StevenGuthmiller

That sounds more like an infestation than just a couple of stray cats. We have a couple of strays that use our yard as a conduit to wherever they're going, or coming from, and occasionally they love just lounging in the yard in order to aggravate our cat, who is a strictly indoor pet. They might very well belong to someone else in the neighborhood rather than being legitimate strays, but in any event, they look quite healthy, so I don't feed them. However, if it became evident that they were distressed, I might. Being a cat lover, I wouldn't want to see them suffer, and could possibly see myself taking them in if it became necessary. Especially as the winter months approach. It gets ridiculously cold here in the winter, and I couldn't live with myself if I just let them freeze to death. In the end, I suspect that they are just wayward pets belonging to someone as they seem to make appearances on a regular basis, and have been hanging around for at least the last couple of years, so I don't worry about them a whole lot. Besides, just like the snakes, I welcome them in my yard. I haven't witnessed a mouse since we moved here over 8 years ago, and pests like the voles make an appearance once in a great while, but quickly disappear. I attribute that to the owls, hawks and cats. Steve

Why not? People feed their birds, squirrels, etc. Aren’t they “just strays” as well? Steve

Oh, so now I get it. As Long as you’re pursuing the “accepted” hobbies, such as ceramics, chess, learning new languages, etc, you’re doing it right. Sounds to me like this egghead has more of an issue with understanding than any real insight. I’ll confess that I didn’t read the article, because as a rule, I don’t read things that begin with such blatant negativity for something the writer clearly has no understanding of. Steve

I assumed that would ruffle some feathers. And it makes my point perfectly. Nobody would ever dream of calling golf pointless, (which in my opinion, it is) but they apparently have no compunctions with calling forms of modeling pointless. I would argue that at least with modeling, (model railroading included) something is being created. Exactly what is being created with a round of golf, other than sweat stains in the arm pits of a mint green or salmon polo shirt? ? I joke! ? Steve

Pointless?.....really? Is there any more pointless hobby than the game of golf? Driving around for hours at a time on a little electric cart, in pursuit of a tiny white ball, on some of the biggest wastes of real estate on the planet! Steve

Well, the critters seem to like it. We’ve had all kinds of visitors to our yard. Rabbits, deer, raccoons, turkeys, pheasants, ducks, geese, owls, hawks, even a pair of bald eagles at one point. And we live in town! ? Steve

Steve

I don’t know. I didn’t even want to ask. ? Steve

The usual obstacles to avoid while mowing. Frogs and lots of garter snakes. Steve

So how do you go about ordering something from them. I could sure use one of the '69 Roadrunner chrome trees that they mentioned in the video. That would certainly help me get a much earlier start on my Roadrunner project! Steve

Should be a bunch of them. Any GM A-body should make an acceptable donor. That would include the Revell 1965 or '67 Chevelle, Lindberg '66 Chevelle, AMT 1966 and Lindberg '67 Olds 442, Revell 1966 Pontiac GTO, or possibly any number of the more recent Revell late '60s Chevelles or early 70s 442s, as well as the MPC '69 442. Some of these might fit better than others, or represent the '64 Chevelle better than some, but there should be a lot of options to investigate. I'm using the Revell '66 GTO chassis under my '64 Lemans. Steve

I don't remember which comedian said it, but I once heard one say, "The only time most of these "off road" vehicles actually go off road is when they accidentally back through the neighbor's flower garden". Pretty spot on if you ask me. Steve

I was sooooooo tempted!!! Steve

Ooof! I don't think I paid that much for my Johan original! Steve

I don't have any interest in trying to convince anyone that they have to build as I do, but in all honesty, I look at my builds every day. It's unavoidable as my display cases are directly adjacent to my computer table. On that same vein, any of the models that I've done where I've put extra effort into the engine bay has been constructed with the option of displaying them with the hood open, or closed, so they're usually displayed with the engines in full view. No offense, but if I were to have the same philosophy of "how often do I look at" the finished model, and if I never did, there wouldn't be much of a reason to keep them around. Seems to me that I would be better off selling them and saving the space taken up by the cases. On another note, I get quite confused when I see a post such as yours, and in the back of my mind I hear the continuous echos of the obligatory "I build for myself", that we hear repeatedly and ad nauseam, (not saying by you) and yet we're supposed to care about what aunt Matilda thinks about what's in the cabinet? I'm just half joking with you, but I think you get my meaning. Aunt Matilda has absolutely no bearing whatsoever on what, or how I build. Just like most of us, our families couldn't give a rat's *ss, so, as the old saying goes......"I build for myself". Steve

