MrBuick

Mine arrived today. It's another one of the minimal detail kits, which I'm not thrilled with, but I've already ranted about that somewhere else, and if I want to build certain kits, it looks like that's just something I have to live with. Some of these aren't the best quality...I'm sitting around in my underroos getting ready to hit the sack and didn't take the time to bother with "good" photos...let me know if you want more detailed photos of something specific. Without further adieu...

Thanks for the kind words folks.

Awesome...excited to see the outcome. I love a good gasser.

I've use Testors clear parts cement to make the chrome lights look a little better...it's still not as good as an actual lens, but it comes out better than just leaving it alone, and you can put several 'coats' on until you're satisfied with the look...the best part is, if you mess it up or aren't happy with the way it looks, it's pretty easy to remove.

Not sure where you find info about the soon to be issued kit, but is it like this one? http://www.hobbylinc.com/amt-1950-ford-convertible-plastic-model-car-kit-1:25-scale-929

Newest build in my collection. Overall I had fun with this kit...I had a few fitment issues with the front and rear rollpan and it didn't turn out perfect, but I'm happy enough with it to not try to strip it down to correct it. However, I think I may order a pre-wired dist. and wire the engine.

So I'm not really sure where to ask this, so I'll start here. I'm thinking of making a semi-replica of the '49 Mercury from Grease...not necessarily a 1:1, but at least inspired by. Does anybody have any tutorials on the best way to turn a hardtop into a convertible? I will be using the AMT '49 Merc Club Coupe, and I do have a few junker bodies (not Mercs, but still) to practice on, but any foresight, hints, tricks, gotcha's, etc. would be greatly appreciated. This will be my first "customization" of a model that goes beyond adding a few kit-bashed parts, but I figure it's probably not all that difficult (I'm guessing that the convertible boot will likely be the most complicated part). Contrarily, if you know of any Resin convertible Mercs, I may be interested in that as well...I just haven't found any. Picture should give you an idea of what I'm going for.

Looks awesome! Has the wood bed kit been discontinued? I can't seem to find it on their website.

Just finished up a trade with larry ray. Easy to deal with and a smooth trade.

I guess I realize that now (buyer beware), but I didn't when I purchased it, because I have a few other "retro kits" from AMT that don't share this same problem. As for just enjoying a trip down memory lane...I'm 29 and have been modeling for about a year or so, so there's no nostalgia in it for me. I may be new to the hobby, but I'm patient and I've built enough kits to not be intimidated by more complicated builds. I struggle more with achieving high-quality paint jobs than I do with detail building (using included parts, I've not dove into wiring engines quite yet). I guess the real reason it bugs me is because I paid the same price for it that I've paid for much higher quality models...if it were significantly less expensive, I wouldn't be as annoyed. Oh well, lesson learned...I'll probably just keep it around and use a few of the nicer parts for other builds (roll cage, tires, chrome pieces), and at least I can use the body as practice for my new airbrush that's in the mail or maybe even use it to practice weathering. I'll definitely pay more attention to these "retro kits" before I buy another one, as I was under an assumption that this level of detail was only found in snap kits, and I'm simply not eager to pay the same price for this level of quality as I do for superior products.

Top of hood...you can clearly see where I'll need to fill. I also need to do a tiny bit of sanding on some glue that I got overzealous with. Bottom of hood...the back of the scoop (flat part) is where I'll be puttying. I'll probably fill the holes as well.

I haven't started building this yet, and frankly I'm not sure I will, but I wanted to share my opinion of this kit for those of you who may not have seen one and are thinking of getting one. I'm extremely disappointed in the quality of this kit. The detail is pretty bad...the exhaust and suspension are all molded into the chassis, the engine doesn't seem accurate to me, and the transmission is shorter than it should be because it buts up to the molded in drive train on the chassis, so without more skill and experience than I have, you're not going to be able to build a very detailed model. Oh, I almost forgot...the front axle runs through the oil pan on the engine. I'd planned on making a road-race Mustang out of this, but I honestly don't know if I will, because although I am not nearly as skilled as many of you, this is closer to a toy than it is a model and I think it'll nag at me every time I look at it. The hood also made me mad...it comes with a flat, stock hood with the option of putting a scoop on it. The problem is, although they recommend cutting an opening for the scoop, there's no stencil or anything for it, and I mis-judged the size of the opening a bit so will have to do a bit of body filling. It's not a big deal, and it was at least partially my fault, but on top of everything else it's extra frustrating. I will mention, there are some very nice pieces...the tires are very nice and you get 3 options, and the chrome is nice. Any suggestions on how to make built this as good as possible (in case I actually decide to build it) would be appreciated, but keep in mind, I'm fairly new to the hobby, so cutting the molded in detail out of the chassis and kit-bashing stuff is probably beyond my capabilities at this point.

Good eye, not many people seem to know that the Apollo exists! The photo is of a '74 Apollo GSX, but that one in the picture isn't mine. I own a '73 that I rescued from a salvage yard that I'm slowly working on...my long term plans are to auto cross it, so I'm gonna be doing a lot of suspension work in the future. Here's mine as it sits now (technically I have two, but the black one is a donor). It's pretty rough right now...I put the engine in at the salvage yard so I could drive it home, so I was more concerned about getting from A to B than cleaning up and making it pretty...that'll come with time.

I know this is really old, but I've found WD40 and/or Lava soap (with WD40 in it) works really really well. Most of the time I can get by with just running the brush over a bar of Lava soap under a warm tap until it's clean. If that doesn't do it, a 10-20 minute soak in some WD40 does the trick. The best part is that it's really cheap. I can get Lava soap for about $1.50/per bar and a gallon of WD40 for $20 at the hardware store. A bar usually lasts for 6 months to a year (depending on how often you use it obviously), and a gallon of WD40 should last a lifetime if this is all it's used for.

http://www.hobbylobby.com/Crafts-Hobbies/Model-Kits/Paint-Brushes/Pin-Vice-with-Drill-Bits/p/1225 Try one of these...they've helped me out with this exact problem before.

Looking great! I'm so looking forward to seeing the body...judging by how good it looks so far, I'll be bugging you for some tips on painting the wood trim around where the decals go.

They all look great to me. Which one are you most anticipating getting done?

They're certainly great cars (as you can tell by my username, I'm partial to [old] Buicks). Also, you did a great job replicating the real thing.

Love it! I'm negotiating with a guy on purchasing a GS with a Stage 1 package of my own (a real one). One of the finest muscle cars ever IMO.

That thing is beautiful. I'm normally not a big bug fan but this makes me want to build one.

Beautiful!

Cool, thanks again for the help guys. I'm gonna try just doing the silver and a black wash over it. Fortunately I've got a junk wheel that I can test with.

I've tried trimming out the slots on a junk wheel...I either lack the skill or the necessary tools to do it cleanly. However, do you guys think I'd be better off de-chroming the wheels, then laying down my silver and black, then doing the chrome detail with chrome paint (the name escapes me at the moment...the Chrome spray can that everyone's always referencing around here)?

Wow, looking great! Question that may be better suited for a different area of the forum, but I saw this picture and it made me think of it. I built one of these kits and the clear edges of the decal are pretty visible. How did you get yours so the edges don't show?