StevenGuthmiller

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

I do all of my painting in my basement, so the only one yelling "wtf is that smell" is my wife! I really love the early 60s Fords! Aside from the '61 sunliner & '62 Galaxie hard top I've already built & the '62 Sunliner I'm currently working on, I recently picked up a '61 Starliner that I can't wait to get started on! It's floating in the "purple pool" right now! This is a "before" shot. Steve

Makes perfect sense to me! Most of my photos are taken on a retaining wall outside of my house. Although, at times, I have thrown a few kits & a folding table into the back of the car & hauled them to a local park on a nice day for a "photo shoot" But, most of the time I just amuse my neighbors by standing in my side yard & taking pictures of my "little toy cars". By the way, great looking Ford!!! Steve

I guess you're right Froghawk. I never really thought about it too much but I used Modelhaus glass in my '61 Plymouth which, if I'm not mistaken, comes marked as '60-'61 Mopar & it does have a bit of a "bulge". After looking at my '61 Dodge & the original glass from the '61 Plymouth I see that there shouldn't be that bulge. I also see the '59s had a bit of a bulge. At least my examples did. Steve

Great job Peter!! Even better than I expected. & I expected it to look fantastic!! Absolutely Beautiful! Steve

Funny, I'm trying to figure out why the 1961 Chrysler New Yorker I have doesn't have the same problem. It is the original glass. The glass in the older kits doesn't seem to be as bad & the Modelhaus vaccu-formed pieces seem a bit better too. You could always go that route. Steve

Got the color coats on & I really like the color. I guess I've always liked the '62-'63 Ford "Chestnut". For some reason I had some issues with this paint covering. Not sure if it's just the color or what, but it seems to look a little "blotchy" with what looks to be lighter & darker spots. Can't quite put my finger on why, especially being as it has 4 color coats. Hopefully a few clear coats will make things look a little better. Steve

Looking good! I just picked up a restorable '61 Starliner hard top the other day myself. Steve