StevenGuthmiller

Instead of a brown wash. I'd go with wood stain. Steve

Being as I seem to have created a little bit of a stir with my open ash tray, why not take it to the next level and add a partially smoked cigar? Now the extent of my madness is on full display! Steve

Another example of my dysfunction. Once a horn ring has been added, I'll be able to call the steering wheel finished. The first of many "models within a model" to come. Steve

I've already promised a half smoked cigar in the ash tray. I seriously think that might be something fun to try. Steve

I hear that more often than you might think, but I've just learned to shrug it off and chalk it up to those people that "don't or can't understand". From the responses I've read in this thread, there are plenty of modelers that "do" get it. I recently had the exact statement presented to me on a Facebook group, and my response was that if I cared about not spending time on things that will never be seen, "I'd screw the wheels to a block of wood for a chassis, eliminate the entire interior and tint the windows dark, and glue the hood shut". Steve

Just so everybody knows, the only reason that I decided to build this model with the ash tray, is because I decided early on that I wanted it to be a 4-speed car, but I like different, so I wanted to eliminate the console and do a console delete with the shifter on the floor. Non console cars had an ash tray in the section of the dash where the console met. I didn’t find out in time that the piece of ridged trim that existed on the lower dash to carry on the design of the console didn’t exist minus the console, and I had already cut a small section out of that portion of the dash to replace some of that trim. Once I became aware that the trim shouldn’t be there on a non console car, I decided to cut the ash tray section out of the dash, and I figured that while I was at it, I could just as well take a few more minutes and build an ash tray so that I could build it in the open position. So you see, not so much some kind of epiphany, but more of a solution born out of necessity.....with a little elaboration. ? Steve

I really like the color! Something different. And I love different!! ? Steve

I’ve had this same philosophy now for some time. sometimes people don’t, or can’t understand how someone can spend months or years on a project, but for me, it’s not so much about the final result, but getting there. There are times when I even get a little bit of guff from other hobbyists for spending a week on a steering wheel, or 3 weeks rebuilding a dash board, but I really love working on the intricacies of certain aspects of the build. I even find myself feeling something of a mild depression after finishing a build that’s been on my bench for a year or more, and if it wasn’t for the thrill of the thought of what I had planned for the next project, it would be hard to move on. I almost can’t imagine opening up a box, throwing on some paint, and sticking a model together in a couple of weeks anymore. There’s no longer any joy in that for me. Steve

Looks pretty close to the same color wood used in the '64 Bonneville that I'm working on. I just used Testors "Wood" with a little brown dry brushed on, and a coat of clear gloss. Steve

Moving along with the interior, today I got a start on the Alclad for a bunch of the interior parts, and while I wait for them to dry, I began a few other details. Got the dash mounted tach ready for a decal, painted and grunged up the ash tray, finished the wood grain on the dash and steering wheel, added the kick panel vents and detailed the courtesy lights in the door panels, and darkened the seat, door panel and dash gaps. Steve

They all appear to be extremely close. Almost no difference in the length or wheel base between the Olds and the '65 or '67 Chevelle. Whichever Brandon settles on, it will need to be narrowed a bit to fit in the Olds body. They're all a little too wide. Olds chassis left, '65 Chevelle right. '65 Chevelle left, '67 Chevelle right. '65 Chevelle chassis in the Olds body. Steve

Just looking at a side by side comparison, the AMT '69 appears to be very close. I don't have a Revell kit, but I assume that they would be pretty close scale wise. If anything, the '66/'67 Olds appears to be too long. But the earlier Chevelles appear to be pretty close. The '65 looks spot on. 1967 1966 1965 When I do my '64 Pontiac LeMans, the '65 Chevelle is going to be the likely candidate for the chassis. It appears that it might be the best for the '64 Cutlass as well. Steve

Actually, those slots were there in '62. But I agree. The headlight bezel appears to be pretty much square, as compared to the "kidney" shaped '62 bezel, so my guess would be 1964 or later. Steve

Or if it's important enough to you, you can always look for a '62 annual. Of course you'd need to source the step side bed elsewhere, as the annual was an Apache long bed. I have one, but it would take a fairly hefty trade to pry it away from me. Steve

There's probably any number of kits that could be used for donors. Of course you would need to check all of these out to see how close they would be. AMT 1966 442 AMT 1965 Chevelle Lindberg 1967 442 Lindbrg 1966 Chevelle Revell 1967 Chevelle Maybe the Revell '66 GTO? Heck, I'll bet even the new Revell 1968/'69 Chevelles would get you very close. Steve

I also pin with styrene rod and hit the back side with epoxy if possible. If not, a tiny dab of epoxy in the hole, and the part is not going anywhere. Steve

Thanks everyone! Beginning to get a little of the interior detailing going. Foiled the finned dash bright work panel and the Bonneville emblem and darkened the backgrounds on both. Also painted the wood dash panel and the steering wheel spokes. Just the beginning of a lot of detail going into the dash and other interior parts. Anybody know why there seems to be a problem with uploading photos onto the forum? Haven't been able to do a simple copy and paste for the past couple of days. Had to post these linked photos from my Fotki account. Steve

Looks like you're coming along pretty quickly. A lot faster than I usually can muster. Here's what I did to transform my '67 Bonneville console from an automatic to a four speed. The '67 console was molded to the tub floor, so in short, I ground a notch in the side, sanded and filled the automatic detail, redid the wood grain, and added a shift gate cut from a Revell '66 GTO console. It came out pretty nicely. Steve

I have an IPhone SE. Seems to take pretty good pictures. Steve

You do have to be careful about using a “primer/filler” on models. It’s designed to fill in scratches and imperfections, which could also fill in detail. Steve

Now THAT’s some cool stuff! There’s a few bucks worth of plastic there! Steve

Thanks everyone! Time to start detail work on the interior. I pretty much got all of the foil applied to the interior parts today. Now it's on to paint detail and a bunch of parts that need Alclad. Steve

For me, it's more a matter of selecting a good primer that does what you expect of it. A primer that's not necessarily formulated for styrene is fine, if you know that going in, and you know how to deal with it. The most frequent problem that I see is people running down to the hardware store and grabbing a random can of "something", (half of the time there's no indication of what's in the can, other than "primer") and then wondering why they're having problems with it. The same thing applies for paint and clear. Find something,.......anything, that works for you, (preferably something that doesn't say "Chuck's universal, one coat, primer, paint and clear coat" on the can) and stick with it! In the end, you're likely always going to be better off with something that you don't find in the bargain bin. Steve

I don't remember for certain if the hardtop kit included optional bumpers for the grille guard up front, and continental kit in the rear, But Mark is correct. The standard convertible kit only includes the grille guard, and continental kit bumpers. Not sure if the pace car kit has both, or just the bare bumpers. However, they are all interchangeable if you have the different versions. Steve

The hard top with opening doors is an entirely different animal. Steve