Nytrozilla

Today was a surprise. After NASCAR (and a short nap), I started back to work and I like what I've done. The first thing I decided was, this thing needs a fire extinguisher. My guess is the real (?) car would have a Halon system, but the center console has a big gap and nature abhors a vacuum. It was too tall for starters, so after I clipped it above the bottom bracket, I removed the remaining bracket. Next I took some craft wire and squished it in a vise to give it some texture for the new brackets. Then I made a hose and painted the bottle. While I was fiddling in that area of the console I kept looking at the handles on both sides of the seats. That's when it hit me that this bad motivator needs some serious "Hang On For Dear Life" handles. Craft wire to the rescue again. The back of the car is next. See ya then.

Thanks for sharing Dave. Bookmarked for future frustration, uh, reference.

Anytime I can get an endorsement on a Batmobile from a guy named Bruce, I'll take that as a good omen. Thank you. Here's where we are up to now, uh, as opposed to later. I finished the nose and strut installation. The wheels and firewall wings are dry fit for now until I put the axles in the front rims. I managed to mix up some touch up paint for both the light and dark colors. Would be nice if Model Master sprays had matching bottles for touch up. I was going to tell you what comes next, but I forgot to look and I'm too lazy to check it, so it'll be a surprise for us all on the next update. Thanks for looking.

Well, this oughta knock out any ideas of going Box Stock on this build. I couldn't look at the center console seam or the empty HUD space at the top of the control console any longer. For the console, I sliced up a piece of a fruit cup lid and dropped it in place. Yes, it's clean. I licked it first. For the HUD, this was fun. First I looked for decals and spotted my prey amongst some Munster decals. Then I looked for some clear green plastic in my stash. Not the first time I've come up empty, so I hope you like blue. Tonite I'll do the nose windows. The side windows refuse to cooperate, so they'll get acetate too. Enjoy the pics.

If following this build has taught me one thing, it's to have a defibrillator and oxygen standing by for updates like, well, this one for instance. When the situation arises among my fellow modelers, I like to remind folks that if it wasn't for the masters who design and manufacture the kits, we wouldn't have them to make our masterpieces. Tim, your skills belong among the designers. Now, where's that stupid, "We are not worthy", emoticon?

......so I don`t have much of an up-date...... Except for the part where your detail blows away everybody on the planet.

A possible solution for the hood might be to find / make an ultra thin washer for the bottom of the hood mounts that would be a larger diameter. Then you could sink them and glue them under the hood. Last resort? Drop the pin mounts on the firewall. Either way, I love it over all Richard. Keep cranking.

The only explanation can be is that his Minions were the ones on the Oscars last night. They obviously rehearsed the routine for weeks.

I need to start with the acknowledgement that this is a very well designed build, construction wise. With a few recommendations. Locating pins people !!!!! The long tab and slot between the dash and firewall allows the parts to slide up and down and there are no clear instructions on how to align them. So I butted the top of the dash up to the top of the firewall and set it aside to dry. I was relieved that, at no time during tree removal, clean-up and paint, did I manage to snap the top of the very flimsy, warped dash. The next day I tried to install it, (dry fit, thankfully), only to discover the dash needed to come down about 1/4". So I whipped out my handy dandy razor saw and separated the pieces to try again. Once that was in place, I had to modify the door panels where they meet the dash, again, due to poor fit. Thankfully, the rear panel fell into place. My recommendation? If you use tab and slot, mold a raised "stop" into the part to, well, you know, stop it. One good word of advice that Moebius gives is, since the top of the floorboard stays black, paint the bottom after assembly. I sanded off the logo and other miscellaneous kit ID markings, then masked and shot. I'm happy with the result. ON TO THE NOSE !!!!!!!!! Here I go again. First things first. There is a HUGE ejector pin on the tab at the top of the nose. It won't allow you to even attempt to insert the tab. Major sanding and X-Acto shaving is required to get the nose to lay down. It still needs some help due to the remaining gap. Minor, but annoying nonetheless. Also, they should have beveled the edges of the center glass because the side windows refused to go into place. Instead, I replaced the center class with a piece of clear acetate. You'll see that in place on the next update. Finally, the masking lines will get blended or covered by parts or camo decals. Keep on swimming, Keep on swimming, Just keep swimming...........Dory

It's a perfect fit Bro. Patience and persistence win the day again.