Aunt Matilda can go pound sand! Personally, I've gotten to the point that I enjoy detailing engine compartments just as much, or more, than other aspects of the model. It's become a real point of pride for me, and I get more compliments on some of my engine bays than anything else. Steve

I don't know how, but we somehow got along with red tail lights and integrated red turn signals for decades in the US. Thank God the Europeans came along and straightened us out on that. Steve

Part of my decision to build a model with, or without an engine depends somewhat on the car itself. I build almost exclusively factory stock, so my decision is often based on how interesting the engine configuration is to me. A Mopar with a Hemi or a wild intake system, such as a long ram dual quad, an Oldsmobile W-30 package, or a Pontiac tri-power will certainly get more consideration than a standard Chevy or Ford V-8. Hard for me to get excited about a basic Chevy with a 4 barrel. Steve

Not that important to me. If the model comes with an opening hood, it’s getting an engine in any circumstance. If the hood is molded shut, I’ll make the determination based on how much detail I want to put into a particular build. I’m no stranger to kit bashing, so the decision to open the hood on a curbside body is solely based on my interest in the subject, and what’s available for parts from other kits. Steve

100% Steve

This is why I've begun resorting to replacing kit glass with very thin, (.007) clear lay film whenever possible. Not only does it virtually eliminate any fitment issues, but it also addresses the usual "way too thick", "distortion" appearance issues. Is it a little more work? Certainly. But in my opinion it's well worth the extra effort. Steve

Depends on the paint, but I virtually never buy anything from a hardware or home improvement store. Most of them are enamels, and I've had pretty much nothing but trouble with most of the big box store brands. If I'm buying anything from a brick and mortar store, it's almost always lacquer based automotive paints such as Duplicolor from an auto parts store, and that's generally primers and clear coats. As far as body colors goes, I don't use anything anymore except premixed, ready to spray, air brush lacquers from one of the many hobby designated paint providers, such as MCW or Scale Finishes. The paint itself is WAY better than any of the excrement, (sorry, that's just my view) that you find in most spray cans, and the color pallet is endless. I like being able to choose any color that I desire without having to rifle through 15 different brands of rattle cans and still not be able to find the color that I want. Plus I know that the paint that I receive will not be some unusable garbage. Steve

In all seriousness, I've been driving for more than 45 years and I've never once cared about the color of rear turn signals. I have 4 cars in my possession today, and I couldn't tell you what color any of them are, (except my '69 GP), without going out to the garage right now and looking. As long as people use them, I don't care if they're red, amber, or green with purple polka dots. Steve

While mock-ups certainly have value depending upon what your goals are, and they’re absolutely crucial when doing major modifications and parts swapping, they will help you little with items such as I stated with hood fitment. The hood may fit perfectly fine prior to paint, (and this philosophy can apply to many assemblies) but after paint, it could very possibly fit very poorly. Mock-ups and subsequent modifications are often required for many assemblies such as engine or chassis fit, etc, but in some circumstances, good old fashioned forethought and planning are the name of the game. In some of my recent builds, I’ve used old annual kit bodies with sometimes heavily modified substituted engine, engine bay, chassis and interior parts from other kits, and by doing those kinds of builds I’ve realized that everything, and I mean every tiny aspect of the project, has to be intensely scrutinized over and over again to insure proper fit long before any painting is even considered. Of course, when building basically out of box, this high attention is not quite as important, but it’s certainly a good idea to use the same type of scrutiny just to be certain that everything is going to go as planned. The idea of thinking of every sub-assembly as a separate model can help considerably as well, but determining how those sub-assemblies correspond with each other is the real trick. Steve

You don’t need to assemble the entire kit, but it’s almost a requirement to test fit, and test fit often. Check tolerances between parts, such as between the body and hood and be certain that you have ample space to allow for paint thickness. If the bare plastic parts fit tight, it’s too tight. The type of paint and the number of coats is a big factor as well. If you’re using thick paints, such as enamel, or multiple coats, regardless of the paint type, you need to allow more space. Steve