StevenGuthmiller

I want to thank all of you who voted in my little poll that I conducted last week. I actually found the results a little surprising. But, with 22 votes cast, the clear favorite was the '61 Buick Invicta with 15 votes, the '66 Chrysler picking up less than half as many with 7, & the '65 Dodge bringing up the rear with a dismal 0! That was the part I found surprising! I actually thought the Dodge may have been right out front! But regardless of all that, the masses have spoken & the '61 Buick gets the nod. Now I need to decide on a color. I already had colors picked for the other 2, but have still to decide on this one. I was contemplating an creamy color of white with a possible metallic blue or green top & matching interior. I'm pretty sure I read somewhere that one of the 2-tone options on the '61 Buick included the possibility of the panel around the tail lights a secondary color from the body, probably matching the top color. If that was the case, I have yet to find any photographic evidence of it. Can anyone shed any light on that? Anyway, we have a winner! Steve Sure wish I could go back to posting photos from Photobucket! Hasn't worked for me for the past week or so. Anybody know what's up with that?

Gotcha Bill. Sorry, I can't help with the '59. Steve

Very sharp Tony! The first car I remember as a kid was my mothers first station wagon. A white '65 Country Squire with wood grain. I think I like yours better! Steve

Correct. I was referring to the more recent versions of the Skyliner kit. Either way, it will either boil down to an ebay search, or maybe someone will have a set they'll part with. Original AMT '59 Galaxie annual or promo wheels would probably be just as easy, or difficult to find as the T-Bird wheels. Steve

Bill. You should have mentioned hubcaps when we were dealing with the '58 Sunliner bodies. I have a couple of sets of stock caps for the '58. It seems to me that I've seen '59 hubcaps some where in another kit, (maybe as a custom wheel) but I can't remember where. The Revell kit had Oldsmobile hubcaps, believe it or not! The Merc will be a little tougher. Those will either have to be Modelhaus pieces, or maybe someone will have a set if you get lucky. Let me know if you need a set for the '58. Steve

Personally, I don't give a hoot about any of the Foose kits. The only one I'll even consider is the Cadillac. But that's just because it's something different. Too bad they won't offer the Caddy in a stock version. Steve

I haven't been able to post on this forum from Photobucket for the past couple of days either. Must just be a glitch on this site as I'm still able to use it on other forums. For the time being I've just been posting directly from my photo files using the "choose files" button at the bottom of the page. You might just want to try that. Looks like you've got your work cut out for you Doug! I do like the the seat decals that you used. Much easier than using paint & masking tape like I did on my '59. Steve

I've always loved the '67 Galaxie, but being a "styrene preferred" builder, I've been looking for a good one on ebay for quite some time. They're hard to come by, but I'm confident one will pop up for a decent price some day. Nice job Al!! Steve

I'll go along with that!! If nothing else, just for the Desoto & the Merc! Steve I suspect some would, most probably would not. One of the literal givens with model car kits, at least in this country is that, save perhaps for Corvettes, probably pony cars as well, convertible kits have NEVER sold nearly as well as their hardtop stablemates. Art I have no evidence to dispute that Art, but I find it a little hard to believe. At least the "never" part. I had always assumed that the convertible kits sold much better in the late 50s & early 60s at least. Convertibles are relatively easy to find on places like ebay, but have you ever tried to find hardtops like a '58 Ford, '60 Merc, '61 Ford Starliner, etc? They can be very scarce. '60 Mercury convertibles, as an example, are relatively plentiful compared to the hardtop kits. Steve Steve, this comes from my 30 years behind the counter in a couple of hobby shops. Trust me, convertible kits as we know them, never did sell in nearly the same numbers as their hardtop stablemates (but then, neither did they in the 1:1 world either. A series of Indy 500 Pace Car models representing the '50s through '70s would do well. I'll go along with that!! If nothing else, just for the Desoto & the Merc! Steve I suspect some would, most probably would not. One of the literal givens with model car kits, at least in this country is that, save perhaps for Corvettes, probably pony cars as well, convertible kits have NEVER sold nearly as well as their hardtop stablemates. Art I have no evidence to dispute that Art, but I find it a little hard to believe. At least the "never" part. I had always assumed that the convertible kits sold much better in the late 50s & early 60s at least. Convertibles are relatively easy to find on places like ebay, but have you ever tried to find hardtops like a '58 Ford, '60 Merc, '61 Ford Starliner, etc? They can be very scarce. '60 Mercury convertibles, as an example, are relatively plentiful compared to the hardtop kits. Steve Steve, this comes from my 30 years behind the counter in a couple of hobby shops. Trust me, convertible kits as we know them, never did sell in nearly the same numbers as their hardtop stablemates (but then, neither did they in the 1:1 world either. I have no evidence to dispute that Art, but I find it a little hard to believe. At least the "never" part. I had always assumed that the convertible kits sold much better in the late 50s & early 60s at least. Convertibles are relatively easy to find on places like ebay, but have you ever tried to find hardtops like a '58 Ford, '60 Merc, '61 Ford Starliner, etc? They can be very scarce. '60 Mercury convertibles, as an example, are relatively plentiful compared to the hardtop kits. Steve Didn't that have more to do with one or the other being molded first, and survival of leftover stock, or something like that I would definitely go along with the '67 Galaxie and possibly the Barracuda. I'd probably pass on the Javelin. Just as the real car, my guess is it would probably be too much of a "niche" thing to justify a kit anyway. Steve

