Tommy Kortman

Thanks again guys! I sometime think that the part of this hobby that I like the most (aside from the friends that you make) is the research stage. I love that discovery phase and the feeling you get when you discover something new. I especially love it when you can disprove those "they never built one like that" statements. For this project however, the research would not have been nearly as extensive as it was without my good friend, fellow club member, and fellow MCM board mate Fernando Roman. At the time I started this project my access to the internet was extremely limited. Fernano was kind enough to help me out and was able to really get me some quality information. It was his info that showed me how much this car had changed during it's lifetime. In fact it was through his photos that I was able to determine that the Valvoline decal on the Fuel tank inside the car was only applied to the R/H side of the tank. (I dont think I included a pic of this.) He was even able to get me some photos of the original coach before it was transformed. Here is the display card I made for the model. I just found out that if you would like to own this piece of American Automotive history, it will be auctioned of by RM Auctions on Sept 29 2009 in LA. Check out the link. RM Auto Auctions - Boot Hill Express

Excellent Job!! The color is phenomenal!!! Very clean.

Oh man those are fantastic!! You must have a soft spot for masking tape. Those scallops look AMAZING!!! How long did it take you to mask all of that out? I am JEALOUS!!!

Go for it!! This was a good kit to build. Although it did need some work. Remember, it's an old mold. If you do take a crack at it, I'd be glad to help in any way I can. Let me know. You're gonna love trying to cover that orange plactic.

Sorry about the mother hen deal Shane. Being on the old picture box here makes it tough to know what someones background is. I know a guy who is now having all kinds of health issues because of the isocyanates (Sp?). So it's just kind of a habit now to be extra careful. Anyway, Like I said before I have only used the U-Tek Urethane. This is a much cheaper ($$) product used by std body shops. I shot it through a badger 150 using the "H" needle. I mixed the first batch according to the can, but i had trouble shooting it. The can gave a 4:1 ratio of clear to hardener. I discovered that i had to thin the mix to shoot it through the airbrush. I used virgin lacquer thinner (med temp). I probably should have used the appropriate reducer, but this is what i had available. It worked fine. I came up with a 4:1:1 mix of clear, thinner, hardener. If I remember correctly I shot it at about 40psi. It work wonderfully. What I really like about the Urethane other than the perpetual wet look, was how easy it made the final polishing step. So far i have only shot the U-tek over HoK and I have only had one problem. On my first attempt (On the Gold Rush 50 Merc in the under glass section) I sprayed the coats a little to heavy, and way to close together. It alligatored the HoK Pearl underneath. I had to strip the body and start over. BTW Urethane clear will make stripping a little tougher. I use a model railroad product called Chameleon. It will take off any paint I have tried yet. It usually will loosen the paint in about 10/15 minutes. With the urethane it begrudgingly started to loosen up the clear and underlying paint after about 30/45 min. It did all come off though. Good Luck!!!

From what I've found it's the same stuff. What was different was the Kustom Kolor stuff that they were selling in Walmart and some hobby shops. This stuff was a different formula. What Black Gold (and some others including Coast Air) are doing is simply decanting smaller amounts for sale to hobbyists.

...the x-acto knife rolls off the bench and into your foot!!!!!

Tx, While I cant give you any more tips than the excellent ones you already recieved in this thread. I would like to add that you do NOT skimp when it comes to the respirator. The 3 part (clear, thinner, hardner) is nasty stuff. I bought U-tek Clear (cleap stuff about $35.00 per gal), but I probably spent double that on the respirator. Along with the mask, and gloves, I also wear a long sleeve shirt when I'm shooting this stuff. It can be absorbed throught the skin. ALWAYS PROTECT YOURSELF!!!

Running down the length of the car on both sides was a depression that had to be filled. It was the same on both sides and they were indentical so I dont think it was a casting flaw. The Wheel opening moldings were a little trying. Just make sure you use a brand new piece of BMF.

WOW!!! They're all nice builds. I'd like to play too, so here's my entry. It's the AMT Kit. (If I ever do another one, I think I'll use the Revell Kit) I had to correct the body side profile before it even looked OK. The cowl vent is scratch built, the decals are from Keith Marks, and the paint is from MCW. I hope I'm not over stepping the boundries, but here's a couple shots of the 69 Chevelle I built at the same time i was doing the 70. It is also an AMT kit. I made this one an automatic. The paint is Fathom Green from Testors. (Nice paint btw) The tail lights had to be scratch built because the ones in the AMT kit were horrible!!

I gotta go with Bill on this one. I had 2 of the Gunze Kits. When Harold came out with his, I got rid of both of them. Harold's is by far the best I've seen.

