ismaelg

First of all THANKS for taking the time to do this. As I have said before: Ask not what the hobby can do for you, ask what you can do for your hobby.... You don't mention the ages but it seems they are not small children. It is too soon to plan a Make and Take but you can arrange one for the near future. It is important to show them how much work goes into your models, by taking an unbuilt kit or maybe an assembled unpainted kit (I think that is reffered as a ghost build) so they can see the difference. Go thru the general steps you took to get from this to this. But important as well is to show them they can start easy and have a great loking model without the frustration of early complications. Show them common tools used and how you can use household stuff so you don't have to buy expensive gear to get started. Talk about the huge diversity in kits offerings: from pre-painted snappers to mainstream to specialties like Model Factory Hiro and others; from easy to insane, but most importantly, that there is something for every taste they may have in vehicles. Old, new, muscle, racing etc. Don't limit yourself to talk about car models. Let them know aircraft, armor, ships, figures etc. are other areas of the hobby. Show them that modeling is not just for kids, as the majority of us are adults (at least in age) and the hobby keep us young at heart. Tell them success stories on how modeling can help you develop fine motor skills, how it can teach you a lot about the vehicles during the research and construction and how modeling has opened doors to us to meet race car drivers and builders, owners of real vehicles and even get a ride in a super cool car. You can then talk about clubs, shows, the mag, the forum, GSL, NNLs etc. You can make an outline of the topics so you don't miss anything. But most importantly, show it is about having FUN! Thanks,

Not only it looks great so far, but I'll get the chance to see it in person soon.... Thanks,

Welcome back to the hobby! That looks great. If it's the first in 15 years, well that's even better! Thanks,

That's some very nice craftsmanship. Clean execution.

Ahhh It was you! I waved back but I was not sure if it were you or not

....Well, not really. Richard Prince is one of my heroes. He is the official photographer of Corvette Racing. He's been an automotive and motorsports photographer for years and his work is simply amazing. You can check his web site at http://www.rprincephoto.com/ and check the portfolios. Photography is another of my hobbies, and I had the honor of meeting him at Petit LeMans and talked cars and photography for a little while. He is an inspiration to me. I sat down last week with a friend who owns a photo studio and printing lab and from the hundreds of pictures I took in the Atlanta race, we chose 1 to be printed in the largest size he does (20x30) to see how the camera (and the photographer) performed. I'm proud to present my first poster as a photographer with copyright script and all. The other "finalists" were printed in 8x10 and some others in 5x7 but I'm confident they can all get pushed maybe up to 24x36 with no problems. By the way, the SS poster is a Roger Warrick piece signed by the artist. Thanks,

That 29 looks great. The cutaway project is soooooo cool for words! I'll be following up this one.... There is an article about the cutaway car in the January 1996 Corvette Fever. Thanks,

Glad to be back home and see this gorgeous build finished. Beautiful execution and the details are just right. There is a reason why you are quickly getting at the top of my favorite modeler's list. Not only execution but your subjects as well. Thanks,

Very cool! GREAT paint job and overall look. I wonder how it would look with a supercharged L-88... hmmm darn it! Now I want one! Thanks,

YES!!!!!!!!!!! Looks like I'll buy kits in 2008 after all!!!! Thanks for letting us know!

Looks great so far. Is it "box stock" as initially intended or have you added or modified anything?

it's 2008 here already!!! HAPPY NEW YEAR! (typing on a cell phone is not fun)

Cool! Very nice. One of my all time favorite cars. Nice collection you have there Saludos!

