RancheroSteve

Apparently they did, although smaller and more squared off than the modeler has depicted them. My wife's '65 Comet Caliente also had them.

Some more progress. VRM decals applied and some body details added.

The dashboard is done. More soon.

Really well built and photographed, sir! But I guess I have to be the one to say it: that's not a '63 Watson - it's '55 (or so) Kurtis.

Mini Exotics resin kit. Just out of the paint booth. Onward!

Always amazes me how that Ranchero is able to hold an entire cubed Lincoln without the rear end even sagging even a little bit. Must have the heavy-duty leaf spring option!

I can't remember what I paid for it - it's been a few years - but I know it wasn't more than about $20. I suppose I may have missed my chance to cash in, but like I said, I've always planned on building it. My wife had a Gremlin when we first met, so I've always had an affection for them.

Here's the '75 box art: Once again, I'm glad I bought it to build and not as an "investment".

Just to throw this in to the mix because not everyone knows it, but the Ranchero, 2 door wagon and the sedan delivery were all built on the same platform, so there is an accurate 1:1 basis for these conversions. I'm not going to comment further on the relative accuracy of the kit until I've seen more (and maybe not even then, haha).

The paint is Testor's enamel - just some mix until it looked about right. Front axle and spindles are from the Tony Nancy kit - both the axles in the Mooneyes kit and the Attempt I kit are too narrow.

After way too long on the bench, this one's finally done. Built using a partially complete Mooneyes dragster from the double kit, plus parts from the Attempt I, Tony Nancy double kit, parts pack Chevy engine, some aftermarket items and a few scratchbuilt pieces and details. A big thanks to Mercman (Jr. Berg), who years ago ('03 to be exact) sent me the decals I needed. Does he hang out here? It's not perfect by any means, but it's done! Thanks for looking - comments, questions, and critiques welcome.

I saw this one a few weeks back. Unfortunately, I mis-timed my shot and only got the front end of a Shelby Series 1 coming the other way on PCH in Redondo Beach. Kind of a rare sighting since there were only 249 made.

Mike, if it's anything like the Falcon hardtop (I expect it will be based on the same tooling) and depending on your expectations, you may find yourself disappointed in at least some aspects of it. You might want to scroll down in this section and read the thread about it, if you have some time on your hands. Like you, I was excited by the prospects of having the Ranchero in kit form, but I'm not holding my breath, especially after seeing the hardtop.

Yes MIke, I seem to remember you knowing all about models and their history (especially as it related to Falcons) back then. And still driving the Ranchero - when I'm not riding my bike.

I just saw your name - Mike Schnur! I remember you from the Falcon Digest Group days! Welcome aboard.

OK, I'll have to consider that one. But I'll also throw in that different cameras, lenses, film (and now sensors) record color differently. And how do you explain the case of a "day-glo" orange paint (STP cars, for example), which photographs as a bright red and doesn't really capture what the eye sees? I suppose it would be easy to get into a whole discussion here about "perception" vs. "reality". But first we'd have to define reality.

If this description of "retina rivalry" is correct (and I have no reason to doubt it), it would be one more reason that a photograph could never accurately capture the color - cameras only have one "eye", right?

Maybe, but it's still a really awesome build. Nicely done! One of the things I remember reading about the Futura was something to the effect of, "no two people could agree on what color it was." Just kind of adds to the mystique. I think.

I pretty much tried to match what was on the box, as well as how the color was described, and came up with a kind of silvery green.

Elvira looks good standing next to almost any car, but maybe especially black ones.

Ahh, shows how much I know about Vespas!

There's a 1/24 scale Vespa 50S in the Tamiya "Campus Friends" set.

After the Northridge earthquake of '94, the eery silence (all the power was out and it was 4:30am) was broken only by the sound of all the car alarms going off.

I dropped a finished model on the floor once - right after I had photographed it, so at least I have a record of it. Parts everywhere, some of which I still haven't found. I couldn't find it in myself to be really upset about it - things happen - but I don't plan on doing it again. I just put the pieces in a box. Maybe it will get put back together one day, but more likely I'll just use parts of it for something else. I feel like the process of building of a model is the important part - once it's finished, it's done - on to the next one.

Occasionally frustrated or discouraged, maybe, but I don't recall ever being angry. I strive to make my models as good as I can make them, but I build for the enjoyment of it. If it gets to be too much, I just get up and walk away - go do something else.