couple of weeks to see if it would pass, but it didn't, so we took her to the vet to discover that she has a tumor in her small intestine which is blocking her ability to take nourishment. She has been eating very little for more than a month and is getting extremely thin, but I really hate to have her put down when she still seems to be coherent and relatively comfortable. It's really hard to have a loved animal, who has been a part of your family for 14 years, euthanized when they will still curl up purring in your lap and demand attention. All we can do is sit on the sidelines and wait for some sort of sign that she is no longer comfortable or able to function. Could be another month, or another few days. There's really no way of knowing. Steve

Not until I'm finished! I might lose interest if everyone else is building them too! Steve

Well guys, it's back to the drawing board for me. Bear with me because it will probably be another fairly long haul. I'll be doing the usual full detail job on this one, likely using either the guts from the AMT '68/'69 Road Runner/GTX kits, or possibly the Revell '68 Charger. It will be a Hemi car, and I'm thinking white with a red bumblebee stripe and probably a dark red interior. But you know how it goes. Anything can evolve between now and when it's finished. Steve

Back again guys. I managed a little trip outside today to get some photos. They always seem to look a little better in natural light. Thanks for viewing. Steve

Thanks again fellas! Much appreciated! It was obvious to me that you had some sort of "Je Ne Sais Quoi", ( I had to look that up) with the language. Steve

Okay, this is just rolling around in my head, but my preliminary thought would be to find a small piece of aluminum tubing and squeeze it down to an oval shape. Then place the oval on the door panel, mark the outline, drill a hole and carefully cut and file the oval hole to match the tubing. Cut a short piece of the oval tube, (maybe a quarter of an inch or whatever might fit between the panel and the exterior door skin) sand and polish the end of the tubing to a bright finish and insert and glue into the hole in the panel so that just a tiny portion of it protrudes into the interior. The knob could be replicated with possibly a small round headed stick pin or insect pin depending on the scale needed. Just something to thrash around anyway, but it might be some place to start. I quick ran into my shop to see how it might work, and the tubing part was relatively quick and easy to replicate. These pics just show what I threw together in a few minutes with aluminum tubing and a regular stick pin. This might be good enough for you, or you might want to search for a pin with a more globe shaped head rather than flat. Hope this is helpful. Steve

No problem. Just needed that clarification to check it out. Steve

Thank you all so much! It was a little confusing at times trying to find the best solutions for certain obstacles with this build, (ie, coming up with a system for getting the original interior to fit the modern chassis) but it all came together fairly well. It was challenging at times, but still a lot of fun. Thank you all again for your kind comments! I love it John! Do you do a little moonlighting in poetry? Steve

That's what I was thinking. Steve

Not only that, but I can pick up a gallon of Super Clean for less than $15.00 and a cheap grocery store food storage container for a couple of bucks. The Super Clean can last me for up to a couple of years and will strip numerous bodies and other parts. If I did the math, I would probably have to get my models for about $1.00 apiece to justify that theory. Plus, I don't think one can consider Super Clean as an "ineffective stripper". It does nearly every job that I throw at it, and does it quite well without having to scour the countryside or rifle through the internet to find it. I can pick up a jug any time that my little heart desires from my local auto parts store. No muss, no fuss. Steve

Well guys, I finally finished it and I have to say, I'm very happy with how it turned out. I don't want to seem immodest, But I really think that if nothing else, it's probably the "prettiest" car in my collection. I'm very happy that I chose the color combination that I did. It really makes it stand out from the crowd. Anyway, all of you that followed the WIP already know what was involved with this project, so I won't bore you with the details, but I just want to send a great big thank you to all of the individuals who either contributed parts or advice on this project. You are all enormous contributors to the success of this model. I thank you with all of my heart! Anyway.......on with the show! Of course, as always, all remarks, criticisms or whatever crosses your mind is welcome. Steve

Check the Under Glass section within the next 20 minutes Kevin. It will be there. Steve

Yeah well, there's always one in the bunch. Steve

I bought 2, built one and would definitely build another. It would be interesting to see the figures on how many of these kits sold. I have a hard time believing it was really a disaster. I don't know any Model car builders that I can think of that didn't spring for at least one of them. Steve

After nearly 6 months of sweat and tears, I've finally finished my AMT 1964 Pontiac Grand Prix project. I can hardly wait to move on to the next one! Steve

I had a buddy in high school that was a Gremlin freak! You would never know it by looking at his large frame and rough looks, but he owned at least a couple of them while in high school and shortly after. As you might imagine, he was the butt of many jokes in school, but I admired him for not caving in to the peer pressure and sticking to his guns. He was especially proud of the Gremlin X "Levis Edition" that he owned. He has since passed on, but I'll always remember him as "Gremlin Marty". Steve

Thanks a bunch guys! Unfortunately, I lied to you about no more updates. I do have a couple more small items that I will add here before shooting some pics and taking this over to the "Under Glass" section. I finally polished the hood last night in preparation for getting some embossing powder on the under side. While in the process of making the antenna, locating an acceptable mirror and adding the PE door locks, I was reminded of a piece that I wanted to address but had forgotten. There should be a brace between the radiator bulkhead and the grille, so I quickly tossed one together, painted it and put it on the model. Now it should be done and ready for a photo shoot. I'll get some pics posted as soon as that happens. Thanks guys!! Steve

At least Revell got close. AMT missed the shape of the rear wheel openings on their '68/'69 B-body cars by a light year! Steve

Bomb or not, I was sure glad that AMT gave us the kit. Steve

Thanks so much everyone! You have all been a huge inspiration and a great support to me during the progression of this build and your comments have been warm, gracious and hugely appreciated! The next time you see this model, it will be "Under Glass". Hallelujah! See you there, and thank you all so much! Steve

Thank you Kevin. It wasn't all that high on my "must have" list, but I thought that as long as I had it, I might as well build a simple curbside from it. Steve

It was modified from one of the Monogram '59 Impala tops. Not my best work, but it'll do. I'm pretty sure that I could do it better if I did it today. Steve

I'm very lucky in this respect. My basement has in floor heat, so in the winter, all that I have to do is set my tub of Super Clean on my shop floor and its warm whenever I need it. Steve