Snake45

I've got a '90s reissue of the '36 Ford somewhere in the Snakepit, but I'm not a huge fan of them. If I ever build it, it will be as a gasser and will live next to a '37 Chevy gasser (also not yet built). So much styrene, so little time.

"There are many paths to the top of the mountain."

'63 and '64 rocker panels are different. (They are different for all five years of Sting Rays.) The gas cap is different, too, which might not bother you. Also, the interior upholstery pattern will be different. Again, this might not bother you, and it might be possible to rework the '63 rocker panels to resemble '64s. All in all, though, it would be easier to leave it a '63. If your body is resisting your normal stripper and you think it's lacquer, drop it in 92% isopropyl alcohol for 24 hours. It should come right off. If it resists that, you'll have to move up to brake fluid. I'd leave that one as a '64 and use the custom parts on a common reissue '63. I have spare '65 and '66 roadster bodies with broken windshield headers. I'm doing one as a road racer, and the other as a custom with chopped, frameless windshield--both using nothing but authentic, vintage parts from a '66 roadster kit. It sounds like you've got almost as many vintage Corvette parts and projects as I do. If there's anything you need, let me know--we might be able to do some swapping.

That looks really good! Your nosepiece has a certain skull-like look to it, which is pretty cool. Drive on!

Oh stop whining. It looks great and you GOTTER DONE! And you've still got almost five weeks to drag that '55 Chevy across the finish line! YOU GO BOYEE! Meanwhile, although I've gotten sidetracked with other projects, I HAVE been making significant progress on my '57 Vette gasser. I filed and sanded the top smooth, and then scribed in the front and rear chrome trim, which should visually "lighten" the look of the piece. Got it painted, too, since these pics were taken yesterday.

Cool! I did a cleanup and light restoration on a survivor of one of those a couple years ago. I'm sure yours will look better. Have a survivor Ferrari GTO rising to the top of the To-Do List.

I just bought a '65 Falcon hood from them and was highly impressed with both the quality of the part and the speed of delivery. They seem like good people to work with.

Testor Lime Gold enamel is a very flaky metalflake, and looks nothing like any factory '60s color I've ever seen. Good color for customs, though.

Nice! It comes with glasses? If so, fabulous! All I need to turn it into Old Velvet Nose is a cigarette!

Finishing it up even as we speak; should have pics up no later than this weekend. It responded AMAZINGLY well to 1st Degree Snake-Fu, no heroic measures required, and I'm actually surprised how good it looks. Not quite as good as the '68 4-4-2, but not far behind. I don't like convertibles and will be looking (eventually) for some way to change that. Thinking of whacking the top off an AMT '70 and seeing if I can fit it as a black vinyl top, or perhaps turning it into a convertible up-top.

That's one of the cars I was thinking of that it looks BETTER than.

Go to Hobby Lobby or other craft store and look for/ask for "beading wire." There are several appropriate sizes and quantities and prices are very reasonable.

I just found one last week in the craft section of Walmart. Have been playing with it. I tend to like it so far. Haven't used it for window/shoe polish type markings yet, but it might work well for that. Well, except that the paint in it is glossy.

They 003s are about 1.344 tall by about .460 across the tread. The box calls them 11.75 x 16. The 004s are 1.165 x .415. Box calls them 10.5 x 15.

I like the way that bubble (on your Trumpeter) meets the hood at a definite junction rather than an indefinite curve. But all three of them have teardrops bigger than those seen on the real '65 Falcon (or Mustangs). Meanwhile, chassis painted black. Interior tub painted black. Wheel spokes painted black. Time for another set-together and Preview of Coming Attractions.

That one's 1/32.

I had occasion to go to a Rite-Aid in a different town today. Only a couple things there I hadn't seen before--a 1980 Alfa Romeo of some kind, and a black '57 Corvette that looked a bit oversized. They had another example of the silver '71 Chevelle convertible, which at least didn't have the scratched paint that the one in my local store for months has. So I bought it. Not a GREAT diecast, but where else you gonna get a '71 Chevelle for $10. Doesn't look like it will take too much Snake-Fu to be shelfworthy, so you should be seeing pics soon.

That IS pretty cool, and looks better than some similar efforts I could name from big-name custom builders.

So there is a full skull under the helmet, then?

Nice, and I don't think I've ever seen the Entex TR3 before!

VERY clean build! Well done and model on!

If you don't like the body, replace it with one from an inexpensive Revell snapper. Much more accurate and overall better looking.

Milestone progress on the EMPI! The three major parts of the chassis (floor pan, spine/transaxle, front suspension) are back together again, and new axle stubs (evergreen rod) have been mounted to the "brakes." All four axle stubs had broken off, or had to be SAWED off, as they were glued solid to the wheels. I also had to drill out and re-engineer the backs of the wheels themselves to fit the new stub axles (not shown--next time!). The work done so far probably represents AT LEAST 50% of what will be necessary to finish this model, and possibly quite a bit more. At any rate, the hard part--all the stuff I've been dreading for over 20 years--is done. Yay me! Meanwhile, back at the Falcon Ranch... AFX wanted to see the resin Southern Motorsports Hobby hood and the Model Car World hood. Here they are, SMH on the left, MCW on the right. The teardrops are roughly the same size, and both hoods seem to fit the body with little problem. The SMH hood is smoother, thinner, and more cleanly cast (note that the openings at the rear have only a very thin layer of flash; the MCW hood will probably have to be drilled out). I plan to use the MCW hood on this build, as it's being made out of recycled old junk anyway, and save the better SMH hood for a later build of a new kit. NOTE: MCW does not offer this hood separately, but agreed to sell me one since I was buying three complete kits of theirs at the same time. If you need a '65 Falcon teardrop hood, just go ahead and order one from Southern Motorsports Hobby.

I read somewhere that dogs have been the cause of more criminal homicides than any other issue except land/boundary disputes. I tend to doubt it (I'd guess either money or sex/infidelity would be #1), I'm just sayin' I read it somewhere.

I've never actually seen it, but for some reason I'm thinking Steve Martin's The Jerk.