WOW! That's really nice. Great model of a great subject. Cool! Thanks,

Not much to add to all these excellent posts. My 2 tips are: 1: Work with a tripod or any other stable base to take advantage of available light. 2: Avoid flash to prevent harsh shadows. I like to use natural light, so I usually take my pictures indoors, but close to a door or a window on a bright sunny day. Direct sunlight will create harsh shadows and will sometimes confuse the camera's metering system. Like modeling itself: Practice and have fun with it! Thanks,

Hello, The 92nd running of the Indy 500 in 2008 will have not 1 but 2 Official Pace Cars. The opening pace lap will be done is a special E85 Ethanol running Z06 in a green to gold color changing scheme. Emerson Fittipaldi will drive it. The Other Official Pace car is a tribute to the 30th anniversary of 1978 Pace Car Corvette: A black and silver convertible. Pictures from the Official Indy 500 Website. Thanks,

Hello, I have learned in this hobby that the most important aspect is not the finished model itself, but the friendships you build along the way. I was honored today to have Rogelio and Ariel from New Jersey in my house. We had a great lunch and talked models and life for hours! What a great time! Looking forward to next time! Thanks,

No, no, no, no! Don't get me wrong! I bought one kit of the Revell Camaro AMONG the other things I bought .... and I went back the next day to finish it off Dave, that looks good. Mine is waiting its turn at the bench. Thanks,

Hello, Proud papa moment: It is every modeler's dream to have somebody to pass the torch on. My son is only 7 and he has done a few pre-painted diecast models. But like many other kids his age, he is crazy about dinosaurs. So Santa got him 2 Tamiya 1/35 dinos. Yesterday he wanted to work on it and off we went to the workbench. As much as I was tempted to putty the seams and airbrush some colors, he wanted to do it himself. He only asked for help with the glue to prevent a messy spill. In about an hour he was done and very proud. He wants to paint it so I will let him use the acrylics later. In the process he made 2 important comments: 1: "This is fun" 2:"This is not as easy as I thought" so he is getting an appreciation for craftsmanship. Yes I'm proud More pics here hmm, now I want to build one myself Thanks,

Thanks Brendan! That's very nice of you! I found a copy of the book in England. Gotta love the internet. But it's missing a page: Page 67-68. Can you check what's on those pages? Just in case I may be missing something important. How did your build go? Got pics? Thanks,

Thank you all for your nice comments! Sorry for the late response. I'm out of town for the holidays with limited online time. Mike, The IMSA Corvette GTP is next in line. As soon as I finish the current project I'll work on it. The masking and painting of it is keeping me from sleeping well... Thanks,

Hello, Not much progress during the holidays. I'm working on the headers now. The plastic ones were OK but you can't reason with insanity. It still needs a few tweaks and paint but you get the general idea. The challenge will be to do the mirror image on the other side and have them look symmetrical. But I won't have time to work on it for a few weeks. Thanks,

Merry Christmas everybody! I'm out of town visiting with family so not much online time. Among many other things like tools and Corvette calendars, my sister got me a reference grail I've been looking for years! Noland Adams Corvette: American Legend book #4: 1957 Fuel injection / 283 V-8 I've been trying to get this book ever since I started working on the SS years ago. Now I can continue working on the SR-2! Tons of reference material including detailed descriptions, pictures, diagrams etc! Definitely a grail in my library! Thanks,

Hello! Time for my traditional year end modeling poll. My current project will most likely NOT be finished by the end of December, so I'm confident that my Class of 2007 is set. This was a very diverse modeling year for me. For the first time in many years most finished models were not Corvettes. Don't get me wrong, I love them more than ever, but it was time to let other subjects into my bench You can vote for your favorite and I'll compare the results with my own ranking. Ladies and Gentlemen: My class of 2007 in chronological order: La Chopa Atomica Click here for more pics and details Box Stock Ferrari 612 (commissioned) Click here for more pics and details 2003 Porsche 996 GT3 Click here for more pics and details Porsche Cayman S Click here for more pics and details Snap Porsche Boxster Turbo Click here for more pics and details Vespa 50s Click here for more pics and details C6R Racing Corvette Click here for more pics and details McDonnel XV-1 Click here for more pics and details Merry Christmas and looking forward to a wonderful modeling 2008! Thanks,

Nice color on a cool car! Good job!