Ok. These will be the last of the interior pictures as it's finally finished! For me, getting the interior done is a major accomplishment on these old annuals. Not a whole lot to work with. It is basically stock except for the wild upholstery pattern as well as an added old school steering wheel & a dash mounted gauge cluster. Other than that, I added resin cast window cranks, flocked carpet, scratch made gear lever & turn signal switch & a set of door lock buttons. That's pretty much it. Now on to finish the body, a little detailing & final assembly. Steve

I use nothing but lacquers... and that could be the problem right there... Everything I airbrush is lacquer-based, and my blacks are frequently Duplicolor - more so the satin and gloss. I'll have to give this one a try... nobody has mentioned Bleche-White... I know that works great on chrome, but how about paint? I use nothing but lacquers as well. I never have problems removing multiple layers of Dulpicolor & MCW lacquer & either Duplicolor or Testors clear coat. It does take some time however. It won't happen over night with lacquer. Plan on a week or two to take it all off. It helps to scratch up the surface of the paint in a few spots to help to get the solution under the paint to the primer. The only problem I have with Super Clean is completely removing the primer on occasion Steve.

I can pick it out a little on the tip of the front fender on the bottom shot & on the wheel well in the bed on the first shot. Looks like a very nice pearl coat! Steve

A lot depends on the type of paint you're stripping. Super Clean will take off hobby enamels & chrome in a matter of minutes! Automotive Lacquers are tougher. It won't dissolve the paint, it actually dissolves the primer causing the paint to come off in sheets. I've found that some flat paints are untouched for the most part. Flat black seems to be the worst, although there are others. Personally, I have yet to find a better paint stripper than Super Clean. It's easy to use, doesn't smell to high heaven & is easy to dispose of when exhausted. Steve

A bit hard to pick out the sparkle in the photos James. But that's the way it should be. Don't want it to look like a carnival ride! Steve

Here's something nice that you can do with Elmers glue & embossing powder that you can't do with using one color & painting over it. I didn't have a brighter red embossing powder to use for the carpet, so I decided to go with a black & silver "salt & pepper" look. By mixing contrasting colors of embossing powder, you can get a pretty nice affect. I think I'll be using this technique a lot in the future. Steve

In my opinion, the '68-'69 Chevelles were by far the best looking Chevelles! This just proves it! Great color combo too! Steve

