StevenGuthmiller

Thanks everybody! But what I really need is photos of the "cane" detail. I think I may have a hard time recreating it when I have absolutely no idea what it looked like! Steve

Easily some of the nicest builds I've seen on this forum this year! As a matter of fact, if I were handing out awards, I would give the Charger, Matador & Bonneville 1st, 2nd & 3rd place respectively! And I hate the styling on those Matadors!! Steve

I agree. I've always liked the '67-'69 Barracudas better than the later ones. Great job on this one! Steve

I'm guilty of making my own brittle plastic in years past as well. I achieved it by stripping with finger nail polish remover when I was a kid. But those were new kits. Had absolutely nothing to do with age. I never buy kits that have been primed, ( you never know what's under the primer) & rarely consider kits that have been stripped. I like to find unpainted bodies if possible, & if they are painted, I study the photos very carefully & try to determine what kind of paint was used. It's not always possible but I try to buy kits that were brush painted 50 years ago. They usually strip very easily. I try to avoid anything that looks like it could be lacquer paint. Steve

I understand Casey, & I hope you're right. I just think of the old annuals that have been re-released over & over again over the years & have to wonder why no one would have saw fit to re-release something like the '58 Ford if it still existed. Why would AMT release the '61 Galaxie kit, & not something more lucrative like the '58? Even the '61 being released in club coupe form instead of Starliner or convertible & with the interior from a 4 door tells me that the the Sunliner & Starliner kits are long gone. Most likely most of the old annuals from that era have met the same fate. JMO. Steve

I wouldn't hold my breath. Personally, I would be rather surprised if any of those molds still existed. If they were still around, chances are rather high that something from that era would have popped up by now. 58 years is a long time to keep something like that this quiet. Steve

Nice! I have that kit on my '67 "to do list", along with a '67 Galaxie & '67 Chrysler 300. Steve

If anyone can find a couple photos of those interior details, please post them! I haven't bee able to find much either. Steve

I use a mixture of all sorts of different things. Mostly the round Testors 1/2 oz. jars, & a few of the sqaure 1/4 oz. along with a bunch of other stuff. Steve

Wow! That's just nasty! I've never seen such roughness in the paint, especially on that hood. To me that looks like a compatibility problem with the paint & thinner. My suggestion would be to scrap the fingernail polish thing until you get a better grasp on how it reacts. Being a new airbrush user, you may want to start with a simpler "known" system & then work your way up to the polish. There are a lot of paint suppliers who make pre-thinned paints specifically designed for airbrush along with compatible thinners & primers. Possibly start with something like that to get the feel of the operation of the brush before you dive into too many unknowns. Steve

Those guys can be a Godsend for those of us who may need that particular hard to find part for a kit we may already have. I have a Johan 1967 Plymouth Fury kit that was perfect in every way, except for one missing hub cap. If not for one of those "unscrupulous" sellers, it would still be a tricycle. I see no difference as to whether a seller wants to sell whole kits or just parts. If there's a market for them, which there is, why would you not sell them? Steve

I agree. I've built about 30 old annual kits ranging from 1958 vintage to about 1969 & have had absolutely no issues with "brittle" plastic. No different than any new kit that I have experienced. I'm just like Bill. I set a price that I'm willing to pay in my mind before I bid on a kit, & that's usually the one & only bid I will make. If I get it, great! If not, I'll try again on a different one. I'm not sure why it would be puzzling to anyone why prices are high on certain kits. It's all about supply & demand. Steve

Wonderful! I wonder why I never thought of recreating this one! The interior will probably be the tough part. I'll be interested to see how you simulate the smoke rolling out of the windows! Steve

Looks as though you're correct Ron. It took a little searching, but it seems the vinyl top on the '65 Monaco was only available in black & white. So, now I need to give it a little thought. My guess is black, but I'm not sure yet. Steve

Is there the possibility that it could have been special ordered with a Cadillac color? The only copper available in GMs line up in '65 was a Cadillac color called "Samoan Bronze". Could this be the color you're thinking of? Steve

Welcome Ben! It's funny, but I've been a member here for a few years & I would guess that as many as 90% of all the new members are people who went through a lengthy hiatus before returning to the hobby. So you're not alone. I think it's a huge plus for the hobby to have all of these old builders coming back! Hopefully our enthusiasm for the hobby will inspire another generation of builders as well. Steve

Thanks Michael. Actually, this kit has the vinyl roof detail molded in. That's the main reason I'm doing a different colored top. Otherwise, I may have done it body color. I would imagine that white or black would have been the standard vinyl colors, but I think something a little more "earth tone" would go better with this color. Possibly a dark chocolate brown would look good as well. I may consider that. Steve

I'm kind of sick of it myself Matt, but I'm a slob very deep down! And as you know......Well, the "old dogs" thing. Steve

Something along these lines was kind of my thought. I've been dabbling in "press casting" clear parts out of heated clear sprue that works pretty well for headlight lenses. I may try making a mold of the original part & them mold a clear lens. Then I thought about simply drilling a small hole in the back of it & inserting an amber colored "bulb", & then foiling the reflector & surrounding trim. Steve

Added a little color this morning. Still one more coat to go after foiling the scripts but this is about what I'll wind up with. The color is the '65 Mopar "Sandalwood" or "Medium Bronze". I'm thinking of a beige roof of some sort & a saddle interior. Steve

Nope. The entire lens is a chrome piece. That's why it becomes a dilemma. The only thing I can think of is a "dot" of amber, & then paint the entire lens a "milky" white allowing the amber to show through. But I'm afraid that would just look stupid given the "V" shape of the lens. This may be a scratch building situation if I want it to look right. But that seems like a lot of work for a turn signal! Steve

While we're on the subject, does anyone have a good solution for clear turn signal lenses with amber bulbs? my 1:1 '69 Grand Prix had that configuration. The amber bulbs are evident through the clear lens but painting the entire lens amber is incorrect. Of course, the turn signals on the old MPC kit are chrome, so it kind of creates a challenge to make it look correct. I probably won't be building the kit for sometime, but I hope to find an answer before that time comes. Just a side note. The amber reflectors on mine are not correct for '69. My car had some front end damage at one point & the lenses were replaced with 1970 lenses. 1969 lenses were all clear. Steve

Boy Matt, you're too well organized to be a modeler! You should see how I organize my paints. I use the "manure spreader" method! Wherever it lands, it lands. Steve

That's one pretty unique buggy Harry! Can't help but equate the enclosed coach to the old "stagecoach" look. But then again, 1906 wouldn't have been too long after the stagecoach. I'm guessing there wouldn't have been too many bugs in the drivers teeth. The bugs could probably fly faster than the car could go! Steve

Thank you Hugh! Steve