Clayton gave you some great advice Chris. I also prescribe to the big build, little build theory. I'm taking a break from the Nomad and building a Camo Batman Tumbler for the son of friends. I'm having a good time doing it and it's progressing nicely. I'm coming out of hibernation and this is a great ice breaker. It's in All The Rest if you haven't seen it. It might even show up at DSC for grins and giggles. Glad to hear you're taking a shot at it. I hate it when my idler is all caddywampus.

I like it Brent. Since the radiator is already the fuel tank, you won't need to put a tank between the rad and the puke tank. You've saved a ton of space already.

Chin up Buckaroo! Those are stunning looking parts, especially the belts. I can't suggest a fix and I'm sure you already know how it happened. It might not be a bad idea to sacrifice one to make it work, with the exception that it would have to stay and you couldn't put a replacement on there after. Do what's right for the build and yourself. Manufacturer's delay releases on kits to fix a flaw. No reason why you can't too. Hang in there Brother.

It's been a good couple of days and detail paint is done, minus touch up, and assembly has started. Here's the cockpit mocked up with the completed center console and control console. I will be covering the seams. Only the passenger seat has seat belts. I will "borrow" the car from it's new owner to enter it in Box Stock categories or I would have made harnesses for both seats. It might have to go in Sci-Fi / Fantasy if they don't allow the computer screen decals. The wheels and tires are done as well. Sanding the rear tires was a challenge because of the shoulder tread blocks. Every other tread segment is lower than the surrounding ones, so I hit each one the best I could. It's good enough for the girls that John Teresi goes with........ See y'all next time.

I'm all in Brent.

My question is not if you'll get it done before DSC. I wanna know if you'll have the NEXT one done for DSC?

The last few days have produced moderate progress. I've started on engine detail and knocked out a ton of computer screens. A total of 7 if I got that right. I apologize for the poor pics because the detail shows up better in real life. For instance, the front spindle braces at the bottom of the 3rd pic are moderate wash, not heavy like you see. There's another fun thing I'm looking forward to. A while back, I stocked up on a variety of "The Detailer" washes and I've been experimenting. They are now one of those "must haves" for realistic shadowing. I won't do another model without them. The wheels are almost done and I'm ready to assemble the seats. Assembly of the whole thing will start soon. Thanx for looking and enjoy the bad pics. Next month I'll put together a photography table and lighting.

I see your evil plan Dave. You just want to keep me hanging around to wait and see what you put the blown HEMI into. Clever sir. It worked like a champ. On the " non-smart a** " side of things, your bends are a thing of beauty. Helps to own every tool you could ever need, huh? Or is it low tech genius?

Anybody else notice how often the word "insane" keeps popping up here? I'm just waiting for the post where I get to make the joke about Tim "strutting" his stuff. Now who's insane? Zilla <-----------

.....and the reality meter jumps another notch past maximum.

You find and build your GRAIL project. You spent a full year and countless tears on your "Great American Model", only to find 2 just like it sitting on the table at the next contest. And they're better.

Niko, I've followed your builds for a long time and you improve your skills by leaps and bounds every time. Excellent work young'n. I wrote the above before I read Brad's comment, so I'm sticking with it. I second that emotion Brad.

That is one beautiful piece of art Brad. I'm so glad you went with a dull cap on the front spokies. Looks perfect.

You actually made my day. I've got 3 stalled projects to your 7. Thank you Bill. I'm sure when the inspiration hits, you'll be all over it.

My pleasure Kevin. It does look like a Transformer having a really bad day. Got some more detail work done today. Concentrating on wings and so forth. The dash computer screens are decals stolen from Slixx Contingency sheets. They'll get epoxy lenses. See y'all next time around.