Confuses me a little too! Steve

I'll go along with that!! If nothing else, just for the Desoto & the Merc! Steve I suspect some would, most probably would not. One of the literal givens with model car kits, at least in this country is that, save perhaps for Corvettes, probably pony cars as well, convertible kits have NEVER sold nearly as well as their hardtop stablemates. Art I have no evidence to dispute that Art, but I find it a little hard to believe. At least the "never" part. I had always assumed that the convertible kits sold much better in the late 50s & early 60s at least. Convertibles are relatively easy to find on places like ebay, but have you ever tried to find hardtops like a '58 Ford, '60 Merc, '61 Ford Starliner, etc? They can be very scarce. '60 Mercury convertibles, as an example, are relatively plentiful compared to the hardtop kits. Steve Steve, this comes from my 30 years behind the counter in a couple of hobby shops. Trust me, convertible kits as we know them, never did sell in nearly the same numbers as their hardtop stablemates (but then, neither did they in the 1:1 world either. A series of Indy 500 Pace Car models representing the '50s through '70s would do well. I'll go along with that!! If nothing else, just for the Desoto & the Merc! Steve I suspect some would, most probably would not. One of the literal givens with model car kits, at least in this country is that, save perhaps for Corvettes, probably pony cars as well, convertible kits have NEVER sold nearly as well as their hardtop stablemates. Art I have no evidence to dispute that Art, but I find it a little hard to believe. At least the "never" part. I had always assumed that the convertible kits sold much better in the late 50s & early 60s at least. Convertibles are relatively easy to find on places like ebay, but have you ever tried to find hardtops like a '58 Ford, '60 Merc, '61 Ford Starliner, etc? They can be very scarce. '60 Mercury convertibles, as an example, are relatively plentiful compared to the hardtop kits. Steve Steve, this comes from my 30 years behind the counter in a couple of hobby shops. Trust me, convertible kits as we know them, never did sell in nearly the same numbers as their hardtop stablemates (but then, neither did they in the 1:1 world either. A series of Indy 500 Pace Car models representing the '50s through '70s would do well. I'll go along with that!! If nothing else, just for the Desoto & the Merc! Steve I suspect some would, most probably would not. One of the literal givens with model car kits, at least in this country is that, save perhaps for Corvettes, probably pony cars as well, convertible kits have NEVER sold nearly as well as their hardtop stablemates. Art I have no evidence to dispute that Art, but I find it a little hard to believe. At least the "never" part. I had always assumed that the convertible kits sold much better in the late 50s & early 60s at least. Convertibles are relatively easy to find on places like ebay, but have you ever tried to find hardtops like a '58 Ford, '60 Merc, '61 Ford Starliner, etc? They can be very scarce. '60 Mercury convertibles, as an example, are relatively plentiful compared to the hardtop kits. Steve Steve, this comes from my 30 years behind the counter in a couple of hobby shops. Trust me, convertible kits as we know them, never did sell in nearly the same numbers as their hardtop stablemates (but then, neither did they in the 1:1 world either. I have no evidence to dispute that Art, but I find it a little hard to believe. At least the "never" part. I had always assumed that the convertible kits sold much better in the late 50s & early 60s at least. Convertibles are relatively easy to find on places like ebay, but have you ever tried to find hardtops like a '58 Ford, '60 Merc, '61 Ford Starliner, etc? They can be very scarce. '60 Mercury convertibles, as an example, are relatively plentiful compared to the hardtop kits. Steve Didn't that have more to do with one or the other being molded first, and survival of leftover stock, or something like Any insight as to why the '58 through '61 annual convertible kits seem to be so much more plentiful than the hardtops? Whether they be in the box kits, built ups or glue bombs, the hardtops seem to be much harder to come by. Steve

I've tried it both ways & have had much better results applying it after the body is completely painted & polished. Steve

I'll go along with that!! If nothing else, just for the Desoto & the Merc! Steve I suspect some would, most probably would not. One of the literal givens with model car kits, at least in this country is that, save perhaps for Corvettes, probably pony cars as well, convertible kits have NEVER sold nearly as well as their hardtop stablemates. Art I have no evidence to dispute that Art, but I find it a little hard to believe. At least the "never" part. I had always assumed that the convertible kits sold much better in the late 50s & early 60s at least. Convertibles are relatively easy to find on places like ebay, but have you ever tried to find hardtops like a '58 Ford, '60 Merc, '61 Ford Starliner, etc? They can be very scarce. '60 Mercury convertibles, as an example, are relatively plentiful compared to the hardtop kits. Steve

I use the Tamiya ones, as well as tooth picks. Steve

Here's a good tip too. If you don't want to go through the work of scribing along all of your trim, cut a fresh edge on a piece of blue painters tape & lay it along the side of you trim after laying on your foil. That way you can let your blade ride along the edge of the tape to get a nice straight cut. The contrast in color between the blue tape & the foil helps with seeing where your blade is going as well. With a little practice & very thin flexible pieces of tape, you can do some pretty tight curves this way also. Even that daunting wheel well trim will come out looking perfect with this technique. Steve

I'll go along with that!! If nothing else, just for the Desoto & the Merc! Steve

Ditto. And, one blade should easily do an entire body, or more. As long as you save that blade for foiling only, you may be able to get several bodies with one blade. I build a lot of heavily chrome laden 50s cars, and I've always managed to make it through the whole build before refreshing the blade. Steve

Never gonna happen. While I would buy one, there's really no potential there to make any money. I could name probably 100 subjects that would have a better chance, & that's just the beginning. Steve