StevenGuthmiller

Yesterday, while on my usual delivery rounds, I spotted a black & white 1957 Oldsmobile 4 door hardtop sitting in front of a house just like it was an every day driver. Actually it looked like one. Earlier that morning, as I was walking into my place of employment, there was a 2-tone green 1962 Chrysler New Yorker 4 door sitting by the door that I've seen there many times before. (regular customer I guess) And later in the afternoon, across the street from one of my stops, at a small shop, there was a black 1957 Chevy sitting on a lift. (Couldn't make much out on this one as all I could see was the back end) And in the parking lot of the same establishment sat a red 1964 Ford Galaxie 500 XL. This time of the year in Minnesota, you start to see a lot of classics out and about as people are out for their last cruise or getting them ready for storage for the winter. Steve

All model kits & promos prior to 1961 were curbside kits with a few exceptions. I've been building a lot of curbside kits lately. Unless you're comfortable cutting up a rare vintage kit from '58 '59 or '60, (Johan kits were curbside until 1962) to add an engine or other details, you'll probably be building curbside. Personally, I don't think it's worth the effort or the sacrifice of an, (in some cases), unreplaceable kit, just to add engine detail, unless the kit is in rough shape to start with. With a little love, these vintage kits can build into a very respectable model just as they came from the factory. Steve

That's the stuff Niko. Or at least one of them. Testors makes 3 or 4 different Lacquer gloss coats, (I don't know why) I use Testors # 28139 "Ultra Gloss Clear Coat" for most applications, but I have gotten to like the one you pictured (#1834 Wet Look Clear) for final coats. If you're only using 1 or 2 coats, I think I'd go with that one. I also have Testors # 1261 Gloss Coat. Haven't found a real good use for that one yet, but it is the economy stuff. About a buck cheaper than the others. Good luck!! Steve

I'll throw my hat in the ring. This is probably my favorite build at the moment. Steve

I pretty much do the same thing as far as prices go. I know how much I'm willing to pay for a certain kit, so I bid once & once only. If I win, great. If not, there'll be another opportunity. I always chuckle a little when I see these guys that will bid 20 times in a row in $5.00 increments. Although, I just search once or twice a week if I'm looking for something in particular. Gives me something to do in my down time. Plus, I occasionally find a gem I wasn't expecting. For example, I just picked up a built Johan 1964 Chrysler 300 that looks pretty nice for $40.00. We'll see if it was a good investment when it arrives! Steve

Looks like a great start Ron. I still have a partial '60 convertible laying around. Used some of the parts to build this one a couple of months ago. Steve

Don't waste your money on the Revell kit Scott. If it's the same one I have, it's pretty dissappointing. The body on the AMT kit is much nicer. Nice job! Steve

The '59 Merc is not exactly my favorite body style either Peter, but as you said, it's one of those "quirky" designs that really needed to be added to my collection. The wierder they are, the more I love 'em! Might explain my obssesion with late 50s & early 60s Mopars! Steve

Already picked up a set of the Modelhaus lenses Chris. As for the lenses on the ends of the spears..... A couple of drops of Testors "Stoplight Red" will do just fine for me. I probably would have done the same for the plated taillights as well but my kit had broken fender ornaments that needed replacing, so as long as I was ordering parts anyway...... Steve

Color coats are finally on the Merc. I saw a '59 Edsel online a while back in a similar color scheme & I really liked it. A little more unique. This is MCW 1960 Ford "Meadowvale Green", also known as '60 Merc "Valley Green". Very close to 1959 Mercury "Sagebrush Green". The coves are just basic black & the rear quarter bright work panel has been shot with "Polished Aluminum" Alclad. I finally feel like I'm making some progress! Steve

Haven't gotten a whole lot done on this project for a while but hopefully I can get out of my "builders funk" & get back on it now. Body prep & first couple of coats of primer on the body done. Hopefully I'll get some color on it this weekend. Had to do a little more modification on the uptop. It needed a little more stretching to look closer to correct. Steve

