StevenGuthmiller

That is the correct 1963 Plymouth interior. Later versions included an interior tub from another Johan Mopar. Don't remember which one, but the first give away is the center arm rest. The later versions had a split bench front seat with no arm rest. Likewise, the upholstery pattern is all wrong. Steve

At the very least, if you do decide to bash it, save the interior if it's original issue. The later issues had an incorrect interior for a '63. Steve

I bought one of those a couple of years ago and I absolutely LOVE IT!!!!! I use it exclusively for painting bodies. I use the "fan spray" tip, open the trigger pretty much wide open and run about 40 PSI of pressure. It's an absolute dream to use! Steve

A coat of Testors lacquer primer, followed by a few light coats of Duplicolor primer/sealer has always worked for me. People frequently bring up the issue of "bleed through" but I personally have never seen it using my current paint regimen. Steve

Nice Mark! You can do those transparent steering wheels with some stretched and formed clear sprue. I've used this method with several Pontiac, Plymouth, Dodge and Chrysler builds from that era. I had done a tutorial on how I made them back in 2016 in the "Tips, Tricks and Tutorials" section, but unfortunately, the photo links have since been broken after the Photobucket debacle and the board no longer allows updates of old threads. But here are a couple of photos of interiors with the updated steering wheels. On of them is an '63 Bonneville that I built some time ago that shares your color scheme almost exactly! 1961 Chrysler New Yorker 1960 Plymouth Fury 1962 Chrysler 300 1963 Pontiac Bonneville Steve

Christmas seafood meal. Broiled snow crab and lobster tails, garlic shrimp scampi and mussels in white wine, garlic, tomato and smoked paprika broth. Steve

Last week. Chicken fillet with cherry sauce and wild rice with Brussels sprouts. Steve

I have begun to resign myself to the fact that 2 or 3 projects per year has become my new normal. I guess I can live with that. Steve

"Fine" primers are going to give you a much better result. Try some Duplicolor primer in the color of your choosing. I now use a lot of Duplicolor "Primer Sealer" and I love it! Or Tamiya's primers are very fine as well. I don't use Tamiya primers because they are far too expensive for my taste and I don't care for the spray nozzles, but the primer itself is good. Either of these will likely give you a smoother finish than Rustoleum. My guess is that the Rustoleum primer that you're using is an enamel? My experience is that enamel primers are not nearly as good as lacquer primers. Steve

Preach it brother! Steve

Not necessary. There is a hard top and convertible kit, both exactly the same kit with separate tops. No cutting required. If you're planning on building a convertible, look for the convertible kit. It comes with the boot and a somewhat cheesy, but possibly salvageable up top. The hard top kit does not include the boot or soft top. Steve

I suppose that would work just fine. Steve

Thanks Leroy. It's nice to find that there are still reasonable people who can deal with differing opinions without taking it as some sort of personal attack. Steve

Perfect! Thanks Steve! Steve

No. First, there is a big difference between a $20.00 purchase and a $200.00 one. Second, a vintage kit has been through lord knows what sort of conditions over the past 40 or 50 years. Extreme heat, rough handling, and so-on. Third, a modern kit is much easier and more inexpensive to replace or find parts for if something is missing or damaged. Fourth, if there are missing or damaged parts in a new kit, the manufacturer will usually replace them. With a sealed vintage kit, you're stuck with whatever you get. Steve

Perfect! I have never used LMK, but now that I have the information, I just might give him a try. Do you pay with a personal check, credit card, cash? Steve

This is not at all unusual for a rare sealed kit. These are "collector" prices. No doubt this kit is destined to be lined up in a neat row on a shelf somewhere. I would be flabbergasted if it were ever built. I got a '68 Coronet a couple of years ago. I don't recall the price, but it was a fraction of what this one went for. All of the relevant parts were in pristine condition and included everything needed to build a stock model except the stock grille, which I picked up later. Some of the chassis parts were missing, but it didn't matter because the chassis and engine will be replaced with modern kit parts when I build it anyway. These are the kinds of kits that a builder looks for. Something rebuildable or restorable with the necessary parts included. Sealed kits are for collectors/ speculators who either want to display them as is, or just want to hang on to them and hope to make a profit down the road. They can have them. As a builder, I would be nervous about buying a sealed kit anyway. I want to know what I'm getting. Steve

So is there some place that a person can get the order forms? Steve

I'm sorry, but I have to disagree with this. Yes, "hot" lacquers will "etch" into the plastic. So much so in many cases, that it will craze the plastic and irreversibly destroy it, especially with the cheap, thin plastic used in today's kits. Been there with this many times over the years. I understand that there are techniques involved where this is a possibility, but we should be careful about how we state things. When a novice builder asks for our help, we need to be certain that we are not giving them advice that might be detrimental to the beginning of their modeling career. Nobody wants a mess their first time out. For the sake of this argument, I don't consider Testors or Tamiya lacquer paints "hot". Yes they are considered lacquers, but they are formulated for plastic models and are extremely mild. The issue arises with true automotive type lacquer paints like Duplicolor, or some of the aftermarket air brush lacquers. A fairly heavy shot of Duplicolor over bare plastic is just as likely to ruin the body as not. In my experience, primer is necessary for hot lacquers precisely because they can etch, or craze the plastic. Yes, bond is a consideration, but it is secondary to the chemical reaction that is likely to occur between the paint and plastic. I don't want to take any swipes at Leroy personally, but I felt that I had to speak on this, especially due to the fact that Curt is just starting out and we want to be certain that he is getting very sound and simple advice. Sorry Leroy. I'm not trying to pick a fight! Just offering an alternative view. Steve

I haven't watched it in 20 years either, and last night was no exception. They lost me years ago when they started becoming far too political. It ceased to be funny anymore. Steve

Just whittled them down with a #11 blade close to the thickness desired and then filed and sanded them. I did run into a snag though. I discovered that the '67 power steering pump set up is incorrect for the '68. The pump sits too high and interferes with the intake tubing. The pump is also a different shape. I have the correct pump but couldn't really find a better pulley and belt set up, so I modified the one that I have to sit lower. A little more modification will be necessary to add the correct pump and a possible bracket. Steve

AMT "Customizing Series". The '66 T-Bird kit has that tree. I think all of the kits in that series had them. Steve

Today, I have been spending my time getting engine parts together and beginning the prep of them. I'll be using a combination of engine parts from the original Johan '68 kit, as well as the MPC '69, AMT '66 and Lindberg '67 442 kits. One thing that I had never tried before was thinning the fan belts. I decided to give it a whirl today, and so far, it looks like it should help make them look considerably better. Not really as difficult as I thought it might be. You can see by this progress photo the difference that it will make.........as long as I can finish without breaking it! Steve

"Better looking"? Well, that's open for debate. Both of them are just wrong! Steve