You mean the Clintons? Absolutely!!

Nice Job Don. I like the classic "Old School" look. It looks like all classic street rods should look.

Thanks to everyone for the kind words. It means alot coming from this group.

Thanks Scott. No it has not been on any other site than this one. I did have it at NNL East a couple of years ago where it was photographed by our most benevolent leader.

All that research would not have been possible at that time without your help. Muchos Gracias Amigo.

I built this about a year or so ago. It was the re-release from Revell-Monogram. It was molded in that lovely orange plastic. Research showed that this car has changed a little over the years. The steering column and wheel have changed a few times. and the suspension has been changed a couple of times too. At one point the car had a roll hoop attached for drag strip exhibitions.Currently the car has purple and orange pin striping. I tried to replicate a version that i had seen in and old ISCA show car program. The injector tubes are scratch built from aluminum tubing. Some of the bright work is polished aluminum flashing. I hope you like it. This guy is modified from the skeleton in the kit. I cut him apart at the joints and added wire between the joints so i could pose him in the classic gunfighter pose. I always thought this was a cool Show Rod.

Thanks guys! The seat took about 12/15 hours over a weekend. I think this is how I would want a roadster if I were to build a 1:1 version.

Michael, Thanks man. I dig your signature photo. I built one of those about a year ago. I will post the photos tonight.

Thanks Mike. The eyeball is my little homage to Von Dutch. I made it with one of those sewing pins with the plastic ball on it. The bat wings are evergreen sheet.

Thanks guys, I've seen some of your stuff, and I'm honored that y'all like it. I did start with the Revell 49 Merc. Research showed that the 49 & 50 were almost the same except for some badging which the real car did not have anyway. The louvered hood is from the revell kit. The body only needed minor work. First I turned it into a hard top. Then I filled in the front marker lights and created the "teardrops" under the headlights. Lastly I fillled in the kit tail light holes, and frenched in a stock set of tail lights from the AMT 49 Merc. The most work was done on the bumpers. The front bumper was shaved, narrowed, and flipped upside down. The rear bumper was also narrowed, shaved, and had the overrider from the AMT kit added before it was frenched into the rear quarter panels. Unfortunately this piece does not have a motor. I built it as a curbside so I could concentrate on the exterior. I tend to focus on the motors a lot and this time I really wanted to concentrate on the exterior. Thanks again for all of the wonderful words.

Thanks for the kind words. The engine actually came from 3 sources. The block, heads, headers, and pan came from the Revell Rat Rod T-bucket. This is also where the frame came from. This kit is a re-realease of the old Roth Tweedy Pie. Since the motor in the Tweedy Pie was a Pontiac, I did some modification to create a small block Chevy. The most work had to be done to the headers. The Blower,injector, and injector scoop are from the Amt bantam Blast Fuel Altered. The valve covers came from the MPC re-release of the 57 Corvette gasser this is where I also got the powerglide tranny. I scratchbuilt the blower intake and front motor mount to get more overall height. I also had to scatch build the blower belt. It's evergreen styrene sheet and .010" rod for the ribbing. The blower cases chrome is the way it came out of the Bantam box. The scoop is Alclad Polished Aluminum and the headers are Alclad chrome with heat treating from Tamiya clear blue & orange. I also used Tamiya's weathering powders for the soot at the collector. Thanks again. I'm glad you all liked them.

I built this one a few years ago. It made a couple of pictures. It was inspired by the art of Big Daddy Ed Roth, Robert Williams, and George Trosley. The motor and wheels came from Repl & Min of Md. The P/E grill and "hood" are from Model Car Garage. The Seat upholstery is scratchbuilt from 60 individual peices of styrene. Here's a link to some more photos of the Widow. The Widow

This was inspired by the Burbank Choppers car of the same name. Unilke Gold Rush, it was not modeled after an actual car. The body is from Repl & Min of Md. Paint is HoK Passion pearl. The scratch built tuck & roll roof apholstery is HoK Snow Flake Pearl. The body has been channeled over the frame because I wanted the injector hat at or above roof height. The motor is also raised up. Here's a link to some more photos of this car Purple People Eater

Playing with the camera tonight so I thought I'd post some photos of some of my stuff. I apologize in advance for any issues with color, lighting, focus, etc. I was trying some stuff. Here goes. This is a 50 Merc that I did as a model of an actual car that was featured in Rod & Custom. Color is HoK Pagan Gold pearl. (same as the real car) The scallops are custom decals. The bullets are Bob Dudek pieces. The flying eyeball in the back window is scratch built. The color on this one is blown out on purpose because it was the only way i could get the digital dash to show up. I hope you like it.