I guess it all boils down to your sense of style. I guess I'm a little old fashioned. Personally, I haven't seen a good looking car since about 1972. They turned everything into a "box on a box" after that. "European styling" they called it. Keeping up with the Japanese has been the main focus for the past 30 years. Now they all look like "jelly beans". Or at least they would if they came in anything other than gray. I miss "American Styling". Steve

Very nice Al! In the words of Billy Joel... Your best bet's a true baby blue Continental!! Steve

I picked this one up on ebay after quite a few failed attempts at acquiring a '68. As a rule, these kits go for a lot of money, averaging between $150.00 & $250.00 depending on condition. I saw a pristine '68 convertible kit on ebay recently where the owner was asking $500.00!! I would never pay that much for one myself, but he may get it. These '68-'69 Coronets are getting increasingly scarce. I paid about $120.00 for this one. All of the major parts are there. The chassis & interior are painted & there are engine parts missing & no stock wheels, but parts are readily availible from the AMT Roadrunner/GTX kits as well as the '70 Super Bee kit & a myriad of Charger kits. I may have to do a little searching though to find a suitable R/T bumble bee stripe. Thinking either the light or medium metallic green available in '69, or a pale yellow. Not sure at this point. Steve

I've been looking for one of these old MPC kits for a long time. Either the '68 or '69 would do. Although, I do like the styling on the '69 better. Looking forward to getting started on this one. Maybe it'll get me over my "builders block" hump. Steve

"@ this time" is good enough for me! Or a convertible with an uptop would be nice! Steve

Beautiful!! Can't wait for this one to come out!! Somehow, I was under the impression that this kit was going to be the hardtop version rather than the coupe. Maybe that one's coming next? Steve

Very nice! I hope to do a '58 convertible in the not too distant future. Although, I doubt I'll monkey too much with the "inaccuracies". Personally, I can live with most of them. Most of these old kits, & a fair number of the new ones have them. Great job John!!

They surprise us occasionally with these old AMT offerings The '64 Merc, '62 Buick & '61 Ford were all surprising to me. Most recently, the re-pops of the '59 Chrysler Imperial from Model King. I would be very surprised to see any new tools of the '59-'60 Buicks, Oldsmobiles, Pontiacs, or just about anything else from that era for that matter. Unless its a Chevy or a Ford there doesn't seem to be much interest from the kit producers. Muscle cars have seen a huge rennisance over the past decade, maybe the cars from the 50s will be next. In the meantime, I'm more than happy to restore these old annuals. They're plenty accurate for me & it's the subject matter I'm after. If I didn't have an old '59 Pontiac or a '64 Caddy to look forward to, I might give up on the hobby. I can only get excited about so many '49 Mercurys or '57 Chevys. Steve

My bet would be that the molds for this one are still around somewhere. After doing the annual, then the Junior Craftsman kit, They did the "Boondock Bomber". So I feel it probably wasn't neccessary to destroy the molds for a new kit like they did for so many other annuals. Steve

Thanks everyone!! Here's a couple more shots. Steve

They may have been lighter in the "mold line" department in some circumstances Niko, but they were usually pretty bad in the "sink mark" department!! I don't know which is worse! Steve

Even this one is missing something. Not sure if it was true of all of the AMT '59 Buicks, but you'll notice that the passengers side front fender has a very faint "Invicta" script, yet the drivers side has nothing! Being as this kit was repopped several times over the years, I guess it could be a detail that some how "went missing" some where along the line. Not exactly sure. Steve

Thanks Guys! I thought the Lido Lavender was the "natural" choice for one of these old monsters. As far as the interior goes, I was a little disappointed on how it turned out, but I guess it'll do. The grille on these '59 Buicks is pretty "nit-picky" to detail, but it still wasn't as bad as the '58 Buick! Steve

Haven't been getting a whole lot of building done lately due to a couple of minor health issues, as well as a couple of disappointing build starts. Hopefully, now that I'm feeling a bit better, I can jump back into the saddle & get something done! In the meantime, here's an older build that I don't believe I've posted here. It's a "Junior Craftsman" series 1959 Buick Invicta built box stock & finished in "Lido Lavender". Steve